Media Studies - Media Ecology Practice Question

 What are the most significant changes in the media industry recently? [30]

P1: AI affecting algorithms; makes content watched more addictive to users - leading them to never get off the app.

P2: AI helps creators and prosumers create create content and appeal to audiences, increasing profits

P3: AI is now able to be a substitute to regular social media apps, without requiring human users to interact with human users but instead interacting with AI users instead.

The media industry is an ever changing landscape that has been evolving since its conception. In recent years, there have been many developments in human technology that has shifted and flipped the media industry on its head. Many would argue that, especially in the last 2-3 years, the most revolutionary and controversial of such technologies would be the dawn of Artificial Intelligences being used in the media industry, Artificial Intelligence (or AI for short), has led to massive changes in many aspects of the media industry regarding media production, consumption, etc. Prominent examples that will be discussed in the following paragraphs include; how AI has affected the algorithms social media platforms use to cater towards users, how its helped media prosumers create content using deep fake technologies, and how AI has helped form the basis for social media apps themselves, that are based on interactions with AI instead of other human users.

Firstly, it is commonly known that most social media platforms heavily use algorithms to find posts and content that consumers will most likely want to see. These algorithms work on a myriad of social media apps like Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. However, with the rise of AI, more and more apps have begun integrating AI into the technology of their algorithms. This has been most noticeable in the short form video sharing platform known as TikTok, that has been rising in popularity since the beginning of the 2020's. TikTok's AI algorithm has been under the spotlight recently, specifically how effective it is at recognizing the types of content users like and want to see on the app. AI, specifically machine learning, work by analyzing the different types of content that is preferred and frequently watched by "groups" of users, that the AI group together based on how similar their content preferences are. They then analyze hundreds of thousands of patterns that can be seen in the likes of these users, which are then pushed to the "For You Page" of these other users. This AI has been incredibly effective in targeting audiences and leads to the algorithm being able to make sure that what users see on their For You Page, is something they are guaranteed to like and watch. This then allows TikTok to hook users in for hours and hours, without ever needing to click off the app, as the AI algorithm is able to provide video after video that users can scroll through mindlessly and be entertained, essentially forever. This is extremely beneficial for TikTok as a corporation as the more users watch videos, the more advertisements they will see as well, which is the main pathway through which TikTok makes its money from. As other social media apps begin to use and harness these AI's and algorithm's, the "addiction" that people have with social media may begin to worsen even more, as people begin to spend even more of their lives on their screens.

AI is not only beneficial for large corporations though, as content creators/media prosumers have also been able to effectively use the capabilities of AI in the creation of their content. The specific type of AI technologies used by these content creators are known as virtual avatars. Essentially, AI is used to artificially create an animated rendition of a content creator, which they can then share and broadcast to their viewers. The most notable and popular examples of this would be in the world of "VTubers". VTubers and content creators/live streamers that own channels controlled by real people, but often use these virtual AI generated avatars in most of their content. These avatars often resemble cute Anime Characters, which appeal greatly to their target audiences. A prime example of a VTuber who has maximized the usage of these avatars would be the Japanese female musician VTuber Gawr Gura, whos real name is Senzawa. Gawr Gura has been able to use this AI avatar in the creation of the majority of her content which focusses on music and livestreaming, which she does on YouTube, where she also uploads her own videos. Many VTubers like her have witnessed immense success in their personal endevours, without ever having to reveal their true identity or face, a development that has been magnified by the usage of AI tools like these virtual avatars. From YouTube alone, Gawr Gura has an estimated monthly revenue of over $30,000 a month, which goes to show the true capability and benefits that AI is able to provide to content creators. These AI avatars, according to Baudrillard, can be seen as an example of Simulacra, as it does not actually provide a meaningful representation of the media prosumer, since they may not look anything like this in real life. However, as is with his theories regarding hyper realities, this form of content is what audiences will be more likely to enjoy, as it acts as an escape from reality.

Lastly, social media apps and platforms themselves are facing new competition in the form of AI based platforms that allow individuals/consumers to, instead of interacting with other human users, interact with AI's that have been programmed to talk and replicate human speech/texting patterns. A prime example of a platform that allows for this is an AI dating app/site called "Kupid AI". Compared to traditional dating sites like Tinder or Bumble, where users will interact with other real users for the opportunity to meet and form relationships in the real world, Kupid AI allows its users to skip the hardships of finding a perfect match, and provides its users the ability to simply start talking to a artificially generated intelligence that the software feels would make a good match to the user, based on pre-given information like interests, hobbies, personality traits, etc. Kupid AI is able to reach and cater towards their target audience incredibly well, which mainly revolves around lonely men, from a variety of ages. This, boosted by the modern "loneliness epidemic", has led to Kupid AI making huge sums of money off of their premium subscription membership program, which provides users with more advanced AI that they are able to interact with. In this sense, Kupid AI has effectively commodified the loneliness of men all over the world, by providing them with AI generated love interests that cater to their every need, something that would be extremely appealing for them in this period of their lives. According to Blumler's and Katz's theories regarding why audiences consume media, this is a prime example of how audiences choose to use media platforms to divert themselves from their ongoing struggles. Instead of trying to make real meaningful connections, audiences can endulge themselves in the world of AI and never have to leave their comfort zone to feel satisfied.



Why is Data so important to media corporations? [30]

The media industry is an ever changing landscape that has been evolving since its conception. In recent years, there have been many developments in human technology that have shifted and flipped what media corporations find important and prioritize. Currently, one of the most controversial and debated areas of the media industry is the ability for corporations to find, harness, and exploit personal data of their users. Media corporations now more than ever try to utilize the data they collect from their users to magnify their profits. This essay will discuss and elaborate on how media corporations, using data, are able to improve customer loyalty, and how by analyzing user patterns they are able to maximize profits by keeping audiences hooked in and getting them addicted to their product.

Firstly, user data can be collected and stored by media companies privately, but can also be released and shared back to said users to create a personalized and unique experience. A prime example of a media corporation that has implemented such practices would be the online music streaming service Spotify, specifically in their program Spotify Wrapped, colloquially known to users as just “Wrapped”. Wrapped is an annual marketing campaign by Spotify, released at the end of every year, that allows Spotify users to view a compilation of data about their activity on the platform over the course of the past year in the hopes to, as described by Spotify, “Tell a personal story that users are able to read and go through to understand and build a deeper connection with the music they listen to”. Wrapped essentially works by compiling all aspects of user’s listening data over the course of a year, and transforms said data into a visual and fun form for individual users to see, giving and informing them on specific details such as the artists they listened to the most, the total amount of minutes they spent listening to music, and other interesting statistics as well. However, Wrapped isn’t as simple and basic as merely allowing users to see their listening statistics, instead Spotify uses Wrapped to give its users a sense of purpose when viewing their statistics. Along with their Wrapped, users are also given awards and badges that depict the accomplishments they make based on their listening habits, i.e. being in the top 0.0005 percent of an artists fan base (based on total minutes listened). These badges and accomplishments can then be shared through other social media apps, which gives users a sense of pride and belonging - this form of marketing is supported by the beliefs of Henry Jenkin’s theory of Fandom, in which he states how such practices build upon the relationships consumers have with each other, as they are able to share their interests to other consumers and find solace and belonging in a community of other individuals who also like a certain bands/artists music, which they can see in others from the Wrapped that they have also shared, which further increases the popularity of Spofity. In the end, using this user data to deliver a more personalized experience has proven to work wonders for Spotify, as in recent years, wrapped has become a phenomena/event that is anticipated by hundreds of millions of spotify users across the world, anxious to share their listening time and accomplishments to social media. This is supported by the fact that in 2022, Wrapped was shared over 120 million times by spotify users, which in turn is able to create huge amounts of publicity for Spotify due to the audiences that are reached by seeing their friends’ Wrapps on other social media apps. This leads to consumers who don't already use spotify to not want to miss out and start listening as well, and for consumers who do use the app, to continue listening which leads them to spending more time on the app, and more profits for Spotify in the form of monthly subscriptions to the Spotify Premium Program. 

Next, companies can also use user data in the form of algorithms to maximize profits by collecting information on what users specifically like and don’t like, and catering users' content towards what they like, as to get them addicted to the app, which leads to more profits from ad revenue. This is the case for many social media apps, but can most notoriously be seen in the Chinese developed short form video sharing platform “TikTok”. TikTok’s algorithms have been under heavy scrutiny lately, due to how much user data they collect, and how effective it is in getting users to never leave the app. TikTok’s algorithm works by collecting information on large groups of users, and then comparing the data collected there to the data of individual users, to deliver an incredibly accurate and personalized user experience, that can strictly show users videos that they are sure to enjoy watching. This leads to users being constantly in a state of euphoria as they scroll mindlessly through their “For You Page”, without ever feeling the need to leave, as the videos that they watch are all entertaining and enjoyable. This can be seen in the US with findings from a study conducted by Business Insider that focussed on teens across a variety of different US States, which found that the average teenager from the ages of 13 to 19, will reportedly spend 2 or more hours a day purely watching TikTok. As the main usage of TikTok is diversion, according to Katz and Blumler’s Uses and Gratification theory, the more users like what they watch, the less reason they have to stop watching. This addiction that the algorithm (which is heavily based on the collection of user data) has created, allows for more and more money to be made through the advertisements (which are also personalized individually based on viewing habits) that are watched by users as they continue to scroll past video after video. This further goes to show that when a product is free, the user themselves are the product that generate revenue, which stands true in this example This leads to user data being extremely important to TikTok, as without it, they would never be able to replicate the amount of time users spend on the app, and would thus not be able to make nearly as much money through the advertisements shown to users.