Statement of Interest

Winter Blog Assignment

The question/theme I am interested in exploring is:

How will artists produce works in the future, given the challenges of the new media?

My initial thoughts in regards to the above theoretical question is:

My group and I have chosen to explore music on MySpace. To approach the above theoretical question, I think it is most appropriate to refer to the consumers as the listeners and the producers as the major record labels or artists. My initial thoughts include how MySpace has created some sort of consumer-producer reciprocal relationship. What I mean by this it that the consumers, also known as the listeners, have now themselves become the producers. This is so because the consumers are able to listen to other artist’s music but also upload their own music as well all for free. So, the consumers have now become consumers and producers. Since the ‘consumer-producers’ listen and upload for free, they now hold some sort of power. This power also increases as these ‘consumer-producers’ may also download the musical track that they are listening to on MySpace. Thus, the ‘actual’ producers, in this case the major record labels, must incorporate innovative techniques to continue to produce musical works in the future in order to combat the challenges given by the new media (MySpace). New techniques might include: bonus content exclusive to their compact discs or even multi-track media which would allow consumers to adjust each individual track to their desired taste which would again be exclusive to their compact discs or other purchasable media forms.

My basic thesis in regards to the above theoretical question is:

Despite the given challenges of the new media, musicians must develop new techniques to ensure that their artistic productions continue to be successfully reproduced. With online communities such as MySpace, which has predominantly been instrumental in the creation of a consumer-producer reciprocal relationship, it is important to remember that consumers are not only able to listen to uploaded musical tracks, and upload their own musical tracks, but are also able to download other musical tracks for free and without consent. Thus, if new techniques such as multi-track media becomes available exclusively to the producers, and is added only to compact discs, iTunes and other purchasable media forms, then 'consumer-producers' will gravitate back towards purchasing musical works in the future.

Technological Determinism....

The question I am going to address today is:

How does Technological Determinism affect our relationship with technology?

Why is this way of thinking of technology so pervasive?

Technological determinism most definitely affects our relationship with technology. First, I'd say that it only makes sense to define what technological determinism means. Technological determinism, as discussed in yesterday's lecture, means that society is shaped by technology and that technology determines social change. Technological determinism, also known as media determinism, represents a relationship between technology and society, and this relationship is often seen as a negative one by many social scientists. According to one of the readings, "technological determinism seeks to explain social and historical phenomena in terms of one principal or determining factor. It is a doctrine of historical or causal primacy. " Furthermore, technological determinism is mono-causal and offers a single cause or independent variable. Due to its mono-causal explanation, technological determinism reduces complexity and makes strong claims which many people may find attractive.


In my opinion, individuals that incorporate the ideology of technological determinism seems to portray a way of thinking that is so pervasive in today's society. These individuals argue that we (the users) are determined by the technologies that we use on a day to day basis. Just like how we continue to fault society's actions due to media representations, or game representations such as guns in an xbox game, the same goes for technology. We continue to fault society's actions due to technological representations. Thus, when we engage in absent-minded behaviour that involves the use of technology, we point our fingers at technology instead of taking responsibility for our own actions. Since we are the ones who actually go forth and use the technology shouldn't we be taking the blame???

Well, you know what they say....when you point one finger, there will always be THREE pointing right back at you!!!!

I would like to leave you with an important statement:
By giving technology so much power to change us, we in a sense rob technology and rob the individual....It's up to you to recognize how.

signed,

g.i.a.c.w.