Thanksgiving

Besides the fact that there was turkey and stuffing, Thanksgiving just didn't feel like Thanksgiving this year. About a week ago I stopped at the Willowbrook mall for a birthday gift and was shocked to see Santa already set up and waiting for families to arrive to take their pictures with him. My friend argued that Santa always arrived a week before Thanksgiving but it didn't seem right that stores were playing their commercial free christmas music courtesy of 106.7 so early in the holiday season.

Thanksgiving Day I slept through most of the morning festivities of cooking and watching the parade, and to be honest if I hadn't woken up to the distinct smell of a Thanksgiving dinner I probably wouldn't of given it a second thought. For some reason this year we have completely skipped over giving thanks and straight to giving gifts. The only type of media coverage I seemed to notice were the "one day only" sale alerts flashing on my laptop or on TV reminding me that Black Friday was on its way.

If i could guess I would say that its safe to assume that the state of the economy is to blame for the rush of gift-getting. Any sort of bargain seems like an outstanding deal to somebody wondering how they're going to afford gifts for their entire list of relatives during this recession. It seems like every year society becomes more obsessed with the idea of "Black Friday" and the "Day After Thanksgiving" sales but this year it seemed the response was outstanding. It just seems wrong that Thanksgiving was completely bypassed. A holiday with such meaning as this one deserves way more recognition then it received this year.

Marshall McLuhan

"The medium is the message." - a statement by Marshal McLuhan implying that the way the specific channel of communication determines its importance; That the impact of a particular message is affected by the medium it is sent through.  Take into consideration the Kennedy/Nixon debate we've talked about in class.  While television viewers deemed Kennedy the winner, radio listener's argued that Nixon had won the debate.  Different mediums provide different versions of certain scenarios leaving the audience to interpret specific messages much differently.

Media Effects

Research Question: Are young girls' body images affected by what they see on television, in magazines, or general advertisements?

Hypothesis: A girl's image is greatly affected by what she sees on television or reads in a magazine, I'd hypothesize that yes, girls are extremely affected by what is portrayed in the media.

Method: To test my hypothesis I'd conduct a countless number of surveys, polling girls of various ages (focusing on the most impressional age group 12-18..ish) on the way they view themselves, they way they think others view them, what they would change, etc.  I would then connect that to the types of programs they watch and media they are exposed to on a daily basis.  By analyzing the different responses it would be clear whether or not the media influences the way a girl dresses, behaves, and perceives her own self.

O'Reilly vs. Olbermann

I've never watched either of these shows before up until today's class, and if it weren't for this assignment I'm sure I never would have.  And while I didn't watch any specific episodes in full, I thought that the clips in class as well as the few others I watched through both websites displayed enough footage for me to form an opinion.

Both shows did almost exactly the same thing.  They supported one candidate over another, without actually saying which candidate they preferred.  As everybody as already mentioned, both shows came across as extremely biased, but as a few more mentioned that is almost their purpose: to cater to a certain group of individuals with the same views and opinions in common.  However, what I don't think anybody mentioned which I would like to point out is that I really appreciate both Olbermann's and O'Reilly's confidence, or rather Fox News and MSNBC's confidence.  Shows like these two were obviously created for their specific purpose, but I applaud the two men for being so well versed in such distinguished topics and not being afraid to air their opinions.  I don't know, it's just something I wouldn't be able to do.

And while I can't say I'm going to be sitting down anytime soon to catch an entire episode of either show, if I had to make a choice I think I would choose to watch Olbermann over O'Reilly.  His versions of things were a lot more entertaining and just made more of an impact without sounding utterly ridiculous as O'Reilly did to me.  But again, that could just because my opinions are much more similar to those which Olbermann expressed.  It's not a necessarily "fair" competition.

Presidential Debate

Yesterday was my birthday so it wasn't exactly in my agenda to sit down last night and watch the debate.  However, after searching the internet and browsing youtube for a while I was able to form some sort of mild opinion. 

From what I've seen, I noticed that both Obama and McCain both had their strengths and weaknesses.  They both had their share of topics in which they excelled in, as well as those in which their opponent was able to outdo them. However, my focus drifted more towards their body language and their mannerisms.  If you notice, McCain seems to have some sort of difficulty with eye contact.  In majority of his responses to Obama, and simply in speaking, his eyes rarely met Obama's or even looked in his direction.  He seemed nervous and tense.  Obama on the other hand seemed much more calm.  He paid attention to McCain; looked in his direction.  It just seemed odd.  

Another point I noticed, was that McCain was eager to explain his experience.  "I've met this world leader... traveled to this country...experience experience experience"...but was more hesitant to speak about the future and his position as a potential world leader.  I just think Obama was more focused on making the public aware of what he wants to do, what he can do; his future and ours.

Reactions to the debate seem to be, for the most part, the same.  "There is no clear winner"  "Both candidates made excellent points"  And while some stations seemed to be on the defense with what McCain could have done or with what Obama could of said, majority seemed to share the same perspective;  neither candidate really delivered an "above-all" performance. 

9/11

September 11, 2001 was a day that has changed almost every aspect of the way we live.  However, as the years continue to pass I can't help but notice a kind of lack of acknowledgement.  Don't get me wrong, the day still remains a day the changed our nation and the patriotism that our country exerted still exists today, it just seems that each year results in less and less recognition.  

To be honest,  I woke up on September 11th of this year as it was an ordinary day.  My routine remained the same and it wasn't until I was almost out the door when I realized my mistake.  I felt terrible.  7 years ago, I sat in my 6th grade reading class naive and petrified of what would happen to me, my family, my friends, my life.  How could I have just brushed it off like nothing had happened?  How could I not have remembered?

The media coverage following 9/11 those seven years ago definitely made a difference on our country.  The scenes of people jumping from the towers and images of the New York policemen, firemen, and volunteers working together to save lives are images that will never be forgotten.  And while the images may still flash in our heads every once in a while, and while the topic of the traumatic day may be mentioned here or there it just isn't recognized the same way as it was seven years ago.  As time goes on, it seems like people have almost lost all interest and sympathy and nationalistic regard for such a life-changing day.  This year's anniversary seemed to entail nothing more then a mere mention of different memorial services while six years ago any opportunity to remember was jumped on by programs of all different sorts.

Time has most certainly taken a toll on the memories of the citizens of this country.  Isn't it ironic that the day that held the tag-line "Never Forget" seems to have been forgotten?

Assignment #1

While television has been a part of my life for all eighteen years, it hadn't actually affected me up until my junior year of high school.  It wasn't until then that I realized that something so ordinary could actually help shape my future.  My junior year of high school I was able to enroll in the television production class that released a biweekly news show that aired on a local station in my town.  It was in that class where we, the students, were able to direct, report, edit, and produce a segment of our choice that would be aired on television for the town to see.

Reading this it just seems like I'm rambling about something totally unrelated and ridiculous but actually it was in this class that I realized what I wanted to do; what i wanted to study; what I wanted to become.  Mid-year, a set of anchors were selected to "host" this news show we, as a class, produced and put on the air every other week.  I, along with my best friend, was chosen.

 From January to June, I read the news, introduced the stories, and hosted West Orange High School's TV36 News.  After that, I knew exactly what I wanted to go to school for.

To go home and be able to scroll through channels and happen to stumble across your own face on the screen and to know that there were people all over town watching the same program with you as the star was an unbelievable feeling.  It was through this particular medium that I was able to see my future.  I can honestly say that because of television my life has changed.  My future will ultimately be shaped because of something that has surrounded me for as long as I can remember.  Now, I can say that I know what I want to be and where to set my goals and ambitions...because of television.