engl202justin

August 9, 2007

Kenneth Sherwood
English
Sutton Hall
340
Indiana, PA 15705

Dear Dr. Sherwood

It is hard to believe that this class is already over! It feels like yesterday that I walked in here in nervous of what to expect or what challenges laid before me. I am writing because I want to tell you how much I have progressed over the course of the class session. I feel like my writing skills have improved since I took this class.

Before I came to this class, I had never done “blogging” before. I was surprised at how much the class was focused on the use of technology. I was expecting us to still use the old ways of research such as the card catalogue. I was relieved to hear that we would be using the computer for most of our research. This class really taught me how to use the school’s online book database, which I had never used before or even know about.

In this blog, I tried to express my thoughts on the daily assignments, in the early the blog posts, reading those articles and summarizing them was a bit difficult because the technical terms for technology is not a strong point for me. Such as the case when the articles were discussing computer programming slang, it became a hard to comprehend what they were saying.

Once we started discussing copyrights, it got me interested because I knew about the recent lawsuit concerning Google vs. Viacom. Now, since the paper has been completed, I feel like I know more about the case and understand what it’s really about. Not that it makes me an expert now, but I feel like I understand the fundamentals of the ongoing lawsuit.

Probably the most work intensive project of the class was the researching and the revising of the final paper. I started it not knowing where to begin or even how to proceed the research process. I knew i had picked a challenging project to tackle. Even though it was a difficult endeavor at times, I perserved because I knew that the hard work would pay off.

Also, the reading assignment of McLuhan’s Medium is the Massage was interesting to me because it really highlighted the different forms of communication we absorb without even thinking about it. Most people don’t even give it a thought about how the various forms of daily communication influence us. I know I really did not give it much thought until I read that book.

In conclusion, this class was better than I thought it would be. I know I learned quite a few things about writing and how to use the library’s technology to assist me in searching for pertinent information for my research topic. Also this class was great in meeting new people and making new friends. I am glad that I took this class over the summer versus the fall because it seemed like the class atmosphere was a bit more relaxed. Lastly, this class has taught me a few skills that I know will be important to remember when I use them at a job in the future. Good writing will always be important in the work place, because a person needs to be an effective communicator with not only only other co-workers but also customers and the public.

Sincerely,

Justin Hileman
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC

P.S. Thanks for the learning experience, and hope you enjoy the rest of your summer.

I think revising and editing my paper was probably harder than actually writing it. I think it was because i had reanalyze my thought processes, and examine what was my point I wanted make sure got across. But revising it was a long and arduous process, that taught me a lot about my deficiencies and the areas in which i do well at.

Do you believe information/media should be allowed to be withheld from the public by the owner?
-Extremely Yes
-Moderately Yes
-Neutral
-Moderately No
-Extremely No

1. Introduction
a. Thesis/Research Question
b. Introduce the subject of the paper
2. Google vs. Viacom
a. Describe the recent copyright infringement lawsuit that was filed against Google’s Youtube division by Viacom Inc.
i. Viacom is suing Youtube for $1 billion.
ii. Viacom claims that Youtube knowingly allowed copyrighted material on its site.
iii. Viacom spends $100,000 a month just to search for pirated videos on Youtube.
b. Note the importance of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and how its interpretation in this court case could really impact the future of many video sharing sites.
i. Google claims that Youtube is protected by the DMCA.
1. Youtube complies with requests to take down copyrighted material.
c. The Youtube Revolution
i. How has the advent of Youtube reshape our society?
1. Describe some of the aspects, the impact on the social medium, and popularity with the younger generations.
2. How has Youtube affected businesses?
a. Old Media
i. Help old media
ii. Hurt old media
b. Copyright Infringement
i. Who owns the videos?
3. Youtube’s impact from a legal standpoint.
a. How do copyright protections apply to society in this digital world?
b. Is Youtube really protected by the DMCA?
3. Persuasive
a. What will the impact of Google vs. Viacom court decision have on media copyrights?
i. Could this continue to propel us on a path for more information/media being available to the public?
ii. Or will it set back; possibly heavily damage the entire video-sharing community.
b. Political Freedom vs. Economic Freedom
i. Should media/information be at the public’s disposal?
ii. Should media/information that is copyrighted/owned be withheld from the public at the owner’s discretion?
4. Conclusion
a. The digital world is reshaping society’s means of thinking and communication. Technological revolutions are creating a need for laws to be updated; for businesses to evolve to meet changing consumer forms of communication; and are changing the social scene. Youtube being just a part of the growing network of popular social websites, Facebook, and Myspace.

Survey:

In regards to Google vs. Viacom; a court case about the legal implications of copyright infringement;

Do you believe information/media should be allowed to be withheld from the public by the owner or should the public be allowed to access the copyrighted information/media?

o you believe information/media should be allowed to be withheld from the public by the owner?

Write a brief blog post that responds not only what argument McLuhan is making — but also how he goes about doing it

McLuhan’s book, even though it is forty years old, it still is as relevant as ever. Technology has only strengthened its influence on people. The media has evolved to reflect the changing demands of the people.

He analyizes how the media has changed our perceptions. The impact of tv, how suburbs reflect man’s desire to live in a simpler environment. The increasing role of specialization in our culture; which can be reflected in our jobs.

It notes how technology has become an extension of our body.
The wheel, electric circuitry, music, and books.

1. Theme: Digital Piracy: Legal Side
2. Broad Topic: How technology is changing the way people are accessing information legally or illegally.
3. Concept Streams:
*Youtube/Google legal issues with Viacom
*Problems stemming from internet piracy
*illegal downloads
–music
–video
*impact on businesses
*napster
*limewire

4. Relevant Conversations/sources:
*Internet Forums–Comedy Central Fan Sites
*Patent Lawyers
*Court Decisions
*Copyright laws
http://online.wsj.com/public/us
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Google
http://law.lexisnexis.com/
5a. Working Research Question(s):
*What will the Google vs. Viacom court decision impact media copyrights?
5b. Focussed Research Question:
*Political freedom vs. Economic freedom. Do we want to live in a society where information is held by owner, or do we want to live in a democratic society where information is at the public’s disposal? How does this impact posting videos of copyrighted shows on youtube? What is the impact from the business point of view? What is the impact from a legal standpoint?

I’m thinking about writing about digital piracy; how people upload movies and shows before they come out on dvd. Recently the new Harry Potter book was leaked online. Supposedly this book was under tight security measures, but it somehow made it to the web. It seems like an interesting, and debatable topic to write about.
How is digital piracy affecting businesses’ bottom line? Is this reshaping the digital landscape?

The Tyranny of Copyright brings to light one of the many controversial issues of copyright extensions. It seems that the government keeps postponing copyrights’ expiration in the interest of businesses.
What was surprising to me, was how the Digital Millennium Copyright Act could silence the free speech of the students who attended Swarthmore. I find that this oppression of the freedom of speech disturbing, especially when the students were trying to bring about awareness of the flaws in the electronic voting machines. Diebold’s attempt at trying to conceal information about the apparent fallability of their voting machines, can only make a consumer and a voter more distrustful of big business.

A 150,000 people can thank modern technology for saving their lives. On July 11, 2007, in the Sichuan province of China, the government sent out a widespread text message to the residents warning them of an oncoming flood.

“The flood was so sudden I would have drowned if I had not received the messages,” said Zhang Xue’an, a resident of Qujiang in Quxian in Sichuan Province. He began to receive messages on his mobile phone on July 3, and was told by local flood control authorities that a flood was only a few days away.”*

With only half of the population having cellphones, text messaging has proven to be an effective means of communication.

*http://www.chinanews.cn//life/2007-07-11/37469.html