Impact of Digital Media SHUCDT notes

From abstract: "As a substitute for [these] inaccessible publics, network publics like MySpace are emerging to provide contemporary American youth with a necessary site for peer engagement. While networked publics provide space for various critical forms of sociality, the architecture of the sites that support networked publics is fundamentally different than the physical architecture that we take for granted in unmediated life. Persistence, searchability, replicability, and invisible audiences are all properties that today's youth must face in their public expressions. "
If we're wondering about the student of the future this has to be a good starting point. The last sentence I've quoted from the abstract above suggests to me that the DI should avoid the temptation to use the phrase 'dumbing down' when thinking about the DN - actually I think we're looking at a highly sophisticated ability to draw upon networks.
Why Teens Love MySpace: 1997 social networking space called Six Degrees - MySpace (MyS) is not first. Historically MyS comes from a lineage of dating sites (Friendster). Bands used it to find (date!) their fans.
MyS emerged because it saw the band opportunity and the desire for groups of youth to network. Originally targetted at an older age range, but now MS sees 14 year olds as target.
MyS allows people to make friends who links to each other. They are making friends online with people who they know in real life. It's another place to 'hang out'.
The guestbook feature developed into a conversational space. Friend to friend communication in the witness of other people - likea public hug. This is meant to be overheard. A public statement of loyalty.
DB explains that this generation were the first generation who access to each other has been highly moderated/restricted by parents due to safety concerns. They have had to be resourceful therefore.
Here's some talk from the back chat:
Teacher: [pupils don't like it] ...they say it's cluttered and the interface isn't easy to work with
contributor1: I was at a lecture last night where Barry Wellman (another social network sociologist) asserted that most MySpace accounts were 'bogus' -- unmaintained experiments -- and that the stats therefore were 'meaningless'.
DB talks about:
Persistence - what you say hangs around
searchability
Replicability - copy and paste it out of context
Invisible audiences - 76 people listening to this, but who are you? "I can't see you" What sort of people are you. Therefore, how does this affect the way I communicate when I speak into the ether?
See: http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2006/10/10/comscore_misint.html comScore misinterprets data: MySpace is *NOT* gray
Q&As
There's a problem that has emerged as the adult world has discovered MyS - MyS does not really work, or can be understood, when multiple generations are in there.
Adults are much more concerned about knowing where their children are than the privacy of their children.
A lot of back chat in relation to DOPA saying kids need a place to practice safely - this is important to us too. We need to note that DNs coming to our blended envorinoment may see online as being safe and different, as a place to practice and be intimate and to trust those around them in ways that us DNs may not understand. I may not be right.
Also note that DB's keynote was very US-centric.