Problems in the Military using Emerging Media

Classified Information
The primary problem all branches of the military face is the use of classified information. Using Emerging Media tools like Twitter and FaceBook may result in the enemy getting information that they are not supposed to have. Information that is classified is handled seriously in the military and a breach of that information could easily land you in jail.

Marketing to Recruits
Keeping fresh bodies in the military is always a problem when the economy is doing well. Having a good marketing strategy is necessary to get people to join. How do you convince someone that the small amount of money they pay you is worth risking your life?

Internet Use
Most Emerging Media technologies are internet bandwidth hogs. If you are at a site in Kuwait with a few thousand people and only a few satellite feeds, internet access is not freely given out. Mission critical circuits need the data lines--morale and welfare for the soldier come last. So the use of Emerging Media is discouraged in wartime theaters due to these bandwidth restrictions.

Death by PowerPoint
It seems the military loves PowerPoint presentations and wants one for about everything. While this tool is useful, there may be better ways to convey information that Emerging Media can reveal.

Metaphors and Media Literacy

Metaphors are used in our language to give life to our language by using concepts that are often unrelated to our word that is being used. An example of this is describing a person as cold or hot. The person is not being physically described as cold or hot, but we are identifying cold as treating others with indifference or scowl while hot means that we think they are attractive. It should also be noted that not everyone takes the same metaphor the same way. Our past experiences often lead to differences in how we interpret metaphors, but generally a consensus can be obtained.

An improvement process that I feel would work the best would be to expose someone to the many different tools out there. Here is what I feel would be a good mix:
1. Visit a blogging site and create a blog.
2. Visit a slide sharing site and upload a presentation.
3. Visit a social media site such as Face Book.
4. Visit a virtual social media world such as Second Life.
5. Visit a cloud based architecture such as Windows Azure.
6. Watch some videos on a video site such as YouTube about Media Literacy.

These steps will give a good introduction to someone about Media Literacy.

References
Geary, James. (2009). Metaphorically Speaking. Retrieved June 12, 2010, from http://www.ted.com/talks/james_geary_metaphorically_speaking.html
MNL Staff. (2008). The New Media Literacies. Retrieved June 12, 2010, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEHcGAsnBZE

Military Emerging Media

Visit my slideshare.net presentation on Emerging Media in the military:

http://www.slideshare.net/KennethMoss/week-3-reviewing-literature?from=share_email

Windows Azure

Recently I've been using Microsoft's cloud computing platform Azure. This platform allows me to create a SQL server in the cloud and reference it from my applications. It does much more, but that is my current use for it.
The neat thing about the cloud is:

• I only pay for the usage I have
• It can scale to meet the needs of as many users as I have
• It can scale to meet sudden spikes and usage and scale back down once done
• It can block traffic all the way down to the IP address coming in, making it secure enough for me
• I can use the existing toolset in .NET while using a cloud based technology

I'm excited about Azure and the possibilities it will provide me. Cloud computing is really cool!

References:
Windows Azure. Retrieved June 12, 2010 from http://www.microsoft.com/windowsazure/