Previously journalists enable us to receive information about worldly happenings as they pen down such information and publish it in newspapers, magazines and books. However, with the internet, journalists have lost their monopoly on international news as with the web 2.0 and user generated content, the role of the producer is now assumed by the consumer; people now create, distribute and ‘own’ the news.

Firstly, journalism is the profession of reporting or photographing or editing news stories for one of the media. The duties of a journalist include the following:

1) Reporting the truth
2) Being loyal to the citizens
3) Verifying information
4) Maintaining an independence from those they cover
5) Serving as an independent monitor of power
6) Providing a forum for public criticism and compromise
7) Striving to make the significant interesting and relevant
8) Keeping the news comprehensive and proportional
9) Exercising personal conscience

So how exactly is the internet shaping the future of journalism?

In the past, we look to journalists for information. Now, with the internet, previous consumers of journalism are able to read such information and generate their own versions of the news. Participatory journalism does little of reporting information about news, but instead stimulates conversations about news. Such citizen journalists typically include their opinions on an issue and report information in such a way that it reflects their biasness toward an issue.

The internet has allowed consumers to become journalists, but I feel that it will not render the job of a journalist to be obsolete in the future. As all of us know, the information available on the internet is not entirely accurate and objective. Furthermore, as consumers take on the role of journalists, they do not fulfill the duties of a journalist as they typically allow their emotions to affect the manner in which they report the news. We still and always will read newspapers, books, and scholarly journals when we seek information, as these are known to be more reliable sources. The internet is shaping the future of news and information, but journalists are still necessary for verification of truth and impartial writing. Many people look to the internet for a rough synopsis of the news, and to more reliable sources for the full story.

The video below shows a discussion of the internet and print journalism.

For the past few years, many have attempted to find out why are young adults and the youth in Singapore apathetic towards politics. Talks with ministers, television programmes, and surveys conducted on the streets and many other ways have been employed to find an answer to this question. Are Singaporean youths too self-absorbed? Do they not have sufficient information about politics to form an opinion? Or is it simply because they take our existing ruling political party for granted?

When I was younger, I admit that I was incredibly self-absorbed and apathetic towards politics. All I wanted was what I had all along; although I was appreciative of this, I took it for granted. It was not until the 2006 General Elections that I started to pay more attention to politics in my country. I recall a lot of girls in my school saying that when they are able to vote, they would like to vote for one of the opposition parties. I asked why, and my question was met with superficial answers such as “Singapore does not have free speech!” I thought this was ridiculous as I could not believe there were people who wanted to vote against our ruling party just because they envied the American ideology. Furthermore, these girls were anti-PAP and they could not even justify their position in more than a sentence. I am unsure of the stance the general population of youths in Singapore have towards our ruling party currently, but I feel that this example reflects how politically apathetic my generation is. Most youths do not appear to be concerned about politics and worse, they make uninformed choices about it.

Our schools teach us little about Singapore politics; therefore, most youths are not typically exposed to information that will help them understand and learn more about politics. However, I do not think this is why Singaporean youths are politically apathetic. Although censorship is commonplace in the country as differences in opinions about politics are rarely voiced out due to self-censorship, strict laws and the herd mentality, with the youths’ connectivity to the internet, it is not difficult for them to search for such information themselves. It is not for a lack of information that Singaporean youths are politically apathetic.

I feel that Singaporean youths are uninterested or unenthusiastic about politics mostly because they feel that they are not in a position that can make a difference or an impact. They feel that their opinions will most likely go unheard, and they are not even of age to vote; so what difference can they make exactly? Furthermore, our ruling political party, the People’s Action Party (PAP) has been doing an extremely good job of running this country (albeit, there is still room for improvement), how are we able to tell them to do a better job? Most youths feel that they have little say in their future which is why they choose to remain unconcerned about politics in the country. If they should feel and realize that they are in a position of influence, they will actively seek out information about politics and perhaps be more motivated to learn more about it.

The youth in Singapore should realize that they have a say in deciding their future as the people in the country is the government. We decide how we want to be governed and how we want to live. The strength of the word is in the masses, and the government has to listen to us. If we remain politically apathetic, we and the future generations of Singaporeans will not be well equipped to lead our nation into the next phase of progress.

Bye!

What is marketing communication?

In a nutshell, marketing communication is all strategies, tactics, and activities involved in getting the desired marketing messages to intended target markets, regardless of the media used.*

*As cited in http://en.mimi.hu/marketingweb/marketing_communications.html

Multimedia is commonly used for marketing communication as it enables the integrated use of text, audio, still images, animation, video, and interactivity with users to create a multi-dimensional experience for consumers. With the use of multimedia, companies can create ‘new’ worlds (virtual worlds) that engage and stimulate all senses of an individual and also provide a virtual brand experience for its existing and prospective customers. It can also create individualized experiences for its consumers based on their preferences recorded through their interactions with the company.

The formal definition of multimedia is, “a computer-based interactive communications process that incorporates text, graphics, sound, animation, and video.” Interactive communication is a key feature of multimedia as users determine what content is delivered, when it is delivered, and how it is delivered.

Many corporations engage multimedia for marketing communication purposes by creating websites and videos that users can access over the internet. Music files, video files, and podcasts are also occasionally made downloadable from the website.

It comes as no surprise that Sony and Apple utilize multimedia for marketing communication since these two brand names are well known for their consumer electronic media devices.

Sony

As we enter Sony’s global website, we are first greeted by flashing images of the products and new technologies the company offers. The rest of the home page consists of various tabs and sections with hyperlinks to other pages in the website.

Sony’s main webpage is extremely traditional, which can be a little boring. However, the web pages for its specific products are more attractive and interactive as they employ the multimedia uses of video, audio and animation.

With that said, if one does not take the time to explore Sony’s website, they will be unable to discover the other web pages linked to it. Sony’s main webpage does not attract and captivate the attention of its audience, but I feel that its other web pages do.

As part of their advertising campaign, “It Only Does Everything,” for the PlayStation 3 (PS3), Sony launched a series of commercials featuring a character named “Kevin Butler.” These commercials employed the use of humour which engaged audiences and have also aided in the sale of PS3s. The many ‘episodes’ of the series were released online, and the fictitious character in it also has a Twitter account which enables Sony users to reach out to ‘him.’

Apple

Conversely, when we first visit Apple’s website, we are met with a main promotional picture of the iPad 2 and several tabs at the top of the page. Apple’s website consists mainly of images and text, with a few videos here and there. Contrasting this with Sony’s main webpage that is ‘cluttered’ with information, Apple’s webpage appears much simpler and cleaner. The whole website adopts a minimalistic outlook as being clean, simple and ‘white’ is the signature of the brand.

The video below shows the famous Apple iPod commercial which features dark silhouettes holding a white iPod and dancing to the contrast of a plain background. The commercial has been used and reinvented numerous times as different generations of the iPod have been launched. Its simplicity and ingenuity allows the concept to be reused as by simply tweaking certain details such as the colour of the background, the song used in the commercial and the dance moves of the silhouettes, a whole new commercial is created.

By comparing Sony’s and Apple’s use of multimedia for marketing communication, I must say that I am more impressed by Apple as the company has managed to utilize multimedia to create an online brand experience instead of simply presenting information to its consumers. Upon visiting Apple’s website, I feel that I am able to experience the brand as the website conveys its character well. On the other hand, watching Sony’s advertisements and visiting the company’s website, I find it hard to experience the brand’s identity. This could be perhaps because Sony operates on a much larger scale than Apple as it is more diversified in the electronics manufacturing industry. After all, Apple houses fewer than 20 products while Sony has 1000s of products.

As Singapore is a global financial hub which plays host to many Multinational Corporations (MNCs), the country is a prime target for cybercrime. Furthermore, individuals in the country are known to be affluent and well-connected to the cyber world. A study conducted by Symantec consumer division Norton revealed that 70% of Internet users in Singapore have fallen victim to cybercrimes, and that 71% of such users do not expect cyber-criminals to be brought to justice. Most victims choose to stay silent about cybercrime as their financial losses are minimal and the costs of resolving the crime are high. This silent digital epidemic has caused many cybercrimes to go unreported and serves only to encourage cyber-criminals.

Cybercrime is essentially traditional crime such as fraud, extortion, and theft, facilitated through the use of a computer and a network. 

Mild cases of cybercrime committed by Singaporeans have received coverage in the news. The sentencing of 17 year old, Garyl Tan Jia, and 21 year old, Lin Zhenghuang, for crimes of mooching off another person’s wireless network saw Singapore to be the regional pioneer in clamping down on wireless network freeloaders. 

More extreme cases of cybercrime can be seen through the scandal of UltimateBet and AbsolutePoker.

Gamers of these two renowned online poker gaming websites reported that there were users cheating in games and winning millions by doing so. The investigation that ensued did not resolve much as no clear culprit was identified due to the companies’ decisions to remain silent about this issue. The players of AbsolutePoker were refunded approximately $1.6 million in total, and UltimateBet had to reimburse its players a total of $21.1 million. It is said that the culprits had hacked into the websites and cracked their software. These culprits are rumoured to be former employees of the websites who had also secretly installed a back door in the software which allowed them to spy on players’ cards. 

As the internet is becoming the centre for commerce and entertainment, users are becoming more susceptible to cybercrime. The transaction of money over the internet is commonplace, and this makes us more vulnerable to crimes such as fraud, scams, and theft. Furthermore, the lack of laws guarding the internet makes it difficult for cyber-criminals to be prosecuted. Normally, cheating in traditional casinos would warrant the culprit’s arrest, but when it is done over the internet, the blame shifts from the culprit to the company. This is apparent in the case of UltimateBet and AbsolutePoker, where both companies were blamed for allowing cheating to occur in their websites, and the culprits did not face charges and did not have to return the money to the companies. 

Also, with technological advancements made cheaper and more available to the masses, there are an increasing number of mobile internet users and a new form of cybercrime that takes place in this medium. As the 3G technology is relatively new, most of us are unaware of the risks of accessing the internet over our mobile network. “Smishing” is a form of cybercrime that is similar to phishing as it uses social engineering techniques to gather personal information from its targets. Smishing victims typically receive a mobile phone text message containing a website link and a statement that warrants one’s immediate attention; for instance, “DBS is confirming that you have purchased a $3000 computer from IBM. Visit http://www.fakewebsite.com/ if you did not make this online purchase.” The website that the target will respond to will be a legitimate looking website which will ask for personal information such as one’s address, credit card number, CVV code, ATM card PIN etcetera. 

In 2010, the Cyber Crime police station of the Crime Investigation Department (CID) in India reported that there were several incidents of smishing in the country. It was reported that upon clicking the web link in the text message, malware gets downloaded in the user’s mobile phone memory, enabling the hacker to read all the data stored in the phone. Several women have complained about cases of blackmailing through smishing; for instance, their intimate videos and pictures stored on their mobile phone were used to coerce them into paying money to the cybercriminals. 

Such forms of cybercrime that utilize social engineering are not as easy for us to detect as it plays on our reactions and behaviour to certain messages. For instance, the Nigerian scam banks in on our human inclination to seek easy monetary rewards, and although it has been unsuccessful due to it being too widespread, people are still being conned by versions of this scam. Smishing utilizes social engineering as it scares its victims into thinking that they are paying for something they did not purchase.