What has always fascinated me is the theory of knowledge known as epistemology. We were discussing the idea in one of our classes, stating that it was the study of the origin and validity of knowledge. To expand more on that idea, epistemology is not about understanding facts but rather why we accept them as facts. It is the study of relationships between people and truth and why we believe what we believe. Epistemologists tend to be ahistorical, meaning they believe the past can be altered to a certain extent and when coming up with ideas, they do not consider historic details.
Applying the theory of epistemology to our daily lives allows us to see how sheltered we are from knowing if the truth is really the truth. The big news corporations are run by a very small amount of people, so if these few people are the only ones telling us what is the truth, we have nothing else to compare the truth to. If every news channel on television told us that scientists have 100% proven that in 2 years Antarctica will have melted, us as the viewers do not have the means to determine if what they’re saying is true or not. This also relates to Michel Foucault’s idea that “knowledge is power”. To expand more on that idea, whoever controls the information people are hearing is in control of everything.
We mindlessly listen to information without confirming that what we’re hearing is valid or not. If everyone’s philosophy of life was centered on the idea of epistemology, a rumor we heard on the streets would be quickly proven as true or false. Instead people quickly jump to the assumption that it is true, partially because we have such a great need for knowledge that we cling to whatever “truths” we receive without bothering to see if our “truths” are valid.
References:
Foucault, Michel. Power/Knowledge: Selected Interviews and
other Writings 1972-1977. Ed. Colin Gordon. New York:
Pantheon Books, 1980.
Heylighen, F.. "Epistemology, Introduction." Principalia Cybernetica. Sept (1993). 29 Sep 1993 <>.
Lechte, John. Fifty Key Contemporary Thinkers. 2nd Edition. New York: Routledge, 2008.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
4. Decoding/Deconstructing Advertising
I was watching a commercial for Lucky Charms while trying to find an advertisement for my 4th blog. When I was little and watching the Lucky Charms commercials they always seemed appealing to me because of the bright colours and the funny leprechaun running away from the children. I didn’t realize until now how highly stereotypical Lucky Charms is towards Irish citizens.
The most noticeable stereotype is the Irish-speaking leprechaun running away from people in order to protect his gold, or in Lucky Charm’s case, his cereal. He has the typical four-leaf clover on his hat, red hair and wearing all green. There are also 4 rainbows on the cereal box. One of them is bursting out of the leprechaun’s hand and leading into the cereal which he conveniently keeps in a pot of gold. There is a big explosion of colour on the box so when a kid is in the grocery store he/she will immediately be attracted to the box. The box is far more noticeable than that of Cheerios or Frosted Flakes. The marshmallows that are are mixed with the cereal are also very generic. There’s one marshmallow that vaguely resembles a volcano, but besides that the marshmallows are all related to the stereotypical Irish culture, such as the clover, horseshoe, rainbow and pot of gold.
When you’re little you buy the cereal because maybe you feel some sort of magical Irish connection but really you’re purchasing something a big American corporation created to get kid’s parents’ money.
References:
http://www.luckycharms.millsberry.com/
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
3. Mass Media
My definition of “mass media” is a type of medium that gets a message across to a large group of people such as television, newspaper, etc. I just looked up the actual definition of mass media, and as it turns out my definition is accurate. The requirements of this blog were to talk about my understanding of mass media but in all honesty, I cannot tell you how I understand it. The reason is because when it comes to mass media, I am not sure whether or not I believe it’s a good thing or bad thing and therefore don’t know what I should understand, besides the definition. So my idea right now is to talk about the pros and cons of mass media and hope by the end of this blog I will have a decisive answer.
I noticed a large majority of our class argued that the idea of mass media doesn’t play a positive role in society. I’m not sure if some of the people are saying that because they truly mean it or because it sounds fairly nonconformist and innovative. I don’t want to say I agree with mass media but at the same time I don’t want to say I disagree with it either. I understand it’s there and I don’t want to think about whether it’s a positive force on earth because I’m not particularly fond of self inducing inner conflicts. Maybe that makes me sound willingly ignorant but I’m willing to accept that.
I think though it is good that a lot of people are able to gain access to the same information, but a lot of the time what mass media offers us is stupid. Advertisements are telling us to be thin and buy Nike; televisions are informing us on Britney Spears’ shaved head; the radio is playing songs about casual sex and heartbreak; the Internet has Youtube, enough said. To a certain extent, I believe mass media is dumbing us down.
When students were presenting their media autobiographies, it was evident that everyone is surrounded by mass media and they’re aware of it. As long as people are aware of the pros and cons of mass media and the effect it has on the population, I think that’s good enough for our generation.
References:
Lane, Beth. "What is Mass Media?." 29 June 2007 28 Sep 2008
I noticed a large majority of our class argued that the idea of mass media doesn’t play a positive role in society. I’m not sure if some of the people are saying that because they truly mean it or because it sounds fairly nonconformist and innovative. I don’t want to say I agree with mass media but at the same time I don’t want to say I disagree with it either. I understand it’s there and I don’t want to think about whether it’s a positive force on earth because I’m not particularly fond of self inducing inner conflicts. Maybe that makes me sound willingly ignorant but I’m willing to accept that.
I think though it is good that a lot of people are able to gain access to the same information, but a lot of the time what mass media offers us is stupid. Advertisements are telling us to be thin and buy Nike; televisions are informing us on Britney Spears’ shaved head; the radio is playing songs about casual sex and heartbreak; the Internet has Youtube, enough said. To a certain extent, I believe mass media is dumbing us down.
When students were presenting their media autobiographies, it was evident that everyone is surrounded by mass media and they’re aware of it. As long as people are aware of the pros and cons of mass media and the effect it has on the population, I think that’s good enough for our generation.
References:
Lane, Beth. "What is Mass Media?." 29 June 2007 28 Sep 2008
Saturday, September 20, 2008
2. The Ecology of Media
The first company to begin mass producing cameras was the Kodak Company, founded by George Eastman in the year 1880. Photography was once an expensive hobby reserved for the wealthy but Kodak’s $5 cameras allowed anyone to take pictures as part of their past time. With the inventions of cameras, motion pictures soon followed, thus creating the technological era we live in today. I don’t necessarily want to say cameras are the reason we have our current technology but I believe the camera played a big part. Cameras have made society far more reliant on eyes, like most other mediums. Whether or not that is a good thing I wouldn’t know because I’m far too objective to come up with a definitive answer on how I feel about technology in general, let alone have an opinion about a specific medium.
I want to note the concept of photomanipulation in regards to the camera. What you can do with Photoshop is unimaginable. People take pictures so they can completely edit and manipulate it afterward, which I sometimes find almost defeats the objective of taking a picture in the first place. I know whenever I take a picture, I manipulate it on Photoshop, a lot of the times changing the background, colours and atmosphere of the photograph. The camera plays a huge role in the process but it seems very insignificant when you’re in the middle of editing a picture. Photography was invented as a means of capturing moments, but the digital era of photography focuses more on creating moments that never took place. The camera serves a completely different purpose than it did back in the early 1900’s.
References:
Gale, Thompson. "George Eastman Biography." (2006) 2. 20 Sep 2008
"His Life." George Eastman- The Man. Eastman Kodak Company. 2 Oct 2008.
I want to note the concept of photomanipulation in regards to the camera. What you can do with Photoshop is unimaginable. People take pictures so they can completely edit and manipulate it afterward, which I sometimes find almost defeats the objective of taking a picture in the first place. I know whenever I take a picture, I manipulate it on Photoshop, a lot of the times changing the background, colours and atmosphere of the photograph. The camera plays a huge role in the process but it seems very insignificant when you’re in the middle of editing a picture. Photography was invented as a means of capturing moments, but the digital era of photography focuses more on creating moments that never took place. The camera serves a completely different purpose than it did back in the early 1900’s.
References:
Gale, Thompson. "George Eastman Biography." (2006) 2. 20 Sep 2008
"His Life." George Eastman- The Man. Eastman Kodak Company. 2 Oct 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
1. Academic Blogging
A few weeks ago I was reading up on Moroccan philosopher Alain Badiou who often tried to relate the idea of truth to mathematics. I came across a phrase I liked, saying Badiou had “an original thought with difficulties”. My mind started to wander after I read the sentence, thinking about how laborious it is to actually come up with an original idea, or anything original for that matter. There are 6.7 billion people that inhabit the earth and odds are one of those people is thinking about the same phrase written by Badiou.
As far as me contributing to the world wide web, it doesn’t make me feel as though I’ve done something that extraordinarily spectacular. Many people in the world don’t have a computer, let alone the Internet, so I imagine if they posted a blog for the first time and had the opportunity for people from all over the world to hear their voice, their reaction would be significantly different from mine. Because I grew up with and took advantage of the ability to post my opinion on the Internet, I’ve become desensitized to the significance of the privilege.
In class we discussed Mcluhan’s idea of people’s perceptions being numb and blunt. I don’t want to consider myself indifferent to my surroundings but at the same time I think I should be less emotionless than I currently am. In regards to the chance of being able to have the opportunity to use technology, my lack of enthusiasm makes me seem a bit ungrateful. But I imagine my lack of enthusiasm towards technology blends in with the rest of society's.
As far as me contributing to the world wide web, it doesn’t make me feel as though I’ve done something that extraordinarily spectacular. Many people in the world don’t have a computer, let alone the Internet, so I imagine if they posted a blog for the first time and had the opportunity for people from all over the world to hear their voice, their reaction would be significantly different from mine. Because I grew up with and took advantage of the ability to post my opinion on the Internet, I’ve become desensitized to the significance of the privilege.
In class we discussed Mcluhan’s idea of people’s perceptions being numb and blunt. I don’t want to consider myself indifferent to my surroundings but at the same time I think I should be less emotionless than I currently am. In regards to the chance of being able to have the opportunity to use technology, my lack of enthusiasm makes me seem a bit ungrateful. But I imagine my lack of enthusiasm towards technology blends in with the rest of society's.
References:
Lechte, John. Fifty Key Contemporary Thinkers. 2nd Edition. New York: Routledge, 2008.
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