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Articles Conference Reviews |
2008K16VieWhere Everyone Knows Your Username: The Realities of Cyberspace as Third Space Chad O'Neil: Everyone Knows Where: Mapping in the World of Warcraft O'Neil began by framing his piece with a quote from Julian Dibbell regarding mapping in LambdaMOO, describing his work as following up on MOOs and MUDs as mapped spaces that players create. His presentation started with a brief discussion of World of Warcraft (WoW) and the map types the game provides, then moved to a framework of representations of space, representational space, and spatial practices (drawing on LeFebvre). In WoW, players' maps appear blank at first; then, as players explore, more areas are revealed. These maps are adapted and changed by players; for example, players may Photoshop maps of certain areas to indicate where items are located to help other players in their quests to find those items. This, O'Neil argues, operates sometimes to even guide what developers do when revising the game; thus, WoW players redefine the spaces they inhabit through the maps provided in the game. Jennifer Cover: Everyone Knows Your Icon: Visual Image as Identity and Identification on LiveJournal Cover invoked Oldenburg's concept of “third spaces” and questioned whether such a definition can even be applied to social networks, including LiveJournal. Her presentation examined LiveJournal, a blogging site, to look at users' icons and describe the purpose or motives behind those icons. She surveyed 88 icons, which she coded into four categories. For example, she showed an icon of Michel Foucault with the overlaid phrase “Also, Foucault can kill you with his brain” to note how icons can signal membership in very specific (often fan-based) communities (in this example, Foucault and the television show Firefly). Other icons like KitchenAid mixers signal association with a hobby. Icons also can convey emotions, represent self, or associate a user with a particular LiveJournal community. Thus, Cover's presentation showed how even tiny LiveJournal icons can signify a great deal of meaning. Elizabeth Dennis: MySpace, NewSpace or 'Third Space': Can MySpace be a 'Third Space' even with Media Access? “How do we portray ourselves online?” asked Dennis, describing how social networking services offer us ways to create identities online. Drawing on Sherry Turkle's work with identity in online environments, Dennis focused specifically on how identity constructions in online spaces can lead to unwanted consequences. She used the example of the “Facebook Ambush” presentation (http://pedagogy.cwrl.utexas.edu/?q=node/162) where students' Facebook images are incorporated into a presentation without their express permission beforehand as one example that shows clearly how students feel their privacy is violated when their online identities are removed from their “own” spaces. Thus, when thinking about online social networking spaces, we must consider issues of audience interpretation and privacy as well as think about how these spaces operate as third spaces and safe havens for adolescents. Dennis ended by noting that we need pedagogical tools for teaching about “unintentional ethos.” Christy Mroczek: The Ethos of Activism in Online Communities Mroczek interrogated what it takes to establish an effective ethos in online social networking communities that engage in activism (such as the Salvation Army's “Red Kettle” MySpace page, PETA's Facebook page, and “Save Darfur” on Facebook). “How do we use social networking sites to foster civic engagement and encourage online and offline activism?” she asked, noting that “the most successful online advocacy groups appeal to credibility by creating interesting, engaging site content using multimedia tools and communicating with supporters and updating constantly.” By placing activism sites on social networking spaces, these groups could potentially save time, raise money, and gain new networks of interested individuals. However, some of the drawbacks include the difficulties of establishing ethos as an activist group, concerns about objectivity (particularly on MySpace, which is owned by Fox Interactive Media), and concerns that individuals may not donate to these causes they join because there is no face-to-face presence (though they may be encouraged to donate offline). |