Hi, I’m David French. I am a second-year journalism student from Sydney. I enjoy music, bushwalking and writing. After analysing and documenting my personal media usage over two 24-hour periods, I noticed an alarming increase in my usage of devices during the week compared to on the weekend. I consumed over seven hours of technology according to my weekday log, compared to just three hours on my weekend log.
My laptop/PC was the dominant media that I accessed during the week, which didn’t surprise me as I often use my PC more often on weekdays. However, I also use the same mediums on my PC as I do on my phone such as Spotify, Reddit, Netflix etc. which is evident by the data from the weekend as my phone was more prevalent. Also, when I am socialising, it seems I am more inclined to be using my mobile phone for my media consumption, although still at a lower intake than usual when I’m alone or at home.
The main dominant genre I accessed would be Reddit and Spotify. Reddit is a social media platform that allows users to browse and join communities and discuss and vote on content provided by other users. Content posted includes text, image or link posts. My personal page features discussions on news, music, nature, art and television that I am particularly interested in. Spotify is a music streaming service where users can discover millions of songs and create their own customised playlists. Completing these media logs has allowed me to see how much spare time I spend on these platforms, often unneccesarily, whilst on both my phone and PC.
Most of the time, I consumed my media alone rather than with others. There were brief periods where I would, but mostly I was socialising when with others rather than using media, other than playing/listening to music.
I predominantly consumed my media at home, alone either on my laptop or phone. When I am elsewhere, I am often preoccupied with study, exercise or socialising.
I found the amount of time I spent on media platforms or browsing rather than studying or exercising was time wasting, realizing the procrastination technology can cause.
The aspect of the media log that proved insightful to me was how it provided me a new perspective on how I plan and organize my time. Seeing it mapped out made me reconsider my habits and allowed for improvements to be made.
Media Log Weekday David French
Media log weekend David French
Article 1- The “Analog vs Digital” Debate
https://medium.com/hd-pro/which-is-better-analog-vs-digital-806449f7147d
This article details the upsides of the digital age of music, explaining that it makes it much easier for musicians to produce and create content with the advancements of technology. Rather than a physical copy, music can now be streamed online on various platforms at the click of the button. Writer Vince Tabora also argues that the audio quality can be decreased in digital format. I personally believe that the ease of digital music is an incredible advancement for the improvement in distribution and production as Tabora points out, however the quality has decreased in terms of who is able to create the music with little practicality involved and a lack of authenticity.
Article 2 – Which Sounds Better, Analog or Digital Music?
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/which-sounds-better-analog-or-digital-music/
This article analyses the digital means of producing and reproducing records and whether any quality is lost compared to the physical process of analog. Writer Katrina Morgan discusses the difference between the directly sourced records or the digital copies, referencing her own experience listening to “A Day In The Life” from Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band on record and reporting a “deeper and fuller” listen. This article aims to decipher whether the vinyl argument still stands and if digital remastering and reproduction affect the quality and consistency of the music.
Article 3- The New Analog: a musician’s view on why we need noise in a digital world
This article provides the perspective of a musician themselves discussing the digital evolution involved with music and its creation. Damon Krukowski speaks on the ease of presets, programs that provide these crutches for a lack of honest musical prowess or legitimacy. “It’s such an easy way to jump towards something that looks good or professional, or sounds good or professional, like an Instagram filter.” Krukowski goes on to explain how this leads to a complete lack of individuality and creativity, as generic and predetermined works of music which seem professional but are rather devoid of any hard work or abundancy of skill. I wholeheartedly agree with this and I believe true authenticity and originality has been incredibly watered down by this digital age of production. The technology has evolved but the man-made factor that made music truly special has been lost to many.