Doctoral Research Fellowship: New Media in Asia and/or the Middle East

A doctoral research fellowship is being advertised at the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages (IKOS), University of Oslo for an individual interested in studying new media in Asia and/or the Middle East, and an interested in religion is one of the possible areas of specialization they are looking for. Applications are due 15 Dec 2009. Here is the scoop:

The successful candidate is expected to study the use of new media and communication technologies (including the Internet, satellite TV, and mobile phones) in Asia and/or the Middle East and their impact in the social, political, religious and/or cultural domains. The fellowship is open to projects from a wide range of disciplinary and methodological approaches to the study of new media. Comparative and/or multidisciplinary projects will be considered positively. Projects grounded in fieldwork in the region will be considered favourably. It is expected that the candidate analyzes primarily data in one or several of the region's languages. Candidates must therefore demonstrate advanced active skills in at least one relevant Asian and/or Middle Eastern language.

For more info contact the Research director at IKOS: Rune Svarverud, tel: + 47 22 85 69 82, e-mail: rune.svarverud@ikos.uio.no. Research administration IKOS: Cecilie Lilleheil, tel: + 47 22 84 40 47, e-mail: c.w.lilleheil@ikos.uio.no.

PhD Fellowship new media in the Middle East and/or Asia

Here is the announcement for the PhD-position in new media (Asia/ME) at University of Oslo. For those interested you can find more information at the following link: http://www.admin.uio.no/opa/ledige-stillinger/2009/vitenskapelige/doctoralresearchfellowshipIKOS-2009-16827.html
The deadline for applications is December 15, 2009.

Changes brought about by New Media and the Walkman: Context, Indvidualization and Mobility

Yesterday I was contacted by a journalist about making some comments on the 30th anniversary of the release of the first SONY walkman. As I pondered what impact this specific technology has had on our media landscape from my readings and observations I ended up talking with him about three key factors or changes: Context, Individualization and Mobility.

First the walkman freed music listening from being engage with in a certain place or space, you could listen to music on the bus, while going for a jog as easily as sitting in front of a larger stereo system. This mean how we consume media has changed.

Second the walkman encouraged a new level of individualization, I can listen to my music when I want not matter what others around me are doing. This has marked a greater sense of empowerment in individuals being able to control the media messages they want to receive.

Third music consumption no longer became a static practice, it was now mobile. That means where media was consumed was freed to a new level. This also started a blurring of the public and private as media device allowed for personal engagement in public space. However, those individual, mobile practices have repercussions for the public. Early walkman were not necessarily personal as you could often hear the sounds being played seep through the head phones. Similar to how people get forced into transgressing the space of a private phone conversation when someone next to them is talking loudly into their cell phones.

So in my way of thinking the walkman in many ways set the stage for our new digital media landscape and media consumer current practices. It also raises some concerns of how our media devices are culturing human behavior.

For the official version of the story check out the interview online.