The New Media

Technological convergence

Cultural convergence

Economic convergence

Digitalisation

Interactivity

Commercialisation

Participatory culture

Collective intelligence

84% of adults use internet in and outside of the home (2015) whereas only 54% did in (2005)

Adults use the internet for 20.5 hours per week (2015) whereas in (2005) they only used it for 9.5 hours per week

Generation divide

Digital class divide

Digital gender divide

Global digital divide

Neophiliacs

Cultural Pessimists

Lack of regulation

Alone together

New media as chaos

New media is beneficial to contemporary society because:

1) increased consumer choice

2) e-commerce society

3) revitalising democracy

The revolution of new media has been exaggerated

1) new media is not so new

2) domination by media conglomerates

3) commercialisation

4) reinforces elite power

5) decline in the quality of popular culture

New media is in need of state regulation

1) easy access to sexual sites, homophobic/racist sites and sites that incite terrorism. Takes freedom of speech too far

2) given a new rise in cyberbullying and online trolling

Counter argument:  the irresponsible use of internet a price worth paying for to keep freedom of speech

New media users are 'cyborgs' - always connected to each other

People now live full time on the web and are constantly checking for updates, texts etc.

New media connects people digitally but isolates them in reality

Internet is chaotic because there is no governing moral code and truth is selective and subject to change

Criticise new media

1) Facebook and blogging does not contribute to the democratic process in any way

2) User generated sites like Wikipedia, are open to abuse therefore they are unreliable

3) Uninformed opinion, trolling and lies are now the norm

4) The internet contributes to cultural illiteracy