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In this course I am most predominantly interested in understanding the power of media in todays climate. In the modern arena new media has catapulted to the forefront of the world, in result, the world has become media centric on all things from entertainment, news of wide varieties such sports, politics, current events and a plethora of other things. An argument could be made that new media is ground zero for modern strategies of social control, from targeted “fake news” stories to social media using targeted ads to promote presidential candidates. I’m most interested in the theoretical framework that not only came with new medias rise to power and importance but also the use and execution of these strategies today. Throughout this semester I hope to broaden my knowledge on these theories and use and apply them in my future career.

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In the article “Unraveling the Knot” Engstrom aims to analyze the presence social justification has on the social hierarchy directly influenced by bridal media. Engstrom cites things such as Hollywood films, television and modern print media such as magazines as the reconstruction of what a wedding is, and thus what it means. The shift from the celebration of eternal love, companionship and hegemony to overused symbolism of social structure and abuse of social relationships. Furthermore, Engstrom examines the role that these new media outlets promote femininity over feminism. Lastly, noting the consumerism that surrounds the modern wedding with things such as the venue, dress, gown and the intricacies that are involved in the material costs of weddings. Essentially, Engstrom denotes that weddings in modern era are an opportunity to promote all but the marriage itself, which seems inconspicuous due to the fact that everything is hid behind the “marriage”. Instead, its a ceremony to convey social constructs, or ““institutional circuit of communication products” (Engstrom 78) Throughout the analysis of the television show “The Knot”. Political economy is the production of trade and their relations with the law. Well, in this circumstance Engstrom is pointing out the implications and exploitations of consumerism in marriage and the ceremony surrounding it, which, is acknowledged by the government as a union between peoples. Essentially the political economy exploitation, in this case would revolve around the capitalistic shift in modern day weddings. Taking advantage of a government sanction and recognized union, not only through expensive clothing, location and setting of the wedding but also the television shows, print media and other new media exploits. My main takeaway from this article is that weddings have evolved into much more then that union, and, if everything goes as planned one day I will be partaking in the new definition of wedding regardless if I am aware of it or not. As a self defined “simple” 21 year old man the article is rather eye opening

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Ross makes the evaluation that the studies, practices and theories developed in the Frankfurt school were relevant in the rise of President Trump in the presidential race of 2016. The Frankfurt school focus’s heavy on the relation of authentic culture vs mass culture, and that rings true in the discourse surrounding the presidential candidates Hiliary Clinton and President Donald Trump. On one hand, Clinton is the stereotypical presidential candidate as far as the presentation, diction and strategy. In terms of President Trump, mass culture came to fruition. Not only in the general ideologies surrounding mass media, and President Trumps status as a celebrity and reality tv host, but in the terms defined by the Frankfurt School as a distraction as well. In hindsight  of the 2016 election and the four years that follow in media coverage the analysis of President Trump the definition of a distraction is an apt analysis for the media coverage  surrounding the President.

The cloud surrounding Hilary Clinton is the exact opposite of the President, the shift in entertainment like coverage into politics is safely specific to the President. The constant breaking tabloid style of media surrounding the President simply wouldn’t fit with Clinton. The ‘boredom’ that would come with Clinton is considered the redundant presidential coverage consistent with pre-Trump  Presidents. Which from media outlets would mean a cut in the revenue gained from the constant coverage in a Trump centric news.

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In the article “More Than Stans: Stop Dismissing The K-Pop’s Fandom’s Political Power: the underlying premise of the article is the association of activism throughout the sub culture of K-Pop. Or, that activism is in fact a sub culture of the fandom surrounding K-Pop. Understanding the relationship is one key aesthetic of mass culture . K-Pop, a key component of mass culture and a primary example of 20th century media consumption. K-Pop or for example B.E.T is a modern sensation in the realm of music and media. Aligning the reach and depth that the musicians have with an active audiences results in the alignment of activism with the fandom of K-Pop.

During the 2020 election, there was a breadth of examples of the attempt to align social sensations with political activism. As influencers took to their social media followings to promote voting, and political activism. Some influencers applied incentive through things like lunch with Leonardo DiCappiro. Some influencers even offered explicit pictures of themselves in exchanged for proof of voting. In other examples, sports teams and organizations align activism in the community, doing meet and greets at social events in the community. Furthermore, in the example of activism through Black lives Matter the National Football League took great strides to align themselves and there following with social issues. Including putting names of victims on their helmets and boycotting practices and functions in the name of social equality.

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In this example the primary signifier is the dress, and the primary signified would be a clothing garment. The primary denotation is the dress and the secondary signified is the engagement or the prospect of a wedding, which is the purpose of the advertisement. Secondary level signified is the proponent of eternal love and connection with your soulmate, as well as other material things including looking attractive and the appearance of wealth.

Myth in this example is the cultural expectations and status of a wedding. Including the advancement of maturity, and social economics. Married individuals are perceived as more mature and advanced in life then their unmarried peers.

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Governmentality approaches social control in regards to governing of people’s conduct through positive means rather then the law. Thus in the Oulette and Hay excerpt they attempt to take this approach in analyzing the effectiveness in the approach of  “Shaq’s Big Challenge”.  The premise outlined in the reading that the television show took is to create a culture and personal incentive around being healthy, by assisting and advertising healthy living. The premise of governmentality is that the subject primarily participate on freewill and personal incentive rather than government intervention or law. Therefore “Shaq’s Big Challenge” and  governmentality go hand in hand. Shaq is using the general premise that everyone wants to become healthier and exploiting the personal drive of the consumer to monetize weight loss and healthy living through the advice and tools offered on the shows website.
The only example I could think of in regards to this theory is the inclusion of fan voting in certain shows and furthermore in events such as sporting all star games and awards. The freedom of choice in shows like Dancing With The Stars or American Idol are a primary example of governmentality. In the example of sports voting the premise of building a culture, as I referred to earlier with Shaq, Is a primary factor. The fan participation to have “your team” represented as an All star or win an award manipulates a rare aesthetic and experience of fans “being a part of the team” and have a direct implication in the outcomes of these votes.

Social media apts on the aspect of  individuality and the consumer shaping their own outcomes. Social media at its best is an insight to the part of peoples lives that they want you to see. Governmentality and more so the individualistic aspect of the term as social media allows you to redefine and give a glimpse insight into the production of who a consumer wants to be. A side note, and a personal favorite of mine is the term “Asphalt Cowboys” which essentially Is someone who wears cowboy hats, boots and rants about being country despite living and being raised in a white suburban suburb. This example is the production of a person I’m referring to. With the individuality perception of Instagram and other social media people can produce an image to shape and guide their own persona.

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The  theory that I found most interesting this week was Butlers Gender theory, and the inclusion of terms like naturalness and “by choice” especially considering how profound and advanced it was for 1990. The premise of naturalness is the one especially that struck me. I think that the counter argument, to play devils advocate is that there’s only two biological genders and therefore one could imagine that  the idea of naturalness aligns with the biological argument. On the contrary, however, the naturalness of gender is structured by the daily social frameworks surrounding it. It feels natural to us to align ourselves to a certain collection of ideologies and form our definition of representation based on what  feels natural to us. Alongside Butlers idea of naturalness, the premise of her opinion of choice nestles next to the theory of naturalness, it continues to advise on the theory of social constructs that align with representation. That in fact we don't chose a binary representation but rather a collection of socially disciplined practices that shape the representation we chose to be defined by.

Its important to understand these ideologies of gender in media culture because modern media culture helps define the social constructs that act in the cultural premise of gender.  Today media consumption sits near the top  influence for society. The popularity and rise of the implications of social media and media consumption effecting the social stratosphere means theres a direct cause and effect between media trends revolving around gender and the social constructs we chose to align and define ourselves by.

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What I learned from the documentary is the depth and historic context of the marginalization of Trans people in media. Seeing dates in the early 1900’s depict trans people in the same light as TV shows and movies in the 1990’s and early 2000’s is quite alarming. The inability for the premise of trans peoples to evolve in the scope and portrayal in Hollywood sheds a different perspective and light on the the depth and  length of the battle  they've fought

The most compelling to me was the depiction of Trans people as comedic and how unaware I was to consuming this content, In reflection, however inadvertently I glossed over the portrayal of Trans people as comedic, and in fact the LGBTQ+ community as such. I think it goes hand in hand with the general idea that not many people know trans people. The stat that 80% of Americans don’t know somebody that is trans is alarming, but I fall into that 80%. In doing so the realization of marginalization through media is somewhat glossed over, or has been, somewhat in regards to the lack of personal connection I feel towards the community due to the lack of involvement I have.

The most obvious course concept is the premise surrounding the “other”. Disclosure explores the early depiction of Transgendered peoples in media, and the comedic underlies with this depiction. They discuss the “humour” around cross dressing, how it was illegal and often mocked. Furthermore they discuss the parallels of mental health and depiction of transgenderd peoples in media. In terms of being “othered” these all take shape through these depictions. As if your idols, your representation or true self is depicted as comedic, mentally unstable and illegal. Instantly trans peoples are being othered in these depictions. Not  only are they minimalised but also looked down on with negative context in early media.

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The main argument is the depiction of foreign cultures in mass media and the eccentric depictions that come with it. For example the over sexuality, low intelligence, depicted as low intelligent or as dangerous in modern forms of western media. Furthermore, In this chapter it regards to the way that white men view the “other” as a rite of passage to a greater social, spiritual and knowledgeable level, as if  engaging in sexual acts with the other is almost like a baptism for these men, gaining a level of consciousness the could not without that experience.

Eating the other is the theory surrounding the ability of a dominant culture continuing to promote the status behind the other, due to the fear of uninterest if these foreign  depictions are true to the reality of whom they really are. Therefore the dominant culture will continue to control the narrative of the subculture or the “other” in a way that is historically submissive, eccentric and follows the patterns of portrayal up to this point.

The quote that stood out to me in aspects such as cultural appropriation “Is this not imperialist nostalgia at its best-potent expression of longing for the “primitive”? (Hook 29) One desires “a bit of the other” to enhance the blank landscape of whiteness.”  to this, and the relation and relevance to this quote not only in the reference of the other but also with the cultural implications surrounding cultural appropriation.

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The limitations of doing Black Lives Matter online is the premise of relying on the online service. Despite having a platform and reach to engage a plethora of different people . The success is directly dependent on the platform. The algorithms and the analytics that go with that platform. Furthermore, there is a plethora of outside factors, such things like paid marketing and the vulnerability of being susceptible to hacking, being blocked or abiding by community guidelines . Furthermore, the obvious impression of a strategy based online and the uniqueness of the audience that would be participating are hurdles.

This week I learned the struggles and obstacles that come with attempting to run a protest mainly through social media. Mainly the systemic obstacles handed down by Facebook. The irony is that a company that is attempting to eradicate social change and systemic oppression is  faced with it even on socials.

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Throughout the journey of this semester, we touched in an array of subjects and depictions of media, for me, the most compelling was the Disclosure documentary week. Most weeks were building blocks for other courses and concepts I was somewhat familiar with, but the documentary, on the other hand, along with the portrayal of Trans people in media is something new, and something I have never before thought too deeply about. Especially the history of portraying Trans people. I essentially believed that the inclusion of Trans people in media was a relatively new feat, and would've never guessed the long, oppressive history of the depictions.

To continue the previous point, the history of Trans people or cross dressers was rather surprising. I would have bet that prior to the 20th century they were simply just not involved in media or classical media depictions. The fact they were, despite being aggressively oppressed was rather alarming and challenged a preconceived notion of disinclusion.

The reading that was the most important is “Eating the Other” the tone, and power of the chapter was by far the most alarming and powerful excerpt of the semester. Not only this, but the chapter captured the issue in a very rare academic tone that is unique in the field of study.

The alter in approach to media consumption, is simply the self awareness that this course had brought to my attention regarding my media consumption. We discussed active audiences earlier in the course, and I believe throughout this course I became one, being able to dissect and understand media in better context. In my career, throughout the term my career goals have shifted previously from a communications professional to  a high school teacher so I think again that its just becoming self aware of my diction and content that I produce for my class.