homeGrown

this chapter discusses the media convergence and collective intelligence about Harry Potter. Fans like Heather Lawvar who are so convicted by the Harry Potter movement work to participate in the craze of the series as much as possible. Heather started a newspaper called "The Daily Prophet" that is meant to mimic the Hogwarts newspaper in the movies. This newspaper allows kids and fans alike to participate in sharing stories and images. It acts as an imaginative and realistic world for them. It allows kids to not only get involved with their reading but their writing as well. The Harry Potter Wars posed issues for this group of people. It mostly consisted of religious institutions and the Warner Brothers accusations of infringement on their intellectual property. Both threatened the participation of Harry Potter fans and challenged their right to read and write about the things they love. This sort of convergence quickly became a place where they could learn from each other.

Links: 
http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/
http://www.thedailyprophetonline.com/
Discussion Questions:Did Warner Bros have rights to their "intellectual property"Does children participation in fantasy online have potential to create a serious issue in their future or is it just today's way of creativity?

Jenkins writes about the convergence the Matrix depicts. It changed the way movies were understood, or not understood for that matter. It is both a cultural activator as well as a cultural attractor. This chapter discusses how a piece of media such as the Matrix can turn into a cult object for society. We like to figure things out. The Matrix is so complex and chalk full of hidden secrets that people want to master the unmasterable. Movies, like the Matrix have grown into Franchises. This movie has been turned into all different forms of medias--video games, movies, comics and more. It is media convergence at its finest. The ability to do this provides a new kind of storytelling and these franchises rely on various forms of participation and social interaction from consumers.  this storytelling has become a form of world building as artist create different convicting environments that "cannot be explored through a single work or a single medium" (116). Each medium expresses a new aspect or environment that branches off of the last one.

Links:
https://signup.lotro.com/lotro.php?utm_source=Google_Search&utm_medium=Text&utm_campaign=LOTROLaunch0&referral=127284&gclid=CKvA0e2wiK8CFQ7sKgodHRGUCA&ftui=LOTRONOV2011&abrs=112_1332896086
http://wps.ablongman.com/wps/media/objects/4116/4215220/AnthonyBertrandPaper.pdf


Discussion Questions:

Do you ever get annoyed with how bombarded we are with one idea?

What about how books are entering this sort of world now...does it take away from literature?

This chapter starts off with discussion why American Idol was and has continued to stay a popular program. It was designed to engage the audience, the allow America to have a say in the media and a say in what they deemed popular. It builds fan investment. With time is has becoming exceedingly harder to impress viewers. The chapter further talks about how marketing its now directed at the hearts of its viewers--working to gain "emotional capital" and not just intellectual property. It is important to gain the viewers loyalty especially for sponsors who run their advertisements on commercial breaks--the more into a show a viewer is the less likely they are to change the channel. Internet then changed the American Idol community and research could be taken to better improve the experience of American Idol based on their online communication. This convergence changed the dynamic of the show and as a whole gives media a new life form

Links:http://www.americanidol.com/community
http://luckymaggie.wordpress.com/2010/09/09/convergence-american-idol-always-wins/
Discussion Questions:Does the ability for America to decide who wins rely on the value of the talent or the appearance of the contestant? Is this okay or does it pose ethical issues?Can you classify American Idol as a social currency? Why do people value it so much?

This chapter discusses Survivor Spoilers. People who spend their time solving the mysteries of what will happen on television shows before they have the chance to air. What makes people want to spend so much of their time doing this online activity and the research required to participate and know before anyone else can know? It is a psychological thing I think. I believe that it closely identifies with having an online identity. It is a cool factor, a topic of discussion and most of all a challenge. No one knows who specifically these people are and they would not be recognizable walking down a street; but online they are popular, and a prominent figure that know what no others know, but want to know. It has become a community for these people and created a social identity for themselves. Just as easily, these communities disband and breakup, no longer filling the emotional needs of the members and they must move on to alternative communities. The online convergence with reality television is evident here. 

Links:http://www.spoilertv.com/
http://www.realitytvspoilers.net/


Discussion Questions?

Pesonally I hate spoilers, but what needs does it fulfill for people in this community?
How important is it for the success of the show to keep spoilers out of the business?

This article is about how people so intently identify with video games. He writes that most games are about "attacking a childlike world with an adult mind." The games he was so heavily addicted to were the GTA games where the goal is to screw up as much of the gameworld as possible in an allotted period of time. He began to identify with the character in the game projecting his own thinkings and feelings His addiction to cocaine only intensified his love, passion, and connection to the game. He says that cocaine does not script new personality traits but that it italicizes the ones you already have. In his case it exaggerated his natural curiosity and need for "emotional affection." This addiction showed him the similarities that video games actually have to cocaine; video games don't have an edge but that you must have an appreciation for them. Tom says that video games game him experiences that were just as important as real memories. His extreme identification with video games and additional drug use forced him out of his true talent of writing and sent him spiraling into a fake world.

Links: 
http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/cocaine-use-and-its-effects
http://www.rockstargames.com/grandtheftauto/
Discussion Questions:It is clear that video games are not always recreational, so how much do you think personality and life experiences affect people and their addictions?Does gaming as a child increase the likelihood for adult issues such as Tom's?

This article discusses the value of "edutainment"; using video games for learning. I disagree with these methods. Yes, video games make learning fun but the information is not what children are forced to focus on. Using gaming in education leads to adult gaming which is often not appropriate. They too are trying to incorporate a female market for gaming, because right now the market is predominantly male. Gender, age, and class determines the effectiveness of learning through gaming as well. This quote stood out to me: "game play has embedded young people in a set of practices and a cultural ecology that places a premium on technical acumen" (200).  What kids actually get out of gaming is depending on their social-ecological atmosphere. Neopets are a popular phenomenon for young children. They can go online and create a new pets that they can spend time feeding, bathing, and taking them on various activities. The key to it is the social aspect. many love the site for its social interaction while others find it intriguing for its content. THis happens are older levels as well as we see  in the next example. The emotion investment becomes incriminating for some.

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_controversies

http://glinton.wordpress.com/2010/01/11/the-effects-of-video-games-on-learning-the-negative-view/

Discussion Questions:

Does early childhood exposure lead to an increase in gaming as adults?

How effective is this experience for children and how distracting is it as well? Is there something valuable in doing school work that is not always entertaining?
 

This article argues that video games are a way we exercise our minds; that video  games are more essential than we may think to the way we think and improve our technological advancements. "They [video games] are a new tool with which to think about the mind and through which we can externalize some of its functions" (39). Human's think best when they can imagine or simulate an experience. We build simulations in our minds to understand the world and make sense of it, therefore, this chapter argues that video games are the perfect metaphor for this. In both real life and video games the "players" are creating with goals in mind. The author holds to his view that the mind works like a video game and that video games externalize the search for affordance and can be used as an effective tool for teaching and learning.