Rethinking: A for Advertising

Today, in class, we watched the documentary, "Killing me Softly" by Jean Kilbourne. She touches on a lot of topics and issues dealing with representation of feminity. She also takes a fresh look at how advertising traffics in distorted and destructive ideals of femininity. The lecture she gave focuses on advertising and the role of women.

The practice "sex sells" has been around since the early days of advertising. Numerous products like fragrances, clothing, alcohol, and even fast-food employ forms of sexual content to promote their brand to all demographics. As stated in one of the website, Advertising Undressed, "There are five types of sexual content in advertising which are; nudity/dress, sexual behavior, physical attractiveness, sexual referents, and sexual embeds." Research has proven that sexual ads are further engaging, entertaining, and interesting.

Because man have an increased liking and are more responsive to sexual content, most sexually based advertising targets them. Men exhibit authority and dominance in which case are the main targets for sexual imagery and women are sometimes objectivtied in advertisements.

However, even if the product may be sexually relevant, advertisements can be too aggressive. For example, designer Calvin Klein uses models, in the below picture, that wear his single product and nothing else, and is quoted as saying, "Jeans are about sex." The abundance of bare flesh is the last gasp of advertisers trying to give redundant products a new identity." Critics have compared his ads to pornography and there have been several issues regarding the model's ages and what is appropriate to be released to the public.

The use of sex in advertising has important social, managerial, and public policy implications. We are all sexual human beings and reproduction is in our nature. Sex is considered a necessity in order to live. However, what I disagree most, is using unrealistic body images of women to promote and marketing advertising. These underweight, bony, skinny models send a negative image to the public and can also possible increase consequences for women such as eating disorder, depression, abuse, and violence. Roughly seven million American women and one million American men are affected by an eating disorder. Ads like these specifically target young adults, raising a social concern about what constitutes age-appropriate content. Pre-teens and teenagers are at a time when they are exploring their own sexuality; thus, they are especially vulnerable, curious, and easily influenced. I think America should impose an act like what the Israelis have implemented; no skinny models to decrease eating disorders. To drive down eating disorders in Israel they plan to promote more realistic body images among girls and women.The visual effect is so powerful and such a dangerous lure for girls and women who feel like they have to match this societal thin ideal. While changing the shapes of models seen in magazines and on TV is a "constructive goal," it may reduce eating disorders among girls and women. 

http://myportfolio.usc.edu/clgustaf/2010/09/advertising_undressed_does_sex_sell.html

http://www.john-wright.net/2009/08/18/response-to-jean-kilbourne-women-in-advertising/

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/mar/21/news/la-heb-skinny-models-eating-disorders-20120320



Holocaust

During lass class we met for a special presentation by Susie Fono, who shared her experiences during the Holocaust. There are many who survived the Holocaust; however, most have not escaped from the pain. Ms. Fono's presentation was much different from what I had anticipated and expected from a Holocaust survivor. I thought I would be shedding a tear but on the flip side I was smiling and laughing due to her personality she added in her presentation. She was able to put a positive spin on such a dramatic, negative topic. She didn't talk about the concentration camps, death marches, extermination camps; however, she mentioned other aspects of the Holocaust that she experienced such as; being able to hang on to her doll through it all, which is now passed on to her grandchild. :)
  
Her defining characteristic is courage. She is a hero to her children and grandchildren. She faced the worst and the best in life. Her strength, wit and wisdom saw her through. I am glad I was able to attend her presentation and happy that Holocaust survivors are still  willing to share their stories.   

RIDDLE #2

Okay this one's a tad tricky...still can't figure it out...HELP ME!!!!

NAME A VERY COMMON 3 LETTER WORD  (1 SYLLABLE) THAT TURNS INTO ANOTHER COMMON 4 LETTER WORD AND BECOMES 3 SYLLABLES WHEN YOU ADD 1 LETTER TO IT?!?!?!







RIDDLE #1

Name 10 body parts that are 3 letters. No slang words like "ass" or "gut." GO!



Rethinking: SEX SELLS be like Adele

The sexualization of women in the media has become an intricate part of our society--whether it is in advertisements, magazines, commercials... or even music videos. Music is prominent in adolescent lives. Producers know that sex sells and most music videos use provocative sexual images to stand out in the crowd. Sex has become a main part of popular entertainment. While sex appeal was once considered a bonus for a woman, it is now practically a requirement.

There is one rap video in particular that degrades, dehumanizes, and demoralizes women and simply portrays them as sex objects that was explained in the documentary; Dreamworlds 3: Desire, Sex, and Power in music videos. The video is “Hot in Herre,” by the rap artist Nelly. The music video is chock full of scantily clad women, grinding with other men on the dance floor. The song encourages women to get naked, “Its getting hot in here/So take off all your clothes,” with a female singer responding with “I am getting so hot/I wanna take my clothes off.” At this point in the video, women begin taking their clothes off. The song just says to take your clothes off, but you notice that only women take their clothes off, and women are the only ones encouraged to take off their clothes.

There are just a few songs that do not have many risqué lyrics to today’s most popular songs amongst teenagers. Not only are the lyrics very suggestive, but also some of the videos for these songs are downright raunchy. Popular music videos portray women in a very negative way. For example, women are usually "barely dressed" or wearing "low-cut and skimpy tops, stockings, lingerie, and bikinis" when they are dressed. In addition to this, women often outnumber men while performing provocatively for the cameras by touching themselves, the male artists, or other women. Music videos fling messages to young women that say that it is “cool” to dress provocatively and be promiscuous. Women are rarely ever showed in a decent and good-natured manner in today’s music videos, not to mention fully clothed.

However, to end on a positive note, there are some women in the music industry that have some hope and dignity, and are true role models for young women. Queen Latifah's lyrics tout female superiority. Salt 'n Pepa energize with eroticism. Julie Brown's unsettling version of a campus queen dethrones the mainstream icon. Martina McBride's song of liberation gives new meaning to Independence Day. Lastly, Adele has the potential to change the way women were seen in the industry by focusing on her music rather than her sexuality. She is clearly talented, her singer's record-breaking second album 21, which has spent 15 of the last 17 weeks at No 1, smashing Madonna's record of nine weeks in the top slot, and with all of this other garbage being sold...Adele is a good thing to be happening! Today in the music video industry such women artists have assumed a remarkable and refreshing new presence and can slowly change for the better!

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/hs/mckinley/2007/03/mtv_portrays_female_as_sex_obj.html

http://www.angelfire.com/realm3/onlymindgone/blitz.htm

http://www.upress.state.ms.us/books/433

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/may/29/adele-change-women-music-business


<<One Journey Ends is Anothers Beginging>>

This week, since we do not have to write a specific blog I want to share something personal about myself. I am a senior on the UW-Parksides Women's Basketball team. I just played my last game this past Monday in the NCAA DII Sweet 16 game. Its crazy to me knowing that my basketball career is over with. I feel like its a bad break up in a way. I will be sad and depressed for a while but then I will find someone or something that makes me just as happy even more in some ways. I will never forget the past relationship and always love it but it helps you make the new one even better and appreciate it even more.

Its like the saying when one door closes another one opens. These next couple of weeks are going to be rough. I am going to have so much free time, it will be hard to fill that void. Basketball has basically defined who I have been since I was little. I just can't wrap my head around it; working hard towards something since 3rd grade and just like that it can be over with. Basketball has taught me so much over the years. It was always my escape from the real world. Nothing else mattered when I was on the court. I was able to block out everything else going on in my life, school and family and focused on the game.

We had an amazing journey. I got to play the sport I love with the people I love. I am truly blessed. Most athletes have to give up the sport they love once they graduate high school, I got four extra years with the sport I loved and met my best friends along the way. The hurt and pain will be easier but the memories will forever life on. Some things just can't last forever, but to me that what make them special now its time to set new goals and challenge myself in new ways. There is only one team that celebrates at the end of the tournament. We have a lot to be proud of. My senior class became the winningest class in UW-Parkside history and will leave with a career record of 89-31 (.742), two division titles, a GLVC Tournament runner-up, three NCAA Tournament berths, and two trips to the Sweet 16. We built this program and believed in the system and we gave it all we got for four straight years. Myself and 3 other seniors reshaped the UW-Parkside women's basketball program and leave as the most successful class in school history.



..::>Rethinking: Governance & Citizenship<::..

I would first like to share with you all, an email that I received on the accounts of Whitney Houston's death as well of many other pop culture celebs....

With Regret.... Whitney Houston's death, while a sad thing, was the direct result of very unwise life choices. It dominates the news. Charlie Sheen is 45 and his story is all over the news because he is a substance abuser, an adulterer, sexually promiscuous, and obnoxious. Lindsay Lohan is 24 and her story is all over the news because she is a celebrity drug addict and thief. Something as frivolous as Kim Kardashian’s stupid wedding [and short-lived marriage] was shoved down our throats, While........ Justin Allen 23 Brett Linley 29 Matthew Weikert 29 Justus Bartett 27 Dave Santos 21 Jesse Reed 26 Matthew Johnson 21 Zachary Fisher 24 Brandon King 23 Christopher Goeke 23 and Sheldon Tate 27... Are all Marines that gave their lives last month for you. There is no media attention for them; not even mention of their names. God bless you, Rest In Peace, and THANK YOU, TROOPS. In the last few weeks I’ve been noticing a strange phenomenon online. I’ve witnessed several statuses, tweets, and general discussions all centering around the basic idea that the press is focusing too much on the death of Whitney Houston, while completely ignoring the deaths of soldiers who die in war. I first want to say that I am not suggesting that Whitney Houston’s death is more important than the sacrifices made by soldiers overseas. I fully support and appreciate the fact that countless people are sacrificing themselves across the globe for a larger purpose. However, that being said, I think it is sad to have Whitney Houston or any celrbity who has died recieve more attnetion than our troops. I  believe, a celebrity's death shouldn't get so much more attention than the deaths of  soliders who lay their lives on the line every day. Finally, media is profit driven and searches for things that will sell. Celebrity deaths are the kind of thing they drool over. So although ideally the media would be a bastion of free press and honest news reporting, in truth they are a business that has a bottom line. Our society is a "celebrity-obsessed culture" but when we lose a star which is painful and tragic it will never be the same  mourning what's real in our lives, the loss of those we're close to. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Next, I want to look at the Kennedy-Nixon Presidental Debate in 1960. John F. Kennedy was a relatively unknown senator from Massachusetts. He was young and Catholic — neither of which helped his image. But by the end of the evening, he was a star. It's now common knowledge that without the nation's first televised debate, Kennedy would never have been president. On 26 September 1960, 70 million U.S. viewers tuned in to watch Senator John Kennedy of Massachusetts and Vice President Richard Nixon in the first-ever televised presidential debate. The Great Debates marked television's grand entrance into presidential politics. In August, Nixon had seriously injured his knee and spent two weeks in the hospital. By the time of the first debate he was still twenty pounds underweight, his pallor still poor. He arrived at the debate in an ill-fitting shirt, and refused make-up to improve his color and lighten his perpetual "5:00 o'clock shadow." Kennedy, by contrast, had spent early September campaigning in California. He was tan and confident and well-rested. Those who listened to the debate on the radio thought Nixon had won. However, by 1960, 88% of American households had televisions — up from just 11% the decade before. The number of viewers who tuned in to the debate has been estimated as high as 74 million. And that 74 million who watched television saw a candidate still sickly and obviously discomforted by Kennedy's smooth delivery and charisma. Those that watched the debate on TV thought Kennedy was the clear winner. In addition, those television viewers focused on what they saw, not what they heard. I guess these two examples do not idealize a perfect fit with this weeks topic but I thought they were very interesting and wanted to bring them to my classmates attention on a.) how self-centered and selfish our media pertains to capture attention of stupid celeb drama and gossip rather than informing Americans about their troops fighting for their country b.) how media has grown, changed, and adapted to beneift government politicis.

http://articles.cnn.com/2012-02-24/opinion/opinion_levs-grief-celebrities-troops_1_social-media-icon-whitney-houston?_s=PM:OPINION

http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=kennedy-nixon

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2021078,00.html

Copyright is this weeks topic. In class we watched the documentary called, Copyright Criminals, and our main focus was on Rethinking Copyright in our Remix Culture. If there’s one concept that has suffered more damage than just about anything else as a result of the web and the ongoing explosion of digital media, it’s copyright.

Generally speaking, remix culture can be defined as the global activity consisting of the creative and efficient exchange of information made possible by digital technologies that is supported by the practice of cut/copy and paste. Today, Remix (the activity of taking samples from pre-existing materials to combine them into new forms according to personal taste) has been extended to other areas of culture, including the visual arts; it plays a vital role in mass communication, especially on the Internet.

To understand Remix as a cultural phenomenon, we must first define it in music. A music remix, in general, is a reinterpretation of a pre-existing song, meaning that the “aura” of the original will be dominant in the remixed version. After doing some further investigating and researching I discovered that there are three types of basic remixes based on its history. The first remix is extended, that is a longer version of the original song containing long instrumental sections making it more mixable for the club DJ. The second remix is selective; it consists of adding or subtracting material from the original song. This is the type of remix which made DJs popular producers in the music mainstream. The third remix is reflexive; it allegorizes and extends the aesthetic of sampling, where the remixed version challenges the aura of the original and claims autonomy even when it carries the name of the original; material is added or deleted, but the original tracks are largely left intact to be recognizable. However, it is noted that the extended, selective and reflexive remixes can quickly crossover and blur their own definitions.

Lastly, vering off in a different direction, other than remixing songs/music, I  now turn to social media advances. Pinterest is the latest Web addiction for millions. Pinterest has been around for almost two years, but has seen a meteoric rise in interest over the last couple of months. In December, Pinterest became one of the Web's Top 10 social networks, according to tracking firm Hitwise. Pinterest is a visual bulletin board for the Web.

The service allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections. The site's mission statement is to "connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting." It thrives on beautifully simple images of ideas for the home. Users of Pinterest curate themed image boards, populating them with media found online using the "Pin It" button, or uploaded from their computer. In essance, users are copying there favoiate online images from; places of interests - how to ideas - favoraite clothing items and post them their boards. This is a legal site,however; tiptoes around the idea of copyrighting/copycating.

Pinterest Copyright Content:

Content creators on sites such as iStock have expressed concern over their work being reused on Pinterest without permission. Getty Images said that it was aware of Pinterest's copyright issues and was in discussion with them. Pinterest has a notification system which allows copyright holders to request that content be removed from the site. One journalist questioned the "safe harbor" status of Pinterest. A "nopin" HTML  meta tag was released by Pinterest on February 20 to allow websites to opt out of their images being pinned. On February 24, Flickr implemented the code to allow users to opt out their photos.

http://remixtheory.net/?page_id=3

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/story/2012-01-17/how-to-pinterest-mark-smith/52615856/1

Rethinking: Love

There is an estimated total of 54 million people in the US and about 40 million people are using online dating. In the same manner, there are about 20 million eHarmony users and 15 million Match.com members. Men dominate the online demographics coming in at 52.4% users and 46.7% are women users.

We're moving more of our social lives online and updating these sites at the speed of technology, but what about our romantic lives? In last class period we watched a documentary called Second Skin which made us think twice about how we find our soul mates. Some may find their true love in high school, others in college or even at a sporting event or at the bar; however, there are a few brave souls who find their match maker through the wonderful world of the web...online dating.

With the rise of the Internet and profound changes in contemporary lifestyles, online dating has gained enormous popularity among aspiring lovers of all ages. "Online dating used to be something that people turned to when they were giving up on offline dating," says Sam Yagan, CEO and co-founder of OKCupid, a site that has the largest registered user-base of 18- to 34-year-olds in the US.  "It is now a tool that people are turning to, to complement their offline dating, to meet other people you might not meet in your day-to-day life."  However, online dating has become increasingly common and popular. Dating is evolving.You fill out a questionnaire, fed it into the machine, and almost instantly received a card with the name and address of a like-minded participant in some far-flung locale—your ideal match. There are numerous chat rooms, sites, and other social media that creates such opportunity. Technology is getting much more exciting and has created different themes which draws in potential daters.

I do not have any experience in the online dating world and I do not for see myself to ever use such a site in the future. I think I would be too scared to put myself out there like that. I am not a fan of online relationships, though I have heard from people its working for them.The Internet though, appears to be an easy way to find love, the associated dangers may sometimes exceed the benefits. Giving your personal information to a complete stranger is dangerous. There are people who search for naive and innocent teenagers so as to take advantage of them. Apart from teenagers, women are targeted by these online 'predators'. Lying is one of the most common things that one resorts to in deceiving the naive Internet users. One can lie about anything like age, height, etc. Online relationships are breeding grounds for fantasy. If one party resists moving a relationship into the real world, for whatever reason, it will never progress. Honestly, I would rather meet someone in the real world than in the virtual world. 

http://www.statisticbrain.com/online-dating-statistics/

http://news.discovery.com/tech/online-dating-tech-evolution-111018.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/may/01/online-dating-untangling-the-web





I recently watched the documentary, Money for Nothing. After watching this documentary I have realized that independence is being threatened by a shrinking number of record companies, the centralization of radio ownership and play lists, and the increasing integration of popular music into the broader advertising and commercial aspects of the market. Also, this documentary has opened my eyes to perceive the music industry as a world that maximises profit. As long as the numbers increase and the media is happy its a win win situation.

Furthermore, live music was once threatened by records, recorded music felt threatened by recordable cassette tapes, now it's MP3s and illegally downloaded music that has taken over how people consume music. When Napster exploded into the media spotlight in 2000 with lawsuits from musicians such as Metallica, people began to realize how the Internet has changed music forever. Suddenly, with the advent of Napster and other programs like it, music could be shared and swapped between fans like never before. Listeners and consumers had taken control of their musical tastes and were stealing the business away from the corporations who once dominated the music industry for decades. The main idea that record industry realized was that it needed to adjust to the new market and embrace how the Internet has changed music and not fight it. The record industry realized that fans no longer wanted to be limited to buy an entire album for a single song, and so most albums were broken down into their constituent songs and made available for individual download. Personally, I agree with this argument, for instance, I wanted the Adele CD but realized I can down load a couple of her hits for free instead of buying the entire CD. The future of music seems tied to the future of digital distribution of media. As high speed Internet has become increasingly prevalent, many musicians have realized they can record and produce their own music on relatively inexpensive hardware and music programs.

 

Commercialized radios are well known for over playing popular songs repeatedly. In the same manner, radio stations have no variety for their stations. Granted I only listen to the radio for a short segment of a time; however, I am constantly hearing the same song every hour and it gets very annoying.  I do believe the radio kills record business because stations continue to play the hottest single over and over until it is sicken by the viewer. Personally, I know there are some songs on the radio when are played I have to turn the station because the song is over played. Word to the wise: this is not creative nor is it interesting and is losing viewers slowly.

Lastly, advertising is the secrete/hidden key to give artists more exposure to their views, followers, listeners, and fans, surely, than MTV. Have you noticed any familiar tunes popping up in commercials? Advertisers have been borrowing popular tunes to plug their products for years but lately it seems like every commercial has a recognizable tune. Advertisers do this to make you think of their product. If the tune is catchy, it gets stuck in your head and if the commercial does the trick you will think of their product when you hear the song. Music always had accessory roles: a soundtrack, a jingle, a branding statement, a mating call. It is well known that popular music is used to sell well-known product. The advertising industry has a dominating effect on breaking music and exposing it to a whole new audience. However, this can be a negative effect because people might relate a particular song to a child hood memory and when the advertising industry attaches it to a product, that memory is ruined. All in all, the market will do whatever it takes to increase its sales. I think popular music and advertising make a beneficial partnership.

Amy Selk

COMM 108 – Media & Society

Date Due: 2/2/2012

Name of interviewee: Jeanie Malchow

Age: 51

Birth place: Fond du Lac

Relation: Aunt

Date interviewed: 1/29/12

Place interviewed: via phone

Can you describe your childhood and popular media that you and your family used?

-My dad always read the newspaper and as a family we watched the 5 o’clock news with Walter Cronkite. He was considered the most trusted man in American. My parents always watched the political debates in support of the political elections. My siblings and I also listened to the top 40s with Casey Kasem while we lay in bed before we fell asleep. The Partridge Family, The Brady Bunch, and Dark Shadows were three of my favorite TV shows while growing up as a child.

What is your earliest memory of television?

-When I was 8 and we purchased our first black and white TV; however, this TV only had two channels and had no remote. Previously, we would entertain ourselves by playing board games or playing outside with friends.

What was the telephone like when you growing up? What was it like to have a “party line?”

-In our household we only had a rotary phone which was a turn the wheel style phone. We also had a party line which we shared with another family. I remember this type of phone had a long cord so you could not walk away. I hated the party line. If someone was on the line, you could listen to their conversation, and had to wait patiently for them to get off the phone in order to use it.

Can you share an experience of going to the movie theatre?

-I didn’t go to the movie theatre until I was a teenager, which is when I started working because my family could not afford it. On the other hand, I did go to the outdoor theatres. At the outdoor theatres you had to play a flat fee per car, in which case, you could pack as many people in the car. I remember people were shoved people in the trunk and piled friends in the back seat.  

How has the media benefited your life?

-Media has made life more convenient and simpler. I can communicate a lot easier to long distance family via cell phone, texting, email, Skype, aol (instant messaging), and Facebook. Currently, my family and I have 2 computers, all four of us have a cell phone, we have cable TV (HD), and we recently disconnected our home land line. Another way advance technology has benefited my life is due to online banking. I pay bills on line, and require direct deposits for my pay checks. 

How has the media impacted your life negatively?

-I think it has negatively affected my life due to the separation it can cause between the members of my family. Technology can definitely divide a family and lose that close nit connection between one another. I also think the media has made the information more negative because broadcasters and producers are always finding a way to make money by delivering an interesting hot juicy gossip instead of informing the public the actual facts and figures.

           

Media more than anything else has significantly impacted our daily lives the most. In the same manner, media tools have profoundly changed our lives and how we interact with one another and the world around us.

            First, how we get our news and information has drastically changed. Instead of actually reading the hard print copy of a newspaper or even logging into an online newspaper website, I look at the stories my friends and other people post via Twitter or Facebook. Friends are increasingly becoming people’s trusted sources of information, even more than search engines. My aunt mentioned that they had to wait to receive the latest updated news; nevertheless, news now travels faster than ever communicated through advanced media technology.

Secondly, my aunt and I were born in two completely different generations. People still mostly rely on newspapers to learn about what was happening in the world; likewise, things changed when the Presidential debates was on air. It was clear that people who heard the debates on the radio favored the words of Nixon, but those who saw the composed, handsome Kennedy favored him. TV has become the way in which people around the world see the world. This is extremely different to how my aunt was raised. Moreover, in contrast to the black and white TV my aunt grew up with, now kids are watching their favorite shows in high definition screens. For example, my dad just purchased a 46inch flat screen SONY (HD) TV with surround sound for our basement. This type of entertainment system is what any child dreams about…it’s practically having a home theatre in your household. Next, the qualities of programs have also sunk drastically because of the diversity offered. The amount of channels has literally jumped from several to several hundred, rather than only having two channels in compare to my aunt. Reality television doesn’t rely on writers or actors, and an unimaginable quantity of sports is broadcast-some, like darts and poker, aren’t even really sports. But with so many channels offered it’s possible to cater to all tastes. Lastly, if I missed my show on TV I have the luxury of watching it either on line or on DVR. These options were not available to my aunt during her childhood years.

            With this in mind, media has made it un-stressful to keep in touch with long distance friends and family. There is so much connection that can happen through social media such as; Facebook, Skype, and twitter. People certainly still meet others at social venues like clubs and parties, but it is easier than ever to discover people who share interests through social media, whether that means via groups on Facebook or following people on Twitter. Furthermore, it can also unite people with common interests and/or beliefs through groups and other pages, and has been known to reunite lost family members and friends. The best means of communication for some of my family is via email, others via phone, and some via Facebook. My entire family; aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews all have a Facebook account. Some check it more than others; however, we all stay connected through our family page. In the same manner, Facebook has helped me stay connected with my high school friends; where we have the option to chat at once, coordinate plans on holidays or get-togethers, and catch up with one another since I do not have the ability to go home much due to being a college athlete. One of my favorite features of Facebook is it reminds me of my friends birthdays and events. This is helpful tool for me because I am terrible at remembering birthdays so Facebook helps me along the way. In conclusion, these social media devises have affected the social life and activity of people in various ways and also allow users to continuously stay in touch with friends and relatives wherever they are in the world.

            There is one topic in which I argue against media and that is replacing text books for laptops. There has been multiple discussions to transition public schools' from printed textbooks to electronic materials. If I had an option to choose laptop or text book, I would choose a textbook because it is easier to read and reference. If laptops did replace textbooks that just means that, each district will have to figure out the total cost of buying the devices, training teachers, setting up the devices, making sure they work for blind students, maintaining, insuring and protecting them from theft and damage, and providing uninterrupted internet connectivity with internet filters. Personally, a student from Wisconsin, these are all new costs that should be addressed at a time when school districts aren’t facing financial crises and laying off teachers.

In every era, cultures go through numerous changes, and in recent years ours has been more impacted than anything else by media. Media is providing yet one more means of engaging and communicating with people around us, and if used effectively can give all of us greater choice in how we live and what happens in our world. All in all, I thought this was a very interesting and intriguing assignment because I enjoyed listening to my aunt talk about her life without the advance technology like today has to offer.