Media & Ideology - Talking Points #1

Perhaps there is more than one meaning to the word reality, and I believe that media does have a direct influence on society. Although this particular text seemed to use examples that were a bit out dated, I was still able to pull the main ideas from it. President Clinton's impeachment,rapper Emenims angry and violent lyrics, as well as the way religion is portrayed in the media through movies. Whether we like it or not, our generation more so then before has been hit with this wave of media and I am not sure we can get away from it. It is a very powerful issue. I work as an assistant pre-school teacher, and everyday I see 3-5 year olds begging and crying, giving their parents a hard time so that they can use their parents Iphones and Ipads. It makes me realize that fortunately enough when I was that age such distractions were not available. It makes me sick to watch these parents giving into their children and allowing them the access to these devices. What did children do before these services were invented? I am a strong believer that people are products of their environments, and you become, what you are essentially surrounded by.

T.V stations like disney I even feel like are representing the wrong topics for their shows. On Friday evening its all shows, and within each episode there is always some kind of girlfriend, boy friend delima and boys interested in girls and vise versa, but why does that even have to be a subject matter? I feel like the only message with that is teaching children that they have to be involved in dating and relationships early on? I am a HUGE fan of Jersey Shore and I'm ok with admitting that, I find it very comical and entertaining. But I 100% agree that it is without a doubt sending out bad messages to young teens and perhaps maybe even young adults. What I do not like about it is that fact that my 12 year old niece knows all of the characters names and what happens in some of the episodes. I know for a fact she is not exposed to the show at home so it must be a conversation topic at her middle school, and I am almost positive that parents allow their middle schoolers to stay up until 11 on Thursday nights to watch the new Jersey Shore episodes.

Media is a very powerful contributer to the way in which society is based upon. I think from this point on it will only get worse. I think the availability to the internet is also a problem. There are 3 year olds who can work a computer and search better than my immigrant parents can. It just goes to show you where this is going.

Introduction 1/27/11 WMST-354

Hello everyone! My name is Taylor, this is my 3rd semester at RIC. Before transferring to RIC I went to CCRI for two years, with a scholarship to play soccer. So far the semester is going well, but I know I've got my hands full until May. When I am not in class I am usually at work or spending time with my friends and family. I am an assistant preschool teacher, and I am currently working towards a degree in early childhood education. There is a quote I came across that has stuck with me ever since I started to work with young children, "You can learn many things from children, how much patience you have, for instance." - author unknown. Moreover I think this course will be a good learning experience and good time.