Chris Anderson: The Long Tail case study

1. What is Chris Anderson’s theory of ‘the long tail’? 

Chris Anderson has summed up that the future of retail will focus on the idea of selling less of more. This will be based on putting everything online. Anderson puts forth the idea that the internet enables the large number of non-hits to increase in order to economically outweigh the hits. He states that the economy is shifting from focusing on a small number of hits and moving towards a significant number of niches in the tail. This is mainly because physically there is not enough shelf space in the traditional record shops and only the most popular items can be offered. However, online storage is not a problem. 

2. What does the theory of ‘the long tail’ mean for the music industry and to other areas of the media such as online television?

The theory of "the long tail" raises issues some issues within many areas of the media. The first issue which arises is that the more things made available online, the more people will explore the non-hits. This means that the sales of the hits may end up suffering. If a million singles are available online, the 100 most popular singles will still be a success, however a large proportion of the people will explore rather than consuming the hits, this creates a loss within the industry in general. 

However, this may not necessarily be considered a bad thing as the more things available online, the more that people will consume overall. For example, the site, Amazon sells more books than any other bookstore due to the idea that the site sells a larger amount of books than any other. 

An advantage of the Long Tail provides a greater future for the mass market retailers moving online by reducing the main issue of the shelf space, furthermore it provides future paths for a large number of niche products that may have not been accessible in the traditional means. 

3. What is Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams’ theory of Wikinomics?
The term Wikinomics refer to describing the effect of collaboration and user-participation within the  

market place and the corporate world. 

4. What are the five big ideas of Wikinomics and how might these ideas be applied to the music industry?

The main concepts behind Wikinomics are:

• Peering, which refers to the idea that products can be shared amongst peers. For example, sites such as Spotify and Facebook encourage sharing music with peers and are designed to be shared with several people creating a continuous chain of peer recommendation.
• Free creativity is a positive outcome of the free market. It is difficult to control the creativity of the web. However, a service called Creative Commons provides protection at the same time allowing people to remix material within limits.
• Due to peering, we media journalism and creativity,the media has become democratised.
• The idea of thinking globally, embracing the globalization and ignoring all possible boundaries.

Are the media becoming more democratic?

Within the past few decades there has been a significant change which has occurred within aspects of the media. This change is due to the reason that people are gaining more access to the internet where they can share their first hand reports as well as their creativity.

A reason that the media could be said to be becoming more democratic is due to the vast range of fast moving technology available. In the past, to record materials and edit products required the use of very large, expensive devices which were only affordable for the large institutions. However, nowadays the inventions of digital convergence such as portable devices like mobile phones with cameras within the device, creates an efficient way of recording first hand materials. This creates an efficient way of recording materials which can be uploaded straight to the web and shared with consumers.

David Gauntlett suggests that the media is becoming more democratic due to the discovery of Web 2.0. Before Web 2.0, Web 1.0 was were only certain people could create websites as it was difficult to understand how to create websites which could be uploaded onto the worldwide web. However, due to the findings of  Web2.0 which discovered sites such as Youtube and Blogger, it is much easier for one to upload their reports onto the internet. However, it was found that only 8% of those who use sites like Youtube, actually upload videos onto the site.

Within the music industry, democracy has risen vastly as rather than one having to send their materials to the big institutions, upcoming artists simply just upload their materials onto sites such as Blogger and Youtube in order for people to listen to their music. Sites such as Facebook enable the uses of peer recommendation where peers share music with one another, which is in an advantage for the upcoming artists as their materials are recommended by their peers.

People recorded first hand reports on many things such as the riots and programmes such as Crimewatch encourage people to get their voices heard by sending in things they have been subject to or witnessed and recorded. There are many factors which have shown the media becoming democratic and examples of this have been shown in the recent years in particular.

Lana Del Rey: Music in the Online Age

Lana del Rey Case Study on Prezi

We Media

"In what ways do you think some of these examples of the use of We Media are democratic?"
Nowadays the internet provides many paths and journeys for the development of progressive citizenship journalism worldwide. The theory by John Hartley justifies how media consumers need specific features in order to transform the journalism theory. Hartley suggests that consumers need to avoid the idea that the audience is strictly a passive consumer of media products in order for the audiences to produce their own media products. Hartley also states that every single person has a right to be involved in getting information and ideas across the wider world, based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The theorist Stuart Allan supports the idea of blogging by audiences as he believes that they contribute with their primary resources, first hand digital photographs and other forms of recordings. However, this challenges professional journalists as it disrupts the traditional routines that are undergone. The internet and blogosphere challenge the mainstream media in democratic movements.

Overall, these examples of We Media are seen as democratic as they depict the different ways of getting ones views and opinions across through different technological pathways such as Web 2.0. These pathways transform the consumers into the producers which enable them to having freedom of speech and more choice.

"How does We Media provide a valid alternative voice to ordinary citizens?"

We Media can be seen as a source for citizens to voice their opinions and rich data as it provides the non mainstream journalists with an opportunity to speak out. George Orwell, known as the author of Animal Farm however he was also known for being a progressive journalist which of whom concentrated on journals such as the New Leader and Left Forum. He wrote his regular “As I Please” column, he developed a close relationship with his audiences. This was a very crucial relationship which added to the flowering of Orwell’s journalistic imagination. Suggesting that his rich imagination attracted many audiences which continued following his journals. He soon developed into becoming a mainstream journalist. 

David Gauntlett

1. According to Gauntlett, what was "the media" like in the past and what changes have now occurred?

According to the words of David Gauntlett, media in the past had major divisions between the distributors and the consumers. Before, terms such as "God" was used to describe the roles of the distributors, this is because in the past you needed big recorded devices and cameras which was impractical as most people did not really afford to own such things. Gauntlett states that media was "handed down from on high", in terms of accessibility and general attitudes and tones towards it. The consumers were seen as "little people" due to the lack of control. He compares the general architecture of the Broadcasting House with the exterior of a church, justifying the power of the distributors. However, now there are portable, small devices such as laptops and phones which can be any easy source where the previous "little people" can upload there work on sites such Youtube and Wikipedia, these sites display a variety of videos such as homemade videos and they manage to gain a wide audience which enforce the individual to carry on making things for their fellow people. 

 He states that one of the main reasons for the change was due to the founding of Web 2.0. Before this discovery,  Web 1.0 meant that everybody created their own websites separately from one another. However the discovery of Web 2.0 enforced the idea that everybody contributed towards the internet together.

Originally the founder of the worldwide web designed the web so that everybody could contribute their ideas together, unfortunately it didn't work like that for many years as it was not clear how it would work in that way. However, nowadays people are able to contribute to one another sites due to web 2.0.







2. How far do you agree with Gauntlett?
Gauntletts ideas on the evolution of the media could be said to be valid due to the changes overtime involving the internet. In the past people simply just used the internet as a resource. Nowadays they use it for uploading first hand reports from portable devices such as their mobile phones and cameras. However although it could be said that the internet is becoming more of a democratic source, only 8% percent of consumers which use sites such as youtube and twitter actually upload things for others to consume. This suggests that yes the internet is more democratic to an extent that people have more access to creating reports which can be uploaded however, not many people actually upload things onto the worldwide web.

3. How might Gauntlett's ideas be applied to the music industry?
Gauntletts theory can be applied to the music industry as in the past, the music industry was strictly consisting of releasing music through major record labels such as Sony Entertainment, this could be represented as the "Music Gods". It was extremely hard to be discovered unless you sent your material to the record label. However, the chances of them viewing these materials were very unlikely. Nowadays, due to the inventions of Web 2.0 the number of upcoming artists have increased significantly as they are able to upload their footage and materials online where fans can view their work. The artists are then discovered by a record company or they can just continue on as an independent artist which of whom uploads their materials for those interested.

Investigating Twitter and the Superinjuctions

Below is a mini documentary where both Yasmin and I discussed the Twitter Scandal which involved Manchester United footballer Ryan Giggs filing a suit against Britains High Court against Twitter and "person's unknown" or those responsible for the information of his affair with Imogen Thomas and sister in law Natasha Giggs which was exposed on Twitter accounts. United player Giggs is often know for his squeaky clean reputation but happened to be the sole football player to be mentioned in a strand of 6 tweets about celebrities who had taken out gagging orders on the press. Under English law, anyone with enough money and a reputation worth protecting can take out a so-called injunction, which stops the mainstream media base in England from reporting on a story that infringes on their privacy – often being related to a seedy affair of some sort. Located below is a screenshot of the original tweet from Twitter account user '@InjuctionSuper'exposing Gigg's affair with ex Big Brother star Imogen Thomas.