Blog #4

I believe a lot of what we seem to perceive about men, and women seem to stem from a long series of stereotypes that seem to strait-jacket us to fit the norms society has placed on everyone. Boys having been raised with the mind set that they must be powerful, independent, and often feared figures (by women more often than none) ; reveals to us a long held belief that men are the so called, "bread-winners." That they dominated the professional sphere long before women shook things up, and for that reason there still exists the practice of offering raises to men over women who are equally as deserving, because of the stereotypes that have become like a crutch to so many, too hard to shake off. I feel also that women are overly sexualized in main stream society, whom regards women as nothing more than mere objects deprived of brains. It's getting to the point where girls buy into the belief that the only way to succeed is by looking great, and buying into all the trends and products that are said to make you 'cool'. Girls are fighting an uphill battle with self-esteem issues, rather than tackling social issues like gender inequalities. After viewing distorted images of what boys and girls ought to be, and what that leads to are things that could have been avoided if the media set out real examples that boys and girls could live up to: gay bashing, rape, date rape, gangs, assault, low self-esteems, depression (the list goes on and on). Where can one draw the line between what we consider to be okay, and what actually sets the standards for all of us to obeyed by?

Blog #3

I seldom find myself watching t.v; because I preoccupy my time with doing other more stimulating activities such as, reading, writing, or doing homework. Perhaps, on the off chance that I am tuned into the t.v I will catch the new season of American Idol with my family. I don't know what it is about the show but, I can't get enough of it. From its' most whimsical characters to the more heartbreaking pieces of personal sorrows, and betrayals of the contestants.
It could not be American Idol without portraying several American core values: Freedom, individualism, success, youthfulness. It has been a common occurrence to see individuals sporting the most ridiculous outfits imaginable to try-out in front of the judges (banana suits, bathing suits, wigs, hats, mismatched outfit,ect. It never seems to amaze me that by the seventh season people can still be allowed on the air with their crazy gimmicks, but isn't that the point--quirkiness or should I say individuality is what gets American Idol such good ratings. We live in such an amazing country, where people are granted the right to dress which ever way they please without being persecuted for it, and thus American Idol can have no restraint on the choice of apparel that the contestants make. Back to what I mentioned earlier about the heartbreaking pieces, they reveal the most important american value (at least what I believe to be the most important), achievement and success. One such story was about a man who was living with his mother so that he could look after her because she was suffering from severe seizures that would otherwise make it impossible to live at home. Well, being a self-less man he did the only thing he could do for his mom, he gave up his music career to look after her; it was only after his mother asked him to did he tryout for American Idol. This story depicts not only the value for humanitarianism, but it is interwoven this man's success at at making to the next auditions in Hollywood. It is these pieces that work up my heartstrings and draws me to the show, just because I'm rooting for them the entire way.

Blog #2: Media Impact on Children

It's interesting to see the distinct changes in the way the media played on the developement of children from the 1940's to now. Marketing in the Media during the 1940's, had only so many outlets at it's disposable--perhaps maybe even saw children as a small percentage of consumers. Today, as the media is turning out even more ways to get consumers to buy their products: Logos, toys, vacation getaways, cars, prizes, games, product branding, etc. Whether the media has placed more emphasis on getting children to be life-long consumers of their product, or perhaps there is a lack of parental control not being placed on children from what they can wear, to watch, to play with. It's such a simple question that has no true definate answer. This question goes back to the chicken and the egg situation; have we allowed media to define and shape our culture, society, and even the way we see ourselves as human beings, or does the media reflect what we have deemed most important in our lives (technology, materialism, egocentrism). After having viewed this video as well as done the dichotomy activity in class, I believe that there's no black and white answer to our problems; it's both the media and the indivdual's responsibility to exert control on what is being put up, and what gets watched.