I recently spent time trying to stay away from mass media. This sounds like is may not be that difficult, but it actually was. Staying away from mass media essentially means staying away from modern technology. So, I wanted to write a bit about my experience with this.

I found that the most difficult aspect of doing this was giving up "Ike." In case you are wondering this is my iPhone. My life tends to revolve around this piece of technology. My calender, alarm clock, phone book, music as well as many other pieces of my life are stored here. So by avoiding this I felt a bit lost.

However, once I spent time removed from this device I found things to be much more peaceful. The quickened pace of the modern world seemed to fall way. I could take the time to appreciate the small things like the sounds of nature as I walked or even more face-to-face communication. I grew to appreciate the removal of this technology from my life. Once it was replaced I learned to use Ike with more care. I learned just how amazing this technology is, and how it is so easy to take advantage of it all.

Blogging: My Experience

A blog (a contraction of the term "web log") is a type of website, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order.

This is the wikipedia definition of "blog." When I began blogging I was completely new to the idea. I knew little more than what this definition explains. To be completely honest, the concept of maintaining my own blog seemed a bit beyond my reach.

I had never thought that writing out my thoughts on the Internet was something that I would enjoy doing. I guess I was wrong about that. Through this experience I found that blogging can be fun and even a bit liberating. My blog became an outlet for self expression. If I felt a certain way on a subject I could express these emotions.

Keeping my blog was not always an easy task. I admit I ran into some trouble when trying to add pictures and links, but after working with it a bit, it got easier. It was not always practical to write a blog every week, sometimes I had to skip weeks and double up on others. But all in all it was a good way to keep track of my thoughts on mass media and the different issues I encountered pertaining to this subject. I'm not sure if it is something that I will continue to do, but it was a fun experiment. The sense of accomplishment I felt after I posted a blog was amazing.

When I heard in class that the film makers of the Glocal Scene documentary had found some of our blogs, it was the first time that I realized that my blog was out on the Internet, open to the public. This was a fascinating concept to me. The people that I wrote about could possibly see my views. This helped to completely change what I believed about the way our media system works in relation the the audiences. Before this point I had never thought that the average person could reach other media creators. But now I can see that this is in fact possible.

Today's Lesbians

Katy Perry's song "I Kissed a Girl" is about easist way to define the way that today's youth views Lesbianism. In the music video for this song the idea of the over sexualized woman is portrayed. This is the view that what empowers a women is her choice in sexuality, or rather her freedom to flexible in her sexuality.

Like in the article "Hot Lesbians" by Sue Jackson, Lesbianism is viewed as nothing more than a fad. However this is a double standard when taken in the context of men's sexuality. When on youtube you find parodies of Katy Perry's video which deal with men. It is almost as if bisexuality for men is nothing more than a joke.

Media Representation of Women

"Women's magazines of the 1950s and 1960s were 'crammed full of food, clothing, cosmetics, furniture, and the physical bodies of young women' , with limiting portrayals of women as mothers, housewives, and sex objects. The representation of these "happy housewife heroines" had replaced the "spirited career girls" of the 1930s and 1940s" (MODELING WORK: Occupational Messages in Seventeen Magazine, Kelley Masson).

It seems that nowadays women seem to sit back and wait for a "Prince Charming" to come and sweep them off of their feet. Is this the way we where raised? If were to ask my eight year old cousin what she wants to be when she grows up she will answer "a princess." How can this be a normal response to a question about a future career.

Disney movies put this idea in our head when we were children. We learned that men will rescue us from our normal lives, and take us to a better place. Now, chick flicks tend to further cultivate this idea. Women are fully capable of relying on themselves. Yet the media consistently drives in the point that the man is the protector, the superior.

I was recently asked the question "can men and women become equal". At that point I had answered that I didn't think that our society has the capability to achieve equality until the men make changes to their thoughts. However, after more consideration I believe that it is not until we stop teach out children (both boys and girls) or the damsel in distress that we can reach a more equal state. As of now the men rule the world. They believe that this is the job of the males as the masculine figure. It has been that way through out history and it will continue to be this way until media changes the messages that it produces.

Televisions Lack of Creativity

Why is it that television programs constantly represent the same situations? This question has a simple answer: profits. The same three profit driven television networks dominate the industry. Because of this, television has become nothing more than repetitive nonsense that lacks creativity. A great example of this is the CBS show CSI. The original series, taking place in Las Vegas, became a quick hit. This brought in large amounts of profits for the network. Soon CSI: Miami and CSI: New York came to fallow. Keeping in line with the original program the sequels, so to speak, followed the same format of an intelligent yet quirky male leader. The "team" is made up of an array of character both male and female, usually stereotyping the city in which the show is set in.

This seems to be nothing more than a simple format followed in order to create a successful show. And that is exactly what it is. Program development is costly and programmers try to avoid risk. Producers tend to stick to the tried-and-true methods which are most likely to produce success. Because of this audiences are left with second rate television shows.

Privacy and Facebook

When we go on sites like Facebook, our information is on display. This idea may dictate the things that we write, the groups that we join and the causes we support. It is easy to support a cause that a friend invites you to, but do we truly back these causes?

Monica Hesse's article in the Washington Post about "Click Through Activism" focuses on the ways that many social networkers join activist groups without the intention of further supporting the cause. Some of the reasons for joining could be guilt or simply fallowing friends. Few of the people joining truly support the cause. Sometimes people do not even know anything about the group that they are joining. An example of this is the "No to Demolition of Stork Fountain" group, which was fictitiously created for the purposes of a psychological study, yet reached over 27,000 members.

When it comes down to it the numbers that join these causes show a public outcry and support, but do little else. It is easy to join a cause on Facebook, however it takes more of an effort to fallow through and act on that issue. Because of this many of these causes loose support and fail fairly quickly. Instead of this "click-through activism," taking a more proactive approach is the best way to give support to a cause you believe in.

Media Mover

When I took the quiz to determine what kind of media user I am, I found out:

[I am] a Media Mover, so [I] have a wide range of online and mobile habits, and [I am] bound to find or create an information nugget, such as a digital photo, and pass it on. These social exchanges are central to [my] use of information and communication technology. Cyberspace, as a path to personal productivity or an outlet for creativity, is less important to [me].

I somewhat agree with this description. I definitely tend to use technology for social purposes. My phone is often used for texting and Facebook. However, this does not paint a completely correct picture of the way I use technology. Most of the time that I am on the Internet, I am doing work other things having to do with school.

If I were to pick a different description I believe that I may fit better as a Roving Node. Although I have had a number of cell phones in the past, I never was reliant on my phone until I got my iPhone. This piece of technology completely changed my perspective. It allowed me to be more mobile and reliant on just my phone. So now besides my phone, and laptop, I rarely use other devices.

Technology's Effect

Technology allows us to do so much more when it comes to involvement with the media. We have left the days of one-to-many communication behind. Now we have the ability to blog, comment and generally voice our opinions.

Websites like Colbert Nation are set up on the basis of viewer interaction. Fans can watch the show, comment on what they saw and even discuss with other viewers. This concept would have been considered beyond the capabilities of viewer in past decades. However, it is now common place. The line between producer and receiver has been blurred putting some of the control in the hands of the public.

Pleasentville

Have you every seen the movie Pleasentville. It is one of my favorites. A boy with a horrible home life is obsessed with a show similar to Leave It To Beaver. When a creepy man comes along and gives him an odd remote, him and his sister are put into the show. Since these two teens are far from the "perfect" sense of reality that the show maintains, they begin to introduce flaws. When this happens things begin to turn from black-and-white to color.

This is much more than a wonderful movie. It has strong themes that are often not seen the first time watching it through. The idea of Pleasentville illustrates a simulacra. Sort of like Main St, USA, this idea of a perfect 1950's community reminds us of a better time. However, it is a time that really did not exist. There never existed a time of perfection. Even if we may think Leave It To Beaver illustrated the typical family, this is all just media's exaggeration of life.

Feminism and the Influence of the Media

I recently went to a lecture given by Ariel Levy about contemporary feminism and the influence of the media on today's girls. One of the most interesting points that she made was that women today have a sort of "if you can't beat them join them" attitude. By attempting to join men, women themselves are wronging other women. An example of this is, two women were producers of "The Man Show." When asked why, they responded that by working on a show like this, they could never again be judged as prissy women. Yet, as these women were trying to prove themselves, them they were counteracting the work that many others try to do. In effect they where almost making it alright for the men of "The Man Show" to not respect females.

Another point that was made is that we must differentiate between the things that we are doing for pleasure and the things we are doing as a performance. In our culture sex sells, because of this girls feel pressure to conform to these standards. So, it is crucial that we know what we are doing for ourselves and what we are doing for the sake of the display.

However, the most important part of being active in feminism is finding what you believe in. You must work for the issues you fine important. It is when you work for a cause you care about that you truly make an impact.

Feministing

A panel from the blog Feministing came to speak on Monday. I had never read anything on their blog before, so their views were relatively new to me. It was interesting to hear what the different panelists had to say; considering each was so different from one another. Their differing backgrounds gave them the ability to view feminism and woman's rights from different angles, which allowed the audience to gain some incite.

One of the girls talked about the way that the conservative ideologies of the community where she grew up shaped her early views of feminists. It was not until college, when she was surrounded by varying ideal, that her opinions began to change. Since then she has worked with feminist organizations.

Another panelist, from BC, spoke about the way the girls of BC view themselves. As compared to the start of freshmen year, recent female graduates of Boston College have lowered self-images; however the male self-image does not change. This supports the fact that men and women are different in the views of society; this campus is just an example of the added pressures on women. I found this fact to be interesting.

Glocal Music

Last week I went to see a film focusing on local music scenes across the globe. It was interesting to see how although the types and styles of music changes, the trends in the way the art was handled seemed to remain constant. The same problems with big record labels and the idea of fighting homogenization was the same in almost every region.

One interesting thing I picked up on from the film is that it seems the places which are most secluded from outside influence produce some of the best artists. An example of this is Santa Fe, NM. However, cities like LA, in the crossroads of the music industry, seem to produce many artists none of them too special.

The two men who man the film traveled not only across the county but to Australia, South Africa, Mexico and France to do their research. It was interesting to see all of these different regions and cultures portrayed through one common medium: music.

I was talking with some friends about the upcoming release of Saw VI (to be released October 23rd) and we got on the topic of violence in movies an other sources of media. Questions arose about whether studies had ever been conducted attempting to link gruesome movies with violent behavior. Does the violence we watch cause violence actions?

This reminded me of the video we watched "Bhutan: The Last Place" where television was introduced to what was a previously pure society. I found it interesting the way crime rates slowly rosed over time and how young boys began imitating the violence they saw in wrestling programs. Is this enough proof to say that violent media has effects on a society?

I decided to look into Bhutan a bit more, in order to see how much change the "last place" has gone through since their new introduction. Kuensel, the Bhutanese national newspaper, suggested that since the introduction of TV there has been an increase in consumerism and the want for a more Westernized culture. Also, for the first time Bhutan is seeing broken families, people dropping out of school and youth crimes. This is only in addition to the expected increase in burglary shoplifting and other crimes of violence we associate with the introduction of television.

However, within the last year, the people of this nation have began to view media as a source of entertainment, instead of a source of news. This change is a positive one for this new view of television might help to stop the increasing in crime rates as the citizens stop looking to their TV's for their information of the world. Perhaps as the Bhutanese learn to determine what behaviors should be imitated and what should not be, the rest of the world will learn as well.

Times They Are A Changin'

I'm not sure if this is off topic or not... but since hearing about the music industry the other day I was in the mood to hear something that was NOT mass produced. So, I decided to listen to some Bob Dylan. I just have to say how much I love "Times They Are A Changin' ." Of course, I hate to narrow anything down to favorites, but if I had to, this would definitely make top five. As you listen you return to a time before crappy pop rock took over the top 40 charts, a time where people actually heard music, good music.

This song was released in 1964 and was an original composition by Dylan. He meant it to be a song with purpose. He felt that "times are a changin' " is more than just a statement, but that it portrays a feeling along with it.

The lyrics he wrote over forty years ago still hold true today. Our society and culture is getting faster day by day. The only way to survive is to change along with society. It seems that there is no way to return to the time before we seemingly were drowned by media of all types.

Not only does Dylan make the statement that society will continue to change, but he calls for political as well as written reform. This is such a strict contrast to what is within song lyrics today. What current top 40 hit even attempts to go near that issue? Most popular songs nowadays are suggestive of sexual acts or telling of some teenage love affair.

It seems like what our youth listens to lacks any sort of meaning whatsoever. Perhaps that is what is plaguing them. We must put some thought and originality into what we listen to, instead of just aiming at what will sell.

So after watch some of the news on the Washington, D.C. tea-bag protests I went searching for some clarity. I found this video. 

It seems like most of the people protesting here do not even know what they are battling over. They are being feed ideas from overly bias media sources and they just absorb this madness without question. 

When the reporter in the clip asked certain individuals what in particular about the President's policy angered them or which of the bills being written were they against, many had no idea how to answer. They are misinformed and therefore ignorant to what it is they are ultimately fighting over. 

News casters like Glenn Beck cannot be considered rational people, they are looking for ways to draw in an audience. So, they fill their shows with bitterness and intolerance in order to inspire fear in the hearts of the viewers. This then sets into action the mob effect. These angered citizens spring into action, ready to protest, screaming and shouting for their opinions. Yet, when confronted by facts they are left little more then speechless, questioning what it is they stood for in the first place. 

testing, testing, one, two, three.... This is my first official post.