2 Article Summaries (20)

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jan/28/apple-quarterly-results-iphone-silicon-valley-developers

Apple – losing out on talent and in need of a killer new device

Summary:
Apple has been losing its popularity as a potential working area and is no longer a company where engineers would want to work in after the great tech boom. The company is no longer attractive to new young talent and people are choosing other big companies such as Facebook or Alphabet (Google's new parent company). For Apple to gain popularity again, instead of making new iPhones, Apple need to create new ideas and projects.

Key Data:

• At Apple, you’re gonna be working 60-80 hours a week and some VP will come yell at you at any moment?
• The Silicon Valley computing giant is stumbling. With news of massive but slowing sales, its stock price fell 6.5% after its results on 27 January, to $93.42
•  a springtime high of $133.
• Apple’s market value is now $522.63bn, down from a high of $774.69bn in February 2015.

My View:

Apple has been coming up with similar ideas for the past few years and i think in order to gain back the popularity they lost they need to create something the new generation would be very interested in. 

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jan/29/twitters-us-users-fall-by-third-two-years-report

Twitter's US users fall by a third in two years - report

Summary:

Twitter reported 255m monthly active users, while in its most recent quarterly results, in September 2015, it reported 320m users. There could be multiple reasons for this decline in users and that being that one is that Twitter’s growth in monthly active users could have come from real users who have declined to install the mobile app. These users would not show up in 7Park’s data, which is drawn from a panel of mobile users who have agreed to share app usage data.

Key Data:

• The figures contradict Twitter’s own numbers, which report a 25% growth over the same period. 
• 7Park says that Twitter’s second social network, Vine, has also suffered falls, declining to less than three-fifths of its April 2014 install base.
• In that month, Twitter was installed on 36.1% of US mobile devices, according to 7Park, while Vine was installed on 5%. Today, that has fallen to 25% and 2.9% respectively.
• The company’s weekly active users, the number who open the app each week, has fallen too, from 15% to 10.5% for Twitter and 1.7% to 0.8% for Vine.

My view:

In my opinion, as having used twitter as a for of interaction, the decline may simply be due to the fact hat it is getting old to those who have been on it for a long while. 

Identities and the Media: Feminism

Are we living in a post-feminist state? Do you agree there is still a need for feminism? To what extent does the media contribute to the identity created for women in popular culture? These are some of the questions we need to consider in this next section of our Identities and the Media unit.

Media Magazine reading

1) Read Playing With The Past: Post-feminism and the Media (MM40, page 64 - our Media Magazine archive is here).

2) What are the two texts the article focuses on?

-HBO’s Pan Am

-Beyoncé’s music video for ‘Why Don’t You Love Me’

3) What examples are provided from the two texts of the 'male gaze' (Mulvey)?

-The first image of the Pan Am stewardesses is one which is highly constructed and mediated, an image whose purpose is to be admired and aspired to by women, and visually enjoyed by men.

-Beyoncé parodies the stereotype of the 1950s housewife. With over twelve costume changes, all exaggerated versions of the Fifties looks presenting a playful, nostalgic version of the time, and highlighting the performative nature of femininity. The dress codes are highly sexualised; the costumes include tight high-waisted knickers, a vintage style bra, Fifties pedal pushers with cats-eye-shaped glasses, suspenders and stockings which all allow the audiences to appreciate Beyoncé’s ‘credentials’.

4) Do texts such as these show there is no longer a need for feminism or are they simply sexism in a different form?

- I think there is still a need for feminism as texts like these are seen to be more sexist than empowering in the eyes of many as the women are shown to be sexualised and objectified.

5) Choose three words/phrases from the glossary of the article and write their definitions on your blog.
Feminism – A movement aimed at defining, establishing, and defending women’s rights and equality to men. 

Post-feminism – An ideology in culture and society that society is somehow past needing feminism and that the attitudes and arguments of feminism are no longer needed. 

Third wave feminism – Was a movement that redefined and encouraged women to be dominant and sexually assertive.

No More Page 3

1) Research the No More Page 3 campaign. Who started it and why?
- Lucy Anne Holmes started the campaign as it was exploiting and sexualising women.

2) What are the six reasons the campaign gives for why Page 3 has to go?

-Page 3 is was seen to be sexist

-The Sun was using sexualised images of women being used to decorate news stories both featuring and aimed at men
-They were portraying women as primarily decorative sexual objects
-People associated the models and Page 3's with rape culture
-Children shouldn't be exposed to sexual content on newspaper front pages

-"Boobs are not news"

3) Read this debate in the Guardian regarding whether the campaign should be dropped. What are Barbara Ellen and Susan Boniface's contrasting opinions in the debate?

Susie Boniface:

The campaign to stop Page 3
Page 3 girls considered they were sexually empowered and celebrating the female form. 

There a lot of other far more serious, demeaning or damaging things in the world that women don’t consent to we could be campaigning about instead?

Barbara Ellen
If Page 3 was dreary, dated, and offensive before, now it sits like a pathetic leering bare-breasted woolly mammoth amid modern enlightened sensibilities.
The very passivity of Page 3 is offensive
It does not matter that, compared to other pornography, the photos are “tame” or “lame” – women’s bodies are neither lame nor tame. 

4) How can the No More Page 3 campaign be linked to the idea of post-feminism?

The purpose of this campaign is to stop the media promoting gender inequality and patriarchy so this could be seen as a progression towards feminist or even show it being an example of being the post-feminist movements that society think we're in.

5) What are your OWN views on the No More Page 3 campaign. Do you agree with the campaign's aims? Should the campaign continue?

I agree with the campaigns and I don't think such a page should continue to exist as it is degrading and disrespectful to portray women as sex objects. Considering the newspaper could fall into the hands of anyone, even young children, it should absolutely be abolished as it will allow children to believe that seeing women portrayed in this sexist way as being acceptable, which it is not. If people wish to see explicit pictures like these then there are other means to do so privately, but to publicly support such images on newspapers where women are seen as mere objects is disgusting and unacceptable.

6) Do you agree that we are in a post-feminist state or is there still a need for feminism?

I think that we are not post-feminist state because there is still a need for feminism as although women's rights have improved over the years, there is still a lot of inequality between the sexes.

2 article summaries (19)

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/jan/21/sun-website-traffic-paywall-december

Sun website traffic falls by more than 5% despite axing of paywall

Summary:

The Sun saw a more than 5% fall in its audience in December, despite dropping its paywall fully for the first time on 30 November. Much of the site’s content was also already free before the paywall was officially dropped, as the site began relaxing its approach to charging for online content last summer. However, the Sun outperformed the rest of the UK’s national newspapers, which saw bigger falls during the month. Their Christmas traffic declines followed gains made in November, which were partly driven by public interest in stories such as the Paris attacks.

Key Data:

• Theguardian.com fell from an average of more than 9 million daily unique browsers in November to just under 8 million, a drop of 15%.
• The Telegraph slid to 4.1 million after losing almost 1 million unique browsers, equivalent to almost 20% of its audience.
• All the other national newspapers saw double-digit declines, except Mail Online, which lost just under 10% of its audience 

Mail Online 13,182,486 (-9.9%)
theguardian.com 7,847,537 (-15.4%)
Telegraph 4,038,417 (-19.59%)
Mirror Group Nationals 3,994,246 (-15.79%)
The Independent 2,796,267 (-14.68%)
The Sun 1,525,662 (-5.63%)
Metro 1,117,256 (-22.96%)
express.co.uk 1,065,378 (-18.72%)
dailystar.co.uk 594,230 (-8.8%)

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jan/20/news-corp-denies-rumors-twitter-acquisition

News Corp denies rumors company wants to buy Twitter

Summary:

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp said rumors about the company’s interest in buying microblogging site Twitter or building a stake in it were untrue. Unconfirmed chatter about potential News Corp interest in Twitter circulated on Wednesday. The social media site was evaluated as a takeover target because of the company’s shrinking stock price. A spokesman for News Corp said there was no truth to the rumors.

Key Data:

• Twitter’s shares, which rose as much as 14%, pared some gains and were up 5.2% at $17.55 in late afternoon trading. The rumors had lifted the stock from a record low.
• Twitter has been the subject of takeover rumors in the past, including a fake report attributed to Bloomberg News that claimed the company had received an offer to be acquired for $31bn.
• Twitter trades at 28.12 times forward earnings, below its peer median of 36.06. Facebook has a PE of 33.08, while LinkedIn Corp’s is 52.64, according to Thomson Reuters data. 
• Up to Tuesday’s close, the stock had fallen nearly 41% since co-founder Jack Dorsey was named permanent CEO in October.

Post-colonialism: Edward Said blog task

1) Summarise the three theorists we have looked at: Alvarado, Fanon and Said.

Alvarado (1987)

Four key themes in racial representations:

Often quoted in relation to the black community but can be applied to other non-white groups:

• Exotic (models; music artists; food)
• Dangerous (crime; gangs; socially dysfunctional)
• Humorous (comedians; sidekicks; quirky)
• Pitied (poverty)

Frantz Fanon: “Putting on the white mask”

Typically black stereotypes can:

• Infantilize - such as the 'cute' children of the Charity Poster or the 'simple-minded‘ 'Step ‘n’ fetch it‘ lazy comedian.
• Primitivize - The 'exotic & virile' tribal warriors or 'bare-breasted maidens' with a 'natural sense of rhythm‘. Sporting prowess.
• Decivilize - The 'Gangsta', 'Pimp' etc.
• Essentialize - Undifferentiated mass-'they all look the same to me'

Edward Said 

Orientialism - the west are more superior to the exotic/dangerous east

2) Watch the opening of Yasmin (2004) again. Does it offer a positive or negative view of British Muslims? To what extent does it reinforce or challenge Edward Said's theory of Orientalism - that the west is superior to the exotic or uncivilised east?

There are both positive and negative stereotypes presented. The positive aspect comes from the prayers the young boy recites which shows his values. In the beginning the old man washing off graffiti which has racist words on it is shown in a positive way as the old man calmly washes it away. 

The negative aspect comes from the main protagonist Yasmin who goes against her own culture by undresses herself out of her traditional clothing into jeans and a jumper. This shows how Yasmin is hiding her culture. 
It is evident that Yasmin prefers western culture and values. Her job could impact the way she feels about her own culture as she feels much free at work compared to where she lives. This reinforces Said's theory as it shows that the west culture is superior. 

Identities: Post-colonial theory & blog tasks

Post-colonialism does not simply refer to the period after the colonial era. It can also be seen as a continuation of colonialism, albeit through different or new relationships concerning power and the control/production of knowledge.

We are interested in post-colonialism and identity in terms of the representation of non-white groups in British media.

Two key post-colonial theorists:

Alvarado (1987)

Four key themes in racial representations:

Often quoted in relation to the black community but can be applied to other non-white groups:

• Exotic (models; music artists; food)
• Dangerous (crime; gangs; socially dysfunctional)
• Humorous (comedians; sidekicks; quirky)
• Pitied (poverty)

Frantz Fanon: “Putting on the white mask”

Typically black stereotypes can:

• Infantilize - such as the 'cute' children of the Charity Poster or the 'simple-minded‘ 'Step ‘n’ fetch it‘ lazy comedian.
• Primitivize - The 'exotic & virile' tribal warriors or 'bare-breasted maidens' with a 'natural sense of rhythm‘. Sporting prowess.
• Decivilize - The 'Gangsta', 'Pimp' etc.
• Essentialize - Undifferentiated mass-'they all look the same to me'

Destiny Ekaragha

Destiny Ekaragha spoke brilliantly at the Media Magazine conference about being a young black filmmaker in London. She showed clips from two of her films - the short Tight Jeans and the feature length Gone Too Far!

Post-colonialism: blog task

1) Read the excellent article exploring the different representations of black people in British film and TV from Media Magazine 42 (MM42 from our Media Magazine archive - page 51)

2) List FIVE films, FIVE TV programmes and FIVE online-only productions that are discussed in the article.

Films:

Anuvahood
Kidulthood
The Mirror Boy

Attack The Block

Shank

TV:

TopBoy

Casualty

Luther

Line of Duty

Fresh Prince of Bel Air

Online:

Brothers With No Game

Venus vs Mars

The Ryan Sisters

All About The McKenzies

Meet The Adebanjos

3) Watch Destiny Ekaragha's clips above. To what extent can we apply Alvarado's and Fanon's theories to these films? Do they reinforce or subvert typical black stereotypes in British film and TV? Refer to specific scenes and events in the clips in answering this question.

Alvrado

-Humorous towards the Nigerian people. This is shown when the Nigerian brother comes out of the car and a shot of socks and sandals is show to somehow 'mock' his dress sense. The fact that we are able to see other people of the black community making fun of the characters rises the humorous factor

-Exotic- Typical African costumes and outfits. The mum is seen wearing the traditional clothing of Africa. The different accents is very exotic and different from the typical english/ 'chavvy' accent.

Fanons theory that black people putting on a 'white mask', can be seen as the girl protagonist is seen to be trying to straighten her hair to fit into society as the white people. 

- They talk in a 'decivilised' manor as gangters. This is also seen in the way they are dressed. 

13C: January assessment learner response

Mark: 27/48

Grade: C-

WWW: Clear focus; Well structured essay.

EBI: The Marxism/Pluralism section needs re-writing - also consider including institution/Pareto's law. 

What I could have included:

Examples: 

- The sun's readership figures (dropped)

- Arab Spring Protests 2011 (ugc) 

- Rebekkah Brookes & News of the world: Phone hacking scandal.

- Sky: introduction of censored filters to block inappropriate content until after 9pm for under 18s - Audiences argues it strips them of their online freedom.

Quotes:

- 'The world is changing and newspapers need to adapt' (Rupert Murdoch)

- 'Reform, accommodate and reject' (Gurevitch et Al)

- 'The internet is not the answer' (Andrew Keen)

Theorists: 

- Galtung & Ruge: News values. 

- Paretto's Law

Key words: 

- 'internet revolution' 

- conspiracy theories 

Write ONE new paragraph for your January assessment essay. Ideally, this should be a section you did not cover in your original essay. This paragraph needs to be comprehensive and meet the criteria for Level 4 of the mark scheme.
- A Marxist approach towards the impact of new and digital media is that participants are not able to participate equally due to gatekeepers who manipulate and regulate what we view and how we react towards the different information viewers obtain from the media. This means that before the audiences are able to consume the news, it will be edited,cut and manipulated as they may not be given the right information which could be misleading. The hegemonic beliefs can be reinforced by Parettos law where the idea that a minority of producers are serving a majority of consumers and so are able to project their dominant ideologies onto the public. 

2 Article Summaries (18)

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jan/12/sydney-man-accused-of-making-threats-on-facebook-pleads-not-guilty

Sydney man accused of making rape threats on Facebook pleads not guilty

Summary:

A Sydney man who allegedly made explicit rape threats on Facebook has pleaded not guilty to using a carriage service to menace. Zane Alchin, 25, of Caringbah was charged in late October for allegedly threatening rape in comments posted to Facebook in August. Alchin allegedly committed the offence after one of his friends shared a screenshot of a woman’s Tinder profile to his Facebook page with a derogatory caption, sparking a heated argument between the two individuals’ friend groups.

Key Data:

• The posts allegedly made by Alchin include “You’ll be eating my cock till you puke” and “I’d rape you if you were better looking”.
• Paloma Brierley Newton first reported Alchin to the police with a USB drive containing screenshots of his relevant Facebook comments, several of which had been addressed to her.
• She formed an advocacy group, Sexual Violence Won’t Be Silenced, to campaign for better resources to tackle online harassment.

My View: 

In my view, although Alchin has pleaded not guilty, and although rape threats were made on Facebook, he should still face punishment due to his actions.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/digital-media/12089604/HMRC-software-firm-raises-100m-to-expand-in-US.html

HMRC software firm raises £100m to expand in US

Summary:

A British software company that puts exam papers online, allowing professors across the country to mark at the same time, has raised £100m from BlueBay Asset Management and Lloyds Bank. EDM specialises in providing IT solutions to large organisations to help them cut down on paper waste. Major customers in the UK include HMRC, where EDM supplies the software needed to put millions of paper documents online each year.

Key Data:

• The £100m has come in the form of a loan with £75m coming from BlueBay and £25m from Lloyds Bank.
• EDM’s turnover was £70m last year and the company is forecasting significant growth in the next few years as concern around cyber hacking prompts organisations to scrutinise their IT arrangements more carefully.