Media futures: convergence

1. MEDIA FUTURES:
CONVERGENCE
PRESENTATION BY REBECCA AND CARL

2. DEFINING CONVERGENCE
Convergence itself is loosely defined as ‘once separate media texts and
industries coming together’, however it’s a little more complicated
than that.
It is important to note the following when we talk about convergence:
• Convergence is not a fixed relationship. It is fluid and interchanging.
• It is a series of ongoing interactions between media systems.
• It is a process which is now accelerating.
• There are different types of convergence.

3. ANOTHER WAY CONVERGENCE HAS BEEN
DESCRIBED IS AS THE “BLURRING OF LINES
BETWEEN MEDIA”

4. THE FOUR AREAS OF
CONVERGENCE
THERE ARE FOUR AREAS, OR TYPES, OF CONVERGENCE.
THESE ARE:
CULTURAL CONVERGENCE
INDUSTRIAL CONVERGENCE
TECHNOLOGICAL CONVERGENCE
NARRATIVE CONVERGENCE

5. CULTURAL CONVERGENCE
Refers to local, national and global cultures coming together
through media.

6. INDUSTRIAL CONVERGENCE
REFERS TO THE CONSOLIDATION OF MEDIA INDUSTRIES AND
COMPANIES.

7. TECHNOLOGICAL
CONVERGENCE
REFERS TO THE MEDIA INTERSECTION WHICH OCCURS DUE TO
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS.

8. NARRATIVE CONVERGENCE
Is defined as “narrative that does not originate from a single text,
but instead flows across, between and through a variety of
delivery platforms”.
You can watch this video for more information on convergence:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCQmspwy4OY

9. HOW DOES CONVERGENCE
WORK?
THERE ARE DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH MEDIA INDUSTRIES CONVERGE:
HEGEMONICALLY: TO PRODUCE A CERTAIN DISCOURSE AND INFLUENCE OR REINFORCE CERTAIN
IDEOLOGIES
PLURALISTICALLY: TO OFFER DIFFERENT DISCOURSES.
INTERTEXTUALLY: TO LINK A TEXT TO ANOTHER.

10. HEGEMONICALLY
An example of this is Rupert Murdoch, the founder, CEO and
chairman of the second largest media conglomerate in the world,
News Corporation. News Corporation was later split into 21st
Century Fox and News Corp.

11. NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA INCLUDES THE
FOLLOWING BRANDS:
• The Australian
• The Daily Telegraph
• The Sunday Telegraph
• Herald Sun
• The Courier Mail
• The Sunday Mail
• The Advertiser
• NT News
• Sunday Territorian
• The Sunday Times
• Mercury
• Sunday Tasmanian
• Fox Sports

12. WHEN MEDIA INDUSTRIES WORK HEGEMONICALLY, THEY CAN
REINFORCE THEIR IDEOLOGIES BY PRODUCING SPECIFIC
DISCOURSE. THERE HAS BEEN SEVERAL INSTANCES WHERE
RUPERT MURDOCH HAS BEEN ACCUSED OF USING HIS MEDIA
CONGLOMERATE FOR HIS OWN AGENDA.
“HE HAS DISCOVERED HOW TO USE THE 70 PERCENT OF THE
NATIONAL AND STATEWIDE PRESS HE OWNS TO ENSURE THAT THE
VALUES DRAWN FROM HIS RIGHT WING POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
REMAIN DOMINANT WITHIN THE POLITICAL MAINSTREAM” – ROBERT
MANNE ON RUPERT MURDOCH, 2011

13. PLURALISTICALLY
Imagine you are at a Formula 1 Grand Prix race. You’re standing next
to the track, and there is a television screen you can see from your
position. The track offers you a direct view of what is in front of you.
The television screen allows you to view what is happening around the
rest of the track and what’s happening behind the scenes. You’re also
able to listen to radio commentary of the race, and you have a copy of
a printed program you can refer to at any time.
This is an example of pluralistic convergence. Each text gives you a
different perspective and offers you different or a larger points of view,
each with a different focus.

14. INTERTEXTUALLY
An example of intertexual convergence, is Marvel’s The
Avengers. It began as a comic book series, which then moved
into television and then films. This is expanded on later in ‘fan
culture and convergence’.

15. REASONS FOR CONVERGENCE
There are two major influences or motivators for convergence:
• Economics
• Power

16. FAN CULTURE AND CONVERGENT
INDUSTRIES
• Fan culture refers to those who follow a particular form of
media. The term fan is derived from ‘fanatic’.
• The fan audience can be especially important in the
relationship between convergence and audience.
• Fans are typically loyal to the form of media they follow, and
will enthusiastically follow texts, despite the delivery platform.

17. THE EVOLUTION
OF BLACK WIDOW
Please watch the video!
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
xUHlOCeeCs4&feature=youtu.be

18. THE IMPACTS OF CONVERGENCE ON MEDIA
The term media convergence refers to a range of media converged into
one. Jenkins argues that media will be everywhere and that it does not
exist in one form. He believes media will continue to grow in multiple
ways through computing and communication. “A medium’s content
may shift, its audience may change and it social status may rise and
fall, but once a media establishes itself it continues to be part of the
media ecosystem” (Jenkins, 2004). Rather than old media dying out, it
evolves into another form. Examples of this are cassettes into an MP3
player, although different in appearance, the idea is essentially the
same.

19. THANK YOU FOR VIEWING OUR
PRESENTATION