Produsage is defined as: refers to an
individual who is engaged in the activity of produsage.
Produsage blurs the boundaries between passive consumption and
active production (Wikipedia, 2005). I sourced this from Wikipedia for the purpose of
this week’s blog, due to the constant referral to its ‘produser’ tools. The
idea of Wikipedia is that any individual can edit, or add information to a
topic where they see fit, enveloping the ultimate produser. To clarify this definition
and ensure its feasibility I compared it to competing sites and the information
provided was virtually the same. I understand the risk of Wikipedia’s
reliability, however it allows new/updated information that no other ‘competing’
definition site permits.
Produsage is yet another revolution brought
about through new technologies and social media outlets. Conforming from
traditional produser to dirtributor consumer ways, it has allowed for
individuals to produce material and share information with others via media
platforms. Take YouTube for example, it provides an outlet for people to upload
and share their videos for no cost. It has a collection of 70 million video
clips and grows 6 million ‘produsers’ a year (CBS, 2009). You can never estimate the
popularity a video may have, and the buzz it may create although there are some
great success stories. Watch the following video: (Zorro103, 2009)
Two men created a video on an experiment for Mentos
and Coke. According to Barbara Lippert from Adweek magazine, they received such
big hype from their video they were offered jobs from Mentos (CBS, 2009). It is uncanny
how one day you could be two guys playing around with a coke bottle and some
lollies, to then become YouTube superstars with over 16 million views (Zorro103, 2009).
Now I’m no superstar and I am a little
embarrassed, but here is an insight into my time as a produser via YouTube:
It was for the purpose of a school assignment
and all together it received 2 views, however it was my 15 minutes of fame on
YouTube. Alongside this, my blog has been another platform for production and
again for the purpose of a school assignment. While my time as a produser is
small, my time accessing information from Wikipedia and online produsage sites is
vast and extensive. Even on Facebook, my friends and myself are constantly
sharing and connecting through social media. Jenkins discusses participatory
culture and societies ability through technology, to connect and share with
others online, and produsage envelops this theory. Society is forever changing
due to the technologies available, and Jenkins makes note that, due to this the
public now have influence over media content and decisions made by businesses.
People’s ability to produce and consume via social media will continue to
flourish and people- like the mentos men- will evolve due to produsage.
CBSNews.com (2009) YouTube Phenomenon Keeps Growing. [online] Available at: http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-500195_162-1864812.html?pageNum=2 [Accessed: 4 Feb 2013].
Zorro103 (2009) Diet Coke and Mentos. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKoB0MHVBvM [Accessed: 4 Feb 2013].
Very entertaining blog. love your work Tara. Loved the mentos video i cannot believe they were offered jobs through that. Just shows the power of Social Media. I also did Professional Communication Practices i liked your video. And i did view it so make that 3 views haha :) great job well done
ReplyDeleteI quite enjoyed the mentos and diet coke video (the mentos/coke fountain was cool) who knew that through produsage that could further their careers. Actually thinking about it singers do this all the time producing YouTube videos of covers of other artists.
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