SPRING 2020
TEST #2
1. Mark Zuckerberg’s position on censoring social media is essentially the same as John Milton’s argument in Areopagitica. Summarize Milton’s position on censorship (see Standage Chapter 5). Quote from his argument. Compare this position to the views expressed by Zuckerberg: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/17/business/zuckerberg-facebook-free-speech.html
2. How did the invention of the coffeehouse in the middle of the seventeenth century create an “egalitarian new intellectual space”? (See Standage Chapter 6.)
Although some were not welcome towards its because they felt it was a distraction towards other productive pursuits, others believed that it offered “the sanctuary of health, the nursery of temperance, the delight of frugality, an academy of civility, and a free-school of ingenuity.”
3. Why was printing banned in Virginia until the 1730s? (See Standage Chapter 7.)
Due to the disliking of certain printings caused licenses to be issued to print. “By 1730 all attempts to enforce licensing had been abandoned, and the orders granted to colonial governors no longer made any mention of it”. Printing caused the
4. Describe the John Peter Zenger case and explain its importance for journalists defending themselves against libel. (See Standage Chapter 7.)
The John Peter Zenger case began with Zenger publishing a series regarding the corruption of Governor William Cosby. He was put away in jail for months and put on trial for libel for unrevealing the name of those responsible for the offending letters published by Zenger against Cosby. His attorney then held the argument that the law itself was flawed and to look into the accusations and if they were true Zenger not be guilty. The success of this case eradicated control of the press giving the freedom desired.
5. Describe how Tom Paine went “viral.” What statistics and evidence measure this virality? (See Standage Chapter 7. See also the discussion of Paine in “Typographic America.”)
Paine did multiple things on multiple occasions making him go “viral” from having work published which led to the establishment of the first antislavery society in America to his piece Common Sense spreading to multiple states in days being read by significant people. What measures his virality is the impact of his work and the persuasion it had on people immediately, having “revealed the extent of latent support for independence and won new converts to the cause”. “It was unquestionably the most popular and influential pamphlet of the American Revolution”. I admire that his work created a new perspective. “the pen and the press had merit equal to that of the sword.”
6. In “America’s First Information Revolution,” Paul Starr describes how journalism in the United States was subsidized by the government. Describe four ways that journalism was subsidized in the early republic. (See also “Typographic America.”) What about subsidizing journalism today? Would this be a good idea?
7. Hargreaves, on pages 17-18 of his chapter on the “Brief History of News Media,” talks about the development of radio and television as being diametrically opposite that of print-based media. Summarize Hargreaves’s argument. Show me that you understand the historical context and terminology that he is using.
Hargreaves’s argument is basically stating the development of radio and television is diametrically opposite of print based media because the technological advancement from radio to television created what we now know as mass media. Radio and television changed the way information was spread and perceived by people. Radio and television also improved mass communication because messages could be heard and seen faster than on a printed page we’d have to read. Radio and television also changed entertainment which became apart of news.
8. What is Gutenberg’s legacy in terms of advertising, mass production, and intellectual property?
Gutenberg’s legacy in terms of advertising, mass production and intellectual property is that Gutenberg created a pathway to making printed work become a legitimate business. Since papers could be mass produced, the cost began to decrease which increased its accessibility to a wider audience. We see this today in the mass production of non-printed materials. Business could now pay for advertising in papers, which created the business we see today when advertising revenue has become a critical party in some outlets’ success. Intellectual property could now be created since the printed press could re-create copies of the same book or magazines countless times, making it easy for people to create their own individual work to share.
9. What is the difference between the internet and the web?
The internet is the infrastructure of many networks that provide us access to the web which is the server that holds a collection of information.
10. Give three examples of fake news and describe how this news is generated and propagated.