Anonymity Undone

Grant Tabler
Ian Reilly
MDST 2020
15 November 2010

Anonymity Undone

The Internet has long been seen as a medium of anonymity and freedom. With the lack of governing or regulations it has become an area of free expression. However, with this freedom of anonymous speech and expression comes the darker side of anonymity. The Internet also allows for people to post slanderous or hateful things with complete freedom and safety. However, recently Blizzard Entertainment decided to take a stand against this kind of behaviour on their enormous gaming forum for the game World of Warcraft. They proposed a system which would link the first and last name from each player’s account information to all posts made on these forums. The response was an outcry from the community to cancel this change. This proposed change encapsulates many of the debates about the decentralized, anonymous model of communication on the internet as a whole, with larger implications of accountability in other aspects of life. This paper intends to highlight some of the key debates related to this change and explore the larger implications this change holds for accountability in other aspects of our lives.

Regarding Term Paper

This is a superbowl commercial I found while doing another project recently, in another class for Ian, the same teacher who started us on these blogs actually. Anyway, although I'm sure there are thousands of examples of my term paper's point I particularly like this one as it seems to be my term paper "remediated" into video form. Funny that I found it while doing a project on remediation.



I found this video spoke to my term paper because it has all the same aspects. Everyone on the street is separated from each other, despite their proximity they're all in their own worlds. I found it particularly ironic in the scene where a woman is having trouble getting a stroller up a flight of stairs, a man sitting on the stairs on his laptop changes into his avatar which happens to be a superhero. Yet despite his media imagining of superhero status he still ignores, or cannot see the woman in need of help in the real world.

The following scene shows an interesting event as well. There is a kid sitting with his dog. The kid is in his own world using his PSP for some type of racing game, and the dog is just sitting and watching him with his ball. The dog rolls the ball to his would-be walker though to no avail, the owner is trapped in their media cocoon.

Coca-cola is quite clever with their final scene though. They not only show an almost Mcluhanist warning of media immersion, they also made a solicitation of their product by showing coca-cola as the only thing truly powerful enough to free people from their media-trance.

Though I suppose I can understand how the two characters both somehow ordered the same drink at that internet cafe esque location. The final exterior shots shows us that for some reason the internet cafe has a giant coca-cola logo on the roof rather than a name for the cafe. I guess the drink choices could be a bit limiting in that case.

The Matrix Manifesto

This was my personal response to Mass Communications and the final assignment we were asked to complete for the course. I was inspired to create this one night after re-watching The Matrix. That movie had been a theme for me all though the course and indeed so far all through University. This piece of writing started, like most of my writing, from feverish scribbling of an idea that enveloped my mind though threatened to disappear. This being a personal reflection I suppose it wasn't originally meant to be published and seems to be more aimed at my professor and possibly my fellow students. None the less I shall post it here as a recollection of this writing endeavour, should I ever lose track of it on my computer. As media can occasionally be somewhat troublesome in that regard.
This is probably the longest complete essay type reflection I've ever written. Though I still maintain that it is "As long as necessary and as short as possible." -Ian Reilly. Perhaps, "As Simple as Possible but not Simpler." -Einstein


Grant Tabler

Ian Reilly
AHSS 1060 Mass Communication
December 1^st, 2009

The Matrix Manifesto

I believe The Matrix is the single greatest media analysis and portrayal in a movie that I have seen. I seem to constantly inference things to it or quote from it. Since writing about the matrix was the first real writing I did for Mass Communications, I think it fitting that the last writing I do for this class should continue the theme. I saw it again recently, and every time I see it I see different things. I now try to decipher its semiotics. I see themes and symbols that I did not recognise earlier.

First, before I begin talking about The Matrix, semiotics, and a demonstration of what I have learned, I would like to make a comment about this course. I have thoroughly enjoyed this course, it is the most analysis and critical thinking I have ever had to do. I would like to thank Ian Reilly and Paul Vermeersch for this. I do not know what I will face in the coming years, but I cannot help but hope that there are more courses as fantastic as this one.