Visual Communication Online

 
    Originally defined by Ferdinand de Saussure, social semiotics investigates human signifying practices in unique cultural and social situations. Roland Barthes was only of the first people to study images using semiotics. It makes an attempt at explaining the practice of meaning-making. Social Semiotics main focus is on meaning-making. This is important because it emphasizes why we think and jump to conclusions the way that we do as it looks at the power of human processes of signification and interpretation.

    Some rules I associate with the policy are syntactic, pragmatic, and semantic. Syntactic meaning characteristics of signs and symbols. Pragmatic meaning connections between signs or expressions and users. Lastly, Sematic meaning study of representations of signs and symbols. Information value is a guide for the layout of information. 

Social Semiotic analysis of advertising images:

• First picture: This advertisement signals that you should go out and get Coca-Cola. This can be read through the expression of humor in their wording. This meaning also comes across as the drink looks appetizing with the condensation on the outside.
• Second picture: Taco Bell uses an appetizing image to draw the viewers in. They use text saying the dollar menu to make it sound like a deal. The purpose, meaning, or interpretation can be read as this company wanting you to come in to get some of their delicious food.

Thank you!

Maddie

Works Cited: 

Bankov, Kristian, and Paul Cobley. Semiotics and Its Masters. Vol. 1, Walter de Gruyter, 2017.

link to scholarly article

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Online Arguments

I am sure by now, especially after the "Barbenheimer" trend, that a majority of us have seen the new Barbie movie.

The Barbie movie sparked all sorts of feedback as it had some underlying messages that seemed to influence and inspire some while upsetting others.

I chose this online argument because I too have seen the barbie movie and have heard all about the opinions of the movie. I also thought of it as sort of a light-hearted argument to reflect on.

Three Negative Examples or Concerns I Have for This Online Argument:

• All of the users involved in this argument are merely stating opinions without anything to back them up.
• The users are letting their emotions take control of what they are seeing, and they are spitting them straight out into the world without any other thought.
• The users complaining about the movie are likely the ones who didn't actually receive the message the movie was trying to get across.

5 Rules for How People Should Argue Online Correctly:

1. Don't argue just to argue.
2. Make sure you understand what you are talking about before you talk about it.
3. Have evidence to back up your claims in an argument.
4. Think about other people and how they receive the topic, consider how others will view the discussion and your behavior.
5. Just because you let your emotions get the best of you does not mean something is not true.

Comment argument link

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Toulmin Method

        The Toulmin method is robust for analyzing arguments and constructing persuasive messages. In the age of online communication, how does the Toulmin method provide a structured approach to evaluate and respond to arguments encountered on the internet?

        The Toulmin Method provides a structured approach to evaluate and respond to arguments encountered on the internet because it provides a basic outline of characteristics of a well-written evaluation or response. The pieces to this method, or outline, are as follows:

Claim: the position or perspective that is being argued for; conclusion of the argument

Data: or grounds, the basis of persuasion made up of data, evidence and facts that help to support the claim

Warrant: what connects the claim to the grounds (data), how is the dated presented in support of the claim, indicates relevance of the claim

Backing: Support or explanation provided for the warrant, an optional part to the Toulmin Model as it only offers additional support

Qualifier: indicates strength of leap from data to the warrant which may limit the universal application of the claim, statement that indicates strength of the claim

Rebuttal: An exception to the claim, acknowledgment of opposing views

Application to Online Discussions, Debates, or Social Media Interactions

        Any online discussion, debate, or social media interaction likely requires a response in some way or another. The Toulmin Method could very well be applied through these online interactions because it could be used to structure online responses.

        One example of online arguments where the Toulmin Method could strengthen one's position or challenge opposing viewpoints would be in an online debate. In a debate there are often beginning and counterarguments. Counterarguments could be strengthened using the Toulmin Method as it would provide the speaker with an excellent outline as to how to map out the counterargument and what information to present.

        The potential limitations or challenges of applying the Toulmin Method would be information overload or bias likely the effect of emotional influence. When using the Toulmin method online, users can be vulnerable to an influence of emotions. Though, users would probably be just as likely to fall from an influence of emotions even offline. Users may also be subjected to information overload as the Toulmin Method requires a lot of information to be received and outputted. Individuals can navigate these challenges by focusing on the use of factual information and note-taking. Of course, there are various other techniques users could try!

Critical Thinking Skills and Information Literacy

Using the Toulmin Method, critical thinking skills and information literacy play very important roles when utilizing the method effectively in the digital age. Critical thinking skills are used to plan what would make your argument strong in terms of what research you must do and what argumentative/rhetoric strategies could you impose. Information literacy is very important as you would have a difficult time if you don't understand how to effectively research the topic of discussion or sift through the information itself.

Best,

Maddie

Works Cited:

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Researching Podcasts

 

        Personally, I listen to podcasts relatively often. I usually listen to podcasts the same way I listen to music, through Spotify. Whilst researching podcasts for this week's discussion, I stumbled upon Quick Thinks: How to Shine Online and Excel at Virtual Communication. In the podcast, the host, Matt Abrahams, a teacher of strategic communication at Stanford Graduate School of Business, talks about ways in which we can improve success in our personal and professional lives when communicating online.

Engagement

    

    In his podcast, Abraham goes on to tell his audience that it is all about maintaining engagement. To keep your audience interested, he relays, it is recommended to change activities every 15 minutes for example. He also highlights the importance of breaks, shorter meetings, and visual appeals especially as educators (Abraham, 2021). The audience will be less likely to stray from the conversation or topic being discussed if it is discussed in shorter increments. It is easier to stay interested and engages for ten minutes than it is to hear about the same boring topic for an hour and a half.

Presence

    Abraham mentions that presence is also critical when communicating online, through words and nonverbal behaviors. Here he highlights some quick tips from Carol Robins, Professors Christian Wheeler and Jennifer Aaker, and lecturer Naomi Bagdonas. He quotes that we have a lot of contact but not a lot of connection and goes on to relay that laughing with someone, even if it is over zoom, can be vital to the trust between all sides of the conversation (Abraham, 2021).

    Similar to Abraham, in our textbook, the author states that changes in facial expressions or gestures, for example, can influence an audience's response (Green, 2023, p. 226).

    Both of these sources emphasis the importance of expression in developing trust and other responses through virtual communication.

Perception and Getting Messages Across

    Abraham states that technology can make or break how we are perceived and how our messages come across. He shares some of his own tips for when you use virtual communication tools. First, he states "how you show up really matters" where he explains that lighting and overall appearance through the screen is important to conveying your presence, engagement, and perception. A few specific things he mentions are as follows:

• fill up the screen
• pay attention to your placement in the screen area
• pay attention to your lighting, would the person on the other side of the screen be able to read your expressions?
• keep your camera at eye level.
• actually, look at the camera.
• have variation in your voice, i.e., voice inflictions or emotive words.
• make gestures, but make sure they can see them and not blocking your face.
• leverage paraphrasing

(Abraham, 2021).

    Comparing this to information regarding virtual communication in our textbook, the author states that you should make sure your camera is at eye level and that you actually look into your camera as it stimulates eye-contact with the audience (Green, 2023, p. 253).

Both sources mention eye-contact and more specifically keeping the camera at eye level and looking at the camera as ways to connect with the audience. This ensures that you are connected and engaged. Maintaining eye-contact shows the speaker that you are listening and their messaged is coming across.

Thanks!

Maddie

    

Works Cited:

Abrahams, Matt. (Host). (2021, April). Quick Thinks: How to Shine Online and Excel at Virtual Communication. In Think Fast Talk Smart. Spotify. Quick Thinks: How to Shine Online and Excel at Virtual Communication • Think Fast, Talk Smart: Communication Techniques (spotify.com) 

Green, J. (2023). Communicating Online. McGraw-Hill Education.

Link to Spotify Think Fast Talk Smart

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The Battle for Public Opinion

 

Hello again!

As social media platforms have emerged and keep growing, they have become battlegrounds for individuals, organizations, and even governments for public opinion. Considering the rapid dissemination of information and the ability for anybody to speak out and voice their own points of view, this online landscape has transformed the dynamic of public opinion formation and communication strategies in many ways. This landscape has shifted the dynamic of public opinion formation and communication strategies by making people feel more comfortable sharing their opinions on the internet and making it easier to communicate them too. I feel that people were less likely to share their public opinion before and with the current online landscape, it makes it easier for people to do so and therefore more frequent because we hold little to no accountability. I also feel as though with the online landscape today it makes it more likely for the people behind the screens to be influenced by big companies or people with credibility.

The key factors contributing to the online battle for public opinion are popularity (what goes viral), algorithms (what your feed shows you), and influencers. There are potential implications, though, regarding society, democracy, and interpersonal relationships. The negative implications include but are not limited to misinformation and polarizing of information. On a more positive note, in terms of society, this also leaves room for the mobilization of social movements. 

Examples of successful and controversial online campaigns that have significantly impacted public opinion are as follows:

Successful online campaign: Apple's "Shot on iPhone" campaign.

• 
  Underlying communication tactics: With the aim of getting consumers to buy apple products, Apple used tactics emphasizing and showing the capabilities of their products from a 'picture perfect' point of view. Using the "power of the camera" to influence buyers.

Controversial online campaign: Protein World's "Are You Beach-body Ready" campaign.

• Underlying communication tactics: 400 complaints about this campaign promoting weight loss and receiving back-lash for implied body shaming. 

There are some ethical considerations individuals and organizations should take when partaking in the battle for public opinion online. Taking responsibility, maintaining authenticity and transparency between individual/company and users is crucial for when participating in the battle for public opinion. Ensuring truth behind facts before sharing before sharing it will help avoid people misinterpreting or being misinformed.

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Online Communication, Business Assessment

 

Hello!

The business I chose to look at is Nemesis Boutique. 

Some things I will focus on while assessing their business are as follows:

• Does the company do a good job communicating on its website and social media platforms? Provide examples.
• On the company website, what is featured at the top, in the middle, and at the bottom of the home page? Why do you think they have it organized this way? In your opinion, is it effective?
• Does the business communicate an identity online? Provide examples.
• Where could the company improve its online communication?

 

This company does do a great job communicating both on their website and social media platforms. This business has several social media platforms in which they post to often including Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. They do a great job of communicating because on TikTok, for example, they box customers' orders with permission, which allows for their business to be completely transparent. On Instagram, another example, they ask for opinions on what customers want to see as well as post updates on promo codes and sales. 

On the company website, at the top, is links to their social media, the company name, shipping time, website tabs, cart, and a member login. I think they have organized it this way to make it easy for customers to navigate as they have the big sections that people would normally go to such as, contact, policies, etc. They also probably organized it this way to make communicating easier as not only is the contact information tab listed at the top of the page but also the social media icon links. In the middle of the page is the logo, a shop button, and their message to customers. I believe that they placed this here because it is what they want customers to see first. At the bottom of the page are some featured items available on their shop. This is placed here most likely so the viewers can have a quick look at some of the fun deals this business has to offer.

This business creates an identity focused on using natural ingredients and making handmade products. They are focused on creating candles that have a positive impact on their audience. They present their business as having a lot to choose from and making the process as individualized as the customer wants it. They really focus on making products handmade FOR the customer.

On its online communication, the company could improve by adding a live chat to their website for example. This company already does a great job in communicating online and I don't know what else they could add to make it better.

Nemesis Boutique

Crystal Point Pillar Candle — Nemesis Boutique

Prensky's "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants"

 Two things to reflect on:

• According to Prensky, what is the immigrant/native divide, and how has it affected how students learn?

        Marc Prensky is an American writer and speaker on education. In Prensky's article Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, he discusses the immigrant/native divide and how that divide has impacted students' learning. In his article, Prensky uses the phrases "Digital Native", meaning those of us who grew up with technology and understand it as a whole and "Digital Immigrant" meaning people who adapted to the digital world and adopted some or all aspects of the digital world without being born into it. Going off of this, when referring to an immigrant/native divide, Prensky is referring to the boundary between the digital native and the digital immigrant. When comparing the digital immigrants with digital natives there is a large divide in how one thinks, and uses the resources provided in order to learn effectively. This divide is based on what Prensky would say is "speaking different languages", the "modern" language of a smooth use of digital media such as editing things online and the "old" language such as printing and editing things on paper. This goes to affect learning because digital immigrants, that we know now as teachers and adults we look up to are trying to teach digital natives the "old" language that they now rather than letting students explore the "modern" language.

• According to Prensky, what category do I fall into, and how has it affected my learning?

    According to Prensky I fall into the category of digital natives. I was born in 2002 and grew up with the modern technologies. This allowed me to grow up speaking the language of the digital world and understand it but it also made it so I was growing up and being taught by people who fall into the category of digital immigrants. This meant that I was speaking the digital language but limited to what my teachers could do with it. Outside of school I was multitasking and using as many resources as I could while inside school, I was doing single tasks with limited resources making it harder to expand my knowledge in school and other places of learning. This is just one way in which my learning was impacted by this divide and how my learning was affected by being a digital native. 

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