So Many Museums!

~Outside the National Museum of the American Indian~

I've only been in town for three weeks, but I've already been to several museums (the Smithsonian continues to be amazing for charging no admission). With my new media class, I visited the National Museum of the American Indian, which I've only been to once before. We visited the ceramics of Central America exhibit, which displayed many artifacts tracing Central American regions from south to north. Animals were a main theme of the exhibit, including one of my favorites pictured below.

~Ocelot jar~

I also returned to my favorite D.C. museum, the National Gallery of Art. I skipped the East Wing (modern art) and made my way toward the Impressionism rooms. No matter what else is on display, I always end up looking at the Impressionist paintings when I visit an art museum. I checked on a few of my favorite paintings and photographed some new discoveries.

~'Madame Camus,' Degas~

~Edge detail of a Seurat~

My third museum visit was to the Newseum (not part of the Smithsonian), which I've never been to before. Upon arriving outside, I encountered the museum's daily exhibit, "Today's Front Pages." Every morning museum staff display the front pages of newspapers from around the country and the world. The day of my visit was soon after the Oklahoma tornado, and images from the aftermath can be seen on the front pages.

~"Today's Front Pages," May 21~

Once inside the Newseum, I first checked out the new media exhibit with my class and was then free to wander for several hours. I spent a lot of time looking at the museum's JFK exhibits, and also enjoyed the museum's extensive history of the media (which included a segment on 'made up' news like the Daily Show and SNL's Weekend Update). Near the end of my stay, I stumbled upon an alcove featuring the level of press freedom in different countries. Green = 0-30 (free), yellow = 31-60 (partly free) and red = 61-100 (not free). Some countries' scores were expected, but others surprised me. I'm excited to visit other D.C. museums soon.

~Press freedom map~

New Media Class: Final Thoughts

Over the last few weeks, in addition to learning a ton and having a great time, I’ve developed a to-do list based on things I’ve heard from our speakers. As a wrap up of the class portion of my summer, here are a few of the items on that list.

• Follow Paul Salopek as he walks around the world in seven years. ~National Geographic
• Listen to Danger Mouse’s "The Grey Album." ~Lecture on Remix Culture
• Watch more Crittercam coverage. ~National Geographic
• Follow the tightrope walker across the Grand Canyon on "Skywire." ~Discovery
• Join the Kennedy Center’s discount program for students, Mytix. ~The Kennedy Center

~Crittercam on a penguin, photo from Nat Geo~

New Media Week Two: DC Shorts and the Kennedy Center

~Hall of Nations~

Other highlights from week two were touring the Kennedy Center and speaking with Jon Gann of DC Shorts. Jon Gann, founder of the DC Shorts film festival, talked to us about how his festival focuses on filmmakers and art, rather than the superficial concerns of flashier festivals.  He spoke about how is film background led him to his current career, and even showed us a few of his favorite short films from past festivals.  One of these was a funny and touching documentary about a boy who collects vacuums called “The Vacuum Kid.” We also watched a drama called “Guang,” about two brothers, one of whom has autism. It was beautiful and touching, and I’ll be honest, I teared up a little bit. Jon Gann was quite an interesting and entertaining speaker!

~Starburst chandelier in the Opera Room~

Our last site visit of the program was at the Kennedy Center, where we had a great tour and learned about the history of the center. I never knew that it was founded as a living memorial to JFK, and that much of its materials and décor were donated by other countries. For instance, the Kennedy Center’s trademark marble was donated by Italy and originated from the same quarry Michelangelo favored for his sculpture. Other countries donated art, chandeliers, and even furnished members-only lounges.  We were able to visit several of the Kennedy Center’s six theaters, and enjoyed time on the large wrap around balcony on the tenth floor. After the tour, we finished off the evening with a modern dance performance at Millennium Stage.  I had such a fun afternoon!

        

 ~View of the ceiling in the Israel Lounge~        ~Tapestry detail in Africa Lounge~

Just like for week one, here are some notable quotes from week two of the new media program.

• “The Crittercam generates stories of science and conservation values.” ~Greg Marshall, National Geographic
• “Technology and behavioral science are linked: technology conditions our behavior over time.” ~Robert Michael Murry, National Geographic
• “Filmmaking is about visual storytelling, and without a story you have nothing.” ~Jon Gann, DC Shorts

 

 ~Enjoying the Kennedy Center roof patio~

New Media Week Two: National Geographic and Discovery

The second week of the new media program was just as jam-packed as the first, if not more so. Without doubt, my favorite part of week two was visiting National Geographic and Discovery.  For two organizations that theoretically engage in similar work, my experiences were very different at each. National Geographic provided a comprehensive overview of the company, what they offer, and their involvement with media (mostly apps and social media). Our visit at Discovery included a shorter review of the company, with a greater focus on Discovery’s TV programs and HR policies.

~National Geographic~

At National Geographic, we were met by W&M alum Steve Vick, who is the VP for Financial Planning and Operations at the company.  He explained the company’s mission, and stressed the importance of the National Geographic brand.  It is crucial that the public immediately associate the visual of the yellow rectangle with the ideas of exploration, geography, photography, and storytelling.  He then passed on the presentation to Greg Marshall, who invented Nat Geo’s famed Crittercam. The Crittercam is a camera that scientists attach to animals in the wild, allowing us to see the world from an animal’s point of view.  Mr. Marshall explained that he initially got the idea when, while diving, he saw remora fish perched on a shark’s back. He thus conceived of “electronic remoras” that would allow humans to see the world from the shark’s perspective.

All Crittercams are pilot tested on animals in controlled environments, and almost all the animals don’t mind the cameras attached to them (if animals are affected by the presence of the Crittercam, researchers do not proceed).  The story of the Crittercam was amazing; we found out that the underwater shots in “March of the Penguins” were acquired with a Crittercam. Even more inspiring, research attained through Crittercam footage has been used to change policy in order to further facilitate the protection of animals and their environments.

After we spoke with Greg Marshall, we heard from several other media experts and took a short tour of the Nat Geo offices.  My favorite thing about this part of our visit was watching the Cheetah Run video. National Geographic had filmed a cheetah running, and then used the footage to analyze the movements that facilitate a cheetah’s uniquely rapid pace.  At the end of the day, I left National Geographic feeling awed, inspired, and motivated.

~Tiffany glass on National Geographic ceiling~

A few days after National Geographic, we visited Discovery. Though the organizations overlap in their commitment to storytelling and education, there were some major differences in philosophy between the two. National Geographic stresses its non-profit status, while Discovery makes no secret of the fact that it is a for-profit company.  Our speakers at Discovery addressed this fact, explaining that their television programs and online content must be geared toward consumers who play an important role in keeping the company profitable.

W&M alum Bill Williams, Director of Learning and Development at Discovery, welcomed us and gave us a brief history of the company. We then spoke with two developers of Discovery’s online content who showed us several online promotions they had developed.  The one I found most interesting was a commercial for "Skywire", a program that will follow one man as he tightrope walks across the Grand Canyon on live TV. Our final speakers were members of Discovery’s Human Resources department, who gave us career advice and strategies for landing our next job, internship, or interview.  One thing they said that stuck with me was that an internship is like a ten-week interview. I’ll definitely keep that in mind as I start my internship this week.

New Media Week One: Young Alumni and Remix Culture

During the first week of the new media program, we hosted a reception for several young W&M alumni in the D.C. area and had the opportunity to hear their career advice and speak with them about their career paths. One of these alumni, a lawyer, is currently working with non-profits. I asked him to expand on this work, which led him to reveal his view of non-profits. He explained that if non-profit and for-profit interests were combined, non-profits would be empowered to produce funds for themselves. This would allow non-profits to attract the best talent, because the non-profits would essentially be able to afford those people with the best skills. The most talented people should work at the organizations that are trying to make the world better, and so there’s nothing wrong with those organizations being financially profitable. This idea was completely new to me, but makes a lot of sense. I hope that this idea is one that is put into practice in the future, as it would mean a power shift in the ability of non-profits to enact the change they work toward.

Another highlight from week one was a conversation our class had with a SWEM (W&M library) librarian, Troy Davis. Troy spoke with us about remix culture, which is the idea of creating new work by taking bits and pieces from old work. A standard example is musical mash-ups.  Some people think that reusing past work is a form of plagiarism, while others believe it’s the natural course of creativity. We talked about the roles of copyright, context, and attribution in this debate. One interesting example was the base line in Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby," obviously borrowed from Queen's “Under Pressure."  Vanilla Ice made the claim that the addition of one new beat made his adoption okay; however he willingly admits that he borrowed from the older song. Does the fact that he openly attributes his inspiration make it okay? I think it does, but it’s a matter of opinion.

These last two posts outline my three highlights from week one (C-SPAN, Young Alumni Panel, and remix culture). Here are some notable quotes from week one:

Notable Quotes from Week 1 (some are paraphrased)

• “We use social media to recreate the social event of watching TV in the 50s/60s.” ~Barkley Kern, C-SPAN
• “Follow the money.” ~Brian Lamb, C-SPAN
• “Museums are respites from technology.” ~Matt MacArthur, National Museum of American History
• “Leaders are confident but not certain. Have the courage to change your mind.” ~Michael Powell, NCTA
• “New media involves using digital tools to build community for a psychic reward at a decreased communication cost.” ~Michael Powell, NCTA
• “Creativity exists because there are limits.” ~Troy Davis, SWEM

~Lobby at NCTA~

New Media Week One: C-SPAN

I just finished the first two weeks of my twelve week new media program with William & Mary. The next ten weeks will involve my summer internship (more on that to come!), but these first two weeks were a unique experience. I spent the time with my new media class of 18, our professor, and our TA, touring D.C. and meeting with new media specialists all over the city.

We did so much during these weeks that I could write a separate blog post for each day; however, I’ll try to consolidate and highlight the best moments for me. Our very first site visit was one of these highlights. We went to C-SPAN, where William & Mary alum and C-SPAN producer Mark Farkas gave us a tour of the studios and an introduction to C-SPAN’s mission. It was very cool to get the insider’s view of the studio space; so many TVs and monitors!

~C-SPAN control room~

We next met with Barkley Kern, C-SPAN’s VP of Digital Media.  He shared some fascinating information about the evolution of media in the past several decades, including the interesting fact that at night, Netflix use takes up 1/3 of the internet’s bandwidth. Another shocking tidbit is that from the beginning of recorded history through 2004, the world produced 5 exobytes of data; in 2011, it took 48 hours to produce 5 exobytes. To be honest, I’m still trying to wrap my brain around that.

Our last speaker was the founder of C-SPAN, Brian Lamb.  Hearing Mr. Lamb speak was quite an experience; he’s a very engaging, dynamic presenter, and shared with us one of his maxims: know where the money comes from to understand the media.  He also recounted a few stories about interviewing Presidents Clinton and Obama. I could tell that Mr. Lamb was an interviewer at heart; he started asking us questions right away, and for a while it felt like he was there to learn about us, rather than the other way around. One takeaway from the C-SPAN visit was the idea of the interplay between content and context.  Both are important, but one may take precedence given the issue at hand. Another takeaway was that people hoping to be involved with media need to know how to “shoot, produce, and edit;” simply specializing in one won’t land you the job.

~Lobby at C-SPAN~

Welcome!

Welcome to the blog! I just graduated from college and am living and interning in DC this summer, while participating in a William & Mary program about new media. This blog is a space for me to record and think about the things I do this summer, be they work-related, outings with friends, or family activities. Check back for new posts and lots of photos!

~Alix