Assignment #6

FACEBOOK
a. IYOW, identify the thesis of Hodgkinson's article, in one sentence.
Facebook is disguised as a social networking site, but its true purpose is rooted in capitalism and advertisement.
b. Describe TWO observations the author makes about Facebook with which you agree, and TWO observations he makes about Facebook with which you disagree. Be clear and specific.

Disagree:

“Like PayPal before it, it is a social experiment, an expression of a particular kind of neoconservative libertarianism. On Facebook, you can be free to be who you want to be, as long as you don't mind being bombarded by adverts for the world's biggest brands.” I mildly disagree with this statement, because I don’t feel that advertisements are that overwhelming on Facebook. There are some ads on the side bar, but mine are never for major brand name stuff.

“Clearly, Facebook is another uber-capitalist experiment: can you make money out of friendship? Can you create communities free of national boundaries - and then sell Coca-Cola to them? Facebook is profoundly uncreative. It makes nothing at all. It simply mediates in relationships that were happening anyway.” I also disagree with this statement. I feel that there is some truth in his argument because people can spend money on Facebook, but by no means does a friendship create revenue. In addition, it can create relationships that weren’t already there. I wouldn’t suggest Facebook friend-ing someone that you don’t know, but it happens. I feel that Facebook can be useful for things outside of the realm of capitalism. For example, I use my page to convey important announcements to do with activism projects that I am working on. For example, I used Facebook to communicate with a lot of people about the issue of closing down VT Yankee Nuclear Power Plant. I was able to share links to websites, dates of upcoming events, pictures, and updates on the vote. I have never spent any money on the site.

Agree:

“The US defense department and the CIA love technology because it makes spying easier.” I absolutely agree. I can see how Facebook would be a great way to spy on people, because most people list a lot of personal information, such as hometown, birth date, school, political views, religion, and relationship status. I have even heard that colleges and jobs will use Facebook as a tool to research applicants.

“Now, by comparison with Facebook, newspapers, for example, begin to look hopelessly outdated as a business model. A newspaper sells advertising space to businesses looking to sell stuff to their readers. But the system is far less sophisticated than Facebook…” Facebook is a much more efficient way to get information around, including ads, because viewing is infinite and nonstop. There are millions of people looking at their Facebook news feeds 24/7. Unlike a newspaper which is printed once a day, users can change their statuses and write messages to other people many times a day. The News Feed is much like a newspaper, but with information that is more personalized to each viewer. I only see the updates of people that I am friends with, or pages of which I am a fan.

"The Making of a Media Literate Mind" and blog your reflections.

What stood out for you?

It stood out that in our culture we spend at least ten hours each day consuming media. I was not surprised to read that fact, but it is overwhelming. Essentially, the only times we aren’t consuming media are if we’re asleep, or in the middle of the woods. Since about 90% of the media is owned by a handful of giant corporations, there is little room for diverse, independent, or revolutionary themes.

Is there anything you learned from the article that you didn't know before?

I learned that CBS and MTV are both owned by Viacom. In addition, it was brought to my attention in the article that many of the alcohol ads on television, especially during sports programs, are targeted to adolescent boys whom obviously can’t purchase those beverages. It has become obvious to me that those adolescent boys are being “branded”. They are subconsciously being brainwashed to believe that to be popular, one must be a jock, and jocks drink Budweiser. It is horrifying how interconnected all of the larger corporations have become.

The Merchants of Cool

1) Portrays teens as easily brainwashed.

2) Observes the role of sex in the media and the lives of teens. The film exaggerates reality. Not all teens behave in the ways that are portrayed by MTV and “Spring Break” videos. I don’t necessarily think the media has the most influence over teen sexuality. It has a lot to do with the friends that teens hang around with, and the ways they were raised.

3) The kids who were paid to talk about “what’s cool” were very hesitant to say very much. It made me a little mad, because if I had an easy way to make fifty bucks like that, I would tell them what I thought was “cool”. Not that I would sign up for anything like that, because I don’t support the cause. I just think the focus group was relatively selfish to take the opportunity and not give a good effort to do the job.

4) The TV show 7^th Heaven is pretty ridiculous. I used to watch it on afternoons after school when I wasn’t doing anything else. I remember consciously knowing how unrealistic it was, in that the family was so perfect. At the same time, I was addicted to it, and it made me hostile that my own family was relatively dysfunctional. I find it hard to believe that there are families in real life with parents that get along so well, live in a beautiful home, have all well-behaved, attractive kids, and a dog named Happy that always saves the day.

5) I found the section of the video about Midriff archetypes to be pretty true. The media portrays that females must be a certain way: perfect body, highly sexual, confident and weak at the same time, and consumed by appearances and popularity. From personal experience, I can say that very few girls want to act this way, but most of them do because they are starved for male acceptance.

How did the film make you feel?

The film made me feel like I am not an individual. It made huge generalizations about teenagers, and separated us by gender. Ironic, huh, that a video trying to end stereotypes has completely played into them?

What persuasive techniques does Kilbourne use in presenting her research?

It’s persuasive that actual footage of teens is shown. There are interviews and videos of the teens buying into archetypes.

Twitter: I am choosing not to participate in the world of Twitter, because I feel like I am already too connected to the cyber world with a Facebook account, and now a blog! I know the essence of what it is, and feel that I would be very distracted by it.