Media Portrayal: Michael Scott
www.tvjab.com
Welcome back! For my blog assignment this week, I was assigned the task of analyzing a specific character in a TV series and evaluating how he/she is portrayed in the media. Again, I will be using Toulmin’s model as an outline for my argument.
I chose to analyze Michael Scott’s role as the manager of a paper company on a specific episode of the TV series “The Office.” As a long time follower of “The Office” I was excited to see that my viewing of the show would finally be put to use in the assignment for this week. Although my view is certainly not the only way to interpret Michael Scott’s role, I am inviting you to consider my view with an open mind. I will be qualifying my analysis in the same manner that Bonnie Dow (1996) qualified her arguments in the book “Prime-Time Feminism: television, Media Culture, and the Women’s Movement Since 1970.” In addition, given the nature of the show, it is important to remember that its primary purpose is to serve as comedy and entertainment.
In my opinion, Michael Scott’s role on “The Office,” is an entertaining approach to a manager’s job in running the office. The show provides and funny although not quite plausible insight into daily life on the job. The character of Michael Scott in the Season 5 episode “The Surplus” is forced to decide how to spend the $4000 surplus that the office has acquired by the end of the day. In my opinion, is comical to see how this traditionally minor decision affects Michael’s character.
Throughout the day, various employees of the office lobby for the way that they believe the money should be spent. It is apparent that Michael does not want to displease anyone, but he knows that some employees will be disappointed. Ultimately, he decides to give the money back to corporate and take the 15% bonus that managers receive from acquiring surplus and spend it on a jacket for himself. His logic is such that this way he will disappoint everyone, not just some people. I believe that this depiction of an office manager is a generally inaccurate portrayal; however, the show is a comedy, not a documentary.
Remember, my interpretation of this episode is certainly not the only way to interpret it. I am only offering my views as a my opinion of Michael Scotts role in one episode of “The Office.” That’s all for now, see you soon!
References:
Dow, B. (1996). Prime-time feminism: Television, media culture, and the women’s movement since 1970. Philadelphia University Press.
Eisenberg, Lee, Stupnitsky, Gene &. Feig, Paul (2008) The Office [The Surplus]. Daniels, Greg. Burbank, CA, NBC Studios.
Copyright: A lifetime and 70 years
http://chat.andover.edu
Welcome back! For my blog this week, I was asked to write about the length that a copyright lasts, and explain my position on the issue. For those of you who aren’t completely sure what a copyright is, it can be defined as the exclusive legal right given to the creator of an original work to control its distribution for a length of time, after which the work becomes part of the public domain. Currently, a copyright lasts a lifetime plus 70 years before it is released to the public domain.
After discussing the length of a copyright in class and watching a video on it, I found myself agreeing with the set length. I believe that if people come up with a unique idea or invention, they should take full credit for the item whenever it is used until it eventually is released into the public domain.
Although I am unsure why the lawmakers decided that a copyright should last 70 of all years after the death of the copyrighter, I believe that it is sufficient amount of time for the family or friends of the copyrighter to reap the benefits of the creation. It’s possible that the lawmakers wanted to ensure that if people died soon after their copyright was enacted, that family and friends still receive some of the profits.
If the copyright did not last an additional 70 years after the lifetime of the copyrighter, family and friends of the copywriter would not receive profit, and the copyrighter’s work would not be credited to him/her when it was used, rather it would go straight to the public domain.
However, I do feel that there should be exceptions to this rule, but I know that it unreasonable for the law to be changed for them. I think it’s a bit ridiculous for a song such as “Happy Birthday” to be copyrighted. That is not to say that the creators should not receive credit for their work, but I feel that the song is used commonly enough to where it should be released to the public domain sooner than 70 years after the lifetime of the songwriters.
I strongly believe that people should receive credit for the work that they do, so I am happy with the current stance of the copyright law. Although I do feel like it could ideally be tweaked to offer some exceptions, I realize that that belief is based on personal opinion and will most likely not be changed. See you next week!
Spreading Racial Tolerance
- http://todaysseniorsnetwork.com
Welcome back! For my assignment this week, I was asked to analyze coverage of a specific news story from a mainstream newspaper categorized under the health or science sections. I chose the widely popular New York Times online newspaper as my media outlet and the article “Tolerance Over Race Can Spread, Studies Find” written by Benedict Carey from the science section as my article.
It is important to recognize that there is some level of inherent bias in all people. I found that the article analyzed relationship ties between diverse pairs of people: black and white, Latino and Asian, and black and Latino. Psychologists have concluded that bias in all people was reduced in a matter of hours through a series of bonding activities.
Recent studies suggest that trust can be built rather quickly given the right circumstances. Psychologists had pairs of people who have never met, come together for four sessions and partake in different activities in attempt to build a relationship from scratch. The first activity consisted of a series of general information questions asked to each person. Next, the pairs competed in a variety games. They then discussed multiple topics, including why they are proud to be a member of their race. Lastly, took turns navigating a maze while blindfolded and receiving directions form their partner. The experiment resulted in many longstanding relationships and significant reduces in bias. In addition, other studies suggest that even something as simple as having a friend, or sharing a class with people of a certain race can reduce prejudice toward that race.
The coverage of this story did not seem sensationalized; it pointed to evidence of real studies that were recently conducted and shed light on the issue of personal bias. In my opinion, Carey provides adequate evidence that shows how some issues can override prejudice. He notes that in some cases, like in the 2008 United States Presidential Election, statistics show that issues such as the current economic crisis trump most personal bias. Carey explains that in voter surveys, most of the 17 percent of white voters who said race played some role in their decision voted for McCain. However, among all voters who took race into account, Obama won the majority.
Through his research in studies conducted, Carey succeeded in answering all questions I had on the topic of race tolerance and the aspects regarding personal bias. He provided many examples of how bias can be trumped by other issues and disregarded, especially in the case of a presidential election. His coverage on the psychologists’ experiment offered a sufficient description on how existing prejudices in pairs can be broken and transformed into longstanding relationships. Ultimately, I was satisfied with the overall coverage of the story and the manner in which it was reported. See you next week!
Online Branded Communities
http://www.adverbox.com
Welcome back! For my blog assignment this week I was asked to explore an online branded community and evaluate its overall content. Since I’ve never seen or interacted in one before, I decided to research what an online branded community is. I soon found that it is a community formed on the basis of attachment to a product. Through the many entertaining and engaging aspects of the community, marketers stress the connection between their brand and an individual’s identity and culture. I figured, what better website to research than whitegoldiswhitegold.com, a website we discussed in class on Thursday.
At first glance of the website, the last thought to enter my mind was that it was actually an advertisement for milk. Yet after spending some time on the webpage, I found myself surprisingly entertained and wanting a glass of milk! Still a little cynical, I decided to do a little more research. I learned that there are many fun and amusing activities that are available for anyone to partake in. You can take a hot air balloon to outer space, rock an infinite guitar solo, and even snap pictures of White Gold and the Calcium Twins! I spent a while surfing the page, and realized how drawn in I was by it. I thought for a moment—was I actually spending a significant amount of time playing around on a website for milk? Its no wonder that online brand communities are becoming increasingly popular: they entertain their members and advertise products concurrently.
However, whitegoldiswhitegold is not the only online branded community out there. In fact, Burger King has an online branded community based around their chicken crisps. The Subservient Chicken website allows its users to command the chicken to do just about anything while connecting with consumers at the same time. Taking it even one step further, MTV broadcast a reality TV show based around the online branded community GameKillers, an advertisement for axe. It seems that these days, advertisers will stop at nothing to hold their potential consumer’s attention long enough to attempt to sell their product.
Ultimately, I discovered how engaging these online branded communities could be. I definitely spent far more time on this website than I would watching an ad on TV, and I was entertained the entire time. Today’s marketers have revolutionized ads through online branded communities, and provide their consumers with entertainment simultaneously. That’s all for now, see you soon!
Violence and Video Games
http://gezric.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/call-of-duty-4.jpg
Hello again! This week I was assigned the task of analyzing a mass medium and its affects, intentional or not, on society—specifically youth. I chose to evaluate a video game that I personally have played, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (CoD4). Again, I will be using Toulmin’s model as a structure for my argument.
Despite the game’s rating, M for Mature (must be 17 or older to purchase), it is not uncommon for younger children to obtain it. CoD4 can be categorized as a MMOFPS (massive multiplayer online first person shooter). In a sense, the gamer plays as the main character, viewing the virtual world through his/her eyes. Like many others of its kind, it endorses coldblooded carnage as a viable method to achieve success. Upon playing the game, the reasons for its rating become obvious. The premise is set around an American-Middle Eastern War. As a private, your task is to complete the required missions at any cost to enemy life. Inherently, the realistic game play promotes ruthless, gruesome violence.
Although I was not able to find an academic journal on CoD4, I managed to find several that explain the correlation between violence in video games and its effects on children. One researcher describes Grand Theft Auto IV, another realistic and violent first person game, as “a perfect expression of violence without restraint, a magnificent mechanism for involving the viewer in a completely enrapturing simulation while doing away with all boundaries.” (Marche, Stephen 2008).
A recent study suggests that up to 90% of all video games contain some sort of violent content, with at least half of these games including the potential for serious harm toward game characters (Funk 2005). These games are continuing to grow popular with the youth demographic.
Children’s level of exposure to violent video games is directly related to a variety of forms of aggression ranging from verbal aggression to outright violence (Barlow, 2007). Research shows that repeated exposure to violence in video games does in fact increase aggressive behavior. In addition, it also decreases empathetic behavior.
As technology continues to increase, it is inevitable that graphics in video games will become more realistic. Call of Duty serves as a perfect example of this. Although it provides a more realistic scenario, it also incorporates gruesome violence. As a society, it is necessary to realize the effects that continuous exposure to violence will bring. In this case, violence takes on the contemporary media role and broadcasts it in mass to children throughout the United States. Ultimately, responsibility lies with parents to regulate this exposure and limit it.
References:
1. Marche, Stephen (2008). Are Things Getting a Little Violent? Esquire Aug, Vol. 150 Issue 2, p38-39
2. Funk, J B (2005). Children’s Exposure to Violent Video Games and Desensitization to Violence. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of America
3. Barlow, D (2007). Violent Video Game Effects on Children and Adolescents: Theory, Research, and Public Policy. The Education Digest. 72 (6), pg 79,2.
Mainstream v. Alternative Media Coverage
Welcome back! This week I was assigned the task of exploring both mainstream and alternative media sources and evaluating their coverage. Since I have never turned to an alternative media source as a news outlet, I was anxious to see what it had to offer. I chose to monitor the widely viewed and accepted mainstream CNN and alternative outlet Wiretap as my news sources.
Firstly, let me establish the necessary criteria to define a source as a mainstream or alternative. Mainstream media is diluted by efforts to maximize corporate gains and needs to report to elite audiences, while alternative media is nonprofit, and aims to report news in an unbiased manner. As alternative media seeks to inform rather profit, oftentimes it contains little or no “spin,” and can be seen as more trustworthy. Conversely, as mainstream media is structured around corporate interest, and may be seen as less valid. However, I do not mean to bash on mainstream media, as I frequently turn to CNN for political updates and election coverage. I only mean to say that its coverage must be taken with a grain of salt; it is after all, a business with an agenda. Now that the grounds for each branch of media have been set, I’ll begin my analysis of each.
I was pleased to see that Wiretap offered a broad range of coverage. After reading multiple stories, it becomes apparent that Wiretap treats its audience as participants rather than business, and promotes ideas rather than profits. Instead of justifying corporate media, Wiretap challenges it by offering an impartial approach to issues. Multiple blogs are posted in a column on the right, providing a mix of public opinion. Both sides of the coin are thoroughly examined in every story to ensure a balanced argument and create a truly honest report.
However, CNN’s need as a business to obtain wealth and profit from their coverage forces them into a position to market their media. CNN’s web page is cluttered with a range of topics and approaches them in a completely different manner than Wiretap. Rather than the “Go Green” environmental blogs present on the Wiretap web page, CNN is filled with breaking news stories in politics, entertainment, and stocks. Although it still offers multiple viewpoints, the site is overrun with obvious advertisements and contains more spin than alternative media.
Ultimately, media selection boils down to personal preference; both alternative and mainstream media are capable of serving as news outlets. The primary objective when searching for a satisfactory media source is to have to be pleased with its news coverage, whichever the form. That’s all for now; see you next week!
Election ’08 Coverage
Senators Barack Obama (left) and John McCain (right)
Hello again! This week I was assigned with the task of monitoring one source of media and its coverage of the United States Presidential Election. I will be referencing different media roles present in Kathleen Hall Jamieson and Paul Waldman’s “The Press Effect,” and attributing those of relevance to CNN’s televised broadcast. I’ll be using Toulmin’s model as an outline for my argument.
The CNN network presently employs one of the most renowned political news crews in the United States. Many Americans consistently tune in to CNN as an outlet for current events and up-to-the-minute news updates on existing political issues. So, I decided to analyze the proclaimed “best political team on television” for at least an hour a day, and put their coverage under the microscope.
After viewing several hours of programming, I’ve concluded that CNN has broadcast adequate coverage of the election in a generally unbiased manner. The majority of segments offered multiple perspectives concerning issues that challenge both Democrats and Republicans. Narrators facilitated discussion via satellite between members of both platforms, allowing them to debate numerous issues within a range of topics.
I believe that CNN has taken on the role of “custodian of fact.” They offered coverage of both candidates in multiple segments, and ensured that the public was not being misled during the “Keeping Them Honest” portion of the broadcast. During this segment, the validity of controversial statements was tested, and the results were posted for the public.
Keeping the facts straight is essential in any election. The public deserves to know the truth about candidates and their current stance on issues in order to make an objective decision when casting a ballot. Kathleen Hall Jamieson and Paul Waldman offer that the “custodian of fact” media role examines statements assess their accuracy.
The “custodian of fact” role crucially pertains to coverage of the news because it ensures that viewers will not be incorrectly informed about issues or unknowingly interpret the wrong impression of either candidate. Although news is inherently biased in some form, facts are accepted truths, and help create an informed public capable of making an objective decision when voting.
The possibility that CNN’s coverage of the election is inadequate still exists; I am only basing my analysis on the broadcast that I monitored over a three-day span. In my opinion, if you’re looking for an outlet for information on politics and current events, CNN offers adequate election coverage on real issues that will affect Americans in the upcoming presidency.
First of Many
Welcome! First time blogger here. My name is Matt Rego, I’m a native Portlander and a Freshman at the University of Oregon. Although I’m a little nervous to write this first post, all apprehension aside, I’m totally thrilled! I mean after all, this is the biggest audience I’ve ever been given the privilege to speak to. Since I’ve never been required to do anything quite like blogging before, I figure I’ve got nothing to lose!
Pulling from the little information I know about the blogosphere, I’ve concluded that it offers every writer a chance to develop opinions and connect with others through networks online. I’m eager to try my hand at blogging and contribute to the Internet community.
Since I’m new to the blogging scene, I’ve decided to set a few general goals and guidelines on my “crash course” post. Primarily, I want to provide an interesting and entertaining enough perspective to keep you all awake and listening! Hopefully, I can intrigue most of you enough to return each week to read my posts and leave some comments. That being said, here we go!
Over the next few months, I will be blogging for Professor Tiffany Derville’s Journalism 201 Mass Media and Society Class. Each week I will post a new blog chiefly focusing on the impact of media on society, and its effects on the public. I hope to offer some insight into current issues on a national and global scale and the manner in which the media works around them. My aspiration is to spark discussions on real issues that impact people everyday. What better time to blog than during one of the most historical United States Presidential Elections in history?
So let’s give you a little bit of what to expect. My blogs will be filled with opinion. I love to express my thoughts and views, and trust me my blogs will lack neither! I’m going to come clean right from the beginning. I’m a proud liberal. Growing up in the heart of Portland, Oregon, it’s hard to be anything but! No offense, if you’re a Republican with high blood pressure, this may not be the place for you.
And now you know what to expect in my future blogs. Don’t hesitate to leave a comment on any post or share your reaction. I’m looking forward to reading your feedback, so be sure to offer up your views!
