Even though I find the subject matter fascinating and truly relevant to my scholastic/professional pursuits, I'm finding it surprisingly difficult to immerse myself in Jenkin's Convergence Culture (2006). I lose focus on the central themes because I am overwhelmed and distracted by all the details he provides.
Yes, I realize how ludicrous and backwards this sounds: "I can't concentrate on the main topic because the author provides too much supporting evidence!" To me, Jenkin's ideas and examples could be more succinctly conveyed. Perhaps it's because the phenomenon of media convergence is not new to me that I feel somewhat beat over head as I finish each chapter.
Given that Jenkin's book was written in 2006, much of what he writes about and predicts has already come true. If not for collective convergence, "old" media, in its individual forms (print, broadcasting, etc.), would be close to extinction. In order to survive, these individual mediums of expression had to evolve, taking the best qualities of each and combining them to form a new type of SUPER media.
Jenkin's explores the idea of collective intelligence in fan communities who pool their individual resources and knowledge in an attempt to uncover details about reality show before it is ever aired on television. Spoiling, as it is known, becomes a game between the show producers and these mega-fans. The idea is that one person can't know enough to spoil a season on his/her own, but that it is possible with collective bits of intel is received and vetted from all members of the group. The practice of spoiling becomes more like a game when the show producers and other fans attempt to sabotage the information being collected by the spoilers.
In an upcoming post, I'd like to examine a few of Jenkin's ideas on branding/marketing with Chris Anderson's new book Free: The Future of a Radical Price, which explores the business side of new media models. Stay tuned...
Sources: Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence culture: Where old and new media collide. New York: New York University Press.
