Assignment #3: The Media's Representation of Human Nature

I have recently started, The Art of Happiness in a Troubled World by his holiness, The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D., and I am really enjoying it. The book captured my attention in the last chapter I read, titled, Human Nature Revisited, in how it discussed our view of human nature within our society. We tend to view our nature as being very aggressive and violent, however, as numbers referenced prove, we are not actually this way. Although human nature actually tends to be the opposite of this, human nature continues to be represented in this way on TV and in the news. After reading this, I immediately thought of  how our views might change if the media changed. What if instead of broadcasting thousands of negative stories that represented this negative view of human nature, media changed, and showed its viewers positive acts of human nature? In The Art of Happiness in a Troubled World, The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D., referenced a study that stated that there are thousands more acts of well-doing, rather than bad. If the media actually decided to represent what human nature is actually like, maybe we as humans, would be able to see ourselves more accurately and see the good within. What a positive impact the media could have on human's views of themselves and their behaviors! *Just a thought to think about*

Assignment #2: Impact

      As our impact grows greater, and we begin to realize that we have caused some real problems for ourselves, the issue of our impact has also grown in the media.  While it seems as though many of us attempt to make an impact for the better, I question if our efforts are created by ourselves or by the media.  "Going Green" is surely a familiar slogan to many of us, and although it has a positive message behind it, I feel that many of us, including myself, fall into the place of doing "green things" because it's the cool thing to do.  When we go to buy our all-organic, locally grown produce at the grocery store for example, do we stop by Starbucks on the way in our gas guzzling cars?  The film, No Impact Man, made me consider ideas such as this.
     We may all have good intentions, however, it seems that we may sometimes not see the whole picture.  In addition to that, the concept of living green may be overwhelming.  In my mind, it can be very difficult to separate "needs" versus "wants," which was addressed in the film.  In one scene, the wife, Michelle, makes it clear to her husband, Colin that she needs coffee to get through a project at work.  I found myself completely understanding where she was coming from.  As Americans, we live a fast-paced lifestyle, often find ourselves exhausted, and need something quick, as we never seem to have enough time.  However, watching this average New York Family, made me realize that there are things that I can do to have less impact on the world, and that it just requires some effort.
     There are simple things that we can do to make changes.  I thought that the most touching, and probably true thing that Colin said during the film was the effort that would have the largest impact, is getting involved with one's community, and joining an organization.  I find, personally, that I don't feel connected to a community so much.  As Colin noted, that when this happens, losing touch with one's community, we feel that it is okay to let things go because we don't feel a responsibility towards others.  I really loved this film, and I think that it would be great for anyone, and everyone to see.  The subjects did not push their views on to others, and understood that not everyone can do, or wants to do everything that his family attempted.  However, at the same time, I believe that they demonstrated to the audience that we all have a huge impact on our world.  There are some things that we can change in our lives, and everyone really makes a difference in what they choose to do or not do.

Assignment 1:

     Week three of the semester is beginning, and although there has been a great deal packed within these past few weeks, a picture remains in my mind.  On the first day of class, we were shown a slide show, and while we found some of the pictures we viewed to be enticing, some of them were far from any place we would want to be.  The photos ranged from the devastation of the recent oil spill, to a picture of an air balloon, which filled the photo with bright colors and a feeling of freedom.  However, among the many pictures, one that I can still clearly see, while feeling its impact, is the photo of the women's faces on the sides of the houses.
     This communication project, calling out attention to the many women who have been killed as a result of domestic violence is extremely powerful in my eyes.  As this Project is far from anything that I have ever seen, I found myself relating the image to the article, "Notes on the Construction of Reality in TV News Programmes" by Daniel Chandler.  In this article, it discussed how news is selective, and no matter which form of media we are being exposed to, it generally has a purpose.  Furthermore, as we have discussed, the media is ran by very few.  As a result, we tend to find ourselves presented with information that aligns with the views, beliefs, and interests of those individual's that posses power in the world of media, rather than what is actually going on in the world.  What if the news were to focus on projects such as this?    
     As the slide that displayed the many women that had been killed as a result of domestic violence proved, there are many problems and tragedies that occur in our world.  However, although events such as this one are very upsetting, we must accept them as reality and focus on their importance within our society, and therefore within our media.  As was stated in Chandler's article, so much involving minorities is ignored.  If we were to call attention to the stories that hold a much greater significance to the human race, and create a world of media that was not so controlled, I believe that we could present more of our reality to ourselves.  Photos like the one that I have described deserve more attention, and makes me hope to one day see, a much more democratic world of media.