Web 2.0 Responses

Web 2.0

1. Today many TV shows and advertisements try to look amateurish or "homegrown" to emulate what is often seen on the Web. Do you think professional production values will continue to drop, or do you think amateur user-generated content will get better over time? WHY??
   I think that amateur user-generated content will gradually get better and better because it's a topic of interest and more people are becoming hip to it every day. The resources and information will be more readily available as the popularity of the trend continues, and amateur user-generated content will inevitably improve. User generated content is a new and interesting trend that has definitely created a whole new side in the world of the media and is here to stay for many years to come. However, i do think the trend will die down and reach a plateau, allowing for well-produced media to take it's spotlight back. Amateur web-content is still in its early stages; technology will continue to improve and become more readily available. In the same respect, because amateur web-content is still in it's early stages i'm inclined to think that people will inevitably lose interest at some point, and popular media will take off in a different direction.
   
   
   
2. What social media sites do you find yourself using the most, and why? In your opinion why is Facebook so much more successful than MySpace, and do you think Facebook is "here to stay" for the long term?
   
   The only social media site that I use is Facebook. I got hip to Facebook in High School even before it became so collassal, so i've seen it evolve from a simple social media into a social media monopoly, if you will. I think Facebook is more successful than myspace because of all the different features it has to offer. I think MySpace had the potential to be as successful as Facebook and would have really evolved  if Facebook didn't take over so suddenly. Facebook is more successful than MySpace because it has everything MySpace has to offer and more, it's like media darwinism. I think Facebook has transcended the term "trend" and is here to stay for the long term, mainly because it keeps people in touch from all over the world and that never gets old.
3. 
   
4. Why is transparency such an important concept in the Social Media world? Is it MORE or LESS important in the offline world? Why?
   
   Since media transparency helps us determine why information is conveyed through various means, it is important because it gives us a sense of truth. We should know what the motives are behind the media. I think transparency is less important offline because the online world is so widely used and information is spread so rapidly.