CHAPTER 1: THE WORLD OF MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY Key Terms: ● communication. directed and purposeful exchange of information and messages between people or groups of people by speaking, writing, gestures, and signs ● messages. any form of communication (information, feelings, and ideas) passed or transmitted using a channel. Turow (2007) goes further by saying that is a collection of symbols that appear purposefully organized (meaningful) to those sending or receiving ● interpersonal communication. communication between two to three persons, whether they are verbal or non-verbal Activity: ● The country's first internet service provider. In 1989, EMC became the first internet service provider (ISP) of the Philippines via Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP). ● What was the first Philippine website/discussion group? The first Philippine website or discussion group was www.cyberbayan.org/ (Links to an external site.) in December 1990. ● The first internet connection in the Philippines? Date: The first internet connection in the Philippines was formally connected on March 29, 1994. Time: 1:15 AM Place: PLDT network center in Makati City ● In March 1995, this act was passed. This is RA No. 7925 known as the Public Telecommunications Policy Act of the Philippines. ● What was the first virus developed by a Filipino student? On May 5, 2000, Onel de Guzman, a student from AMA University spread the ILOVEYOU/LOVE BUG virus. ● What act was passed on September 12, 2012? The Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 also known as Republic Act No. 10175 was enacted. ● Refer to the answer in Number 6, briefly discuss what the act is all about? It is a law in the country that aims to address the legal issues concerning online interaction and the Internet in the Philippines. It focuses on preventing, detecting, and prosecuting cyber crimes such as those that target the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of computer data and systems, as well as those that are related to content. On September 12th, 2012, President Benigno Aquino of the Philippines signed this Act. Acts such as cybersex, child pornography, and identity theft were originally intended to be punished under this law. LESSON 1: COMMUNICATION: FROM INTERPERSONAL TO MASS COMMUNICATION ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● TYPES OF COMMUNICATION Mediated Interpersonal Communication - communication becomes mediated through the use of devices such as pen, telephone, or computer - technology stands in between the parties communicating and becomes the channel by which the message is sent or received Small Group Communication - between 3 or more persons Organizational Communication - working environment Public Communication - one person communicating to a large number of people 8 ELEMENTS THAT CONSTITUTE THE CREATION OF MESSAGES source. where the message came from; person or organization encoding. message is translated so it can be transmitted and communicated to another party; how you compose your sentence as you communicate trasmitting. actual act of sendingi the message; vocal cords or facial muscles complemented with hand gestures; posting an administrative letter on the bulletin board channels. technologies are the lines that enable the act of sending or transmitting; telephone, radio, television decoding. transmitted impulses are converted to signs as the brain perceives and processes it; recceiver translates the sources’ thoughts and ideas so they can have meaning receiver. the one who gets the message that was transmitted through the channels; intended receiver may not receive the message feedback. response generated by the message that was sent to the receiver; can be immediate or delayed noise interference. literally: mechanical sound that is more resonant than the message; figuratively: messages with conflicting tones LESSON 2: FROM THE WRITINGS ON THE WALL TO SIGNALS TRAVELING IN THE AIRWAVES: A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF COMMUNICATIONS - drawing on walls of caves, carving on barks of trees, papyrus, and parchment - communal gatherings were means by which they reached out to each other as a collective and spoke to one another using song, dance, and prayer - Roman Catholic Church: transmitted ideas through sacred scriptures; churches and missionaries as the channels ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● FROM PAPYRUS TO PAPER codex - prototype of a book; invented by Christians around AD 100 papyrus papers were bound together instead of rolled up for easy reading 15th century - technology was already paper; revolution in printing - Johann Gutenberg * invented movable type machine; moving letters came to be the distinguishing features of his invention from the woodblock * bible was the earliest and most famous creations * Gutenberg printing process launched the first medium truly designed for the masses * pinnacle of the Industrial Revolution of the 17th century 1500 - printing presses established in 242 cities (mostly in Western Europe) Doctrina Cristiana - first book printed in the Philippines - treaties on the teachings of the Roma Catholic Church - written by Fray Juan Plasencia NATION-STATES AND THE RISE OF NEWSPAPERS England - first newspaper produced not later than the 17th century; made possible by the Gutenberg printing press merchants - patronized first newspapers; interested economically and politically late 600s - England’s monarchy was subsumed under a parliament and the compelling need to accelerate its commerce and naval activities made newspapers a regular feature free press (1700) - independent from the control of the government; emerged as strong rhetoric against authoritarian state McQuail (1983) - newspaper is more significant than the book - new literary with social and cultural form that catered town-based business and professional people - give rise to development in the economic sphere, specifically industrialization, and the rise of nation-state - FEATURES: * regular appearance * commercial circulation * serving multi-purposes (information, education, entertainment, advertising, diversion, and gossip) * unrefutably public character Turow (2009) - adversarial press - press with ability to conduct dialogue and argue with the government - sentiment that arose from the ranks of the intellectuals in the British and American colonies - triggered by the imposition of taxes on paper by the British empire so it could generate the much-needed revenues to finance its wars during the 1760s and 1770s steam-powered cylinder press - was given rise by the development of steam engine - lowered the cost of newspapers first decades of 19th century - rise of newspaper in the Philippines - La Esperanza - first daily newspaper; e.g. Diario de Manila, Boletin Oficial de Filipinas - La Solidaridad - published in Spain; actively used for reforms for the Philippines - ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● - ● ● ● ● ● Ang Kalayaan - publish by the Katipuneros as the official revolutionary newspapers of the Kataastaasang Kagalang-galangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) As an institution, the news paper publisher is based in an (1) urban or semi-urban setting; (2) enjoys relative freedom but is subject to government regulation, thus subjects itself to self-censorship; (3) exists in public domain; (4) marketed as a commodity today, online newspapers would have to account for immediacy FROM STATIC TO MOVING IMAGES George Eastman - invented the film and built Kodak Thomas Edison and William Dickson - turned the use of photographic film into a material that can be moved in front of a lens at a constant speed to result into several photographs giving the illusion of a moving object Louis and Augusto Lumiere - developed the technology of film projectors; Edison would still improve the technology with large screen projecting Edison vitascope (1896) was a public debut in New York where it showed a film entitled Rough Sea at Dover by Robert Paul Film - represented leisure, a time distinct from work and livelihood; a time out of work (working class) Television (1907) word - used in a magazine called Scientific American 1928 - first telecast of a television transmitting from the studio of General Electric in NYC 1930 - electronic scanning was introduced by Radio Corporation of America; a much improved technology from the mechanical scanning introduced earlier 1939 - US President Franklin D. Roosevelt became the first president to appear on the tube Nazi authorities (Germany) - operated the world’s first regular television service; a platform for propaganda commercial television - United States (1946) - Philippines (launched in 1953, but as early as 1946, there were already explorations on the technology of broadcasting James Lindenberg (1946) American engineer began assembling transmitters in Bolinao, Pangasinan (not successful in attempting to establish a television station) teamed up with Antonio Quirino and established Alto Broadcasting System where he would serve as the general manager; first official telecast was in October 23, 1953 THE RISE OF NEW MEDIA traditional media - has become synonymous with the seven most common forms of media (books, newspapers, magazine, sound recording, radio, television, and film) 1950s - landscape of media and information technology began to change transistor radio (1948) - signaled the development of semiconductor devices, considered the foundation of modern electronics as it led to the invention of integrated circuits, a technology that will be critical in the devleopment of the computer 701 (1953) - first electronic computers shipped by IBM; sold 19 machines ARPANET (1969) - considered as the predecessor of the internet - large area-wide network created by the US military (US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) to serve as a ground for networking technologies that will link the military to various federal agencies, even the universities - 1971, transition of ARPANET to Internet commenced to serve more purposes (other than catering to military) * TCP/IP architecture - first innovation proposed by Stanford University - standard protocol by which networks communicate - 1983, universally adopted - ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● internet enabled the development and the unabated growth of the new media because it democratized the platform for creating, producing, and disseminating information TIMELINE OF THE INTERNET IN THE PHILIPPINES March 29, 1994 - free and open World Wide Web was launched in the Philippines Bulletin Board Systemb (BBS) - computer system running a software that allows a user to connect and exchange messages and information using a terminal program - started as early as 1986 and was opened using a software that ran on IBM XT Clone PC, with a modem that ran on 1200 bpm; subscription fees (1000/month) 1987 - inter-BBS connectivity was enabled through the Philippine FidoNet exchange; one bulletin board in Metro Manila is now able to connect to other bullet boars systmes in the same area early years of 90s - email gateways and services broadened, courtesy of some multinational corporations operating in the Philippines 1993 - government would figure as the major player, msotly of the role discharged by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) PhilNet - launched with the support of Industrial Research Foundation (IRF) consisting of representatives from various universities like DLSU, UPD, UPLB, ADMU; team up with Dr. udy Villarica (represents the IRF) July 1993 - PhilNet project scaled up; connected to another gateway at the Victoria University of Australia; November 1993, grant of 12.5M would flow to the purchase of equipment and lease of communication lines March 29, 1994 - Philippines was formally connected to the internet using the PLDT network center in Makati City - First International E-mail Conference was held at University of San Carlos - Dr. John Brule (professor emeritus from Syracuse University) announced “we’re in!” as the PhilNet connection successful linked up with the global internet LESSON 3: COMMUNICATION VIS-A-VIS MASS COMMUNICATION ● January 16, 2000 - text message landed calling out concerned citizens to mass up at the EDSA Shrine after 11 senators voted to block the opening of a sealed envelope containing the evidence of President Estrada’s corruption and hidden wealth - message: “FULL MBLSN 2DAY AT EDSA” (full mobilization today at EDSA) and “GO 2 EDSA WEAR BLCK BRING UR FRENDS” (go to EDSA, wear black, bring your friends) - 20,000 gathered by 8:00 pm ● mass communication - comprise the institutions and techniques by which specialized groups employ technological devices to disseminate symbolic content to large, heterogeneous, and widely dispersed audiences (McQuail) - 2 FEATURES: * technological devices * magnitude and scope of audiences ● interpersonal communication vs mass communication - similarities: reach a huge number of audience - difference: (1) source of the message, (2) process of transmittal, (3) the way feedback is generated LESSON 4: APPROACHES TO THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MEDIA AND SOCIETY MEDIA AND SOCIAL CONTROL ➢ mass society approach - society as an integrated whole, with structures and institutions holding power and authority and exerting control over society ● “mass” as a concept arose during the 19th century, along with the phenomenon of industrialization and creation of a working class - personal, traditional, and communal ties were slowly being eroded and replaced with more individualistic and impersonal connections - Bennett notes that the term “mass” implied that the creation of media was now directed toward an undifferentiated audience and that the traditional categories used in segregating audiences are dispensed with ● media - powerful agent in establishing social control - owned by the elite classes - public - passive recipient and consumer of media content ➢ base-superstructure model (Marxist approach) ● media institutions - part of the superstructure (along with other social and cultural institutions) ● base - made up of economic institutions and economic relationships which determine the nature and behavior of the superstructure - in a capitalist society, economic ownership of media institutions dictates whose interests media will serve - mechanical relationship between base and superstructure; the base determining the dynamics of the superstructure ● Louis Althusser - how ideas are perpetuated by members of the ruling class - reconfigured the superstructure as the combined “ideological state apparatuses” (socialization through culture and politics), and the “repressive state apparatuses” - both theories are subsumed under the rubric of power and control, premised on a one-way transmission MEDIA AND SOCIAL INTEGRATION ● media - provides social integration and cohesion - negotiate contest, resist power exerted by social institutions ➢ Functionalism - sees society like an organism - has been dismissed - media’s pivotal role in promoting positive changes in the behavior of a sector in society ➢ Social Constructionism - individuals have the capacity to act their own will to reproduce institutions - members of society = social actors - interacting with others, throwing their stakes, constructing the lived realities, influencing the construction of social institutions ● social construction - processes by which events, persons, values, and ideas are first defined or interpreted in a certain way and given value and priority, largely by mass media, leading to the (personal) construction of larger pictures of reality (McQuail) ● constructed artifacts - media texts produced by media institutions MEDIA AND THE RISE OF AN INFORMATION SOCIETY ● knowledge society - viable concept to explain how material ideas transform society ● communication revolutions - advent and influx of new communication technologies ● information societies - emerged in Japan (1960s) - information economy characterized by the emergence of a thinking class and the rising number and significance of information-based work, arising from the developments in computer technology - increasing global connectivity facilitated by the internet - creation, production, dissemination, manipulation of information is dominant economic, political, cultural activity “Knowledge societies are about capabilities to identify, produce, process, transform, disseminate, and use information to build and apply knowledge for human development. They require an empowering social vision that encompasses plurality, inclusion, solidarity, and participation” —UNESCO, 2007 ● human development - significant concept raised by UNESCO LESSON 5: MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY AS CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT ● literacy - ability to read and write - associated with a set of tangible skills (particularly reading and writing) - twin sister is the concept of numeracy, skill associated with basic mathematical operations involving numbers - aspect of human tights closely linked to the right to education ● functional literacy - emphasize the idea that reading and writing skills should enable an individual to tackle the tasks that unfold in everyday life “Literacy is a fundamental human right and the foundation for lifelong learning. It is fully essential to social and human development in its ability to transform lives. For individuals, families, and societies alike, it is an instrument of empowerment to improve one’s health, one’s income, and one’s relationship with the world” —United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization MEDIA LITERACY: AN INSTRUMENT FOR EMPOWERMENT ➢ Media’s Literacy’s Five Key Questions (Center for Media Literacy, 1995) ○ Who created this message? ○ What creative techniques were used to attract my attention? ○ How might different people appreciate and understand these messages? ○ What lifestyles, value systems, perspectives, and points-of-view are represented in this message? Conversely, what is omitted? ○ Why is this message being sent? ● ● ● ● ➢ ● A WORKING DEFINITION OF MEDIA LITERACY media literacy - repertoire of skills and capabilities; ability to access, analyze, and respond to a range of media” (Sargant 2004, 28) - range of media = print, moving images, and other hybrid forms such as multimedia texts access - denotes the knowledge of where to find these forms of media; technical competence to navigate around technology and easily adjust to technological advancements analysis - thinking reflectively and critically on what has been read, seen, or experienced, and its implication to oneself and to one’s community; assessment of the reliability of the material and its resources response - ability to experience and explore the pleasures of the media text, and how these are realized through the language of media; evaluation of how, as perennial media audiences, the media texts shape our insights, perspectives, and identities media literacy - define media literacy as “having access to the media, understanding the media, and creating/expressing oneself using the media” —Buckingham and Livingstone - ability to create using media (using tools to produce your own media text and gain a better appreciation of the process) - embraces everything (knowledge needed to use old and new tech to having ctirical relationship to media when refelction and analysis is combined with creative production, theory merges with practice (theory enriches practice, practice uplifts your appreciation and tightens your grasp of theory) ORIGINS OF THE WORD MEDIA ● print - original means of mass communication —magazines, journals, newspapers and their collective name: publications - radio and television would not stretch to fit so writers borrowed “media” from advertising people WHY IS EMPOWERMENT SUCH A BIG WORD ● empowerment - idea of power - hinged on the idea that power can change, that the ownership of power can shift from one entity to another - is possible because power can expand or diminish as the case may be ● power - ability to make others do what we want; influence or control; - relationship between two people or things (Weber) - relational and possessed by some at the expense of others - power will remain in the hands of the powerful unless they give it up - NOT always relational ● media litercy education - to cultivate power inside you; do not become passive recepients but activer users and producers of media and information text INFORMATION LITERACY ● information - stepping stone in gathering and storing knowledge; enable us to know; communicable; unorganized and unrelated ● knowledge - organized body of information; appreciation or understanding derived from put together pieces of information whether they are disparate or aggregated ● information literacy - how we navigate the complex and networked world of the internet - set of abilities requiring individuals to recognize when information is needed, and how to locate, evaluate, and use it effectively - needs an intellectual framework where you can access, comprehend, evaluate, use, and create information - reflection and critical analysis is crucial - “continues the abilities to recognize when information is needed and to locate, evaluate, effectively use, and communicate information in its various formats” —SUNY Council of Library Directors WHAT IS THE INFORMATION AGE ● Industrial Revolution - Britain, 18th century - direct consequence of steam engine - manufacturing economy; class relations: capitalist and working class ● information age - associated with the dramatic changes that the digital industry has created - World Wide Web arose in 1969 and fully developed in 1989 - rise of knowledge economy characterized by production and consumption of products generated from intellect capital - revitalized role of libraries - invention of microform in 1945 allowed storage for bulky materials - for UNESCO, construction of knowledge societied “opens the way to humanization of the process of globalization” ● Internet - vast chain of computer networks linked together via digital technology ● sites - can be searched or remembered (bookmarked) through its own address called Uniform Resource Locator (URL) WHO PUTS INFORMATION ON THE INTERNET ● domain - three-letter code preceded by a dot .edu educational institution. contain carefully processed and reviewed information .com commercial entities; profit-oriented .org non-profit organizations .gov government organizations .net internet service provider SOURCES OF INFORMATION ➢ Popular Publications - general public as its target audience - journalistic articles, feature articles, manuals, flyers, fact sheets, blogs ➢ Scholarly Publications - well-researched articles found mostly in academic journals and publish for specialists of a specific fields - technical language - social sciences, natural sciences, arts and humanities ➢ Trade Publications - highly specialized materials meant for players and specialists of a specific industry - motoring, construction - combine popular appeal and specialized knowledge to attract potential consumers FORMATS OF INFORMATION FORMAT DESCRIPTION Print - Material produces and collected from print sources (books, newspapers, and other periodicals, manuscripts, correspondence, memoranda, loose-leaf materials, notes, brochures, etc Digital Formats - Information material stored in an electronic format on a hard drive, CD-ROM, remote server, or Cloud. electronic books, databases, websites, video, audio materials may be accessed with a computer and/or through the internet Audio and Video - Microform - materials collected using analog technology in video (television, video recordings) audio (radio, audio recordings) tools presented in recorded tapes, CDs, audio-cassettes, reel to reel tapes, record albums, etc analog technology: data is recorded in advance from one point to another; analog devices: read the material by scanning the physical data off the media materials that have been photographed and their images developed in reduced-sized film strips and which are viewed using machines with magnifying lenses in university libraries: back issues of magazines, newspapers, historical materials ** True information of literacy summons both thinking and doing ** UNESCO DEFINITION OF INFORMATION LITERACY “Information Literacy means the set of skills, attitudes, and knowledge necessary to know when information is needed to help solve a problem or make a decision, how to articulate that information need in searchable terms and language, then search efficiently for the information, retrive it, interpret and understand it, organize it, evaluate its credibility and authenticity, assess its relevance, communicate it to others if necessary, then utilize to accomplish bottom-line purposes; Information literacy is closely allied to learning to learn, and to critical thinking, both which may be established, formal educational goals, but too often are not integrated into curricula, syllabi, and lesson plan outline as discrete, teachable and learnable outcomes, sometimes the terms “Information Competency” or “Information Fluency” or even other terms, are used in different countries, cultures or languages, in preference to the term Information Literacy” “Conputer Literacy” means the set of skills, attitudes and knowledge necessary to understand and operate the basic functions of information and communications technologies, including devices and tools such as personal computers (PCs), laptops, cellphones, iPods, BlackBerrys, and so forth. Computer Literacy is usually sub-divided into Hardware Literacy and Software Literacy, the former referring to, for examples knowing how to use basic PC and Laptop features and functions etc while the latter refers to learning how to use various kinds of application software packages such as word processing, spreadsheets etc LESSON 6: MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY EDUCATION ● Media Information Literacy (UNESCO): - essential competencies (knowledge, skills, and attitudes) that allow citizens to engage with media and other information providers effectively, and develop critical thinking and life-long learning skills for socializing and becoming active citizens - “MIL is concerned with the process of understanding and using media and other information providers, as well as information and communication technologies. It is concerned with helping teachers and students develop an informed and critical understanding of how various media and technologies operate, how they can be used, how they organize information and create meaning, and how to evaluate the information they present. MIL also involves the ethical use of media, information and technology, as well as participation in democratic and intercultural dialogue. MIL is both a content area and way of teaching and learning; it is not only about the acquisition of technical skills, but the development of a critical framework and approaches” ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ADVANTAGES OF MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY possess some control over the media and information messages that we have initially described as powerful have the ability to examine–even scrutinize– the content of media and information messages closely and see how their meanings are significant gain critical perspectives as you consume media gain an understanding of the structures that govern the creation and dissemination of media and information messafes gain an understanding of how political forces shape the creation and dissemination of media learn how to sift information, discern what is both useful and useless to your lives know how these messages were authored, thereby allowing you opportunirt to evaluate its truth value the word ethics and its implications to the society CITIZENSHIP AND MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY EDUCATION ● citizenship - endowing all members of a community with certain civil, political, and social rights of membership, including “the right to share in the social heritage and to live the life of a civilized being according to the standards prevailing in society (T.H. Marshall) ● responsible digital citizenship - set of appropriate social norms and behavior with regard to the use of the internet. ● Digitalcitizenship.net (2016): ➢ Digital Access. The ideal situation is that all have full ellectronic participation in society. However this is not the case as poverty and social exclusion limit the access of a significant fraction of the PH society. Low bandwidth and expensive Internet rates are constraining elements. Responsible digital citizenship should advocate for the increased access of all citizens to information technologies. ➢ Digital Communication. Involves the electronic exchange of information through various platforms and channels. What needs to be addressed is the responsible use of communication platforms, including a consideration of how information exchanges will benefit communities. ➢ Digital Commerce. Involves the sale and purchase of goods and services using digital platforms. It must be noted that the unregulated nature of transactions in the Internet has also given rise to transactions that are in conflict with both the local and international laws. Responsible digital citizenship also entails contributing to the responsible and legal use of the Internet for economic activities. ➢ Digital Etiquette. Commonly regarded as appropriate and respectful behavior when using information technologies. Etiquette covers the proper use of language, especially in an environment that relies much on the written word, as well as invoking the virtue of empathy which is the ability to the feelings of others inasmuch as we would like our feelings to be considered. This area should also be concerned with the relationship we build with fellow digital citizens– one occasioned by humility, fairness, and open-mindedness ➢ Digital Law. Covers the legal environment that informs and guides the users about the ethical and productive use of technology, defined as abiding with the law of society. In the PH, we can refer to the Magna Carta for Internet Freedom which id a crowd-courced document. It was the product of intense advocacy on the ground and legislative lobbying after significant sectors of society reacted tot he constraining or say undemocratic provisions of the then Republic Act. No. 10175, otherwise known as “An Act Defining Cybercrime, Providing for the Prevention, Investigation, Suppression, and the Imposition of Penalties therefore and for Other Purposes” It was filed in the Senate to repeal the aforementioned law by Senator Miriam D. Santiago. It incorporated inputs from Internet users whose initiatives were marshaled into intense advocacy by democracy.net.ph ➢ Digital Wellness. Covers the protection of users from what could potentially deleterious to their physical, physiological, and even psychological well-being. Digital citizenship includes the promotion of the well-being of technology users and the prevention of technological innovations that will potentially compromise the health of its users ➢ Digital Security. Covers the entire gamut of safety precautions that information technologies invoke– from virus protection to data protectio. As technologies grow and evolve into something more complex, the need for security systems become more compelling.
