Creative Copyrights

                I again am faced with admitting that I have been exposed to an issue that before taking TCF155, I had never considered. “Sampling” is what I did with my children when walking through Sam’s Wholesale Club. How was I to know that it had something to do with stealing beats or bars from another artist’s music?

 Copyrights, but specifically the current trend to ignore them, were our topic of the day. After watching the movie Copyright Criminals, and chatting with others in class, I discovered that my opinions of the issues presented were in direct opposition to those of my classmates. I polled each person individually for their answer to the question: In your opinion, is sampling a form of copyright infringement? Only one student initially said "yes" and indicated that they believed that an original artist should be compensated when another artist “grabs” something from their work. I was surprised by the pervasive attitude that all art is basically common property. I, at the time, vehemently disagreed with my classmates.

As the discussion went on, a few others eventually agreed that original artists should be paid something, but how much would depend on several factors, with that I agree. The fee could be based on how much content is being copied or possibly the purpose for which it is being used. Another consideration might be the current demand for the original work at the time it is being acquired. It seems that an older selection might actually experience a revival in interest due to the new usage by another artist. I believe that there needs to be a more exact measure of what should be paid, possibly in direct relation to what exactly is being used or the purpose for which it is being used. This would prove tremendously difficult. Who would be charged with setting the exact measure of value? How would the industry ever find someone who would not be partial to a particular artist or genre? If only a beat is used, is it any less valuable than the vocal, beat and accompaniment combined? Regardless of methodology, I believe that an original artist should be paid each and every time that their creation is “grabbed” when someone else makes  money, much like a royalty payment. I would be more willing to wink at the theft if no one stood to gain lucre.

                The previous was my knee-jerk opinion regarding copyright infringement. My perspective shifted a little after reading the assigned article: Confessions of an Intellectual (Property): Danger Mouse, Mickey Mouse, Sonny Bono, and My long and Winding Path as a Copyright Activist-Academic1. My ignorance of music history was painfully apparent to me as I read about the origins of what I considered to be original works that actually were in some ways copied from other previous works unknown to me. I was aghast that anyone would dare to sample The Beatles, but then read in this article how Yoko Ono exposed John Lennon to “magnetic tape sound collage” the then contemporary term for what we now call “sampling!” Revolution #9 is on The White Album and serves as an example of John’s work as a thief by my previously asserted definition. This article reports that much of this compilation was taken from tape loops pillaged from the archives at EMI! So alas, my ignorant opinion appears to have been poorly founded.  I guess I will just have to continue my practice of listening, learning and always being willing to change my mind.

Respect the Rapper

What can I say? I thought I was coming to class to discuss the painful details of my final project for TCF155.

  

I by no means would call myself a rap fan; actually I have been a “hater” for most of my life. While I appreciate artists and their skilled works, I have had a hard time finding the value in the typical rap music song. This music genre has been presented by mainstream media as created “by thugs for thugs.” Many times when I hear the stereotypical driving beat of a rap song I cringe and try to plug my ears so as to avoid being offended by vulgar language and sexist innuendo.  Honestly, I can say that before today I had never experienced a rap artist that I could relate to.

Invincible, was genuine, intelligent, well spoken, resolute, spiritual, civic-minded, and transparent – all the things I respect in another human being. Because Invincible is from Detroit, she has a hint of “gansta” in her voice but it is encapsulated and smoothed by her sincerity. In some ways this rapper fits the mold by leaving home at 15 and having lived the starving artist lifestyle, but in so many other areas, she shatters the model. Invincible has clung tight to her convictions and continues to create music that heals, inspires and ignites her listeners. What more could anyone desire when listening to a song?

Social Media Marketing

Colleges can benefit from creating a Facebook account. There is a great deal of data available to substantiate the fact that most current and prospective college students utilize social media daily. After Facebook began to allow businesses to create profiles, the number of commercial users greatly increased, but colleges have been slower to use this new form of communication. Once the decision is made to create a profile page for business purposes, a college, program or department should spend a great deal of time planning several items before actually setting up an account. “To gain any benefit from the social web, institutional social networks need to build sustainable communities that grow and significantly expand their reach. Simply throwing a page up on Facebook or pulling together your own online network is no guarantee of success. If you build it, they may or may not come.”(MacDonald) One or more individuals should be charged with the job of monitoring the page and creating engaging posts.          

Not only can a Facebook page increase a program’s enrollment, it can also be used to keep track of alumni. In a recent journal article, Fritz MacDonald states:

 “Because of its relationship-building power, social networking could become a brave new tool to help achieve a number of significant goals for a higher ed institution, in particular:

Expanding admissions inquiry pools

* Tracking prospective students as they move through the recruiting funnel

* Improving yield and conversion rates

* Bringing alumni back home and integrating them into recruiting and fundraising

* Expanding potential donor pools, particularly for annual funds

* Broadcasting your brand through "viral word of mouse"

* Expanding the reach and constancy of institutional identity”

As college budgets shrink, utilizing free or low cost online marketing platforms can increase the impact of available funds.

            The way in which a Facebook page is managed can greatly impact participation rates and also impact one’s brand.  A successful page must include intriguing posts that both entertain and inform. In a recent article in the Community College Journal, Sally Chapman Cameron states that “It's important to stay casual and connect with users on a personal level. That means having fun and showcasing activities, events, and students who represent the very best the college has to offer.” Due to the time required for monitoring the posts and promptly responding, many programs choose to assign this task to a young or low level employee, but this author does not recommend this practice. She cautions colleges to not “… be tempted to pass this project on to an intern or junior staffer. Yes, social media is second nature to a lot of younger people, but that doesn't mean they see the big picture as it pertains to the college.”

            A great way to improve the number of visitors or “likers” would be to increase the quality of each post. For inspiration, one might “like” other successful pages, creativity does not always have to be sparked by an original idea. Viewing the pages of businesses which share the same target market should prove helpful.

Works Cited

Cameron, S..  8 Ways to Build Community with Social Media.  Community College Journal  81.1 (2010): 22-26. Research Library, ProQuest. Web.  6 Mar. 2011.

McDonald, Fritz. Five steps to developing a powerful social networking strategy: creating web communities can help you build relationships of value with your most important constituents. Here's how. University Business 12.5 (2009): 43+. Academic OneFile. Web. 5 Mar. 2011.

Works to be Cited

Bingham, Tony and Marcia Conner. The New Social Learning. San Fancisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc, 2010.

Evans, Dave Bratton. Social Media Marketing: An Hour a Day. Indianapolis, IN: John Wiley & Sons, 2008.

Geyer, Stephanie. Higher Ed Live : Web Content Social Media Mobile Devices. 7 March 2011. 20 March 2011 <http://higheredlive.com/web-content-social-media-mobile-devices/>.

Johnson, Jenna. Live Washington Post: Campus Overload Live with Jenna Johnson: College social media. 20 January 2011. 15 March 2011 <http://live.washingtonpost.com/campus-overload-live-0120.html>.

Powers, Patrick. Patrick Powers. 11 January 2011. 5 March 2011 <http://patrickpowers.net/2011/01/3-ways-higher-education-could-be-using-quora/>.

Staton, Michael. Inigral. 2011. 14 March 2011 <http://www.inigral.com/>.

Watkins, S. Craig. The Young & The Digital. Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 2009.

Woodruff, Judy. Pew Research. 24 February 2010. 15 March 2011 <http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1516/millennials-panel-two-millennials-media-information>.

College Units Should Utilize Facebook to Attract, Engage, and Inform

College Units Should Utilize Facebook to Attract, Engage, and Inform (http://wf2dnvr15.webfeat.org/)

            Colleges around the world continually work to increase enrollment, retain current students and connect with their alumni. While social media is not a replacement for traditional practices used to reach these goals, it does provide many features that are not available using previous strategies. Current and potential students are accustomed to institutions meeting them where they live, but now they are living online and on Facebook. Communication with disparate groups and programs can be achieved by creating and properly maintaining Facebook profiles.

Virtual social-networking tools should be implemented with the stated goal of enriching user experiences. “By highlighting events and ideas and asking questions, running contests, and linking news stories and other hot items on the Web,” “likers” are encouraged to explore the areas that interest them most. Visitors should be provided with dynamic postings of pertinent information on a number of items which most closely relate to the anticipated target market. By expanding posts to include information about more diverse hyperlinked topics, one expands the sphere of influence and increases engagement; this is in direct opposition to the practice of presenting only the information that previously would have been included in a department’s press release.  The most successful college Facebook pages subscribe to this view.

It's important to stay casual and connect with users on a personal level.”  That means being honest, millennial’s are experts at spotting pretenders. “Social media doesn't work if you try to be something you are not.”  Posting information that students crave will increase your number of followers.  In order to obtain the scoop, one must stay in touch with faculty, staff and professional organizations. Managing content is a common fear among facilitators, making a list of what will or will not be posted would prove extremely difficult, “but a rough outline of what we know needs to be said” is attainable.

“The power of social media is in its immediacy, but it can also be its curse.”  Be certain to appoint someone to watch over the profile page as “All social media outlets need some form of monitoring, or they can go bad very fast.” While the Facebook generation is very familiar with using the application for personal purposes, they often lack the mature ability to consider long term consequences of an unacceptable post. Damaging or offensive statements being posted by a guest are inevitable. Before a Facebook profile is created a model for approved responses should be created. “Many [administrators] monitor their sites and remove potentially threatening or obscene words. Some contact the posters to let them know why their post has been removed.” However, there are times that a point is well taken; this presents the department with a wonderful opportunity to prove that they are truly open to suggestions and willing to address issues. Remember, once a student has made the post, it has been immediately shared with their online friends and most likely the physical audience at the time of posting. This increases the number of individuals vested in the resolution process.

The traditional college experience includes formal and informal learning, and meeting new people. A properly maintained institutional facebook homepage can assist the student in achieving all of these, while meeting the goal of building a positive brand for themselves. The cost of implementing this type of campaign is less than traditional outlets, but the time investment is more notable. But one must also consider that a print campaign, once mailed out has a very short shelf life, while a Facebook profile will net results again and again.

Cameron, S.. "8 WAYS TO BUILD COMMUNITY WITH SOCIAL MEDIA. " Community College Journal  81.1 (2010): 22-26. Research Library, ProQuest. Web.  6 Mar. 2011.