"Catfish" Analysis

The film “Catfish” is the depiction of a social network that has no limits. While a young dance photographer by the name of Nev comes across a woman on Facebook in which he finds intriguing, he begins to pursue her. The friendship began when Abby sent Nev a painting of one of his photographs. Abby was the face behind each and every person Nev became acquainted with in her “so-called” family through Facebook. This lead Nev to find Meg, who in reality was actually Abby and the two, became very intimate through the social network. Soon enough Abby began to send boxes of her work to Nev in which their friendship grew to be that of an intimate relationship through texts, phone conversations and IMing. Sooner or later Nev begins to realize the truth about Abby and what she has done behind the closed doors in order to achieve what she always wanted.

            The documentary was a perfect analysis of anonymity in the virtual world. One does not always portray who they are exactly, leading into the classification of a fake identity. Revealing this message may leave the audience with questions and a sense of uneasiness because of how much we’ve been exposed to this same exact social network, Facebook. It is not a written rule or law that one needs to justify exactly who they are and reveal truthful information for others to see. Instead it is up to the individual to portray him or her however they please, whether it be faking their identity or truly exposing their own image and thoughts. Most people who use the social network are honest and revealing of their true selves but that isn’t always the case. There are those who take pleasure in undertaking a completely fraud identity to encourage interest of people they might not appeal to in the first place. This was the case in the documentary “Catfish” allowing us to see the extreme depths people would go in order to get what they want in life.

            This portrayal may have struck that of Marshall McLuhan’s ideas and concepts behind the use of different mediums and how they have a major impact on the way we act as a whole. The virtual world is freely open to any person who has access to a computer or a Smartphone. Individuals have the opportunity to embed themselves into a world that has no boundaries and is the home to over 500 million active users. Facebook has been a great source of finding friends and greatly contributing to pursuing intimate relationships. The social network as a whole has benefited our society in terms of connecting one another and forming bonds that have given us the image we want; for the most part.

Although this documentary may in some cases be considered a mockumentary, it still holds insight in which we may have been victim to. Not every person we befriend on Facebook reveals who they truly are. Although they may come across as someone that interests you, they may only be exposing exactly what they want you to think is their true self. These are the consequences of meeting people through the use of a social network. Not everyone is who they say they are and pictures can’t do it any justice.

            At the end of the film when Nev concludes the truth behind Abby’s hidden identities, he begins to feel sympathy for her. He realizes that this is what she needed to do in order to fulfill her depressing life with some excitement. Either way, by making this film he equally exposed Abby, determining that both of them had failed miserably in trying to achieve what they truly wanted. In the end, it is easy to say that any semi-intelligent human being can fabricate a fake identity and engage with others on a social networking site leading us to believe that it may be very difficult to come across the truth with the continually advancing Internet. 

Exit Through The Gift Shop

The film “Exit Through the Gift Shop” encounters a variety of street artists in the making of their very own street art projects. The film directed by Banksy focuses on a French immigrant in Los Angeles, Thierry Guetta as he follows the world’s best street artists and captures their work throughout the film. Thierry made a comfortable living owning a vintage clothing shop while sharing a strange obsession of carrying around his camera constantly filming what went on around him. While in France for the holidays he runs into his cousin Invader who is an internationally known street artist. Fascinated by this, Thierry began to follow around Invader and his friends documenting the adventures they embarked upon in the world of street art.

Guetta was still in search for one of the more prominent street artists by the name of Banksy, who is also the director of the film. Banksy was very secretive about his work which made it extremely difficult for Guetta to get in touch with him. Finally after meeting Banksy the two head off to England so Thierry can film him in his homeland. The two become close friends leading into the process of creating the documentary “ Exit through the gift shop”.

         The film shows how street art was not just a hobby but also a lifestyle for those who took the time to portray their artwork for everyday people to view. This type of art was very attention grabbing, which is why many of these street artists became notoriously known through their work. Many of their tasks were extremely dangerous because they had to climb great heights while trying to avoid being seen by the police. I find street art to be even more interesting then ordinary artwork because of the risks and skills put into each individual project.

         The fact that any type of street art is illegal almost everywhere goes to show what great risks these artists are taking. In my opinion I feel that most street art is just as unique as any art you may find in museums. Most of the big name artists make a living off composing artwork and putting them on the streets. Although it is illegal to put up art in the street I feel that it gives the art more power and meaning. Any ordinary artist can make decent art and pay for it to have it put up in a museum or store, but these street artists go above and beyond limits risking their lives to do what they love.

         Thierry’s obsession with street art sparked his intrests in creating his own type of art that he put out on the streets. Many may argue that he isn’t an actual artist because he did not in fact make the art instead had aritists produce pictures for him to post on the streets himself. This may be true but his dedication and obsession for street art pushed him to basically live the life of a true artists. His passion for filming allowed him to form friendships with some of the more famous street artists that have become notoriously known through anonymity. These street artists could only claim their fame through the work itself therefore their faces were never known.

         The film is a great indication of how different the life styles of these street artists are compared to the average everyday artists. The risks they undergo in order to pursue their individual goals have driven them to be who they are today. The consensus may say that these projects are no where near to as valuable as a Van Gough or a Picasso but the hard work and quality of the artwork can be very comparable. Banksy’s documentary gives us insight into what street art is all about concluding that anyone can make art and express there feelings for others to see.         

wayne/rob vector

kobe vectorized

democratized media

1) The way Keen defines democratized media is any media, whether it is a news article, song, film, that’s produced, contributed to or edited by non-professionals. YouTube is a good example of this because anyone is allowed to post videos or comments on the site with out being held to high regards. It is the “great seduction” meaning, everyone that uses the Internet is equal. Keen believes that democracy could potentially change everything we know about the media. Due to this he thinks that the content, information, media, and audience would be democratized as well by Web 2.0 primarily changes within major businesses and the government. Keen was right, the Internet would change because it was open to all views and ideas. 

2) Both Keen and Rushkoff can agree on many similar ideas when talking about social media. The two of them have concluded that our modern society is becoming way to over dependent with using the Internet. Keen believes that web 2.0 is only corrupting all professional content as a whole and it’s terrible. Rushkoff isn’t so much on the opposition of this idea but instead believes that more people are being exposed to web 2.0 and that it isn’t a good thing. I feel the reasoning behind both points of view but I also think that all of this was destine to happen eventually. People tend to take certain things to an extreme especially the Internet. It is the individual’s choice to do what they want with the tools they have at hand. In my opinion the Internet benefits everyone because you are in control of what you put on it or what you take from it, therefore you shouldn’t allow it to affect your life negatively. 

I commented on mathew's, shelby's, and tims posts.

Wither the Individual?

Whither the individual? Almost every person I know has a facebook or some sort of social media that they use on a daily basis. I can remember when facebook first came out mainly college students had one. It rapidly transformed into the most popular social media site in the world. Soon enough kids that could barley use a computer began to use the site as well as parents, and people in the working force.  Facebook completely took over Myspace that was one of the first social media sites out there where people could meet friends and share their pictures. Facebook as a whole is very successful at getting people connected and displaying all the quality information to allow others to get to know who you are. Facebook is what connects people as a whole not confining them to there own life but allowing all to share their lives together.

With each person we meet on facebook we are extending ourselves out to others while gaining knowledge of reality. While there are those who don’t believe in and exposing themselves on a public site, there are always positives and negatives to the idea. In most cases the positives heavily out weigh the negatives when it comes to facebook. When we meet someone new and interesting it is very common to friend them on facebook. This is how we get to know a little bit more about each individual we come across in the cyber world. Each person has the opportunity to make their own unique profiles giving the whole world a chance to see what your like or even who you are. Everything from your pictures to your relationship status to your current status is displayed in your profile. All this information is how others can get a feel for who you are.  In terms of “surrendering your own ego” facebook does not automatically call for it. Your mind is free to display what ever is of importance to you. Individuals are allowed to display as much as they want or even as little as possible in order to protect themselves from other viewers. In the grand scheme of things you are not abiding by the “cookie cutter” profiling but instead are free to determine your own persona.

            The Internet continues to grow rapidly as there is a non-stop flow of communication and on going media stream back and forth. Constant posts on your news feed updating you about everything your friends are doing give us the opportunity to expand our knowledge. Everyone wants to be the first person to post that new song or comment on the photo album that was updated. It’s all part of interacting with people and expressing our thoughts and views. There is so much room for expressions that some people get carried away and spend every second of their lives updating others on what they are doing. This can be a quality of a facebook addict but at the same time it is just what the individual desires to do with a social network at hand. In saying this, many problems can arrive from people exposing too much information about others or even themselves.

            There have been cases where people embarrassed others on facebook leading to suicide or other harmful consequences.  This is where facebook can take on a bad view because people decide to use the site as a way to attack someone else.  The recent gossips that we hear and see is almost destine to make its way to facebook. Although that is not always the case people out there will do anything to get attention and facebook is a free pass to the idea. For the most part, detrimental situations don’t occur often but there is always a case for everything.

            Social networks have become one of the most popular ways of interacting with people, which is why it is important. The network consists of links that connect large groups of people and information. The way you perceive facebook is your own opinion. For example, if you go to a party and just watch everyone you notice the interactions and even some of the relationships people share with each other.  If you go up to the wrong group of people it can ruin your perception of the party as a whole. On facebook one is allowed to select there own groups of friends and view anyone’s profile that wants to add you as a friend. This gives you the opportunity to decline or accept any friend request depending on the type of person you are and how open you are to exposing yourself to more and more people. Facebook also gives you a list of friends you share in common with every other person on the site. This is beneficial in cases where someone you don’t know friend requests because you can see if any of your friends are friends with that certain individual. In the overall picture facebook connects you to anyone else out there who is a part of it. It is up to you to figure out the similarities and differences you share with others. In the end it is your own choice to expose yourself and expand your reflection across the social web.

social media web 2.0

1) I feel that professional production will always be held at high regards because of how much technology is available at this day and age. When it comes to “homegrown” production there will always be room for improvement because people want to see the truth and what is actually real but also the value of the production must be displayed accurately. When it comes down to it these two types of entertainment will even out because people want the best of both worlds. Now, especially it is much easier to produce with all the different social networking devices and technology available to us.

2) Facebook is the number one social networking site that I use. I feel that this site offers the most opportunities when it comes to networking with others and becoming known.  The reasons why facebook has been so much more successful than MySpace is because of how many different things they added to the site to make it very useful for everyday people like you and me. For example, there is so much information you can put on facebook about yourself that can let others get to know you better.  Displaying information such as a relationship status or even the network you are apart of gives people the opportunity to meet and mingle. Also the online chat box-allowing people to have ongoing messaging while two people are both logged onto facebook is extremely beneficial and entertaining as well. All of the things you put on facebook are user generated content because it is your choice to portray yourself the way you want to. I truly do believe that facebook will be around for a long time because it offers so much and benefits so many people at the same time.

3) Transparency is a very important concept in the media. Everyone is connected through this idea especially on all the social networks we use everyday. The concept of transparency allows you to not only be connected to the people you know but also everyone else that your friends know. Facebook uses transparency because anyone out there can view your basic information for the most part especially if you share the same friends.  Although it is very common in the media it is also extremely important in real life situations. When you interact with other people face-to-face it’s the truth and actual reality with no doubts or reasons to not believe. Thus, on the Internet one can lie and be deceitful because it is all about interpretations rather than one actually seeing for themselves.  

IN THIS PICTURE I AM TRYING TO DEMONSTRATE HOW MUSIC IS A MEDIUM IN THE WORLD TODAY. MUSIC CONNECTS PEOPLE AND ALLOWS THEM TO SHARE A SIMILARITY OR A SPECIFIC LIKING OF THE MATTER. THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE LIVING IN THIS WORLD TODAY LISTEN TO ALL TYPES OF MUSIC RELIGIOUSLY AND HAVE SPECIFIC GENRES WHICH THEY PREFER MORE THAN THE OTHER. SINCE THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT ARTISTS AND SONGS OUT THERE, MUSIC GIVES US THE OPPORTUNITY TO CONNECT WITH PEOPLE WHILE LISTENING TO THE SAME TYPES OF SONGS AND INTERACT BECAUSE OF IT. FOR EXAMPLE, AT CONCERTS AND SHOWS LIKE IN THIS PICTURE, EVERYONE IS DANCING AND ENJOYING THE MUSIC. IN THEORY THEY ARE ALL CONNECTED THROUGH THE MUSIC BEING PLAYED AT THE MOMENT. THIS IS A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN CONNECT AND COMMUNICATE WITH ONE ANOTHER WHILE HAVING A GOOD TIME. IN THIS PICTURE THE GLOBE IS REPLACING THE ACTUAL HEAD TO DEMONSTRATE THE WORLD IS CONSTANTLY PLAYING AND LISTENING TO MUSIC ON A REGULAR BASIS. WETHER IT BE AT A CONCERT OR EVEN SINGING ALONG TO YOUR FAVORITE SONGS, MUSIC ITSELF WILL CONTINUE TO GROW AND THERE IS ALWAYS A GUARANTEE THAT SOMEONE ELSE OUT THERE SHARES THE SAME TASTE OR DISLIKES AS YOU IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY. COMMUNICATION IS CONSTANTLY FLOWING AROUND THE TOPIC OF MUSIC EACH AND EVERYDAY. 

Mc Luhan's Message, Medium, and Content

Medium- BlackBerry Messenger for BlackBerry Smart phones.
Content- Chat style layout, unlimited characters, real time confirmations messages delivered and read, ability to share photos, videos,  with multiple contacts at once, add contacts by scanning barcodes and pins, users can share what they are listening to with their friends, status messages and recent updates.
Message- Standard cell phones suffered because all they offer is normal texting with limited options, Iphones don't use BBM which turns some people away from buying them over a blackberry. Other smart phones suffered from competition because they don't offer BlackBerry messenger.

Medium- Facebook
Content- Facebook allows you to upload pictures and videos and share them with your friends. Learn more about the people you meet, show your interests, relationship status, events, birthdays, what's on your mind (status), live chat, inbox message, write on your friends wall, like posts, pictures, and videos, view a live news feed with constant updates, poke people, join groups, view other peoples mutual friends, and add captions to your pictures.
Message- Myspace, AOL, AIM, and cellphone use went down since the existence of Facebook. Talking over the phone decreased as well as face to face communication. Twitter isn't as popular as it could be because of so many Facebook users. Some schools and jobs recommend Facebook in order to meet and connect with other people. Some people lose there jobs or don't get one because they may have pictures that are revealing or inappropriate. Facebook connects people all around the world on a daily basis giving people a chance to grow.

Medium- Twitter (Interactivity)

Content- Follow other people and receive updates on there tweets (messages that everyone can view). Tweet your thoughts or what ever is on your mind. Share your profile with a picture and show your favorite people that you are currently following. Tweet count (number of tweets you have accounted for).  Browse interests and find out live updates on what's going on with everyone in the world who has a twitter. 

Message- All forms of networking suffered because of twitter and the amount of people that started to use it. People have resorted to using this only to communicate to everyone else around them. Everyday people get to see what there favorite celebrities are doing on a daily basis. Voice your thoughts with out any consequences. Engage in other peoples lives and find out more about them as they get to know you.