Due October 30.
Steven Levy, Hackers.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hackers_Heroes_of_the_Computer_Revolution
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In your review, be sure to comment on the “hacker ethic” and its appropriateness (or not) within the current mass media environment. We wll discuss this hacker ethic along with other notions of ethics in mass media in our Tuesday class, based on Chapter 20 in the Vivian text.
And, speaking of wikipedia, take a look at this.
I could do a blogroll of New Orleansy bloggers, but what’s the point when you can just link to somebody else’s?
Try the blogroll here, for instance.
If you want to then test the blogroll waters, search for Rob Couhig-related posts. That should bring up some fairly rancid stuff, since Couhig was just on WWL radio today as spinmeister for NORA where razor-witted journalists Tommy and Monica gave him a free microphone for about thirty minutes to sell people on the idea that they should buy concrete slabs floating on top of Flood Plain A in the middle of Political Disaster B in High Crime Area C protected by the D-grade AoCE.
It’s good to be king.
This is an interesting period in the stock market, on Wall Street, in the USA, and, in larger contexts, regarding the philosophy of capitalism and the burgeoning “science” of economics.
While economic concepts are sometimes idiosyncratic and obscure, there are some fairly clear-cut, even binary, notions about which economics and economists would certainly hope to have some say and even, I would daresay, some understanding. These basic and binary terms include deflation and inflation. It’s very easy to tell which is which. During deflation, prices go down. During inflation, prices go up.
Most of the actions of the Federal Reserve System are, in fact, designed specifically to either limit or, upon occasion, encourage inflation. Inflation is primarily measured according to the CPI, or Consumer Price Index. Some would say that the CPI isn’t a good measure of inflation, or that the way we measure CPI isn’t a good way to measure CPI but nevertheless, that’s what economists do and that’s what economists use.
Now, since economics would be a science, it would hope to establish cause and effect relationships among important characteristics of an economy — like deflation and inflation. In other words, economics would like to be able to tell us what causes inflation and deflation. One of the things that is significantly and causally related to inflation and deflation, according to the economists, is money supply. There are three ways money supply can be measured (M1, M2, and M3), but we won’t get into that — and economists don’t seem to to be willing to measure all of those (e. g., M3) much any more anyway.
The idea, the science, is that when the money supply is relatively large, there is likely to be inflation because money is plentiful. When the money supply is relatively small, on the other hand, there is likely to be deflation because money is scarce. Pretty simple, and one of the very basic laws of economics.
The Great Depression, for instance, was a period of deflation which was, according to the economists, caused in a big way by the Federal Reserve System doing something very wrong: reducing the money supply.
Now, I really said all that to say this: What do the economists say about NOW?
It’s a pretty important question, I think.
Does the science of economics predict deflation? Does it predict inflation?
After all, we still have all those measurements of all those things that economists have used, up to this point, to build and promote their science. Using those very same measurements and theories and laws of economics, what does economics the science have to say about this very basic and fundamental characteristic of our current economy?
Is our economy an inflationary economy? Is our economy a deflationary economy?
Well, say the economists, according to The Science Of The Economics, and according to all our measurements and our spreadsheets and our historical analyses of The Great Depression and the inflation in post-war Germany and the deflation in 1990s Japan and all those things, here is our very best answer to your question: We have no idea.
If prices go down, that will be deflation. If prices go up, that is more likely to be inflation.
TYVM.
An update to our discussion in CMMNA400 today.
Like the Internet that underpins it, the Web has flourished because of its openness and its creator’s deliberate decision not to predict or prejudge how it would be used. As the Web took off, there was a debate within CERN about whether to try to profit from it. Berners-Lee argued strongly against this idea: without an open standard, he reasoned, there would end up being several incompatible forms of Internet media, backed by Microsoft, AOL and others. Making the Web royalty-free made it more attractive than any proprietary alternative. “Without that, it never would have happened,” he says.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Berners_Lee.html
More details on the exam….
The exam will consist of 40 multiple choice questions drawn (in the largest part) from this abridged bank of questions. Each of these questions will be worth two points for a total of 80 points.
The final part of the exam will consist of two essay questions, each worth 10 points. These questions will ask you to apply your knowledge of past and current mass communications theory, including the evolution of the magic bullet model and the application of current long-term, cumulative media effects theories.
For further guidance, see also the preceding post on this blog.
Sorry for missing class today. A couple of notes.
1. The exam.
Because of our earlier problems with hurricanes, we continue to be on a tight schedule. This means that you WILL have your first exam on Tuesday, Oct 7. This exam will cover all topics discussed in class this semester — including the lectures in Miller 114 and the online discussions held on this blog.
As your online schedule indicates, the exam will be primarily based on the following Vivian chapters:
The exam will emphasize the components of these chapters that we have discussed at length in class, so be sure to refer to your class notes in preparation for the exam. Also, because we were unable to review these chapters in depth prior to the exam, I will be posting on online study guide no later than the morning of Monday, October 6. On Monday — or, most likely, before — you will be able to access this study guide through a link on this blog and in your online schedule.
In addition to the Vivian chapters, you should review your notes from the library lecture on August 28 and from the group lectures on environmental journalism by Dr. Thomas and mass media law by Dr. Alexander — and from my lecture on mass com theory. I will pull 2-3 questions from the content of each of these lectures.
You may also wish to review your performance on your first quiz as part of your preparation for the exam. These quizzes will be available to be picked up from an envelope on the door of my office no later than Monday, October 6 (actually, I hope to have them there on Sunday).
The exam will be similar in format to the quiz. That is, the questions will be largley objective, multiple choice, matching, and true/false. There may be 1-2 short answer/essay questions.
2. The presentation.
As you know, your first oral presentation was due on Thursday, October 2. This oral presentation will not be made up; however, you must still turn in a written report of your presentation (which I have already asked you to prepare). This presentation will now be graded on a pass/fail basis only. You may turn in the written version of your presentation on the day of the exam, Tuesday, October 7. If wish to turn this assignment in earlier, please do so to Ms. Phyllis Aleman in the 3rd floor office of the School of Mass Communication.
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As always, if you have any questions or concerns, you may email me directly or leave a comment on this blog.
…and the media coverage of the bailout sucks.
But this is old news. Simply hurricane/disaster coverage redux, in which WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION (which must be immediately destroyed!!!) have been replaced by THE GREAT DEPRESSION (which must be immediately destroyed!!!). Hate to be so blunt, but there ya go.
Here’s some new news that the old news people don’t think is news. Because where else are you gonna see that exactly?
And a little further insight: Free markets assume a free market place. While the free marketers hold to the notion that competition is necessary and you need to bear the losses along with the gains and yadda yadda, there is the necessary requirement in a free and unlimited market that everyone has equal access to the market and equal access to information about the market. Next time you got a free market economist on hand, ask him/her about that.
You can’t privatize the gains and socialize the losses any more than you can privatize the information and socialize the Entertainment Tonight that passes for information.
Until you solve the free information problem, you don’t solve the free market problem.
And another thing:
What a great opportunity for a presidential candidate — a born leader, say — to step up to the plate. Imagine what would have happened, for instance, if McCain (since he is so obviously behind in the polls atm) would have stepped up, as his Republican colleagues (sort of) did, as a true maverick might have done, and said, more or less, hey, this bailout sucks. Hey, the current President is wrong. Hey, I am not that guy. Hey, I am a maverick. And, hey, what’s more important: I’M RIGHT.
Here’s what would have happened in my mind: McCain would have been right.
Instead, of course, he chose to show his maverickness by picking Sarah Palin.
Comme ci, comme ça.
And another thing:
The world is coming to an end and we call time out for Rosh Hashanah?
No offense, but if I saw a car on a train track with the locomotive bearing down, I wouldn’t check the calendar. I don’t, for instance, think Ari would have left Vince in that car.
But then somebody probably knew the locomotive wasn’t really bearing down all that hard. You think?
Twitter: dmyersloyola