Clay Shirky: End of audience blog tasks

Media Magazine reading

Media Magazine 55 has an overview of technology journalist Bill Thompson’s conference presentation on ‘What has the internet ever done for me?’ It’s an excellent summary of the internet’s brief history and its impact on society. Go to our Media Magazine archive, click on MM55 and scroll to page 13 to read the article ‘What has the internet ever done for me?’ Answer the following questions:

1) Looking over the article as a whole, what are some of the positive developments due to the internet highlighted by Bill Thompson?

"The network connects us to other people, it provides a great source of information, it can be used for campaigning and political action, to draw attention to abuses and fight for human rights. It’s a great place for gaming and education, which can also be used to make a lot of money (for a few people) as well as a place where you can meet your friends."

2) What are the negatives or dangers linked to the development of the internet?

"A lot of bullying and abuse takes place there. There’s pornography that you don’t want to see, and illegal images of child abuse that you might come across. Extremists and radicals can use the network to try to influence people to join their cause, and fraud, scams, ripoffs and malicious software are everywhere. Then

there’s the dark web, made up of websites and online services accessed via specialised browsers and tools that make it very hard to identify who is using them, which is used to sell drugs and for other illegal activity."

3) What does ‘open technology’ refer to? Do you agree with the idea of ‘open technology’?

Does it mean an internet built around the

‘end-to-end’ principle, where any connected

computer can exchange data with any other

computer, while the network itself is unaware

of the ‘meaning’ of the bits exchanged?

• Does it mean computers that will run

any program written for them, rather

than requiring them to be vetted and

approved by gateway companies?

• Does it mean free software that can be

used, changed and redistributed by anyone

without payment or permission?

4) Bill Thompson outlines some of the challenges and questions for the future of the internet. What are they?

what could the internet do for you and your friends, and what could you make it do?

We know you want to understand the world and engage with it, so how do we deliver news media that can operate effectively online and still make money?

5) Where do you stand on the use and regulation of the internet? Should there be more control or more openness? Why?

I believe there should be a degree of openness that allows freedom of information and free speech,  whilst also protecting personal data. 

Clay Shirky: Here Comes Everybody

Clay Shirky’s book Here Comes Everybody charts the way social media and connectivity is changing the world. Read Chapter 3 of his book, ‘Everyone is a media outlet’, and answer the following questions:

1) How does Shirky define a ‘profession’ and why does it apply to the traditional newspaper industry?

Shirky defines a profession as a specialist job that fulfills a need not everyone can do. This applies to the newspaper industry because it fulfills a mass need for news while also monetizing the spreading of it.  

2) What is the question facing the newspaper industry now the internet has created a “new ecosystem”?

By destroying the means for monetization, the internet has endangered the industry. News has become widely available through mass amateurization. 

3) Why did Trent Lott’s speech in 2002 become news?

Despite mainstream media's aversion to the story when it first came to light, the internet's ability to share information meant that traditional bottle-necking of news was subverted. Outraged by the undercurrent of racism, liberal and conservative bloggers alike brought the story to the masses. 

4) What is ‘mass amateurisation’?

The mass influx of amateur content in a previously specialized profession, such as the News or Music industries. 

5) Shirky suggests that: “The same idea, published in dozens or hundreds of places, can have an amplifying effect that outweighs the verdict from the smaller number of professional outlets.” How can this be linked to the current media landscape and particularly ‘fake news’?

Facebook's infestation of false Corona-virus conspiracies can be viewed as exemplar to the spread of fake news online.  

6) What does Shirky suggest about the social effects of technological change? Does this mean we are currently in the midst of the internet “revolution” or “chaos” Shirky mentions?

The social effects of Technological change are beneficial for greater society but disadvantage professionals already in the field. 

7) Shirky says that “anyone can be a publisher… [and] anyone can be a journalist”. What does this mean and why is it important?

The internet allows anybody to create content and for others to equally consume/ believe it. 

8) What does Shirky suggest regarding the hundred years following the printing press revolution? Is there any evidence of this “intellectual and political chaos” in recent global events following the internet revolution?

Evidence of "intellectual and political chaos" can be seen in the 2020 US election where fake news and political debate could spread across the world as opposed to staying in America. 

9) Why is photography a good example of ‘mass amateurisation’?

Anyone with a smartphone ("84% of UK adults") is capable of taking pictures and sharing them online, eliminating the need for it to be considered a viable industry. 

10) What do you think of Shirky’s ideas on the ‘End of audience’? Is this era of ‘mass amateurisation’ a positive thing? Or are we in a period of “intellectual and political chaos” where things are more broken than fixed? 

I believe that taking the power over information from the rich and distributing it to the masses provides a better balance of experiences and stories we are exposed to daily. However, the new system is only as strong as its weakest link: nut-jobs.