Response by Brittany Kirvan and Dwight Stannard

1. Is it more realistic to side with the liberals in seeing the government's role in media regulation as one of protecting the public against the domination of the private sector (as well as the Fairness Doctrine), or with the conservatives, who see this as "government meddling in the free market"?

The real question seems to be the difference between "protection" and the concept of masking the negative aspects of war in order to obtain or retain war supporters.


2. An initial pro-regulatory position was supported by the enactment of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) that outlawed the transmission of sexually explicit and other indecent material on the internet. However, before the year was up, free speech activists had sued, and the courts ruled the CDA to be unconstitutional.

Although the CDA is DEFUNCT, you can still see the presence of its general concepts in the U.S. media. Al-Jazeera seems to follow a completely different set of guidelines. You can see that they don't have the pressure to censor their material. In a way, Al-Jazeera conveys more truths than the U.S. media.


3. The idea of objectivity—separating facts from values—is unobtainable, but it is a valuable goal.

In "Control Room" it seems as if Al-Jezeera attempts to achieve objectivity with more success than the United States. Is it possible that the fact that Al-Jazeera uses less censoring than the United States, has to do with their objectivity-heavy morals?


4. Media companies follow the “hit” formula even if the outcome is not successful at all times.

page 123: "Political forces, particularly government regulations, also play a significant role in shaping the environment within which media organizations operate....The media sometimes ignore, reinterpret, challenge, or preempt regulations."

This kind of connects to Al Jazeera being called the mouth piece of Osama Bin Laden by the U.S. As we see in the movie, this is not true. Al Jazeera is constantly challenging and ignoring political/powerful figures and displaying what they want, how they want to. 

A Film Review? Or War Review? (Media Meditation #1)

Restrepo (2010) Movie Poster

I had a pretty interesting media experience last week. I watched a documentary film called Restrepo, which is up for an Academy Award this Sunday for Best Documentary. The film is about a year spent with one particular United States platoon in the deadliest valley in Afghanistan (and some say the world!), called The Koringal Valley. The Koringal is known to be such a dangerous location because of it's known orientation to the front lines between strong United States and Taliban army posts. In short, the Korengal valley is like the line of scrimmage right before the ball is snapped in an American Football game. Just give the players guns, knives, and an extreme desire to kill one another.

Rumor has it that the Korengal Valley takes somewhere around 50% of casualties in The War in Afghanistan...



Here, also is a clip from cbsnews.com with Co-Director Sebastian Junger and Major Daniel Kearney, who plays the biggest role in the film (and in the platoon).



My first response to this flick was to watch it again, to be honest. We've seen plenty of footage of the war from the perspective of CNN, NBC, ABC broadcasting groups. But those perspectives are biased to a higher degree because of the direct subjectivity of American soldiers as victims and Taliban soldiers as the suspects. But one of the many successes in Restrepo is the attempt to stay as unbiased as possible. The reason I use the term "attempt" is because, of course, its impossible to keep a lack of prejudice in making an American film about American soldiers. But in Restrepo, both sides of the spectrum are respected. The only prejudice presented in the film is the straw-man-like strategy that puts the viewer on the filmmaker's side indirectly. For example, directors Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger include clips of United States soldiers meeting with the elders from the area village, giving the image of cooperation between two much different groups of people. This was a way for the filmmakers to give the viewers an option as to whether they would like to side with the Americans or the Taliban. In a way, it can be seen as a persuasion technique, but in another way it can be seen as a production technique; adding a level of emotional connection to both sides of the battle, which gives the filmmakers a wider percentage of acceptance.

Co-Directors Sebastian Junger (left) and Tim Hetherington

It's never fun to think of films such as Restrepo as being a media campaign or a one sided war strategy to win over the respect of those Americans who are avidly against the war. But thinking realistically, worse things have been done to persuade the hearts and minds of fellow Americans. The 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor was seen by a large majority of the population to be a persuasive technique used by the U.S. Government to get more men to enlist in the United States Army during World War II. Whether or not this was FDR's scapegoat strategy to obtain more soldiers is obsolete. My point is that there is always the possibility of a deeper strategical plan.

This comes around to the point of ethics. Where do we draw the ethical line when we are talking about persuasive techniques? When we are using bandwagoning, and humor, and timing, and repetition... ;) to persuade a population, it is generally a fair trial. But when we start to use big lies, and testimonials, and name calling, we are reaching a bigger issue and moral dilemma.

American Soldiers at O.P. Restrepo

Regardless of it's controversies (which, by the way, have not been public controversies, just those in my head) Restrepo has my vote for best documentary and I recommend watching it before Sunday!

Script #1

4 Units Productions
FEED In 60 Seconds. Script #1

ATTENTION ALL UNITS! Have you gotten your feed yet? If not, THIS is your last chance to purchase YOUR OWN FEED! Just call 1-800-555-FEED for your introduction tablet.

"I just love my FEED, never null while I'm connected! Browsing the ads is great. Looking through ads the old way is squelched at best. I recently found a new face through an ad my FEED automatically sent me."

Your tablet will include all of the simple steps to installing your feed and how to get on with your life, HASSLE FREE. AND if you call now we'll include a complimentary FEED sippy cup, FREE!! Yes, thats right, you will receive your introductory feed tablet, along with a stylish FEED sippy cup!

"M-Chatting is also great! I work on the moon so it's a great way to stay connected while I'm away. In fact, everything about the FEED is meg brag; shopping, chatting, browsing, learning, the feed does it all!"

We guarantee you will like what you see! But wait, THERE'S MORE! If you call now and purchase your feed over the phone, we will include 2 FEED SIPPY CUPS, ALL for 14 easy payments of $139.95!! Yes, thats right, just 14 easy payments of $139.95 (plus zapping and handling)!

"I finished updating the goopla in the cranex for feed. Now everything is set and brag for all units to get new and improved FEED."

Call 1-800-555-FEED NOW!

A Post About Postman

1.
- a sophisticated ability to think conceptually, deductively and sequentially

- a high valuation of reason and order

- a large capacity for detachment and objectivity

2.
-Telegraphy enabled them to print more national news because news could be spread substancially faster.

-Photography can't generalize. It can only speak about a specific thing. It shows us, instead of telling us. A photo implies we know about the image if we are willing to accept it. We beging to really have an intellectual reaction when we question what it is that we are looking at. This new psychological element knocked Typography out of the race.

3. The peek-a-boo world is one that is "endlessly entertaining".

-My life consists of an endless amount of music, video, news, and entertainment. The internet is the prime example of a peek-a-boo world because of its [literally] endless amount of information.

4.

A. Public discourse about religion

The delivery on religious television shows is way different than in real-life. Therefore the message is different. Religious shows set a goal of attracting audiences by showing people what they want to see. Really, a different religion is created. A less threatening and more general/vague religion. One that will attract more viewers.

B. Public discourse about politics

Television has turned politicians into on-air celebrities. They attend talk shows, commercials, etc. Politicians are also heavily groomed for television. They read from TelePrompTers and say only the things that they are permitted to say. (the opposite: a comedian)

C. Public discourse about education

School on television is like sour patch kids for broccoli on a child's plate. There is no bias involved. Just the facts. Nothing more or less. "Textbook" in all its glory.

5. Postman feels that we must gain an awareness of the control that media have over us. Then we must gain control over all mediums. He offers an idea in which Parody TV shows demonstrate how TV should be viewed, and what it does to news and important information. But he says that for the idea to work, the show would have to be so popular that it would have to be co-opted by TV.

6. No. The internet has changed the way we view all information. Frankly, the internet has made the matter worse. The internet is an interactive television. A television on which you can click around to receive only the information that pleases you.

Response Questions/Answers to FEED by M.T. Anderson

Image Credit

FEED Characters - Please provide the name of ONE of the main characters in the story, and 5 descriptive adjectives about that character.

VIOLET - quiet, intuitive, old-fashioned, pretentious, environmental/green, and pretty


FEED Vernacular - Please provide THREE "slang" terms used in FEED, and brief IYOW definitions for each. (Example: "brag" = cool, hot, super nifty, boss, really keen.)

"low-grav" = a hip place where the gravity is low and people can float around,
"null" = bored/boring,
"meg" = short for "mega", very, in-excess, big, important


FEED LIKE Our World - Please make a list of THREE specific different ways the FEED world looks like our own 21st century culture.

- The feed world is still primarily on planet earth
- There are still vegetation (forests and jungles), as well as the people trying to knock them down and the people trying to keep them standing.
- Humans still show effection towards eachother (i.e. families still have sit-down dinners and choose their welcomed guests and dating/love still exists)


FEED UNLIKE Our World - Please make a list of THREE specific different ways the FEED world looks UNlike our own 21st century culture.

- the Feed transmitter in human brains give them the ability to communicate without spoken or written words; the written word is obsolete. language is dying.
- personal vehicles can fly in the Feed world and they are called "upcars".
- much of the world's air supply is produced through factories.


FEED Themes - Please make a list of THREE big media-related themes FEED's author, M.T. Anderson, highlights in his book.

- Copyright - many resources such as "School" and "Clouds" have trademark logo's next to them. These words/titles have been purchased and are starting a trend.
- Corporate Greed - corporations have bought out all previously public elements such as school, government, etc.
- Pollution - humans have taken over the solar system and are continuing to break down natural elements to make room for man made machines and new technology.

Hola!

Burlington, Vermont 

My name is Dwight Stannard. I am from Burlington, Vermont.

The media experience that I had over break was my traveling to New York City. I've lived 5.5 hours away from it my entire life and had never been until now. I actually visited the city two separate times in the last week of our break; my justification for missing out all of these years.

In class, I brought up the idea of "Viral Marketing" (http://digitallabz.com/blogs/11-examples-of-viral-marketing-campaigns.html). I feel that this concept is the future of advertising. Reaching the public in unconventional ways, in every-day places (i.e. the internet, subway stations, malls, etc.).

What I do not like about the media today is the fact that we are rapidly loosing our right to privacy. This unofficial, unspecific right, (seemingly conceived by James Madison and several other framers) is slipping through our fingers, legally.

I am a musician, and also a dreamer. My goal is to establish myself in the world of music production. Chances are, I will begin in advertising. Ideally beginning as a studio assistant and making a name for myself as a audio engineer, and hopefully one day starting a label of my own.