Edit the attached document(Self-media)

Le 1

Le 4

Tianyue Le

Professor Angela Asbell

English 3060

November 4, 2020

Self-media

Gee brilliantly put forward the concepts of discourse community and identity kit. The word “discourse” means a socially accepted association among ways of using language, of thinking, and of acting that can be used to identify oneself as a member of a socially meaningful group or “social network”. “Identity kit” can be known as someone who act and speak in a way that allows people to identify you as a member of discourse community, which contains a term “discourse community”, it means a group or social network of people with similar ideas of knowledge. He divided people with similar knowledge and behavior into a group or social network. Today's literacy requires a set of widely accepted languages and values in different discourse areas.

As a student who is interested in media major and have tried to edit and upload videos, I know this discourse needs to learn how to use different lenses and how to create unique copywriting that appeals to the audience. Considering these specific discourses, the discourses of the two or more for people who belong to the media like youtubers, need to find a suitable balance and a meaningful medium that can connect properly with audience and other members of them who are also belonging to this discourse community.

Media people who are engaged in professions such as video bloggers make them members of the corresponding discourse communities. As far as my personal understanding is concerned, we need observation, imagination, creativity and patience. These are the basic characteristics of media professionals and are also the necessary conditions for us to become media professionals. Many excellent media people put their hearts and minds into planning and marketing, making this profession outstanding. This shows that what Gee believe discourses are “inherently ideological”, it is because they crucially involve a set of values and viewpoints in terms of which one must speak and act. Apart from the basic characteristics, the most important point among the media in professions similar to youtubers is resistance to pressure.

In addition to the above-mentioned specific characteristics, the charm of media professionals lies in their enthusiasm and sense of responsibility. Many video bloggers are not just working hard for their interests, behind them is a team with a common vision. The win-win result of cooperation is often gratifying and satisfying. In China, there is a website similar to YouTube called Bilibili. A video uploader called Qianyejiechui is a good blogger. He is good at recording the people and things he met while traveling, when I watch his video recording, listen to comfortable background music, I always feel nice. There are also many excellent uploaders in Bilibili website, some of them can make cartoon edited into movie-like scenes, others may become wonderful story tellers. I also published my edited product on this website, which is a New Year's greeting from a literary studio I stayed. In my studio group, each member recorded a New Year greeting in the form of audio or video and sent it to me. Then, I used the editing software in my computer to connect everyone's clips together. I know that if I just simply splice different videos and audio, the finished product will be very crude for the audience. So, after the basic connection, I began to search for the transition video, text, pattern material, opening and closing.

In a way, every member in this social group, there is a noun called them "self-media". In the self-media discourse circle, in addition to understanding, adapting and mastering various terms related to the media profession, they are also need to be positive, connected closely with various surrounding professional circles. The video quality of the person uploading the video is linked to the copywriting, viewing feeling and background music. Let me provide an assumption: two videos expressing the same content, one with a clear picture sense, skillful use of the lens, and the background music interspersed well matches to the content; Another due to the lack of focus, the video leads to blurred and inflexible pictures. Noisy background music makes video loses its natural sense of reality. I think, between the two, you will certainly prefer the first video. This comparison proves that the discourse community we face when making our own media career is not only belong to the basic copywriting, but also contain the technical skills related to photography and music. As mentioned above, it confirms Gee's view: "Any discourse concerns itself with certain objects and puts forward certain concepts, viewpoints, and values at the expense of others." Each kind of discourse has a different identity kit, and each kind of discourse needs to help each other achieve a better result.

Discourse community is based on a common community. As a video blogger and an individual, he may not be able to give attention to all aspects. For example, l used tried edit a whole video and make photoshop on every picture by myself in one day, however, l failed. Afterwards, l found some similar videos about create works on Bilibili, almost every uploader shares their team that shows the power of members. Processing of the video itself requires complicated steps. Copywriting, editing, and audience needs are all considerations for video uploaders. Besides that, we also need to face the examination of the uploading website and know how to use the uploading website properly. In every discourse community, at the beginning I believe everyone is a student. As for learning, for self-media, it is more about technology. If you want to have the ability of picture processing, you need to learn, and further, the ability of esthetic design lies in acquisition. In addition, data analysis and audio and video editing, including PR, AE and AU software, all rely on learning to improve their works. On Top university’s website, I saw a blog about youtuber that wrote by Yasmin, which name is how to become youtuber changed my life. As an ordinary student, she also has the opportunity and ability to choose to be a youtuber. In the article, she wrote down her original intention and the efforts and gains she had made. However, when she got more and more views and subscribers on her channel, she started to realize people were depending on her videos a bit more. She takes YouTube more seriously. lt shows that before becoming a self-media with professional knowledge, it was the result of accumulated personal experience.

As a student majoring in BA, self-media is an occupation that interests me, while I would like to pay much attention on it to open my eye space and get more experiences. Through Gee's exposition of the discourse community, identity kit and my search on the Internet, I have a closer understanding of this profession, as well as the professional fields in my profession. Every self-media is unique. The audience depends on acquisition, and the familiarity with technology depends on learning. In the future, I may make further attempts to create my own works on video websites.

Work cited

Gee, James. “What is Literacy?” Composition and Rhetoric Reader. Cognella, 2019, 123-130