NMI Update

Making me a safe(r) driver with tech.

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 20:21:00 +0000

[OK, before you think my composition skills have reverted to my freshman year, read the entire paragraph, OK?]

It is one of my favorite apps now. I needed some way to send simple e-mail messages and texts when I am on the road from Atlanta to Athens. It is far too dangerous to type. I have come to [too] close to reader [rear] end collisions too many times. I need to talk and have my spoken words converted to text. It is called speech recognition. It has existed in several inferior forms for years. But now dragon dictation [Dragon Dictation -- http://www.nuance.com/talk/] has created an iPhone app that does speech to text. And it does it very well. So all I do is start decaf [the app], press the record button and talk.
After I am gone [done], I still have to do a couple of things with that [the] keyboard to send out that [the] text. That is really more apples [Apple’s] fall [fault] than dragons [Dragon’s]. I promise that I pull over to the side of the road to do those things. Okay, I do the e-mail link [emailing] at the mini [many] stop lights on 316. So are you wondering if it really works?
I spoke this pairing draft [paragraph]. I didn't type it. Dragon converted it. I have left in all the areas [errors] too. Cool, hey? Oh yes. It is free to [too].

[And, yeah, it is ironic that Dragon missed the word “error” isn’t it?]

This DBB (Tu, 2/16) Mark Emery, INgage Neworks

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 20:15:00 +0000

Relationships. It is all about relationships. Businesses. Governments. Academic institutions. They all understand that most important intellectual capital they own is the relationships they share. INgage Networks (http://www.ingagenetworks.com/ -- formerly Neighborhood America) has software solutions that help organizations strengthen those all-important relationships. INgage Networks is a leading provider of enterprise social software solutions to businesses and government agencies. At our next Digital Brown Bag (Tu, 2/16, 2P, Room 116, Visual Arts), INgage’s Mark Emery will tell us what they do, how they do it, and why what they do is important. Join us!

NMI Information Sessions – Wed (2/17) & Thursday (2/18) 6:30P

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 20:14:00 +0000

The New Media Institute is dedicated to helping students become technowledgeable (yeah, I made that word up – cool, eh?). The NMI offers the New Media Interdisciplinary Certificate (http://www.mynmi.net/programs/certificate/). Students studying in any area and getting their degree in any field can receive the Certificate by taking 17 hours of course credit. Now, I wish I could tell you that everyone who wants to get the Certificate can – but we can’t accommodate everyone. There just aren’t enough spaces in our classes. But if you want to learn more about the Certificate, come to one of the Certificate Information Sessions this week. We are holding them on Wednesday (2/17) and Thursday (2/18) evening at 6:30p in the Drewry Reading Room on the second floor of Journalism. To reserve a space, complete this online form at
http://www.mynmi.net/programs/certificate/CertificateInfo.php
YOU MUST ATTEND ONE OF THESE SESSIONS IN ORDER TO APPLY TO THE CERTIFICATE PROGRAM.
If you have any questions, email me at sshamp@uga.edu.

Rock It Out! Allison Weiss and the Orkids (Wed., 2/17, 9P)

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 20:13:00 +0000

If you haven’t heard Allison Weiss (NMI Certificate Student, 2009) you are missing out! Grady Ambassadors will host “Rock it Out!, a concert benefiting Girls’ Rock” featuring Allison Weiss and the Orkids on Wednesday, Feb. 17, from 9:30 p.m. to midnight.
This concert will raise money for Girls’ Rock, an organization whose mission is to build female youth empowerment through music education and creation during a week of summer camp.
Rock it Out! highlights Athens’ bands and encourages support for young women to pursue music and find their inner strength. This is the community’s opportunity to experience a high-energy concert while contributing to an important cause.
The show will be held at the 40 Watt located on 285 W. Washington Street, Athens, Ga., 30601. Doors open a 9 p.m., and the show starts at 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 in advance and $7 day of the show. Starting Feb. 1, tickets will be on sale in The University of Georgia’s Journalism Building room 207 from 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Haiti 90999– Giving credit where credit is due.

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 21:37:00 +0000

I typed “Haiti” and sent the text to 90999. Someone in Port au Prince with a pile of ten dollar bills must be watching his cell for my text so he can hand out the money to the hurting and hungry. What? That’s not the way it works? Naw. Normally, when I charge something to my phone bill, the cell phone carriers wait until they collect the money from me before they hand it over to the company I bought something from. That means that if my carrier processes my Haiti donation regularly, I would have to wait until my phone bill arrived in the mail, then write a check to the carrier, drop the check in the mail, have the postal service deliver it. And only after the cell phone company cashed my check would they send the money to the Red Cross. That billing cycle can take between 30 and 60 days – if there are no glitches and some of us use electronic payment. That is way, way too slow to help the people who are suffering.

But with this crisis, the cell phone carriers have abandoned business as usual. Now I am no real fan of cell phone companies – hey, who really is. But in this situation they have stepped up to the plate to expedite our donations to speed help to Haiti. In essence, they are going to float us all a loan help people survive. Instead of waiting for us to pay our bills, the major cell phone companies are sending the money immediately to the Red Cross. Through last week Verizon has transferred over $7.82M. AT&T has pledged to advance payment of the more than $10M that its customers have texted. And Sprint has agreed to advance 80% of the more than $3.1M its customers have given via mobile.

Sure, reading my cell phone bill is still like trying to decipher the Dead Sea Scrolls. But I am starting to feel like there really might be a heart behind that fine print.

2. This DBB (Tu, 2/9, 2P) – Mike Greenwell, Danya Internationa

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 21:32:00 +0000

This semester, the majority of the student projects in the NMI are investigating how personal media (mobile, social media, and gaming) can contribute to public good. Specifically, we want to explore how these new technology tools can be used to help people live healthier lives. Our guest for the next Digital Brown Bag (Tu, 2/9, 2P, Visual Arts Room 116) is Mike Greenwell, Vice-President for Health Marketing and Communications at Danya International (http://www.danya.com/). Danya is global leader in health and education technology-enabled solutions. They have been involved in a range of innovative projects that use technology to make the world a better place. On Tuesday, Mike will share with us what he believes can and should be done with technology. Join us!

iPad the Future of Print? The plague of TMI.

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 01:26:00 +0000

Getting old bites because you realize what you want isn’t really what you need.I have been reading all the headlines that suggest Apple’s new iPad might be the savior of print media. And here is where my wants collide.

I want newspapers (in whatever form possible) to survive. True journalism is too important to society to fall victim to economic downturns. And yet, almost every week brings greater doubt that the course newspapers have charted through precarious financial straits will lead to anything other than more newsprint wreckage on the shoals of digital change. It feels like the next chapter for newspapers will be chapter 11.

And I want Apple’s new iPad (http://www.apple.com/). It’s an ultra-thin (less than half an inch thick) incredibly light (around 1.5 pounds) high resolution (9.7-inch LED backlit 1024x768) powerful (16 Gbytes of flash memory with a 1 GHz CPU) computer-esque device. With multi-touch, GPS, and an accelerometer it is a lot more like an iPhone than even the tablets we have seen in the past. Plus, it has a fairly reasonable entry price point of $499. So, heck yeah, I want it!

But are my wants compatible? Will the device I crave save the news source I desire? Unfortunately, I don’t think so. And the real problem is TMI.

My youngest son taught me that acronym when I tried to explain the birds and bees when he was eight years old. Moving beyond the ambiguous analogies of animals and insects to the more graphic components of reproduction (including a drawing that was marginally anatomically correct) sent him running from the room crying “TMI. TMI!” My oldest son (who had survived the “talk” a few years before) translated – Too Much Information.

In the case of the iPad, it is really TMFI – Too Much Free Information. The problem with newspapers today isn’t so much the medium we read it on, it is the economic expectations we have formed around each medium. Bottom line, we expect an online newspaper to be free. With precious few exceptions, all we need to receive gratis high quality information that is incredibly expensive to produce is a browser and a URL. We don’t need to pay at all. And it was telling that in his slick introduction of the device last week, Steve Jobs deliberately took us to the “New York Times” on his iPad – and he never entered his credit card info. The underlying message was “Buy the $499 device and get the news for free!”

So I want it, but the iPad really won’t save newspapers. It is just a new type of computer that we will use to navigate to free online newspapers. And that won’t help newspapers.

As much as I hate to admit it, the Kindle is what the newspaper industry needs. With limited technical capabilities, the Amazon Kindle isn’t nearly as sexy as the iPad. The Kindle doesn’t have color, video, or web browsing capability. I don’t want the Kindle as much as I want the iPad. But it has one feature the iPad lacks, a toll booth for news content. On my Kindle DX, there is only one way for me to see the “New York Times” -- I have to buy it. With the Kindle and all of the other e-readers, there is an understood expectation that to get content (whether books, magazines, or newspapers) you have to pay. Sure, Amazon takes a big cut of the $0.75 I fork over for my single edition, but at least some of the money is going back to the organization producing the news. Long term, that subscription revenue stream is essential to the long-term survival of newspapers. [Read item below for more info on e-reader research at Grady.]

So yes, I want my iPad – and I am going to get one. But my selfish behavior might come back to haunt me. Without big changes in how (or even whether) we pay for news, there will be less “good” news to read on the iPad.

This DBB (Tu, 2/2, 2P) – Digital Media at Turner

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 01:23:00 +0000

Turner is our digital media home town hero. It is a media monster that is harnessing brand new ways to bring you new types of content on whatever device you want to see it on. At our next Digital Brown Bag (Tuesday, 2/2, 2P, Room 116 Visual Arts) Phil Sharpe (Senior VP for Digital Media Competitiveness & Strategy) and Michael Adamson (VP for Sports New Products and Services) will be our guests. They have wild new ideas about how media is going to change in the next few years.Come hear what they have to say.

Kindle needs to change to reach young readers – Grady Research.

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 01:22:00 +0000

Researchers in the Grady College have been looking at whether e-readers like the Kindle could help newspapers attract young readers. Bottom line, e-readers feel like old media young people. They want color and video – sounds like the iPad, eh? You can read more at http://bit.ly/dmMEOU.

Personal Media / Public Good – 5/1/10 – Save the Date!

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 01:08:00 +0000

This semester in the New Media Institute, we are investigating how personal media (mobile phones, social media, and games) can contribute to public good. Specifically, our projects are going to look at how these personal media platforms can be used to encourage health behaviors. On Saturday, 5/1/10, the Health and Medical Journalism Program (http://www.grady.uga.edu/KnightHealth/), the Center for Health and Risk Communication (http://southerncenter.uga.edu/uga/ugacenter.htm), and the New Media Institute are teaming up to host a conference exploring the ways that new digital media tools can help make communities stronger. It will be a day of panels, discussion and planning. Plus we will be debuting all the NMI projects. So mark your calendar. I will be sending you more information as we finalize plans.

MLK Day – Closing in on the Dream?

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:49:00 +0000

[The following post contains language that some readers might find offensive.]
They weren't a good team. It was as simple as that. He and his brother were the only black coaches in the east side Little League division. And every year when we drafted players, they seemed to pick every black kid that was available. I heard the snide off-hand comments from the other coaches that he was “prejudiced.” I learned the real reason when he approached me to make a trade, one of his better white players for my younger black kid who still hadn’t learned to hit. “Needs a ride, Coach. He needs a ride.” Sure enough, at every practice and game that coach never arrived without a car full of his players. Transportation issues guaranteed that every year he had many great kids on his team, but few good players. He just seemed to have other priorities.

That team was responsible for one of the worst wins of my coaching career. His team hadn’t won a game and we were in second place. My team had gotten complacent. Late in the last inning, our wheels came off. We gave up three runs. His team was only down by one-run with a runner on second. His dugout was going crazy. Then like something out of a black and white movie, his number nine hitter blooped an opposite field homer. Incredible. His team went wild – with the top of their order coming up they had a real chance to win this game. The runner from second got so excited, he touched third, took off his helmet and started pumping it in the air. A real no-no. From the first league meeting, we had been telling kids to keep their batting helmets on until they got into the dugout. Safety. The League was serious. It was an automatic out. My son, the catcher, pointed out to the umpire the bare-headed runner about to touch home. The umpire called him out. Game over. We won. He and I came to the plate to hear the umpire explain. He listened quietly, then he put the offending helmet on his own head and walked back to the dugout with his arms extended as if to say “See?” Then he put his arm around the kid who had cost them the game -- who happened to be crying.

That year the east side played the west side in a kind of Athens tournament. We were the weaker league but we had some players. Bragging rights were on the line. My team won our first game – a wild two-strike homer by my son, Scoop (did you think I would write this whole thing without giving a nod to a Shamp?) After the game as we were gathering up our equipment, we heard a commotion from the adjoining field where his team was playing. Then a kid came up and said the east side coach had pulled his team off the field. I hurried over to see what was going on and I met the coach walking to the parking lot with his team behind him. I asked what was going on.

“He called me a n**er. That coach called me a ni**er.”

I was shocked. That couldn’t happen here – not in one of the most enlightened spots in the entire universe. I said he had to have misunderstood.

“I know that coach and he wouldn’t say something like that” and as soon as those words left my lips I knew that wasn’t really true. He looked at me.

“My son heard, Coach. My son was right there and heard.” He put his arm around his son who was standing next to him and walked off.

Today on Martin Luther King Day, I thought about that coach’s pain and pride. He helped me remember that racism isn’t just a societal problem, it is always personal. It damages us all by wounding the few. This year we can congratulate ourselves on the progress we have made in addressing long-standing bias and even hatred. A black man in the White House. Who can say things aren’t getting better? But I have been thinking about that coach in the car ride home when he had to explain himself to his team, to his son. Maybe the policies of the person in the Oval Office mean less than the beliefs of the person in the opposite dugout, your neighbor. Dr. King had a dream and we are closing in. But we still have such a long way to go.

This DBB (Tu, 1/19, 2P) – Clarkson Logan, Maestro

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:48:00 +0000

OK, imagine this. What if I could load a little piece of software on my computer connected to the internet, then be able to listen to my music on that computer on any connected computer – anywhere in the world! Heck, I can even listen to all my music on my iPhone. Oh, and I can let other users listen to my music, too. That is Maestrro (http://www.maestro.fm/). And it is too cool. At our next Digital Brown Bag (Tuesday, 1/19/10, 2P, Room 116 of the Visual Arts Building) Clarkson Logan, the co-founder and CEO of Maestro will be our guest to explain his vision for where online music is going and what it is like trying to build a business around innovative products. Join us. And remember, we have moved Room 116 in the Visual Arts Building – we ran out of room.

Texting for Haiti

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:47:00 +0000

Instant gratification. It is one of the biggest gripes about Generation Now. They don’t understand delayed gratification. They have to see the immediate impact of their actions. They just can't wait. But instant gratification has been the vital key to raising money for Haitian relief. Old calls for help asked us to write a check and drop it in the mail. More recently we could call the number on the screen and provide our credit card number to donate to a worthy cause. That took too long too many people were not willing to take the time. But things have changed. Almost immediately after the earthquake in Haiti, a nonprofit called the Mobile Giving Foundation (http://mobilegiving.org/), set up a service that allowed users to give to Haitian relief by texting “HAITI” to the phone number 90999. For every text, the users cell phone will be charged $10 with the proceeds going to Red Cross Haitian relief. By last weekend, over $8M had been received via this system. Why is it so popular? It is easy and quick. Instant gratification. So impatience isn’t really a bad thing – if you know someone is in need.

Note to NMI Certificate Students – what to do if you can’t take DBB?

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:46:00 +0000

Some students have run into a problem. They are having a hard time taking both sections of the Digital Brown Bag class (NMIX4220 & NMIX4221) needed to complete the New Media Interdisciplinary Certificate because of class conflicts. If you have a course required for your major that conflicts with you getting two of these classes, send me an email (sshamp@uga.edu) with “Can’t Take DBB” as the subject line. I will notify you about a way to address this problem.

Personal Media / Public Good – NMI’s new mission.

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 23:17:00 +0000

“Biofuels. I work with biofuels. Natural alternatives to petroleum power.”

He looked really proud of himself. I should have never stood next to this guy.

“That’s great,” the congressman said shaking his hand. “We need to do everything we can to reduce dependence on foreign oil. Our energy problems have become the world’s problems.”

“And don’t forget global warming,” chimed in the congressman’s aide.

The whole point of this reception was to impress the legislative delegation with the important work we are doing at UGA. And my science geek colleague was doing a bang up job.

“So,” the congressman squinted at my stick-on nametag to read my name. “Scott. New Media is making web pages, right?”

Wow, just like that we want from saving the planet to teaching kids how to put pictures of their pets online.

“It started out as the web. But now it is a lot more. We are looking at brand new platforms that are enabling all new types of communication.”

“Like what?” the congressman asked.

Stand back Bio Boy, here was my opening to sound smart.

“Social networking tools are changing the way that young people live their lives. It’s huge.”

“Facebook,” the aide added.

“Hmm,” the congressman seemed to be getting interested.

“And cell phones,” I kept going. “The growth and potential for cell phones here in the U.S. and globally is incredible.”

“Cell phones, eh? Bob,” the congressman turned to his aide. “I want to see about getting an intern for our office from Dr. Shamp’s program.” I fought the temptation to rib Professor Hard Science standing next to me.

“Yes, sir,” Bob, aide said as he fished out a notepad.

“His students might be able to help me with something very important,” the congressman turned to me. “My cell phone keeps going off on the House floor and nobody in my office knows how to put it on vibrate. I know you will be able to help out, right Scott?”
And with that he and Bob the aide took off.

“And, Scott. I have a question, too.” It was Dr. Biofuel. “I can’t figure out how to put my daughter’s Tee Ball team picture on my Facebook page. Any ideas?”

Over 4 billion people across the globe pay to use a cell phone – that is over 60% of the planet’s population. There are almost 3 times as many cell phones as TVs. We couldn’t live without our cell phones, right? We consider them great ways to keep in touch with family or to order the pizza on the way home (so we can meet the driver hot at the door). But most of us see these devices as instruments of convenience, not tools contributing to the global betterment.

Over 350 million people actively use Facebook. That is more people than live in the U.S. But for the majority, Facebook is a diversion that allows us to rub our friends’ noses in the cool vacation we took or to connect with that hot gal/guy two rows down in Intro to New Media. Social media can’t lead to prosocial change, can it?

The relationships that people are forming with mobile phones and Facebook is unlike any media interaction than we have seen before. These are our personal media – our Facebook page knows all about us and is the way we connect to people like us or just people we like. We don’t “loan” our cell to anyone because now it isn’t just a way to phone home. It is where we store photos and contacts, text and email friends, listen to our own music, and watch the videos we want to watch wherever we are. For many of us, our mobile phone is where we live our lives. Unlike the dead tree newspaper that doesn’t change no matter whose doorstep it lands on or the big screen TV where I watch whatever the rest of the crowd watches, these new personal media respond to me, they change for me, they are an extension of me.

This intimate relationship gives personal media new power to affect us, to change us, to influence our behavior. More than just time killers, personal media has the power to make the world a better place. But we haven’t done enough to explore this new potential.

This semester in the New Media Institute, we are focusing on how pesonal media like social and mobile media can help us live healthier, better lives. We will be researching existing projects that have used these tools to address important health and wellness issues. And we will be building our own approach to how personal media can contribute to better public health.

On Saturday, May 1, here at UGA we will be showing off these projects at an event that we are calling “Personal Media / Public Good.” At this gathering we are going to discuss, debate, plan, and plot about ways to use personal media to make us better. Put it on your calendar now, we want you there. And you know you will be hearing more about this from me over the next few months.

NMI’s New Home – and temporary hell.

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:49:00 +0000

Get ready to salivate. The NMI is getting new digs! With huge windows and the best view on campus. We moved out on 12/17 and we started knocking down the walls the next day! Yeah, I got to swing a sledgehammer – pretty impressive!

I didn't do all the demolition -- just most of it. They told me not to quit my other job.

Work is moving really quickly – they have even knocked holes in the building where my new office is going to be. Imagine all that brick becoming glass. Cool, eh?

We are now in temporary headquarters – all five of us NMI’ers are crammed into a single office.

And we have a temporary classroom – yeah it is crowded but with beautiful 20” iMacs.

Bottom line, to go to heaven you have to go through a little bit of hell. We are doing that now. We hope to be in our new space just after the NMI’s 10th anniversary in April!

This DBB (Tu. 11/10/09) -- Lance Koenders (Intel) = "The Future of TV Media and Applications"

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:06:00 +0000

This weekend at a meeting of the International Digital Media and Arts Association (http://www.idmaa.org/), I heard a fascinating presentation about how people are using video. Yeah, we all have been hearing about the growth in new video media channels (like computers, cell phones, etc.). But the truth that became clear in the biggest research project ever to investigate how people actually use media in their everyday life is that television still wins -- by a long shot. You can read more about the "Video Consumer Mapping Study" online at http://bit.ly/FVpsm. But the secret is that TV isn't going to be your parent's TV for long. There are new developments on the horizon which will radically change what TV is and how we watch it. One of the leading players in this space is Intel -- they are pioneering new ways of thinking about next generation TV. Our guest at this week's Digital Brown Bag (Tu, 11/10, 12:30P, NMI, Room 401 Journalism) is Lance Koenders. OK, I don't know Lance's real title -- trust me it is impressive but his meteoric rise up the corporate ladder at Intel makes it difficult to keep up. Suffice it to say Lance has been involved in Intel's new take on TV. His talk "The Future of TV Media and Applications" will help us see how Intel, a technology behemoth, is approaching this old medium to make it the most vibrant of the new media. Join us.

NMI Show-Off -- 12/9/09 -- Hold the Date!

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:05:00 +0000

Never before have we had as many students taking classes in the New Media Institute. In fact, for the first time ever we had to make two capstone classes. What does that mean? Projects, projects, projects! iPhone Apps, games, Facebook applications, QR Codes, you name it. And on Wednesday, 12/9, at 2P we will be showing off what we have learned this semester. We have 11 capstone projects and a host of other ones as well. Those of you who know me, realize you are going to be sick of hearing about all the wild stuff the students have accomplished by the time that date gets here. But I want you to hold the date. You will want to see what they have done.

This DBB (Tu, 10/20) – Delta Airlines, Kristen Manion

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:16:00 +0000

In addition to getting you safely from here to there, Delta Air Lines is using all sorts of new media to make your trip easier and better. This semester, Delta is working with a team of capstone students on ways to use social media (maybe even when you are airborne!). At our next Digital Brown Bag (Tu, 10/20, 12:30P, NMI, Room 401, 4th Floor Journalism Building), Kristen Manion, Director of Direct Marketing and Customer Relations Management will be our guest. She will explain how Delta is making effective use of new media channels. And it will be a homecoming for Kristen – she was one of the first students I taught the web way back in the day (don’t worry Kristen, I won’t say what year that day was in). Join us!

Gerry Purdy – Frost & Sullivan Mobile Analyst (Mon, 10/19)

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:11:00 +0000

Frost & Sullivan (http://www.frost.com/) is one of the world’s largest technology consulting companies. On Monday (10/19, 2:30p, Room 171, Miller Learning Center) Gerry Purdy the lead mobile analyst for Frost & Sullivan will be talking to NMIX 2020. Gerry has had a range of different roles in a host of companies and is currently involved in several new media startups. There will be seats available so join us to see what he thinks is going to happen next.

Willson Humanities Center Cinema Roundtable (Fri., 10/23, 4P)

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:10:00 +0000

On Friday, October 23, at 4 p.m. in 150 Miller Learning Center, the Willson Center Cinema Roundtable will examine “From 3D to DV: What Will Movies Look Like in the Future?” Panelists will discuss current and future technological trends in motion picture production and exhibition. Participants include Matthew Bernstein (Film Studies, Emory), Chris Sieving (Film Studies), Eddy Von Mueller (Film Studies, Emory) and me -- Scott Shamp (New Media Institute). Richard Neupert (Film Studies) will moderate the discussion.

NMIX Course PODs – coming soon! I promise!

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:09:00 +0000

Yes, you all probably know that the New Media Institute offers a certificate called the New Media Interdisciplinary Certificate (http://www.mynmi.net/programs/certificate/). Since the NMI’s founding ten years ago, hundreds of students have completed the certificate and have gone on to cool jobs in new media. Last week, we held orientation sessions for students interested in enrolling in the Certificate program. The good news is, over 250 students attended. The bad news is we have limited seats in the classes students need to complete the program. We have established an “application” procedure for the Certificate (http://bit.ly/40lPRh) and students have been completing online forms requesting PODs to enter the classes. We had hoped to complete the process of reviewing these applications by now, but the task has proved more daunting than we anticipated. We are working through them now and hope to be notifying students about PODs by the end of this week. Thanks in advance to everyone for being patient.

Future Media: What’s Next? (10/15, Atlanta)

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:00:00 +0000

“What is the future of digital media?”
I get asked that a bunch. My smart alec answer is that if I knew I

a) wouldn’t tell you because you could steal it from me and
b) you would have to come to my private island for me to turn you down.

Bottom line, I don’t know WHAT the future of digital media is, but I do know WHERE I want it to be – right here in Georgia. This Thursday (10/15) a group of scholars, business people, and all around smart folk are going to be convening in Atlanta to discuss how to make sure that Georgia is on the leading edge of digital media innovation. The event is called “Future Media: What’s Next?” (http://www.futuremediaga.com/). There are a ton of interesting panels, student demonstrations, and start-up show-offs. The New Media Institute is a partner in the event – and I will be speaking (briefly) as well.

And just to show you how on relevant this whole conference is, I am doing my morning work-out listening to National Public Radio, and I hear a report on a company who is using software to predict which music will be hits (http://bit.ly/aFNm3). It just so happens that David Meredith of Music Intelligence Solutions will be on the same panel with me talking about open source innovation to keep Georgia competitive. How is that for staying current?

It promises to be an interesting event. You can find out more online at http://www.futuremediaga.com/.

P.S. And, yes, I know the conference is at Georgia Tech, but given the way UGA’s football team is playing, I want to make nice with everyone on our schedule.

This DBB (Tu, 10/13)– What’s Up Interactive -- Richard Warner

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:57:00 +0000

Back in the day, before anyone knew that the web was really going to take off, a few brave souls actually started building businesses to harness its power – and make money. One of those pioneering companies in Atlanta was and is What’s Up Interactive (http://www.whatsup.com/). On Tuesday, the founder of What’s Up, Richard Warner will be our Digital Brown Bag (Tu, 10/12/09, 12:30P, NMI, Room 401 Journalism) guest. Not only has Richard shaped the way that digital media has grown in the southeast, he is also a television star – he hosts “Georgia Business” on Georgia Public Television. What’s Up is a true UGA and NMI shop hiring our alum for years. And, I promise, Richard is a fun guy. Join us.

[INSERT NAME HERE]’s AIDS Story

noreply@blogger.com (Grady College /University of Georgia) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 13:08:00 +0000

This story isn’t exactly true – but the best ones rarely are. There is design in the deceit because I don’t own the whole story and some facts do damage.

Pat was dying. The androgynous pseudonym is a necessary lie. Pat’s classification as male, female, black, white, Hispanic, rich, poor, hetero or homosexual almost killed Pat.

Pat was wasting, listless, and unresponsive. Pat had been getting worse for months. And everyone from the family to the doctors was baffled. None of the standard tests you give to people like Pat provided answers. The last time they carried Pat to the hospital, we were told to come say goodbye.

Then a wet behind he ears intern suggested Pat be tested for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Pat with AIDS? Just another example of a wasted test adding to the costs of healthcare. But since the tests for dengue fever and the flesh eating virus had come back negative, and the HIV test only cost about $40. What the heck?

There are a lot of things about this story I don’t know. How did Pat contract HIV? That is Pat’s business and it doesn’t matter to me. How long had Pat lived with HIV before diagnosis? I don’t think even Pat knows that but I can only imagine the hell of slowly dying without knowing why.

But this I do know. Today almost 3 years later, Pat is doing great. Amazing treatments have now rendered HIV infection a chronic manageable condition. That means that with the right medicine and care, you can live with HIV just like you live with diabetes or high blood pressure.

Pat almost died of stereotypes. Pat didn’t fit the mental model of someone with AIDS that people from trained medical professionals all the way down to me had formed. We all saw Pat as a collection of characteristics (gender, skin color, economic status, sexual partners, etc.) that were inconsistent with AIDS. Instead of seeing Pat as different from “people with AIDS,” we all should have realized Pat shared one thing with them – blood. AIDS is a disease of the blood and almost all of us have that stuff running in our veins.

I told a doctor friend (the real type not one of those Ph.D.s) about Pat. She told me that in the U.S. up to 25% of the million plus people living with HIV don’t know they are infected. That means that over 250,000 people will not receive life-extending treatments – and they are at greater risk for transmitting the virus.

I asked the doctor why they weren’t tested.

She answered with a challenge. “Let’s test you right now? It only takes a few minutes. OK?”

“Well, I don’t know if …”

“You’re scared. Makes sense. It is scary. But the only way for you to get over that fear is to realize the benefits of testing. If you are infected with HIV right now, not knowing won’t save you. Not knowing will kill you – and maybe someone you love.”

I was tested. Pat’s story convinced me.

For the past two years, I have been working with a creative group of people – students, healthcare professionals, educators, videographers – to learn how we can make and tell the stories that can save people’s lives. New media technologies like cell phones offer new possibilities.

Next week I will tell you about what we have learned, what we have tried, and what we want to do next – the Global AIDS Personal Public Service Announcement Project.