COMM 121 1/24TeacherKevin Taylor Anderson (312, T:11-1, by appt)TALaras Sekarsih (Makimer E36 M&W 10:30-12)Danci Yoo (Makimer E4 M 12-3)Studying Media and CultureWhat does this imply?- Understanding the Scope of Media Studies- Social Theory- Components and Players- Analyzing Current Headlines- Critical Thinking about Media Use (this means you and me)Topic, Scope, and Style of Course- Media and Societyo Symbiotic relationshipo Structures/influences our reality and identityWhat do we mean by Media?- Radio, TV, Internet- Movies, Sound Recordings,- Magazines, Newspapers, and Video game (etc.)Al Jazeera Videoh9p://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/listeningpost/2012/01/2012120101217600939.htmlAnswer these questions while watching:What is this news story about?What is the news story critiquing?Why is this news story so important right now?COMM 1211/26/2012“You miss to much these days if you stop and think.”-U2, Until the End of the World from the album Achtung Baby (1991)- Relevant about how media saturated we are in our time.1. In-class Discussion: Key VocabularyKey Terms and Concepts from this week’s reading assignments:- Reading -actively interpreting media messages- Social Construction of Reality – negotiate the meeting of reality, understand of reality comes from different influences; what society deems as normal; media images, TV shows, give us a sense of how the world works- Media - intermediary state between two things; medium that information passes through to reach us- Media Users – actively participate in what is out there for media (Facebook, Youtube, blogs) - Mass Media – broadcasts to a large “anonymous” audience (TV, Radio, Internet)2. Explicit Imagery - Nothing is accidental; everything is placed in images for reasons when advertising.3. Culture Jamming- Taking familiar media messages, and inverting them, and showing the oppositional message.Analyzing Media ImagesBeing critical and discerning is one thing, but to adopt a sense of denial about the intent and function of the media is to remain unaware as to how and why the media operate the way they do. AND this will only hold you back from comprehending the subject matter of this course.4. Select History of Mass MediaPrinting Press (1450) – Johann Gutenberg- Played a significant role in bringing about social change and democracy- Protestant Reformation (1517)o People could read the Bibles for themselves, and decide what they believed- French Revolution (1789-1799)o Dependant on the printing press, through producing leaflets on slandering the monarchy and getting people geared towards change- American Revolution (1775-1783)Broadcast Media (Radio, TV, Internet)-No more need for media producers to physically distribute their products-Privatized and individualized media experiencesMedia SaturationAds alone (3000 per day):Billboards, logos (shirts, shoes, even back of my laptop!), TV, radio, newspapers, magazinesImplicit Teachings: Magical Happiness, Parenting, DeceptionVideo Clip: NO Logo1. What is the relationship between corporations, advertising, products, behavior, attitudes, and lifestyle? The idea if companies wanted to be successful, is that their product wasn’t computers, it was an idea, and lifestyles. Make people want to be apart of that particular lifestyle.**2. What is “brand loyalty”?Companies needed to start putting relatable characters on their products to make people seem like they can trust the characters like they could trust the corner store clerk they’re buying it from.**3. What is Nike really selling?A sports idea, a sports brand, showing how a majority of athletes, wear, and use Nike, by sponsoring them, raw individualism**4. What is the image associated with Virgin Airlines?The Virgin type person, sees themselves as an individual, as a nonconformist**** These are my answers that I came up with, I’m giving them to you as guidelines for what you should have, you can have anything along those guidelines filled in on your own paper COMM 121 1/31/2012Student Media Use: Informal SurveyThroughout the whole day- texting throughout the whole dayo there are some restrictions during the day that you can’t- rechecking Facebook/Twitter- listen to music from IPODMedia Deivces- reason (in order of frequency)IPHONE – everythingIpod – musicLaptop- homework, watch videos, check email, FacebookTV – news, game, entertainment showBooks - homework, entertainmentRadio – for alarm, check weatherNewspaper – newsKindle – class readingsMagazine – information, entertainmentDVD – moviesMedia Exposure per day (time)Light users – 24 at less than 4~5 hours a dayMajority – 245 at 10 hoursHeavy users – 27 more than 20 hours a dayAverage = 9.61 hours per dayNo response 15 studentsConsider how our media patterns affect:The manner and nature of our socializing (through media interpersonally)Personal intimacy (sexual and emotional experiences via media instead of physically)Amount of quality of sleep and mental restHabits and degree of contemplation, meditation, self-reflectionUnpacking No Logo- Initially, and to some extent today, companies needed to create a surrogate friend in products to invite trust and consumption. - The new approach is to establish brand loyalty through selling lifestyles and ideas.- Nike = raw individualism (the American dream) - Virgin = bucking the system, being a renegadeWhat is culture?Definition: Learned and shared ideas about behaviorMechanisms: Stores, artifacts, and practices people construct to make sense of themselves as part of some meaningful social groupCultures are always in flux, they are never constantLanguageNew words, new expressions, and new ways of communicating, such as to “Google” somethingSubsistenceShift from growing your own food to purchasing all of your dietary needs on-line and having them delivered to your homeSmart Phone Apps that allows us to scan a product in a grocery store in order to read product reviews, nutritional value, etc.BehaviorPeople multitask during situations that in the past would’ve been considered dangerous orjust rudeFunction/Influences of MediaDefines “Normalcy”Media gives us our sense of what’s natural, normal, desirable, cultivation, sets tone for how we think we should liveDefines “Factuality” “Reality” and “Truth”Subtly teach us what to question and what to take as “fact”Media as IndustryMedia – both entertainment and news – have become a HUGE segment of the American