Week 11

This week's readings focus on our growing dependence (obsession even) on social media services such as Facebook, twitter, and mobile phones. Although noise in a physical sense may have decrease over the years, according to Crawford (2010), the new "noise" of the 21st century is net-worked conversation.

The article implies that the growing use of social media is a negative thing which creates unnecessary "noise" in people's lives, I can't really agree. If people want to maintain social networks through technological mediums, they have the option to be able to do so. There is nothing stopping anybody from switching off their phone or forcing people to check their news feeds on Facebook (or even having a Facebook).

Bibliography:
Crawford, K., 2010, ‘Noise, Now: Listening to Networks’ in Meanjin Quarterly, Vol. 69, No. 2, pp. 64-69

Week 10

This week's readings touched on the way in which sites such as Facebook and Myspace help people to identify with themselves, sometimes even identifying themselves as somebody else. Myspace and Facebook are not only social networking sites, they are sites where people can present the kind of character or persona they would like to be, and the way they would like to be perceived. Particularly relevant to myspace, people create fan pages where they can roleplay their favourite celebrities or TV characters.

Creating different personas and roleplaying celebrities over social networking sites is often harmless. However, in some cases (as seen in the documentary 'Talhotblond' and 'Catfish'), the result can be heartbreak or even a tragic death.

Bibliography:
Booth, Paul(2008) 'Rereading Fandom: MySpace Character Personas and Narrative Identification',
Critical Studies in Media Communication, 25: 5, 514 — 536

Week 9

Society and inturn, the media, tends to 'other' people who don't fit into the norm and follow the behaviour and beliefs of the majority. In this week's reading, heteronormativity and compulsory heterosexuality were discussed, in particular, how lesbians have been and are viewed in society.

The article implies that lesbians are frowned upon and seen in a negative light moreso in society than homosexual men. I don't think that is the case really. To some extent, lesbians may be objectified more than homosexual men but it's not really fair to say that they have it harder. Both homosexual men and women may face the same sort of issues when coming out and whilst both are becoming more acceptable, neither one or the other have it easier. Views regarding homosexuality have definitely have evolved from years ago, however, the legalisation of homosexual marriage will definitely help "normalise" homosexuality.

Bibliography:
Rich, A., 1993, ‘Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence’ in The Gay and Lesbian Studies Reader, Routledge, New York, pp.227-254

Week 7

This week's readings reminded me very much of the movie "The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen)." The movie explores life in East Berlin under the GDR regime and the secret surveillance (i.e. through tapping into phone lines) over specific individuals who were under suspiscion of not supporting the German "Democratic" Republic. The power was in the hands and eyes of the Stasi (the political police) and the people of East Berlin lived in fear that they were being watched if they knew they had ever acted against, or spoken words that were not supportive of the GDR. Like a panopticon, the people being watched feel powerless.

According to Foucault, the feeling of suspecting, but not knowing one is being watched not only distinguishes power between those watching (who have the power) and those being watched, but also instills fear and works a disciplinary effect on those in the limelight. He uses the example of a Panopticon; a circual prison where cells are visible from a central surveillance station.

Bibliography
Foucault, M 1977, ‘Panopticism’ in Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison, translated by Alan Sheridan, Penguin, London, pp 195-228

Week 6

 This weeks article explores the idea of the internet being both a public sphere and a public space in a political medium. The growing usage of the internet around the world has empowered people with common beliefs and attitudes to find eachother and form online political groups. The net has allowed people to vocalise their beliefs in a way that is easy and accessible (that is, if you have a computer). It is a way that people can actively participate in the political processes of our democratic society.

However, not everybody feels this way. "...skeptics caution that technologies not universally accessible and ones that frequently induce fragmented, nonsensical, and enraged discussion, otherwise known as ‘flaming’, far from guarantee a revived public sphere."  (p10) While it's true that technology and computers aren't universally accessible, it is just one avenue where people can express their political opinions, not the only one. And as for "enraged discussion", that's part of a democracy. If we were to mediate what was "nonsensical" and ensure discussion never had "enraged" participants, Australia wouldn't be considered a democratic country. Also, enraged discussion and nonsensical arguments are not limited to the internet.


Bibliography
Papacharissi, Z., 2002, The virtual sphere: The internet as a public cphere, New Media and Society, Vol 4, no. 1, pp. 9-27.

Week 5

In this week's readings, King (2005) looks at the similarities and differences between real life spectacles and Hollywood and expresses his concern that real events have been altered by the media to be more fictionlike and cinematic. "Elements of similarity between the real and fictional spectacles seemed to have caused a great discomfort for reasons that are not hard to understand. The Hollywood versions offer enjoyable fantasies of destruction - enjoyable precisely because they can be safely induldged in the arena of fantasy"(p49)

I can agree that  sometimes real life events such as the example given (September 11th) can be similar in the way they are projected in fictional movies. However, I think most people are capable of distinguishing real life events from a Hollywood movie. Many movies are inspired by, and try to replicate reallife  events so if done well,  obviously they are going to share some similarites. Hollywood is not to blame if people feel uncomfortable because cinema is too similar to the real events, they should probably be praised in that they were able to create a text that is so realistic. 

References:
King, G., 2005, ‘”Just Like a Movie”?: 9/11 and Hollywood Spectacle’ in The Spectacle of the Real: from Hollywood to Reality TV and Beyond, ed. Geoff King, Intellect Books, Bristol, pp. 47-57.

Week 4

I remember sitting in year 8 English class where we were taught the "correct" structure of how an essay should pan out, what to write, what not to write and the difference between an A+essay and a B. From the introduction, the body and the conclusion, topic sentences and the use of relevant quotes and how to analyse these quotes within the essay, there wasn't much left for the mind to wander. So when Game and Metcalfe(1996, p.87) say "most forms  of academic writing repress any notion of dreaming,"  you can guess that I relate just a bit. Like putting boundaries on the imagination, dreaming or art, putting boundaries and giving rules in regards to the way in which somebody should write, inevitably detracts (atleast in my case) from the enjoyment one gets out of an activity which incorporates all of these things.

Game and Metcalfe make a point that writing helps to develops one's ideas, "thinking with then pen" they call it (p.95). In the debate team in highschool, I'd often have to argue topic which I either didn't agree with, or hadn't really thought about. Through configuring an argument I would sometimes find myself believing the argument I had written, sometimes changing my opinion on the topic and at the very least challenging my prior attitudes and beliefs. It is through writing that people can challenge and develop their own ideas.  

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Game, A.  & Metcalfe, A.  , 1996, Writing in Passionate Sociology, Sage, London, pp 87-105

Week 3

It is not only the events that occur or the actual content within a text which give it meaning, it is also the sequel in which these events occur. 'Screen Narratives: Traditions and Trends' in Screen Media: Analysing Film and Television by Stadler & McWilliam explores and compares the different narrative structures (classical narration, fragmented narratives, multi-strand narratives, etc) and how they are used to engage an audience.

Before reading the chapter I never really made a connection between my own enjoyment of a film and the order in which it's narrated but in reflection, I have always been drawn towards the puzzle like nature of multiform narratives like The Butterfly Effect and Crash and retrospective stories (e.g. American Beauty, Irreversible and Memento) rather than the classic Hollywood 'Three Act Structure' (beginning, middle and end in that order). There has been an increase in demand and appraisal for multiform narratives and as such, more and more blockbusters have been filmed in this manner. As time has evolved, so have people's tastes and in turn the use of more complex plots.

Narration alone does not determine the quality or level of enjoyment an audience will experience from a film,  but it definitely does play an important role in the end result of a text. Like I am drawn to plots narrated in a particular way, I am sure other people have their own preferences and film producers can use these preferences, to target specific audiences. It's an everchanging world and it's difficult to keep up with something that  is as versatile as what people find aesthetically pleasing. With that said, a good film is a good film and will stand the test of time. All in all, I dont believe there is a correct formula or narration conducive to a successful film.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Stadler, J. & McWilliam, K., 2009, ‘Screen Narratives: Traditions and Trends’ inScreen Media: Analysing Film and Television, Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest, pp. 155-182

Week 2

Shaped by a combination of life experiences and genetics, nature and nurture, each one of us is different from the next person. Because of this, we each perceive the world through different spectacles, we all see the media from our own standpoint. Lacey acknowledges that although the media may manipulate (using colour, lighting, music and many other tools) to evoke a particular response from viewers, it is inevitable that different people will interpret the same text in vastly different ways.

To give an example, Catfish is a documentary about a New York photographer (Nev) and his close relationships with several different people over Facebook. Several different people who infact, all turn out to be fake facebook identities created by Angela Wesselman. From reading reviews of the documentary online and speaking with friends, it is clear that most people sympathise with Nev who has invested his time and heart into relationships with people who essentially don't exist. Some people however, see Angela as a victim who has been exploited. I can say with fair certainty, Nev and his brother (who created the documentary) did not intend for the audience to view them as exploitative or Angela as an exploited victim. Again, people will take from it what they will and what the media's intended reaction will not always play out.

I guess that's the beauty of all art, the media and life in general. It is there to be interpreted, critiqued and  scrutinised. The media can try to manipulate and urge the viewer to feel a particular way but their techniques can only go so far. Once a text is in view to an audience, only the individual viewer can determine the text's fate in their own eyes.

(Lacey, N., 2009, ‘Introduction to Textual Analysis’ (extract) in Image and Representation: key concepts in media studies, 2nd Edition, MacMillan, London, pp 6-33. )