Overview

Convergence culture is about the convergence of media (and media devices), and the corresponding divergence of artifacts across media (both in terms of access and adaptation). Convergence occurs from the top down (corporations imposing convergence and promoting convergence in ways that is profitable.), as well as from the bottom up, being encouraged and organized by consumers, who aim to use convergence as a popular device.

Convergence is relevant from both the perspective of adaptation, as well as that of cultural analysis. We could look from Geertz’s perspective and treat cultures as texts, then we could think of culture in general as a medium. The artifacts of this medium would be cultural practices and values. Given this perspective, convergence from Jenkins’ perspective makes quite a lot of sense in that convergence brings together cultural practices with media artifacts in new ways.

A standing question is why is convergence a new phenomenon? Convergence has happened for quite a while before new media and the internet. What is new is (arguably) the increased participatory power of consumers.

Assorted Notes:

On death of forms of media: There are always persistent cries that some types of media are going to replace others, but this is usually a fallacy. The applications and functions of media may change; the content may change, audience may change, but media will not die.

Convergence resides in knowledge of consumers, connects Pierre Levy’s concept of collective intelligence. Convergence culture is how collective meaning-making changes how institutions operate.

Strongly referencing Negroponte’s “Being Digital”. The relation of new technology and culture is similar to Duguid and Brown’s social life of information.

However, Jenkins looks at businesses (in a New Orleans conference) interested in pursuing long term change and other interests via technology, they aim to use and profit from technology, or to save themselves from potential threats exposed by technology.

Ithiel de Sola Pool was the first to lay out the concept of convergence. Divergence of media into multiple modes is another perspective on the same phenomenon. Walls are breaking down separating media and content. Pool also predicted against sudden change, but rather gradual constant force operating in the background. Jenkins’ goal is to explore how convergence affects consumers.

One fallacy about convergence pertains to the “black box” which is a single piece of ubiquitous technology that everyone uses to receive media. This is a fallacy due to cultural forces and consumer appropriation.

Convergence is both a top-down and bottom up process, run by producers and consumers. In participatory culture: consumers are active and seek out content; changes the relationship between consumer and producer. Consumption is a collective process.

(ch 6) Consumption mixes and blends with politics. Enzensberger: “If information is power, then this new technology is distributing power.” Jenkins poses a universality of the power of photoshop, but there is a small part of the population that has access or knows how to use it (legally or illegally)

Applications

Looking at cultures as texts — as a kind of media Geertz looks at culture as a text, thus it could be considered a medium? So, could we look at culture as a medium (but not for artifacts, but for practices and values) and these things can be subject to the same sorts of values that arise in other media artifacts.

So…. culture of terror:
culture holds values of terror
politics gets infused into entertainment (comedy shows, sitcoms)
carries through in other media which, (through or in artifacts) carry the values
carries through in films (artifact media), in tv and radio (instant media), news and www portals(delivered media)

political speeches exist as medium, reference each other
with YouTube, it is possible for these to be compared easily
web enables large diversity and access of information
tv media is afraid to cover policy, but cover instead strategy of candidates

maybe… culture of Disney
values of Disney
also has fan culture (long before internet)
but w mousketeers, Disney gave people the false impression of fan culture in control
theme park wrt film occurs in Walt Disney’s time, so Convergence is not a contemporary thing
theme park, as media experience, rides, surroundings
Baudrillard would have a lot to say about American values reflected in Disney
shows, animated movies, MERCHANDISE, (contemporary) games, etc
with internet, however, comes the copyright insanity

Disney is an interesting example, because it employed convergence on a significant scale long before new media ever appeared.

who controls the media (the channels of media), and thus carries the values? Convergence is the convergence of values.