This week's lecture was all about Journalism in the online environment (or perhaps 'arena' is a more apt term.) We looked at the development of the web through a filter that is becoming increasingly useful: the concept of 'web iterations'. With this tool, we can view the development of the web in distinct stages throughout recent history.
We are all pretty familiar with the first two iterations. Web 1.0 was the network that most of us first connected to; an 'information' web where there were producers of data (companies, etc.) and consumers of data (you and I). Web 2.0 catalogued the phenomena surrounding user-generated content. In the tradition of academics relying on puns, the buzz word for Web 2.0 is 'prod-users'. Prod-users both consume and produce media; if you have ever commented on something, or used a social network, you are a prod-user.
We also had a look at potential future iteration of the web. Web 3.0 is predicted by many to be the web of meta-tags. Meta-tags are part of the source code of a webpage, and they enable search engine spiders (among others) to assign 'meaning' (or context-specific data) to the information on a particular webpage.
This means that all of the information on the web, previously only indexed cursorily by search engines and other sites, can be utilised as a massive database of information. In Web 3.0, some say, rather than you searching the web, your computer will surf it for you, relegating the boring stuff to them and letting you receive the information you need in record time.
(This pcmag.com article by Cade Metz is an interesting look at other theories of Web 3.0 and even more advanced possible iterations.)
Finally, we talked about what current and future technologies mean for journalism in the twenty-first century. And to be honest, most of it wasn't good. There is hope for hyperlocalised journalism servies such as wotnews.com.au, though.
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