1F25 blog response 2: WANTED: The Media We Need

After reading other students blogs, I still firmly believe that as society, we want the media we get. Through the blogs I read, I am convinced many students agree with me. In saying this, I do not believe; however, that the media we want is the same as the media we need.

One student used the image of a mirror to represent media. “In all reality we are the mirror to the media and we accept the media we get which is us ‘wanting the media we get.’ As long as we allow ourselves to act as a mirror and follow what we are told and taught by the media our society will continue to spiral downwards.” (http://nhough95.wordpress.com). I never thought about examining the media in this manor, but feel it is a very good juxtaposition. In my opinion media we want is something to amuse, entertain, or inform us. The mirror is there for us to make us laugh, capture our attention, and show us how everything around us is behaving. I believe that the mirror is there to display this ‘want,’ which is infused with underlying meanings, as well as lies. Television shows such as Family Guy and The Simpsons have replica situations of that which is actually happening, while skits on late night television such as Saturday Night Live act out scenarios that are ongoing in the world. In my opinion this is what we use as news coverage. This form of media can be bias, and often blurs the genuine facts.

My media choices inform me about social matters, and minimally about political, cultural, or economical matters. I always know, for example, what’s going on with the latest fashion trends, what celebrities are eating at Menchies, and how Miley is doing with her ‘twerking,’ and yet I can honestly say that I still don’t know what countries were involved with the 9/11 terrorist attacks (other than the United States). I believe the reason I am so misinformed about matters of this level of importance is because I don’t take the steps to find out whats going on. All it would take is me to visit a news stations website, or flip on the TV, the real stories are not out of anyones reach. Matters of political, cultural, and economical materials represent the media we need, while the social matters is what I want, and therefore what I get. “In the end consumers want what they get, because they desire what media gives them...” (http://hecticglow.blogspot.ca).

Overall, I still believe that we receive the media we do, based on what the media wants us to believe.  After all, “the famous phrase in business is “the customer is always right” which is also true in [the] media.” (http://isaacc56.wordpress.com)

1F25 blog entry 2: The Media We Want?

I believe that we want the media we get. I don’t believe we have a say in what is presented to us, regardless of what we chose to watch or listen to. 

The text provides an example of a world where the roles of men and women are reversed. “The men will all eat and sleep together in one building with the children, while the women will eat and sleep together in a separate building. … The women go out and grow the crops while the men do all the cooking.” (pp. 62) I try to picture this example displayed as a television show, and find it next to impossible to do. Typically television shows portray the father ‘bringing home the bacon,’ while the mother either has a laid back job, or stays home with the children. This is what I picture when I think of the typical American family. This is one example of how we don’t get the media we want. If I were to wish to watch a show about this backwards lifestyle, I would have to write it myself. Shows of this nature are not available for viewing. I am not saying; however, that this is nonexistent anywhere, merely stating that it is rare to see the gender roles reversed on television nowadays. Recently television shows such as Glee, and Modern Family are trying to change the way we view society, but I still believe they’re playing it safe. The standards they’re playing with are still within very safe walls. For example, the boy in Glee who is homosexual, has a quarter back for a brother, and parents that are happy and approve of his life choices. In Modern Family, the homosexual male couple both have male roles, rather than one being more of a feminine figure. Although they’re toying with gender roles slightly, the media is maintaining a safe distance between what would be totally socially intolerable. 

pp. 62 - What’s in a Name? Language and the Social Construction of Reality, Chapter 4, O’Shaghnessy

“The media show us what the world is like; they make sense of the world for us.” (pp. 35) I believe this demonstrates how the our idea of the world is handed to us on a silver platter, by the media. What the media wants us to think about the world, is what we think about the world. There is no suggestion box for us to drop what we want to see next on the news. The angles portrayed on CTV are created by the media, and are displayed in a manor that is socially acceptable. Generally, the media decides what they displays, and what they do not. They completely control what we receive.

pp. 35 - What Do the Media Do to Us? Media and Society, Chapter 3, O’Shaughnessy

Overall, as viewers I don’t believe I get to actually chose what I view on television, or the news. Television shows avoid topics that would arise questions, or unacceptable topics, and the news channels display the opinions and images as they chose. 

1F25 blog response 1: Media Impact

After reading some of the blogs of my peers, many questions I had never considered in my blog, popped into my mind. Many of the blogs I read were similar in content. Most students agreed that media has changed our lives, and continues to do so. My original opinion still stands after reading the blogs.

Meagan McLeod said “Try and think back to the last time you had something you needed to tell someone so you walked to their house to update them? Was it hours, days or months? Whichever it is, slowly we are losing grip of a media free world.” (http://mm13sa.wordpress.com) I examined media on a much larger scale, and how it is broadcasted across large groups of people. Meagan looked at media on a more ‘hands-on’ scale. After reading her blog, I realized how attached I was to my cellphone. It almost never leaves my sight, and I bring it absolutely everywhere. I am constantly checking it, browsing multiple forms of social media. I still remember what the world was like before we had such widely used technology of this form, and its crazy to think that the generations following mine won’t ever understand what that is like. 

Chloe Bromhead said, “When I was little I used to play outside if I did not have anything to do inside, now when I have nothing to do I automatically rely on the mass media to keep me entertained.” This accompanies what I said about Meagan’s post, that our kids won’t understand what the world is like without relying on technology and media. Young children know how to surf the internet, use Facebook and Twitter, and communicate without face-to-face interaction. As these forms of media become more and more popular, younger and younger children are going to be accustomed to this way of life. Is it possible that face-to-face communication will be obsolete to the next few generations, if we continue at this rate?

Upon reading multiple blogs from fellow students, I feel that the majority of us have the same opinion. Media has changed our world entirely. I did however, come across a blog that disagreed. Allie Towne believed that media does not impact her world view. Allie said, “I do not believe the media has a huge impact on my world view mainly because I question in great detail everything I see in the media”. (http://allietowne1613.wordpress.com) This made me question how that is possible. We receive media coverage from all around the world, how is it that we could create our own opinion about what is going on? I accept that we can question what they’re telling us, but the majority of what is said has to be accepted in order to have ANY knowledge of worldly news. Without boarding planes and flying over to Syria, we cannot fully create our own opinion about the situation. I couldn't imagine living my life questioning everything, everyday!

I still firmly believe that media has truly changed our lives, and will continue to do so in the future. This fact is inevitable. 

1F25 blog entry 1: Media Impact

19.3 million people, in 24 hours watched a single music video. 19.3 million people worldwide were consumed by Miley Cyrus swinging on her ‘Wrecking Ball’ for 3:42 minutes. People often don’t understand how this can be done. What causes this many people to link in, in such a short period of time? The media. The video is just one example of how media effects our everyday lives. In 24 hours, a single video reached 19.3 million people. Why? Because the video was provocative, and scandalous. The story behind the video, and the lyrics of the video were unimportant.

This isn’t the first of Miley’s viral videos. Her video for ‘We Can’t Stop’ has over 197,000,000 views, and her performance with Robin Thicke was also a hot topic. We all have seen the images that floated around Twitter when Miley cut and then shaved her head. We were thrilled when she got engaged to Hemsworth, and are now devastated that they split. Since the release of the video, ‘Wrecking Ball’ all everyone is talking about. The video is all webpages, home-pages, and over social media as well, as if it needed more attention. Through mass consumption by viewers, the media has ‘programed’ it in the minds of spectators that what Miley is doing is bad, but no one cares about Gaga. The media as made this simple music video into something bigger than anyone thought. All this focus on one celebrity, are there not more important things going on in the world?

During the same weeks of this videos release, the United States moved closer to a military strike on Syria. It could just be me, but as a student, I don’t watch enough of ABC or CTV news to even know the basics of whats going on in Syria, but you can guarantee I’ve watched Miley’s music video more than once. The internet is streaming with Youtube advertisements, not news casts. The media would rather shove information about celebrities wrong-doings down our throats then a civil war. This ridiculous statement is now our everyday life. Students of all ages are consumed by media in everything we do. Because of Miley’s new statement, when I shaved the side of my head I had more than one person ask me if I was ‘going Miley.’ Trying to be an individual just isn’t possible anymore now that media has taken over.