Journal #3: The Social (Media) Revolution

In "Engaging Youth in Social Media: Is Facebook the New Media Frontier?" Greenhow and Reifman conduct a study to see if young people would use a space like Facebook to critically engage in news reading and translate this involvement into real-world actions. Do you find using online sites, such as Facebook or Twitter, to be an effective way for organizing social or political movements? What do these sites afford that non-digital communications don't?  Have you ever or would you likely join an online social or political action group in the future?

Journal #2: The Hollywood Blockbuster

In her essay, "Defending Goliath: Hollywood and the Art of the Blockbuster," Manohla Dargis discusses a cultural divide with serious intellectual highbrows on one side, who dismiss blockbuster movies such as The Lord of the Rings or Spider Man, and "ordinary viewers" on the other side, who like these kinds of movies. Do you think this divide is accurate or do people bridge this divide? Which group would you identify with? Discuss some of the movies you enjoy to support your answer.

Journal #1: Introduction to Class Blog

Please confirm that you have set up a blogger account by responding to the prompt below. All blog responses need to be at least 100 words.

What is your relationship with writing?

Some possible questions to answer: How often do you write? Why do you write? What kind of writing do you enjoy doing? Do you like writing? Do you consider yourself a writer?