NOTES Thursday: 9/3/09

Nick Starcevic from Big Brother 8 did a small introduction of himself. He explained how he had tried earlier for Survivor but was actually approached by producer after they found his profile on MySpace. Half the cast from Big Brother 8 were recruited by the BB crew. His season focused on enemies with combating personalities. So there were ex-lovers, former best friends, etc. He however didn't have an enemy. He talked about how he dated two of his housemates and neither relationship worked out. Nick said, "I wouldn't advocate it [dating on reality TV]."

We then discussed the book Convergence Culture:

Questions raised by Jenkins
- Will different media end up converging?
- How will convergence affect relationship between producers and consumers?
- What's convergence driven by?

Points:
- Driven by consumers/producers
- BlackBox fallacy
- Collective intelligence (ie Lostipedia)
- Political participation

Critique:
- Omits mention of large companies (Disney, Fox, etc.)
- Limited value of participation
- Omits music
- Does it have a deeper meaning/implications?

We then discussed the book Globalization & Culture

Question:
- What types of globalization are we talking about?
- How has technology changed globalization?
- What is globalization? Does it exist?
- Why are people afraid of globalization?

Points:
- Multiple types of globalization
- Globalization is uneven (selective globalization), good/bad
- Race to the intelligent state
- Leaking of state power
a) International governing bodies (above)
b) Regionalization, fragmentation (below)

Critiques:
- Broad focus, failure to give specific answers
- Doesn't talk about internet
- Neglects anthropological definition
- Stylistically wordy, dense sentences

Nick then answered some more questions about his reality TV experience. He said the BB castmates were paid $750/week. "We were really aware of the cameras at first but they you just get used to it" he said. Due to the BB 8 cast having life feed via the internet he said the fan base has grown and "people act like they know me." In answer to the question about why people enjoy reality TV Nick said, "It's because it's a trainwreck. It lets you escape. You get to interact with people you'd never see or meet in your life."Nick also addressed the show's portrayal of castmates character vs. their real life personality. In his case, Nick was typed as the nice Midwestern guy. He described how "my fights weren't shown because it didn't fit the type."

We then viewed a media artifact displaying the nature of a participatory culture. Chris Brown had an interview on Larry King addressing his abuse on Rihanna. The interview aired on Wednesday night and was on YouTube the next day. Not just clips from the actual interview but spoofs mocking the interview as well. Among these spoofs was a young man [PhillyD's'] sounding off on Chris Brown and his "stupidity."