On Baby-Boomers and Millennials: The Audience Responds to My Presentation

The structer of my presentation with comments:

Slide 1: Title
The title of my presentation was “Emergence and Rise of the U.S. Politicosphere:
Overview of the Bloggers’ Personal Historical Narratives”.

Slide 2: The U.S.A.: Google Maps Satellite Image (2010)
I started my presentation with the demonstration of the physical map of the United States of America.

Slide 3. Visual Representation of the U.S. Politicosphere
(. 30 Jan. 2010)
The next slide contained the screen shoot of http://politicosphere.net/map, the visual representation of the U.S. politicosphere. I explained how the online political debate map, presented with its nodes and edges, works.

Slide 4. Quote
This slide contained a quote from an on-line article “Social Scientists Create Maps of Online Interactions” by Jeffrey R. Young:

“If the Internet is a new kind of social space, what does it look like?
That's a question of particular interest to social scientists eager to see what cyberspace might reveal about the nature of human behavior.

Researchers, after all, have long sought to map social groupings and interactions in the physical world. Now, with so much activity on computer networks, scientists can collect vast amounts of hard data on human behavior. Each blog points to other blogs in ways that reveal patterns of influence. Online chats can be tallied and parsed. Even the act of clicking on links can leave trails of activity like footprints in the sand.

"We're entering the golden age of social science," says Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet & American Life Project. "We know more than we ever did about what's on people's minds."

Slide 5. Why Map “Politicosphere”?
This slide contained a list of suggestions “Why Map Politicosphere”:

• To represent a particular space on the Web: “It exists.”
• To locate yourself on/within it: “I exist.”
• To represent a community of the like: “We exist.”
• To differentiate oneself from the other/others: “They exist.”
• To [symbolically] depict complexity of the relationships/hierarchy between objects and spaces, “real” or “imagined”.
• To narrate history.

My comment to this slide was: “Despite the diversity in appearance, content, and function, each map is employed, either explicitly or implicitly, in telling a story. The map of the U.S. political Web has a narrative aspect as well. It does not only represent particular space on the Web, but also represents time, history, technological progress and the images of the contemporary American politicosphere, which appeal to us as being “logical” and “making sense”. Today, I will not go deep into the history of the cartography of the U.S. politicosphere…”
Slide 6. The Main Purposes of the Presentation
“…The main purpose of this presentation,” I continued. “Is an overview of the personal historical narratives about the emergence and rise of what is defined today as the U.S. politicosphere or the U.S. political Web. When did politicosphere emerge? How did it rise?” I introduced the main purposed of my presentation:

• Provide an overview of the personal historical narratives about the emergence and rise of the U.S. politicosphere.
• Consult “histories” narrated by bloggers-practitioners.
• Filter and compare the content of the historical narratives for the arguments and opinions on the emergence and rise of the American politicosphere. Compare the dates provided.
• If possible, investigate the political stands of the bloggers-historians.

Slide 7. Requirements to the Historical Narratives for the Purpose of This Study
I introduced the requirements to the historical narratives selected for the purpose of my study. There were, basically, only five major requirements I came up with:

• The book selected for the analysis falls under the category of a “history”; or contains a chapter/chapters serving narrating the history of the blogging.
• The historical narrative selected for the purpose of this study was written by a blogger-practitioner.
• The historical narrative got published and issued as a book.
• The historical narrative received coverage (positive or negative) in the American blogosphere and mainstream media.

Slide 8. The Historical Narratives Selected for this Study:
Slide 8 contained four pictures of the books I have selected for analysis. Here is the bibliography:

1. Blood, Rebecca. The Weblog Handbook: Practical Advice on Creating and Maintaining Your Blog. Cambridge: Perseus Publishing, 2002.
2. Blood, Rebecca. We've Got Blog: How Weblogs Are Changing Our Culture. Cambridge: Perseus Publishing, 2002.
3. Perlmutter, David. Blogwars: The New Political Battleground. USA: Oxford University Press, 2008.
4. Rosenberg, Scott. “The Rise of Political Blogging”, Say Everything: How Blogging Began, What It's Becoming, and Why It Matters.

Click on the number (1,2,3 and 4) to visit the amazon.com webpage and compare the prizes of the books. To be honest, the books were expensive, when I purchased them. Until you really need them for “my PhD shelf”, go to the library and check them out there. (Good luck! I did not find these books in our TU Dortmund library, unfortunately!). Blood’s books are cheaper now, though.

Slide 9. Key Terms
I thought it was necessary to mention the key terms before my "narration". I think, such slides are very helpful in preparing the stomachs of my audience to digesting the material I am about to present. Very often, the majority of my audience in TU DO never happened to hear these weird English words...

• The Web
• Weblog (to weblog; a weblogger)
• Filter-weblog
• Ye Old Skool
• Blog (to blog; a blogger)
• On-line diary
• Blogger.com
• Warblog
• Celebogs
• Community-blog/multi-authored blog
• Weblog/Blog-community
• Blogosphere
• Political blog (political blogger)
• Conservative/Infopros/Liberal
• Politicosphere
• Historical narrative

(more text coming soon)

Dennis Mischke on the "Crisis of Confidence" in the XXI Century

While listening to Dennis Mischke's awesome presentation titled "It's Not Cricket" - Games of Confidence, Cosmopolitanism and Reflexive Mimicry in Joseph O'Neill's Netherland", some thoughts struck me:

"I find it very ironic that the Economic Crisis took place in the Information Age. I find it ironic that the abundance of information about the coming Crisis, which was available in the American politicosphere, was ignored by those who were in power. I find it ironic that more information can contribute to our lack of confidence."


I shared those with the presenter. Unfortunately, Dennis Mischke was interrupted by the moderator. My comment received no response. No offline response. If I am not mistaken, he still has a blog.

Dennis was talking about "another 'crisis of confidence'", which took place recently. "With burst of the mortgage bubble in 2007 it became obvious that the excesses of speculation on Wall Street had put too much confidence in the control of risks." He proposed with confidence in his voice. "<...> It [the current crisis of confidence] has to be seen in the light of the larger Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism, 30 years of Neo-Liberalism, Transnationalism, the World Risk Society and Reflexive Modernization." He referred to Jameson, Giddens, Beck, Lash. As an illustration to the mentioned, he provided a brief narrative analysis of Joseph O'Neill's novel Netherland. Read The New York Times review of "the wittiest, angriest, most exacting and most desolate work of fiction we’ve yet had about life in New York and London after the World Trade Center fell" here.

From the brochure "BOND 2010: The BOchum and DortmuND American Studies Dissertation Colloquium":
Dennis Mischke received his M.A. in English and American Studies, Media Studies and Cognitive Science at Potsdam University and The University of Technology Sydney. A doctoral Student at the Research School at the Ruhr University Bochum, his project is entitled "Cosmopolitan Spaces in 19th Century Transatlantic American Literature". Read more about his dissertation project here.

Evaluation: Great presentation! Informative. Ironic, at times. Provocative. Concise.

Announcement: Svetlana Makeyeva Presents Her Current Research at the Annual Dissertation Colloquium BOND

Svetlana Makeyeva presents:
“Emergence and Rise of American Politicosphere: Overview of the Bloggers’ Personal Historical Narratives”

BOND 2010 Saturday, 30 January 2010 at 13:00

TU Dortmund
Fakultät Kulturwissenschaften
Amerikanistik
Emil-Figge-Str. 50, Room 0.406
44221 Dortmund

Abstract
The “history of blogosphere” is very short, yet very complex. This presentation is an overview of the personal historical narratives about the emergence and rise of what is defined today as an American political blogosphere, the U.S. political Web or the U.S. politicosphere.
Within blogosphere, it is asserted to be “common knowledge” that the term “weblog” was coined in December 17, 1997 by Jorn Barger of Robot Wisdom. In 1998, American webloggers became a self-conscious community (Rosenberg, 2009). In January 1999, Cameron Barrett of CamWorld published an essay called “Anatomy of a Weblog,” which adopted the term “weblog” and described the main technical features of the format. In 1999, Peter Merholz of Peterme announced about his decision to pronounce “weblog” as “wee’-blog”, “Or ‘blog’ for short.”
So, what is a “blog”? There is obviously not one dominant definition of what “blog” stands for. It has always been a matter of definition and a question of acceptance of this definition by bloggers-practitioners, who make up a community of communities. In September 1999, Brad L. Graham of The BradLands jokingly named this— already enormous!— collection of the interconnected communities as “blogosphere”.
Blogging tools were “predestined” to be popularized and politicized. “The rise of bloggers as part of modern politics has no precise start date,” writes political blog-admirer David D. Perlmutter, “but it does have an origins myth: the run of Howard Dean for the Democratic nomination for the presidency in 2003 to 2004.” (2008) By 2007, the situation on the Web got beyond a joke. At first ignored, the mainstream political news media migrated on-line and embraced the blog-format. Blogosphere became a political battleground temporarily won by pro-Obama internet users. The launch of the first official White House blog by President Obama marked a “golden age” for both, blog as a format and political blogging as a popular genre in the United States of America. My presentation is a glimpse at the American politicosphere’s “history” narrated by bloggers-historians.

The presentation will be available in PPT format in my EWS working space.

Important Announcement: United We Blog!

(click on the pic to enlarge)

Achtung! Achtung! :))

This is the day when we --- my students and I --- start our blogging projects!

As some of you know already, I am a PhD student at Technische Universität, Dortmund. At the moment I am teaching a course titled The 2008 Elections: U.S. Political Culture and New Media. I wake up at 6:20 (almost) every Tuesday since last year and pave my way to the most fascinating future I can imagine for myself: I want to become a practicing Professor . I believe, this is the most fascinating profession: dedicate your life to learning and sharing knowledge. My dear students, we are about to finish this course. I thank you in advance for teaching me many things. And I am asking you to do three more things: (1) have fun with blogging, starting with today (January 23, 2010); (2) present your outstanding projects (February 6, 2010) AND take the final quiz (to be announced).

On Monday (January 24, 2010), we will exchange the links to our blogs with each other and start commenting each other's blogposts. I will contact each of you via e-mail. Check your e-boxes! And reply.

Best wishes,
Sv.

Hungary and Hungarians :: Reinforcing Stereotypes

Attractive Hungarian man posing in front of paprika paste, quite typically used for Hungarian gulash (December, 2010)

Recently, I have spent Christmas in Hungary with my Hungarian friend and his family. To be more precise, I have spent a week in Miskolc, one day in Sárospatak and one day in Budapest. I know, I have not seen much of Hungary; but enough to construct stereotypes about Hungarians and their culture. My impressions are still fresh. So, here are twenty stereotypes about Hungarians and their culture as a result of my superficial observation.

WARNING: I do not intend to offence anyone. If you do find it offensive, stop reading. In any case, comments are welcome!

20 STEREOTYPES ABOUT HUNGARIANS © Svetlana Makeyeva

1. Hungarians adore Hungarian language! They know it is hard for foreigners to learn, but they appreciate if you try. Try to pronounce Hungarian names correctly.
2. Hungarians are proud to be Hungarians wherever they are: at home or abroad! Not like Germans in a foreign country. Or Russians who pretend to pass as locals when they go abroad. (No offence!)
3. Hungarians will think you are dumb if you ask, “So where is Hungary?”
4. Budapest locals abroad will find it offensive if you ask them, “Where is Budapest?” They will think you are dumb.
5. Non-Budapest locals abroad might find it offensive if you ask them, “Where is Budapest?”
6. Non-Budapest locals in Hungary will not find it very offensive if you ask them, “So where is Budapest and what is so special about it?”

7. The largest majority of Hungarians speak Hungarian only. Kick your ass and learn some Hungarian words and phrases before travelling to Hungary. ALWAYS carry a dictionary (or a Hungarian boyfriend/girlfriend!:) around! The knowledge of English is absolutely not enough to enjoy the culture. A tourist has a better chance to find someone who understands German. I also had luck to meet Hungarians who were very fluent in Russian. But to make things easier for you in Hungary, study Hungarian.
8. How to put it diplomatically?... Hungarians hate French. I do not remember seeing any French restaurant. But I remember French cosmetics in the window shops.
9. Now I cannot be diplomatic. I say as it is. Hungarians hate Communists. Please, leave your U.S.S.R. T-shirts at home.
10. One more thing... Hungarians hate George W. Bush and American imperialism.
11. But Hungarians are nostalgic about the times when they were a great Empire.

12. And yet Hungarians are very hospitable as hosts. They will always invite guests to the table and share food and drink with them.
13. Hungarian hosts will stuff you with food! (Oh, I know what I say!:)
14. Hungarians are excellent in cooking gulash.
15. Hungarians are proud of Hungarian cuisine. (Oops, French word!)

16. Hungarians drink a lot.
17. Hungarians drink really a lot!
18. Hungary produces tastiest sorts of wines and palinkas!
19. Hungarians drink in style. (Maybe, I will write a research paper about drinking ceremonies in Hungary one day.)
20. In general, Hungarian men and women are known to be pretty and sensual.

The list might be extended one day. So far, this is it about a fascinating country and Hungarian culture. Okay, now I have to do my homework. I have to learn how to ask and tell the time in Hungarian by next Tuesday… :)