Blog Post Three

After taking multiple classes on media and ethics including this class about communication and culture, it is sometimes hard to face the fact that media controls the world. It has the ability to sway whomever, whenever. It feels like they know all our insecurities and pry upon them to sell us on just about anything. The unfortunate thing is that they created these insecurities in all of us. Beauty is being skinny and blonde with big boobs. Men must be emotionless, strong over 6 foot. The list goes on for stereotypes and the categories that each of us fall into.

After reading Black Girl Dangerous, I decided to choose a phrase because I couldn’t pick just one sentence from it. Mia McKenzie states that the 4^th way to not be an ally is that you “don’t see race/gender/disability/etc., she also notes that “If your ability to respects someone’s right to exist requires pretending that they are just like you, that’s a problem. We are not all the same. And things like race, gender, disability, etc. are exactly the kinds of things that shape our lives and our experiences and makes us different from one another. Being different is not the problem.” I personally believe this has a lot of truth, and I myself have fallen victim many times. I have always felt and been taught that everyone should be treated with respect, which is true, but it doesn’t mean that our differences have to be pushed aside and pretend to be forgotten. Sometimes I would go out of my way to make it a point that I am welcoming of everyone race, gender, religion I wasn’t pretending to be welcoming but I was ignoring the fact that we are all different and that’s okay. I had never thought of it in that way before. That everyone in their own way is unique and our gender, race etc. are our unique stories of how we got to this point right here and by pretending were not different is not helping it’s just highlighting how much we are and how much I try to hide that. I love when she says being different is not the problem because it’s not, it’s the way society has made us feel about being different that isolates us from others that is the problem.

I have already mentioned in a previous blog about a great example of media and how they portray certain people is Miss Representation. I think we could make a million movies on different races, gender, religions and how they are all misrepresented. I think it’s sad how we can’t see others for their unique qualities and abilities and for the stories all our differences share. It’s unfortunate that we have been led to make our differences so noticeable that it has led to terror and destruction throughout our world. I love my background and the stories from my grandfather coming from Yugoslavia I am proud to say I have Hispanic decent but not everyone feels like they can be proud of that because they’re considered different. Not everyone can be proud and open. Culturally here in America the “melting pot” of the world, home of the free its crazy to think after all this time people can still live in fear because of our differences. Fear of not speaking up, not dressing how you feel best, not speaking your native language, all fears of not wanting to stick out and be different.

 I think a great example of this currently is the protest over the national anthem. I have my own opinions about it and how I feel but I recently watched a video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZv-52xh2pc, with Barack Obama and his feeling and Donald Trump and his feeling in regards to the protest and I think it perfectly aligns with the statement from McKenzie. Obama talks about how we as a country need to recognize people’s difference but in doing so we need to understand why and truly educate ourselves, before dividing as a country. We don’t need to agree, but just understand that we all grew up differently and that it is their right to be able to say how you feel, even if it offends the rest of us. It’s a hard pill to swallow for some but I’ve also lived as a white female in a well-off family my entire life and am forever grateful to the people who protect me from living safely in my bubble. Some kids weren’t given this experience and unfortunately don’t see the world the same way I do but it’s what has shaped all of our lives, experiences and truly what gives us different outlooks on life, gender, race, and religion. A great example of this is a YouTube video about privilege, http://www.ntd.tv/inspiring/life/crazily-viral-video-showing-privilege-will-make-cry.html. After watching this video, it made me really think about how different we all see the world and the country we live in. Even if we lived in the same neighborhood. Not seeing color, race or disability doesn’t help. It just separates us more. I wish there was a solution to this problem because after watching this video, it was eye opening to how I shelter myself and my feelings. I’ve always tried not to see our differences but I hope to go forward I recognize the difference and embrace it.

Excuse me, Disney!

When completing the readings on media’s portrayal of culture, it was difficult to pick just one line that stuck out to me, or got my mind racing. Did I want to focus on the appropriateness of Spongebob and Nickelodeon’s promise to encourage children to promote change, or did I want to focus on hook’s view on media’s portrayal of the poor? However, the documentary that we watched in class helped me to make my decision.

            This documentary showed the cultural stigmas and stereotypes that are shown through almost all of Disney’s early movies. In “Pocahontas,” children are exposed to cultural misconceptions, as well as a lack of accurate historical information. Movies like “The Jungle Book” and “The Lion King,” children are exposed to racism. There are little to no black people portrayed in early Disney movies. In interviews, children of color admitted to relating more closely to the hyenas from “The Lion King” and the monkeys from “The Jungle Book” more than they relate to any other character.

            The questions brought to light are, “do we refrain from exposing our children to these moves,” or “if our children are exposed to these movies, at what point do we intervene and provide explanation?” As a 90’s kid who was raised on Disney, I see the movies through rose-colored glasses. I connect all of these movies with my childhood and I plan to let my children watch them. However, I don’t want my kids to develop racist views or stereotypes from watching these movies, but am I going to have a sit-down conversation with my two-year-old about how Pocahontas didn’t actually marry John Smith? What is an appropriate age to have these conversations?

            According to babycenter.com, children begin to “categorize people in more sophisticated ways,” between the ages of 5 and 8. This would be an appropriate time to have factual conversations about race. The article advises parents to stick to the basics and encourage their kids not to label others with different skin tones. As they grow, more detail should be added to the conversation.

            It is also really important to highlight the main moral lesson that Disney is trying to teach. “Pocahontas” tries to teach acceptance and that no good comes from hating someone just because they’re different. “Beauty and the Beast” also tries to teach diversity and acceptance, as well as patience. However, it is still important to have conversations with children about healthy relationships and how to not stereotype.

            I can say that I don’t agree that Disney is all bad. I think for the most part, they try to portray important moral lessons and feel-good stories. I will agree that early Disney movies have some disturbing portrayals of many cultures, but I think that with the right communication and teaching, our children can see the good that Disney attempts to provide.

Kshef, Z (2017). How to Talk to Your Child About Race (Ages 5 to 8). Baby Center. Retrieved from https://www.babycenter.com/0_how-to-talk-to-your-child-about-race-ages-5-to-8_3657097.bc

October Blog Post

For this blog entry I decided to write about the concept from chapter eight of "docile bodies."

This was an extremely interesting part of the book for me to read, because being twenty one and fully in the groove of college I simply don't stop to think about those kinds of things anymore, even though I certainly experience the problems that arise.

I began going to school when I was fourteen years old and I have almost always said that even though I thoroughly enjoyed my high school experience, and I certainly wouldn't take it back, I absolutely think I saw a decline in my overall intelligence. Sure I got good grades, and learned how to take tests (well sort of), but I have always understood that the real problem arose from the specific "molding" for lack of a better word that was done to our brains in the public school system. However, after reading the bit about Foucault's interpretation of creating these docile bodies I am starting to wonder just how much of a role that actually played. The book says that these institutions "teach us to focus on our ideas and our minds by restricting how we move or draw attention to our bodies." This bit in particular made me immediately start to go back and think about the point in which I started to go to school and go through this process of sitting in a desk every day, and also the point in which I saw myself change...they are definitely one and the same.

The book talks about how we are taught to forget our bodies. And how while this may seem like a negative thing (it is), there are actually advantages to this learned behavior. It discusses "blending in with a crowd" and essentially becoming what the professor needs, but then a more important issue is brought up and that is that "those who benefit most from an exclusive focus on the mind are those who make decisions regarding what is best for others. Now while this is more or less talking about the situation of being in an institution, which I suppose is meant to be a place with someone who knows more about whatever it is you are doing, I have to say I disagree. It just brings into question even more the subject of power--and while yes, in many cases there are people who are perhaps better equipped to guide you in whatever you are trying to accomplish, there are far too many situations where this is not the case. Yet we are all taught to "forget our bodies" and focus entirely on our minds in nearly every institutionalized situation possible. Throughout my high school experience, I had about three or four memorable teachers. And thinking back now, they were the people who sort of "invited" me to step away from the constructs of the public high school experience and gather ideas from sources other than just the mind.

I feel like we are in a time where the education system is becoming more and more aware of this, and I do think we are in for a subtle but needed change. However, the fact that so many kids are still forced (in a way) to separate their beings into contrasting parts, when really they should be learning to work with both their mind and body to overcome challenges, gets to me.

What is Disney?

Disney as a culture is used as an example in many communication studies.  The culture as an employee was studied by in an organization communication class, looking at the differences between a strong and excellent culture.  In comm 160, we looked at it with the perspective of how it affects the audience that watches a Disney movie or tv show.  In the same class, we talked about the word simulacra, meaning becoming a representation or imitation of a person or thing.  I would argue that not only is Disney a good example to illustrate organizational communication, it is also good to explain on a thing can take on a life of its own and become something else through imitation.

As a parent, when I think of Disney, I think of wonderment, childhood innocence, love, family and pure.  The movies are family friendly, the shows are written for families or for young children.  Most of what they do is about bringing family together...at least in my opinion.  This is the image that Disney has created for me.  In this sense, Disney is a representation of what family is.

For others, Disney may have the opposite effect.  Someone may think Disney is fabricated, manipulative or condescending.  Maybe for that person, it may represent an ideal family that is created in the movies, but not reflect how families are in real life.  In class, we talked briefly about Dismalland in London.  With either viewpoint, Disney is more than an amusement park or movie/tv show creator.  The representation of it transcends these physical creations and becomes an ideology for many.

In a search to find what others have said to this concept that is Disney, I came across an article that talks about Jean Baudrillard's Simulacra and Simulation, http://culturalstudiesnow.blogspot.com/2012/10/jean-baudrillard-on-disneyland-and.html

I won't say it's easy to see how Disney can be viewed in this light.  One should have a general understanding of the terms used and how they can be applied to understand the hyperreality that has been created through Disney and all that it represents.  Once this is noticed, it's hard to NOT notice it more throughout everything that Disney does and how I interact with it.

As I said above, my idea of Disney is that it equals family.  Knowing what I know, I still agree with that, but also have a sense of how it does not need to be viewed as ideal or what we should strive to live up to.  Watching Disney movies or tv shows, visiting the theme parks, or going on a Disney cruise may be nice, but if one isn't able to do them, doesn't mean they are not living up to being an ACTUAL family or that their definition of family is wrong because it may differ than the perceived Disney definition.

In one blog post, only the tip of the iceberg can be uncovered.  This is a topic many have explored and dissected and in my opinion, worth diving into with some depth, to explore how our ideas may be manipulated (unintentionally) by the preconceived notions we place on something that may not match reality.

Blog Post #3

Ashley Olson

Communication 160

Blog post #3

10-31-17

“How food television is changing America”

            In the article How food television is changing America, Thomas Rogers is basically talking about is that even though cable is essentially dying, that the Food Network is doing very well. Which really makes you think about how America is changing because of food television and what aspects of America is changing.

            Thomas Rogers says that, “people are talking and thinking more about food,” which makes sense (not stereotyping, but America is known as the most obese country in the world) because the ever growing social media world is constantly showing how to cook, what people are having for their meals, how to meal prep, and what the best restaurants are. In this section of the article, he argues that people consume more salt and calories when they eat out, which can be argued in this article, as it may be harder to eat healthy while you eat out, it is definitely possible.

            This article talks about the ways that you can eat out and depending on what you are eating, and how to cut back on things that are unhealthy for you. Dining out can be just as healthy as eating in, its just about the choices you make. The study that this article did, states that those who cooked at home at least six to seven times a week consumed an average of 2,164 calories, while those who dined out more cooking at home no more than once a week, consumed an average of 2,301 calories daily. While it may be 200 more calories a day, this is easy to cut back on depending on what you decide to eat.

            I found this interesting because I find that I eat out more than I eat at home, which you could say does not fall under the clean eating avenue of eating out. Its more of a fast food eating out, but I didn’t necessarily know that most people that eat clean at restaurants consume that same amount as people that eat at home daily.

Media: Good nor all Bad

Abbey Turpin

Comm & Culture 160

31 Oct. 2017

Blog Post #3

Media: Good nor all Bad.

“Media are neither all good nor all bad. How we use the media makes the difference- do we pay attention to our critical minds, or do we allow the authors to create meaning for us?”

This quote exponentially stuck out to me within Chapter 11, titled Mediated Culture. Something that often swirls and twirls within my mind is the relationship we, as humans, have to media. I went through a “phase” in high school where I actually grew rather paranoid of smartphones, and it caused me to really take a step back and analyze how friends, family and I use these incredibly complex devices. I went into this personal experiment extracting all the negatives because I realized it is a new, cultural form of addiction. The feeling of paranoia often consumed my being when I would be at a social gathering, watching people take endless videos and pictures, texting, and using social media. I would secretly become so angry, wanting to scream at them “WHY?”. I was limitlessly confused as to why people craved the recognition from others that were not even present in the group, and I often felt as though phones were turning our species into slight robots. Watching my friends allow the culture within social media change them, sent me to hate my phone, yet even with this personal awareness, I would STILL find myself checking the endless apps mindlessly. The constant confusion and endless questions regarding the role of smartphones in our culture and their own evolution led me to feel alone and misunderstood because none of my peers seemed to see what I saw. In fact, they often thought I was “thinking too much into it”, but the passionate fire against smartphones did not seem to leave me.

There is absolutely no doubt that our society as a whole is changing at a rapid pace due to the integration of social media and smartphones. Although I was consumed in a “phase” of despising these precarious changes, I realized I could not avoid it- so it was time to alter my own, personal perception. I slowly started deleting different apps that did not serve me in any way to my “greater good” so to say. I “unfollowed” various accounts, and began following different accounts that I found to be beneficial to my personal growth. I began appreciating the simplicity in what old peers posted, while enjoying the “deeper” writings from new accounts. Social media is used to a limit still, but I have detached myself from the paranoid feelings because I grew more calmly critical. At this point, I can only hope that others can become conscious in what they are being fed through their smartphones and social media, while maintaining my own conscious and observant eye. I have grown to a state where I recognize the connection that these devices and apps give, and I have grown to truly appreciate how I have the INCREDIBLE opportunity each day to literally discover anything at my fingertips. The evolution of mankind is truly insane and incredible all at once.

I would also enjoy touching on the subject of Disney due to our discussions in class. I never realized how gravely Disney could have truly shaped me, my peers, and our society all together. It absolutely boggles my mind thinking of how I could have been conditioned to think certain ways when I watched these huge, sparkling fantasies. Although I may not ever know exactly how I have been shaped from Disney, I will choose to appreciate the glorious imagination and happiness it gifted me in my youth. Disney creates true magic and optimism to life on Earth, and the glorious colors that flood each movie will always create a warm sensation within my heart.