learning from real life experience
Today’s report on the use of Zello (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/houston-residents-and-civilians-turn-to-zello-app-to-coordinate-rescue-efforts-2017-08-29) by Houston residents during Hurricane Harvey has parallels with the organizational efforts of using Zello by the Venezuelan people (https://zello.com/channels/k/b2dDl) in 2014. (https://advox.globalvoices.org/2014/02/23/walkie-talkie-app-zello-blocked-in-venezuela/)
Zello, HeyTell and Voxer Make Your Smartphone a Walkie-Talkie (NYT, 2012) are apps for smart phones and mobile devices.
They are free.
They do much more than a physical walkie-talkie (e.g. send visuals, record messages)
They are more environment friendly, since do not require physical presence and so much battery power: https://www.compareninja.com/tables/single/60573
Yo is a similar messaging app: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2014/07/09/social-media-yo/
Library and University use:
In 2014, we proposed to the middle management the consideration of Yo as alarm system:
From: Miltenoff, Plamen
Sent: Tuesday, July 08, 2014 9:17 PM
To: ??????, Mark A. <???????@stcloudstate.edu>
Subject: FW: Yo at LRS
Good evening Mark
Based on the article below:
http://www.businessinsider.com/yo-updates-on-israel-missile-attacks-2014-7
The upper management might consider fire and/or tornado alarm app for SCSU students similarly to the one, which the Israelis are using to back up their alarm system.
I am confident that some other US school is already thinking about the same and developing probably the app.
Thanks for considering…
Plamen
++++++++++++++++++
From: Miltenoff, Plamen
Sent: Tuesday, July 8, 2014 8:59 PM
To: ???????, Colette ?????????
Cc: ??????, Joseph
Subject: Yo at LRS
Collette,
I am not sure if this news
http://www.businessinsider.com/yo-updates-on-israel-missile-attacks-2014-7
will increase your interest toward “Yo” since you said that you are not interested in politics
As shared with Joe several months ago about “Zello” being used in Venezuela (http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/02/21/venezuela-blocks-zello-ap_n_4830452.html ), ingenuity during political events can give us great ideas how to use social media apps in daily work
I would like to ask you again to consider testing Yo and sharing your ideas how we can apply it at LRS
It is worth checking the penetration of Yo among SCSU students and use it.
Thank you and lkng forward to hearing your opinion
Plamen
+++++++++++++++++++
benefits for the library and potentially for the campus:
- reduce financial cost: batteries for the walkie talkies and the wear off of the walkie talkie can be replaced by a virtual app (again, apps for each of the three potential candidates are free)
- environmentally friendly. Apps are virtual. Walkie talkies are physical
- improve productivity. walkie talkie allow only talk. Apps allow: audio, video (images) and text
- raise the level of critical thinking (increase productivity by proxy): the use of several media: text, visuals, audio will allow users to think in a wider diapason when troubleshooting and/or doing their tasks
- the library can be the sandbox to smooth out details of the application and lessons learned can help replace walkie talkies across campus with 21st century tools and increase productivity campus wide.
+++++++++++++++++++
previous posts on Zello in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=zello
Critical news literacy session for social policy analysis course
Katie Querna, Thursday, 11AM, Stewart Hall
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/21/dumb-and-lazy-the-flawed-films-of-ukrainian-attacks-made-by-russias-fake-factory
https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2022-02-24/the-war-in-ukraine-via-tiktok-how-ordinary-citizens-are-recording-russian-troops.html
+++ please cover this information at home and bring your ideas and questions to class +++++
Most students can’t tell fake news from real news, study shows
Read more: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2017/03/28/fake-news-3/
Module 1 (video to introduce students to the readings and expected tasks)
- Fake News / Misinformation / Disinformation
- Definitions
- Fake news, alternative facts
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=fake+news
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=alternative+facts
- Misinformation vs disinformation
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2018/02/18/fake-news-disinformation-propaganda/
- Propaganda
- Conspiracy theories
- Bots, trolls
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2017/11/22/bots-trolls-and-fake-news/
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2020/04/30/fake-social-media-accounts-and-politicians/
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2020/01/20/bots-and-disinformation/
- Clickbait
Filter bubbles, echo chambers
(8 min) video explains filter bubbles
https://www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_beware_online_filter
+++++ thank you for covering this information at home. Pls don’t forget to bring your q/s and ideas to class +++++
Why we are here today?
We need to look deeper in the current 21stcentury state of information and disinformation and determine how such awareness can help policy analysis.
How do we make up our mind about news and information; where from we get our info; who do we believe, who do we mistrust.
What do you understand under the following three items and their place in our efforts to analyze policies?
“critical thinking,” https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2014/05/11/the-5-step-model-to-teach-students-critical-thinking-skills/
“media literacy,” “Media Literacy now considers digital citizenship as part of media literacy — not the other way around”
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2020/01/07/k12-media-literacy/
“critical [news] literacy”
https://youtu.be/i2WyIkK9IOg
how do these three items assist a better analysis of policies?
Class assignment:
Share a topic which is very much to your heart.
Please feel welcome to use the following resources and/or contribute with your own resources to determine the sources and potential bias
library spot fake news
fake news resources
fake news and video
Feel free also to use the following guidelines when establishing the veracity of information:
Here is a short (4 min) video introducing you to the well-known basics for evaluation of academic literature:
https://youtu.be/qUd_gf2ypk4
- ACCURACY
- Does the author cite reliable sources?
- How does the information compare with that in other works on the topic?
- Can you determine if the information has gone through peer-review?
- Are there factual, spelling, typographical, or grammatical errors?
- AUDIENCE
- Who do you think the authors are trying to reach?
- Is the language, vocabulary, style and tone appropriate for intended audience?
- What are the audience demographics? (age, educational level, etc.)
- Are the authors targeting a particular group or segment of society?
- AUTHORITY
- Who wrote the information found in the article or on the site?
- What are the author’s credentials/qualifications for this particular topic?
- Is the author affiliated with a particular organization or institution?
- What does that affiliation suggest about the author?
- CURRENCY
- Is the content current?
- Does the date of the information directly affect the accuracy or usefulness of the information?
- OBJECTIVITY/BIAS
- What is the author’s or website’s point of view?
- Is the point of view subtle or explicit?
- Is the information presented as fact or opinion?
- If opinion, is the opinion supported by credible data or informed argument?
- Is the information one-sided?
- Are alternate views represented?
- Does the point of view affect how you view the information?
- PURPOSE
- What is the author’s purpose or objective, to explain, provide new information or news, entertain, persuade or sell?
- Does the purpose affect how you view the information presented?
In 2021, however, all suggestions above may not be sufficient to distinguish a reliable source of information, even if the article made it through the peer-reviewed process. In time, you should learn to evaluate the research methods of the authors and decide if they are reliable. Same applies for the research findings and conclusions.
++++++++++++++++++++
Aditional topics and ideas for exploring at home:
civil disobedience
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2014/09/30/disruptive-technologies-from-swarming-to-mesh-networking/
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2019/08/30/tik-tok-students-and-teachers/
https://news.softpedia.com/news/Venezuela-Blocks-Walkie-Talkie-App-Zello-Amid-Protests-428583.shtml
http://www.businessinsider.com/yo-updates-on-israel-missile-attacks-2014-7
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2016/11/14/internet-freedom/
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2016/08/31/police-to-block-social-media/
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2016/04/04/technology-and-activism/
http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2014/09/29/352476454/how-hong-kong-protesters-are-connecting-without-cell-or-wi-fi-networks
messaging one another through a network that doesn’t require cell towers or Wi-Fi nodes. They’re using an app called FireChat that launched in March and is underpinned by mesh networking, which lets phones unite to form a temporary Internet.
My note: seems that civil disobedience provides excellent innovations in using technology; examples are-
- the 1999 World Trade Organization Protests in Seattle, where the “swarming” idea was implemented and later transformed by Bryan Alexander into “swarming for education” (http://www.educause.edu/ero/article/going-nomadic-mobile-learning-higher-education) and depicted on this blog in September 2013
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/tag/bryan-alexander/
to be continued by Britt in Learning Swarms? (http://bwatwood.edublogs.org/2010/08/05/learning-swarms/) and Howard Rheingold in his interview with Bryn Alexander in 2004 (http://www.thefeaturearchives.com/topic/Culture/M-Learning_4_Generation_Txt_.html and as Howard calls it “moblogging” and lately is becoming finally popular (at least in K12 if not in higher ed) as “backchanneling.”
- In a very similar scenario as the 1999 Seattle unrest, people in Venezuela (#venezuelalibre – Zello) and Ukraine (Ukrainian roots shine through at WhatsApp) are turning to mobile apps to organize themselves and defy governments blocking of traditional social media (Protesters in Venezuela, Ukraine turn to peer-to … – CNN.com)The ideas using Zello and WhatsApp in education poured in:A WhatsApp for education?, How to use Whatsapp Chat Messenger for Education
Mesh networking is still only an IT term. Internet and dbase search has no returns on mesh networking as a tool for education and/or civil disobedience. Will it be the continuation of moblogging, backchanneling and swarming?
related IMS blog post: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2014/09/19/mobile-elearning/
Yo Is Now Being Used To Update Israelis On Missile Attacks
Political upheavals can provide great ideas for application of social media in daily life