Let Me Tell You How It Flows

Today, I am going to talk about convergence. What is convergence? It is the process of coming together or the state of having coming together toward a common point. Like how a river will connect to the big blue ocean. That is the act of convergence.

So what does media convergence mean? It is where old and new media collide, where grassroots and corporate media intersect, where the power of the media producer and media consumer interact in unpredictable ways. It is the flow of content across multiple media platforms, the cooperation between multiple media industries, and the migratory behavior of media audiences who will go almost anywhere in search of the kinds of entertainment experiences they want.

The clashing, or coming together of media content, irregardless of method, relies heavily on the active participation of consumer's. It is a technological process bringing together multiple media functions within the same devices (like an iPhone, which has the functions of a laptop and a phone) It is how consumers, sometimes even prosumers connect between various media content too widely available. It has given a chance for participation for everyone, though some have more say then others. Those who generally have more says are corporations, page owners for instance over consumers, even if they are a larger number.

Convergence is also an act where we combine the fragments of infinite information we gather from the media, and form our own conclusion or understanding of the subject matter.

I would take the recent happening, Empire on Fire as an example. An explosion happened on the 28th September at 3 in the morning, injuring 4, and causing extensive damage to the occupants and offices residing in Empire Shopping Gallery.

The news spread fast through twitter, with prominent figures such as Hannah Yeoh, the Subang Jaya state assembly woman tweeting and especially the social networking site facebook. Even blogs became a source of information, as citizen journalists have the first hand news even before those from the press.

Blog link over here at www.blog.galvintan.com

As we can see, various platforms of media has come together to form this news sensation. The speculation and the genuine curiosity of consumer who feeds on instant and breaking news were at a all time high. Many were quick to point fingers, blaming tenants or the negligence of the mall, some even thought it was terrorist attacks. Pictures were shared and shown to those who had access to internet and the ability to obtain instant updates. Many became speculators, even more people suffered from these "harmless" speculations.

But even if it went slightly out of hand, good can come out of media convergence. For the case above, many had a chance to know what's happening and avoid getting themselves into unnecessary danger. It's given a chance for bloggers to get more hits on their webpage for their swift action on the matter. And it has make us more savvy of what is going on in the world we live in, and in some sense compassionate about those who got hurt in the incident and those who might have been.

I feel that convergence is the way to go today. Cooperation will be a better option that competition. One simply cannot be monopolizing the field today without your intentions questioned and your interests fulfilled. Of course, it will be a risky partnership for the understanding of terms and way of things go must be met to uphold the standards and integrity of people. But if done, and I believe it is possible - then it would be a fruitful venture indeed; and that more good comes from sharing then skimping the good stuff without giving some to the world.