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Impact of media on individuals
Impact of media on individuals
The effects of media on individuals and society
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With all the background noise drowning out what is really important what is it that citizens should tune in to? In Adrianna de Barros’s Blinding Lights, she analyzes the harmful effect of this pointless noise and the distractions that the media creates within society. Through the use of vivid imagery and sensory overload, Barros’s poem functions as a social commentary on the harmful effects of being absorbed by the constant flow of media coverage.
Within the poem there is a constant looping of a cracking sound in the background, a distraction similar to the constant flow of media coverage and day-to-day societal noise. Barros is symbolizing that wherever one goes in life, background noise will always be present and it is up to the listener to discern what is or is not important. Paired with the constant background noise there are vivid, distinct colors and the overlap of images and text that alludes to the information overload individuals of society consistently receive and struggle to escape. In the third part of the poem Barros
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states the “Golden Rule” but this rule is slightly different from “treating your neighbor how you would want to be treated”. With the skewing of this rule, Barros intends to emphasis how the overload of media content causes people to shut down inside and therefore the purpose of this poem is to encourage individuals to not let their senses be blinded by content overload. Barros presents two different types of media coverage in order to further support the problematic nature of media, these two types are: celebrity news and crime stories.
Through the capitalization of “Movie Stars” in the couplet of the first section of the poem, Barros shows both how movie stars are dehumanized by the media and how the individuals fascination and worship of them dehumanizes themselves. She is showing that even though movie stars are fantasized over and followed through their day-to-day lives we do not really know them for who they are as people. Supporting her idea that individuals must decipher for themselves what societal noise to focus on, Barros places four lines and a couplet of her poem right next to a section of a crime news story. The placement of the poem next to the story is meant to distract the reader’s eye, and show how societies overload of information can affect the reader's attention span and
focus. Being absorbed by the constant flow of media coverage clouds individuals thoughts, like the blinded image of the man, from developing a view of reality that is entirely unaltered by societal noise. Impossible to block the societal noise and effects of media out entirely, each individual must try to not allow their senses be blinded by content overload.
Wang’s studies have shown that news industries are now tabloidizing news because it elicits the attention of their viewers. Now the only thing considered as “entertainment” in the news is “crimes, accidents, and disasters”. Wangs writes “News that bleeds seem to still lead the primary broadcasts” (Wang 722). People nowaday only tune in when a disaster has occurred and anything other that is not “interesting”. Unfortunately, people would rather watch Isis in action then heard about Obama releasing innocent victims from prison. The reporter in “Gray Noise” proves Wang’s words true when he records on his lens about a mother who had just lost her
Mr. Leo wrote this piece not only for informative purposes, but also to convince a particular audience that, whether intentional or not, characters have taken on harmful images some may find offensive. He is not speaking only to his fairly educated, loyal readers, but also to those who may have taken part in producing the movie. Mr. Leo makes visible to his readers what he believes to be stereotypes in the film. People may not have noticed these before, so he makes clear definitions and comparisons. To the rest of the audience, those who had a hand in making the movie, he makes a plea not to redevelop these characters in future films.
I will begin my essay by looking closely at the narrative of Sunset Boulevard to see where and how the film represents the Hollywood Studio System. At the beginning of the film the audience is introduced to Joe Gillis, a script writer who is struggling to pay his rent as he in unable to sell his scripts to the ‘majors’ of Hollywood. The film follows Joe to ‘Paramount Pictures’ one of the major studios in Hollywood, which the film pays a large self reference to as the producers of Sunset Boulevard as well as representing the studio system.
The authors both making sweeping statements about the political nature of the United States, but Ames addresses a more concentrated demographic of American society than Hedges. The latter points the finger at the venal egotism of celebrity culture for entrancing the public into complacency, and at America’s political leaders for orchestrating the fact, but he also places substantial blame on the people at-large for allowing themselves to be captivated by the entertainment industry. Ames discusses an issue in which the Millennial generation stands as the focal point, but she speaks directly to the teachers of these adolescents due to their position of influence. Although today’s youth are proven to possess a spark of political energy through their own volition—displayed through their generation-wide interest in dystopian literature—an environment of learning and in-depth analysis provides the best opportunity for the novels’ underlying calls-to-action to strike a chord with their young
Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring is a nonfictional based movie portraying the infamous activities of a group of California based friends who burglarize celebrities houses looking for fashionable accessories. Mrs. Coppola’s main message throughout the movie examines the power and values their friend group possesses. Examining the scene where Rebecca convinces Marc to rob Evan’s house helps us to break down the movie’s main and underlying messages. Looking at this robbery through Crary’s lens helps the reader to see how her underlying message trumps her more obvious main message. This scene appears to test the values and power of two criminals, but it’s main underlying message addresses the overconsuming lifestyle that Rebecca and Marc possess.
One could easily dismiss movies as superficial, unnecessarily violent spectacles, although such a viewpoint is distressingly pessimistic and myopic. In a given year, several films are released which have long-lasting effects on large numbers of individuals. These pictures speak
In “Wires and Lights in a Box,” the author, Edward R. Murrow, is delivering a speech on October 15, 1958, to attendees of the Radio-Television News Directors Association. In his speech, Murrow addresses how it is his desire and duty to tell his audience what is happening to radio and television. Murrow talks about how television insulates people from the realities in the world, how the television industry is focused on profits rather than delivering the news to the public, and how television and radio can teach, illuminate, and inspire.
This article does not contain a comical sense to it but has a dark, serious tone that is used to show the disturbing realities of this world that these people live in. The article using multiple rhetorical questions that are meant for the reader to think about and place themselves in the described world. This allows them to place themselves in this world and visualize the harsh reality and fear that this world truly holds. The audience is again those people who are not part of this world but are supposed to be in the position of “on the outside looking in” as this description tries to set them in this world within their imagination. This news article breaks its genre conventions as it is not the usual detailed-packed account of a situation you see on the news that simply describes the news it is talking about. Instead, this uses questions to stimulate the reader to envision their own idea of what is happening, while using some supporting details to sway the reader the way I want them to think. Differently, this does keep the convention of having a serious, and dark tone that most of the new news stories and articles
The purpose of any text is to convey the criticisms of society, with V for Vendetta and Animal Farm being chief examples of this statement. Through their use of allusion, symbolism and representation, they portray many of society's flaws and imperfections. Such an imperfection includes the illustration of how totalitarian governments abuse the power they have acquired for their own gain, harming the people they are sworn to serve and protect. Through this abusive self-gaining government, we all are liable to become victims of consumer culture caused by the blind obedience to advertising and propaganda, being unable to form or voice an opinion of our own. But this lack of opinion can be at fault because of our own apathy, the ignorance and slothfulness that is contributed to the role we play in our society and the importance of that role's ability to motivate and inspire change.
Nathanael West’s The Day of the Locust is said by many to be the best novel to be written about Hollywood. When we immediately think of Hollywood, we think of a glamorous story, in the picturesque setting of Los Angeles, full of characters with abundance of talent living the much sought after American dream. This is perhaps what sets West’s novel apart from the rest. The story is full of characters that have a vague impression of the difference in reality and fantasy in life. The characters are submerged in their lives in Hollywood, with what seems to be a false reality on how the world works. The untalented would-be actors, withering vaudeville performers and prostitutes place a certain grotesque over the novel from the beginning, and in a world of certain fantasy and chaos like this, violence is bound to come to the fore as a theme in many different forms. The protagonist of the story, Tod Hackett, is different to the rest of the characters in the novel. Tom is a talented artist, but still has a good view of reality by times, so Tom can act part as an observer in the novel. Tom however has been sucked in to the fantasy world also life has become somewhat submerged in the fantasy world.
Film and literature are two media forms that are so closely related, that we often forget there is a distinction between them. We often just view the movie as an extension of the book because most movies are based on novels or short stories. Because we are accustomed to this sequence of production, first the novel, then the motion picture, we often find ourselves making value judgments about a movie, based upon our feelings on the novel. It is this overlapping of the creative processes that prevents us from seeing movies as distinct and separate art forms from the novels they are based on.
The film Pulp Fiction was an immediate box office success when it was released in 1994 and it was also well received by the critics, and celebrated for the way it appeared to capture exactly a certain pre-millennial angst and dislocation in Western capitalist societies. The term post-modernist, often used to refer to art and architecture, was applied to this film. The pulp fiction refers to popular novels which are bought in large numbers by less well educated people and enjoyed for their entertainment value. The implication is that the film concerns topics of interest to this low culture, but as this essay will show, in fact, the title is ironic and the film is a very intellectual presentation of issues at the heart of contemporary western culture and philosophy.
Don DeLillo’s ‘Videotape’ is a short story of man who is absolutely captivated by some footage on the news that can be described as both, raw and shocking. The footage is being repeatedly played over and over. It depicts a young girl with a camcorder travelling in the backseat of her family’s car who happens to be filming a man driving a Dodge behind them. She continues aiming the camera at the man and filming until, suddenly, he is shot and murdered. The man watching the tape at home is clearly mesmerized and fascinated with the footage to the extent that he was trying to get his wife to watch it with him. This story portrays society’s utter fascination of shocking and disturbing content relating to death and other horrible events unless they themselves are involved. This, along with other characteristics, clearly suggests that “Videotape” is a piece of postmodern literature. This report will analyze and describe why “Videotape” belongs to postmodern literature through the in-depth analysis of the selected passage and a brief breakdown of the story as a whole.
Havrilesky, Heather. “Stalking Celebrities.” Remix: Reading and Composing Culture. Ed. Catherine G. Latterell. 2nd ed. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. martin’s, 2010. 446-450. Print.
Movie stars. They are celebrated. They are perfect. They are larger than life. The ideas that we have formed in our minds centered on the stars that we idolize make these people seem inhuman. We know everything about them and we know nothing about them; it is this conflicting concept that leaves audiences thirsty for a drink of insight into the lifestyles of the icons that dominate movie theater screens across the nation. This fascination and desire for connection with celebrities whom we have never met stems from a concept elaborated on by Richard Dyer. He speculates about stardom in terms of appearances; those that are representations of reality, and those that are manufactured constructs. Stardom is a result of these appearances—we actually know nothing about them beyond what we see and hear from the information presented to us. The media’s construction of stars encourages us to question these appearances in terms of “really”—what is that actor really like (Dyer, 2)? This enduring query is what keeps audiences coming back for more, in an attempt to decipher which construction of a star is “real”. Is it the character he played in his most recent film? Is it the version of him that graced the latest tabloid cover? Is it a hidden self that we do not know about? Each of these varied and fluctuating presentations of stars that we are forced to analyze create different meanings and effects that frame audience’s opinions about a star and ignite cultural conversations.