Final Blog Post

             Relationships With Technology

While I may not like to always admit it, I know I do not have the most healthy relationship with technology. As a matter of fact, technology is probably the cause of at least 50% of my problems. Technology causes me extreme amounts of stress when it does not work properly; it has also caused communication problems with people in my life multiple times. People think using technology is more convenient; however, technology does not send texts in the tone you are speaking, or it can't show how sincere you are. I am extremely grateful for the technology I have access to, and I wouldn't be able to be writing this blog while sitting at Starbucks right now without it; however, I think the overuse of technology has had a great effect on our society, myself included. 

Technology is an essential part of my life, though. One of the big reasons I was able to go so far away to school was because of the technology I had. If I hadn't been able to communicate with my parents every day or see my dogs, I would have never had the courage to move away from home. Additionally, I think if I didn't have technology, I would not have stayed in touch with as many people from high school as I did. While sometimes I do find myself aimlessly scrolling and getting distracted by my technology when I have work to do, I would be lost without it. That might not be a good thing. I have found that especially since I came to college, I have had this almost reliance on technology. If I didn't have my computer, I wouldn't be able to complete all my assignments, and if I didn't have my phone, I would not be able to communicate with anyone. Personally, I feel like I am stuck in a way; I don't want to be so reliant on my technology, but it is hard not to be in the world we live in. 

I do not think I am the only person who struggles with this. I have witnessed it with my friends, family, and neighbors. My younger cousin can not sit still or be quiet at a dinner table if he does not have his iPad, and his parents do not filter what he can watch. He has access to all of YouTube, and he is definitely watching some videos that are going to have a negative effect on how his mind shapes. For some parents, I feel like they have turned technology into a parenting technique, or they just use it to take a break. They let their kids have it so they are quiet, and the parents get a break; however, with what some kids are watching, in a way parents are letting technology parent their children for them. 

It is also scary to think about the fact that what we post on the internet can stay there forever. Something you may think is funny when you are in high school might not be funny when your future employer finds it in a background check. I think this will be incredibly hurtful to the younger generations because they are getting cell phones at such a young age, and with that they are getting access to social media. It's dangerous to have access to social media at such a young age, not just because of the content that could be on there, but because what you post can hurt your future. Personally, I am always very careful about what I post on the internet because it is something I was always made aware of the consequences of. When you are applying for a job, it is so easy for your future boss to search you up on Instagram. I have seen it happen all the time with influencers online; they gain fame and start to become successful. Then an inappropriate video of them from 5 years prior resurfaces on the internet, and they lose all of those fans almost immediately. 

I would like to say that I will change and try to limit my technology use; however, I know I would be lying. I think I should definitely start to be more conscious of what I am using my technology for and change those habits. 

Blog Post #11

 Antiwar

    Anti war is being opposed to war in general or a specific war. At first glance of writing a blog titled anti war I didn't really know what to expect because it is not a topic discussed very often.  I think this is because many people just assume war is part of life, and that we need war to protect our country.  They don't always think of the consequences of war, and the tragedies that truly come with it.  Looking at the Anti War website definitely gave me a different perspective on this topic, and reading the letter from a trauma doctor really opened my eyes. Especially when he mentioned the children being effected by war, and the horrifying military traumas he has delt with is truly heartbreaking.  

Websites like antiwar and the american conservative are websites I have personally never heard of.  They are both websites that support antiwar beliefs and provide news about it.  I think this is something many people along with myself have never heard of before because it is not a very publicly opinionated belief.  While I don't personally think war is a good thing, I think sometimes things are necessary to be done to protect out country and the people in it.  I think being complete anti-war can be seen as disrespectful to many men and women who put there lives on the line to protect us. Despite opinions it is obvious that it is harder to find articles and websites dedicated to anti-war, and I think timing may play a big part on this.  It is all situational and depends what is going on in our country at the time.  If there is a situation or war actively happening then many anti-war groups and protests will be all over the news.  However if there is not something actively happening then there is no need for antiwar groups to be all over the news. 

    

    

Blog post #10

 EOTO Reaction #2

One EOTO presentation that I found both very informational and interesting was the one done on the attempt to ban TikTok.  TikTok is a social media platform, where you hav either a public or private platform and share videos with people. Something I didn't know is that TikTok is actually a threat to our national security and there was many privacy and data issues with that app.  Due to the possible threats the U.S is trying to make ByteDance sell them that app or else there could be a nationwide ban of TikTok.  There are many pros and cons to TikTok however even just talk of banning TikTok has caused a lot of controversy in the U.S.  Personally I enjoy scrolling on TikTok, and surprisingly it is where I find out a lot of my news while away at college.  I would be upset if TikTok was no longer allowed in the U.S however it might benefit me in the end because I probably spend to much time on the app. 

Another EOTO presentation that I found very informational was the one on cord cutting. Cord Cutting is something that I had never heard of before, but this presentation provided with a very good understanding of it. Cord cutting is essentially reducing or eliminating public funding for traditional media in favor of private platforms. There are many positive and negatives that go along with cord cutting. Some of the positive include cost saving, increased competition, and media diversity. While some of the negatives include bias increase, quality of journalism, and information fragmentation. The younger generation may be more open to the idea of cord cutting because we are much more technologically advanced then older generations and in a way we would have better access to private platforms. Older generations also tend to be more reluctant to change in general. A big factor to consider with the idea of cord cutting though is income, and taking into account the accessibility of these media platforms for both wealthy and low income households.

Blog post #9

Third Person Effect           

    The Third Person effect is a theory in communications that explains how people think that others are more affected by the media than themselves. The concept was first proposed by W. Phillips Davison in 1983.  One reason this happens is because people have a natural tendency to view themselves in a more positive light, which is also known as a self-enhancing tendency. It also happens because people underestimate the influence of the media on themselves, and think that others are just more affected by it.  This can include many different kinds of media like political campaigns, advertising, social media, and the news. The third person effect can also be correlated with the social comparison theory which is where people compare themselves to other to try and figure out their own beliefs.  This effect is also the reason people support censorship, and do not always appreciate harsh topics being brought up in the media.  They think they can handle that media but it may make others upset or uncomfortable. 

    

    When researching the 3rd person theory I found a study done to research how the theory effects people. This study was done in the form of a telephone survey that 721 people took part in.   They had the hypothesis that other will think the media will have a greater effects on others over themselves, and thought it would lead to supporting restrictions on media.  Each person was put through a system to be selected randomly, and asked a set of question based on 12 conditions. They results showed the hypothesis to be correct but the support of the restrictions depended on what conditions they were asked about.

    `Above are the factors that play a part in the third person effect, and why people have certain reactions.  Everybody is different ands that is why people can have different reactions to the media, so personal characteristics play a big part in that.  Along with that culture is a factor that influences this theory because where you live, and what you're surrounded by influences how you think.  In general everyone has different opinions on social media and what people should be posting on there, so it all goes into the third person effect and thinking that media content will influences other more then yourself. 

    Personally before I researched the third person effect, I had never heard of it but, as soon as I started researching it I found it really interesting.  The third person effect is something I have noticed in my everyday life, and I can see how it is related to censorship.  We live in a very sheltered generation where "everybody gets a trophy." There is also so much technology that censors not just kids, but I know some people in college who still have restrictions on their phone.  From things like passwords to get into the certain apps, or timers on the phone so you cant use it after a certain time limit.  I know a lot of parents will do this for there kids so that they are not on technology too much because they may think it's not good for them.  Thats usually the same mom who has to post their whole day on Instagram and like to scroll on Tiktok before bed.  So while I never knew what the third person effect was, I have witnessed it many times. 

        

    

    

Blog Post #8

 Diffusion

The diffusion of innovations was a theory created by Everett Rogers in 1962, it was based off of 508 diffusion studies in a variety of fields. This theory was in place to explain how and why ideas or new technology spread in society.  It categorizes adopters into groups which are innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and laggards. Rogers states that there are 5 factors that go into the diffusion process.  Which include innovation, communication channels, time, a proper social system and adopters to the idea of innovation. 

    

I think the diffusion of innovations is a very interesting concept because it really makes you think why am I doing this? or why do people use this?

An example I can think of for my age group is snapchat.  Something I think about all the time is why did snapchat become popular?  It has many of the same features immesage does.  In my generation instead of asking people for their number people ask for their snap, and communicate by texting on the app.  This is something that older people do not do because they weren't being raised when this app came out.  At the time of the snapchat launch there was many advantages which is why I think it adapted into our society, these advantages include communicating through photos and having access to tons of filters.  It's also allowed you to have your friends locations and see what they were doing at almost any moment. 

I also see this when I compare the apps on my phone vs. my parents.  Surprinsingly my Mom just joined tiktok, however she does not know how to work it.  Besides that the only social media she uses is facebook, and my Dad is the same way.  This is a normal thing in their generation and facebook is enough for them to stay in touch with friends.  In my generation you need to be involved in so many other kinds of media to stay in touch.  If I did not have snapchat or instagram I probably would have lost touch with half of my friends from high school by now.  It also how I find out information about people like birthdays, or major life events. 

Blog Post #7

 The Age of AI

    AI is something that has more recently become extremely abundant in our world.  While AI may have just started having an effect on us, the research of AI can be tracked back all the way to the 1950's.  AI stands for artificial intelligence and basically its job is to mimic human intelligence. While AI can be extremely helpful at times, it can also be quite scary due to the fact that it makes decisions without humans overseeing, and it invades privacy.  

    When talking about AI the topic of national security may come up, AI can pose both threats, and advantages to national security.  It can enhance national security because it allows for a more technologically advanced system, so that could mean like automatic threat detection, and other benefits when it comes to military power.  At the same time however it can threaten national security because it puts the system at risk for things like cyber attacks, or getting hacked.  Now if AI has more control in our country, then that means more information in the cyber world that could possibly be stolen, and depending on the information could put our country at high risk of danger. 

    Similar to the threats AI poses for national security, it also poses threats to overall privacy.  We may not always realize it but AI is always watching and it can collect and analyze your personal data on the internet.  Once AI has control over that data  they also have the ability to use it and release your information to whoever.  The amount of power AI truly has is frightening.

    Personally I don't really love AI, i've never been a big user of chatgpt and websites like that because of the sketchy things I have heard about AI.  I really only used them when I had teachers who wanted us to it for research reasons.  I feel there are definitely some benefits to AI, and that it is changing our world and making it more advanced.  Major advancements not even just in the technology industry but in the health care field have been thanks to AI.  AI also plays a huge part in things like self driving cars or finding cures, things that are extremely beneficial to our nation. However at the same time, while the world may be more advanced I think it also sets us up for more risk.  We put so much trust in the technology, I think that could lead to many dangers in the future.  There are  many different kinds of AI and they all deal with different things, I just think everyone should be aware of the benefits and risks, and be cautious of what data they give AI. 

Blog Post #6

 EOTO Technology Reaction 

One presentation I found very interesting was the invention and timeline of Netflix.  Netflix is something that I use almost everyday, and I know many people are the same way.  It is by far one of the most used streaming services.  Something new I learned from the presentation was called "The Netflix Effect", which is a phenomenon that Netflix series can have an effect our real life. Something new I learned from this presentation was that when Netflix first started it was very similar to redbox. It started off as a DVD rental company, but eventually evolved to streaming. Netflix has expanded so much over the years that now they even produce their own TV shows and movies.

Another piece of technology that I found very interesting was cassette tapes, and how they evolved over the years. They were first invented in 1962 and really didn't start to have a downfall until the 2000's, which shows how successful this piece of technology was.  While when I was growing up they weren't really making these tapes anymore, I did own a sony walkman and cassette tapes passed down from when my cousins were growing up. While we don't really have a need for them nowadays due to the convenience of our smart phones, at the time cassette tapes were life changing.  It was the first time you could make music portable.