What is the attraction of alternate realities like Second life?

In the words of Godin Second life lets players “find their tribe”(TED2009 2009) be it vampires, sports fanatics or single people looking for dates, all kinds of groups exist in second life and players can communicate and form relationships within the virtual reality game. Unlike real life people in second life represent themselves through self-constructed avatars enabling then to project the image they wish people to see.

Second life has its own currency which can be exchanged for real money (Linden 2011) therefore people can get real paying jobs, buy clothes, houses, attend events, learn, invent, create etc through the virtual environment. Therefore it is possible to make money from second life to support your real life.

Therefore it could be said that alternate realities like second life allow people to transcend their physical location and embodiment and in order to live in an virtual world, although as Malpas points out this doesn’t “release from the limitations of embodiment” (Malpas 2009) in the real world. In order to contribute to this online society users still need to operate a form of ICT of some description, therefore second life doesn’t replace real life it just an alternative way for people to connect and to contribute to their tribe.

 Linden, R. 2011. How to sell Linden dollars. http://community.secondlife.com/t5/English-Knowledge-Base/How-to-sell-Linden-dollars/ta-p/1018151 (accessed 16/11/11).

Malpas, J. 2009. On the Non-Autonomy of the Virtual. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies 15 (2): 135-139. http://con.sagepub.com (accessed

TED2009. 2009. Seth Godin on the tribes we lead. TED Ideas worth Spreading.

ASSMT 1: 2.5 Notes on games, ARGs and digital commons

The topic of Alternate Reality Games (ARGs) was an interesting one this week that I think fits well with my remediation project and essay. Although I have chosen to remediate and write an essay about the sub plot of a television series - the way in which the characters story intertwines with real life scenarios is similar to the way in which ARGs are operate.

Örnebring states: "Alternate Reality Games (ARGs) are a form of internet-based mystery game in which participants are immersed in a fictional world and engage in collective problem-solving" (Örnebring 2007 p. 445).

And they work by:

  "Events and things mentioned in the episodes of the TV series itself will also provide clues. Bit by bit, these clues form a separate narrative set in the fictional world" (Örnebring 2007 p. 446).

In the TV show Gavin and Stacey - Nessa's back story is never fully told and she remains somewhat of a mystery. A series of clues are dropped by Nessa in her stories that reflect upon past conquests involving famous people from the real world. If viewers choose to investigate these clues they will find that these stories not only reference real life people but also real life scenarios that have been reported in the press. Nessa turns out to be someone that has escaped the limelight while being involved in a great deal of scandal.

Therefore the TV show follows a similar line to ARGs in that:

• A mystery is created
• Clues are given
• Clues can be investigated by audiences
• Clues link to real world people and scenarios through press reports

My remediation project sets out to join these clues together through a blog that presents Nessa as if she is a real life person and further the idea that the stories are true. Unlike a game there is no puzzle solving winning at the end, it is merely a site for investigating clues and filling in the back story - a kind of virtual reality blog based on a virtual reality storyline in a TV show.

In this regard my blog could be seen as an example cultural labor  described by Fiske and quoted by  Örnebring as " ‘filling in the syntagmatic gaps in the original narrative’ (Örnebring 2007 p. 451 quoting Fiske, 1992). In other words the blog pieces together a back story that enriches the characters in TV show. Örnebring believes that this type of culture labor supports marketing for television shows (as does other fan created content) - as it stays within the storyline and concept of the show rather than changing it, and disseminates to a wider audience

This same idea was covered in our second reading about Digital Commons - especially in the sections about mods which are fan produced modifications for games. The point was made here too that modders stick to the boundaries of the originating text source as per the following quote:

"most mods are thematically conservative, undertaken by technically accomplished fans who love a particular game and want more of it – more weapons and monstrous opponents for shooters, different campaigns and battles for war games – in variants that don’t stray far from the spirit of the original" (Coleman and Dyer-Witheford 2007).

Both readings link fan culture, virtual reality and media institutions all of which relate to my remediation project. As the blog is aimed at fans and new watchers of the show Gavin and Stacey -  this topic would be good to cover in my essay.

Coleman, S., and N. Dyer-Witheford. 2007. Playing on the digital commons: collectivities, capital and contestation in videogame culture. Media Culture Society 29:  Sage publications. http://mcs.sagepub.com/content/29/6/934 (accessed 26/10/11).

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).

Topic 2.4 Notes on play, games and media

In the ilecture Woods stated when speaking about the history of games “TV killed gaming innovation because the companies that produced games … started remaking them with a new image on the box… this hasn’t really changed much” (Woods 2011). While this is true of board games (a quick Google search will find loads of different versions of monopoly including “make your own Opoly” where you can customize the board game to suit your own interests) I am not sure that it applies to video games in the same way.

While the reason for buying the Star Wars version of Monopoly, hopefully is because you are a fan of Star wars – playing the game of monopoly is not something overly representative of the movies themes or storyline. Video games on the other offer a greater flexibility in representing the initial text - be it in graphics, storyline or characters voice and appearance. In fact the media companies that creates the movie also create the game ensuring a harmonious branding across all platforms. For example Sony – a company that makes televisions and electronic equipment is actually a group of companies. One branch of the group is Sony Pictures who make movies and television shows. Another branch of the Sony group make the Sony PlayStation and PlayStation games (Sony Global - Sony Global Headquarters  2011). Therefore when Sony pictures make a blockbuster movie with a lot of graphics and special effects, a game can also be produced at the same time using the same graphic styles and is instantly recognizable to consumers.

Games are popular and in an article about the future of video games Mawer suggests a few reasons why this is the case. His first reason once again, is in the production value – he states that games have “story lines that are gripping, full of suspense, action and adventure which are supported by some stunning visuals, amazing sound effects and a stirring soundtrack to accompany the hero” (Mawer 2011) and his second reason in purely financial “but the movie is over within a few hours while the video game plays for a whopping 50 hours” (Mawer 2011). So the games have all the story line and production value of a movie, but offer better entertainment value by allowing the consumers to extend the time they spend interacting with their favorite media texts.

Professor Thomas De Zengotita’s theories on the effects of media evolution could give further insight into the popularity of games. In an interview about fame and celebrity he speaks about something he calls an act of “fundamental robbery” that has been created by a fame driven media system. The fundamental human need is acknowledgment and he believes that our media society takes this away from the average person stating “the evolution of media of all kinds, in large scale societies (should be seen) as taking the fame or acknowledgement that used to be everybody’s and some how reassigning it to only a few people” (Genier 2011) . With this in mind video games could be seen as way of placating this need to be acknowledged as in the game the player becomes the central focus, their existence within the game is acknowledged and their actions instantly rewarded.

This could explain why adult gamers feel they need to rationalize their game playing to others. Research conducted by Helen Thornham discovered that while many adults play games, many still feel there is a social stigma attached to it and therefore tend to rationalize their game playing as a logical pastime – such as socializing. Those who admitted to playing games regularly and by themselves were often ridiculed, seen as geeky, and their sexual orientation questioned.  Thornham put this reaction down to a cultural issue in the structured adult life that mimics “working lives where every hour has meaning or purpose” (Thornham 2009). Gaming offers a form of escape from the everyday that is seen purely as entertainment, it is therefore unproductive (in the work life sense) resulting in gamers defending their actions through rationalizations.

Finally Jenkins offers further insight into the role of gaming in society. He notes the roles that moral panics have played in the multiple stigmas attached to video gaming – such as violent games producing violent people. He counters this argument by advising that gamers have the ability to distinguish the real from the virtual stating that people “tend to dismiss anything they encounter in fantasy or entertainment that is not consistent with what they believe to be true about the real world”(Jenkins 2006). Unlike Thornton who sees games purely as escapist and fun, Jenkins sees games as a meaningful way to spend time. He sees games as a place for learning about society, a way for people to escape and blow off steam, a way to generate new thought and a way of improving social ties and bonds. All meaningful if not conducive to the production of a commercial goods.

Teenage Paparazzo. 2011. SBS FIlm,  http://www.sbs.com.au/films/movie/10426/Teenage-Paparazzo (accessed 23/10/11).

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).

 Mawer, K. 2011. Video games - the media of the future. http://www.deltapublishing.co.uk/uncategorized/video-games-the-media-of-the-future (accessed 25/10/11).

  Sony Global - Sony Global Headquarters. 2011. http://www.sony.net/ (accessed 25/10/11).

Thornham, H. 2009. Claiming a Stake in the Videogame : What Grown-Ups Say to Rationalize and Normalize Gaming. Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies: 445-462. http://con.sagepub.com/content/15/2/141 (accessed 19/10/11).

Woods, S. 2011. Play with Me. In MCCA104-Engaging Media. Perth. Curtin University of Technology.

2.1 Notes of Vidding

Vidding | Organization for Transformative Works

Click on this link and you will find a series of short films about vidding. Although the term is new to me - after watching a few of the films I realized that I have seen a great many "vids" on YouTube.

So what is vidding?

Well you know that part at the end of every chick-flick you have ever seen - where one lover dies and they cut to a montage depicting all fun the couple had together - the highs, the lows, the good times and the bad... all set to music designed to make you ball your eyes out and reach for the ice cream? Well I guess this could be described as the forefather of vidding.

A "vid" is short film created by fans that uses both the footage and the techniques of film and TV production companies to create their own montages based on the characters and events of their favorite media text. Just like movie montages they are set to music and good ones usually follow a theme that is based on the fans favorite TV shows or movies. Fans can use vids to create new narrative or to support the narrative of an existing storyline and create vids out of love for the characters, the plot or both. Or as one vidder puts it:  “it’s the three minutes I want to see set to really good music”  (Coppa 2008).

As Jenkins states in his blog - Vidding is not something that is all that new, having been around for the past 20 years  (Jenkins 2008) but as the technology to create and distribute vids has become more accessible, vidding has risen in popularity. Jenkins also states that although there are a great many vids out there in cyberspace many people are reluctant to claim ownership due to the possible consequences of infringing copyright (Jenkins 2008).

Having only really seen vids based on sci-fi shows I cant say I ever really liked them - but in the name of higher education I set out to find one based on my favorite media text Gavin and Stacey.

The below vid created by cyberwoman007 takes clips from various episodes of the TV show Gavin and Stacey and sets them Taylor Swifts Love Song. The result is a polished, professional film clip that tells love story of the two main characters that makes me think that maybe Ive been a little harsh on vidding. It seems that like with most fan based artwork you need to actually be a fan to get a full appreciation for it.

Now... wheres that ice cream?

cyberwoman007. 2010. Gavin & Stacey Love Story. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liJk5NPWlxU (accessed 5/10/11). 

Jenkins, H. 2008. Fan Vidding: A Labor Of Love (Part Two). http://henryjenkins.org/2008/12/in_many_ways_the_emergence.html (accessed 14/9/11).

What is Vidding. 2008. Transformativeworks.org,  http://transformativeworks.org/node/579 (accessed 14/9/11).

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 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).