sirwillem

[sirwillem]

English 315: Digital Portfolio

           When considering the content to focus on within a concise two-page long reflection of the writing skills I developed and demonstrated by gathering personal digital writing projects together, it is difficult not to discuss how one feels about a course. Without elaborating too much about it, it can honestly be said this course has provided me with the most relevant skills to a contemporary age than any course I have taken in college. With that being said, let us dive into why that is the case. Beginning with the Digital Literacy Narrative that allowed us to introduce our personal background and familiarity within the digital world by creating a short video with minor editing, it seemed like a big deal at first. The second project in the portfolio was the Audio Movie Review that challenged me in ways within my college career that I have never been challenged before, mostly because I am not tech-savvy and could not imagine creating an NPR style movie review. The third project is the Documentary film that added an even greater challenge to the inexperienced student I would have considered myself. These three significant projects are what led me to have developed the skills I now have at the conclusion of the semester.

           Nearly every project began with an introduction to a related reading or lecture that would provide relevant and useful insight into the following major assignment. The readings from the modules that stem from the National Writing Project: “Introduction: Why Digital Writing Matters,” all the way to a PBS documentary Digital Nation. Having no experience in composing anything near an NPR style audio movie review or documentary before, every project seemed so incredibly overwhelming that there was no way I could complete them. But after breaking the composing process up into sections and becoming more familiar with the programs used, the reality of completion seemed to be more of an attainable possibly. I have never had so many projects that I did not want to do before starting them, only to feel a sense of overpowering achievement upon their completion. It is just like most things in life when venturing into the unknown or something new. The end is difficult to see, but you persevere and reap the benefits of your work’s fruition. Even if you did not produce professional-grade work, the act of conquering something new that you never thought you would have been able to do is worth the struggle.

           The Digital Literacy Narrative, and the many takes I did before the final submission, allowed me to be more comfortable with myself speaking in front of a camera. The Audio Movie Review not only provided me with the ability to get over listening to my own voice, but it also helped me meld my writing, speaking, and presentation into a single project. Before starting the Audio Movie Review and the Documentary we went through the LinkedIn Learning programs that helped offer the skills needed to use programs I was beyond unfamiliar with. Not only did the LinkedIn Learning courses help teach me how to use the programs Adobe provided, but I was given something to show for it by being able to upload our completion certificate to our LinkedIn profile for a little resume builder.  

           Reflecting at the end of the semester, not only have I learned more about myself and developed new skill-sets that will only be beneficial for my future, but I also have something to show for it. I view writing in a different light after reading articles and essays pertaining to the new age of digital writing. After having low expectations prior to the beginning of the course, I strongly feel this class was one of those that helped prepare me for what is to come with real-world application. My security in a digital environment has become much stronger and I am not afraid of venturing into the digital world that we are all submerged in.

https://canvas.csun.edu/courses/80327/assignments/741426/submissions/135280?download=10062366

https://soundcloud.com/william-knights-638198732/audiomoviereview1-mixdown-williamknights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCAYh5cDCcU&t=7s

[sirwillem]

Blog Responses #3

     The discussions introduced for this week consisted of Kirby Ferguson’s TED talk, “Embracing the Remix”; as well as his Youtube compilation documentary, “Everything is a Remix Remastered”; and lastly, Douglas Rushkoff’s, Digital Nation, PBS documentary. The documentaries and lecture had some in common with one another; especially Ferguson’s two, considering they were of the same topic. He touched upon the dilemma of creativity/ originality, or rather the legal battles that stem from loss aversion and the innovational consequences of such disputes. Where Ferguson discusses a greater picture of creativity and copyright laws that lead to progression or the prevention of, Rushkoff travels the world to expose the possible effects that complete assimilation of technology can have on society.

     Filmmaker, Kirby Ferguson, proposes the argument in his TED talk and YouTube collaboration that nothing is an original work. Creative ideas stem from the influence or previous works, but hopefully have a new twist to it. He begins by stating that everything is a remix comprised of a formula: “Copy, transform, and combine.” This formula seemed to fit the bill for many musicians, directors, and tech industry conglomerates. It was particularly interesting to see this formula put into work with tech giants, like Apple. Ferguson is not imposing a bias view on certain companies; rather, he shows that if Apple was not able to use similar interface software because of the restrictions based on a software patent, they would not have developed into the company they are today. Patents, whether software or not, and the concept of intellectual property have given birth to new pioneer capitalists seeking opportunistic litigation: Sample and patent trolls that sue to make money. Most of all patent lawsuits are over software because it only needs a “loose description” of how something could work. The evolution of patents leading into software is a result of the rapidly overwhelming growth of digital technology in the world.

     In his PBS documentary, Digital Nation, Douglas Rushkoff takes a broad approach to the assimilation of digital technology into people’s daily lives. By not taking a particular stance, he allows his viewers to perceive the documentary through a non-bias point of view. The documentary interviews professionals with strong opinions on certain matters, but at least Rushkoff exposes his audience to both sides. Whether it is MIT students multitasking, Korean children overindulging in video games, or schools incorporating computers into their classrooms, digital technology has integrated itself into the everyday lives of people and needs to be recognized for the impact it has on society, positively and negatively.  

[sirwillem]

Eng 315 - Audio Movie Review of V for Vendetta (SirWilhelm)

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdisKQxTtHN9VVwnhccw39iMpCYrzp99FsymuPLpr5qOARlNg/viewform?usp=sf_link

[sirwillem]

Blog Post to Course Readings #2

     Week 3’s reading consisted of Cynthia Selfe’s, “The Movement of Air, the Breath of Meaning: Aurality and Multimodal Composing”; Mary Hocks and Michelle Comstock’s, “Composing for Sound: Sonic Rhetoric as Resonance”;  and “How to Write a Film Review,” by Duke University’s Thompson Writing Program. These three excerpts share a commonality of digital writing; though, two share an argument of study and focus on aurality pertaining to education. Though, for the sake of this post, I will be focusing on the first two because there is much to be said in their arguments. 

     Cynthia Selfe seemed to preface her essays argument under the assumption that teacher and collegiate professors do not incorporate multiple modalities in the work they assign to their students; thus, lacking opportunities to provide their students the ability to develop,

 expertise with all available means of persuasion and expression, so they can  function as literate citizens in a world where communications cross geopolitical, cultural, and linguistic borders and are enriched rather than diminished by semiotic dimensionality. (618)

 With this assumption, I originally began to read the section from her essay with a pessimistic point-of-view because I felt she was discrediting teachers for focusing on a single point of study and not incorporating different modes of writing. As I read more of this excerpt, I feel I began to understand what she was saying and started to jump onboard. Selfe was simply trying to make a point about the education system:

 When teachers of composition limit the bandwidth of composing modalities in our classrooms and assignments, when we privilege print as the only acceptable way to make or exchange meaning, we not only ignore the history of rhetoric and its intellectual inheritance, but we also limit, unnecessarily, our scholarly understanding of semiotic systems. (618)

 She was not putting teachers down at all, rather she was expressing what the education system focused on and its possible negative effects of focusing on a single way of communication. In her essay, she discusses the change of the education system and the fading focus of the necessary aurality development. She concludes her excerpt by mentioning the many teachers that are beginning to incorporate the many modalities of digital media and calls for the few who haven’t, to understand the importance of focusing on the aurality in education that has been pushed to the wayside.

             While Selfe discusses the importance of aurality and incorporating it into the education system for students to develop skills that have been of secondary focus or less, Mary Hocks and Michelle Comstock’s study, “Composing for Sound: Sonic Rhetoric as Resonance,” focuses primarily on sonic rhetoric engagement. “Teaching sonic rhetorical engagement through fully embodied listening practices helps students to produce increasingly complex and sonically rich multimodal projects.” Both essays discuss the importance of incorporating multimodal composition, but Hocks and Comstock isolate the conversation to sound specific importance. They even mention Cynthia Selfe in the opening introductions to their study. Hocks and Comstock conclude their study with the proposition of educators to focus on incorporating the new mediums of listening such as music, podcasts, and sonic composition to teach students to understand the language to enhance their perceptions of sound: “This language can make them more empathetic and sensitive to the effects of tone, pitch, and vibration, a language that makes them attentive to resonance within their various soundscapes.”  

[sirwillem]

Blog Response to Course Readings #1

       In a response to this week’s shared reading assignments, I am going to focus primarily on the National Writing Project’s, “Introduction: Why Digital Writing Matters.” This will be the primary focus because I feel it asks the most thought-provoking questions that need to be raised in an ever-changing world of literacy. The National Writing Project interviewed a select few digital writers and multimedia artists to find out how they would define digital writing. JodiAnn Stevenson simplified her definition to, “any writing that requires a computer to access it.” Whereas Tim Wright gave a much more in-depth definition:

A collaborative/participatory writing, hypertext writing, improvisatory ‘real time’ writing, new media writing (i.e. multimedia authorship), code poetry and programmatic writing, online role playing, journal writing/ blogging, international community building, E-learning, game playing.

As a result of these personal designations and through much consideration, I am sure, the National Writing Project concluded the definition of digital writing, “as compositions created with, and oftentimes for reading or viewing on, a computer or other device that is connected to the Internet.” So, what are the main takeaways from the NWP’s sculpted conception of digital writing? One of the most important elements to make note of is the fact that the term, “writing,” is not embedded in the organization’s description. The term they used was, “compositions.” A composition could be a work of literature that, according to the NWP, is meant to be read on a device connected to the digital web of the world. The importance of why this all matters stems from an understanding of the immediate paradigm shift the world is experiencing in terms of literature. People often fear change, especially when it forces them out of their comfort zone.

       Rapid change is happening whether people like it or not; though, this rapid change does not have to be seen as a negative impact on society. In a 2017 Forbes article, “Top Six Digital Transformation Trends in Media and Entertainment,” Daniel Newman discusses six transformation trends that are happening right in front of us, created by consumers themselves. With the emergence of streaming applications such as Netflix and Hulu, cord-cutting has forced premium satellite television companies to adapt. HBO Max is a fantastic example of this as they now have their own platform offering all content from WarnerMedia. Because streaming platforms have overpowered cable television, market advertising has undergone a dramatic transformation as well.

       Newman also mentions in his article that content is becoming more curated, artificial intelligence is progressively getting better, and viewers have multi-channel experiences. These streaming platforms incentivize their viewers to watch certain shows and movies based on their viewing history and cross examine their interests with other consumers who have viewed similar shows; this offers advertisers a chance to focus their efforts on other mediums in order to reach a larger network of consumers. Newman discusses how studies have shown that viewers are on their phones or other devices while watching shows, whether it is tweeting about a current show or browsing other social media platforms; these multi-channel experiences allow for a larger database of information to be accessed by artificial intelligence. AI is now able to formulate the data given by consumers to hone in on what appeals to market audiences.

       This seems to be a lot of information going in different directions, but digital writing is the underlying foundation of this paradigm shift the world is experiencing. Circling back to the NWP’s introduction to “Why Digital Writing Matters,” society must not only continue to ask the questions of how digital writing will shape out future, but start taking action in order to adapt to the rapid changing digital world we live in. Implementing such concepts in the education system and our daily lives is imperative to staying afloat in the world flooded with digital narratives.