Post 5- Broadcast News and Agenda Setting

Find a series of at least three broadcast news stories from any news source that share similar agendas and apply the Agenda Setting Theory. Give a summary of each news story (if your news stories are from an on-line source, embed a link into your post), and explain how they connect in the agendas that they enforce. What do the news articles say is important for people to think about? Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Your responses are to be 300-400 words, and are due by 3pm Friday, 3/28.

Be ready to present your findings on Monday, 3/31.

Mass Media Usage

I believe the media influences the people very much. If we did not have the forms of media we did today, much less would be known about our world. For example incidences like the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812 would of never existed. During this battle a treaty was already created in Belgium but the technology at the time did not allow the information to be brought to the US and say that the war was over. In ways I think media has both weakened and strengthen human communication. New technology has made it so we can gain knowledge in a moments notice, making society as a whole more educated. On the other hand new forms of entertainment have sprung up on media making human communication lessen. People will rather be on their mobile devices then talking with other people face to face, mono y mono, or do other physical activities.
Types of mass media I encounter during the week are the television, computers and social media websites. On these mediums I search for things like, current world events, lately concerning the Ukraine, or forms of entertainment. Having an idea of what is going on in the world fascinates me also considering if things go haywire in Crimea then my choice in occupation may require me to be involved. I of course also enjoy being entertained, everybody does. I like to be entertained to help pass time, or as Mr. Tombasco of course knows, procrastinate on work.
I feel that I am not dependent on media usage. I feel no need to consistently check my phone, sports scores, or the latest new trend. I like to be able to know that if media and electronics went down do to unforeseen circumstances, I can live fine without it. Also I find that taking a bit and just relaxing  is quite helpful to the human body. My family tends to go camping a lot and during this time there is limited electronic use, so I find myself reading, cooking, or having the occasional "Improvised Weapon Challenge" with my father and sister's boyfriend to see which one of us can make a better or more useful weapon out of natural objects with maybe some string and a knife. I find mass media useful but not needed, people have lived hundreds of years without the same media we have today, and they turned out...relatively fine.

Media

I believe media plays a huge role in how people behave. Media in some ways has ruined communication between people. For example Facebook, some people can’t go a day without checking their news feed or making a status. A lot of people tell what they are doing every minute of the day. This is why I believe media has a very strong influence.

As much as I don’t like to admit it I encounter a lot of different types of media during the day. One example is television. Most of the media related TV I watch is off of ESPN. Although sports aren't known for a lot drama, on ESPN they tell everything and are always reporting some sort of story and blowing it out of proportion. Another is the newspaper. This is one of the better forms of media because you get to read. There is also usually not a lot of drama besides the crime section. Finally my most used source of media is the internet. Although I am not as bad as other with Facebook I still use it a lot. This may sounds bad but I mainly use it to once in a while get a laugh at others drama. The medium for Facebook would have to be for people to meet others more easily. The medium for the newspaper would be to just get information to the people without having to watch TV.

If I were to characterize myself I would say that I am independent of the media. I do use and listen to the media a decent amount but I could easily go a day or more without it. I believe certain typed of mass media are important. It can be every important at times to help give awareness and help to people.The types of media that tell the truth and are helpful, but I don’t believe the drama mass media are needed all they do is create more unneeded drama. 

~Matt Mills 

Mass media

I think the media has complete control over the way people think, view others, and view themselves. The only people immune to the effect of the media are those who are separate themselves from it completely, which is almost no one. Thoughts and actions we consider original were most likely influenced by the media, whether we realize it or not.

Almost all people today watch television, listen to the radio, and see advertisements almost everywhere they go. Advertisers have become incredibly skilled at their jobs to the point where you do not recognize their control over the masses. Yes, in cities and other densely populated areas, billboards,  posters, and people hired to hand out pamphlets and brochures are obvious signs of advertisement, but advertisers can be much trickier than that. By making a famous actor where a certain product, they can influence you to buy something that they want you to buy, in order to make them money. They appeal to basic human desires to make you feel as if you need this product. The most prevalent one is obviously sex; a cell phone becomes much more desirable with an attractive person holding it.

I do my best to be independent from the media, but I find myself bending to its will. I buy vinyl records even though there are much more efficient ways to buy music. I wear certain clothes because the media has told us clothes aren’t used to just keep us warm, but they define who we are. The media uses its endless resources to convince people like me that we must define ourselves, to make us feel independent and like individuals, but we are just becoming indistinguishable, mindless sheep in the in the eyes of an omnipotent and all powerful sheppard that is the mass media.

MASS Media

I think that media, especially mass media has a huge influence on the actions of people.  There could be some post on Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, or some other social net working site on the computer that one person finds funny, or interesting creating a web of people liking, sharing, and re-posting it and the cycle continues.  Sometimes I find that it feels as though I'm talking to a bunch of brick walls because of such incidents.  This is even something I will admit that I am guilty of.

When I come home I get on my computer and go between Facebook, Pandora, and YouTube.  Facebook mainly keeps me connected to my friends and family that live very far away.  Pandora is just an elective music site that I like to listen to as I do my homework.  I listen to rock mostly, I find that it is relaxing, gives me time to think, and takes care of the day's stress.

YouTube is the best way to end my day laughing, because of another person's comic relief or jokes that they may come up with.  It helps quite a lot if I've had a long rough day....Homework, extra curricular activities, etc. I like sarcastic rib jabbing videos that relate to situations in my own life.  This video proves it ( sorry Mr. T but I hope you will laugh regardless.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTXunsNFJmA

I find that in some ways I am dependent on the media, but not enough that I couldn't back off for a while.  In the end though I would say that in today's world it would be impossible for a person living in an advanced country to truly be separate from media and modern technology.  Mass media makes the world go 'round it keeps everyone connected.      

Social construct of women

Social Construction Theory is the idea that what we consider to be real is only that way because it has been confirmed via means of communication. I believe that reality is more subjective that. Just because one does not share and express an experience or feeling, that does not mean it did not happen.

In the 1950’s, the social construction of women was that they were the makers and keepers of the home; they raised the children and made sure the home was a relaxed and welcoming environment for her husband when he got home from a long day at work. This was the “reality” for women in these days because it was the consensus through micro and macro communication. The inferiority of women was made known through television, advertising, and the way men and women alike behaved.

Today, the role of women is much less black and white, and more contradictory and paradoxical. They are told to be sexy, but not sluty. Smart, but not smarter than men. Be funny, but only if that means they laugh at men’s jokes. Yes, women have gained rights since the !950’s, but the social construct they are trapped in is still one that is desperate for change.

Men are portrayed to be dominant and the only ones that matter. We know that not to be true, yet men still are at a much greater advantage in life than women today. Men make more money, face less oppression, and have the ability to express themselves in a  way women cannot. Yes men face more standards and ideas on what they should be than they used to; in the way they dress, how intelligent they must be, and how masculine they behave. This, however, is nothing compared to the struggles women have to face.

Post 4- Mass Media

1. What are your thoughts on the media and its ability to influence people? Do you think it has a strong or weak influence on the way people behave socially? Explain.

2. What different types of mass media do you encounter in a week? In detail, describe three forms of media that you use most frequently (provide links if they are online). Explain what the medium is and what type of information you usually seek and why.

3. Try to characterize yourself as a media user. Are you dependent on or independent of the media? Do you feel mass media is important? Why or why not?

Responses are to be 300-400 words and are due by 3pm, Friday, 3/7.