Blog Assignment #2

Ten media stereotypes I experienced this week:

Feb. 23, 9:45 p.m.
7-11, 89th and Walker
Advertisement
Coors beer poster on the wall
Inappropriate image of a woman in a wet T-shirt holding a beer with the text “Show me your COORS!” next to her
Gender stereotypes

Feb. 23, 11:30 p.m.
www.myspace.com
Web advertisement
Myspace ad for their game Mafia Wars
Image of a black man and a Latino man holding guns
Reinforces the assumption that minorities are violent thugs
Racial stereotypes

Feb. 24, 8:30 a.m.
WWLS 98.1 The Sports Animal
Radio
Rosetta Stone language program advertisement
Male voice asks a question, three females respond with an incorrect answer
Reinforces the male-dominant stereotype – “men are smarter than women”
Gender stereotypes

Feb. 24, 2:15 p.m.
College Crowd, February issue
Magazine
“Valentine’s Day – Gifts for her”
A list of suggested gifts for “her” depicting very expensive items
Assumes women only care about money and expensive things
Gender assumption/stereotypes

Feb. 24, 10:15 p.m.
Personal conversation with Jamie Hill, friend
Conversation after Gov. Bobby Jindal’s response to President Obama’s speech to Congress
My friend said the GOP picked a minority to respond because he can attack Obama’s policies and not fear being called a racist
Racial stereotypes

Feb. 25, 7:30 p.m.
Film
Pineapple Express
The Asian-American characters in the movie are only referred to as “The Asians” and they are portrayed with very thick accents and oriental décor at their home
Racial stereotypes

Feb. 26, 4:45 p.m.
Personal conversation with Lauren Hartley, friend
Conversation after seeing a group of Mexicans drive by in a van
My friend commented that the people in the fan were probably transporting their entire extended family from Mexico
Racial stereotypes

Feb. 27, 1:30 a.m.
www.si.com
Web advertisement
Woman in a small bikini holding a Planters nut bar
Just another example in how companies use sex to sell unrelated items
Gender stereotypes

Feb. 27, 12:20 p.m.
Television
Cox Cable commercial on VH1
The “Wow. Makes me wonder what else I don’t know” commercial
A woman attacks another woman who is flirting with her husband
Gender stereotypes

Feb. 27, 2:30 p.m.
Social experience
Sooner Fashion Mall
I saw a woman walking down the mall who switched her purse to her other arm as a group of African-American boys passed by her.
Racial assumptions/stereotypes

Personal reflection:

I was a little surprised by the amount of stereotyping I see in the media. It was very easy to point out, especially gender stereotyping. It seemed like everywhere I looked (or did not look) there was some form of stereotyping occurring, whether through images, conversations, text, etc.

I would have to say that being a fair-skinned male, I do not feel I am a target of too many harsh stereotypes in my daily life.

Media stereotyping of different ethnic groups and women plays a huge role in shaping the way society thinks about them. Every person interacts with the media, or forms of the media, nearly all day, every day. If we are constantly bombarded with images and representations of a person or group acting a certain way... we will naturally begin to associate that type of behavior with that person or group. Some of my personal experiences I listed above were not necessary caused out of hatred, but rather it was a friend of mine merely "joking" or being "funny." Racial stereotyping is not funny, it is counterproductive to the progressive advances we as a society are trying to make. You can't pretend something is bad on the outside, but treat it so casually on the inside. This is why it is so important for the media to stand above the stereotyping and to portray everyone on fair and equal ground. 

Blog Assignment — Feb. 13

After watching the Tim Wise video in class, what do you think about the idea of privilege?

In my own definition, privilege is when a person receives extra opportunities and benefits due to discriminations and prejudices towards others. However, I think the idea of privilege can be applied in a much broader scope than how Tim Wise utilized it. Privilege, by definition, is a special right enjoyed by a person beyond the advantages of most. This is not limited to the white vs. minority argument. Males seem to enjoy more privilege than females, and the wealthy definitely have more opportunities offered to them than those without much money. But in the context of this class and what Wise's message was, I found myself wholeheartedly agreeing with his points and examples. Many people think of privilege as big, glaring instances of obvious advantages. But that is not always the case. Sometimes it's not so obvious. For example, Chris Paul and Steve Nash are current basketball players in the NBA who are considered to be the best at their position. In accordance to racial stereotypes, Paul, the black player, is expected to be good; but Nash, the white player, has not had to grow up with the pressure to be good. So while both players are premier players, Nash is celebrated solely on the merit of his talent. Paul's greatness isn't as "spectacular" because he's expected to have a "natural" edge.

How does the media utilize privilege in media representation?

The media utilizes privilege frequently. Turn on the TV or open a newspaper and you will find white people seem to have a free pass on more difficult issues. When talking about the poor and homeless, many times images of minorities will be on display more often than whites.

Privileges I have noticed in this past week:

1. I am taking a sports journalism class and earlier this week we were discussing who were some of the best sportscasters in the business. One student in the class mentioned Suzy Kolber, a popular woman sportscaster at ESPN, and another student made the remark, "yeah she's pretty good, for a woman analyst."

2. I went to the store to get Band-Aids and as I was looking at the colors and all they had was clear and "flesh" color. But, the flesh color was tan. What about the color of other people's flesh? They were nowhere to be found. I never have to worry about buying Band-Aids that don't (somewhat) match my skin.

3. I never expect to be the only white person in a large group of people.

4. I opened a newspaper earlier this week and had to go through eight pages before a picture of a non-white person was printed.

5. Four-fifths of my professors are white.

6. I heard someone referring to a recent hire, saying that the person "probably got the job because she was black." I never have to worry that I'm getting a job to fulfill affirmative-action requirements. 

7. Wednesday night, I was leaving OCCC (where I work) two hours after the building closed. I was not dressed in professional attire, and I had a large bag with me. After I got into my car, a security guard who I had never seen before stopped me. I told him I worked for the college he did not question me or ask to see my college employee ID.

8. I went to the bank with a large amount of cash in small bills (ones, fives and tens) and I am confident the teller did not question the validity that I obtained that money.

Do you think society still believes in the one drop rule?

A resounding yes. If a person's skin is any color other than white, they are automatically classified with other people with that skin color. It seems that there is no gray area when defining people's race by appearance alone. There are no "degrees" of blackness, a person native to Africa and a person who is one-sixty-fourth African-American are both considered black. Even if the latter has more Asian and Caucasian blood in their DNA than African blood. On the other side, some researches estimate that nearly one-third of African-Americans have white blood running through their veins, yet these blacks are not ever considered as whites. The one drop rule is an unfair way of over generalizing people.

Personal reflection

I agree with the idea of responsibility of knowledge. We are a society who is continually trying to erase our past of social injustices. As we explore the errors of our ancestor's ways, we must take this newfound knowledge to heart and ensure that we do not make the same mistakes. If we do not adapt to the changes in the world then we are handicapping ourselves. 

An old new album.

For the past year, one of my favorite bands has been Limbeck.

Limbeck are known for their light, alt-country rock full of toe-tapping drumbeats and twangy guitars. They are the kind of band you listen to while you are having a cold beer on the front porch with your friends.

I have been listening to their 2003 album “Hi, Everything’s Great” and their 2005 release “Let Me Come Home” religiously. Until this past week, I thought these were the only records Limbeck had written. I was unaware that another, more recent album even existed.

Well I am unaware no longer, thankfully.

Limbeck’s 2007 self-titled album, released on Doghouse Records, finds the band settling into a very relaxed, happy and safe place. The bands previous releases have followed a more traditional alt-country, Americana sound, which were full of road ready tunes with grit and harmony throughout. That method has been tweaked and their new album flexes its musical muscle by adding some ukulele, organ, chimes, horns and string arrangements to this new round of songs.

This process has given Limbeck a new dynamic, which on several tracks thrusts them into an arena with the likes of the pop masters Beach Boys and Tom Petty. On other tracks, the band can stand head to toe with the likes of Wilco.

This infusion of pop with alt-country works well for Limbeck, and it appears the band is enjoying musical freedom while they hang out and play upbeat music, regardless of the genre.

Tender vocal harmonies and an innocent charm drive the songs. The album is a relaxed affair that's missing the whiskey-soaked grit most country-flavored indie bands have adopted. But what is lacking in drunken misery, Limbeck makes up for in lighthearted songs perfect for those moments when life isn't just a mess.

The restless energy of cuts like "Keepin' Busy" and "Wake Up" break up the largely mellow album nicely, though it's really songs like the early morning narrative of "Sunset Limited" that shine.

The standout track, in my opinion, is "Big Drag." Great energy, catchy chorus and the style of Limbeck rolled into a hit single.



This album is for road trips with friends (preferably driving through some arid desert with miles and miles between each broken down rest stop), walking down the street on a summer day with the sun beating down on your face, or those moments when the most immediate concern is that "the wind keeps blowing the dust in my face and rearranging my hairdo."

These accounts are little snapshots of life as a touring band on the road. And although these adventures may be filled with uncertainty, broken hearts and car troubles, they are ultimately about the friends who share your journeys and the people you meet along the way that make it all worthwhile. Limbeck does a masterful job of bringing these experiences to life on this record.

At one point, lead vocalist Robb MacLean sings, "I just want to be content no matter where I am." Well as long as this album is playing, I’m halfway there.

iStand corrected.

I am an iPhone snob.

No, I'm not saying that I have an iPhone and therefore think that I am better than everyone else. Just the opposite in fact. I'm saying I do not have an iPhone, and therefore I believe I'm better than you.

When Apple first announced it's new product, I laughed and said that it was major overkill. I could not see any reason why I would need something so massive, expensive and simply unnecessary. I told anyone who would listen to me how ridiculous I thought the product was. 

"It's unnecessary. Anyone who wastes their money on an iPhone is just trying to earn style points, it's pretentious," I would tell her. Of course, she would defend her reasons and offer some stretch of the imagination as some form of validation for her purchase... but I would not budge on my stance. The only exception to my pretentious stereotype was for business owners and people running large-scale operations. These types of people were immune to my criticism, mostly. I mean I understood why a person would want an iPhone and I how it could be of use to certain people in certain situations; but I stuck by my guns and remained a staunch critic of the product.

It's too big. It's hard to type on. It's costs too much (it did at first anyway). It's exclusive to AT&T. And so on and so on. I found just about every reason to not get an iPhone.

Well it's been over a year and a half since its launch and I must say — boy, was I wrong.

In the time passed since the release of the original iPhone, I have had plenty of opportunities to play around on my friend's pretentious purchases and I must admit — they are pretty cool. All of the "apps" available, the ability to access the Internet almost anywhere, the neat touch screen... it's all a technological marvel.

Don't get me wrong, it's still a bulky phone (I know it's "not that thick" and all, but I like phones that fit easily in my front pocket). And although the price has dropped considerably, I have a hard time shelling out hundreds of dollars when I have a perfectly good, cheap phone. But, the more of those sweet commercials I see...



...the bigger the urge is to cross to the dark side.

To me, I suppose this is simply a testimony on how effective a well designed ad campaign can be. Especially the new 3G commercials. By simply showing the phone and a set of hands in the frame, Apple really grabs people by displaying what exactly an iPhone can offer consumers. Also, by previewing some of their practical and every-day-helpful apps in addition to the games and entertainment aspect of their product, they ensure that more people will be interested and see just how useful an iPhone would be to them. 

So while I haven't jumped into the iPhone's loving arms (I'm sure there's an app for that), I must congratulate Mr. Jobs and the Apple family on running a wonderful advertising campaign. Some may find it annoying, but my outlook on iPhones has been altered.

I guess I'm not the iPhone snob I thought I was. Instead, I'm on the fast track to becoming an iPhone hypocrite.

-Chris