Research Topic

The piracy of music, movies and other forms of copyright material is a major debate within our global environment. Many people do not see the sharing of these files as stealing for whatever reason. Person to person file sharing is in fact the same as stealing. It happens to be stealing that can be done from the comfort of any persons home.



The ease at which files can be shared is at the heart of the problem. Everyday technology gets better and faster. This in turn makes for ethical problems due to governments inability to keep up with technology. The process of civil and legal offences is so sporadic that it is no wonder people do not adhere to the laws that are in place.



It has been proven that the sharing of pirated material directly effects these industries. As person to person file sharing of movies increases theater admissions, DVD rentals and purchases rapidly decrease. As more and more people begin to steal these materials we will find these industries fall and thus destroy the mediums we need so bad. This will in turn cause the government to have to waste time on trying its hardest to legislate these actions. If they are unable to do so we can assume there will be overbearing sentences for offenders and cause much the same issue we see today from the drug sentences of the 1980's War on Drugs.

The solution lies with the consumers. There must be a level of responsibility and ethical process involved with online use. Just because we can do something easily does not mean we should.



More Information:
Legal Problems
Piracy accounts for 95 percent of global music downloads

Article

Like it or not social networking is here to stay. It is now firmly rooted within the environment and is something that cannot be ignored. Everyday there are more and more users as well as different sites. It is a hard task to find a person who is able to function without checking some form of social network.

The applications of this technology are wonderful when used properly, but can be greatly damaging when they want to be. It is undeniable that social networks bring people closer together. The communication gap of time and space can be instantly erased with the internet allowing for families to be at the touch of a button. People are able to find long lost friends and relatives just as easily as they can connect with new people with similar interest.



The massive use of social networking has also made it easier for bad people to do the things they want to do. Some users have no regard for the information that is put on these sites and thus make themselves ease victims. Crimes like identity theft are made very simple when people take all of their personal information and compile it on one Facebook profile. Many people do not understand these problems. It is up to consumers to protect themselves and that will cause social networking to be both fun and safe.



Article On Social Networking:
Boyd, D. M. and Ellison, N. B. (2008), Social network sites: Definition, history, and scholarship. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13, 210–230. doi: 10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00393.x

In Class Topic

The in class topic that I feel has been most valuable for the class was the discussion on the reliability of websites and online sources. The great part about the Internet is that people have the ability to create and share content as they see fit. This can be entertaining and educational based on however each person decides to participate as an online being.

This ability to create, however, also allows for the unethical group of internet users to prey on others. The types of tricks that fool people are just as limitless as they are creative, but with the knowledge of what makes quality online services anyone can be safe. It is important to check the "About Us" section on a site before doing any type of data transferring with it. Checking a sites linked sites can also provide some credibility. By looking for information on trusted named sites you will be able to see reliability because if you have never heard of the brand you have nothing to compare it to.



The keys to your safety is being vigilant and smart about you choices. Do not trust chat rooms or discussion boards because they can be easily faked. Any information presented to you without dates or some type of resource should automatically send up red flags. In the end it is no ones fault but the user if he/she is ill-informed.


How to Spot Fake Websites:
http://www.philb.com/fakesites.htm
http://www.report-online-scams.com/how-to-spot-a-fake-website.html

Tweets

Last month I tweeted an article from Lifehacker that I thought covered a very important issue all Internet users face, online security. This article entitled "Secure Your Online Life the Easy Way" provided readers with many wonderful insights on how they can protect themselves.

Although some people may think these security options are obvious many people do not take advantage of the ease. The use of browsers such as Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer to remember your passwords is convenient, but if your laptop is stolen so are all of your accounts.



The use of non-encrypted connections can leave users open to security problems on their social networks, email, and other accounts. Any site that stores your personal data must be used only if there is a HTTPS or SSL option for security. Popular sites like Gmail, Facebook, Yahoo and Ebay/Paypal have these options put they must be turned on through the settings.



The most interesting concept to me involved pretending that your are always surfing in public and make it hard to pretend to be you. This involves treating your personal computer like it is not yours so you will not put your information online. Answering security questions in ways that would only make sense to you would help people not be able to guess your answers. This means basically that you do not have to answer the question truthfully. If the question is "Where did you go to high school?" put your rival high school because why would you want your security answer something anyone could find on your Facebook?



For More Information:
http://lifehacker.com/#!5760922/secure-your-online-life-the-easy-way
http://lifehacker.com/#!5576927/how-to-stay-safe-on-public-wi+fi-networks

John Pavlik

John Pavlik is a scholar in the fields of journalism and media studies. He specializes in the impact of new technology on journalism, media and society. His research is largely based on studying the interactivity of new media.





Here he is being interviewed about a new software he is developing in 2007.



While at Columbia University in 1997 he came up with a concept to explain the source of online news contents. This concept is called the "Three Stages of Online News Content". These three stages are as follows:

• Stage 1: Posting repurposed content taken directly from printed or over-air media. This is currently the most dominating format used.
• Stage 2: Posting repurposed information augmented with original content.
• Stage 3: Enhancing the cyberspace community while establishing a willingness to experiment with new forms of storytelling.

His work has been published many times over the years. His portfolio includes multiple books and many computer software packages for journalism education and communication. His most recent book, Converging Media, was co-authored by Shawn McIntosh. Converging Media is a new introduction to mass communication which is focused on everyday technology use in the current media environment and where it may be going.

Dr. John Pavlik talks about his book Media in the Digital Age and his related research.




John V. Pavlik has received his Ph.D. and M.A. in mass communications from the University of Minnesota. In 1978 he graduated from the University of Wisconsin at Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication. He is a professor and chair of the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at the School of Communication and Information, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.

For Contact & More Information Visit:
http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/directory/jpavlik/index.html

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http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/blogs/jpavlik/blog/index.html