Viewed as what I am not... so now what?

As a young woman who is viewed as "white" because of my light skin tone, I am a part of the dominant group. However, because I am Latina, I am actually a minority. For both of these reasons, being viewed as the majority but being a part of the minority, the role I will take is to be a positive role model and work to treat others as I want to be treated. I hope to make an influence on the world as a strong, educated, prosperous, and moral woman, but not only that, as a Latina woman. I will be an ally and work toward the "dismantl[ing] of oppression" because by doing these things I can only become a better and stronger student (or employee when I graduate), daughter, and (in general) person. Although I realize, as allies, we are in for a long haul -- I am ready and willing to be a part of such a process that can make our world more wonderful and can revolutionized the pictures in our heads.




...its been fun, perhaps I'll keep up this blog after class, we shall see... but for now, "Good Morning and in case I don't see you Good Afternoon, Good Evening, and GOOD NIGHT"

If you're reading this...I have your consent.

Walter Lippmann’s Public Opinion is a tough and long read but he has the old-age lingo, the new-age idea and he provides an interesting and detailed point of view. To me, the most attention-grabbing of these is his idea of “manufacture’s consent.” Manufacture’s consent involves the media receiving “consent” from the daily consumer through the interaction each consumer has with their medium. In Lehman’s terms: if I sit down to watch the Discovery Channel tonight I am “telling” the gatekeepers I enjoy their product and, by interacting with this media, I am also helping the company to succeed which will, in turn, cause them to continue to produce their product.

Media and their imposition of “necessary illusions” keep the power in the hands of those who are educated, informed, and specialized; otherwise known as the “elites.” Lippmann believes it is impossible for American society to know what is in the best interest of the public. This is the reason for manufacture’s consent. It is simply a hidden way of hypnotizing the public and receiving the approval they need to keep doing so from the patron.

It is true that we in a way are our own gatekeepers. Through selective exposure theory we may not interact with media that is not congruent with our thoughts and it is still our choice with what medium we choose to participate. However, the gatekeepers still control what is on those mediums, the control of which starts at the very top with the elite.

The greater part of our class has dealt with selective exposure theory and gatekeeping theory because all media tends to be connected with the two. As previously stated, we do have the choice of what medium to use, what shows to watch, what radio station to listen to, etc. but we do not have the choice of what is put on those mediums. Gatekeeping theory states: “the people who hold decision-making positions in our society actually select the information and ideas that will be allowed to pass through the ‘gates’ and be incorporated in our culture.” Walter Lippmann tells us that by interacting with their products we are giving them the consent to continue to produce them, therefore giving more power to those already in power by allowing them to persist in putting pictures in our heads.

You are cordially invited...

Beta Productions presents:

The Voice of Abuse

The true story of abuse
as told by survivor
Vanessa Ford Taylor




Tuesday May 8th
1230pm
Mueller Theater
Westminster College

Be Heard: Clip of Freedom Writers Diary

Their story...Their words

Creativity and dedication help a Long Beach, California teacher, Erin Gruwell (played by Hilary Swank), succeed in changing the lives of high school students who are on the road to gang violence, jail, and death. Based on a true story and best-selling book The Freedom Writers Diary, Freedom Writers is both gripping and inspirational. It is guaranteed to have its audience on the edge of their seats and teary-eyed by the end.


The 1990s in Long Beach provided its disadvantaged high school students with three things: violence, intolerance, and hopelessness. As tensions build and racial wars are on the brink of taking over the city, Long Beach high school receives a new ninth-grade teacher, Erin Gruwell. In a display of naivety, Ms. Gruwell takes on the job of teaching “unteachable and at-risk” students. The obstacles she faces, according to the older and “more experienced” teachers, are impossible and innumerable; Margaret (Imelda Staunton) attempts to find any way of ruining the good Ms. Gruwell has done. She shows jealousy of the achievements of this young teacher and is angry with Gruwell’s impulsiveness.

Erin Gruwell’s dedication to her classroom silences her critics as she tears down the racial walls separating her students and infuses in them a hope for a bright and prosperous future. She provides for them examples of others who have overcome adversity and struggles like the ones they are facing through books such as Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl and meetings with survivors of the Holocaust. This amazing woman, while dealing with a husband (played by Patrick Dempsey) who is struggling with his own self-confidence crisis and the success of his wife, finds a way to teach her students to value their education and each other and in turn, the students slowly realize they are each other’s family.

This movie brings our attention back to the effects of racism in our country both in the past and present. It provides us with a hero from both of those times that rise above the racial boundaries and depict highly motivating and encouraging situations.

Freedom Writers is a true story of having faith in those others have given up on, an illustration of how far the encouragement and belief in others and oneself can go, and a testimony of those who have overcome racial boundaries, violence, and hopelessness. This is a movie for all to see; a movie that will inspire its audience to become heroes themselves.

From behind the mask...

When our topic was first introduced, it really hit home with me because I know a person in an abusive relationship who refuses to leave him. Through our project I have found information to help her, myself, and others close to her cope with such happenings.

BETA productions has spent a significant amount of time with our participant, Vanessa, hearing her story and advice she has to give. We also interviewed Dr. Pataki and an educational specialist, Ann, from the clinic. We are moving on to the editing portion of our project and I am thoroughly looking forward to the final draft, I think this is going to be an amazing and powerful message.

Is life reality or a fantasy?

I believe all questions about what we are exposed to by media, in this case television, can be answered by one simple statement: “it depends on what you’re watching.” So…does television expose us to a diversity of people from all sorts of places with different lifestyles from our own? Diversity…sure, if you’re watching Survivor; lifestyles different from our own…more often than not, because most characters on primetime television are either super rich or super poor, and most viewers are somewhere in the middle. But do we, the viewers, the normal everyday people that spend countless hours in front of the television attempt to make our lives like those of the actors we see on TV? Do we believe that what is important in life is dictated by primetime television?

Over Easter break, I sat down in front of the television (because I actually had time to) and watched a few of my family’s favorite shows during primetime hours. As I was watching these episodes of Ugly Betty, Extreme Home Makeover, and Law and Order: Criminal Intent, I attempted to keep track of situations that I would not have experienced had it not been for the box sitting in front of me in my living room. All three of these shows provided me with a unique view at society and what is deemed “most important.” Ugly Betty displayed the idea of “inner beauty,” and reminded me how people are often more appreciated than they realize by some while being looked down upon by others. Extreme Home Makeover showed me how caring and generous people can be for those who truly deserve and will be grateful for it and Law and Order: Criminal Intent revealed an intense and gruesome case I would never want to be a part of or see in real life.

Jean Baudrillard claims that television determines what should be important in our lives and that after exposure to it we apply those rules to our own reality. He describes hyper-reality as the consciousness losing its ability to distinguish reality from fantasy. Baudrillard believes that society soon demonstrates actions through this hyper-reality rather than through their reality. Joshua Meyrowitz argues that television “breaks down the physical barriers that separate people” (Hanson, 2005, p. 256).

Television would be a hyper-reality if we believed everything we saw. However, our society filters the information and understands that television, and other forms of media, are mostly for entertainment purposes, which keeps this hyper-reality from existing. Sure it is nice to see generous people do wonderfully nice and amazing things for others, and it is awesome to watch a show about a young, not-so-attractive girl who is well-liked by her boss. But as it is with everything, there are two sides to every story and reality tells us a different one. Extreme Home Makeover takes heat because “there are more deserving people that should be helped.” Betty has to deal with the teasing from her co-workers who don’t think she’s pretty enough. And of course, Law and Order shows us how cruel people really can be, but it’s not as easy to catch those criminals as they make it out to be. Our conscious does not lose its ability to distinguish reality from fantasy because the happenings in our world once we step away from our televisions often has a cruel way of bringing us back to earth. Television also does not bring people together; in fact, it has probably separated us more from others. Not only does it provide us a way to refrain from conversations with others but also it puts pictures in our head that prior to being exposed to this media may not have been there. I feel our class is somewhat portrays that idea because before I was taught to delve into stereotypes in media I never paid much attention to them and now I can not help but to realize them all the time.

There are situations, trends, etc. on television we should really take with a grain of salt. However, that is not to say we should not learn from certain situations that are portrayed through this primetime entertainment television. For instance, after watching Law and Order: Criminal Intent, a person can learn from the mistakes of others in these fictional stories who have been hurt or killed by lack of attention to their surroundings.

The question: Is primetime television entertainment fantasy or reality?

The final verdict: Entertainment fantasy.

And yes, our species is intelligent enough to know the difference.