What I've Learned...

On the very first day of class, you had us describe the definition of race, gender and ethnicity.  There was silence in the classroom for a moment.  Three words so simple that we’ve all heard a million times in our lives. Yet when you get down to the “big picture” the three words are actually very difficult to discuss, which is what we witnessed on the first day. Everyone had a different yet still similar view of the multiple definitions being tossed around.  Meaning every person in our class seemed to limit our thinking by putting not only us in a box but also even our words.

 

Today I think of the term race as many things.  I think of not just the obvious, skin color but now I can go beyond that and reflect on what we learned earlier in the course.  Race becomes “common sense,” a way of comprehending, explaining and acting in the world.  I used to think gender is more black and white.  In my eyes there only used to be men and women.  However in order to be socially correct today, the word, “gender” has expanded.  There are now homosexuals who whish they were another sex as well as transsexuals who’ve managed to change their gender along the way.  After this class I now think that gender is what you wish to be described and addressed as; For example, he or she.  Society can’t rely on the untrained eye and assume gender any longer.  As far as ethnicity goes, I believe what I read in the Haney Lopez article.  It stated, “The theory of ethnicity is based on culture and descent.”  This too can tie back in to how the phrase, “what you see is what you get” is very untrue.  So many people believe in this phrase which is why thousands every day get mistaken for their heritage and identity just because of the texture of their hair, skin color, etc. Ethnicity goes further than the surface of what the eye can assume or see, it’s more of what you can’t see; it is the history down to your core roots.

 

I have to admit when I first saw on the syllabus that we would have to be completing “blogs,” I thought to myself, “Oh no!”  I felt this way mainly because I have never visited nor attempted to write a blog in my life.  Now I’m grateful for the assignments.  As a media professional, I’m sure this isn’t my last blog that I’ll have to address.  I find that blogging is another great tool and window to communicate through back and forth. Of course I had my fair share of confusion with blogging (every week it seems like) but I think I’ve finally figured it out and now know the dos and don’ts.  Though the blogging experience was frustrating and tough at times, overall it was a great new experience.  I’m glad I can now say to future employees that I’m qualified and experienced in the blogging department!

The information that I’ve learned will help me immensely as a media professional.  I already feel like I have an edge/ upper hand.  Now that I’ve taken this class I’m not only well-rounded but I have the ability to see things from a different prospective as well as feel comfortable talking about every day social issues that seem awkward and difficult to discuss when addressed by most.  In fact I think in many cases the basic race, gender and media issues won’t be addressed at all for lack of ability, confidence and fear the topic will result in confrontation. After completing this class, I however feel comfortable directing any socially awkward area head-on.  I’m happy to say that my toolbox is much fuller then ever before!

 

Hip-Hop & the Media

What is Hip-Hop?

To me, hip-hop is a culture.  This has been argued time and time again.  I find that no matter what the melody is, in order for a song to e classified as hip-hop, one must present a message that has one or more elements, such as: soulful, strong-willed, sad, happy, prevail.  Most importaingly the ability to not only tell a story but also awaken your soul and make you feel that story to the core with every word, beat and vibration.

 

Songs I’ve never heard before:

1.    Eric B & Rakim (1987) “I Aint No Joke”

This song was about how everyone who doesn’t understand the artist nor supports him still manages to take all of his own ideas and puts their name on them.  The singer is stating that he isn’t the joke because he’s the one who has all of the original ideas.

2.    N.W,A. “Express Yourself”

Similar to song number one, the rapper states, everyone’s “perpetratin.” The music isn’t for the “pop-chart” it’s just about expressing yourself and not trying to “be what society wants you to be.” That’s not reality.  The song also says…Be who you are… It’s not all about the money.

3.    Afrika Bambaataa “I Go On”

This song is all about feeling the vibe in your bones.  Everything else can wait.  When you’re feeling the music all that really matters at that moment is getting up and dancing.

4.    MC Lyte “I Go On”

I could relate to this song and by the end of it I had more respect for the rapper.  It’s about how nothing can stop her (the artist).  She’s never letting a “punk” get the best of her.  She’s not going to end up in the news for rape etc.  She uses her head which is why she goes “on and on and on and on….”  She doesn’t let a man define who she is.

5.    The Roots “You Got Me”

This song is about a man who is hardly home with his girlfriend due to traveling with his band on tour; therefore causing himself to worry about his girlfriend going out on him.  The girlfriend says she doesn’t even have time for temptation with school; much less he shouldn’t listen to his home boys because she is his.  The only thing to do is speak to each other about their hesitations.

 

Videoes I’ve never seen before:

1.    KRS “MC’s Act Like They Don’t Know”

The whole video focused on the rapper rapping and throwing his arms around.  He talks about how MC’s don’t know how serious or legit their job is.  Music is about the lyrics and having respect through the lyricism skills.

2.    Whodini “One Love”

I noticed that right off the bat that the focal point of this video is that it is set in NYC.  Throughout the entire music video the camera would show the NY skyline with the twin towers or another scene in central park.  This song is about how love is different than “like.”  Love is when you and another person shared the same feeling even when that person isn’t present.  In the video all the guys were portrayed as playboys in the past but now they know they’re lucky to have just “one love.”  The song also says that men shouldn’t be so greedy with material things and lust where they make the woman number two in their life. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtUIUebrod8

3.    Cypress Hill “Insane in the Membrane”

The setting in this music video was set up as a concert show.  Throughout the entire video it showed the band as the main focal point.  When it didn’t show the band the camera would occasionally film the crowd (audience) with everyone’s hands in the air jumping up and down. 

4.    Public Enemy “Can’t Truss It”

This music video was filmed in all back and white.  It opened up the first scene with African American slaves migrating from place to place.  The video compares blacks from being in slavery to working in a blue-collar work settling today.  The video portrays that when something good starts to happen, you can’t trust it, regardless of what it is.  The main focal point in this video is that in every scenario it shows that the blacks are always getting beat down one way or another by a white man.

5.    Slick Rick “Street Talkin”

The majority of this music films the rappers rapping in a nice car.  The focus point that remains consistent through and through is the heavy emphasis on money.  Every scene is expensive, portraying the rap artists buying new suites, jewelry etc.  I did notice that this was the first video out of about a dozen that I viewed for this assignment that shows a link to slutty girls and expensive alcohol with the nightlife setting that comes along with them.

 

Radio Stations

The two hip-hop radio stations I listened to were Hip-hop Nation on XM Radio as well as Heart & Soul, which is another hip-hop station that can be found on XM.

 

 Other than the corporations listed that were excluded, I couldn’t find any more companies that have utilized hip-hop to advertise their products?

 

Influences

You can also find an influence of hip-hop in the media through MTV.  The TV show, “Cribs.”  It influences people’s perception on how hip-hop artists live.  I noticed the other day when I was watching it that there was a clear blanket on all the homes that were owned by hip-hop artists.  Meaning, Every home was extremely large as well as had all of the “bells and whistles” to go along with it, especially when it came to unnecessary things that cost more than most people’s homes.  The public is then trained to think that every successful hip-hop artist blows all of their money on mindless objects, generally neither appreciating nor valuing money like one should.

 

Things if any that have come from hip-hop and become part of mainstream culture? The word “grill” for one’s gold or silver diamond covered teeth.

Ex. True pimped out gangstas party in their “grillz.”

 

 

Back in the Day

When my parents were young, my mom said she listened to:

1.     The “flower child” genre aka sonny & Cher as well as some others….

2.     “Phycodelic rock” genre which included The Beatles

3.     Wasn’t sure what the genre was for the Carpenters and Barry Manilow

 

 Music Reflection:

After listening to all five songs I realized that in each one there were real-world scenarios and points being made.  Though the five that I listened to were all considered extremely “old school” they had a positive message.  I was more impressed with how they got their message across without any swearing within their lyrics. 

 

I was surprised and intrigued by the lessons that I learned through listening to these hip-hop songs.  For example:

Lesson 1, song 1- People may joke about you because they are too ignorant to understand you but it doesn’t matter because the majority of the time, when one is eccentric, it means that they are original.  The majority of the public is made up of followers.  People will begin to copy your original ideas and put their name on it when it becomes socially “cool.”

 

Lesson 2, song 2- Similar to lesson one, everyone is a perpetrator.  True rappers don’t write their music for the  “pop-charts,” true rap artists express what they feel and believe in.  It’s not all about a paycheck. Don’t put yourself in a box, be who you are.

 

Lesson 3, song 3- Live in the moment.  There can be a million different things going on around you but if you don’t take a minute to step back and enjoy what it is then you could miss out on a special moment that you may never get back.

 

Lesson 4, song 4- It is ok to be an independent woman.  Women don’t need men to define one’s self.

 

Lesson 5, song 5- Don’t listen to gossip.  The woman singer tells her alleged boyfriend to forget the rumors he has heard from his homies. If what they have is real, they should talk to one another and not listen to outside sources that have been trying to sabotage them since the beginning.

Video Reflection:

Out of the music videos I watched, I couldn’t help but notice that the majority of the videos only focused on the rapper or singer themselves.  I don’t know if this was something that everyone just did in the past?  Again, the hip-hop videos I viewed were older ones consisting of very early 90s.  However, when comparing them to videos today, that’s what stood out to me mostly.  The more present videos, I feel like, are more concentrated on portraying the story that’s being told through film.  Though you may not know what the song is about or know what the rap artists are saying, one can usually put the pieces together through the song’s music video; Whereas past videos most likely only show and focus on the rapper rapping to the camera.

 

 

 

Hip-Hop Representation

Overall I think the state of hip-hop in reference to representation and images is sometimes misrepresented.  Before I thought of hip-hop under the umbrella of gangster and mostly “ghetto” with the way hip-hop artists speak with slang jargon as well as dress with the 2-pac shirts and gold chains. After looking further into the notion of “hip-hop” I see more to it than that. The meaningful messages that many hip-hop artists get across as well as their lifestyles are completely different then what I’ve been picturing in my head.  I don’t think it’s possible to limit hip-hop or put the term in one box.  I think hip-hop is very flavorful and I have a more profound respect for the art of it and its culture.

 

News and the Media

1.     I believe that the government helps to set the news agenda.  I also think that competing television news stations are so concerned with battling one another that they focus on what story the last station presented and then becomes more concerned with getting the latest story out the quickest.  This results in a merry-go-round of the same stories being produced leaving the “agenda setters” unable to think outside their box. 

2.     We need a media that specifically represents different interests of people of color because every minority/race has different issues that may be more attention grabbing and more interesting to them as opposed to another cookie cutter group.  For example, I have African American friends and they always talk about how they don’t want to get their hair wet and when they do there are all kinds of different steps to take.  That is a minor detail in difference between African Americans and white people but the point is, I don’t know the first thing about an African American’s hair or how to treat it.  Therefore people of color want to hear about issues, stories etc. that they can relate to more just like any other person.

What can be done to increase the mainstream media’s interest in other topics and concerns is people can take a stand and turn off their TVs.  Refuse to watch Fox, CNN, and other mainstream stations that play the every day kind of things.  They will begin to see their ratings go down and hopefully turn to the people to hear their voice on what topics and concerns they want to be covered in the news.

I think those interests are everyone’s interests.  However many are overwhelmed and busy with problems of there own that they don’t want to take the time to change the future news stories.  So rather than doing anything about it, they just sit around and complain.

3.     The media reported the war as something necessary but not supported by all Americans.  However it wasn’t covered thoroughly.   Many stories that should have made the news did not.  Stories that entailed deaths, kidnappings and explosions became more of a daily situation that the news didn’t feel that it was necessary or important enough to cover.

4.     What has the media covered recent social protests that came to mind is the government bail out.  The government is going to be spending billions of dollars to support major financial institutions that made bad decisions.   Resulting in the American people having to pay the bill for their mistakes and irresponsibility.

5.     I whole-heartedly agree that the media was beneficial to the civil rights movement.  From what I’ve seen I think it showed how mean and cold hearted many white people were behaving.  It also gave Martin Luther King more of a national voice along with many other legendary heroes.

6.     My thoughts on setting the news agenda are we the people need to have more of a say in the agenda being set.   When focusing on the minority media, I definitely feel that there should be more outlets that cover the majority of minorities’ interests.  Also throughout this exercise when thinking about the war and how the media reports it, I think it is very clear who is running those messages across America.  I think it’s obvious that the government has mostly full control over the news media which is why we have usually one-sided stories.

Race and Gender Stereotypes

 

2-21-09. 8:20pm

Warren Theater—Moore, OK

Film

Taken

Two girls go to Europe and are swooned by a man and ultimately kidnapped by a group of Eastern Europeans.

Gender Stereotypes

 

2-22-09— HBO(On Demand). 2:00pm

Film

Guess Who

Movie is a comedy about white man dating a black girl and she is introducing him to her parents

Racial Assumptions/Racial Stereotypes

 

2-22-09—ABC Network. 10:00pm

Television

Oscars—Sean Penn's acceptance speech

He discusses the issue of gay marriage

Gender stereotypes

 

 

2-23-09—12:30pm

Personal Conversation with Arliegh XXXXX. Friend.

Café Plaid

Discussion about the large amount of female teachers in elementary schools

Gender Stereotypes

 

 

2-23-09—MTV (Tivo).11:00pm

Television

TV Show: From G's to Gents

One of the black cast members is pushed into a pool and is unable to swim

Racial Stereotype

 

 

2-24-09— CW Network.  8:00pm

Television

90210

A black character who is dating a white girl attends an all black party in Beverly Hills

Racial Stereotypes

 

 

 

 

2-24-09. 11:15pm

Film (DVD)

Welcome Home Rosco Jenkins

One of the black family members brings home a white girl to the family event

Racial Stereotypes

 

2-25-09 Class: Juvenile Justice.

Dale Hall,  1:30 T TH

Classroom Experience

Discussion about gender and juvenile delinquency

Gender Stereotypes

 

2-25-09, 7:30pm

Personal conversation with Mary XXX.  Random woman with Child next to me in line.

Café Plaid

Talked to woman with baby and she stated that she was looking after the baby while her husband was at work.

Gender Stereotype

 

2-25-09, VH1. 10:00pm

Television

TV Show: Black to the Future: The 80's (Check out Black to the Future on VH1.com)

Discussion about blacks and break dancing and how Jewish kids are actually surprisingly good break dancers as well

Racial Stereotypes

 

2-26-09,--TNT Network. 1:00pm

Television

TV Show: Law & Order

Female on the stand at trial makes a statement that men like to hide their feelings

Gender Stereotype

 

2-26-09--HBO. 11:00pm

Television

Movie: Bad Boys

Interaction between two black police officers and two Cuban police officers

Racial Stereotypes

 

 

Were you surprised with the amount of stereotyping that exists in media today?

 

            I was not really surprised with the amount of stereotyping that exists in the media today.  First, although stereotyping is generally a negative way to view the world, especially when it comes to race and gender, it can also be used in parody.  Numerous films and television shows play off these stereotypes for comical relief and the reason it is comical because many people do recognize certain stereotypes regarding race or gender.  However, stereotypes can also be taken too far and have a more detrimental effect in more personal interactions.  Secondly, I feel that stereotypes are often used for marketing purposes because it is easier to market or advertise to a category of people and stereotypes provide a system for categorizing different audiences. 

 

 

How did you feel if you experienced racial or gender stereotyping in personal or social experiences?

 

            I do not like to be judged based on a stereotype because I do not categorically fit into every stereotype about women.  Although I do happen to fit into some of those stereotypes I appreciate people developing their opinions about me based on actually knowing me as opposed to trying to haphazardly throwing me into some general stereotype.

 

 

Do you see how the continuous or cultivation of images affects representation and individual perspectives of different ethnic groups and women? 

 

            I do see how the continuous or cultivation of images affects representation and individual perspectives of different ethnic groups and women because when those images change, so do the stereotypes.  In regards to women, I feel that the old notion that women should never work and stay at home all the time is ridiculous.  Although some closed-minded people still believe adhere to this notion, I feel that it is gradually subsiding in our society due to many women going out into the working world and being successful and even running for president!

Big Twelve Schools-Race Based?

Initially, I found this assignment to be quite frustrating and confusing because I could not seem to get a clear answer on the question of which schools actually considered race in their admissions process.  My first thought was that I would be able to make a list of all the Big XII universities and simply check "yes" or "no" next to each one but as I began my research I found that things just were not that simple. 

 

            So I started my research with a few phone calls thinking I would call, ask a question, get an answer and do it again at another school.  I first called the Kansas State admissions office and when I asked if race was considered in their admissions process I received a very timid response.  The woman stated, "No…not really.  Well, kind of….I mean, we try to promote diversity in our student body".  That was not really the clear-cut answer I was looking for but I took it as a "yes".

            Next, I spoke with Nebraska University and I was told that race was definitely not considered in their admissions process.  Check. 

            Then I spoke with Texas Tech and my answer was a little less clear.  I received an answer much like that at Kansas State.  Essentially, my understanding was that race is kind of considered and kind of not considered and it's more about diversity. 

 

            After these few phone calls I felt like this issue was getting more complicated so I did some research on the Internet to find out some background information about race-based admissions and affirmative action programs.  After digging around for a while I learned that this issue was very controversial and there have been numerous lawsuits about it (which put into perspective some of the unease I felt when I made my phone calls).  Basically, there appear to be two major Supreme Court decisions regarding race-based admissions.  One decision states that it is ok to use race as a factor in admissions so long as it is considered with other factors and used generally to promote diversity.  The other decision stated that using a point system for race was taking it too far and was unconstitutional. 

            So with this in mind I found that basically every school in the Big XII desires to promote diversity in some form or fashion.  Also, I get the feeling that race-based admissions policies are something that nearly all schools have (to one extent or another) but they try to keep them relatively vague and not to specific because if they articulate the specifics, they might end up getting sued!

Miss March = No Good

I found that the movie “Miss March” was a major depiction on what college life is.  I believe the movie to be targeted towards the young high school crowd as well as college students, in order to find the “college humor” amusing.  My personal opinion, I was so surprised with each positive response that was triggered from the audience when hearing the dirty jokes and comments that were said throughout the film.  Especially when it came to comments that degraded women so badly.

 

I however, see the movie as a piece that objectifies women from the beginning to end.  The movie was based on a young man in high school who missed the opportunity to have sex with his girlfriend and she later became a Playboy bunny.  A basic generalization throughout the movie consisted of how women of today should obtain the supermodel body, which only 5% of women in the world actually have.  Every single actress was a size double zero.

 

I also couldn’t help but notice the spoof on rapper’s music videos that was in the film.  The parody had about 10 girls, barely dressed in next to nothing, grinding all over the rapper, while he continued to “bump and grind” singing dirty lyrics that referred to the women as sexual objects rather than human beings.  The audience’s reaction was utter laughter and that’s when I realized how overly welcomed this bad example is to the general society.  When people witness something like this it amounts to today’s normalcy.

 

The media today definitely has an effect on men’s views of women.  When young teenage boys grow up watching movies such as Miss March, thinking this is an ok way to interact with women and be “cool”, how can it not have an effect on their sense of what’s right and what’s wrong?