Forum: New Media & Society

This article concerns the influence of news presentation on the web. The study had two primary goals. The first was to test the effects of interactivity on learning, and the second was to explore the role of motivation in learning from interactive media. Hypotheses were tested using an experimental design. Study participants were assigned one of four web news stories with structures that encouraged varying degrees of interactivity. The results of hypothesis testing were heavily dependent on which measure of learning was employed. A traditional multiple-choice test of recognition verified an effect of motivation but not of interactive behaviour. A comprehension measure of learning, supported by the cognitive constructivism theory of learning employed in this study, supported an effect of interactive behaviour but not of motivation. Explanations for the findings are proposed and implications for mass communicators discussed.

Among the communication technologies introduced in the developing world during the past century, none has grown more rapidly than mobile telephony.Yet the impact of mobile phone use on social relationships has received limited systematic study. This article examines the factors associated with mobile phone usage in the south Indian state of Kerala and the social structural consequences of such usage, particularly the composition and location of the social ties maintained through mobile technologies. Bivariate analysis of mobile phone usage and network composition shows that frequent users have fewer local ties and more external ties than non-frequent users. However, these effects are due largely to the association of email and mobile phone use. The article shows that internet use increases, while mobile phone use decreases the geographical diversity of social ties. The implication is that mobile telephony and internet technologies may have different consequences for the globalization process.

The digitalization and personal use of media technologies have destabilized the traditional dichotomization between mass communication and interpersonal communication, and therefore between mass media and personal media (e.g. mobile phones, email, instant messenger, blogs and photo-sharing services). As private individuals use media technologies to create and share personal expressions through digital networks, previous characteristics of mass media as providers of generally accessible information are no longer accurate. This article may be situated within a medium-theoretical tradition, as it elucidates technical and social dimensions of personal media and revises the distinction between mass media and personal media. A two-dimensional model suggests locating personal media and mass media according to an interactional axis and an institutional/professional axis: personal media are de-institutionalized/de-professionalized and facilitate mediated interaction. The implementation of digital media technologies has important consequences for social networks and fits well within a theoretical discussion of the post-traditional self.

Theories of the social construction of technology help to identify ways in which social forces can influence the development of communication media such as the internet, but often fail to pay sufficient attention to the ways that social structures constrain the agency of those who are most central to the social construction processes. This article examines some decisions concerning the domain name system of the internet and finds that such structural concerns add a needed dimension and can illuminate the power relations that help to shape the role of the internet in the tension between national and global structures of communications.

This article critically examines the technologically-savvy image of young adults by investigating the digital divide issues underlying youth internet use, including their daily computer and internet problem-solving behaviors. The study draws on data from a web-based questionnaire and face-to-face interviews with young adults in Singapore, a country where internet adoption is pervasive. Contrary to popular conceptualizations of youths as a cohort of technically-savvy experts, the findings showed considerable variance in their internet expertise and problem-solving behaviors, with some demonstrating limited knowledge of internet use and awareness of troubleshooting strategies. The analyses also showed that internet skills and self-efficacy in internet-related problem-solving behaviors were significantly related to the internet practices of young adults. The findings suggest that in wired contexts, variations in post-adoption patterns may reflect more accurately the extent and presence of social stratification, extending the meaning and scope of the digital divide.