Top Ten Revelations

Chris Puliafico

Media Revolution

May 1, 2014

Prof. Williams

Niche Groups – Niche groups on social media are defined as groups of people sharing specific interests, hobbies, products and lifestyles. They are changing the way people give and get information and will continue to grow as more of the population gets online.  According to Reuters in November of 2009 the number of text sent every day exceed the world’s population. People in groups on Twitter were able to kill Motrin’s mom ad in its first weekend. According to B2BMarketing.net, “whereas larger social networks provide access to the voice of anyone and everyone, a niche group will provide access to professional experts in their specific areas, be it homebuilders, stay at home moms or telecommuters. Niche social networks provide a laser focused element to understanding pertinent demographics for marketers.”

Integration of technology into daily life – Technology has been quickly integrated into the lives of Americans and literally changes the nature of how we live. People use their mobile phones  not only for talking but also for texting, tweeting, and online shopping. According to a New York Times story, googling the answer to a question has become accepted social behavior. While at a party, a group of revelers couldn’t determine the words to a song, so they googled it and got the words, “Looking up something really fast actually adds to the conversation.”  “It’s not just a question of having screens everywhere or wearing a screen, but also this whole idea of phones and devices becoming more context-aware, so they can offer information that is highly relevant,” said Pattie Maes, founder and director of the M.I.T. Media Lab fluid interfaces group, which studies how to integrate digital information into daily life.

Value Messages – Value Messages mean people and companies must communicate their value and differentiation effectively. The term “value” is highly overused and according to Ad Age, “Value in the traditional definition is getting more for less money or getting something for nothing. But value has an emotional quality, too, where I feel smart or I feel reassured or I feel in control by buying this product." And according to the Center for Media Literacy, “it is important to understand that there are no value-free media and never will be. All media carry subtle messages about who and what is important.” Value Messages reflect the impression that the person, company or group hopes to project.

Social media and its interaction with kids – Social Media and it’s interaction with kids is a very complicated concept. Some feel social media has positive interaction with kids and some feel it has very negative interaction on kids. According to Parent Further, “It’s important to be vigilant when your kids are getting involved in online social networking, but it’s also good to encourage positive relationships through various avenues, including the Internet.” Among the many positive things about social media for kids, they say “Kids tend to use social networking to augment—not replace—their real-world relationships”. Among the negative effects of social media on kids, “In social media interactions, there is more potential for contact with people parents don't know. It used to be that other kids called on the phone, or came knocking at the door, and so parents had a much higher chance of being aware of who their kids were interacting with.” (The Child Study Center, NYU)

Technological shifts – A technological shift is a change in the way people actually live their lives due to technological advances. An example of this is seen in the banking industry. It used to be that banks considered their bank branches as the key to their success. Today, they are closing branches and expanding their mobile banking technologies to meet the needs of their new customers. According to a story in the Motley Fool, “The "Consumers and Mobile Financial Services 2013" study from the Federal Reserve released this past March found mobile banking adoption among consumers in the U.S. was at 29%, up from 21% last year.”  Looking to the future, what could be the next technological shift? On the Ericsson web-site they discuss, “self-driving cars – something that was more or less technically impossible only 10 years ago. But with accurate data, powerful sensors and massive processing capacity, it’s now possible. Now a majority of car manufacturers are developing and testing self-driving cars. Five years ago, which car manufacturer could predict that Google would be a potential competitor or partner?” These technologies demonstrate the change in the way people live their lives.

Surveillance- with new advancements in technology not only are we always connected to each other we also open ourselves up to unlimited tracking potential. Every post, tweet, or time you use data on your cell phone your device sends out a unique beacon; as I’m sure most people who own a smart phone know there are literally apps that are built with the soul purpose of locating and finding your device. As our community grows and becomes more integrated it will be very intriguing to see how this information is used. I also believe that there will be legal battles to come over what can and cannot be used or given away when people sign their name for something they don’t fully understand.

Truine brain- the triune brain is the three major quadrants of the brain, as we understand it the triune brain is responsible for the major actions in our life. The more the triune brain is exposed to the more feelings we are able to develop from it. Images and sounds are two of the major way that the triune brain receives its information. The creators behind commercials know this and because of this play on the emotions of they’re viewers by trying to connect commercials to individual lives and experiences.

Can Newspapers survive – Over the past decade a new type of media outlet has stormed the scene making traditional outlets such as newspapers and magazines nearly obsolete. Digital media such as twitter and other online based programs have begun to shrink the consumer base out from under neither established institutions such as the New York Times. Many from the Times and other credible institutions have pointed out that the digital media sources lose the majority of their research and reporting base if the newspaper system were to collapse. It’s very odd to think about such media giants who were once huge players in the countries politics begin to have questions about their financial safety. The question is still unanswered and in time we will see if the system of news as we know it can survive.

“The Times Company, which owns the Times as well as some other newspapers, has eliminated its stock dividends and seen it share price drop precipitously. Costs rise, revenues drop. To date, Internet advertising revenue doesn't replace lost revenue from print advertising. The Times is desperate for revenue sources.” Daniel R. Schwarz - The Huffington Post -  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-r-schwarz/endtimes-will-the-new-yor_b_1455568.html

Newly tapped marketing mine – with the creation of facebook and twitter we have officially established ourselves as the generation of “likes”. Millions upon millions of people use these digital sites several times a day making the traffic on these site valuable marketing space that has begin to come into its own as of late. Many of the power players in the marketing industry have turned to using “likes” as the new system of cool and trendy. “likes” can even mean larger pay checks for the individuals taking part in the commercial, if you have “likes” and are trending on twitter you a valuable commodity that all marketers need.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNzSip6B8sI

Convergence – convergence has played a huge role in the way that technology and digital media have molded themselves and they gave worked playing off each other for years. As devices become smaller and smaller the intricacy of their workings becomes easier and easier. Now instead of having to go search several different outlets you are presented with every: TV, radio, movies, games, maps, songs, and directories are now only a touch away and can be accessed in seconds.