November 28th: Who Owns the Media?

Before this week's reading, I had no idea that General Electric played such a huge ownership from the media. Once I found out, however, it made so much sense. I remember one 30 Rock episode I saw once where Alec Baldwin's character was advocating for General Electric product integration in their shows. I find it most interesting that while they have the biggest profit out of "The Big Six," most of their shares are small. Clearly they have someone on the inside who knows and is working all of the loopholes. If they had larger shares, so many anti trust issues would be raised. Currently, AT&T is wanting to buy out T-Mobile, but when it was first suggested, the plan of the buy out was denied because it would greatly lessen competition. Now AT&T is trying to divest some of its shares, so that it would be able to buy out T-Mobile. If they divest their shares, they could possibly become the GE of the cellular world.

This brings out the morale of the situation. Should this loophole be allowed? More importantly, there is no reason why General Electric shouldn't be paying taxes. How many other corporations are getting away with this? To top it all off, GE is an advisor to the president? I am so completely skeptical of this entire situation. It is no wonder why so many people are losing faith in modern politics.

November 21st: Role Of Evolving Forms of Media On Senior Citizens

This week's reading was on a very interesting topic and one that I find most people tend to overlook. Technology is advancing in such a way that you either adapt with its change or get left behind. Technology has come so far that even the most fundamental things that people have become accustomed are needing to change. In this regard the chapter speaks about media. The internet has become such a prevalent part of people's everyday life, and I can only imagine that if it were to vanish overnight the world would be at a panic. Could you imagine a world without computers of the internet? I know that the older generations can. Some may call it an "old fashion" world, others may find comfort it.

Technology has made our world so fast paced since it has made the possibility of things being instantaneous a reality. It is this reality, however, that has left some in the dark, especially the older generations who aren't accustomed to technology. Because of the internet, things like print newspapers are starting to become obsolete, and even outdate. Why wait one whole day to find out something new when you can know the minute that it happens? The problem with this is that not everyone knows how to access this information. In my opinion not much, or rather, not enough is being done to familiarize people with evolving forms of technology. My mother for instance is so computer illiterate. Every time she tries to do something on the computer you can't help but feel a little frustrated and sympathetic. After seeing her, I can't imagine how an elderly person must cope and try to adapt with technological advances. Hopefully in the future communities will be able to organize groups that familiarize those in need of being accustomed to technology. Even certain sites themselves could become more senior citizen friendly. There would be such a huge market for that. However it is easy to see why some wouldn't want to invest in something like that, since it is only a matter of time before all who is left in this world are the people who grew up with technology.

November 14th: Will Evolving Forms of Journalism Be an Improvement?

The rise of new technology and the further developments with the internet has brought forth a new type of Journalism. This new form of Journalism is called participatory journalism according to this week's readings. In my opinion participatory journalism has really been a blessing. It has given a voice to the voiceless. When thinking about participatory journalism, I immediately think of role that social media had on the Arab Spring. Because social media allowed for the oppressed people in the Middle East to have their stories heard I think that it made all the difference in the world for them. More specifically, I am talking about the people in Libya. Their conditions were so bad that there were obvious crimes against humanity taking place. Once their situation got dire, we had sent in military force to protect the people. I really feel that this would not have happened if it wasn't for participatory journalism. If you take a look at other genocides, especially the holocaust, the US could have so many times lent out a hand to Jews in their time of need, but they didn't. I really feel that this was because there was no pressure for them to do so. People were unaware of the atrocities that were going on in Nazi occupied Europe because there was no technology for them to let the world know. In short, based from this week's reading, i do agree with the yes article that evolving forms of journalism will be an improvement.

November 7th: Is Advertising Good for Society?

In this week's reading both the yes and no article argued two very valid points. the yes article said that advertising is necessary and informs the consumers about what is right for them. Also advertising stimulates the economy and the cycle of supply and demand. The no article said that advertising only puts unnecessary stress on the consumer, making them feel that they ned things that don't or cannot afford.

Personally, I cannot think of advertising the same ever since I saw the move The Joneses. If you have not seen the movie I suggest that you do. It is a very interesting take on marketing on product placement. SPOILER ALERT The movie is about a husband and wife who have two children in high school, a daughter and a son. As the plot develops you find out that they are in fact not a real family, but are instead all salesmen and women posing to be a family. No one knows that they are a fake family and just think that they have it all, money, cars, a nice home, good looks. They own, or shall i say, are given the best of the best in order to endorse and promote it within the community that they live in. The family is however, selling much more than products, they are selling a lifestyle.

In the movie the family's neighbor is suffering to keep up the Joneses, and in many ways is going through all the reasons the no article gives as to why advertising is bad for society. In the end the neighbor puts himself in extreme debt trying to buy all of the things that he can't afford and doesn't necessarily need. Unable to cope with the stress, the man unfortunately take his own life.

While advertising may set standards that one feels that he or she must live by, the person shouldn't let it become a negative force in their life. Once again, we cannot let the media determine what are values are. There is so much more to life than fancy things. People need to realize that they can't buy happiness, and advertising may not be the best to learn that.

October 26th: Is Hate Speech in the Media Diectly Affecting Our Culture?

Honestly, I didnt care too much for this week's topic. I found it to be a little overreaching and something that not too many people really take into consideration. I know I certainly haven't regarded the media as an outlet of hate speech. This is actually something that I would rather not discuss because I have nothing to say about it. I don't mean to sound rude, but this past semester I have also been in a constitution class. We have discussed the legality of "hate" speech, and i honestly don't see the issue with people speaking their mind as long as no physical harm or dangers come from their words. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, that is what makes this country so beautiful.

October 10th: Are People Better Informed in the "Information Society?"

The constant new developments of technology along with the rise of internet dependancy has really brought society into a new era. The technilogical advances that continue to change the way we operate our daily lives, in my opinion, have just as many cons as they do pros. The information society that we have become so accustomed to is quite powerful. I don't mean to sound like a cheese ball or anything but I think spiderman's uncle says it best when he says, "with great power comes great responsibility." The internet and all these new devises can certainly be an amazingly efficient tool when used properly, but you have to take into account that there are going to be certain people who misuse technology all together. There are those who are either slaves to technology or masters of it. I believe that this is what Bauerlein was saying when he argued no to the question. Something about the instaneous effects of today's technology leaves some youth legargic and unmotivated. Everything is right there, only a click away, and yet the simplicity and readiness of it all is enough for them. They are content and don't see any reason to go beyond what is displayed on their computer screen.

September 28th: Does Media Represent Realistic Images of Arabs?

In this week's readings Beckerman, who supported the yes article, said that bloggers from the Middle East are challenging stereotypes about Arab culture. Shaleen, who supported the no article, said that Arabs have been the most maligned stereotype in popular culture. I would have to agree with the no article on this one. Ever since the attack on the World Trade Centers, America has definitely become more prone to racially profiling Arab people. Just recently I flew to Texas, and as bad as it sounds, there is a heightened awareness about what and how many Middle Eastern poeple are on your flight. I blame this on the media, which tends to cause a spark of paranoia, especially in regards to things like this. While I do agree that Arab people can more easily blog about what their life is really like, someone isn't likely to find that blog unless they are looking for it.