mbeam

I am currently using all my courses to focus on my masters thesis project. I will be investigating the differences in information seeking behavior between users who customize their portals (rss feeds, bookmarks, etc.) and those who don’t. Many people have commented on how they guess personalization will effect information exposure. On a broader scale, one argument states personalization technology may change the age-old role of the mass media informing a “public sphere.” If we have few/no gatekeepers, how will we, as a public, be informed and have dialogue about generally important topics?

The only empirical study I have found related to the topic doesn’t deal with customization, rather selective exposure. This Pew Internet study, designed by future OSU faculty member Dr. Kelly Garrett found the opposite of the above argument. People using the Internet to seek out political information did not selectively expose themselves to “their side.” Broadband users actually had broader exposure to the political debate, meaning connectedness could predict a more diversely informed public.

I am having some difficulty in coming up with a good assessment of “information exposure.” I’m thinking I may use categories of news exposure (local, world, entertainment, etc.) as a measure, but that’s still up in the air. Any input would be appreciated! Anyway, that’s how I’m staying busy right now…