Final blog, final exam

Blog 9 - Due Sunday at midnight

Class Highlights Describe how what you learned in JOUR 2 affected your level of media literacy. Do you view media in a different way? How? Has your understanding of media impacts, the First Amendment, or media messages changed? How? Include any relevant link or media clip you would like. OR Post a short video relevant to topics discussed in JOUR 2. Describe in 2-3 sentences the significance of the video.

Chapter 14 - Media Ethics

Assignments

Due Tuesday Dec. 2: Chapter 14 quiz -- note the title on the printed quiz says "Chapter 13 - Media Law. " My error. The first question of the true Chapter 14 quiz is:

1. Ethics involve which of the following?

 

No blog due Sunday night, no readings for Tuesday!

 

Today in class:

We discussed media ethics as it applies to journalism and advertising. If you pursue a degree in journalism or public relations, you will take an entire course in media ethics. Every job or career you will ever have will involve ethical decision-making.

 

Chapter 13 - Media Law

Assignments

Due Tuesday Nov. 25: Chapter 14 quiz.

Reading for Tuesday Nov. 25: Chapter 14 (Media Ethics) Last chapter!

Blog 8 Topic:  Describe a media law or media ethics case from 2013-14 involving one or more of the following:  First Amendment/censorship, libel, privacy/intrusion, copyright, Federal Communications Commission, misappropriation, sunshine laws, shield laws. Include a user-friendly link to a site about the case. Add your brief comments. 

Today in class, we discussed the First Amendment and many other laws that affect the media and journalism: Libel, invasion of privacy, copyright, etc. Most of these laws apply in some way to online content.

We talked about false claims for First Amendment and free speech rights when people imagine that in the U.S. you can or should be able to say anything you want without repercussion. The First Amendment protects Americans from government censorship, but not from any other negative reactions to speaking one's mind. 

We briefly discussed the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) which regulates over-the-air TV and radio broadcast. We did not view this clip from "Family Guy":

Alone Together

Assignments

Reading for Thursday Nov. 20: Chapter 13 (Media Law)

Blog 8 Topic:  Will be posted Thursday.

Today in class, we viewed a video about clinical psychologist Sherry Turkle's research into cellphones, texting and social media which you can view at http://vimeo.com/77192952

You can view Sherry Turkle on the Colbert Report here: http://thecolbertreport.cc.com/videos/kd5rmr/sherry-turkle 

Turkle: I've been at funerals where people pull out their iPhones.
Colbert: Well, we all say goodbye in our own way.

Chapter 12 - Public Relations

Assignments

Bring to class Tuesday Nov. 18: Quiz 12 (Public Relations) take-home. 

Reading: No reading due Tuesday. Reading for Thursday Nov. 20: Chapter 13 (Media Law)

Blog 7 Topic:  --  Post three items for your Annotated Reference list. Use APA style. Include an annotation in which you briefly summarize the source (1-2 sentences) and explain how your will use it in your research paper. You will need to use at least four college-level sources in your paper. One must be from a scholarly journal (peer-reviewed). Most sources should be from 2010-2014. If  you're using a website, it should have an About Us page that clearly explains what the organization is. 

 

APA citation: Google "Diana Hacker" and APA. You can also use the Purdue OWL website. Son of Citation Machine has an auto-fill feature that will put together the APA style citation for you, but remember that you need to enter the information precisely. The "Cite" link on databases often does not comply with APA style.

In class, we discussed public relations -- history, functions, crisis management and controversial practices such as greenwashing, pinkwashing and Astroturfing (creating phony grass-roots movements).

Here's a video I didn't get to show in class. The founder of PR Watch talks about  troubling aspects of public relations.

 

Chapter 11 - Advertising

Assignments

Note: Class will not meet on Tuesday Nov. 11, but I will be in my office and the lab in L41 will be open from noon to 4 p.m. so students can work on their research papers.

Bring to class Thursday: Quiz 11 (Advertising) take-home. 

Reading: Chapter 12 (Public relations) for Thursday Nov. 13

Blog 6 Topic:  --  Look up “Propaganda techniques” on wikipedia.org, then find two advertisement online that each use at least two propaganda techniques. Explain what the techniques are and how they are used. Embed video ads; post images of print ads.

In class, I handed out our revised assignment calendar (linked on the toolbar above) and the Research Paper and Annotated References assignments. We discussed advertising, which manifests in and to some extent funds most of the mass media we are studying (all except books). We looked at the VALS Framework, on of the psychographic tools that advertisers use to target the consumers they want to reach. You can take a survey to find out your VALS type at http://www.strategicbusinessinsights.com/vals/presurvey.shtml. 

My result was: "Your primary VALS™ type is Innovator, and your secondary type is Achiever." I'm not sure if I agree.

 Here's a video of Irish comedian Dylan Moran's take on the culture of consumerism.

Chapter 15 - Global Media

 

Assignments

Bring to class Thursday: Quiz 15 (Global Media) take-home. 

Reading: Chapter 11 (Advertising) for Thursday Nov. 6

Blog 6: Topic will be about propaganda techniques in advertising. I will post it Thursday.

Today in class, we discussed global news media and students viewed the video  "Generation Like," from the PBS program Frontline.

This article discusses troubling issues raised in the video: The Future of Digital Marketing Is You.

Chapter 10 - Internet

Assignments

Reading: Chapter 15 (Global Media) for Tuesday Nov. 4

No quiz - I forgot to hand it out in class.

Blog 5: Topic -- Ideas for Class Report/Presentation.The assignment is to •Investigate an idea or practice in any form of mass media that you have become curious about
–Can be controversial or not
–Must be interesting
•Use research and critical thinking
•Write a report and deliver a presentation that will teach our class about what you have discovered

All that's due now is the topic. You can include two or three ideas in your blog post. I will respond to the post and then on Tuesday you will bring in a hard copy -- handwritten OK. 

History of the internet from Malone Media Group

In class, we discussed the Internet -- History, video gaming, interpersonal/group/mass communication aspects, convergence, reverse synergy, hacking, crowdfunding, memes and legacy and online media. We looked at this interactive infographic about the worldwide digital divide. Less than 25 percent of the world has Internet. In the U.S., 78.3 percent have access to the Internet.

Chapter 9 - Television

Music and Talk 

Assignments

Bring to class Thursday: Quiz 9 (Television) take-home. 

Reading: Chapter 10 (Internet) for Thursday Oct. 30

Blog 4: Topic will be ideas for the Research Paper. I will post the topic and we will discuss it in class Thursday.

Pie graphs from the 2014 Hollywood Diversity Report

In class, we discussed:

The history of TV - Cathode ray tubes, color, cable, recording devices, satellite, "pulling the cord." Decency and ratings. Diversity issues -- racial and ethnic minorities, LGBT etc. 

After class, I found this report from UCLA:  2014 Hollywood Diversity Report. The report uses content analysis to measure diversity in TV and movie casts, and also discusses minorities in roles such as director and producer. It would be a good source to use in your research paper, depending on the topic.

Chapter 8 - Movies

Assignments:

Bring to class Tuesday: Quiz 8 (Movies) take-home. 

Reading: Chapter 9 (Television) for Tuesday Oct. 28

Blog 4: Movie or song - new and old favorites

Write 2-3 sentences about your favorite movie of 2013-14 and why you liked it. Write 1-2 more sentences about your all-time favorite movie and why you like it. In which format(s) did you first see these movies? Add a user-friendly link to the movie in RottenTomatoes.com. Find and embed a trailer for one or both of the movies.      

OR

Write 2-3 sentences about your favorite sound recording (song) of 2013-2014 and why you like it. Write 1-2 more sentences about your favorite oldie and why you like it. In which format(s) did you first hear these recordings? Add or embed user-friendly links to Amazon.com, YouTube.com or other sites where others can listen to your recordings (or samples).

In class, we discussed:

The history of movies; effects including emotional, imitation and cultural/social; censorship/MPAA ratings, theaters vs. other formats. What I didn't get to show in class: videos about movie cliches and product placement.

Chapter 7 - Audio

Music and Talk 

Assignments

Bring to class Thursday: Quiz 7 (Audio) take-home. If you don't turn it in Thursday, you can make it up when we have quiz makeups after Chapter 8

Reading: Chapter 8 (Movies) for Thursday Oct. 23

Blog 4: Topic will be audio or movie. I will post it and discuss in class Thursday.

We discussed in class:

The history of recorded sounds and transmissions, back to the telegraph and Thomas Edison. We looked at format war winners and losers. I talked about the history of rock'n'roll as a meeting point of rhythm & blues and hillbilly music. We watched Elvis Presley sing "Hound Dog" and swing his hips in a way that was disturbing to some people back in the 1950s. Here's a video that compares Elvis and Michael Jackson dancing.

Students discussed the radio stations or Internet or satellite radio they listen to, and the issue of piracy.

Here's the movie "The Last Signals" about the Titanic's telegraph operators that I wanted to show a clip from. I will add this to pre-approved movies for the extra-credit Movie Report.

Chapter 6 - Newspapers and the News

Reflections of a Democratic Society

 

Assignments

Bring to class Tuesday: Quiz 6 (Newspapers) take-home. If you don't turn it in Thursday, you can make it up when we have quiz makeups after Chapter 8

Reading: Chapter 7 (Audio) for Tuesday Oct. 21

Blog 3: Magazine Proposal (due Sunday Oct. 19 midnight)Write a proposal for a new magazine (either a print magazine or an online magazine), as if you were going to submit it to a publisher. Your proposal should include:

Former JOUR 2 student's magazine proposal

·         Name of magazine

·         Concept – how is your magazine different from existing magazines?

·         Readers – demographics and psychographics (may include age group, gender, ethnicity, income level, interests, attitudes, self-image, self-identification, etc.)

·         Other magazines serving this demographic/psychographic (your competition) – your investors will want to know how your magazine is different or better?

·         Five advertisers who you think would like to reach your readers

·         Five articles you might include in your premier issue -- These can be the "cover lines" highlighted on the cover -- see Hanson textbook p. 117)

·         Draw (or create electronically) your proposed cover, including the name of the magazine and highlighting top articles, and post it on your blog and/or bring it to class. Stick figures are OK. Here's a template to create a cover electronically.  You can also use PhotoShop, InDesign, etc.
 
ALSO:  Comment on your tablemates' Blog 2 posts (Books). Did you learn anything? Have anything in common? Agree or disagree with specific points?
 

We discussed in class:

The history of newspapers, the future of newspapers, De Anza College paper La Voz. You can see the front page of many newspapers throughout the world at http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/

Chapter 5 - Magazines

The Power of Words and Images

Assignments

Bring to class Thursday: Quiz 5 (Magazines) take-home. If you don't turn it in Thursday, you can make it up when we have quiz makeups after Chapter 8

Reading: Chapter 6 (Newspapers and the News) for Thursday Oct. 16

Blog 3: Magazine Proposal (due Sunday Oct. 19 midnight)

Sample student magazine (Kerry Prowse, 2012)

Write a proposal for a new magazine (either a print magazine or an online magazine), as if you were going to submit it to a publisher. Your proposal should include:

·         Name of magazine

·         Concept – how is your magazine different from existing magazines?

·         Readers – demographics and psychographics (may include age group, gender, ethnicity, income level, interests, attitudes, self-image, self-identification, etc.)

·         Other magazines serving this demographic/psychographic (your competition) – your investors will want to know how your magazine is different or better?

·         Five advertisers who you think would like to reach your readers

·         Five articles you might include in your premier issue -- These can be the "cover lines" highlighted on the cover -- see Hanson textbook p. 117)

·         Draw (or create electronically) your proposed cover, including the name of the magazine and highlighting top articles, and post it on your blog and/or bring it to class. Stick figures are OK. Here's a template to create a cover electronically.  You can also use PhotoShop, InDesign, etc.
ALSO:  Comment on your tablemates' Blog 2 posts (Books). Did you learn anything? Have anything in common? Agree or disagree with specific points?
 

We discussed in class:

The history of magazines, controversies such as body images of men and women and the importance of demographics and psychographics. 

MAGAZINE COVERS:  You can find out what was on the cover of Time the week of your birthday  here.

Chapter 4 - Books

Assignments

Reading: Chapter 5 (Magazines) for Tuesday Oct. 14

Blog 2: Books (due Sunday Oct. 12 midnight)

Discuss three books you have read that had the most influence on you and/or are controversial for some reason. In 2-3 sentences, describe why each one was influential and/or controversial. Write in more detail than saying, “It was good” or “it made me laugh.” Say why it was good or made you laugh, how it stayed with you after you read it and/or your opinion about the controversy. Add friendly links to the books on Amazon.com or another online bookseller, or authors’ websites.  

We discussed in class: 

Chapter 4 - Books. We talked about the history of writing, paper and printing; influential books and banned books. Here's a video (not seen in class) about some surprising children's books banned, including the Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland and Winnie the Pooh:

Here's another video about banned books:

Chapter 3 - The Media Business

Assignments

Reading: Chapter 4 (books) for Thursday Oct. 9

Blog 2: Books (due Sunday Oct. 12 midnight)

Discuss three books you have read that had the most influence on you and/or are controversial for some reason. In 2-3 sentences, describe why each one was influential and/or controversial. Write in more detail than saying, “It was good” or “it made me laugh.” Say why it was good or made you laugh, how it stayed with you after you read it and/or your opinion about the controversy. Add friendly links to the books on Amazon.com or another online bookseller, or authors’ Websites.  

We discussed in class: 

Chapter 3 - The Media Business. Mass media producers in the U.S. are mostly businesses. We discussed media ownership -- because of consolidation, only a few large companies own most media sources, which limits diversity of opinion and creative outlets. FreePress.net is an organization that keeps track of media ownership, and advocates against consolidation and for issues such as net neutrality. It keeps an up-to-date media ownership chart.

Large media companies use synergy and vertical integration to their benefit, just like companies in other lines of business.

We talked about the "Long Tail" theory and how it affects Internet retailing of media such as music and video, and content production, e.g. crowdfunding as opposed to trying to get a big media company to produce your movie. Here's a basic "Long Tail" chart.