MassMedia: Visual Media: Ideological Criticism: How to Do Ideological Criticism (U6-P3) Fa14

How to Do Ideological Criticism (according to Foss)

“The primary goal of the ideological critic is to discover and make visible the dominant ideology or ideologies embedded in an artifact and ideologies that are being muted in it” (Foss, p. 295-296).

• Step 1: Formulate RQs
• What is the ideology embodied in this artifact?
• What are the implication of this ideology?
• What are the alternative ideologies not expressed?
• Are there aspects of the artifact that support emancipation? Etc.
• Step 2: Select Unit of Analysis
• What specific aspect(s) of the artifact/text will you focus on?
• Step 3: Analyzing the Artifact
• Identification of Nature of Ideology
• What does the artifact ask the audience to believe, understand, feel or think about?
• What are the arguments made in the artifact?
• What is seen as good or valued?
• What ideologies are hidden?
• Identification of Interests Included
• What is the power structure and what groups are supported?
• Identification of Strategies in Support of Ideology
• How does the rhetoric legitimize the ideology and interests of some groups over others?
• How exactly is the dominant ideology supported?
• How exactly are alternative ideologies hidden?

Source: Rhetorical Criticism: Exploration and Practice

If you did an ideological critic of the following cartoon, how would you do that?

The Brotherhood of Man - Post-WWII Animated Cartoon Against Prejudice and Racism (1946)


Have any rhetorical texts you might analyze using ideological criticism?  What ideologies do they promote? What ideologies do they mute?  What do you think you'd find?


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MediaTech: Internet/New Media: The Basics: What is a Blog, RSS and RSS Reader? (U6-P3) [VID] Fa14

What is a blog?  How do you blog (steps in the process)?



What is the relationship between a blog and Twitter or Facebook?  What is a micro-blog?

What are ways you can read and/or subscribe to a blog?  What's an RSS and how does it work?





Feedly is a popular example of a RSS reader.




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GlobalMedia: Development Communication: Diffusion of Innovations (U6-P3) Sp14

Everett Rogers

Discuss Diffusion of Innovations as an Approach to Development.

Everett Rogers wrote Diffusion of Innovations (1962, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2003).

What is an innovation?

• An idea, object or practice...
• Perceived as new...
• By an individual or organization.

What is the diffusion of innovations?

• An innovation ...
• Communicated via channels...
• Over time...
• Among the members of a social system.

CHARACTERISTICS OF INNOVATIONS
The characteristics (or attributes) of innovations, as perceived by individuals, help to explain their rate of adoption.  Characteristics of innovations are one important set of variables influencing the rate of adoption.

1. Relative Advantage
1. Relative advantage is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as being better than the idea it supersedes
2. e.g. economic profitability, decrease in discomfort, savings in time and effort, immediacy of reward
2. Compatibility
1. Compatibility is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as consistent with existing values, past experiences, and needs of potential adopters.
2. Example: rap music and the role of MTV in making rap accessible and acceptable for all youth (Black & White).
3. Complexity
1. Complexity is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as relatively difficult to understand and use.
2. Example: DOS vs. Windows
4. Trialability
1. Trialability is the degree to which an innovation may be experimented with on a limited basis.
5. Observability
1. Observability is the degree to which the results of an innovation are visible to others.
2. Examples: solar panels & DBS, PrimeStar, DISH and the like

Given the above, how could diffusion of innovations (a communication theory) be used in development work?   How could diffusion of innovations be used to fight a health issue in a community or developing nation?

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GlobalMedia: International Journalism: Being a Journalist in a Foreign Place (U6-P3)

Imagine being a journalist in a far off land.

Wouldn't be easy, would it?

First, you may, depending on where you are and what you are covering, be physically harmed or killed.  See Anderson Cooper clip below, for just one example.  

The video clip below is from February 9, 2011



And, if you are curious, check out some recent news about about foreign journalists being hurt or killed in the past year month.

It is also not easy being a foreign journalist because you may misread/misunderstand what you are covering in that foreign land.  It is a challenge.

P. Eric Louw, in his chapter "Journalist Reporting from Foreign Places" in Global Journalism: Topical Issues and Media Systems (4th Edition), writes about the challenges of being a foreign journalist.

Thesis of chapter:

• “Journalist coverage of foreign places increasingly influences the governance of those places.” (e.g., CNN effect.)
• “The emergence of international governance based on foreign news-driven mediated realities has inherent dangers."

“Double Misreadings”?

• “Relying on the news media to understand distant places inherently produces a double misreading because…”
• Journalist can misread the news event and
• We (the audience) can misread what the journalist is saying.
• “journalists generally are not equipped to read distant contexts, and neither are their audiences.

Journalist misread for several reasons.

1. “First, journalists arriving in a new context are foreigners [who don’t know the history, the religions, etc.]
2. “Misreadings also occur because journalists carry their cultural biases with them when reporting in a foreign context.”
1. e.g. American values/ways of doing things being seen as normal. Seeing foreign ways as “incomprehensible” or “despicable”.
3. “…the journalistic practice of deploying simplistic labels.” 
1. Taking a complex, sometimes chaotic situation/place and putting into 20 words or less and putting it in a way that U.S. audience will relate to.  “ethnic cleansing” label “white supremacy” label used in coverage of S.A.
4. “…journalists routinely use binary oppositions when describing foreign contexts”   Related to #3  
1. Common characters in a news story: “good guys” vs. “bad guys” Other characters?  Common plot?  Again, oversimplification.
5. “…when sent to report on foreign contexts, journalists tend to (subconsciously) select contacts with whom they feel comfortable working…”
6. “…foreign issues are read in terms of ‘home’ understandings and agendas.” 
1. e.g., S.A. anti-apartheid struggle = U.S. civil rights struggle.  Similar to # 3

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MediaTech: Cell Phones and the Consequences of Tech: The Digital Divide (U6-P3) fa12

Current News on the Digital Divide

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GlobalMedia: Doing Some P.R. Work for the U.S. State Department (U6-P3)

Let's pretend that we are doing some public relations/advertising work for the U.S. State Department.  They want us to (1) promote a good image of the U.S. abroad and (2) promote tourism to the U.S.

What could we do?  How would we do that?

Where would we do that?  Let's say we focus on places where people have first have contact with the U.S., in airports and in U.S embassies abroad.

As for the what, how about we put together a short video to be shown in the airports and embassies.

Think very carefully about what you would be in that video and why.

No, no.  Don't read on.  Seriously, think about what you'd put in the video and why.

O.K., now read on.
---

This above scenario actually played out few years back.  It actually happened.  Let's see how your ideas match up with those actually carried out.  Let's look at a series of videos.

A CNN News Report



The Actual Video Shown in Airports and Embassies
(See at least the first minute and the last minute to get a good feel for the video.)


The Making of the Portraits of America Video


Do you think this "Portraits of America" video was effective, based upon what you've see above?
Would you have done anything differently?



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MediaTech: Cell Phones and the Consequences of Tech: The Digital Divide (U6-P3)

Current News on the Digital Divide


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