Media puzzled

Once upon a time, somewhere between Christmas and Easter there lived a little girl in a very rare land as you might not find it today, unless you search for it. In that land everything was very simple: One TV, one channel, one phone, one phone company, one phone service provider, one newspaper available in one newspaper shop. Well, you can imagine how the list continues.

My name is Sophie Mukenge Kabongo. Well, actually in full it is: Katanda Sophie Esperance Mukenge Kabongo.

I was born in Cologne, Germany 25 years ago, did my A-level in Leverkusen, still in Germany, went to Spain to study Spanish in Malaga and then finished a 4 year bachelor degree at the University of Namibia (UNAM) in French Studies and Media Studies. If you are interested you can follow the link and see the UNAM web page (check).I completed an original study on intercultural communication and integration through media in Namibia using 2 popular soap opera as example and teachers as a research population. The study was published in April 2007 in the issue of the NID's (Namibia Institute for Democracy) publication 'Analyses And Views'. It is available online here.

Here is the link to the blog I did for my thesis..It is in German but you can also find the thesis there (in English) and some other things you do not need German for...So, you should really have a look (:

FREEDOM AND RESTRICTIONS OF SPEECH:

Hate Speech in Germany

The main question discussed in this paper is:

Is Germany's restriction of freedom of speech patronizing the political maturity (Mündigkeit) and the understanding of democracy of German citizens by undermining the right to debate all topics? Or is it justified in the name of democracy?

 

At the outset of this study we were interested in the consequences of file sharing and in file sharing as a cultural practice.

Main Claim:

 

Despite the fact that the issue is often framed as entirely new file sharing is not a newly invented practice but it shows how consumers make use of technology to fulfil existing needs and hence influence technology.

 

As regards the topic of our sound documentary, we have decided to extend our research to questions of “value” and “meaning”. Without implying too much, we would like to find out from our interviewees how they construct meaning and value as regards music, especially with regard to the dichotomy of downloaded music versus purchased music.

 

Alexandra and I are working together on the radio documentary project and this is the first entry in our research diary. It will be updated every Wednesday until Christmas.

 

                                                            

1) Problem definition and key questions

 

File-sharing -  a phenomenon that surfaced in the advent of the internet and digitalization -  and music sharing in particular have become a pertinent issue mainly mentioned in relation to ownership, intellectual property rights and the music industry loosing revenue. Henry Jenkins (2006) extends the discussion and discusses file-sharing as one example or characteristic of new popular culture: convergence culture in which the boundaries between consumers and producers are blurred and content reaches audience via different channels and media systems (Jenkins, 2006, pp.2-3). We are however interested in the consequences of file sharing for the consumer and in particular how it has influenced the relation people have to music.

Here is the link to the game movie for the group project with Corina on gaming:
Not another game movie

I have to say that this module was a bit difficult for me as I am not a gamer and furthermore making a website and an in-game video and writing essays was really challenging. It was easier for me to grasp the theoretical concept than actually playing Raknarok Online (official site) in the beginning, even if some texts gave too many examples of games I did never play.