"Ananova is 28 years old - and unlike real newsreaders, never will grow old - a clear advantage in a business that worships youth. The perfect employee, she will never demand a raise, a new contract or a show of her own to showcase her talents. When she gets a body - which her designers say is in the works - it will be a slender 5-foot-7-inches. Designers in Britain are vying for that chance...Ananova wants to be taken seriously. ''I'm no bimbo,'' she told CBS news in an interview. ''The world's going to be full of virtual this and thats." The Atlanta Journal and Constitution, April 20, 2000

Reading: Forming online identities

Note: Course Project thesis due Sept 27

We explore several concepts in understanding the communication of online identity. To begin, we consider the process of perceiving an audience through telepresence. Next, we review the construction of identity through a performance metaphor, examining how people construct online personas. After that, we examine the distinctions among nameless anonymity, inventive pseudonymity, and one's real life identity. Finally, we conclude with some suggestions for protecting your real life identity in an era of enhanced technological access to potentially damaging personal information.

Off-campus webpages

Ananova - the virtual newscaster

FROM TO : Nicknames, Play, and Identity on Internet Relay Chat - Haya Bechar-Israeli - "Computer-mediated communication (CMC) has created new opportunities for real-time "chatting" among geographically dispersed individuals sitting at their computer keyboards. People engage in "written" conversation in the new linguistic genre, which combines characteristics of both written and oral language. They type their messages, and the text of these messages appears on the screens of their interlocutors, preceded by the "speaker's" nickname."

Land's End interactive model: "This is the spot where you can begin to create Your Personal Model, the interactive shopping tool that helps you build a wardrobe based on your shape and your lifestyle." Try an online avatar by scrolling down to Personal Model!

MakeoverStudio.com: "Try on thousands of new looks on your own image: the latest hairstyles, hair colors, color cosmetics and more."

Online Teaching: Encouraging Collaboration through Anonymity - Andrea Chester and Gillian Gwynne - "This paper describes our experience as tertiary teachers (and learners) in cyberspace. A brief evaluation of the literature on computer-mediated communication (CMC) is presented, together with a review of the major theoretical positions explaining online interaction. The filtered-cues and social information processing perspectives are compared in the light of more recent formulations of the hyperpersonal. With a desire to facilitate and critically evaluate a hyperpersonal learning context or online learning community, we developed a range of strategies including the use of aliases. The subject is described together with our observations of the benefits and disadvantages of pseudonymity for education."

Shadow Identities: Teacher Review - site where students can assume real or fake identities and comment on their professors.

Shadow Sites: vBay vs. eBay - site where person or group create a "mirror site" for the purpose of satire or protest.

Note: These pages exist outside of San Jose State University servers and their content is not endorsed by the page maintainer or any other university entity. These pages have been selected because they may provide some guidance or insight into the issues discussed in class. Because one can never step into the same electronic river twice, the pages may or may not be available when you request them. If you have any questions or suggestions, please email Dr. Andrew Wood.