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New media are communication technologies that enable or enhance interaction between users as well as interaction between users and content. In the middle of the 1990s, the phrase "new media" became widely used as part of a sales pitch for the influx of interactive for entertainment and education. The new media technologies, sometimes known as Web 2.0, include a wide range of web-related communication tools such as , wikis, online social networking, virtual worlds, and other social media platforms.
The phrase "new media" refers to computational media that share material online and through computers. New media inspire new ways of thinking about older media. Media do not replace one another in a clear, linear succession, instead evolving in a more complicated network of interconnected feedback loops . What is different about new media is how they specifically refashion traditional media and how older media refashion themselves to meet the challenges of new media. (2025). 9780262522793, MIT Press. ISBN 9780262522793
Unless they contain technologies that enable digital generative or interactive processes, broadcast television programs, , , and are not considered to be new media.Manovich, Lev. "New Media From Borges to HTML". The New Media Reader. Ed. Noah Wardrip-Fruin & Nick Montfort. Cambridge, MA, 2004. 13–25.
Writers and philosophers such as Marshall McLuhan were instrumental in the development of media theory during this period which is now famous declaration in , that "the medium is the message" drew attention to the too often ignored influence media and technology themselves, rather than their "content," have on humans' experience of the world and on society broadly.
Until the 1980s, media relied primarily upon print and analog signal broadcast models such as television and radio. The last twenty-five years have seen the rapid transformation into media which are predicated upon the use of digital technologies such as the Internet and . However, these examples are only a small representation of new media. The use of has transformed the remaining 'old' media, as suggested by the advent of digital television and online publications. Even traditional media forms such as the printing press have been transformed through the application of technologies by using of image manipulation software like Adobe Photoshop and desktop publishing tools.
Andrew L. Shapiro argues that the "emergence of new, digital technologies signals a potentially radical shift of who is in control of information, experience and resources". W. Russell Neuman suggests that whilst the "new media" have technical capabilities to pull in one direction, economic and social forces pull back in the opposite direction. According to Neuman, "We are witnessing the evolution of a universal interconnected network of audio, video, and electronic text communications that will blur the distinction between interpersonal and mass communication; and between public and private communication". Neuman argues that new media will:
Consequently, it has been the contention of scholars such as Douglas Kellner and James Bohman that new media and particularly the Internet will provide the potential for a democratic postmodern public sphere, in which citizens can participate in well informed, non-hierarchical debate pertaining to their social structures. Contradicting these positive appraisals of the potential social impacts of new media are scholars such as Edward S. Herman and Robert McChesney who have suggested that the transition to new media has seen a handful of powerful transnational telecommunications corporations who achieve a level of global influence which was hitherto unimaginable.
Scholars have highlighted both the positive and negative potential and actual implications of new media technologies, suggesting that some of the early work into new media studies was guilty of technological the effects of media were determined by the technology themselves, rather than through tracing the complex social networks which governed the development, funding, implementation and future development of any technology.
Based on the argument that people have a limited amount of time to spend on the consumption of different media, displacement theory argue that the viewership or readership of one particular outlet leads to the reduction in the amount of time spent by the individual on another. The introduction of new media, such as the internet, therefore reduces the amount of time individuals would spend on existing "old" media, which could ultimately lead to the end of such traditional media.
Interactivity is present in some programming work, such as video games. It's also viable in the operation of traditional media. In the mid-1990s, filmmakers started using inexpensive digital cameras to create films. It was also the time when moving image technology had developed, which was able to be viewed on computer desktops in full motion. This development of new media technology was a new method for artists to share their work and interact with the big world. Other settings of interactivity include radio and television talk shows, letters to the editor, listener participation in such programs, and computer and technological programming.Rafaeli, Sheizaf (1988). " Interactivity: From new media to communication". Beverly Hills, CA. p. 110. Interactive new media has become a true benefit to every one because people can express their artwork in more than one way with the technology that we have today and there is no longer a limit to what we can do with our creativity.
Interactivity can be considered a central concept in understanding new media, but different media forms possess, or enableRafaeli, Sheizaf & Ariel, Yaron (2007), "Assessing Interactivity in Computer-Mediated Research". In: A.N Joinson, K.Y.A McKenna., T. Postmes & U-D. Reips (Eds). The Oxford Handbook of Internet Psychology. Oxford University Press different degrees of interactivity,Flew, Terry (2002), New Media: An Introduction, Oxford University Press, UK, p. 13 and some forms of digitized and converged media are not in fact interactive at all. Tony FeldmanFeldman, Tony (1997) An Introduction to Digital Media, Routledege, London considers digital satellite television as an example of a new media technology that uses digital compression to dramatically increase the number of television channels that can be delivered, and which changes the nature of what can be offered through the service, but does not transform the experience of television from the user's point of view, and thus lacks a more fully interactive dimension. It remains the case that interactivity is not an inherent characteristic of all new media technologies, unlike digitization and convergence.
Interactive games and platforms such as YouTube and Facebook have led to many viral apps that devise a new way to be interacting with media. The development of , which dates back to the early stages of webpage development has evolved into a social media phenomenon.Miltner, Kate M., and Highfield, Tim. (2017) Never gonna GIF you up: Analyzing the cultural significance of the animated GIF. Social Media and Society 3(3): 1-11. Miltner and Highfield refer to GIFs as being "polysemic." These small looping images represent a specific meaning in cultures and often can be used to display more than one meaning. Miltner and Highfield argue that GIFs are particularly useful in creating affective or emotional connections of meaning between people. Affect creates an emotional connection of meaning to the person and their culture.
Terry Flew stated that as new technologies develop, the world becomes more globalized. Globalization is more than the development of activities throughout the world, globalization allows the world to be connected no matter the distance from user to user and Frances Cairncross expresses this great development as the "death of distance". New media has established the importance of making friendships through digital social places more prominent than in physical places. Globalization is generally stated as "more than expansion of activities beyond the boundaries of particular nation states". New media "radically break the connection between physical place and social place, making physical location much less significant for our social relationships".
However, the changes in the new media environment create a series of tensions in the concept of "public sphere".Violaine Hacker, "Building Media's industry while promoting community of values in the globalisation", Politické Vedy, Journal of International Affairs, Policy and Security, 2/2011, http://www.fpvmv.umb.sk/politickevedy According to Ingrid Volkmer, "public sphere" is defined as a process through which public communication becomes restructured and partly disembedded from national political and cultural institutions. This trend of the globalized public sphere is not only as a geographical expansion form a nation to worldwide, but also changes the relationship between the public, the media and state.Volkmer, Ingrid (1999) News in the Global Sphere. A Study of CNN and its impact on Global Communication, Luton: University of Luton Press.
"Virtual communities" are being established online and transcend geographical boundaries, eliminating social restrictions. Howard Rheingold describes these globalized societies as self-defined networks, which resemble what we do in real life. "People in virtual communities use words on screens to exchange pleasantries and argue, engage in intellectual discourse, conduct commerce, make plans, brainstorm, gossip, feud, fall in love, create a little high art and a lot of idle talk". For Sherry Turkle "making the computer into a second self, finding a soul in the machine, can substitute for human relationships". New media has the ability to connect like-minded others worldwide.
While this perspective suggests that the technology drivesand therefore is a determining factorin the process of globalization, arguments involving technological determinism are generally frowned upon by mainstream media studies.Williams, Raymond (1974) Television: Technology and Cultural Form, London, RoutledgeDurham, M & Kellner, Douglas (2001) Media and Cultural Studies Keyworks, Malden, Ma and Oxford, UK, Blackwell PublishingLister, Martin, Dovey, Jon, Giddings, Seth. Grant, Iain. & Kelly, Kieran (2003) New Media: A Critical Introduction, London, Routledge Instead academics focus on the multiplicity of processes by which technology is funded, researched and produced, forming a feedback loop when the technologies are used and often transformed by their users, which then feeds into the process of guiding their future development.
While commentators such as Manuel CastellsCastells, Manuel, (1996) Rise of the Network Society, The Information Age: Economy, Society and Culture volume 1, Massachusetts, Blackwell Publishing espouse a "soft determinism" whereby they contend that "Technology does not determine society. Nor does society script the course of technological change, since many factors, including individual inventiveness and entrepreneurialism, intervene in the process of scientific discovery, technical innovation and social applications, so the final outcome depends on a complex pattern of interaction. Indeed the dilemma of technological determinism is probably a false problem, since technology is society and society cannot be understood without its technological tools". This, however, is still distinct from stating that societal changes are instigated by technological development, which recalls the theses of Marshall McLuhan.McLuhan, Marshall (1962) The Gutenberg Galaxy: The Making of Typographic Man, London, Routledge and Kegan PaulMcLuhan, Marshall (1964) Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, Toronto, McGraw Hill
Manovich and Castells have argued that whereas mass media "corresponded to the logic of industrial mass society, which values conformity over individuality,"Manovich, Lev (2001) The Language of New Media MIT Press, Cambridge and London new media follows the logic of the postindustrial or globalized society whereby "every citizen can construct her own custom lifestyle and select her ideology from a large number of choices. Rather than pushing the same objects to a mass audience, marketing now tries to target each individual separately".
The evolution of virtual communities highlighted many aspects of the real world. Tom Boellstorff's studies of Second Life discuss a term known as "griefing." In Second Life griefing means to consciously upset another user during their experience of the game.Chaper 7 from Boellstorff, Tom. (2008). Coming of Age in Second Life. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Other users also posed situations of their avatar being raped and sexually harassed. In the real world, these same types of actions are carried out. Virtual communities are a clear demonstration of new media through means of new technological developments.
Anthropologist Daniel Miller and sociologist Don Slater discussed online Trinidad culture on online networks through the use of Ethnography studies. The study argues that internet culture does exist and this version of new media cannot eliminate people's relations to their geographic area or national identity. The focus on Trini culture specifically demonstrated the importance of what Trini values and beliefs existed within the page while also representing their identities on the web.
Some are also skeptical of the role of new media in social movements. Many scholars point out unequal access to new media as a hindrance to broad-based movements, sometimes even oppressing some within a movement.Wasserman, Herman, "Is a New Worldwide Web Possible? An Explorative Comparison of the Use of ICTs by Two South African Social Movements," African Studies Review, Volume 50, Number 1 (April 2007), pp. 109–131 Others are skeptical about how democratic or useful it really is for social movements, even for those with access.Marmura, Stephen, "A net advantage? The Internet, grassroots activism and American Middle-Eastern Policy," New Media Society 2008; 10; 247
New media has also found a use with less radical social movements such as the Free Hugs Campaign. Using websites, blogs, and online videos to demonstrate the effectiveness of the movement itself. Along with this example the use of high volume blogs has allowed numerous views and practices to be more widespread and gain more public attention. Another example is the ongoing Free Tibet Campaign, which has been seen on numerous websites as well as having a slight tie-in with the band Gorillaz in their Gorillaz Bitez clip featuring the lead singer 2D sitting with protesters at a Free Tibet protest. Another social change seen coming from New Media is trends in fashion and the emergence of subcultures such as textspeak, Cyberpunk, and various others.
Following trends in fashion and textspeak, New Media also makes way for "trendy" social change. The Ice Bucket Challenge is a recent example of this. All in the name of raising money for ALS (the lethal neurodegenerative disorder also known as Lou Gehrig's disease), participants are nominated by friends via social media such as Facebook and Twitter to dump a bucket of ice water on themselves, or donate to the ALS Foundation. This became a huge trend through Facebook's tagging tool, allowing nominees to be tagged in the post. The videos appeared on more people's feeds, and the trend spread fast. This trend raised over 100 million dollars for the cause and increased donations by 3,500 percent.
A meme, often seen on the internet, is an idea that has been replicated and passed along. Ryan Milner compared this concept to a possible tool for social change. The combination of pictures and texts represent pop polyvocality ("the people's version"). A meme can make more serious conversations less tense while still displaying the situation at sake.
New media also serves as an important tool for both institutions and nations to promote their interests and values (The contents of such promotion may vary according to different purposes). Some communities consider it an approach of "peaceful evolution" that may erode their own nation's system of values and eventually compromise national security.
The development of the new digital media demands a new educational model by parents and educators. Parental mediation has become a way to manage the children's experiences with Internet, chat, videogames and social network.
A recent trend in internet is YouTubers Generation. YouTubers are young people who offer free video in their personal channel on YouTube. There are videos on games, fashion, food, cinema and music, where they offers tutorial or comments.
The role of cellular phones, such as the iPhone, has created the inability to be in social isolation, and the potential of ruining relationships. The iPhone activates the insular cortex of the brain, which is associated with feelings of love. People show similar feelings to their phones as they would to their friends, family and loved ones. Countless people spend more time on their phones, while in the presence of other people than spending time with the people in the same room or class.
The new media industry shares an open association with many market segments in areas such as software/video game design, television, radio, mobile phone and particularly movies, advertising and marketing, through which industry seeks to gain from the advantages of two-way dialogue with consumers primarily through the Internet. As a device to source the ideas, concepts, and intellectual properties of the general public, the television industry has used new media and the Internet to expand its resources for new programming and content. The advertising industry has also capitalized on the proliferation of new media with large agencies running multimillion-dollar interactive advertising subsidiaries. Interactive websites and kiosks have become popular. In a number of cases advertising agencies have also set up new divisions to study new media. Public relations firms are also taking advantage of the opportunities in new media through interactive PR practices. Interactive PR practices include the use of social media to reach a mass audience of online social network users.
With the development of the Internet, many new career paths have emerged. Before the rise, many tech jobs were considered boring. The Internet led to creative work that was seen as casual and diverse across gender, race, and sexual orientation. Web design, gaming design, webcasting, blogging, and animation are all creative career paths that came with this rise. At first glance, the field of new media may seem hip, cool, creative, and relaxed. What many don't realize is that working in this field is tiresome. Many of the people that work in this field don't have steady jobs. Work in this field has become project-based. Individuals work project to project for different companies. Most people are not working on one project or contract, but on multiple ones at the same time. Despite working on numerous projects, people in this industry receive low payments, which is highly contrasted with the techy millionaire stereotype. It may seem like a carefree life from the outside, but it is not. New media workers work long hours for little pay and spend up to 20 hours a week looking for new projects to work on.Rosalind Gill's Cool, Creative and Egalitarian?
Some existing research focuses on the ways that political campaigns, parties, and candidates have incorporated new media into their political strategizing. This is often a multi-faceted approach that combines new and old media forms to create highly specialized strategies. This allows them to reach wider audiences, but also to target very specific subsets of the electorate. They are able to tap into polling data and in some cases harness the web analytics of the traffic and profiles on various social media outlets to get real-time data about the kinds of engagement that is needed and the kinds of messages that are successful or unsuccessful.
One body of existing research into the impact of new media on elections investigates the relationship between voters' use of new media and their level of political activity. They focus on areas such as "attentiveness, knowledge, attitudes, orientations, and engagement". In references a vast body of research, Diana Owen points out that older studies were mixed, while "newer research reveals more consistent evidence of information gain".
Some of that research has shown that there is a connection between the amount and degree of voter engagement and turnout. However, new media may not have overwhelming effects on either of those. Other research is tending toward the idea that new media has reinforcing effect, that rather than completely altering, by increasing involvement, it "imitates the established pattern of political participation". After analyzing the Citizenship Involvement Democracy survey, Taewoo Nam found that "the internet plays a dual role in mobilizing political participation by people not normally politically involved, as well as reinforcing existing offline participation." These findings chart a middle ground between some research that optimistically holds new media up to be an extremely effective or extremely ineffective at fostering political participation.Nam, T. (2012). Dual effects on the internet on political activism: Reinforcing and mobilizing. Government Information Quarterly, S90–S97.
Terri Towner found, in his survey of college students, that attention to new media increases offline and online political participation particularly for young people. His research shows that the prevalence of online media boosts participation and engagement. His work suggests that "it seems that online sources that facilitate political involvement, communication, and mobilization, particularly campaign websites, social media, and blogs, are the most important for offline political participation among young people".Towner, T. L. (2013). All Political Participation is Socially Networked? New Media and the 2012 Election. Social Science Computer Review, 00(0), 1–15.
When gauging effects and implications of new media on the political process, one means of doing so is to look at the deliberations that take place in these digital spaces. In citing the work of several researchers, Halpern and Gibbs define deliberation to be "the performance of a set of communicative behaviors that promote thorough discussion. and the notion that in this process of communication the individuals involved weigh carefully the reasons for and against some of the propositions presented by others".Halpern, D., & Gibbs, J. (2013). Social media as a catalyst for online deliberation? Exploring the affordances of Facebook and YouTube for political expression. Computers in Human Behavior, 1159–1168.
The work of Daniel Halpern and Jennifer Gibbs "suggest that although social media may not provide a forum for intensive or in-depth policy debate, it nevertheless provides a deliberative space to discuss and encourage political participation, both directly and indirectly". Their work goes a step beyond that as well though because it shows that some social media sites foster a more robust political debate than do others such as Facebook which includes highly personal and identifiable access to information about users alongside any comments they may post on political topics. This is in contrast to sites like YouTube whose comments are often posted anonymously.
As a consequence, three major approaches to research on social media and relevant concerns scholars should consider before engaging in social media research have been identified.
Users have the ability to change their privacy settings on most social media websites. Facebook, for example, provides users with the ability to restrict who sees their posts through specific privacy settings. There is also debate about whether requiring users to create a username and password is sufficient to establish whether the data is considered public or private. Historically, Institutional Review Boards considered such websites to be private, although newer websites like YouTube call this practice into question. For example, YouTube only requires the creation of a username and password to post videos and/or view adult content, but anyone is free to view general YouTube videos and these general videos would not be subject to consent requirements for researchers looking to conduct observational studies.
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