Whacha doin'?

Nothing grabs one's attention like a really good headline. Walsh (2006, p. 31) states that an internet site is to give the reader a variety of information. So what if you combined both? What you'd probably get is the Facebook status update tool.





On it, everyone gets to tell whoever enters their Facebook page exactly what they are doing. It is an act of spontaneous reporting. It ranges from longwinded dalliances to snappy quick cuts, all instant descriptions of what the person is up to. It gives readers an immediate gratification of looking into a person's life and engages them to comment. Even a simple "Had a rough day." can illicit sympathetic responses. And this simple tool becomes an active communication avenue for the person and readers.

That one tool has become so popular that there is even a collection of the funniest Facebook status updates! Proof that the sometimes, the simplest things are the most effective tools of communication.

Resource:

Walsh, M 2006, 'The "textual shift": examining the reading process with print, visual and multimodal texts', Australian journal of language and literacy, Vol. 29, No. 1, pp. 24-37

Online article: Being There

Image source: Facebook

A tiny step for me, a giant leap for Luddites

Ahh yes, the smell of...wait. Unfortunately, a blog doesn't quite have the same satisfaction of opening up a brand new diary and inhaling the smell of crisp, untouched pages. The potential it holds on each page, a blank canvas itching to be scrawled on....

I guess a blinking cursor on a white screen will have to do!

Welcome to my first blog in which I will go where many have bravely gone before me in past semesters- delving into the convoluted world of media through the many exciting issues, while providing keen analysis and personal opinions on topics related to the television, print and web arenas.

Up ahead, I will be checking out the diabolical debate of print vs online, the saddening truth of departing television audiences and the iron-grip that online media outlets like Joost and Facebook have on the world...and those are just the teasers!

Stay tuned and please feel free to slug a few comments my way.

Image Source: Getty Images