The first assigned reading, “Top Six Digital Transformation Trends In Media And Entertainment” by Daniel Newman, examines the recent digital progression trends in the area of media and entertainment. The article introduces and explains the various ways that technology has advanced to allow a specific and targeted experience for the consumer. Newman speaks on the multi-channel experience, fully AI generated movie trailers, carefully curated streaming content, the rise of virtual/mixed reality, and product placement that is catered differently to every individual viewer. Reading about the technological advancements with user data excites and also terrifies me. On one hand, the media viewing experience will be perfectly suited to one’s individual tastes but on the other, it’ll be closed off to the vast amount of differing tastes of the rest of the world. This however is a trivial fear, as I have no doubt that this is ultimately a huge breakthrough in technology and science, and will be used to better the media and entertainment experience.

The second assigned reading, “Introduction: Why Digital Writing Matters” varies a bit from the first, as it deals with the subject of digital writing, and its place in the classroom of today. The reading first attempts to define digital writing through different accounts from interviewees, than through the lens of history, until it finally defines it in its own terms as anything made on and for a device that is connected to the Internet. The reading then goes on to explain digital writing in the context of the classroom/education. It highlights the positives/negatives of teaching digital writing in school, and how parents react to it. The parents are mostly in favor of it being taught but, they do hold some restraints in the area of instant messaging. I personally grew up in a elementary/junior high school that actively incorporated technology in the classroom, and I believe that the positives tremendously outweigh the negatives. In my school, we were all given access to laptops that we would use to complete all of our assignments. I learned how to use various word/presentation/video processing applications, and I feel the head start I was given during this upbringing was instrumental in how I was able to adapt to the culture in high school and then eventually college. Digital writing is extremely important, especially in today’s day and age, and I am hopeful that its teaching will be implemented in schools everywhere.