Lister question h and i

p.33 If new media allows more people to be involved in cultural production what are these new voices saying in public?

The easy answer to this question could be, “anything they want to say”. Millions of niche interest groups have formed from web 2.0. This outlines many positive uses of new media, freedom of speech and the meeting of like-minded people, however this comes with an inherent danger, Lister outlines that anyone with an online account can post with “little or no reference to the kinds of market constraints or regulatory controls that characterised previous twentieth-century forms of mass media” (Lister et al, 2003:33)
I have mentioned these dangers in an earlier post (Monday, 26 January 2009) so will mention the positive effects of web 2.0.
It is not only a way to put your opinions across to the world, which is an extraordinary thing to be able to do, but it also a way to promote your brand, your business, your talent. You can find a consumer or a producer for almost anything you need. We are truly living in on online global village.

p. 42 Is there such a thing as 'ideal interactivity'? what form might it take?

Ideal interactivity would take on all of the positive characteristics of the different types of interactivity, however there needs to be a balance between the users freedom of choice and speech, and their effect on the web. Discussed in the lecture was Meikle’s four types of interactivity which are as follows:
Transmissional interactivity: some degree of user control/choice over fixed programmed informational flow.
Registrational interactivity: we (the user) produce the information, but have NO control over how it is used.
Consultational interactivity: I select, I choose, I use, but from a limited set of fixed choices.
Conversational interactivity: meaning itself gets created via the exchange. It’s about making new media, not about consuming it. It’s about unfinished processes, not closed ones. It’s about intercreativity.
(taken from the lecture notes)

Personally, I would say that consultational interactivity is the most balanced between the positive characteristics and limited possible negative effects. It includes enough choices to personalise your use of the internet, without letting people with ulterior motives influence others interactivity too much. I believe that this is the format of social networking sites.