Assignment #7:Babies!

A fellow classmate of ours recently mentioned a film, Babies, that she found to be relevant to our class. I decided to also watch the film, and thought that it was a great example of what we had studied at the start of our class, as she had said.

The film's focus is on the lives of four babies; one that lives in San Francisco, one that lives in Mongolia, one that lives in Namibia, and one that lives in Japan. Although we assume these places to be so different, as I watched the film I realized that there are similarities just as there are differences. The film demonstrates that babies are babies, and no matter where they come from, they do the exact same things. Although, I appreciated the way in which the film demonstrated how there are a variety of ways that adults choose to behave in regards to babies. For example, some of us take our babies to music classes and get the latest toys, while others clap with their children and make toys out of the things they have already. This contrast made me question what is best, and if in the end, the newest and greatest classes and toys aren't so great. Do fancy toys help our children become better people?

Although there are a plethora of parenting strategies to consider while watching the film, one common thread seen throughout the film is how every place and every group of people have a rhythm. Every group of people raises their children differently, and because of this certain behaviors, toys, technology, and ways of teaching, will all be different. I do not know what is best, as I have never been a parent. However, I have to wonder if all of these "have to's" are really necessary.

Assignment #6: CSUMB Poets in Celebration of Social Justice

The event, Poets in Celebration of Social Justice was really great. I had heard about the event from both Estella and my professor for Transnational Migrations, Maria Villasenor. I am currently taking 18 units this semester, as well as working as much as I can. Needless to say, I don't make it to that many campus events. However, I made it to this one, and am really happy that I did.

The event was held in the University Ballroom, where three poets were invited for a poetry reading. I personally have never attended a poetry reading, and I really enjoyed myself. The speakers were so powerful, and their poems were very beautiful. It was inspiring to hear such passion, and the events that have affected these individuals, as well as their people. It was truly a wonderful event, and if any of you have time, you should attend such events.

Assignment #5: Sex and the City

I must admit that I was a big fan of Sex and the City, both the television shows and the first film. A fellow classmate had suggested to watch the film, Sex and the City 2, as she seemed to find it to be very racist and unacceptable. The media forms in which we are exposed to are very important, due to the fact that they carry the possibility to have a great influence on us. Therefore, what we see as "normal" or "funny," in films, or any other media form, we may transfer into our own lives, our own behavior, and our own thoughts. However, I also think that we should acknowledge that there should be some media that is meant to entertain, and that may not always be the perfect example.

Therefore, I took my classmate up on her suggestion, with the thought in mind that she was being a bit too critical, and extreme. It turns out, I was wrong and that I found myself agreeing with her. Sex and the City 2 concentrated on a group of girlfriends that leave New York for a getaway to Abu Dhabi. Although the four women may have not understood certain aspects of the culture found in this distant land, they had a general sense of the respect that was to be paid to the people and region. Although some of the characters were able to accept common behavior, there was one character that would not. She refused to accept the forms of dress, and conservative behavior that demonstrated respect.

A film such as Sex and the City 2 is a major film, and due to its cast and popularity, has the potential to affect many people. Therefore, when films or any other media choose to portray characters in such a way, they imply and reassure the idea that white Americans hold power and should be accepted as the norm. It makes one wonder why this subject is even addressed, why must we treat those who are different than "us" as "clueless" or "bad?" Why couldn't all the characters within this film accept the common behaviors and actions in Abu Dhabi without judgement or disagreement? I think that in media for social change, it is important to consider these ideas because our ideas and behaviors are affected by what we are exposed to.   

Assignment #4: What Can I Do?

One concept that has really caught my attention in class recently, is the idea of social marketing for health communication. No matter where one is from, or what beliefs one holds, it is vital that the media acknowledges and respects this. If the media hopes to impact their target audience, and make a mark in health for the public, they need to research their audience members. For example, if a media campaign's audience members are from an area that are generally of a certain religion that does not accept birth control practices, those involved with the media campaign need to be aware of this.

As we were shown in class, not everyone involved in media campaigns are familiar with their target audience, and or do not respect the values of their target audience. One example was a media campaign targeted towards teenage boys. In the ad, the boys were encouraged to practice abstinence. However, this ad was played for an audience in an area that had a high rate of teen pregnancy, therefore this ad did not consider or care about the values or practices of their target audience. Hence, this may easily defeat the purpose of this ad campaign, wasting time, money, and may even in some cases show disrespect towards the audience that the ad is geared towards.

All in all, it is extremely important that we include the ideals of our audience when we design a campaign. If we do not think about the practices and beliefs of our audiences, especially concerning health as in the example I addressed, our efforts are worthless. If we expect change, we must include those who are involved. We cannot step into people's lives for a period of time, and expect to have them react positively, and follow practices that do not align with their ways of life.

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.