Report: StudentNASA Conference “(New) Media and the United States”

In the afternoon of Friday 21 May, 2010 the first ever StudentNASA event took place at Utrecht University.  In order to be of interest to students from all disciplines within the American Studies field, the board decided to choose a theme which could be viewed from multiple angels, covering Economics, Politics, Transatlantic/Foreign Policy, Popular Culture and Journalism, while also being relatively new and not yet part of the curriculum. The theme was ‘(New) Media and the United States,’ an area which is small enough in that almost every student participates in it (through Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube), but which, due to its accessibility, also has the power to influence a nation.

After the event was opened with a video clip of the Comedy Central cartoon South Park discussing the importance of Facebook to some of the show’s characters, and a word of welcome and explanation was spoken, comedian Greg Shapiro took the honors of delivering the key note address. A fervent user of New & Social Media himself, Mr. Shapiro discussed these and other topics during an extremely funny and interactive speech, providing a great introduction to the workshops which were planned after his key note.

During the first workshop round, 4 different workshops took place in and around the inner city lecture halls of the University Utrecht on de Drift. One workshop, titled “The Future of Television,” featured Jaap Kooijman (UvA), William Uricchio (MIT/UU), and Britta Wielaard (student at Leiden University), and discussed the changing role of television due to the rise of online substitutes such as YouTube, and the possibility to download shows online. Jaap Kooijman discussed the political importance of television, while Britta Wielaard focused on the way in which American news media are coping with the rise of social media. During her presentation she used research from her own internship at the Radio Netherlands Worldwide (“de Wereldomroep”). William Uricchio talked about the social media aspect of future television, together with the move towards IPTV (internet protocol television), after which a debate ensued on, for instance,  the role of scripted series versus talk shows as a cost cutting method, predominantly shown by NBC’s failed Jay Leno program within a time slot previously reserved for scripted television.

Another workshop, titled “New Media & Journalism,” focused on a whole different aspect of New Media by discussing its influence on (news) reporting. In this session Jennifer Crandall, video reporter at the Washington Post and creator of onBeing (an online video archive with weekly stories of ordinary people) talked more about her work, while Alexander Pleijter, faculty member at both Leiden and Groningen University within the Journalism Departments, gave a short lecture on public participation in journalism through the use of New Media. Wouter Bax, head of the digital media department at Dutch newspaper Trouw, commented on both presentations by giving his personal experience with New Media and his newspaper, along with more information on the similarities and differences within this field between the US and the Netherlands. Since many American Studies students either follow a minor in Journalism or combine their Master Degree with one in Journalism as well, students were very interested to hear more about the day to day experiences of people working with New Media implementation within journalism.

Of the two other workshops, one focused on “9/11, Multiculturalism, and Media” with Jaap Verheul (UU), Mathilde Roza (RU), and Derek Rubin (UU). The other discussed to role of the media within US Foreign Policy with a presentation of Rik Smit (RuG) on the influence of the Abu Ghraib photos on American’s national conscious, and presentation of Daan de Wit (DeepJournal.com) on the ways in which international conflicts have been preceded by artificial threats, manipulation, deception and deceit of the media by a small group of people who benefited from these conflicts.

After a short break, the students had a choice between 3 different sessions during the second workshop round: “Digital Morality and Games,” “New Media as a Political Tool,” and “New Media Tools / Twitter Workshop.”

In the first workshop, the presentations by Katleen Gabriëls (Vrije Universiteit Brussel) and David Nieborg (UvA) focused on 3D digital environments and their connection with the analog world. Katleen Gabriëls is currently writing her dissertation on ethics and morality in 3D social virtual worlds, building on her previous research in which she focused specifically on these issues in relation to Second Life. During the workshop she gave an introduction to 3D social virtual worlds, as well as pointed out that the “moral panic” that occurred after the introduction of these digital environments was similar to the reaction of the public at the introduction of media like the telegraph, movies and television. David Nieborg, currently also writing his Ph.D, has published extensively on games and new media, and his focus was on America’s Army, a game freely distributed by the US Army and used as a way to recruit new soldiers.

The “New Media as a Political Tool” workshop started with a special video contribution from Strasbourg by Marietje Schaake, currently Member of the European Parliament for D66, but also a former student of American Studies, with a minor in New Media, at the UvA. She discussed her personal experiences with changes New Media had brought to politics in the US, but also for her own work as a representative within the framework of the European Union. Her positive approach to New Media was not shared by Chris Aalberts, researcher political communication at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, who argued that the impact of the use of New Media by the Obama campaign in 2008 is grossly overstated. Theresa Kayser, a student at the Roosevelt Academy in Middelburg, approached the theme of the workshop from a different perspective, pointing out that the new media are increasingly becoming the main battleground for terrorists and counter-terrorists.

The third choice students had was attending the “New Media Tools / Twitter Workshop,” which was a more practical workshop focusing on which new media tools would play a major role within the near future, but also on the ways in which American Studies students can use these tools for their benefit. After some technical difficulties at the start of this particular workshop, Alexander Klöpping (UvA) discussed various new tools, while two American Studies students from Groningen, Judith Katz and Jonathan Key, gave a small Twitter workshop, discussing the importance of Twitter, but also giving some advise who to follow for what kind of American news. Albertine Bloemendal, a former American Studies student at the Radboud University and currently Ph.D. student at Leiden University, next to her work as a journalist at Trouw, followed with a brief talk about her personal experiences with New Media, bringing this workshop to an end.

The only session left on the schedule was the closing session: a panel discussion in which speakers from various sessions discussed the future of ‘(New) Media and the United States.’  
Alexander Pleijter, Alexander Klöpping, Chris Aalberts, David Nieborg and William Uricchio, on the basis of various film clips, discussed topics as free versus paid aspect of online media, the role of New Media in grouping together individuals with extremist views who feel unrepresented by traditional media, the role of these media within the current political campaign in the Netherlands, and the influence of the Obama campaign. During the panel discussion, attendees with a Twitter account were able to contribute to the discussion by posting Tweets that appeared live on a big projection screen. While this sometimes let to valuable points and online discussion, it also had the tendency to not always be “on topic.” After a short Q&A, and a word of thanks to all the speakers, moderators, crew and board members who had made this day possible, those interested in further discussion quickly went for drinks at a nearby café, while others decided it was time to head back home.

With roughly 90 attendees, great workshop sessions, and positive feedback from students and faculty members alike, the StudentNASA Board is extremely pleased with this first event of what we hope will become a long series of conferences focussed on American Studies students in the Netherlands. The StudentNASA will also continue to inform students of activities of other organizations and institutions in the field of American Studies, and in the coming months will focus on reshaping its website and setting up an e-mail newsletter to complement this printed newsletter.

This, however, would all not have been possible without the support of our sponsors:
-    the Netherlands American Studies Association
-    the Roosevelt Study Center, Middelburg
-    the US Embassy, The Hague
-    study association EPU, Groningen
We want to thoroughly thank them again for believing in our goal!

We hope to see you at on of our next events, of which we will keep you informed through our various websites.

On behalf of the StudentNASA board,

Marius Verhage
Chair