media: May 2006 Archives

It seems I just deleted or otherwise erased the entire contents of six years of email. Yes, I did backup...a few months ago?

Wow. Want to start a new life? :-/

And then there are the vagaries of memory. I've been sorting and organizing memorabilia, trying to put things in chronological order. How often did I misdate things? Not sure, but some years definitely seem incorrect. Sequencing? Sketchy. In one instance, there's my written version and someone else's written version of the same event. Different!

I'm a bit numb with the loss. I had envisioned a certain texturing of the written documentation of my life, thoughts, processes, etc. I know it's not ALL gone; just the most recent several months, but gosh - it's a shock. Or, maybe I'm not numb? Wouldn't that be a change! Perhaps the half-dozen deletions of blog comments have inured me to this eventuality?

As Little Brother said upon departure a few days ago, there have been "so many goodbyes." Me too, to people, places, and hoped-for futures.

I leave this space tomorrow. It's been good for me. Who knows what the next one will bring?

We must keep net neutrality! A US House of Reps panel actually approved a bill that will not allow broadband providers to charge interent services for their content. This is so big it's hard to express how important it is for the long-term structuring of public access to information.

Not only were they identified in the Time Top 100, the Dixie Chicks are receiving prominent coverage for their new album, Taking the Long Way. A feature story on NPR, and now the cover of Time.

Another headline story from the NYTimes: Iran shuts down newspaper over cartoon. Note: the story isn't headline news for the BBC. Interesting, the cartoon wasn't poking fun at the administration but at an ethnic minority group, Azeri Turks. The Azeri are most densely situated in the northease of Iran, which borders Iraq.

Ethnic strife between Kurds living in the same region has been on the Internet since at least 2003. This report from Xalq Qazeti, Baku, in Azeri 16 Apr 03 p 9 describes rising tensions between Kurds and Azeri's and speculates on a "softening" of the government's stance toward the Azeri (and the US, ha!)

It is unclear (for me, based on these sources) what the government's action in shutting down a popular reformist newspaper NOW is intended to accomplish. The Azeri's have also protested media sources: Azeris circle wagons around opposition channel.

Aside: info on the Turkish language by the BBC. Meanwhile (!), The airport where I would most likely arrive for that conference in July is ablaze. :-/

Lisa sent out the first notice to the comm-grad list about James Carey's deathcultural definition of communication:

"Communication is a symbolic process whereby reality is produced, maintained, repaired and transformed." (p. 10, 1975 in Baran, 2006, p. 9)

Carey is cited all over the place. This article in a Canadian journal introduces (to me, smile) the expressivist/objectivist debate.

I just added another feature to the blog, technorati. In theory, it will interlink me with more bloggers writing about similar topics as well as make it easier for them to find me. :-)

One of my students is soaking up Cannes and Al Gore (!) is making waves at Sundance. Funny, as Cole just asked who might run for President on the Democratic side...Hillary of course, I read about a Senator from Virginia whose name I forgot, and I mentioned that Gore might try again. It's a new campaign style: provide serious information in a format that allows it. Will the public respond to an educational movie geared to adults?

The NYTimes' story today highlights disagreements among the EU, Russia, and the US regarding sanctions against Iran: Western Powers Disagree on Elements of Iran Proposal. Earlier this week, Time featured a story, Why not talk? in which they selected one particular quote from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's 18-page letter to President Bush:

"All prophets speak of peace and tranquility--based on monotheism, justice and respect for human dignity," Ahmadinejad wrote. "Do you not think that if all of us abide by these principles, we can overcome the world's problems? Will you not accept this invitation?" (emphasis added)

Bush probably can't "accept" because it would be a blow to the ego in some way to respond to Iran's overture to us - rather generous, since the US hasn't been willing to make any overtures to them. Granted, Ahmadinejad's reference to monotheism may be a mask for Islam, but, as the Republican Senator Chuck Hagel notes, "Diplomacy is about talking."

This may seem like the strangest aside, but I saw an ad for a Nissan Pathfinder at the gym last night: "The Left Turn Adventure." The dialogue is all about what would happen if we could only make left turns. All the visual imagery is happy and positive, all the questions are posed rhetorically yet invoke optimism and possibility. Now, if a major car manufacturer thinks a PR campaign playing on the aspirations of the political left is marketable, does this corroborate a change in the wind?

I was hoping students would consider humor through one of the three theoretical lenses for analyzing the mass media that we discussed this semester (transmission, ritual, critical).

Undisclosed student: “Humor can be so powerful now. Look at the speech with Steven Colbert. He was at the White House, and trashing the news media and the president, in front of him. But he was using humor. People respond well to humor. Most young people get their news from the Daily Show and others with a comical stance. We are getting this information and they are using the humor to show which side they are on (media). Humor is strange in that it doesn't always work to your advantage. How serious can you take a comedian? Often the content is not taken seriously and can be brushed off without making a change.”

Steph: “We have a label for the way things aren't taken so seriously ... anyone? :-) And say more about its relationship to humor (for more points) or some other functions of comedy in mass media.”

I was a little slow in a couple of ways regarding the discussion about propaganda which centered on the animal rights movement. I titled the discussion thread “animal rights/hunting propaganda” and Kirk changed it to “animal rights mumbojumbo.”

I asked a handful of questions, including whether there was any evidence of bias in Glen’s presentation itself: was there more information on the 'support' side (of animal rights) than on the 'against' side (or vice versa)?

Who are the publics that animal rights advocates target? Who are the publics that hunting advocates target?

Is this a false dichotomy? (Can one support hunting and animal rights?)

A great discussion ensued in which I realized I had missed a crucial point. (Imagine!)

As the final extra credit discussion in the Intro to Mass Media course, I asked a few questions to try and clarify some essential teaching objectives. Three threads have been developing into awesome conversations:

Jen: “my grasp of representaion is how we view a certain (usually a minority group) of people based on the usual, stereotype image of them that the media shows us or is reinforced in our everyday lives via selective intake and selective "remembering" of incidents relating to the continuation of our own bias of a minority taht keep the cycle going and going...thats a bit vague, i cant seem to get it into a good point that comes out and makes sense...anyone else?”

So said Donna, calling me a "techhead" at the end of the Deaf-Interpreter Community Forum today. As I drove the 3+ hours to get there this morning I listened to NPR's Weekend Edition. Several stories caught my attention. First, an interview with Tom Wolfe, discussing the role of speech (he means language) in human evolution. Next, an interview with the author of Challenger Park, a novel about an astronaut mom. I was already interested because of my own childhood fantasies of space travel. I also remember driving from one job (at UPS) to another (at Taco Bell) on the day the Challenger expoded. I heard it on the radio and cried. What really hooked me was the notion of being so far removed from your child that even the possibility of communication is prevented.

Then there was the story about Desi Arnez being an auteur. I can't seem to find the interview (poo) but the argument was that Arnaz himself was really the first tv auteur. This article credits the combined team Desilu (with Lucille Ball). I've been more exposed to arguments about Ball's genius; it was interesting to listen to this perspective arguing that Arnaz has been somewhat overlooked. There was a line about the genius of making fun of himself (as Ricky Ricardo) except when he was performing as a musician, then he was always taken seriously.

Finally, a graduation speech by Scott Simon: Platitudes with Attitude. My students definitely deserve this one!

Oh, and there was a brief mention of Winston Churchill? Today is the anniversary of his assumption of the role of Prime Minister at the beginning of WWII. He proclaimed, in deep stentorian tones: "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat."

Rachel treated us to several music videos from Yahoo, but told us about Launch.com, where you can "free" downloads (but you have to watch an ad first!)

She basically demonstrated how lyrics and graphics are both censored, but artists still make profits through massive hypercommericialism rapping about liquor, shoes, Cheetos and any other product "only because I like them" and getting paid for product placement.

Here are links to the lyrics of the music videos we watched:

What You Know lyrics by TI.

Nelly's Air Force Ones lyrics

Big Tymer's Still Fly

Interestingly, Eminem went to Sirius (with good ol' Howard).

Adam gave us an overview of the FCC's attempts to regulate "indecency" on the airwaves. He provided us this link to Radio In Persecution and treated us to Eric Idle's FCC song (replete with the f-word).

The question of "terrestrial vs satellite radio" has been with us all semester. Is the only way to guarantee freedom of speech being able to pay for it? Stern was fined $495,000 in April, 2005, apparently the straw that broke the camel's back and precipitated his move to Sirius satellite radio.

Some say Stern is the major catalyst for the FCC's crackdown of late, while others argue it was really Opie and Anthony. Long a haven for Playboy and others interested in broadcast sex, according to the NY Times even the Catholic Church is getting into satellite radio: Sirius to Begin a Catholic Channel

Whatever the content, one must wonder at the task of analyzing the category of material prohibited from free public consumption by the Federal Communications Commission: obscene (not protected by First Amendment), indecent, patently offensive, and profane (sexual or excretory deemed not quite obscene and therefore allowed but not between 6 am and 10 pm).

Paula hopes so, reflecting (by email) both on an impressive Day Without Immigrants demonstration in Amherst yesterday and this national media event:

Colbert rips Bush to his face (video) at the White House press correspondents dinner.

I imagine many, if not most, of the persons who made an appearance in his speech weren't too happy about it. There was laughter from the crowd at some points, as well as by some of the individuals targeted. There were also palpable silences.

Previous protests for immigrant rights on April 10 surprised politicians in Washington forging ahead with their elitist agenda. The Boston Globe reports largest local participation for yesterday's protests within Latino communities. The NYTimes headlines the Show of Strength.