Critical Analysis of Lev Manovich’s "The Language of New Media"
Write a 700 to 800-word response that critically reflects on one to two of this week's readings/film. Your response should demonstrate your understanding of and engagement with the material and use specific examples from the text. Do not simply summarize the reading. Rather, consider the nuances of its main arguments. You must use proper citations for all sources in your response. Below are some questions to serve as prompts for reflection. You do not have to address all of these questions in your response.
What specific stance does this reading take regarding social media and networks?
Does this reading make me rethink my ideas about social media and networks? How So?
Where do I stand in relation to the reading’s arguments? Do I agree? Disagree? How so?
If writing about two readings:
How do the arguments of theses readings compare to each other?
Do they have similar critiques of social media? On what do they agree?
Do they have different arguments and how so?
Grading Rubric: Your assignments will be graded on the following criteria:
(30 pts.) Understanding of the readings: The assignment responds to the prompt and shows that the author has synthesized the readings. When sources are required, they are used effectively and ethically.
(30 pts.) Engagement with the material: The assignment shows critical engagement and indepth analysis and responds fluently to the weekly texts. The author provides specific examples to support their argument. Also, the response uses terminology appropriate to field.
(20 pts.) Organization and elegance of expression: The response has an overall point to make and sentences stay on topic. Paragraphs stay on topic. In other words, the response is focused. Also, it shows creativity of expression. Sentence structure varies within paragraphs to achieve various effects. The prose contributes to the persuasive appeals of the post. The writing seems
natural and thoughts appear to flow into each other.
(20 pts.) Following the conventions of edited written English: The response uses proper vocabulary, sentence structure, and additional conventions of edited written English (such as verb forms and tenses, correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling). There are few to zero grammatical errors that get in the way of the author’s purpose or the reader’s understanding.
Additionally, all sources are properly cited.
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Critical Analysis of the Week’s Readings
Lev Manovich’s The Language of New Media presents an engaging analysis of the new media. The author is convinced that contemporary society is constantly exposed to computerization that ultimately informs comprehension of new media, including the principles that revolve around automation, and variability, among others. Networks Without a Cause: A Critique of Social Media details the existence of social media, including the presence of a considerable number of users on platforms such as Facebook. Lovink asks the reader regarding their self-assessment to ascertain how info-saturated lives are affected by the overreliance on these platforms by the vast majority. Apart from the information overload, the author dissects the increasing identity obsession, including what compels the users to diligently embrace social networking sites. Importantly, even though both books prioritize the rise and influence of new media, they have notable differences, especially in their critique of new media.
Lovink’s book is a critical review of the new media, including social media, that is widely established. One can clearly comprehend the fact that Lovink outlines the role of new media, often championed by the internet, that has resulted in the imminent of new media and its contribution to global events such as the Arab Spring and Wikileaks. His analysis delves into the need for internet regulation and the criticisms that firms such as Google and Facebook constantly face. Lovink further alludes that information overload is facilitated by the rise of technological innovation, which yielded the presence of mobile phones where users can access the internet 24/7 (24). The author cites other credible sources, including the “Precarius Rhapsody,” an anthology by Franco Berardi, which indicates that cyber time is not infinite. Importantly, this is the case in the other book. Referencing sources of information is important as it gives credit, thus limiting claims of plagiarism that is unethical in publications (Santini 3). In the Language of New Media, Manovich also backs some of his findings and claims using other sources. Regardless, I believe Lovink’s findings should be adopted because the book was published in 2011, which is not the case for Manovich, who, despite his recognition as a digital theorist primarily focusing on technology and media in the contemporary world, published his book in 2001. According to Garner et al., regularly updated publications are more credible, contain new information and recent findings. In this regard, the impression is that Lovink’s analysis is more recent and, as such, more likely to cover updated information regarding social media, including the psychopathology resulting from the 24/7 information overload often championed by the claim that cyber time is infinite.
Additionally, Lovink discusses the prevalence of...