Part II of Final
The first three sentences of Practices of Looking say, “The world we inhabit is filled with visual images. They are to central to how we represent, make meaning in the world around us. In many ways, our culture is an increasingly visual one” (1). My new found media literacy has made me realize how much truth there is behind that statement. I have not only begun to understand the concept of media, but I know, in a sense, comprehend the power the media has to create for us social and behavioral standards, to define the way we think, to coerce us, to entertain us, to inform us, to manipulate us, and to keep us connected. The media is not just a tool of art but of communication and capitalism. It keeps small town “ruralites” in Bloomfield, Kentucky and big city urbanites in London, England in touch and citizens is both parts can know exactly the same news at the click of a button.
Now it is possible, at the click of a button, to see the same video, news story, or image as someone half way across the world. It is part of the transformation of media. Our traditional mediums were book, magazine, and newspaper, but in the last century, new media has taken center stage—radio, television, and increasingly, Internet.
I have been aware of the mediums of communication, as well as the potential effect it could have on the population at large, but there are many things that I learned about the media in this class—collective desires, docile bodies, glamour, the effect of media on science, and more. What I enjoy most about my newfound media literacy is the ability for me to recognize the power the media holds, identify collective desires, and decode the deeper meaning in many advertisements.
Collective desires are the wants and needs of the mass society. Our individual desires are distinct but the collective desires of society are represented in the media. Collective desires embedded within the American society are competition, fulfillment, selfishness, individuality, success, conformity and more. Individuality is a collective desire we all strive to achieve—in a positive sense, we all wish to identify ourselves as a unique individual. This trait has a negative side too. Although we all wish to possess individuality, it is sometimes difficult to inherit because there is so much pressure to conform and satisfy a particular norm. We all feel that need to be, act, look like everyone else and we can lose that uniqueness we wish to create in our life. There is a need, however, to be just a little different from the masses. I enjoy this new sense of understanding and recognizing collective desires because it allows me to be conscious of how I do/do not let them effect my life. I have always been one to say that I do not want to be “just like everyone else”—I have always craved to stand out from others but I did not comprehend how the media could play into that until now. The media shapes the desires of society and creates conformity. I enjoy this new profound sense of collective desires because it has a personal effect on me (even though media is a very public aspect of life). Collective desires can prevent me from becoming the person I do not want to be and shape me into the person I crave to become.
Another element of my newfound media literacy that I enjoy is the ability for me to recognize the power the media holds. The media is the backbone of this country and the institution that controls the message and the means of production. The words spoken by news anchors or published on the Web are generally considered to be the truth. The media, however, is not always telling the truth and can be forced to push certain values or falsities on the public by the institutions at a higher level (aka the federal government). The government censors what is on television and the Internet. I have realized in this class not only the power of the media in that in can manipulate us and force us to believe lies but I have also realized the power that media has in shaping our ideals—both in behavioral and physical aspect, as well as creating our views on global issues. The media creates norms for the society we call ours and we generally accept those as true. In a behavioral aspect, the media (and advertising, in particular) has created this sexual desire. The vulgar and bare advertisements endorse a message that it is ok to behave like the young couple in the Calvin Klein advertisement. By using sexual images, the corporation is coercing a generation into believing if they support their product, they will receive similar results—and a whole generation wants this; to be seen as prey in a sexual game. In a physical aspect, the media creates for us a sense of what is beautiful or glamorous. Models for advertisements are primarily skinny (if a woman) and masculine and muscular (if a boy). They have created a sense that we should use all means to look like this, because we will be seen as attractive (and hence a better player in the sexual game). There is so much attention on Hollywood with the beautiful people who have ideal bodies and we all wish to have the same success those people do (money, fame, glory, etc..). If only we could look like them, then maybe we could achieve the same thing? No. If the media glorified people who were average and had a little weight on them, then society would not feel the continual pressure to be thing and maybe, the obesity epidemic would not have swept America like it has. The media not only creates standards for us to live by but it influences and ultimately, creates our view on global issues. The media is our tie to politics. Therefore, if the media turns against the presidential administration (as it did on Johnson during Vietnam and seems to be doing now), the general public will also retaliate against them. I enjoy this new insight because it forces me to become a proactive and intelligent member of society. I will not let the media form my opinions and define who I am—only I can do that. I want to look at each advertisement and news story objectively and create my own meaning, instead of being lazy and allowing others to do it for me. The media is a force of power in our technological society but I will not fall.
A final aspect of my new media literacy that I enjoy is the skill that I now inherit to look into the deeper meaning of advertisements, news stories, and even media. Behind everything, there is a deeper meaning. Behind every Web page, news story, or image is a producer who is, like me, a member of this capitalist society and doing what they can do get a little money. As it is said in The Century of Self, the “all consuming self dominates the world”. In society today, our advertisements are often embedded with deeper meanings. There is a cultural context. A prime example of this is the United Colors of Benetton advertisements where only the words on the page speak the words of the company. The image identifies some sort of racial, social, or economic injustice. The advertisement is using global fashion to propel us into realizing (and taking action on) the more pressing issues on the world—poverty, racism, etc… There is a denotative meaning (the liberal, face-value meaning of a sign) and a connotative meaning (a social, cultural, or historical meaning assigned to a signs liberal meaning). Another example of this if the Marlboro ads created by Bernays. For women, just a picture of a woman just smoking cigarette did not just advertise the habit but also represented the power women could have when they were at loss for it (the advertisements were made during the first half of the twentieth century when women played an inferior role to men). Just by smoking, women could challenge the power and control of men because they had their own “torches of freedom”. For men, cigarette advertisements appealed to them through the “Marlboro Man”. He represented the rugged, ultra-masculine, Western type of man, which they all craved to become. The cigarette advertisements for both genders appealed to their emotional unconsciousness. At face value, they appeared to be just an image, but there was a hidden agenda. Behind many ads is a meaning that has social meaning and it is our job as the receiver to create it using our own values. I have enjoyed this element of media literacy, because I do not take anything at face value anymore. I look for the deeper meaning embedded in it and I use that to understand certain images and lifestyles. Again, I am becoming more proactive (an important quality that I wish to possess). It changed the way I look at things.
My newfound media literacy is not just prevalent in my life as a student at Marist but is something I carry with me in all aspects of my life. I am trying to become an active voice in this consumer culture and this class has assisted me in doing so. It has also helped me in discovering more about my advertising major. I have learned that there is so much more than just creating an artistic piece designed to reel people in. Advertising is an instrumental part of the media and in of defining the norms of our society. Although there are negative aspects of media that create anxiety, as long as one can see through this and identify themselves as a separate entity and not a production of the media, then the media can be seen as a story-teller. It informs us of the good aspects of society and creates the ideal person. Media is not just something we see, watch, and hear, it is something we are.
This class has helped me to understand that and learn more about the culture I am a part of and the life I wish to lead. 3 years ago • Notes