10 Media Revelations That Blew My Mind!

1. The Feed is Facebook: After reading the article “with friends like these” written by Tom Hodgkinson I noticed a disturbing correlation between Facebook and the novel “Feed” written by M.T. Anderson. The article states that all personal information on Facebook is given to advertisers in order to target users on this social media site. When I read this I instantly thought about the feed. In "Feed" the characters have transmitters attached to their minds that tell them what the latest trends are, what they should wear, what their friends are saying and what they should buy. Facebook also tells users what their friends are doing, what they should buy and the latest trends. Facebook isn’t attached to users brains but it mine as well be, you can access it almost anywhere when ever you want. This revelation is quite a technological and personal shift.

2. Attention Spans: In the article “Is Google Making Us Stupid” written by Nicholas Carr it states that 21^st century citizens thanks to technological shifts throughout the ages have obtained extremely short attention spans. People can go onto Google and scan through documents at their leisure. People no longer go to the Library when they conduct research, they access the same information online because it proves to be more efficient. People in today's society always have a million other things to do. So this “quick fix” over time has made it harder/ boring to read longer material. I agree with Nicholas Carr, I always look for the shortest document I can find and if an article is "too long" my mind starts to wonder. For example the entire time I was reading “is google making us stupid” I kept thinking this is so long! The article was only 8 pages, which in reality isn’t that long. It is quite sad that we as learners have come to this especially when in the past people could sit for hours at a time and listen to presidential candidates talk and remain engaged throughout the entire thing. According to Neil Postman in his novel, “Amusing Ourselves to Death” found on pages 44-49.

3. Media Ownership”: I often wondered why all the news channels covered and aired the same “news stories” and it wasn’t until I read “Media and Society” written by David Croteau and William Hoyness, that I found my answer. The text explains on page 34, that media owners pick and choose what will be broadcasted on each channel. They also have the power to promote certain stories more than others, fire employees and essentially monitor the “news” viewers see everyday. The text also mentions that 6 companies own all media, which explains why the news is the same on various networks and proves to be a political shift within our society. Learning about media ownership made it easier for me to understand how/ why all the stories in “Project Censored” were censored and why pointless gossip stories were given more media coverage, it’s because the big 6 media owners made it that way.

4. The Media’s relationship with politics: I've never paid much attention to the relationship among politics, image and the media. What I have learned thanks to Neil Postman is that image is everything. In the book “Amusing ourselves to death” Postman points out on page 126 that, political figures are celebrities and the more attractive they are the better chance they have at winning. Their attractiveness helps then in their political campaigns that are watched by millions at home. “Media and Society,” written by David Croteau and William Hoyness discusses on page 253 that, the medias relationship with politics influences and distorts viewers perceptions and understanding of politics. It distracts them from the real issues through, television, music and global coverage. Which is probably why most Americans care more about what the first lady is wearing to the inauguration ball then what issues the President needs to tackle during his first day in office.

5. How the Media affects socialization:

The Media regulates all social interactions and social norms within our society, whether we

realize it or not. In the novel “Mass Media and Society” on pages 13-16 the authors explain that

people develop their moral values and beliefs from the media. They also learn about other

countries, cultures and politics through media coverage. I have always thought that I am the

way I am because of my parents and my upbringing; I never once gave “credit” to the media.

Now that I look back on it, I can see how the media has shaped me into who I am today. I

wonder what type of personality one would have if they weren’t exposed to the media?

I bet they would be similar to Violets father in the novel “Feed,” written by M.T Anderson.

Violets father didn’t have a “feed” and was considered weird for not having one. He wanted

to make sure his daughter Violet had a “feed” so she would have equal opportunities and

not be at a disadvantage. This makes me think would you really be at a disadvantage if

you weren’t exposed to the media and resisted the feed?

6. The Triune Brain: I knew there were different parts of

the brain, but I never knew how to appeal to the different parts in a persuasive manner.

This piece of information is extremely important to me as a future marketer. Knowing

the different aspects of the brain paired with a better understanding of social media/ the

media in general after taking this class provides me with a set of skills that will set me apart

from my competitors in the workforce. In the article “Teaching the Facebook Generation”

written by Elaine Young she stresses the importance of social media in the marketing world,

specialization and learning about the media. I am happy to say that after this semester I have

a handle on all three.

7. Personal Shift: The concept of “personal shift” one of eight shifts in our 21^st century media

culture is moving from personal to participatory, it embodies all of the new media outlets that

are out there. In the past people kept to themselves, only their close friends new intimate

details about their lives. However, in today’s society thanks to ambient awareness everyone

knows what everyone else is doing whether you know them or not, which proves to be quite

different from the past. In the article “Brave New World of Digital Intimacy” written by

Clive Thompson, the idea of ambient awareness is discussed more in depth. The article

mentions that at first many were hesitant about the shift from personal to participatory but

after a while they were used to it and embraced it. Users learned to love the new information

they were discovering about their friends, they otherwise wouldn’t know.

8. Critical Thinking: If there was one thing I learned this semester it was to think critically

about everything. Learning about the eight shifts, 7 principles and 29 persuasive techniques,

the “tool sets” made me realize how easy it is for the media to manipulate one’s mind without

he or she knowing it. I am now able to think critically while watching media messages and

analyze them to my advantage. I have also learned to think critically while watching the news

or reading about the news. Project censored taught me that actual news worthy stories are

not being reported and the news stories that are being covered in the mainstream media are

censored and a lot of the true information is missing. I have learned to question everything,

think critically about all media and ask what persuasive techniques are being used on me to

make me believe this is accurate!

9. Twitter VS. The Typographic Mind: In the chapter entitled “The Typographic Mind” found

on pages 44-63 in the novel “Amusing Ourselves to Death,” written by Neil Postman,

comparisons are made between present and past Americans in regards to their comprehension

skills. On page 46 Postman talks about how people in the past were able to comprehend

extremely lengthy complex sentences during presidential debates and remain engaged the

entire time. He states that if political figures talked the same way today as they did in the past,

everyone would have a hard time understanding them. I thought it would be interesting to

compare this concept to the article entitled “How Twitter Will Change the Way We Live,” written

by Steven Johnson. The whole point of Twitter is to provide people with information in short

blurbs. People on twitter can follow trending topics such as the presidential debates and be

engaged in an entirely different way. It allows users to see what those around them are thinking

about what the presidential candidates are saying. I just think it is an interesting personal shift

over the ages.

10. Peak-a-Boo World: After reading “Project Censored” and learning about the stories that

were not covered in the media I became really annoyed with “info-tainment.” It is frustrating to

know that stories such as the “secret control of the presidential debates” exist, but in stead

the world is learning about the latest celebrity gossip. Postman point’s out

in “Amusing ourselves to death” on page 73 that news coverage is often taken out of context

and provides viewers with a false sense of reality. On page 79, Postman states that the

television becomes our reality; viewers over time have learned to trust the television and

not question it. American’s need to be constantly entertained and the television provides

them with entertainment. However, the reality is what they are watching on television isn’t

the entire story, the stories are very much taken out of context like Postman mentioned.

Amy Goodman a journalist for Democracy Now talks about the differences between

CNN and CNN International. She points out how much more graphic and accurate

CNN International is then the American CNN. Postman says it best, “we are the most

entertained but least informed society.”