Topic 2.5 What is an alternate reality game? Have you played one?

I haven’t played and alternate reality game but Örnebring defines one as an “internet-based

mystery game in which participants are immersed in a fictional world and engage in collective problem-solving” (Örnebring 2007 p.445). The games are created by media companies (usually for marketing purposes) or by fans in order to further explore and interact with their favorite media text.

ARG’s link to particular media texts such as movies, songs, books or TV shows but this link is not always something that is made clear to participants. Örnebring demonstrated this with his example of the ARG created for the movie AI: Artificial Intelligence - called the Beast. This ARG created a buzz surrounding issues covered in the movie yet did not directly reference the movie, its storyline or its characters (Örnebring 2007 p.446). Other ARGs require participants to collect clues from the originating text and use the collective intelligence of the group in order to progress through the game.

Regardless of its form, the purpose if an ARG is to allow the consumer to actively participate in a fictional word that intertwines with reality – participants must suspend belief in order to interact with the game and the media text as if it were a real.

Örnebring, H. 2007. Alternate reality gaming and convergence culture. International Journal of Cultural Studies 10: 445 - 462. Sage Publications. http://ics.sagepub.com/content/10/4/445 (accessed 20/10/11).

2.4 Activity 1: Are online games escapist, serious, or both? Justify your answer.

Jenkins refers to an Salen and Zimmerman's idea of “the magic circle” when speaking about gaming. An idea he describes as letting “go of one set of constraints on our actions because we have bought into another set of constraints – the rules of society give way to the rules of the game” (Jenkins 2006 p.25). Therefore gaming could be seen as a temporary escape from the rules and monotony of every day life.

However, Jenkins also notes that the two worlds are not exclusive; stating “Two players may be fighting to death on screen and growing closer as friends off screen” (Jenkins 2006 p.25). In this scenario the game offers and escape from the everyday while simultaneously re-enforcing and strengthening bonds in real world.

The point Jenkins makes is that escapism has a very real, meaningful and some could say serious role in society. Playing games can create the opportunity learning, reflection and questioning of real world constraints in an interactive way.

Jenkins, H. 2006. The War Between Effects and Meaning: Rethinking the Video Game Violence Debate. In Digital generations, ed D. Buckingham. Massachusetts. http://edocs.library.curtin.edu.au/eres_display.cgi?url=dc60263484.pdf (accessed 19/10/11).

2.3: Overview

The topic for this week is

"Entertaining the world: using media across cultural boundaries"

The aims of this topic are to

• Look at how the cultures of media and globalisation are intertwined
• Look at differences in peoples cultures and how they can be supported, maintained or erased through new media and technologies
• Look at the idea of "cross cultural understandings" - how texts can interpreted differently in different cultural contexts

The Ecstasy of Influence: A Plagiarism by Jonathan Lethem

The Ecstasy of Influence might be a good academic text to use in my remediation essay. In in the Lethem discusses artists, authors, singers, songwriters, cartoonists etc who have borrowed from other sources to create their works. Examples given are TV shows like The Simpsons, the surrealist art movement, Shakespeare and Bob Dylan to name a few. Lethem's  point is that today these works would be considered and act of plagiarism and piracy yet are a massive part of our cultural identity. Where would we be without them?

Lethem also speaks of the loss of "public commons" and the "gift economy" meaning - that inspirational work is a gift to those who take inspiration from it - the value is in the thought it generates not in the money it could produce. 

The 10 page essay is then followed by a bout of extreme referencing - 3 pages where the Lethem has tried to reference every single thought he had while writing the article mocking yet abiding by the extreme rules that govern how we express our thoughts.

 Favorite Quotes

•  "If nostalgic cartoonists had never borrowed from Fritz the Cat, there would be no Ren & Stimpy Show; .... If those don't strike you as essential losses, then consider the remarkable series of "plagiarisms" that links Ovid's "Pyramus and Thisbe" with Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story, .... If these are examples of plagiarism, then we want
  more plagiarism" (Lethem 2007)

• "The distinctive feature of modern American copyright law is its almost limitless bloating-its expansion in both scope and duration. With no registration requirement, every creative act in a tangible medium is now subject to copyright protection: your email to your child or your child's finger painting, both are automatically protected." (Lethem 2007)

• "And artists, or their heirs, who fall into the trap of attacking the collagists and satirists and digital samplers of their work are attacking the next generation of creators for the crime of being influenced, for the crime of responding with the same mixture of intoxication, resentment, lust, and glee that characterizes all artistic successors. By doing so they make the world smaller, betraying what seems to me the primary motivation for participating in the world of culture in the first place: to make the world larger." (Lethem 2007)
  
  
  
  Lethem, J. 2007. The Ecstasy of Influence, A plagiarism by Jonathan Lethem. Harper's Magazine February 2007. http://harpers.org/archive/2007/02/0081387 (accessed 12/10/11).

2.1: Identify a text you consider to be particularly interactive:

Ive been looking for a Gavin and Stacey inspired interactive text and Ive got to say that the best ones are the ones created by fans. The official websites and Apps just don't cut it.

http://www.gavinandstacey.com/ is an independent fan site for the show and is a place of media convergence. Here fans can access news articles regarding the shows actors, access YouTube videos of their favorite clips, access the fan clubs twitter account and have discussions with other fans on the forum and even buy Gavin and Stacey DVDs from a direct link to amazon. They can also read episode synopses and interviews with cast members and watch character spin offs that have been created for charity.

I think one of the things that has kept the popularity of Gavin and Stacey going, even after its ending is that the fans are still being catered for through the appearance of the characters at awards nights and charity comedy galas such as comic relief for red nose day. The characters are continuing to evolve despite the lack of TV episode of which they were first created.

As a website this particular media text is able to be viewed and interacted with anywhere you can log onto the internet so it is is easy for fans to keep up to date with, and prevents them from having to scour varies websites for the latest news. On this site fans can actively contribute or just read / watch or listen to the content provided by others.

  Gavin and Stacey: Independent fansite for BBC One's most romantic comedy. http://www.gavinandstacey.com/page/2/#.TovqFHHhUio (accessed 5/10/11).

 rednoseday. 2011. Smithy saves Red Nose Day 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdg7Tgv5lo0 (accessed 5/10/11).

2.1 ilecture notes: The Horrible Future of Entertainment Media?

Of all the readings this week  it was the ilecture that I think I got the most from so thought it would be a good idea to write a bit about it.

The biggest idea I took away from the lecture is that brand loyalty is not just something to be associated with the logos and corporate stationary of financial institutions and fast food outlets but it also plays a large part in today's media production. Loyal consumers of media texts are what makes production companies money as they are the ones that will purchase the DVD box sets, merchandise and pay big money to see live shows. Therefore the emphasis is first on creating "loyals" (Leaver 2011 quoting Jenkins) and then keeping their attention. Here enters the term "Convergence"- the method of telling a story through multiple channels which allows "loyals" to access their favorite media text in a variety of ways - through websites, blogs, movies, merchandise, etc and also allowing fans to interact with their favorite media texts.

The screenwriter - Joss Whedon was used as great example of the powers of a loyal fan base. Leaver states Whedon interacted with fans when writing the television series Buffy the Vampire slayer taking their ideas on board to develop characters and storyline. This removal of the boundary between the producer and consumer created not only a strong fan base for the show but also for Whedon as a writer leading him to experiment with producing a show sans media production / distribution company. The result was Dr Horrible Sing Along Blog - a musical presented in blog format, distributed over the internet and now only available on DVD. 

This is an idea that I found inspiring because of the quality of the production. Although a great many of us have access to the technology to make, record and distribute our own media texts  - it is not often that one sees a professional looking, well written, series  starring well known actors - broadcast primarily through new media outlets. That would be because traditionally one does not make money from releasing their media content for free on the internet. Whedon managed to do it though, by recognising the value of a loyal fan base that wants to be involved with their media, having them contribute to the media text itself and releasing it for sale on DVD.

The point is that loyal fans are crucial to the success of media, especially of those wanting to utilize new media to get their ideas out into the world. This is something that I will need to think about when it comes to my remediation project.

 Leaver, D. T. 2011. The Horrible Future of Entertainment Media? http://dbs.ilectures.curtin.edu.au/lectopia/lectopia.lasso?-MaxRecords=50&-SkipRecords=0&-Op=bw&ut=2908&CallbackID=c9abfe8d9710a2f9e3b4ac53998a2578&usr=15055147 (accessed 14/9/11).

1.2 Activity 5: Have you ever remixed, mashed-up or mixed up a media text/s? What was it? Why did you do it?

Yes I have. In an art unit I studied we learnt about a French art group known as the Situationist International (SI) who in the 1950’s and 60’s would take images of the “establishment” (Government, Educational and Art institutions etc) and remix them, creating new images that worked against the establishment. This form of rebellion or protest was known as Détournement as can be seen everywhere today.

The act of detourning something (remixing it) relies on the idea that everything has a symbolic value beyond its function. For example - we use a car to get around but it can also describe our social status, lifestyle, and culture or be seen as a stereotype. Remixing items and placing them out of context allows for the creation of new narrative formed around symbolic meaning.

For an assignment I re-created some of the situationist works using items from the modern day to create new meaning. I also produced some collages out of advertisements that rely heavily on symbolic meaning to create new narrative.

An artist who uses remix in his work is Banksy. This is one of my favorites:

http://www.artofthestate.co.uk/blog/index.php/tag/banksy-the-dunce-westway-london/

Ball, E. (1987). Great Sideshow of the Situationist International. Yale French Studies(73), 21 - 37. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2930195

1.2 Activity 4: What is participatory culture? What is convergent culture?

What is participatory culture?
As Jenkins describes – participatory culture is when the general public can participate in the telling of a story. Once a domain monopolized by corporations – new technology such as the internet and smart phones allow people outside corporations the ability to broadcast their stories and news. An example of this would be the Woman to drive Campaign where Saudi Arabian woman are turning to social networking sites such as YouTube and Facebook to fight for the right to drive in their country.

What is convergent culture?
Convergence Culture is where multiple media platforms are used to tell a story, report news, advertise a product etc. It is also when groups of people create media content through “collective intelligence” – pooling their information and resources to piece together a story. A good example of this would be Wikipedia pages where people contribute content.

Pereira, N. (2009, 13/9/11). Henry Jenkins on Transmedia [video]. Available from CinemaTech Retrieved from http://cinematech.blogspot.com/2009/05/great-video-w-henry-jenkins-on.html

Woman2Drive - Manal and Bertha - Woman2drive - 17 June Saudi Arabia. Retrieved from http://www.facebook.com/pages/Women2drive-Manal-and-Bertha-Woman2drive-17-June-Saudi-Arabia/176962935691371

1.2 Notes: Henry Jenkins on Participatory Culture

This short film features Henry Jenkins who discusses participatory culture, convergence culture and transmedia. For me it really made it easy to see that we are are currently at the centre of a cultural shift - going back to the days of when story telling was pastime for all and not just limited to major media corporations. Here I have outlined the central points Jenkins raises and followed up with an example below.

Key Points about participatory culture:           

• Prior to the 20^th Century we lived in a participatory culture, telling and retelling stories.  The stories or folklore belonged the people or “folk”
• The 20^Th Century saw large companies monopolise folklore, by claiming ownership of the stories, placing them under copyright to prevent the stories being told by others
• 20^th Century media technology allowed for stories to be told to a maximum audience but without involvement from them.
• Limited access to 20^th Century technology meant that only a few large companies could tell stories.
• New forms of media technology such as the internet and mobile phones allow people once again participate in the telling of stories without the inclusion of large media companies.
• New forms of media technology are accessible to the general public and not monopolized by industry
• We are returning to a participatory culture, but on a large scale using media and technology
• Those who are repressed can tell their stories
                                                                                                                              (Jenkins 2009)

Key Points about convergence culture:

• It is where multiple modes of media are used to tell a story including old media (such as reporting for a newspaper) and new media (such as citizen journalism – reporting events on Facebook)
• It is also where groups of people come together to create media content through “collective intelligence” – pooling their information piece together the story
• It is where different media technologies are used to tell a story (e.g. using the internet, TV, comic books, movies to tell the one story)
• It is not limited to large corporation but relies on input from all walks of life
• Obama used convergence culture in his political campaign, advertising his message on all forms of media to reach maximum audience and allowing participation by others by uploading his speeches on YouTube along side mashups, fan videos and protest videos.
• Challenges the validity of copyright law, as people reclaim the principles of folklore by reusing and recontextualising the stories put under copyright by large companies and create new meanings
                                                                                                                             (Jenkins 2009)   
  
  
  
• Example: The Woman to Drive Campaign on Facebook and YouTube
  
  Under Saudi Arabian religious law the woman of Saudi Arabia are banned from driving. Using social media sites such as Facebook and YouTube they are protesting the ban to a global audience (AlJazeeraEnglish 2011) in a way not possible using traditional media sources. This is an example of participatory culture allowing the repressed to tell their stories as they now have access to the technology for recording and distribution. It is also and example of convergence culture - as demonstrated with the below movie the story has now been picked up by traditional news media and has appeared in newspapers, on television and in other online environments (such as this blog). The message of the campaign is spread through different media sources (old and new), subsequently raising awareness of the issue to the largest possible audience.
  
  
  
  
  
   

Favorite Quotes from Jenkins:

“We are definitely in a moment of transition. A moment when an old media system is dying and a new media system is being born” (Jenkins 2009)

“We take control of the media as it enters our lives and that’s the essence of convergence culture” (Jenkins 2009)

AlJazeeraEnglish. 2011. Saudi woman driving for change. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEETb3SOuc4 (accessed 4/10/11).

HDCMediaGroup. 2009. Henry Jenkins. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibJaqXVaOaI (accessed 13/9/11)

Pereira, N. 2009. Henry Jenkins on Transmedia. http://cinematech.blogspot.com/2009/05/great-video-w-henry-jenkins-on.html (accessed 13/9/11).

1.2 Activity 3: Should we regulate cyberspace? If so, what laws do you suggest we impose?

As Jenkins put it “there is a need for education which stresses ethical responsibility and civic awareness” (Jenkins 2009) when it comes internet safety. In the real world we are provided with education on the content of other forms of media which so why not the internet?

The TV, movies and games classification system ( G, PG, MA etc) is a good example of educating people on the types of content found within these types of media. This system doesn’t physically stop children from watching content deemed unsuitable by the Government censorship board but it does help parents and institutions make decisions on what children watch when at home or school.

 

Furthermore it creates boundaries for people creating content to ensure it is suitable to children, and gives a place for people to voice objections to content. It is also a system heavily advertised, so most of us are educated on what each rating means.

Although a massive undertaking given that cyberspace is global – a similar system for websites could give parents extra information needed when deciding what is suitable content for their children and if combined with optional internet filtering software could help them prevent children from visiting sites deemed unsuitable.

I don’t think we should create laws that restrict content and access to it but I do think we should have a system in place that helps people to self regulate the content their children are exposed to in cyberspace.

 Jenkins, H. 2009. Critical Information Studies For a Participatory Culture (Part Two). http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2fwebapps%2fblackboard%2fexecute%2flauncher%3ftype%3dCourse%26id%3d_43148_1%26url%3d (accessed 13/9/11).

1.2 Activity 1: What is cyberspace? How is it different from the internet and the web?

What is cyberspace? Lessig describes Cyberspace as an abstract virtual world devoid of the restrictions of real space such as social norms, rules, regulations, and laws of nature. A place where people can gather, interact, communicate and form relationships, setting their own rules and regulations limited only by the code used to create the environment in which their online persona exists (Lessig 2006). It is a place only accessible through the internet that allows for the formation of communities based on common interest rather than geographical location and gives its virtual citizens the ability to change their identities and histories – representing themselves in any way they see fit. Although Facebook was started in 2004 (Timeline 2011), Lessigs article– written in 2006 makes no mention of representing ones actual real life identity in cyberspace. Focusing more on the dangers of anonymity in cyberspace and the difficulties in legislating an anonymous user base.  Despite this, cyberspace can still be explained as an internet mediated virtual world that that relies on the collective contribution of people. How is it different from the internet and the web? The internet is the hardware. It is a network “made from computers and cables”(Berners-Lee 1998) that send packets of information to each other. The Web is the software. It is where information (such as text, movies and music) is stored and uses the internet to send this information around (Berners-Lee 1998). We access the web through web browsers and access the information through web sites. Cyberspace is the society - the communities and social spaces people form through internet mediated communication and interaction.    Berners-Lee, T. 1998. General Questions 1998. Q: What is the difference between the Net and the Web? http://www.w3.org/People/Berners-Lee/FAQ.html (accessed 7/9/11).  Lessig, L. 2006. Four puzzles from cyber space. https://www.socialtext.net/codev2/four_puzzles_from_cyberspace (accessed 7/9/11).  Timeline. 2011. http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?timeline (accessed 7/9/11).

Subject: RE: Cyberspace

1.2 Notes: Four puzzles from cyber space (Lessig 2006)

In this article Lessig discusses some of the defining features of cyber space. Some points I have taken from this article are:

• People can manufacture and control their identity in cyber space. You can choose who you want to be, what you look like, rewrite your history,  live out fantasy, explore different parts of your personality and form relationships based on differing attributes and circumstances from that of the offline environment.
  As Lessig states "they appear (in a form they select, with qualities they choose and biographies they have written)" (Lessig 2006) and while is true in many aspects of internet life (such as in MMOG's, writing blogs or fan fiction) it does not really represent the current trend of representing your actual identity online through social media sites such as Facebook (presumable because this article was written in 2006 before its mass popularity). While it is true that we present a "version" of our real selves on social media sites (one that is fit for public display) it is not one that is completely fictional as presenting a fantasy persona to online friends that know you in offline reality is difficult to maintain. I think social media sites such as Facebook blur the lines between online and offline life,  the real and the virtual and challenges the idea of having complete control over your identity in the online world.

• Community: Cyberspace allows people to form groups around a common interest that is not bound by physical location or local and cultural custom. You no need to rely on those who live close to you to share your interests, you can do so online and find people form all over the world to chat to about it.
   
• Cyberspace is global and as such is difficult to regulate as each country has its own set of laws. Crimes can be committed in an online environment (such as music or movie piracy or virtual child pornography) but even if the laws in every country on earth agrees that that these are punishable offences - the guilty parties are difficult to track and therefore difficult to persecute.
  Lessig discuss allowing governments to use "worms" to scan  the content of personal computers for illegal content. This would mean that government could view items on personal computers without first informing the computers owners that they were doing it. This brings up debate about personal privacy and also raises a questions again about identity. Even if illegal content was on a personal computer how governments prove who put it there?

• On the flip side and back again to the example of MMOG's - cyberspace allows people to create their own rules. They can defy the rules of nature (such as having the ability to fly or to come back to life) and can form the laws that govern the online space that they inhabit. The people who write the code define what is and what is not achievable in cyberspace, and those who can manipulate the code can wield the most control over their virtual environment.

 Lessig, L. 2006. Four puzzles from cyber space. https://www.socialtext.net/codev2/four_puzzles_from_cyberspace (accessed 7/9/11).