Final Week #2

Throughout this class I have learned many things regarding New Media and Web 2.0 sites. One of the most important things I have learned is that social networking sites are utilized by human resources departments as a type of preliminary screening during their hiring practices. Another important thing I learned was the 'digital divide;' this has to do with the availability of types of new media technologies based on an individual's region or area where they live. I also learned about the ways social and political movements utilize new media and the internet for political campaigns and organization; this was through my own research and writing for the final paper.

My favorite thing about this class is the relevance to today's media world. Most things we covered in this course will be important and relevant for much of my life because it is regarding new technologies that have prevailed into popularity. Some people today are uninformed regarding the use of internet web 2.0 services and the knowledge I acquired in this class will benefit me for years to come.

My least favorite thing about this class was that it was entirely online. I'm used to meeting my fellow classmates and the instructor of my class, so having online classes takes away the face-to-face interactions I find most beneficial to learning. That aside, I don't believe there was anything I disliked about the course. A possible improvement I'd suggest would be to make this course a hybrid class; by having the class meet in person once a week, it would be easier for students to understand what is expected if them and it would allow the students to meet their classmates and the instructor.

~T

Final Week #1

This class exposed me to a plethora of interesting and fascinating concepts. One of the readings I found most interesting came from Jordan's "A Virtual Death and a Real Dilemma." Swenson's blog about an imaginary daughter dying caught my interest immediately; I wasn't so interested in her 'lie,' but instead in the amount of people attracted to the blog! Thousands of people were concerned about a girl they had never met before, but they felt connected with her because they had be interacting with her blog online. This event exemplified the possibilities of online fraud, internet security, internet communities, and questions of morality online; this was so interesting to me because I never see people as passionate about strangers through face-to-face interactions, yet online, these people seemed to care a great deal about this young girl! Another aspect of this dilemma I found interesting was the fact that if skeptics of Swenson's blog weren't so adamant in figuring out the true identity of the person posting the blogs, there would have be no dramatic after-effects.

~T