1. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 gave radio stations owners a large amount of power. It allowed them to own as many stations as they wanted and they could partner up with television stations. This created a monopoly in radio. What we hear is controlled by those who own the stations. I think it is bad for radio because it decreases diversity within the radio industry. Monopoly of the stations reduces the amount of things the listener can hear. I think it is contributing to the decline of radio. The Act has been bad for consumers because they now have no real control over what is played on the radio. They don’t even have a real choice to listen to something else because there aren’t many independent stations left. Radio stations should interact with their public more in order to offset the power of sites like Pandora. Online, the listener can choose what type of music he/she wants to hear. Radio stations need to open up that ability as well; allow listeners to control more of what they hear.
2. One of the major problems facing the music industry is that illegal downloading is taking away from their profits. Also, since the internet allows people to purchase a song from an album without purchasing the album, the music industry is losing money. Before, if you wanted a song, you had to buy the album which put money in the music industry’s pockets. Music industries pay radio stations money to play their songs so they have a heavy influence on the radio. I don’t think it was smart to sue customers because it created hostility between consumers and the industry. The music industry has definitely chosen lesser talent with greater marketability over great talent with lesser marketability. The music industry defines what we think good music is. They over saturate us with what they choose and after we’ve had enough, they choose something different. It’s all about manipulation. If I was an independent group I would market online and stay away from major labels.
3. Television has a better chance of success because people still flock to T.V. they just want it from a different medium. IPods and Hulu help people access their T.V. needs from anywhere. Television needs to embrace that because then people have to potential to be watching television twice as much. Availability is everything. Also, there are still ads and ITunes charges so there is money to be made from it. If I was in the film industry I’d allow downloading with ads because it’s the direction society is headed. I’d have to get on board or fall off the wagon. The idea of allowing viewers to choose their ending is another way to market my films. It gives more power back to the consumer. If I was an independent filmmaker I would use sites like Amazon and Hulu to market myself.
4. I think the internet is on its way to becoming the most dominant medium but it hasn’t reached it yet because advertisers still haven’t figured out to market to internet site visitors. Internet changed music, film and television by allowing it to be available at all times. It opened up the possibilities for those who had otherwise been unable to view shows, movies or listen to music at the times when they were aired. I think if the industries use the internet to their advantage then it was a good thing. I think it has allowed access to people who couldn’t access it before. That is positive to me. Well I think that independent creators have a harder time getting themselves marketed because there is no one buying up DJ air time or making a music video for marketing. When the industry controlled it all, things got done a lot quicker. If I was teaching a college course I would have a wiki for students to post to. I’d also have podcast lectures for them to listen to whenever necessary.
5. I think that after a while together, we actually got to the point where we were all doing our part toward the group. At first there was just a lot of confusion since we’d never had a course so internet based before. As far as how my group skills have grown, I’d say I’ve learned to take more of a backseat instead of trying to do everything myself in order to make sure it was done right. I noticed the class had grown together when we were all letting one another use laptops and brainstorming answers. I think going against the tradition teaching techniques was confusing at first but it gave more life to the class by the end. I think having the class handle music was a bad idea. It was distracting but otherwise, I think it was good class participation. I enjoyed dictating the class to someone who wasn’t able to be there.
6. As far as communications goes, I learned not to be so naïve about what I’m watching and hearing because big industries control all of that. Also, I’ve learned that the internet has the potential to be extremely helpful in transmitting media to those who can master it. What I enjoyed most about this course was the fact that it was so internet based. It made getting the work done a lot easier. I’m glad I took this course because it taught me more than I knew about communications. Also, it introduced me to a new teaching style.
7. I think at times it got a bit chaotic but overall it was decently organized. I think using the edutainment and convergence methods were helpful in me remembering what I learned in class. Interaction in the course kept me paying attention and improved my retention of the topics. I think the way the course is taught should be reserved for higher level college students because it requires a great deal of restraint to use electronic devices in class and not get carried away or distracted. I would definitely give this course a passing grade.
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