For the better part of my youth all I really did was watch TV. I was every bit the poster child for a "couch potato". If you would have told me only 5 years ago that I wouldn't have cable or even an antenna for the local channels today I would called you a crazy person who didn't know a thing about me. But here I am, A 22 year old male who lived and breathed on TV now somehow surviving  without it. I'd be lying if I told you I didn't miss it but in someways I don't even realize that I don't have it. In the Watkins article its mentioned that young males are sharply dropping off their TV use and I am living proof that all the Nielson statistics are true. With this new digital age we live in I can watch my favorite shows online when ever I want but its the way i watch them that is new. Every bit of media i consume revolves around my gaming system. My leisure time revolves around my PS3 and i'm either watching movies, listening to music, downloading my favorite shows to the system via something like the PSN or Hulu plus, and then also playing actual video games.

 Todays video game consoles like the PS3 and Xbox 360 are complete media consuming packages all in one simple box. It is no wonder why males have moved from TV to gaming systems. They are not just new ways to get media but they are also new ways to interact socially with others.

Video games have become a new way for males to interact with each other and have something in common. With the Nintendo Wii and its focus on social gaming and with the PS3 and Xbox having VoIP people can come together and form friendships and a sense of community over video games. For me personally I can remember living in the dorms and walking down the hallways and seeing some guys playing games was always a good way to start up a conversation. As mentioned in the Watkins article it is a way for males to come together and meet new people out side of their regular social circle. You might one night play a game of Halo 3 with some guys down the hall then the next day see them in the dining hall and start talking to them about the game but then the conversation moves on and you really just start to get to know them and start hanging out in situations not related to games. Video games allow you to connect with people who you might have nothing in common with but because you share that love of the game you get to know someone you might have never talked to before and this is not only in real life situations but also in the case of online games where you interact with players all across the globe.

Another part of the Watkins article i found rather interesting was when they discuss the use of avatars in MMORPG's and the "Proteus effect". The Proteus Effect states that how the user perceives the avatar, in terms of how it looks, will influence the users behavior. The example of how the more attractive the avatar was the more confident and more willing to reveal personal information about themselves I found fascinating. I would have never thought that just by making your virtual self more appealing would make you act differently in the world. I guess it is just the users need to continue the image or story that they want to portray with their avatar in the world. Although I don't see it crossing over to the real world self it would be interesting to see if that would have any minor positive or negative affects. 

So do you think that the Proteus Effect really changes how people act online? How much digital content do you consume now? Have you given up TV? What do you think TV will be like in 10 years? Will it even still be around as we know it today?