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Keen's "The Great Seduction"

1. How does Keen define Democratized media, and what are his main issues with this trend? use examples from the web in the form of links.

Keen defines democratized media as content that is generated by an Internet user, who may be just an average person. However, Keen has many issues with this trend. He feels as if people who have no credibility are taking over. This democratized media, Keen claims, is "disintermediating" the Internet, or getting rid of the middle man. This leads to a lack of quality; you can't trust anything anymore.

Such an example is wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org). Any Internet user can add information to this site, on any topic, whether it be true or false. This definitely backs up Keen's argument that people with no credibility are taking over. 

2. Compare and contrast Keen's take on social media with Rushkoff's. Which one speaks to you and your own experiences and why?

The way they approach the topic of social media is different. Rushkoff is more a believer in the advancement of the Internet, while, obviously, Keen is not. In Rushkoff's documentary, he provides only a little of his own opinion, allowing us as the viewer to produce our own views on the topic. Keen is very specific in his argument that he does not like the advancement of the Internet.

As a journalism student, the advancement of the Internet scares me. The number of magazines and newspapers that actually print, instead of just appearing on the Internet, are drastically decreasing. What kind of job will I be able to get if there are no newspapers or magazines I can write for? Also, the increase in the amount of bloggers scares me too. These people have no schooling on journalism, and yet they report on different aspects of society like they do. It m akes me wonder, why am I getting schooling for something others do in their free time?