Number of Posts: 9
Posts 1 - 9
When things are so bad you have no words, don’t reach for an emoji
Newspaper | The Guardian
Date | 13.10.2015
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | emojis, word/writing
Summary | Some people didn't like the fact that the newspaper USA Today decided to add a little emoji next to one of its editions' front-page stories. The author of this Guardian article thinks that it was inappropriate to use a crying face emoji next to a story about an American hero who was stabbed. Many people use emojis to add context to their messages and to show some emotion. However, emojis are also limited. The author claims that they work well with positive statements, but not with negative ones. This is due to their "inherent ridiculousness". Finally, the author is not worried about the future of words, but she wants to warn people and tell them that if they can't find the right words, it's better not to say anything rather that using an emoji.
Image Description | Screenshot of the front page of USA Today, screenshot of a tweet about the front page, and series of five yellow-face emojis.
Image Tags | emojis, newspaper, Twitter
Emojis: The death of the written language?
Newspaper | CNBC
Date | 24.6.2015
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | emojis, language threat, misunderstanding, word/writing
Summary | People are using more and more emojis, which can be seen as a threat to written language. Indeed, people are starting to replace words with emojis in order to communicate a feeling or emotion, and according to the author of the article, this is worrying. Moreover, using emojis can lead to misunderstandings and miscommunication. Finally, if school start to incorporate emojis in their curriculum, it can be perceived as a regress back to hierogylphics.
Image Description | Getty image of a keyboard composed of emojis, and image of a series of Apple emojis representing diversity.
Image Tags | emojis, keyboard
Die optimierte Frau
(The optimized woman)
Newspaper | die Weltwoche
Date | 8.1.2015
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | Instagram, selfie, social media, youth
Summary | New social media platforms such as Instagram perpetuate unrealistic beauty standards because the seeming effortlessness of the snaps is in reality highly staged. Cosmetic surgeons assume that the obsession with physical perfection is responsible for the fact that people nowadays are much less apprehensive to undergo cosmetic surgery. The article makes a reference to danah boyd’s book It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens.
Image Description | Selfie of Karlie Kloss and Taylor Swift
Image Tags | selfie
7 Workplace Chat Apps to Keep Your Team in Sync
Newspaper | Huffington Post
Date | 26.1.2015
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | Facebook, social media
Summary | There are various new apps that facilitate professional communication between colleagues in the same office building but also in international companies with offices all over the world. Facebook has launched a new version of its social media platform called 'Facebook for Work' and it is supposed to combat employees using Facebook for procrastination/personal purposes at work and rather using the many communication options Facebook offers for efficient communication within the work team. Google Apps are also very convenient because they are available on all devices and have a huge array of functions. Other apps are Slack, Voxer, Instantbird, Yammer, and Pie.
Image Description | Photograph of a work conference showing gender and race diversity as well as smiling employees.
Image Tags | computer/laptop, female(s), male(s)
Facebook 'makes users lonely and angry as they compare themselves to other people's seemingly perfect lives'
Newspaper | Mirror
Date | 10.11.2015
Language | English
Country | UK
Topic Tags | Facebook, research/study, social media, threat
Summary | The Happiness Research Institute conducted a study about social media and the portrayal of users' seemingly perfect and beautiful lives. Users think that other people's lives are better, and they consequently feel sad and angry. In the study, the people who had to quit Facebook saw their happiness level rise, and those who had to continue using the social network didn't see any change. Facebook users seem to be lonely and angry because they constantly compare their life to others', but the seemingly perfect life that other users portray is fake. Although there are advantages in using Facebook, it is important to keep in mind that it also gives people a wrong perception of reality.
Image Description | Series of five photographs: teenage girl looking at her laptop, another teenage girl looking at the laptop, Facebook logo, photograph of Mark Zuckerberg with the dislike button, and another teenage girl with a phone in her hand, looking at her laptop.
Image Tags | computer/laptop, Facebook, female(s), smartphone
Stop Your 'Dying,' It's Killing Me
Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 29.11.2015
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | texting, youth
Summary | Digital writing culture, be it texting or posting on social media, has developed a widespread obsession with grotesque exaggerations. An example would be the fading popularity of LOL while statements such as “I’m literally dying” have become commonplace to express hilarity. Other staples for expressing strong feelings towards something in texting are “feels”, “YAAASS”, or “I can’t even” among many others. Although hyperbole has a long history as a stylistic device, contemporary online culture seems to have reached new levels.
Image Description | Illustration of a skeleton sitting in a coffin and taking a selfie.
Image Tags | male(s), selfie
La tentation de la déconnexion
(The temptation of being disconnected)
Newspaper | La Tribune de Genève
Date | 17.1.2015
Language | French
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | addiction, email, smartphone, threat
Summary | There is now a general feeling of overdose or "virtual burnout" with new media. This feeling touches both private and professional spaces. A professor a the University of Neuchatel condemns this phenomenon which can have bad consequences at work. Nowadays, even if we leave our office, our work does not stop; we can still receive emails and feel like we have to respond right away. Some companies have rules: for example, no email after 6 p.m. and during the weekend. This digital overdose also hinders our personal relations with people.
Image Description | Digital image with new media use statistics, and icons related to new media.
Image Tags | computer/laptop, smartphone
Schreiben: Die Handschrift verkümmert
(Writing: Handwriting is hampered)
Newspaper | Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ)
Date | 1.3.2015
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | language threat, research/study, texting, word/writing
Summary | We are living in an age writing renaissance; no generation before us has written this profusely. We are always texting someone or updating our social media statuses and yet, ironically, we are losing a staple of writing culture: our handwriting. Researchers are debating whether this is a problem or not, but the fact is that many neuroscientific studies show that humans learn better while writing by hand rather than typing. The abbreviated, informal, emoticon-filled writing style of WhatsApp and co. may be corrupting writing culture at large.
Image Description | Photograph of a young child (girl) typing on a laptop.
Image Tags | computer/laptop, female(s)
Du sollst kein Handy haben
(Thou shalt not have a cell phone)
Newspaper | Sonntagszeitung
Date | 30.8.2015
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | smartphone
Summary | People are annoyed by masses of refugees with smartphones. The fact that they own modern technological devices makes their right of asylum less convincing. What people forget is that if they had to flee their country, one of the first things they would pack is certainly a smartphone. Thanks to free WiFi or cheap international phone service deals, owning a smartphone has become a basic human requirement next to having food and shelter. WhatsApp and other messaging apps are refugees’ means to stay in touch with their family, navigate through foreign territories, and communicate with human traffickers.
Image Description | Photograph of a group of young men taking a selfie with a selfie stick on a beach.
Image Tags | male(s), selfie, selfie stick
Page 1 of 1