Social networking has many benefits but it’s important that you do everything you can to ensure that your social networking profile remains private.
The number one tip I always tell myself: Think before you post anything to facebook and twitter!
Anything that is publicly available online could be seen by your bosses and other people so, before you post any information or images, consider whether it could cause you embarrassment or potentially damage your career. You need to think of how you want to be perceive online.
Check out some real example of career-ending facebook faux pas here.
Recently I’ve watched ‘Hunger Games’ and ‘Brave’. I also chanced upon Colin Stokes’ How movies teach manhood’ on Ted, his analysis was interesting.
In my opinion, Hunger Games is quite violent for children’s consumption but the key message of the movie is positive. The main character, is a strong heroine who is resourceful and selfless. Both Hunger Games and Brave starred a strong female protagonist. Like what Colin Stokes suggested that such movies could send the wrong message to boys.
But I’m not going to talk about manhood but media violence.
‘Media Violence’ means differently to children, a heated arguments can be as aggressive as two characters battling each other with guns. How vulnerable are children being exposed to media violence? We heard about the rising cases of school shootings across the world and according to a research1, the typical American child will view more than 200,000 acts of violence, including more than 16,000 murders before age 18.
Heroes are violent, and even being rewarded for their action as portrayed in the movie ‘Hunger Games’. They carry weapons to get rid of the ‘bad guys’. Children will perceived that using violence for a righteous cause is right in daily lives. Vulnerable youth who have been bullied may turn to violent means as a remedy.
Do people still wrap their books nicely? I’m fond of wrapping my paperbacks. In spite of the rising trend of electronic reader (e-reader), I still prefer to own conventional books.
According to a research by Kindle Culture1, majority of kindle owners are adults (38.4%) followed by older adults (37.3%) and younger adults (225).
The results suggests that there could be a relationship between the level of disposable income and age group.
Kindle by Amazon offer the ability to store thousands of books in a device that weighs less than a pound and portability that allows readers to carry around. The perks of using a Kindle are appealing but I don’t think it can replace the conventional book. It is certainly useful in the education sector such as using Kindle to cultivate reading habits among the students.
3A user at the University of Munster says:
With eBooks you can find relevant content much faster by searching for keywords. You can use them anytime and everywhere, in contrast to library-provided books, which are often not
available when you need them (Springer, 2008).
Technology has indeed revolutionised our learning journey. Reading is an important habit to nurture from young. Kindle is serving its purpose but will Kindle replace conventional library? I believe it is still a long way to go2.
3Springer (2008), “eBooks – the end user perspective”, white paper, available at: http://www.springer.
com/cda/content/document/cda_downloaddocument/eBooksþ-þtheþEndþUserþ Experience?SGWID¼0-0-45-608298-0 [Accessed: 12 Jan 2013]
Photo tampering has been prevalent since the invention of photography. In 1917, a ‘Fairy’ photograph was circulated in England and received mixed public reaction1. It was later revealed that the photograph had been faked. Elise Wright created ‘fairies’ using cardboard, took photos with it and she claimed that it was real.
With technological advances, we can be subjected to greater visual manipulation. In fact, what we see on the print media nowadays has been enhanced for aesthetic reason. The question here would be how much altering is too much and what is the ethical limit? Check out a list of photos that has been doctored in 2012 for various media purposes here.
Untruthful representation of product undermines the brand or corporation credibility and value. The recent incident of Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) train ‘open door’ photo made the headlines at STOMP (SPH online news website) and led to a public outcry. SMRT launched an investigation and discovered that there is no way the train can operate when the door is open therefore the photo is fake.
SPH’s editor-in-chief English & Malay Newspaper Division of Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), had to apologise to interim SMRT CEO Tan Ek Kia. It was a mistake by one of SPH staff and has been dismissed since the incident2.
It’s a serious mistake because it affected public confidence towards public transport and it’s also a form of damage to SMRT. It is unethical to alter a photo as a journalist to sell a news story.
I Read. I Curate. I Post 