Crawling out of the basement through a tunnel

Ever since childhood we were taught to go to school, listen to our teachers, raise our hands and only give the correct answers. In Media180 I learned that there isn’t just one answer. Media180 was more like a group of scholarly thinkers having a conversation than an actual class. It was like a group of people just having a laid back conversation, and in between Professor Ewen and Martyna would weave in facts of knowledge without the class knowing. Through this media class I’ve learnt to “think out of the box”. In many of our blog posts we were instructed to be creative. Though, we all have the quality to be creative, not all of us had the skill to bring it about. Before taking this class I was trained to always be formal and structured in all of my assignments.

Team work was difficult for me in this class. The take-home assignments were useful ways to prepare us for team work in the future. Throughout the semester I made many acquaintances and hope to become friends with them. It was challenging to make time to meet with team members/ And ofcourse, the most rewarding aspect of team work it being able to successfully execute the assignment while overcoming the barriers likes time management and miscommunication. The course encouraged critical thinking through the lectures. Many of the things that were spoken about in the lectures weren’t foreign, they were just shown in a different light (the advertisements and their underlying meanings).

The most memorable day of the discussion section was the first day. First of all, it was in a basement, which, for some reason, never ceased to amaze me. And secondly, the class exercise we did showed how different yet similar we all are. The first assignment was the most challenging for me. I found it difficult to write three pages about me and my personal experiences. The blog posts were a bit difficult to keep up with. I’m not exactly sure how that can be improved. Maybe they can be assigned weeks before just so no one has an excuse for not doing them. If Media180 wasn’t taught within the restraints of Hunter College, it should be taught outdoors. The lecture hall often dampened the mood of the lectures.

Campaign: Stop and Frisk Law

So far we have done quite a few things for our campaign project. We have done research on New York’s stop and frisk law, which helped us figure out which group of people to interview. We also contacted the MSA to ask if we can interview them for our project, to which they consented. By tomorrow night we are going to come up with questions that can help us conduct our interviews.

Strike Upon the Wall

A general strike is a movement made by a city, region, or large group of people. It is used to bring awareness to issues that people feel others need to know and take a stand for. The strategy of a general strike has been used on numerous occasions such as in Seattle in 1919 for wage increases, 1934 for textile workers, and May 1, 2012 for Occupy Wallstreet.

Occupy Wallstreet, a movement that everyone knows of, is once again bringing awareness to another social issue through the May 1st strike. The General Strike is being held tobreak all barriers between race,gender, social class, and religion. The main objective behind the strike is to “challenge the systems that create these divisions among us”. Everyone is invited to join the  protest to make a change in the world, or atleast a change in New York. But the biggest questions are: Who will join? And, will it make an impact, or just die down after a couple of days?

The photo above shows the different advertisements and slogans for the movement from different organizations. These images show the numerous personalities of people urging the General Strike. On the upper left, the image shows the hispanic working class joining the movement, while the lower left shows images of what appears to be younger people; or students. Through such images, we can see the various groups of people that are participating.

I think the general strike is a great idea. The more people that are involved, the greater the impact it’ll leave. It’s about time we get rid of such unnecessary barriers between people and be the voice for people that wanted their voices heard but can’t project it. People like immigrant workers, students, educators should join in and participate. Also, the strategy of not going to school, banking, shopping, and working will leave a major impact. It’ll show that New York City can’t function without these people that are being discriminated against.

Help! I’m stuck in a box!

We’ve always seenys the movies as a place we go to escape reality. What most of us don’t know is that the movies are often a depiction of our lives. It can almost be said that films were seen a as guide to life. In Elizabeth and Stuart Ewen’s City Lights: Immigrant Women and the Rise of Movies, it is explained that there is a direct relationship between the change of urban and rural women and the progression of movies. The immigrants were the ones that pushed the power of cinema. Ewen stated, “Most film historians agree that the first audiences for motion picture came primarily from the immigrant working-class neighborhoods of America’s largest cities”. Because the movies were cheap, the working class immigrants would go to the movies. In Buster Keaton’s Sherlock, Jr. the theme of language of gesture vs. language of speech was most prevalent. The use of gesture showed a different way a story could be told. Though, we are used to watching movies with dialogue, people still understand what emotions silent films are trying to emit through certain instruments. In the essay, “The Photoplay: A Psychological Study” Hugo Munsterberg explains, “If we try to understand and to explain the means by which music exerts its powerful effects, we do not reach our goal by describing the structure of the piano and of the violin or by explaining the physical laws of sound”.

  I still haven’t decided what I want to do for the campaign project. All I know is that I want it to be about equality, I’m leaning towards the rights of women and how how there are still gender biases today.

The Prevalence of the Press

1) Discuss the use of fire as a means of controlling, deterring, or providing access to media. How does it indicate underlying power structures in a society? How effective is it? What other means of controlling the story have we discussed, and/or are in place today? Consider discussing its use on both property and people; be sure to reference at least 3 examples from the material we’ve covered so far.

“The sun burnt every day. It burnt Time . . . Time was busy burning the years and the people anyway, without any help from him. So if he burnt things with the firemen and the sun burnt Time, that meant that everything burnt!” –Fahrenheit 451

“Control your destiny or someone else will”- Jack Welch

Power: strength or command over others

Deter: to prevent, barracate

Is It Really Freedom of the Press?

 

The use of fire played a significant role in preventing people from expanding their horizons through the media. Captain Beatty represents the underlying elements in society that controls what the media can expose. Though there was a strong hand in the media not being able to connect with society, today there isn’t such a strong barrier.

5) Women have been alternately ignored, acknowledged, and caricatured in the readings and films we have encountered this semester. Choose any three articles, books and movies from the syllabus so far. Compare, contrast and analyze the portrayal of women across the texts. Remember that each piece reflects a moment in history, but is also a deliberately edited piece of media itself. Make sure to include broader ideas, including those about literacy and power, that have stemmed from the course. Be specific; cite characters, passages, and quotes from your sources.

“’I know you ain’t disputing my word. Don’t nobody live on my place and call me a liar. The bill was $350 You understand me?!’” – Frankie Mae

“For most of history, Anonymous was a woman” – Virginia Woolf

Progressive: the act of opening up to newer, liberal ideas, enlightened

Superiority: higher ranking in society

 

Behind Every Successful Attempt At Reform, There Is A Woman

 

Throughout history, we have learned the important role women have played in society. Although, they’ve had such significance in our lives, they weren’t always held in such high regards. In Jean Wheeler-Smith’s Frankie Mae, Smith tells the story of Frankie Mae, a young African American girl who works with her father under Mr. White Junior. She goes against the norm and questions her boss when it was time to show records of spending and earning. Frankie Mae’s rebuttal showed that she wasn’t afraid to express her thoughts and fight for herself.

7)  Imagine you lived in the world of Fahrenheit 451. What book would you commit to memory and why? Why would you consider your book important for the future of humanity? Use quotes and ideas from both your chosen book and course materials.

“Do you know why books such as this are so important? Because they have quality. And what does the word quality mean? To me it means texture. This book has pores.” – Fahrenheit 451

“Reading, after a certain age, diverts the mind too much from its creative pursuits. Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking.” – Albert Einstein

Scriptorium: where books were published before the printing press

Printing press: machine that made many copies of the same things

If I had the ability to memorize only one book, it would be The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger. Although it was published years ago, it is a novel that today’s youth can connect to. It can never be outdated and everyone can somehow connect to the protagonist, Holden, and even aspire to be like him.

The Pen Is Mightier Than The Sword

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are countless freedom fighters all over the world that have done amazing things and shined the light on issues that the popular media might not necessarily focus on. However, we decided to stay local and interview someone who is a participant in creating awareness among Hunter College students. Amy Lau, a sophomore at Hunter College is an editor of The Olivetree Review, a literary and art journal that is published every semester. It includes various pieces of work such as non-fiction writing and photography. There are also weekly workshops where students can learn more about expressing themselves in writing and the arts. In Soldiers Without Swords people were given a voice and a way to share their ideas with others through media. The Olivetree Review gives Hunter College students a chance to share their ideas and talents with the rest of the college community. We asked Amy a few questions about her experience of working for a publication and her overall opinion on today`s media.

How did you first discover The Olivetree Review, and what encouraged you to join?

I’ve always enjoyed writing and working in various media and print publications.  Working in my high school’s literary magazine was an amazing experience.  A friend of mine told me about the OTR and gave me a copy.  Impressed with their work, I stopped by the OTR office located in Thomas Hunter Hall.  The staff is comprised of diverse and diligent Hunter undergraduate students whose passion in writing and the arts is apparent in the work they do for the Olivetree Review.  You don’t need to be an English major to work in a literary journal.  Just be passionate and willing to learn about writing.

How would you say publications such as The Olivetree Review benefit students, Hunter College and the community?

The Olivetree Review introduces students to various forms of writing, featuring works from different genres.  Our workshops help students improve their writing skills.  Writing is a competitive field so writers need to get as much exposure as they can for their work.  With over a thousand issues circulating every semester, stories featured in the OTR reach a large audience.  Open mic nights organized by the journal is an excellent way for writers to raise awareness about what they do and gain publicity.  In addition, the OTR website often posts contests and internship opportunities in the publishing and fine arts industries.

What would you say is the message that you are trying to send to the readers?

Just to encourage students to continue reading and writing and to challenge themselves with different styles, genres, and subjects.

Overall, what do you think of the role that media plays in our everyday lives? Do you think that all of the different points of views and ideas that are circulating on the internet, television, and newspapers benefit us and make us more tolerant when dealing with issues, or create even more problems?

I have mixed feelings about the media.  While the media is a fast and convenient way for us to share information and have our voices heard, its quick ability to share is also its downfall.  Last summer, Bank of America proposed a monthly $5 fee for its debit card users.  In an attempt to stop the proposal, Molly Katchpole created a petition online using social media.  Within a day, Katchpole’s petition received tens of thousands of signatures.  Eventually, Bank of America was forced to rescind the proposed fee.  Katchpole was hailed as an activist and hero.  But not everyone has a positive experience with social media.  Back in September 2011, Rebecca Black posted her first music video on YouTube that made her famous for all the wrong reasons.  Viewers criticized her singing abilities, leaving malicious comments on the video webpage.  Black had to be homeschooled because of the bullying that occurred over her video.

What are some causes that you are passionate about (health, equal rights, clean environment, treatment of animals or etc.)? In the future, do you plan on working for another publication, possibly create a blog online, or use another media outlet in order to create awareness?

I will continue working with the OTR but I would also like to try reporting.  I would like to write for the Hunter Envoy in the future by covering the news at Hunter and around the city.  I’ve been thinking about starting a blog over the summer that focuses on the nonprofit and health care industries in New York.

If you are interested in The Olivetree Review you can take a look at the students` work here:

http://www.theolivetreereview.com/

Ieva Ulozeviciute

Tasnim Quaiyum

Can 250 Pages Mean That Much

From elementary school to all the way to high school, we’ve been trained to read numerous books. Ofcourse not all of us absorbed every piece of knowledge given through the books.Though not at the same time, I’m sure everyone comes across at least one piece of writing that they claim is life changing. Whether its Shakespeare or J.K. Rowling, every author teaches their readers something.

The novel that grabbed my attention when I read the assignment was Carol Plum Ucci’s What Happened to Lani Garver. It isn’t a complicated book. Its straightforward, probably an eighth grade level book. It came across to me as an empowering work of literature because of the message it was trying to send out. The author tries to teach her readers to keep an open mind and accept everyone and not discriminate. She sends her message through a simple story that anyone can relate to .Despite being such a simple book, the message it has is so strong and powerful. To me, literacy shows empowerment through knowledge and acceptance. Literature teaches people of things they’ve never heard or seen of and shows them to accept them.