The finalists for the Christian new media awards have been unveiled, with the awards presented on Oct 14th. There's several categories: best blog, best new blog, best leadership and under-25s blog, best websites for large and small churches, best use of new media in evangelism and social action, and best mobile web use.
Good to see Vernacular Curate/Vicar in there, along with The Redeemed Mind, worship leader Vicky Beeching, and Science and Belief. The Road to Elder ado shows you can get on the list with quality rather than quantity, and I love this post at Lay Anglicana, another finalist, on alternative functions for bishops. Finger in all the Pies is good too, manages to keep blog posts to a readable length, unlike me!!
But hey, rather than me list them all, go and have a browse.
Showing posts with label internet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label internet. Show all posts
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Digital Natives in a strange land
abridged version of an email I got the other day:
A new report, Life Support: Young people's needs in a digital age, looks at how digital communications have impacted on the psychological and neurological behaviour of young people – and the challenge this poses for agencies and organisations who aim to support them.
According to the report, the internet does, and will increasingly, play a vital role in the full process of advice gathering and exploration for young people. In the survey responses, the internet is consistently rated alongside family and friends as a source of advice in stressful situations. For support on issues related to sex and drugs, it took precedence over all other forms of advice.
Anonymity was the single most important reason for 62% of young people seeking advice online rather than from other sources, while ease and speed of access to information were also cited by 56% and 53% of respondents respectively.
the report concludes: "For young people, the internet is part of the fabric of their world and does not exist in isolation from the physical world, rather it operates as a fully integrated element.
In the future, as access becomes ever more mobile, multi-platform, faster and with richer media – in other words ever on and everywhere – the need and demand for advice through the internet will become even more critical."
YouthNet Chief Executive, Fiona Dawe, said: "This timely report is an essential read for any youth policy maker, parent or teacher. The incredible speed in which communication methods are changing means that young people are trailblazing new ways to converse that many of my generation struggle to understand. With the huge number of unregulated and unmoderated websites, blogs, networks and groups that exist online, the need for a safe, trusted place has never been greater."
Comments:
1. The anonymity thing is interesting - online 'confession'? Where in the Protestant churches is there the opportunity for anonymous advice, confession, exploration etc.? The flip side is that anonymity allows people to do things they'd not do in person, which makes temptation a bit more tempting, as there seems less chance of being caught. Anonymity makes the net both safer, and more dangerous.
2. I used to be a bit embarassed to ring up my mates on the one house phone with mum and dad listening from the next room. The net does make friends easier to contact, but I don't know if that makes us more selfish or less: are friends available when we need them, or are we available when our friends need us? Perhaps it comes down to what survey question you're asked.
3. The level of dependence is quite scary, but I guess every generation comes to depend on the gadgets it creates - the fridge, the TV, the car, the web. Strange that younger people both depend on the internet, but feel a sense of control when using it. Who's controlling who?
4. We're still working out how this changes the quality of relationships: Facebook and the rest allow breadth to replace depth, keeping in touch with dozens of people at the same time, compared to previous generations whose 'gang' size was limited by the nature of face t0 face communication. The fact that a sizeable number don't see the need for face to face communication at all is rather worrying. Can we really relate to other people properly through the medium of technology? Among the first signs of fracture in Genesis are the couple hiding from God as he walks in the garden: the avoidance of face to face relationships isn't a sign of health.
5. Big challenge to the church if it's going to engage with this age group: church stuff tends to be quite 'lumpy' - an hour or two in a specific place at a specific time. Modern communication and community is threaded through everything. How does the church for Digital Natives differ from what we're used to?
A new report, Life Support: Young people's needs in a digital age, looks at how digital communications have impacted on the psychological and neurological behaviour of young people – and the challenge this poses for agencies and organisations who aim to support them.
As part of it, 994 young people were surveyed about their attitude to the internet, and here's some of what they said:
- 75% said that they couldn't live without the internet
- 45% said that they felt happiest when online
- 32% agreed with the statement: 'I can access all the information I need online, there is no need to speak to a real person about my problems'
- Four in five (82%) said they had used the internet to look for advice and information for themselves and 60% had for other people
- 37% said that they would use the internet to give advice to others on sensitive issues.
According to the report, the internet does, and will increasingly, play a vital role in the full process of advice gathering and exploration for young people. In the survey responses, the internet is consistently rated alongside family and friends as a source of advice in stressful situations. For support on issues related to sex and drugs, it took precedence over all other forms of advice.
Anonymity was the single most important reason for 62% of young people seeking advice online rather than from other sources, while ease and speed of access to information were also cited by 56% and 53% of respondents respectively.
the report concludes: "For young people, the internet is part of the fabric of their world and does not exist in isolation from the physical world, rather it operates as a fully integrated element.
In the future, as access becomes ever more mobile, multi-platform, faster and with richer media – in other words ever on and everywhere – the need and demand for advice through the internet will become even more critical."
YouthNet Chief Executive, Fiona Dawe, said: "This timely report is an essential read for any youth policy maker, parent or teacher. The incredible speed in which communication methods are changing means that young people are trailblazing new ways to converse that many of my generation struggle to understand. With the huge number of unregulated and unmoderated websites, blogs, networks and groups that exist online, the need for a safe, trusted place has never been greater."
Comments:
1. The anonymity thing is interesting - online 'confession'? Where in the Protestant churches is there the opportunity for anonymous advice, confession, exploration etc.? The flip side is that anonymity allows people to do things they'd not do in person, which makes temptation a bit more tempting, as there seems less chance of being caught. Anonymity makes the net both safer, and more dangerous.
2. I used to be a bit embarassed to ring up my mates on the one house phone with mum and dad listening from the next room. The net does make friends easier to contact, but I don't know if that makes us more selfish or less: are friends available when we need them, or are we available when our friends need us? Perhaps it comes down to what survey question you're asked.
3. The level of dependence is quite scary, but I guess every generation comes to depend on the gadgets it creates - the fridge, the TV, the car, the web. Strange that younger people both depend on the internet, but feel a sense of control when using it. Who's controlling who?
4. We're still working out how this changes the quality of relationships: Facebook and the rest allow breadth to replace depth, keeping in touch with dozens of people at the same time, compared to previous generations whose 'gang' size was limited by the nature of face t0 face communication. The fact that a sizeable number don't see the need for face to face communication at all is rather worrying. Can we really relate to other people properly through the medium of technology? Among the first signs of fracture in Genesis are the couple hiding from God as he walks in the garden: the avoidance of face to face relationships isn't a sign of health.
5. Big challenge to the church if it's going to engage with this age group: church stuff tends to be quite 'lumpy' - an hour or two in a specific place at a specific time. Modern communication and community is threaded through everything. How does the church for Digital Natives differ from what we're used to?
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Best Year Ever
Alongside Gordon Browns 'Britain is still a Christian country' interview, another intriguing story I missed whilst on the beach was a poll hosted by the Economist on the most significant year in human history.
A couple of things struck me as odd:
- you can still vote (I just did), even though the results have been declared. I thought it was only the Soviets who did this.
- there's a certain irony in the invention of the printing press being declared the winner by a poll conducted online. The Oedipal son of the printed media elects old dad King even as he is being shoved off his throne.
The birth of Jesus is currently second to Guttenbergs invention, with about 25% of all votes. Andrew Marr's article, which kicked the whole thing off, is here, and Adrian Wooldridge makes the case for the year of Jesus birth.
ht Cranmer.
A couple of things struck me as odd:
- you can still vote (I just did), even though the results have been declared. I thought it was only the Soviets who did this.
- there's a certain irony in the invention of the printing press being declared the winner by a poll conducted online. The Oedipal son of the printed media elects old dad King even as he is being shoved off his throne.
The birth of Jesus is currently second to Guttenbergs invention, with about 25% of all votes. Andrew Marr's article, which kicked the whole thing off, is here, and Adrian Wooldridge makes the case for the year of Jesus birth.
ht Cranmer.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The Tweeting Civil Servant
A Whitehall chappy has produced a 20-page guide to Twitter for fellow mandarins. Some of it is quite sensible:
... once anyone does follow a Whitehall Twitter stream it recommends they should automatically be "followed back" on the grounds that it is not only good etiquette, but could result in a poor Twitter reputation if not done ‑ and in extreme cases could lead to the account being suspended.
In urging his fellow Whitehall civil servants to use Twitter, Williams sets out several grounds rules for the kind of content that needs to make it work:
• Human: He warns that Twitter users can be hostile to the "over-use of automation" - such as RSS feeds – and to the regurgitation of press release headlines: "While corporate in message, the tone of our Twitter channel must therefore be informal spoken English, human-edited and for the most part written/paraphrased for the channel."
• Frequent: a minimum of two and maximum of 10 tweets per working day, with a minimum gap of 30 minutes between tweets to avoid flooding followers' Twitter streams. (Not counting @replies or live coverage of a crisis/event.) Downing Street spends 20 minutes on its Twitter stream with two-three tweets a day plus a few replies, five-six tweets a day in total.
• Timely: in keeping with the "zeitgeist" feel of Twitter, official tweets should be about issues of relevance today or events coming soon.
• Credible: while tweets may occasionally be "fun", their relationship to departmental objectives must be defensible.
Alongside the promised tweetable content of minsters' thoughts and reflections following key meetings and events is something rather more sinister sounding called "thought leadership". Also known as "linked blogging", the idea is that by highlighting relevant research, events, awards and other action elsewhere on the web, the department's Twitter feed gets a reputation as a reliable filter of high quality content.
whole piece here at the Guardian. The full document is here, composed by Neil Williams, who works for Peter Mandelson covering 'digital engagement' (and I just thought that meant shaking hands).
Do we want our taxpayers money spent on this?
... once anyone does follow a Whitehall Twitter stream it recommends they should automatically be "followed back" on the grounds that it is not only good etiquette, but could result in a poor Twitter reputation if not done ‑ and in extreme cases could lead to the account being suspended.
In urging his fellow Whitehall civil servants to use Twitter, Williams sets out several grounds rules for the kind of content that needs to make it work:
• Human: He warns that Twitter users can be hostile to the "over-use of automation" - such as RSS feeds – and to the regurgitation of press release headlines: "While corporate in message, the tone of our Twitter channel must therefore be informal spoken English, human-edited and for the most part written/paraphrased for the channel."
• Frequent: a minimum of two and maximum of 10 tweets per working day, with a minimum gap of 30 minutes between tweets to avoid flooding followers' Twitter streams. (Not counting @replies or live coverage of a crisis/event.) Downing Street spends 20 minutes on its Twitter stream with two-three tweets a day plus a few replies, five-six tweets a day in total.
• Timely: in keeping with the "zeitgeist" feel of Twitter, official tweets should be about issues of relevance today or events coming soon.
• Credible: while tweets may occasionally be "fun", their relationship to departmental objectives must be defensible.
Alongside the promised tweetable content of minsters' thoughts and reflections following key meetings and events is something rather more sinister sounding called "thought leadership". Also known as "linked blogging", the idea is that by highlighting relevant research, events, awards and other action elsewhere on the web, the department's Twitter feed gets a reputation as a reliable filter of high quality content.
whole piece here at the Guardian. The full document is here, composed by Neil Williams, who works for Peter Mandelson covering 'digital engagement' (and I just thought that meant shaking hands).
Do we want our taxpayers money spent on this?
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Bible Knowledge - The Generation Gap
New info is still trickling out about the Durham University 'National Biblical Literacy Survey', first reported by the Independent over a week ago (ht Kouya). The full press release from Durham is here, BBC report here. Already picked up by several blogs.
Findings include:
- 'well known' stories like the Prodigal Son and Good Samaritan are only familiar to 40% of the population.
- Some people have zero knowledge of the Bible - e.g. 16% who couldn't name any of the 10 commandments
- Under-45's have much less knowledge of the Bible than over-45's.
- Many churchgoers are pretty shaky on stories you'd think were well known: over 70% didn't know anything about Daniel and the Lions den, for example.
- 31% of people said the Bible was significant in their lives today. There's no published data yet on how many of those regularly read it.
It's vital to take these kind of things into account, both with our churches, and with folk in general. How much of church outreach assumes some basic Bible knowledge? How much do we equip and encourage people to read the Bible for themselves? Do we lament this and try to lobby for 'protection of Britains Christian heritage', or put our energies into engaging with the new reality?
Our confirmation course, for people who are looking to make an adult declaration of Christian faith, is an interesting case in point. Several of the folk on the course are reading a gospel all the way through for the first time as a result of being on the course. And they relate much better to things put into pictures than into words - this is people in their 60's and 70's as well as in their 20's and 30's.
The full findings are being presented this evening to a conference in Durham called 'Christianity in the Digital Space' which has its own blog, where audio, video and text bits of the conference are being posted. Mark Browns paper 'The Bible in Digital Space' delivered this morning, is available for download already. Fascinating stuff, looking at how the net is changing the way we read and take on information, and how we connect with people. Well worth a read.
There's also plenty of twittering also going on under the #digisymp hashtag. Paul Windo is blogging about the conference, and someone who can type very fast has posted these notes on a session about community and digital space, and you can see Mark Browns keynote address on Youtube. More papers are being added at the Digital Space website.
Findings include:
- 'well known' stories like the Prodigal Son and Good Samaritan are only familiar to 40% of the population.
- Some people have zero knowledge of the Bible - e.g. 16% who couldn't name any of the 10 commandments
- Under-45's have much less knowledge of the Bible than over-45's.
- Many churchgoers are pretty shaky on stories you'd think were well known: over 70% didn't know anything about Daniel and the Lions den, for example.
- 31% of people said the Bible was significant in their lives today. There's no published data yet on how many of those regularly read it.
It's vital to take these kind of things into account, both with our churches, and with folk in general. How much of church outreach assumes some basic Bible knowledge? How much do we equip and encourage people to read the Bible for themselves? Do we lament this and try to lobby for 'protection of Britains Christian heritage', or put our energies into engaging with the new reality?
Our confirmation course, for people who are looking to make an adult declaration of Christian faith, is an interesting case in point. Several of the folk on the course are reading a gospel all the way through for the first time as a result of being on the course. And they relate much better to things put into pictures than into words - this is people in their 60's and 70's as well as in their 20's and 30's.
The full findings are being presented this evening to a conference in Durham called 'Christianity in the Digital Space' which has its own blog, where audio, video and text bits of the conference are being posted. Mark Browns paper 'The Bible in Digital Space' delivered this morning, is available for download already. Fascinating stuff, looking at how the net is changing the way we read and take on information, and how we connect with people. Well worth a read.
There's also plenty of twittering also going on under the #digisymp hashtag. Paul Windo is blogging about the conference, and someone who can type very fast has posted these notes on a session about community and digital space, and you can see Mark Browns keynote address on Youtube. More papers are being added at the Digital Space website.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Enquirers websites
Had an email whist on hol about a new 'virtual church' website, and thought I'd put up some links for sites aimed specifically at enquirers to the Christian faith.
http://www.church-on-the-net.com/ is said website, it has a weekly article (= sermon equivalent?), blogs, forums etc., but the standout is the Reference section, where I nearly got sidetracked by for several hours. It has a series of short articles about most of the major things - God, Jesus, prayer, suffering etc., and at the end of each has several web links to other helpful stuff on the topic, whether it's music videos, poems, clips from TV programmes, etc. So the section on Jesus links to bits of artwork, and the bit on 'church' directs you to a clip from the cartoon 'King of the Hill'. It really is very good.
http://www.rejesus.co.uk/expressions/index.html has been around for a few years, it's a good place to dig around, good quality stuff everywhere on the life and teaching of Jesus, and whilst you're looking you might stumble across an interesting meditation, bits of art, poetry, or a very well put together daily prayer.
The Church of England website has a small faith section at http://www.cofe.anglican.org/faith/ with some stories of people coming to faith, a brief definition of what a Christian is, but then signposts to the rejesus site above.
The Methodist church site has an exploring Christianity section, but again signposts rejesus. In fact, most of the main UK denominations send you to rejesus rather than having a major section on Christian life and faith on their own websites.
http://www.church-on-the-net.com/ is said website, it has a weekly article (= sermon equivalent?), blogs, forums etc., but the standout is the Reference section, where I nearly got sidetracked by for several hours. It has a series of short articles about most of the major things - God, Jesus, prayer, suffering etc., and at the end of each has several web links to other helpful stuff on the topic, whether it's music videos, poems, clips from TV programmes, etc. So the section on Jesus links to bits of artwork, and the bit on 'church' directs you to a clip from the cartoon 'King of the Hill'. It really is very good.
http://www.rejesus.co.uk/expressions/index.html has been around for a few years, it's a good place to dig around, good quality stuff everywhere on the life and teaching of Jesus, and whilst you're looking you might stumble across an interesting meditation, bits of art, poetry, or a very well put together daily prayer.
The Church of England website has a small faith section at http://www.cofe.anglican.org/faith/ with some stories of people coming to faith, a brief definition of what a Christian is, but then signposts to the rejesus site above.
The Methodist church site has an exploring Christianity section, but again signposts rejesus. In fact, most of the main UK denominations send you to rejesus rather than having a major section on Christian life and faith on their own websites.
http://www.explorefaith.org/questions.html#faith is a site based on listing lots of questions that you might be asking yourself, then responding to the questions. The answers aren't cut and dried, which is a plus, and it's a very text-based site, which will be a plus to some and a minus to others.
A Google on Christianity throws up 'christianity.com', which I would have thought is a contradiction in terms. The '.com' means you get lots of adverts for stuff, which put me off reading anything they had to say.
Finally http://www.shipoffools.com/ , the granddaddy of decent Christian websites, doesn't set out to to answer any questions at all, but for anyone with a sense of humour who wants a more oblique approach to the Christian faith, it's a good place to start.
Meanwhile there is a discussion thread on the Cartoon Church website on whether evangelistic blogs actually work at all!
....and then after far too long foraging around the net, I couldn't find anything else worth linking to. What am I missing?
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