Last Class

Well, I just finished my last Mass Communication class. We didn't do much today. We handed in our Last Word letters to Mark. I think I did I good job on it. Everything in the letter his true. I wrote everything from my heart.
Then Mark gave us all, well atleast me, a heart attack when he announced that we were having an impromptu exam. I was thinking, What? How can we have an exam? I never studied? He said we weren't having one. Im going to fail. But, it turns out they were personal questions like how we think we did, what marks we deserve for the projects, and how he was as a proffessor. So, it was pretty easy. And after we did that, we filled out our marking sheets for our blogs. We wrote down how we thought we did on them and what mark we think we deserve.
It was a good ending to a great class. And again, Thank you Mark and Ian for everything. You really made this class something special. =)

1 Day Left

So, tomorrow is my last mass communication class and im both sad and excited for it to be done. I will miss the interesting class discussions and lectures, but at the same time I am going to be so releived. I'll be free of homework from this class, which has really worked me hard, harder than I had ever expected.
Taking this class was a great experience for me and I learnt a lot over the past three months. I look forward for our last class tomorrow afternoon and I would just like to thank Mark and Ian for making this class a great learning experience for me.

Mapping Who Owns What? Media Hegemonies

After researching different corporations, my group decided to choose Viacom to focus on. Using the book, We the Media, we were able to find all the different companies that Viacom owns. Viacom owns four different groups, Viacom Entertainment Group, Blockbuster Entertainment group, Spelling Entertainment, Republic Entertainment, Laurel Entertainment, Home Video and Paramount Communications, Inc. All of these groups consist of many different companies.
The following are a few of the companies that the 4 biggest groups own...

Viacom Entertainment Group:

• Nickelodeon
• The Movie Channel
• All News Channels
• 15 Radio Stations
• Famous Players
• The Free Press

Blockbuster Entertainment Group:

• Blockbuster Music
• Super Club Music
• Sound Warehouse Music
• Blockbuster Video

Spelling Entertainment:

• Spelling Films International
• Spelling Television
• Spelling Satellite Networks

Paramount Communications, Inc.

• 5 Paramount parks in the U.S. and Canada
• Paramount Home Video
• UPN Network

As a group we each researched Viacom individually and then combined all of our information together. We then all made a poster, which consisted of a web map. We put Viacom in the middle and then all around it were the groups that they own. Then attached to the groups were the companies that they owned.

I learnt a lot from this assignment. I learnt that a lot of big corporations own hundreds of smaller ones and that they all in some way can be connected to each other.

Media ownership is happening all over the world and in some countries that's OK, but in others it is a problem. "A number of other countries do already allow cross-media ownership, that is to say, one owner can run both TV and newspapers in the same country. One of those countries is Canada, but the way the system operates there has caused disquiet. One company, Canwest Global, owns one of the biggest commercial TV stations in Canada, reaching 94 per cent of the population. Canwest also owns nine local TV stations, a national newspaper and 14 metropolitan dailies. The company is controlled by one family, the Aspers, who, by the way, also have a majority share in Australia's Channel Ten" (Murray, Brenda).

Sources:

Murray, Brenda. Cross-media ownership causes disquiet in Canada. May 21, 2002. October, 13 2007.

<http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/stories/s560762.htm>

Class Today....

Today in Mass Comm Mark set up a 20 minute examination to help Ian get his doctorial. Ian talked to us for 20 minutes about his fake news investigation and then we had to come up with questions for him. These questions were to help him so that he is prepared to answer any question that his examiners give him.
At the begining of class Mark talked to us about our Last Word Letter. He answered any questions and discussed what should be in the letter.
And to end the class off, we got our papers back. I got 63% on mine. Mark told us that if we got 60% or higher that we should be proud of ourselves.Im not totally proud of myself because I know I can do better. But, I will take it and learn from it. And I will make sure I do better on my next essay. Atleast I improved from my first essay in this class.

Timeline of Media History

For our timeline of media history my group chose to include cinema, the radio, the telegraph and the printing press. The following is some of the information that we found.

Cinema: "The Frenchman Louis Lumiere is often credited as inventing the first motion picture camera in 1895. But in truth, several others had made similar inventions around the same time as Lumiere. What Lumiere invented was a portable motion-picture camera, film processing unit and projector called the Cinematographe, three functions covered in one invention.
The Cinematographe made motion pictures very popular, and it could be better be said that Lumiere's invention began the motion picture era. In 1895, Lumiere and his brother were the first to present projected, moving, photographic, pictures to a paying audience of more that one person" (About.Com*)

Radio:

• it is closely related to the telegraph and telephone
• began as "wireless telegraphy"
• started with the discovery of "radio waves"
• Many devices work by using electromagnetic waves including: radio, microwaves, cordless phones, remote control toys, television broadcasts
• Radio-telegraphy is the sending by radio-waves the same dot-dash message used in a telegraph
• Was developed at the time mainly for ship-shore communication
• Wireless signals proved effective in communication for rescue work when a sea disaster occurred
• 1899, the U.S. army established wireless system
• 1901, radio telegraph service was instituted between 5 Hawaiian Islands
• By 1903, a Marconi station located in Wellfleet Massachusetts carried an exchange or greeting between President Theodore Roosevelt and King Edward VΙΙ
• 1905, the naval battle of Port Arthur in the Russo- Japanese was reported by wireless
• 1906, the US weather Bureau experimented with radio telegraphy to speed notice of weather conditions
• 1909, Robert E. Peary, artic explorer, radio telegraphed “I found the pole”
• 1910, Marconi opened regular American – European radio telegraph

Telegraph: "Together with his partner Alfred Vail, Morse developed in 1838 the simple operator key, which when depressed completed an electric circuit and sent a signal to a distant receiver which was an electromagnet that moved a marker that embossed a series of dots and dashes (the morse code) on a paper roll. About 1856 a sounding key was developed that enabled operators to hear the message clicks and write or type it directly down in plain language. Telegraph systems quickly spread across Europe and the United States. With the growing telegraph traffic many improvements followed. Like the duplex circuit, in Germany, that made it possible for messages to travel simultaneously in opposite directions on the same line. Thomas Edison devised a quadruplex in 1874 that enabled four messages to travel at once. The most revolutionary invention was that of Jean-Maurice-Emile Baudot, his time division multiplex invented in 1872" (Rubin, Julian).

Printing Press: "The impact of printing in Europe was comparable to the development of writing and the invention of the alphabet or the internet as far as its effects on the society. Just as writing did not replace speaking, printing did not achieve a position of total dominance. The different graphic modes of communication continued to influence each other. Because of the printing press, authorship became more meaningful and profitable. It was suddenly important who had said or written what, and what the precise formulation and time of composition was. This allowed the exact citing of references, producing the rule, "One Author, one work (title), one piece of information" (Giesecke, 1989; 325). Before, the author was less important, since a copy of Artisole made in Paris would not be exactly identical to one made in Bologna. For many works prior to the printing press, the name of the author was entirely lost"(Wikipedia).

For the collabortive process each of us chose one of the inventions and researched it and the fourth one we all researched. Then we got together and shared our research with each other and chose which stuff to keep and which stuff to get rid of. Then we put our findings in a timeline on a poster.
From this assignment I learnt about the inventions and the impact that the cinema, radio, telegraph and printing press had on our society. They were all big inventions and without them the world would be completely different. Without the cinema and radio we couldn't watch TV and movies or listen to music. Without the Printing press we wouldn't have the Toronto Star. This world as it is now, would not be the same without these four inventions.
Marshal McLuhan said that media ecology "means arranging various media to help each other so they won't cancel each other out, to buttress one medium with another. You might say, for example, that radio is a bigger help to literacy than television, but television might be a very wonderful aid to teaching languages. And so you can do some things on some media that you cannot do on others. And, therefore, if you watch the whole field, you can prevent this waste that comes by one canceling the other out" (Wikipedia*).

Sources:
Wikipedia. Printing Press. November 13, 2007. November 16, 2007.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printing_press>

About.Com. The Invention of radio. 2007. November 16, 2007.
<http://inventors.about.com/od/rstartinventions/a/radio.htm>

About.Com*. The History of the Motion Picture. 2007. November 16, 2007.
<http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blmotionpictures.htm>

Rubin, Julian. Samuel Morse: The Invention of the Telegraph. September 2007. November 16, 2007
<http://www.juliantrubin.com/bigten/morsetelegraph.html>

Wikipedia*. Media Ecology. November 16, 2007. November 16, 2007.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_ecology>

Huge Win for Leafs

So I just thought I'd share with you all my extreme excitement that the Leafs beat the Sens 3-0 last night! I am absolutely delighted that they defeated the Sens. This is a HUGE win for them. The biggest win of the season. The fact that they beat their arch rivals, 3-0, is awesome. But to beat the number 1 team, 3-0, when your team is struggling is just FANTASTIC!!! So, put both of those points together and now you know why it's they're biggest win of the season.
And, if you didn't know before, now you defintley know that I huge Leafs fan, and I can get excited about the smallest things, if is has something to do with the Leafs. So, don't make fun of me or try to make me hate the Leafs. Because it won't work, and you'll have just wasted you time. I take great pride in being a part of LEAFS NATION!

Activist Project

For our activist project, my group decided to do it on Darfur. Genocide is happening in Darfur and thousands of innocent people are being killed for no reason. No one seems to be doing anything about this, and one reason may be because most people aren't aware of what is happening.
So to create awareness of Darfur, we held an event at Humber residence. We invited all of our friends and posted flyers. Overall, we had a pretty good turnout. We made a 10 minute presentation about Darfur, accompanied by a Powerpoint presentation using video clips and pictures. We created a comprehensible brochure and made green ribbons to give to the people that came out. We gave each person a few ribbons in hope that they would share what we told them with others. We wanted to collaborate with Humber’s STAND group, but unfortunately, our schedules conflicted.
From this assignment and the documentary that we watched I have learnt what is happening in Darfur. I know that innocent people, even children are being tortured and murdered and that know one really is doing anything about it. I think that what is happening is absolutely horrible and that more people should be aware of what is going on. Together we can all make a difference in these peoples lives.

Darfur Documentary

My group decided to watch "The Devil Came on Horseback" for our documentary film. The film is about the continuous Darfur conflict in Sudan. "It is based on former U.S. Marine Captain, Brian Steidle's experiences while working as an unarmed military observer for the African Union"(Wikipedia).
Our argument is, a lot of people are ignorant about genocide and what is happening in Darfur and that Genocide should end. Genocide is a serious issue that most people don't like to talk about. When they here it on the news or read it in the paper, people tend to ignore it because it doesn't concern them. While they are doing so, thousands of people are being killed for no apparent reason. These are innocent people that haven't done anything wrong, and they're being killed just for the sake of it. There is no need for this to be happening, we can make a difference. If every single person were to be informed about Darfur this world would see how cruel it really is. And maybe all of us together could influence the American troops to go down and end this genocide in Darfur forever.
After watching the film, I discussed, with my group, what we had just seen. Before watching this movie, I didn't know much about Darfur. I had heard about it but i really was that informed about it. But now, after seeing the movie, I am flabbergasted. As, I saw with my own tow eyes what was happening, I felt so horrible. Innocent people, even babies are being murdered. I mean, how can be people be so down right mean. It still puzzles my mind, why anybody would want to kill someone, especially in such a cruel way. Children are being handcuffed and then burned alive. This is absolutely horrible. I really don't know what to think of it anymore. I am just so surprised that people have let this happen. Another thing that we talked about in our discussion was the fact that when Brian Steidle was working in Africa he thought to himself that if people in the U.S. knew what was going on and saw pictures of it they would for sure bring troops down to try and stop it. But, two years later no one has done anything about it. This is really sad, but is so true. One of the most heartfelt moments was near the end Brian Steidle starts crying because of what he's seen and blames himself for not trying to stop it. But, seriously he couldn't have stopped it, and if he had tried he would have been killed.
I learnt so much from this documentary and discussion. I learnt about everything that is happening in Darfur and how no one seems to be doing anything about it. I learnt that so many innocent people are being killed each and every day for no apparent reason. And, I learned that it isn't going to stop and less we do something about it.
I think that everyone should watch this film. It will give people an awakening of what is happening in the real world. People need to know about Darfur and that genocide is happening all over the world. It will really make you count your blessings in life because we have it so good compared millions of others in the world. Just imagine how it would feel seeing your family being burned to death. It's not a pretty picture, is it. We can make a difference.

Sources:
Wikipedia. The Devil Came on Horseback. Novemeber 4, 2007. November 20. 2007.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Devil_Came_on_Horseback>

Inventions Change Culture

There are many inventions that have significantly changed the world. Such inventions as....

• The printing Press
• Telephone
• Radio
• Cars
• TV
• Radio
• Ipod
• Internet

In class today Mark had us get into groups of ten and we had to come up with as many inventions that we could that have impacted the culture/society.

All together the class came up with several inventions, but we all agreed that one of the most important ones was the printing press. The printing press made it able for us to produce a mass amount of copies of paper/ notes.

The Printing press is also one of the most significant revolutionary technologies.

Right now, we are in late capitalism, in the shift from literacy to electronic. Computers have greatly affected us and are one of the main reasons for this shift. Now a days, people tend to use the computer and internet for everything instead of reading books and writing on paper.

The internet is also very important to us. Most people use it almost everyday.

Over the years, the way we communicate has significantly changed, from cave writing to hieroglphics to Arabic to the alphabet to printing. Writing transforms how the world works. Tied to that is the alphabet but cave printing is just as important. Our early ancestors learned that a word could have a meaning and that sounds mean something. This is what makes humans human. They have the ability to understand the meaning of complex sounds and words and create a language out of them. A form of communication that they use to communicate to others.

Pop Culture Books

The following are a list of Pop Culture books, I wouldn't mind reading....

1. Out of Sync, by Lance Bass
2. A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Song, by Steve Turner
3. Art of Modern Rock: The Poster Explosion, by Paul Grushkin and Dennis King
4. Noise/Music: A History, by Paul Hegarty
5. Love Lucy, by Lucille Ball
6. Dress Your Best, by Clinton Kelly and Stacey London
7. Amped up: Aly & AJ The Official Biography, by Grace Norwich
8. After All, By Mary Tyler Moore
9. Growing Up Brady: I was a teenage Greg, by Barry Williams and Chris Kreski
10. The Rookie: A Season with Sidney Crosby and the New NHL, by Shawna Richer and Roy Macgregor
11. Lindsay Lohan: The Biography, by Sarah Marshall
12. '67: The Maple Leafs, Their Sensational Victory, and the End of an Empire, by Damien Cox and Gord Stellick
13. Mediated: How the Media Shapes Your World and the Way You Live in It, by Thomas De Zengotita

Magazines

I enjoy reading magazines because it keeps me up to date with every thing that it going on. I mostly read entertainment magazines because that is what I am most interested in. For a few years now, I have had a subscription to Seventeen magazine. I really enjoy this magazine because it talks about several topics that interest me, such as fashion, make-up, hair, real life stories, celebrities, and embarrassing stories.

Some other magazines I read are....

1. People


2. Cosmo Girl


3. Self


4. Vogue


5. Pop Star


6. Tribute

Sources:

http://home.att.net/~kquarles/Images/LeicaOnSeventeen.jpg

What am I reading???

For the past year I have been reading a series of books, called Gossip Girls. It is about a group of rich teenagers, who live in New York. The books follow their exciting life of school, parties, gossip, fights, love, and getting into college. I absolutely love these books because they involve teenagers around my age and the problems they go through. It is also fascinating to find out how the rich and spoiled kids live in New York City.

This show has recently become a TV series. It is an awesome show, but it is a lot different then the books. So, if you like the show, I recommend you read the books, because they're even better!!

What I'm Thinking...

So, there's only a few weeks left of Mass Communication class now. Time is going by very quickly and the homework is starting to slow down. All I have left for this class is this blog and my "last word" letter. I have learnt a lot in this class so far. It really seems surreal that I have learnt so much in only three months. I can remember my first day of this class, and I was so excited yet so scared at the same time. Mark came into the class all happy and energetic and it just really made my day. I really thought that I would enjoy this class. At the same time I was terrified because of all the freedom he was giving us. I wasn't used to working like that. I have always been taught to work on rules and outlines. So, when we were going over our course syllabus I really didn't like the fact that every assignment said, "Make them as short as possible and as long as needed." I worried about how long everything was supposed to be, because it never actually said a specific length. But, now I completely understand it and I'm fine with it. I am more now capable of judging for myself how long an assignment should be.
One thing that we definitely had in this class was freedom. I, personally, think we had a little to much freedom for my liking. Nothing was ever completely outlined for us and we didn't really know what Mark wanted. He had me confused as heck at times because I really didn't know what he wanted. But I was able to discuss the assignment with classmates and figure out on my own what I needed to do. I just wished that there was a little more structure in the class, but I guess that is the way Mark likes to work.
If I had to pick one word to describe this class it would definitely be "chaotic." This class was like one big chaotic mess. And I'm not saying that that's a bad thing either. I think it was good for Mark to give us some freedom. It gave us the opportunity to learn for and from ourselves. We were able to explore our own thoughts and ideas and create finished assignments that were 100 % us. It's just a little more guidance would have been nice at the time.
I don't know about others, but I, grew mentally from this class. I have learnt how to think more on my own and that I don't need someone there (like teachers) to babysit me, while I do my work. Really, I just have discovered more about myself, like how I think and work. And in a way this class has made me a little bit wiser and grown up.
Growing up is what life is all about. Life teaches us a lot of life lessons. And as we begin to get older we learn from every little event. So, I am glad that I have learnt so much from this class and I thank you Mark and Ian for everything you have taught me. And I look forward for our last few classes together.

Today in Class....

Today in class Mark talked about five important things....

1. Survival
2. Safety
3. Belonging
4. Esteem
5. Self Actulization

He also talked about the different between irony and parody.

Then Ian showed us a Ron English clip on propaganda and billboards. Some of them were pretty bad. There were two that stuck out to me....

1. Playdate in Iran - had a picture of a little boy wearing a military uniform
2. An ad that was making fun of Americans because they eat too much McDonalds - had a picure of a fat and old Ronald McDonald

This was a very interesting class, and I enjoyed it all.

Portrayal of Women

So, I have just finished writing my final paper for Mass communication. I wrote about the portrayal of women in society, but to make it my own I used The Mary Tyler Moore show as an example.

The following is a blurb from my essay.......

In today’s society image is everything. More attractive people get treated with more respect than others. The media portrays the ideal women as tall, skinny, and beautiful. Anyone who doesn’t fit this category is unimportant or is thought less of. This portrayal of women has gotten worse over the years, and has lead to many women feeling insecure about themselves. “[Women] get the bends as [they] escape the schizophrenic landscape of Glamour or Vogue [in which] the fashion and beauty layouts insist that [they] be passive, anorexic spectacles whose only function is to attract men and who should spend [their] leisure time mastering the art of the pedicure” (Douglas 120). ..................

This portrayal of women has been going on for centuries. It has been displayed in thousands of movie and television shows. One of the shows it can be seen in is the 1970’s hit, The Mary Tyler Moore Show. It is displayed between two best friends, Mary and Rhoda. Mary is a young, thin successful woman, while her best friend, Rhoda, is average sized and is portrayed as sloppy and lower class. Mary lives a better life than Rhoda because her appearance matches the ideal women: tall, skinny, and pretty................

First, I’m going to start with their positioning in the scene. Mary is standing looking down on Rhoda. She can be compared to a mother. Mothers look down on their kids when they are in need or in trouble. They are always there to help their kids out. But they also have authority over them and can punish them when needed. Mary is looking down on Rhoda because she feels sorry for her. She feels she needs to listen and help Rhoda with her problems. Rhoda is sitting down looking up at Mary. We can compare her to a child looking up to their mother. A child is young and innocent and needs their mother for everything. They are much smaller than their mother, therefore they have to always look up to them. There are two meanings of why they look up to their mother. They look up to their mother when they need help or advice with something. For example, if they can’t reach something or they want something to eat; they go to their mother for help. They, also, look up to their mother as a role model. To them, their mother knows everything and they want to grow up to be just like them. So, Rhoda looking up to Mary symbolizes that Mary is like a mother figure to her. Mary helps her when she is in need and she is a role model for Rhoda. Rhoda is like a lost puppy in need of some guidance. Having Mary stand and Rhoda sit creates them both to be on different levels. Mary is higher, making here more dominant. While, Rhoda is lower, making her less important.
Both Mary and Rhoda are dressed completely different. Mary is dressed professionally in a nice work outfit and her hair is clean and nicely groomed. She looks like she is successful and has a job of high importance. She is confident and happy with herself and is ready to take on a new day. Rhoda is dressed in baggy old clothes and her hair is a mess. She is wearing a bandana on her head to hide some of the mess. She looks like she is poor and out of work. She is giving off the impression that she doesn’t care much about anything. She is unhappy with herself and wishes she could be like a certain someone. This certain someone is her best friend, Mary. The fact that Rhoda wants to be just like Mary explains why she is always looking up to her. When looking at the both of them most people would be more inclined to approach Mary instead of Rhoda. People judge others by the way they look, and are more inclined to talk to someone who is nicely dressed.
Now, I’m going to take away the image and just analyze the conversation between the two of them. Rhoda is complaining to Mary about how she lost her job and how she can’t find a new one. She is spilling out her problems to Mary and wants her advice. She wants Mary to help her find a new job. This is another example of how Mary is the mother and Rhoda is the child. A child expects their mother to do everything for them. When they need help they go to their mother thinking that they will make everything better. They automatically think that, that is what their mother is for. Rhoda is going to Mary and complaining about her problems. She needs help, so she expects Mary to help her. Mary is concerned about Rhoda and sympathizes with her. She is, in some way, like her mother and feels like she needs to help her. This gives Mary more authority over Rhoda...........

I feel strongly about this topic because I am a female and really don't like how we are being portrayed. The media is telling us that we're no good, if we're not a size "0." And we, keep seeing it on TV and movies. Millions of females are stressing about the way they look and developing eating disorders, so they can be as skinny as they can be. But, this is really unreasonable because female aren't a size "0." This is really stupid of people to think that only skinny people matter. Why can't everyone of different sizes be accepted? It's not like the bigger you are the less smart you are? Weight has absolutely nothing to due with how smart you are. And it should have nothing to do with the way people see you.

So, why is it that the main character is always the skinny beautiful women and never the average sized women? More people would be able to relate to the average sized women, than the skinny women. But, yet, they still always make the main character skinny. Why is this?

Corporations

Today in class we talked about corporations that own several other businesses. Such as Disney, CBS Corporation, General Elective, and WB.

A lot of big named corporations own several other companies.

Disney owns Little Einstein, Magic Kingdom, Disney movies, and many more. While General Elective owns 99% of NBC, many TV stations, Universal Studio Parks in many countries, MSN, Universal pictures, GE Water, every filtration centre in the world, and others.

My group did has already researched cross media ownership, so I wasn't too surprised about this. we did our project on Viacom.

But, the one thing that really surprised me was that The Ontario Teachers Pension Fund owns The Toronto Maple Leafs. I am a huge Leafs fan, and this really surprised me. Who knew that my elementary and high school teachers owned The Leafs?

Thoughts.......

So....I don't have class today because my Mass Communication class was cancelled for the week. Mark thought it would be good for us to have a day off to catch up on any readings and assignments. And, well, I'm just so happy that I don't have any class today! Not, that I don't like this class, because I do, but everyone likes an extra day off.
This class is about half way done now, and it's going pretty well. Lately, I have been really stressing about our big semiotic paper, which is do in a couple of weeks. I have chosen to write my paper on the portrayal of women. I know a lot of people write about this topic so, to make it my own I am going to relate it the show, Mary Tyler Moore. I know it's an older show (1970's) but, the portrayal of the skinny, pretty women compared to the average women is really noticeable. My mom really likes this show, so she has a few of the seasons and I am addicted to it now. There's just something about the show that I really enjoy.
The group tasks are another thing that I am trying to work on. There's just so little time and so much to do. Sometimes I worry about whether I am going to get everything done on time. But, I know will because I work well under pressure and deadlines.
I still can't believe how much freedom we are getting in this class. It still scares me a bit. Like seriously what is up with the, "As short as possible and as long as necessary?" What kind of help is that?? I know, I know...We're supposed to figure out on our own how long we think it should be. But, this paper coming up, is worth a lot and I have no clue how long to make it.

Film/Video Production

For our film/video production my group decided to make a documentary about how students are coping with school and living in residents. It was a fun documentary and we got useful information out of it. We went around interviewing Guelph-Humber students to get their opinions on life as an university student and some of the Humber residences about their transitions. YouTube was being uncooperative with getting our video up so we don't have a copy.But here are some quotes from our video...

"It used to be a ten-fifteen minute drive to get anything and now I just walk downstairs [for food]."-- Tom Bender, first year.

"It [the freedom] doesn't get boring, but the novelty of getting whatever you want, whenever you want wears off, because you feel the direct effect of every decision you make and you end up having to be responsible." -- Ashley Shawongonabe, second year

"It's kind of weird, because I don't have to let anyone know where I'm going. But it's kind of awesome at the same time. I thought I was going to do a lot more with my freedom, but I kind of stuck to the original way I was raised. Honestly, it's really tempting to skip class because nobody is checking up on you. That's the biggest change."-- Julie Franklin, first year

We all came up with ideas for our film, but we thought this would be the most beneficial. It allowed us to see how others were coping and we had fun playing with different angles. Nikki did the filming, and Jen and I took turns interviewing people. Then we all took turns editing it, using iMovie.

From making this video I learned what is involved in making a film. As well, I learned how people are feeling towards school and resident life.

Semiotics/Meaning

Today in class we discussed semiotics and meaning. There are 2 parts that make up signs; 1) signifer, 2) signified. The signifer is the thing that is real and the signified are the mental concepts. For example, in class last week we watched a Gap commercial with Madonna and Missy Eliot. We discussed how Madonna was made to be on top and better then Missy Elliot. And in one shot Madonna was wearing a chain on the left side of her pants, which gives the meaning that she is more dominant. It just exists that Madonna had a chain on the left side but we put a concept to it that the left side is more dominant then the right side. And by her wearing it on the left is creating the affect that she is more important. The signification of everything is the meaning. There are 3 levels of meaning. 1) denotation, 2) connotation, and 3) ideology. They all are different ways people think. We went on to discuss the meaning of reading and the different types of reading. This class was very informative and helped me to better understand semiotics.

Jason Blake In My Prayers

I am a member of the AM640 insider and yesterday afternoon I received a breaking news email from them. I clicked on the email and the headline was, Breaking News: Leafs' Jason Blake diagnosed with Leukemia‏. As soon as I read that headline my heart started to pound. I was so scared, was Jason Blake (the newly acquired Leaf) going to die? I read the whole article and although it said how he was fine and that he is getting treatment, I still didn't feel good. For those of you who don't know I am a huge Leafs fan. I love all the Leafs dearly and I cheer them on through the good and the bad. When ever something happens, good or bad, I always have a reaction to it. Jason Blake is an outstanding player and I was thrilled this summer when he signed with the Leafs. He had his best season last year with the New York Islanders and I was, still am, excited to have him in Toronto. So, now you should understand why this news meant so much to me. The Leafs are like family I don't know. I spend so much time watching them, listening to them, and reading about them that it is like I know them. Whenever I'm stressed or upset I always look forward to watching a Leafs game because for two and a half I can forget about my real life and just focus on the game. I don't know what I'd do with the Leafs and hockey. Jason Blake will be in my heart and prayers and I sincerely hope he will have a full recovery.

The Advantages and Limitations of a Focus on Audience in Media Studies

I just finished reading The Advantages and Limitations of a Focus on Audience in Media Studies, by Philip J. Hanes. This essay explains the relation of the media and the audience and how some people respond to a specific show, article, or radio program. The media effects everyone in both positive and negative ways. Violence and crime in the media create a more violent world because people copy what they see on TV. A news story may emotionally touch someone due to personal experience. Certain shows do better than others because the audience can relate to it or they find it entertaining. The audience, technically, is in control of the media. The media is going to put out things that the public is going to like. If the public doesn't like it, then it won't get watched, read, or listened to and the companies will lose money. The companies want money and so they will give the public what they want.

Here's the link to the web page.
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/pph9701.html

Semiotics For Beginners

If you want to know what semiotics means and what they are, then you should definitely read Semiotics For Beginners, by Daniel Chandler. In this web page he explains semiotics as a form of encoding and decoding. He mentions several theorists and their models, such as Whilst Saussure's model of oral communication, Shannon and Weaver's model of communication, Roman Jakobson's proposed model of interpersonal verbal communication, and Stuart Hall"s model of mass communication. He explains in detail what each of the models were and gives a thorough explanation of semiotics. If semiotics are your thing, then this is a for sure read.

Here is the link to the web page.
http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/S4B/sem08c.html?

Ten Things Wrong With The Media Effects Model

I just finished reading Ten Things Wrong With The Media 'Effects' Model, by David Gauntlett. This article is a summary of what Gauntlett talked about in his book, Moving Experiences. It is about how the effects model research has taken the wrong approach to the mass media, its audiences, and society in general. He gives ten reasons why the Media effects research is flawed and doesn't work:

1. The effects model tackles social problems 'backwards'
2. The effects model treats children as inadequate
3. Assumptions within the effects model are characterised by barely-concealed conservative ideology
4. The effects model inadequately defines its own objects of study
5. The effects model is often based on artificial studies
6. The effects model is often based on studies with misapplied methodology
7. The effects model is selective in its criticisms of media depictions of violence
8. The effects model assumes superiority to the masses
9. The effects model makes no attempt to understand meanings of the media
10. The effects model is not grounded in theory

Poor Britney :(

Everyone has probably heard the big story of the week. Britney Spears has lost custody of her children and her ex-husband Kevin Federline will be taking care of them for the time being. I think this is so sad and I am totally upset about this. I know, Britney needs help and is unfit to care for her children but so is Kevin. There is no way that he should get them. They should go to a grandparent or an uncle or aunt, until one of them has proven that they are fully capable to care for their kids. So, I do fully understand why they have been taken away from Britney, but it still makes me so sad. I feel so sorry for her. She used to be on top of the world; one of the most popular and successful singers of the time. And now look where she is. She's a mess. A royal, nasty mess. And it is all because of her lifestyle. Hollywood has brought her down and gotten the worse of her. The drugs and alcohol have changed her completely and she is not herself right now. But I know, deep down inside Britney is a great person. I know she can get better and be on top of the world again. It's just a matter of, will she? I don't know if she will, but I seriously hope she does. I'm routing for you Britney! Get well soon! :)

Sources:

http://photos.exposay.com/Britney_Spears/britney_spears_0EsPk.jpg

Vote it's Important!!!

Today in class, Mark informed us on how important it is to vote in the upcoming provincial election. He went on to tell us that only a quarter of young people, between the ages of 18 and 24, actually vote and that it is essential that we do. The campaign this year is about school education and whether the government should fund religious schools.
My dad had already talked me into voting. He basically was saying the same things that Mark told us, that as an Ontario citizen I have the right and the responsibility to vote. And that it is important for me to have my say in what it happening in the government because it will effect me. My parents don't care who I vote for, they just want me to vote.
I think voting is important, and that everyone should vote. Everyone should have their say and be informed about the government and politics. The election effects everyone in Ontario. The one things that gets on my nerves is when people are to lazy to vote and then they go on and on about how they don't like whats happening and who's leading. Well, if they had voted then they could have made a difference. But, no, they had better things to do than vote. That is their fault and they have no right in criticizing and complaining because they did not vote.

Podcasting Our City

For our podcast we decided to do it on Nuit Blanche. For our script we focused on four sites, The Church of Redeemer, two sites at U of T St. George Campus,Osgoode Station, and described what we viewed and our reaction to them.
The first place we went to was The Church of Redeemer. We never expected a church to house art, but it was an ideal setting - a place of respect (for art and religion). And, besides, the church has its own place in art. The only complaint that I had here was it was too crowded. It was really noisy and people were pushing each other, and it really took away from the experience.
The next two sites were located at U of T St. George Campus. The first one was supposedly a UFO crash landing on the field, with smoke, lights, loud music, ‘police’ and emergency vehicles, and news reporters on the scene.The atmosphere was chaotic and it achieved the right affect. Here we entered a white tent and in it we found ET. The second one had metal beams set up, an extremely loud and frazzled mix of sounds, and blinding lights. The idea of this work was also chaotic, resembling our social world. It can also be thought of what a foreign creature or person would experience upon arrival in our city. Both of these works were quite bizarre and introduced us to a non-traditional world of art (installations and computer aids) - the current state of art.
The last site that we visited was around Osgoode Station. It was one of the most popular of the night. It was a giant screen projection set up that asked, “What will you do to stop climate change?” The public was able to text message their responses to appear onscreen. Some people had good answers, while the majority of messages were jokes and love messages. Clearly, people were immature about it, but nonetheless, it attracted a lot of attention.
For the collaborative process, we all participated in the event and on the subway ride we discussed what we saw and we thought of it. Jen wrote down notes of our discussion and our ideas and put it into a script. Then Nikki and I went over it and added what was missing.
From this assignment I learned a lot about different forms of art. I really likes the bizarre, non-traditional art at the U of T St. George Campus. It was something I had never seen before and it
it was just so cool. This was a great experience and encourage everyone to got the next time it comes to your city.
Our intention for this assignment was to experience the world of art. We all have an interest in art and we thought it would be a good idea, and a great way to broaden our world, if we attended Nuit Blanche. It was a lot of fun and I am glad we went.

Understanding Comics

I really enjoyed reading Scott McCloud's, Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art. It was a fun and interesting way to learn about about comics. He guides us through elements of comic style, time frames, lines, pictures, and the evolutionary growth of comics. This booked is packed with amazing pictures that correspond with words, and it takes you on a magical journey through out the time of comics. This is an unusual and exciting book, that when you finish reading you will never look at comics the same. Read it, it's fun!

Image Curation

One of the 7 tasks for this class is the image curation project. We had to, in groups, collect several images and organize them into a slideshow. These images had to represent visual culture. For this project I worked with Jennifer Kolenc. The first thing we did was brainstormed ideas about what our theme should be. We came up with several ideas, such as death, how women are portrayed, beauty, sex sells, and alcohol ads. They were all good ideas, but we decided to go with sex in alcohol ads. Once we had figured out our theme I started looking for pictures on the internet. It took me a while, but soon enough I had found enough ads to use in our slideshow. I then started to put the images in our slideshow. Once I had finished putting the images in, the two of us got together and went over everything else we were going to add to it. Jennifer, then saved the slideshow to her USB key and took it home to work on. She added some quotes, and did the final touch ups, such as slide transistions and timing, to make our slideshow the best it could be. We brought our slideshow to our next class and it was shown on the projector screen. Our slideshow represents how in today's society everything revolves around sex. Sex is used to sell everything, it is like people are obsessed with it. Companies will use any chance they get to use sex in their ads, because it sells their products. We just wanted to show how much and how inappropriate sex is being used in advertisements today. I, personally think that it has gone too far and some of the ads are way to visual for my liking. For example, who wants to see a man licking a women or a womens breast, that are just barely covered by limes. These are going to far, they are not leaving anything up to the imagination. And they are defintley inappropriate for young kids to see. But they see them because they are all over the place. Whether its TV, magazines, newspaper or billboards, kids are exposed to sex everyday of their lives. They are going to grow up thinking it is the norm and then they will start dressing and acting more sexually because that is what they know. The ads that we selected for our slideshow all display sex and sexuality. I found it really amazing to see how many alcohol companies use sex in their advertisements. An over whelming number of them do, and thats only alcohol companies. I can't imagine how many other companies use sex to sell their products. This world has become sex crazed, and so companies are using it to their advantage. From this project I learned how effective a visual image slideshow can be. Pictures are very strong and can tell better story than words. All you need is a good picture to get your point across.

Learning Commons = Help

Today in class our professor, Mark Lipton, arranged a special visit from the learning commons. This visit was due to the low marks on our papers that we had handed in last week. The people from the learning commons told us about their services and that we should take advantage of it because it will improve our writing. At the end of the class we all got out papers back, and when I looked at mine I was shocked. All that was going through my head was how can I have gotten 60% when all through out high school I got straight A's. I didn't know what to think, but I had to rush back to residence because it was my first day at my new job. After work, I came back to my room and read my paper. And now I know why I got that mark. My paper was not well written at all. It was very simple and didn't show that much time had been spent on it. And well, that's true. I didn't spend much time writing it. I wrote it fast so I could get it done and over with. I was so proud that I had it done a week early, but I now realize that it doesn't do much good to have it done early if it isn't written at your best ability. So, I have learned my mistake and will now spend more time on each of my papers. I will also remember to use the learning commons as a tool. And I would just like to thank you, Mark, for bringing in the learning commons to class because I had totally forgotten about them and I will use them from now on.

The Media is the Music in Me

For my media autobiography, I decided to make a burnt cd that contained several songs that I listen to everyday. These songs aren't just any songs though. They are songs that have some personal meaning to me. It wasn't hard to choose the songs because most songs touch me in some way. Music is everything to me. It is in me all the time and it is how I relate to different situations. When certain things happen to me I associate it to a song. For example, when my grandpa passed away, I took it really bad. I always looked forward to spending time with him, because he treated my sisters and me as if we were princesses. He spoiled us rotten but it felt good to be loved. “Slipped Away,” by Avril Lavigne, expresses my feelings and emotions towards my grandpa and his death. The song talks about how she was completely shocked by her grandpa’s death and how much she wants him to come back. This is exactly how I feel about my grandpa. Every time I hear this song I think about my grandpa and every time I think about my grandpa this song pops into my head. I have connected my grandpa’s death to the song “Slipped Away” because that is how my mind works. Everything revolves around music in my life.
Therefore, it is not a surprise that I have created a mixed CD for my media autobiography. This CD is full of songs that have personal meanings to me. They are songs that have somehow touched me or have inspired me in a way. I listen to these songs on a daily basis and when I do they change my mood. For example, some songs like “Never Stop,” by Hilary Duff, and “Breaking Free,” by Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens, make me feel happy. They are up beat songs that talk about how everything will be ok and how you can achieve anything if you put your mind to it. They both have good messages and they bring joy and hope into me. On the other hand, songs like “Gunnin’,” by Hedley and “Afraid,” by Vanessa Hudgens bring more sympathetic and sad emotions into me. They are about having insecurities and the certain features about you that you’re not to fond about. Every song has a different message in them, which exposes different emotions and feelings into the listener.
The songs that I chose to put on my cd are...

1. Big Girls Don't Cry, by Fergie
2. Hey There Delilah, by The Plain White T's
3. Stranger, by Hilary Duff
4. Teardrops on My Guitar, by Taylor Swift
5. Blush, by Aly & AJ
6. Never Stop, by Hilary Duff
7. Gunnin', by Hedley
8. Someone's Watching Over Me, by Hilary Duff
9. Dancing Alone, Ashlee Simpson
10. Slipped Away, by Avril Lavigne
11. Afraid, by Vanessa Hudgens
12. Trip, by Hedley
13. A beautiful Life, by Lindsay Lohan
14. Breaking Free, by Zac Efron & Vanessa Hudgens

Ways of Seeing

I really enjoyed reading Ways of Seeing by John Berger. It takes you through the years of paintings, pictures, and images. Not only is it interesting to read, it is filled with beautiful pictures. The pictures correspond to what that page is about. Berger discusses such issues as seeing comes before words, the difference between the way men and women are portrayed in pictures, and the way advertisements make you feel.
Seeing comes before words. Every child can look before before he can talk. But there is also another meaning to Seeing comes before words. Everywhere we go we are surrounded by things to see. It is seeing that establishes where we are and whats around us. Before we can describe what we are surrounded by, we have to be able to see it. We have to see things before can know about them.
Men and women are both portrayed differently in images. Men are portrayed as dependent and powerful. He is seen as he is there to do something for you. While women are portrayed as beautiful and vein. She is there for you to do something to her. Women are often looked at as sexual objects that guys can own.
Advertisements tend to make you feel like without this you aren't complete. They use different techniques and images to get you to think that you need their product. Their message is always in the future and it gives the impression that you'll be happy and envied if you have this product. Advertisers use such images in their ads as models and mythological figures, the romantic use of nature, sexual emphasis given to women, materials to indicate luxury, and the equation of drinking and success.
This is a very valuable book and I recommend that you read it.

Harry Potter, a Must Read!!!

If You are going to read any series I suggest you read Harry Potter. It is a fascinating series that takes you on a magical journey. You follow Harry Potter and his friends into the wizarding world as they go to school and try to save the world from the powerful, evil, Lord Voldormort. The 7th and final book just came out this summer, and I finished in just two days. It was an awsome book, and was a great end to the series. Now, before this book came out, there was a lot of rumours going on with who was going to die. Everyone knew either Harry Potter or Lord Voldormort had to die because it was in the prophecy. But Know knew who. There were bets going on in the world, a lot of people thougt Harry, others thought Lord Voldormort, and some thought both of them. And I am happy to tell you that I was write all along, and I knew that was what was going to happen. Now, your thinking who died, right? Well, the answer is....are you kidding? Im not going to tell you and ruin it for you. You have to pick up the book and find out for yourself. Im telling you, you won't be disappointed. In fact, you will probably want to read the other six books, if you haven't already. Now, what I will tell you is...

1. The real truth comes out about Snape
2. The Prophecy or the Deathly Hollows?
3. Professor Umbridge = evil
4. Dumbledore???
5. Ron +Hermoney=?
6. Is Harry going to lose faith in the one person he trusted the most?
7. DEATH

Read it, and you will have taken the journey of you life!

Copyright A Fair(y) Use Tale

As I got to my Mass communication class, on September 12, 2007, I noticed that it had already started. The class was watching a short film on the overhead projector. I looked at my watch and saw that I wasn't late but ten minutes early. So why would the class have already started? Well, it turns out that a student in the class had told the professor the wrong time of when the class started. A simple mistake, it doesn't matter, it's over with. The more important thing was the film that they were watching, Copyright A Fair(y) Use Tale. This ten minute clip is all about the copyright law and fair use. You would think that a video like this would be pretty boring. But, indeed it wasn't. It was not you normal educational video, that bores you to death. This video is made up off hundreds of clips from Disney Videos. The makers of this video have selected small clips of 1-3 words and put them together so that they make a story. A wonderful magical story about copyright. The only problem is, is that you have to pay close attention or else you won't catch what the characters are saying because the clips are very short and quick.

The Following is the link to the video. Watch it. It will be the most entertaining educational video you have ever seen. Come on, it's Disney. Everyone loves Disney!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=pUPsfYJONrU

Amusing Ourselves to Death

This controversial book, by Neil Postman, talks about the ever changing world of technology and how it effects our culture. Media and culture have a close relationship to one another in today's society. Whatever happens in culture happens in the media and whatever happens in the media happens in culture. Media companies work together to create movies, television shows, and many other forms of media that represent what is happening in society. These are not only to inform the public of what is going on, but as well as to entertain them. Therefore, the companies alter the shows to make them more entertaining. But, when they do this they are giving a false representation of world events and so the public is uninformed about what is going on. Because of this, people don't take news seriously anymore and act as it's a source if entertainment.
Postman frames his arguments with two warnings from Orwell and Huxley. Orwell warns us that we will be defeated by an externally forced oppression. On the other hand, Huxley warns us that we will come to love our oppression. We will take joy to the technologies that feed us information so we don't have to think for ourselves. Postman supports Huxley's case because he believes that people enjoy not having to think.
Different mediums can change certain aspects of a culture. Print as a medium encourages thinking, analyzing, and writing and creates a well knowledge society. They are well informed and have a strong understanding of what is happening in the world. When print is the primary means of communication, then the culture as a whole has a strong public discourse of important issues. Television as a medium is essentially effortless. You don't have to think about anything when you watch a movie or a show, you just sit there watching the television portray images onto the screen. When a commercial comes on the viewer can either like it or dislike the commercial, but they can neither accept or refuse it because there's nothing to accept or refuse.
These arguments I have discussed are not of my own, but of Neil Postman. I, myself, agree and disagree to his opinions. I do agree that people prefer not to think. If you look at most people today, they would rather spend time watching television, playing video games, and going on the computer, then to reading or writing. But, at the same time, people can learn a lot from watching television or going on the computer. Society is changing to a more technologically inclined culture and this is neither good or bad. It is what it is, and we should just go with it and take advantage of it.

Playboy Interview with Marshall McLuhan

As I read this article, I began to think what in the world is this guy talking about? Marshall McLuhan comes up with some of the most ridiculous predictions of what is going to happen to this world. For example, he states how American Negros and Indians are going to be exterminated because White Americans are taking over the world, or how everyone is running around like "little chicken" because they are over whelmed by technology.

I personally don't agree with him at all on most occasions, and still when I do it's only a bit. White men definitely have power in this world, I'm not going to lie, but other ethnic groups still live a great live in this society. They can do everything white men can, with some exceptions, but they are certainly not exterminated.

People today, in society, are technologically savvy. Meaning they are familiar around it and it's a part of their everyday life. Technology is used all the time, whether it's used for researching on the computer, watching a show on television, or listening to music on the radio. It certainly does not scare many people in this world.

The one thing that I did agree with him a little is that kids these days are watching to much TV. Parents just throw their kids in front of the television set so they don't have to entertain them. It is a problem, but it's not as big as a problem as he says it is. I mean, kids aren't all of a sudden becoming cyclops because they watch too much TV.

McLuhan thinks very highly of himself and his world wide predictions, but exactly how many people actually take him serious?

Mass Communications

I am in Mark Lipton's Mass Communication class at the University of Guelph-Humber and as an assignment I have to write a blog expressing my thoughts and feelings of our class discussions, assignments, and books. Although I have only attended one class I really think I'm going to enjoy it. Mark really knows what he is talking about and he tries to make things entertaining so we can relate and understand the them better. I am really looking forward for our next class!
But, on the other hand, I am actually kind of nervous for this class. It's just that he is giving us so much freedom and I'm really not used to that. At high school my teachers told us exactly what they wanted us to do for every assignment and project. But, in this class, it is totally different. He has given us a list of the assignment and that's all. We don't even no how long they are supposed to be. When someone asks about how long something is supposed to be Mark responds, "As short as possible and as long as necessary." Like, what is that supposed to mean? I don't know. I guess I'm going to have to wait and find out what this class is really like.
All I can say is, it's definitely a different class then what I have ever had.