Reality Television in Actuality

THESIS: Reality television is a solely profit-driven spectacle that exploits its subjects by promoting itself as "reality" when it is, in fact, fictional.

Food vs. Nourriture

      Watching ‘Food Inc.’ in class was an eye-opener in many senses.  I found the film was actually following a huge wave across the globe. The world food problem could be seen in two levels:

1)    Countries could be seen as being impoverished enough not to have enough food for their population

2)    Countries are so fed with their poor food qualities that they feed themselves so much with awful food

            Recently I watched a French film which shared the same qualities shared in ‘Food Inc.’. The film ‘Nos enfants Nous Accuseront’ pretty much depicts the same scenario, although there is more of a relationship by following a town through the lessons the film strives to teach as it transitions form a farming town dependant on pesticides to that of an organically sustained film. There are two entities in ‘Nos enfants Nous Accuseront’, the lecture hall of Health professionals that define the pesticide-tarnished French foods, and the town of Barjac as they undergo the changes the lecture-series veers to promote. An individual Health Minister lays out the most eye opening information. Pesticide use in France is higher than any other country in Europe, and 3^rd in the world. Cancer in Europe is notably caused by two factors; 70% linked to environment and 30% linked to foods.  Being told that for the first time ever, children are deemed to grown up unhealthier than ever in a societal earth, due to the chemical tampering in foods. Hopeful plans and ‘perfectly laid out’ scenarios is the lecture’s most prominent tool in the overall merging of this documentary.

 With every example of this lecture in this film, the town is documented as they strive for change. Identifying the children as those needing to be helped most follows the hierarchy of the town from the Mayor, school cafeteria and those parents that have the most profound influence to the next generation. Parents, teachers, farmers, and school chefs all are documented as they all take steps growing and explaining the goods of foods raised with and with out pesticides.

            The impact of these changes not only helps the children but the community of the town.  Being that France is viewed as the ‘Culinary leader’ that it is defied by the viewpoint of the documentarian. What we viewed in class was a lesson pertaining to the problems of what we have a nation, although I believe these two films together show the problems our food systems feeds itself [the global populous] as a whole

"Promote your page!"

Upon posting a funny link on my brother’s facebook page this past week, I was greeted with a new option of choosing to ‘promote’ my post. “Sure!” I thought. I knew my post was funny, so it would have been best for everyone to see my post. That’s when it hit me. I would have to pay in order to promote the link to which describes how to roast a whole pig over coals. Did I like my post enough to pay $7.99 for it to pop up higher on others news feeds? I didn’t like trading recipes that much. This prospect has since allowed me to think of Facebook’s alternative motives to the user experience.

Stephen Marche, author of ‘Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?’ argues that if facebook is not used in a proper manner it has the potential effects of making individuals lonely. I suppose facebook could say fairly that you could pay your way out of the ‘slippery slope’ of loneliness. I for one believe that life interactions are crucial for becoming a “normal” or socially dynamic being of consciousness. I see a different light for this idea of paying for promotion as Marche states in his findings. The manner at which individuals use facebook and by means of promotion could be either potentially harmful or quite useful. Let’s take the idea of promoting the use of post for selfish intent of glamorizing one’s self my popular view: I would say this is a negative light. What would be a positive light would be if one were raising money for a charity, and they promoted their post in hopes that their return would be higher than that of the cost which they set out.

Not only do I believe that we have the capability of using facebook for ‘good or evil’ but I also believe that facebook itself has the power of either imposing positive or negative experiences to the daily user experience, in their day to day operations.

Pink is For Boys Who Like Girl Toys

Please watch first:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CU040Hqbas&feature=related

            The first toy I ever consciously asked for was a Barbie doll. Despite being boy (which I still am) the idea of a boy being too boyish for a Barbie doll never crossed the minds of my parents, and I received the bombshell the 3^rd of June 1993. My father played with his sisters as a child, and they would often dress him up and play with Barbies. So the idea to my father of his own son playing with a Barbie doll never really bothered him. To my Mother, I believe the fact that her son was playing ‘undress’ with a Barbie rather than ‘dress-up’ was just a knock in the head. My parents saw nothing wrong with allowing their son to want something not typically advertised to boys. In comparison to Riley in the youtube video ‘Riley on Marketing’ I may not have been such a pioneer, although I believe I have shared the same idea that any kid should be able to play with any toy they desire.

            Riley does a fantastic job breaking down the stereotypes of the marketing tactics with in the toy industry. I must admit, her vocabulary isn’t very vast, although she’s only four! I have faith in the youth of tomorrow if they are able to define and see through marketing ploys in the manner, which Riley exercised. The sheer observations of the color of the boxes between girl and boy toys are the biggest difference between the isles of the toy stores. Riley does a good job proclaiming that boys at times want girls toys [Holla!] and girls want boy toys.

            I for one proclaim that generations after our own will be able to see differences in such obvious market ploys. Although, I believe its up to our generation to make sure that the youth of tomorrow are given equal access to toys which they desire despite typical gender roles.

            

"[New-Conventional] Modern Family''

The interesting part of television in American is how it evolves with the times.  Right now gay is hot! Although gay was only just hot in the 90’s and 2000’s, we need more. More Gay! Although in contrast to the gay we see on scripted American Television, what have wee seen for the gays in life? I’ve seen rights emerge in the gay community, which spawned a national movement for gay rights. This movement being too great to go unnoticed, writers of scripted television caught eye and have done their part to allow their form of media to influence the masses.  The most noticeable example of gay television characters evolving in greater character development is seen in “Modern family.” “Modern Family,” depicts branches of a clashing upper middle-class family tree going about the 1^st world struggles of suburbia life. Hilarious! One branch of this family follows a gay couple, Cam and Mitchel and we see how the ‘Wife’ and ‘Husband’ rules can also pertain to the daily homosexual couple. The most prominent higher power this couple gets in character development, in comparison to past gay characters we see Cam and Mitchel making pioneering gay landmarks in scripted television by means of being accepted to raise an adopted child together. The stigma of gay culture was of course quickly depicted in the initial introduction of baby Lilly. The babies being theatrically presented like Simba in ‘The Lion King’, viewed, as only an episodic introduction a gay person would do.

Although homosexuality is becoming more accessible to accept through the means of gay rights, heterosexuality is surely leading the means for sexual riskiness and provocativeness for American culture. Whether it’s ‘Toddlers in Tiaras” displaying provocative dances or watching a married couple risking unprotected sex in “Desperate Housewives” sexual activity is becoming more liberal to see openness in sexuality in television. In American culture I can see more often as well. 

The amount of acceptability in society on sexual and gay rights has made great strides in recent decades. The edgier more daring side of this depiction in the media is tested at times to be going ‘past the line’. Although there are more than one ideas of what morally acceptable, there is surely a link between ‘American Society’ and ‘American Television’.  

Coming out: From Screaming Atop Mountains to Whispering the Word

Personally, Ott and Aoki’s research allowed me to realize how different my level of acceptance is much more open towards members of LGBTQIA community. From an early age it was the norm to question new ideas, the gender roles people were contradicting from societal norms were brought to my attention and from then I learned even two of my teachers from grade school (Pre-Kindergarten and 1^st grade) were lesbians and had been living with one another for many years. Through this immersive learning and other experiences of accepting LGBTQIA community members, I bettered myself when providing the comfort to a friend at a moment when coming out, and what I learned is that the idea of ‘coming out’ isn’t always necessarily the dramatic proclamation from atop a mountain which is often depicted.

My teenage years provided much time for making friends from many different backgrounds. One of my friends was an openly gay male who was proud to represent his lifestyle, although very aware that not everyone would treat him like a friend depending on their views towards his personal qualities. Another friend, also a gay male, was not as upfront towards being gay, and when openly questioned by other mutual friends of his sexual orientation he responded in a sense that implied a standing of “wasn’t it obvious?” Although Friend #1 was willing to cry to ends length when coming out to us as friends, Friend #2 came out in a very non-verbal manner.

Friendship for my community of friends, which included both of these friends I use as examples and upward to fifteen+ , were all established before the seriousness of high-school relationships were in full swing. With this manner, it should be said that that there was a general understanding of which orientation cultivated within our community of friends.

 The degree and level of acceptance from which both of these friends received positive notes was identical. The article quotes Burke when referring to Framing and Symbolic views:

“Symbolic forms can be, according to Burke loosely grouped into “frames of acceptance” and “frames of rejection” based on the general orientation they adopt in “the face of anguish, injustice, disease, and death.”

I realize Matthew Sheppard did not come up with in a community where everyone was accepting of his sexual orientation.  Although, that does not mean all members of his community shared the same points of views as Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson.  What this quote focuses and directly relates towards my friend#1/#2 examples, is that there may have been an unwarranted threat Friend #1 felt towards prejudices that Friend #2 had not felt with in his immediate community. It’s a different view, though I find that the lack of a pinnacle Friend #2 associate with “coming out” directly goes hand-in-hand with the study of gender norms which were covered in class as well.

            In summary, the aspect of coming out, to one of my friends was a monumental achievement in his life. On the contrary the label of sexual orientation to another friend was merely just an act of stating “as matter of fact.”  Both of my friends are open gay males who came to terms with analyzing their individual situation and catered their lifestyles to their needs.