Hanging Out Messing Around & Geeking Out Kids Living & Learning with New Media

andlt;Pandgt;Conventional wisdom about young people's use of digital technology often equates generational identity with technology identity: today's teens seem constantly plugged in to video games, social networking sites, and text messaging. Yet there is little actual research that investigates the intricate dynamics of youth's social and recreational use of digital media. Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out fills this gap, reporting on an ambitious three-year ethnographic investigation into how young people are living and learning with new media in varied settings--at home, in after school programs, and in online spaces. By focusing on media practices in the everyday contexts of family and peer interaction, the book views the relationship of youth and new media not simply in terms of technology trends but situated within the broader structural conditions of childhood and the negotiations with adults that frame the experience of youth in the United States. Integrating twenty-three different case studies--which include Harry Potter podcasting, video-game playing, music-sharing, and online romantic breakups--in a unique collaborative authorship style, Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out is distinctive for its combination of in-depth description of specific group dynamics with conceptual analysis.andlt;/Pandgt;

"Mimi Ito and her colleagues present a wealth of empirical research and scholarship that is quite breathtaking in its scope and diversity. They provide a range of rich and engaging descriptive case studies, but never lose sight of the broader themes and critical issues at stake. This book sets a very high standard for future scholarship in the field: it will be the inescapable reference point for many years to come."--David Buckingham, Institute of Education, University of London, UK --David Buckingham

"Finally a book that provides a deeply grounded and nuanced description of today's digital youth culture and practices as they negotiate their identity, their peer-based relationships, and their relationships with adults. Then, building on this rich and diverse set of ethnographies, the authors constructed a powerful analytic framework which provides new conceptual lenses to make sense of the emerging digital media landscape. This book is a must for anyone interested in youth culture, learning, and new media."--John Seely Brown, Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corporation, and Former Director of Xerox PARC The MIT Press

"This is a beautifully written and extraordinarily rich account of perhaps the most important challenge cyberspace gives us: understanding how it is changing our kids, and how it might change our understanding of literacy. We've had clues about both before. But this is a critically important and deeply informed contribution to this essential subject of learning."--Lawrence Lessig, Center for Internet and Society, Stanford University, author of The Future of Ideas and Remix --Lawrence Lessig

"Mizuko Ito and her team have put together an extraordinarily perceptive series of essays about what it means to grow up in a digital era. They cut through the myths that cloud our conversations about 'kids these days' and what they are doing during long hours online and on mobile devices. Every parent, teacher, and librarian should read this book cover-to-cover. This is crucially important research, presented in clear and accessible prose."--John Palfrey, co-director of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society, Harvard University, author of Born Digital --John Palfrey

“While the in-depth description of this framework would in itself value the time spent reading this book, there is much more in it. It is highly suggested reading to anyone interested to know more about kids’ everyday informal learning practices with new media (especially teachers, parents, and policy-makers).”
— Fabio Giglietto, Information, Communication and Society"Mizuko Ito and her team have put together an extraordinarily perceptive series of essays about what it means to grow up in a digital era. They cut through the myths that cloud our conversations about 'kids these days' and what they are doing during long hours online and on mobile devices. Every parent, teacher, and librarian should read this book cover-to-cover. This is crucially important research, presented in clear and accessible prose."
—John Palfrey, co-director of the Berkman Center for Internet &Society, Harvard University, author of Born Digital"This is a beautifully written and extraordinarily rich account of perhaps the most important challenge cyberspace gives us: understanding how it is changing our kids, and how it might change our understanding of literacy. We've had clues about both before. But this is a critically important and deeply informed contribution to this essential subject of learning."
—Lawrence Lessig, Center for Internet and Society, Stanford University, author of The Future of Ideas and Remix"Mimi Ito and her colleagues present a wealth of empirical research and scholarship that is quite breathtaking in its scope and diversity. They provide a range of rich and engaging descriptive case studies, but never lose sight of the broader themes and critical issues at stake. This book sets a very high standard for future scholarship in the field: it will be the inescapable reference point for many years to come."
—David Buckingham, Institute of Education, University of London, UK"Finally a book that provides a deeply grounded and nuanced description of today's digital youth culture and practices as they negotiate their identity, their peer-based relationships, and their relationships with adults. Then, building on this rich and diverse set of ethnographies, the authors constructed a powerful analytic framework which provides new conceptual lenses to make sense of the emerging digital media landscape. This book is a must for anyone interested in youth culture, learning, and new media."
—John Seely Brown, Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corporation, and Former Director of Xerox PARC

This book was written as a collaborative effort by members of the Digital Youth Project, a three-year research effort funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and conducted at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Southern California. The MIT Press The MIT Press The MIT Press

"Through their meticulous ethnographic exploration of emerging media practices in everyday life, Mizuko Ito and her colleagues paint a vivid portrait of young people's diverse modes of participation with new media. Over and again, this thought-provoking book challenges adult preconceptions and traditional preoccupations, insisting that we recognize the values, concerns, and literacies of today's youth." --Sonia Livingstone, London School of Economics and Political Science The MIT Press The MIT Press

"While the in-depth description of this framework would in itself value the time spent reading this book, there is much more in it. It is highly suggested reading to anyone interested to know more about kids' everyday informal learning practices with new media (especially teachers, parents, and policy-makers)." Fabio Giglietto Information, Communication and Society Sonia Livingstone

andlt;Pandgt;andquot;Finally a book that provides a deeply grounded and nuanced description of today's digital youth culture and practices as they negotiate their identity, their peer-based relationships, and their relationships with adults. Then, building on this rich and diverse set of ethnographies, the authors constructed a powerful analytic framework which provides new conceptual lenses to make sense of the emerging digital media landscape. This book is a must for anyone interested in youth culture, learning, and new media.andquot;--John Seely Brown, Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corporation, and Former Director of Xerox PARCandlt;/Pandgt; The MIT Press

andlt;Pandgt;"Through their meticulous ethnographic exploration of emerging media practices in everyday life, Mizuko Ito and her colleagues paint a vivid portrait of young people's diverse modes of participation with new media. Over and again, this thought-provoking book challenges adult preconceptions and traditional preoccupations, insisting that we recognize the values, concerns, and literacies of today's youth." --Sonia Livingstone, London School of Economics and Political Scienceandlt;/Pandgt; The MIT Press The MIT Press Sonia Livingstone

andlt;Pandgt;"While the in-depth description of this framework would in itself value the time spent reading this book, there is much more in it. It is highly suggested reading to anyone interested to know more about kids' everyday informal learning practices with new media (especially teachers, parents, and policy-makers)." Fabio Giglietto Information, Communication and Societyandlt;/Pandgt;

Conventional wisdom about young people's use of digital technology often equates generational identity with technology identity: today's teens seem constantly plugged in to video games, social networking sites, and text messaging. Yet there is little actual research that investigates the intricate dynamics of youths' social and recreational use of digital media. Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out fills this gap, reporting on an ambitious three-year ethnographic investigation into how young people are living and learning with new media in varied settings -- at home, in after-school programs, and in online spaces. Integrating twenty-three case studies -- which include Harry Potter podcasting, video-game playing, music sharing, and online romantic breakups -- in a unique collaborative authorship style, Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out is distinctive for its combination of in-depth description of specific group dynamics with conceptual analysis.

An examination of young people's everyday new media practices--including video-game playing, text-messaging, digital media production, and social media use.

Conventional wisdom about young people's use of digital technology often equates generational identity with technology identity: today's teens seem constantly plugged in to video games, social networks sites, and text messaging. Yet there is little actual research that investigates the intricate dynamics of youth's social and recreational use of digital media.

andlt;Pandgt;An examination of young people's everyday new media practices--including video-game playing, text-messaging, digital media production, and social media use.andlt;/Pandgt;

Becky Herr-Stephenson is a Research Fellow at the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop. Previously, she was a postdoctoral researcher with the Digital Media and Learning Hub at the University of California Humanities Research Institute.