Places and forms of power.

PLACES AND FORMS OF POWER

Vocabulary page 49, 51, 53

The info is spread all over the city freely so that people can have an easier access to infomation.

THE BIG SIX (page51) : Today, we receive the information by different types of mass media such as newspaper, magazine, TV and social media. Credibility is the ability to trust and to believe in something : for instance, if a source appears to be plausible, then it can be trusted. However, anyone who has an access to THE Internet may post a message and instantly publish it which could cause a huge damage. So, everybody should be careful and not as partial, biased as media is. Less than 30 years ago, there were many more companies owning media than in 2011 in the US. Those companies control the US media landscape.

CHANGING HABITS (page50) : This survey was conducted, led over a period of 12 years and was posted in July 2013 by Pew Research Center which is an independent non-partial group. This center is recognized as a reliable source. A panel of respondents was questionned about the favorite means of information and each of them could name up two sources. It is easy to see the evolution of each type of news media thanks to the line graph. Television has always remained the favorite source of infomartion while the radio remains at the bottom. It’s not supprising to see the sharp increase of the Internet. So there is a steady decline of the newspaper.

DIGITAL JUNGLE (page50) : Before starting, let’s outline this expression by defining the terms digital and jungle.

Digital: expressed as series of the digits 0 and 1, typically represented by values of a physical quantity such as voltage or magnetic polarization.

Jungle: • a situation or place of bewildering complexity.

So this virtual world is difficult enough to be understood, first because the system is made of numbers and digits and the second thing is that there are so much information that the user is lost.

• This cartoon which was given the name of digital jungle shows the variety and the diversity of the media landscape provided today. Indeed, when you switch on your computer or your tablet, you have a direct access to the information. You never take time to sort the sources and to check whether the article is reliable or not. The man on the picture is surrounded by screens talking to him. He feels overwhelmed by the abundance of media and how fast the information is spread. Meanwhile, he feels at a loss because he’s frustrated not knowing what to watch first. He doesn’t control

anything anymore. The machines now possess his mind.

CO – reprise

• More than ten years ago, people used to read newspapers and watch TV to get informed because they did not have the choice we are given now. But since the Internet entered our homes, we have been using it for many reasons. The development of digital devices has strengthened this sharp increase in choosing the Internet to get informed. Besides, the progress of technology and the development of smartphones have considerably changed the way people get informed. Push messages appear on these little screens to tell us the worst, the best or the most casual news. There’s an advantage to use your tablet or your cellphone when you lay in bed before sleeping, as a way to relax. You peruse the Internet in search of the latest news. But the drawback of it is that your personal life is affected by the intrusion of so many people in your intimacy. Many journalists now handle digital versions of the newspaper they work for because readers are now looking for a direct and free access to media. For the ones who are used to reading official newspapers, having the possibility to have their favorite style in the palm of their hands is fantastic. The editor writes his/her columns adding pictures to attract readers, a thing that can be hard to display. The fact of posting personal opinion and to comment on anything makes readers journalists as well.

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