A Farewell To An Interesting Class

I know we're supposed to "technically" write about a medium, but being as how this is the last blog post for the semester, I figured, "What the heck? I'll say goodbye and reflect."

I will be taking away from this class a lot of knowledge that I previously did not store in the depths of my brain cells. I learned quite a bit of very interesting information that I did not know I enjoyed knowing and also information that I could've survived, and enjoyed surviving, without knowing (some information we took in was a little graphic and a little biased - but hey, technically, all information is biased in some way, shape or form).

My favorite part of the class had to be the chapter presentations by my fellow classmates. I really enjoyed seeing what they found most important and interesting out of the chapters they selected. It is a different way to learn and I think I took away a lot more information away from the class because it wasn't the same technique or process everyday as it would be if just one person, such as the teacher, taught everyday. My least favorite part of the class was the theory project and the amount of homework. I understand that the homework is necessary but I had 21 credits this past semester and all the homework was difficult for me to keep up with. I did not really care for the theory project because it was extremely difficult to find information for especially since we couldn't use the book for a source. I enjoyed working with my group, we had fun, but I did not like the project itself.

The material we learned in class will definitely influence the way I view advertisements, movies, TV shows, music videos, read a paper, magazine or a book. I learned a great deal and will apply it to the rest of my life and my career.

Bashed In On All Sides

Have you ever stopped to think about how many different forms of media there are out there today? I mean, really stopped to think about it; as in, you've sat down, made a list then sat back and uttered a barely discernable: wow! Well, I did today as I worked on homework for 3 different classes. The number of individual "mediums" is astounding. It blew my mind today when I actually focused to see just how much we are having thrown at us and from how many different angles.

First off, here is the list a came up with this afternoon: (I probably should've just kept working on homework, but let's face it...I/we have been doing that non-stop for the past three weeks now and it was TOTALLY a break worth taking--gave me my blog idea didn't it?)

`internet

`advertisements

`television

`commercials

`billboards

`radio

`blogs

`emails

`phone calls

`text messages

`papers

`books

`social web-sites

`magazines

`bathroom stalls

`buttons/pins

`bus and van sides

`airplane banners

I am sure there are many more that could be added to the list but that's all my stretched, taxed mind could think of.  We wake up and media smacks us in the face. The TV, our phones, our books, our drive to and from work or school, our computer, and anything else you could possibly imagine subject us to multiple forms of media every second possible.

With all of the media we consume in a day it is amazing that we do not spew random bits of information at random times. It is amazing that girls even know what the "self-confidence" means; we do not have it, but we at least know that it exists.

Pressure on youth in today's society

Alright, I might be pushing the bill here a little bit because the topic I've chosen to write about for this week's blog is not exactly a medium or about a medium but is more about what really caught my attention while watching one of my favorite shows. I was trying to decide what to write for this week and was having a difficult time figuring out what to do.

To try and trigger my creative juices I started flipping through channels and found that Law and Order: Special Victims Unit was on. Stephen and I started watching it and the episode really caught my attention. The episode was entitled Hothouse. In this episode Detectives Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler discover a 14-year old girl's body in the Hudson River. As they dig deeper trying to discover the girl's true identity, they uncover the world of elite boarding schools and the deep dark secrets the "hallowed halls" conceal. They discover that 14-year old's name is Elsa Lychkoff, the daughter of compulsive gambler, Joseph Lychkoff, who was abusive to both of his daughters until he kicked his oldest daughter out at age 16 because he felt Elsa had more potential and he couldn't waist his time with his oldest anymore. Elsa was offered multiple scholarships and her father was offered monetary gifts just to send her to the boarding school because she is a child prodigy with an incredibly high IQ. The detectives eventually discover that Elsa's roommate, Jennifer Banks, was the one who stabbed her three times in the chest with her pen, bashed her head against the ferry boat railing four times, then pushed her into the Hudson River. Elsa had been ignoring Jennifer and Jennifer just wanted to clear the air and talk to her but Elsa overreacted and pushed Jennifer. Jennifer, having not slept for six days due to taking an ADD prescription in order to stay awake and cram for up-coming finals, was suffering from Sleep Deprivation Psychosis when she committed the murder. Jennifer had the emotions and feelings of a child but the intelligence of an adult. The pressure to be on top, to be the best, pushed Jennifer, Elsa, and every other pupil in that school to go to extreme measures. The faculty and staff of the school, according to Jennifer, even gave students the tools and tricks to get psychiatrists to prescribe medicines that would help them stay awake for days on end and focus for hours on end.

All of this information led me to think about the amount of pressure that is put on today's youth to succeed, to be the best, to be better than anyone and everyone else. The pressure is so great that they/we find anyway we can to cope with the pressure and the stress. Whether it is drugs, prescription or illegal, alcohol, cutting, or yes, even more constructive habits, we will do whatever it takes to impress our superiors and be the individual who comes out on top and is recognized and praised for our work and talents. Think about this: are we forcing our youth into an environment where they are forced to use performance "enhancers" to achieve the goals WE set for them? Or an environment where the focus on one goal so thoroughly that they can lose sight of reality and even lose their sanity?