You are only limited by the limits of your imagination

Thank you so much for this semester! In the beginning I was very nervous and unsure of what my reaction to this course would be. The very first lecture scared me a bit because I knew this would be unlike any other course I had ever taken. When you told us to stand on either side of the room depending on our feeling of the course I stood directly in the middle. This is because I didn’t know what to expect, however I was pleasantly surprised. There were so many things I loved about this course!

At first I was nervous about the narrative essay. I had no idea what to write about and how you would react to my story. It is extremely personal and private and I have only shared it with very few people in my life. I was worried you would judge me or look at me as a different person, but I went ahead and wrote it anyway. It was very therapeutic because it was the first time I could actually sit down, think and write out my feelings on the situation. I also enjoyed writing this essay that was all about me and my experiences rather than a scholarly essay that required research.  Although I didn’t receive as high as a mark as I wanted it was still one of my favorite assignments thus far because I learned a lot about myself in the process.

I really enjoyed your teaching style.  It was a breath of fresh air! I loved how you made every class an interesting discussion rather than a boring lecture. It actually made me want to come to class and listen, it was more of a life lesson than a book lesson. I also loved how you incorporated media in with our course which I think other professors should do as well seeing as this is a media program. A good example of this is how you incorporated the Wikispace with our course. I really liked this because it kept me in contact with you and the rest of the students in the class. It was also useful because I could check the weekly readings and lesson plans. It also kept me up to date with what was going on in the media like Kony 2012, Chris Brown & Rihanna, Facebook Timeline and the Treyvon Martin story and many more! It became another daily social media routine along with my Facebook and Twitter.

It was also such a relief to not be stressed out with studying for exams! With all my other courses I felt stressed to memorize theories and definitions that I would forget right after the exam was over. With this course I learned so much more with out even having a test or exam. This is because I learned by interacting and talking about real life experiences, which is more useful to me than taking notes and memorizing.

Personally, I loved your course! It was a great experience and one of my favorite courses thus far. Thank you for sharing your stories and experiences with us. You were always very happy and enthusiastic which always seemed to brighten up my mood and catch my attention. I hope I get the chance to be in another one of your courses within the next couple years.

Sincerely,
Nicoletta

Do something for someone who can never repay you

Digital Project One: Government Bill 

 Intention/Goals: 
 -To get feedback on this bill, and we wanted to see how many people were aware of this and who approved and disapproved 
-we wanted to raise awareness of this because especially as media students, this could affect us greatly if they can access our private information 
-we wanted to see if people would be willing to do something about it (by signing a petition) 

 Technology: 
- used a canon point and shoot camera to shoot 
- started off with final cut pro but then realized imovie was installed and we were more familiar with it so we therefore switched to that technology 
- through creating this video, we increased our knowledge on these technologies and allowed us to fully explore imovie in which other classes dont allow us to do so 

Collaboration: 
-we all know each other from this year from last semester and we have worked in groups before so we knew we would collaborate well 
-all: came up with the script/ questions to ask people 
-all: all there for the actual shooting itself, filming 
-Kristina: camera woman 
-Donna: conducted the interviews 
-Victoria and Nicole: printed off and handed out the petitions/ got poeple to sign them/ entered their information online 
-Bianca: found our interviewees 
-Sam and Donna: editing of the movie (although everyone was present) 

Wheres the value in it? Did our final project meet our intention? 
-our final project did meet our final intention because through our interviews we were able to raise awareness on this issue 
-through getting people to sign the petitions we were able to do our part in hopefully changing the outcome of this bill (this could be transformational) 
-the value in this is that we hope for a good outcome because this affects us 

Digital Project Two: Body Image and Eating Disorders Caused by Media Influence
 
Collaboration:
-we all met last semester in various classes but this was the first time working all together in a group
-everyone pulled their weight and work was divided up
-we met up and discussed the concept and came up with the main idea
-Sam and Donna: iMovie (put the video together)
-Kristina: got the images that were appropriate from Google
-Bianca: but the text on the images
-Nicole and Victoria: typed and asked people to fill out the survey

Technology
-all done online
-used iMovie to edit
-incorporated music, photos and statistics

Value:
-the concept started off as “truth in advertisement” and “the media’s influence” but as we started doing research the concept turned into body issues. 
-We think this is a very serious problem and from the results we collected, almost everyone we asked had, had an eating disorder or knew someone who did. 
-We hope that people realize from our presentation that body issues still exists for males and females in our age group, and people should know that the models and celebrities we all look up to have unrealistic body types (they all have personal trainers and personal chefs to make sure the maintain a specific body type)

Of the two digital projects I enjoyed making the second one the most because it was based on a topic I am very passionate about: Eating Disorders. As you will see in one of my posts, I believe the media has a very large part in the amount of eating disorders within young women and men. I enjoyed making a video based on this topic and look forward to sharing it with the class and hopefully raising awareness.

Wiki Participation: 
When Mark Lipton first mentioned a “Wiki” account I had absolutely no idea what it was or how to get one. By the end of the first lecture I felt like I was already familiar with it and had started my own account. I began reading the posts regularly and some really caught my interest and attention. Although I did not post in every bulletin, I commented on the ones that were of most interest to me. Some of these included: Kony 2012, Pretty or Ugly, Fired from Facebook, iPads used in Kindergarten, Grammy Attendance, Chris Brown & Rihanna, Fun things to do in Toronto and many others! 
I thought it was an amazing tool to use to connect with our professor and classmates and also discuss topics that were important to us. It was also a nice change from the regular Guelph-Humber course website. Whenever I had a question about an assignment, reading or current news I would just log onto my Wiki and catch up. Although “hisnamewasmarshall” is my only Wiki Link, I hope more professors will become familiar with this tool and use it as apart of their teaching curriculum as well.

BULLYING 

The video posted above is the movie trailer for the up and coming film “Bully”. Please take a look at it, its truly motivational!

Bullying is an issue that needs to be taken seriously in all school systems. It can make children feel lonely, unhappy and frightened. It can make them feel unsafe and think there must be something wrong with them. Children can lose confidence and may not want to go to school anymore. It may even make them sick. Some people think bullying is just part of growing up and a way for young people to learn to stick up for themselves. But bullying can have long-term physical and psychological consequences and sometimes even results in suicide.

Bullying Statistics:
-High school incidents not dropping with a 15 per cent reporting one to three bullying incidents in the last month and 3.4 per cent 10 times or more.

-23 per cent of elementary students reported being bullied one to three times in the last month bullying statistics say.

-Recent bullying statistics admit that half of all bullying incidents go unreported.

-100,000 students carry a gun to school bullying statistics say.

-In a recent study, 77% of the students said they had been bullied. And 14% of those who were bullied said they experienced severe (bad) reactions to the abuse.

-Bullying statistics say revenge is the strongest motivation for school shootings

-87% of students said shootings are motivated by a desire to “get back at those who have hurt them.”

Bullying is recognized as a major public health problem in the Western world, and it appears to have devastating consequences. Cyberbullying has become an increasing public concern in light of recent cases associated with youth suicides that have been reported in the mass media.

Most of the studies that have examined the association between bullying and suicidality have been cross-sectional. Those studies show that bullying behavior in youth is associated with depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts. These associations have been found in elementary school, middle school, and high school students. Moreover, victims of bullying consistently exhibit more depressive symptoms than nonvictims; they have high levels of suicidal ideation and are more likely to attempt suicide than non-victims.

Megan Taylor Meier was an American teenager from Dardenne Prairie, Missouri, who committed suicide by hanging three weeks before her fourteenth birthday. A year later, Meier’s parents prompted an investigation into the matter and her suicide was attributed to cyber-bullying through the social networking website MySpace. 

 
It is very important for everyone to realize that bullying is not acceptable. In my high school alone, two people committed suicide due to bullying and that is two too many. I believe all schools need to become much more strict and take a stand against bullying creating a zero tolerance policy. Many school shootings such as Columbine and countless suicides have been linked to bullying. Something needs to be done! 

Bullying amongst teenagers who have come out as being gay is also on the rise. Here is a video of Ellen Degeneres speaking out about her cause. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_B-hVWQnjjM

“Love is Louder” is a anti-bullying campaign that has recently splashed all over the media. Celebrities apart of the campaign are Demi Lovato, Kim Kardashian, Justin Bieber & Lady Gaga. It is impossible for one person to put an end to bullying but by raising awareness and implementing harsh consequences I believe that bullying can be greatly reduced and hopefully in the future come to a complete end. 

Sources: Degeneres, Ellen: End bullying. Retrieved from: http://ellen.warnerbros.com/2010/10/resources_to_help_stop_bullying_0930.php
http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/

I was devastated to hear that Whitney Houston has passed away just one day before the Grammy’s. Although she was before my time, I grew up listening to her remarkable voice. I can easily say that she had one of the most beautiful and powerful voices of all time. She will definitely be missed. 

On February 11, 2012, Houston was found dead in suite 434 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, submerged in the bathtub.The cause of death was not immediately known.It was later ruled by the coroner to have been “accidental drowning”.Beverly Hills paramedics arrived at approximately 3:30 p.m. and found the singer unresponsive and performed CPR. Houston was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m. Local police said there were “no obvious signs of criminal intent.” On March 22, 2012, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office reported the cause of Houston’s death was drowning and the “effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use”.The office stated the amount of cocaine found in Houston’s body indicates she used the substance shortly before her death.Toxicology results revealed additional drugs in her system: Benadryl, Xanax, marijuana and Flexiril.

Many blame Whitneys ex-husband, Bobby Brown as the main cause to Whitney’s addiction. Prior to her relationship with Bobby, Whitney had a phenomenal voice and career which slowly started to deteriorate when she entered in a relationship with the music producer.

The impact Whitney’s Death had on the Grammy’s 

The 54th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 12, 2012, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles being broadcast on CBS. Kanye West received the most nominations with seven. Adele, Foo Fighters, and Bruno Mars each received six nominations. Lil Wayne,Skrillex, and Radiohead all earned five nominations. The unexpected death ofWhitney Houston caused for a change in the schedule. Show producers quickly planned a tribute, with Jennifer Hudson performing a tribute to Whitney Houston’s  famous single, I Will Always Love You.The awards show began with a Bruce Springsteen performance followed by an LL Cool J prayer for Whitney Houston. 

Personally I think Jennifer did an amazing job singing “I Will Always Love You” which is definitely not an easy song to cover. You can watch the tribute by clicking on the link provided below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olTXylHpuJM 

Some controversy also surrounded the attendance of many artists at this years Grammy’s.
It is said that Lady Gaga, amongst other very prominent musicians had decided not to attend the Grammy awards mainly because of lack of attention focused on them,no nominations and no performances. 
However, after the announcement that Whitney Houston passed away, and upon word that Jennifer Hudson would be performing a tribute, it became apparent that viewership for the show on Sunday night would skyrocket. Within hours of the above, plenty, including Lady Gaga, of the stars who decided not to go as they weren’t being featured, turned around and rsvp-ed last minute. Personally, I think the Grammys is definitely an honour to attend therefore I do not understand why any artist would not want to attend regardless of their feature in the show. Whitney Houston was also a huge role model to many of these artists therefore it would look disrespectful to not attend the show especially because of the tribute and emphasis they were paying to Whitneys death. I would be very disappointed to hear that certain celebrities only came for the “publicity” the grammys is a time to honour great music & artists therefore all artist invited should attend.

The death of Whitney Houston is surely a tragedy and should be set as a warning and example to other young women of the effects of abuse and drugs.
 
Sources:  Nadeska, Alexis. Whitney Houston’s Death. Retrieved from: http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/03/24/whitney-houston-autopsy-cause-of-death-details/

We’re living at a time when attention is the new currency: With hundreds of TV channels, billions of Web sites, podcasts, radio shows, music downloads and social networking, our attention is more fragmented than ever before.

Skinny, Gorgeous, Tall, Tanned, Long Hair, Fashionable. Some of the qualities of the women you see on every magazine cover and red carpet runway. From early-on children are taught by society that their looks matter. Think of the three and four year old who is continuously praised for being “oh so cute”. With an increased population of children who spend a lot of time in front of television, there are more of them coming up with a superficial sense of who they are. Images on T.V. spend countless hours telling us to lose weight, be thin and beautiful, buy more stuff because people will like us and we’ll be better people for it. Programming on the tube rarely depicts men and women with “average” body-types or non-stylish clothes, ingraining in the back of all our minds that this is the type of life we want. Overweight characters are typically portrayed as lazy, the one with no friends, or “the bad guy”, while thin women and pumped-up men are the successful, popular, sexy and powerful ones. 

Super models in all the popular magazines have continued to get thinner and thinner. Modeling agencies have been reported to actively pursue Anorexic models. The average woman model weighs up to 25% less than the typical woman and maintains a weight at about 15 to 20 percent below what is considered healthy for her age and height. Some models go through plastic surgery, some are “taped-up” to mold their bodies into more photogenic representations of themselves, and photos are airbrushed before going to print. By far, these body types and images are not the norm andunobtainable to the average individual, and far and wide, the constant force of these images on society makes us believe they should be.

Personally, I have the felt the pressures of the media to look a certain way. I am constantly looking at the latest fashion trends and diet fads. I do my hair and makeup a certain way and go to the gym on a regular basis. I can say that the way I look is extremely important to me and this has a lot to do with the media. The women I admire most are those that are constantly in the media like Blake Lively, Kim Kardashian and Adrianna Lima and not to mention they are always looking amazing! Many of my friends from high school and even peers today have experienced eating disorders. My best friend struggled with one for over two years. At first she looked great but then slowly started to look sick with pale skin, dead hair and nails and a boney figure. I can easily say she suffered through this because of the media influence. She was constantly talking about this model and that model and how skinny and perfect they were. This is definitely a psychological disorder that needed to be dealt with. Thankfully she is in a healthier state of mind now, but many young women never seek the help thats required, which could be fatal. 

Diet advertisements are another problem. On television, in magazines and newspapers, we are continually exposed to the notion that losing weight will make us happier and it will be through “THIS diet plan”. Time and time again it has been proven that, for the long-term, regimented diet plans DO NOT work, yet our society continues to buy into the idea that they do. Pop-culture’s imposed definition of “the ideal body” combined with the diet industry’s drive to make more money, creates a never-ending cycle of ad upon ad that try to convince us “…if you lose weight, your life will be good.” The flip side is that as long as we continue to buy into their false claims by purchasing these (often dangerous) products, the more the diet industry will keep pushing their slogans at us.

From the About-Face organization: “400-600 advertisements bombard us everyday in magazines, on billboards, on tv, and in newspapers. One in eleven has a direct message about beauty, not even counting the indirect messages.”

I was recently watching the TLC show called  ”Do Looks Matter” and I was shocked with the content and outcome of the show. On this particular episode “Megan” was sent out on the street to try and collect pledges for a cause. Megan is naturally a size 2 petite girl. The second time she went out she put a “fat suite” on making her a size 14. At the end of the episode they compared how many people stopped to talk or donate pledges. Megan’s original size 2 look collected triple the amount of pledges than Megan’s size 14 look. Why is this? I believe it is because of the constant exposure we have to the media telling us what is pretty and what isn’t, naturally people will be more attracted to the thinner, size 2, Megan. 

All in all, I believe that the media needs to start exposing all type of beauty and body types. Some companies have already started to do this like Dove, where they feature more average or bigger looking girls in their ad campaigns. More beauty and fashion companies should take this into consideration because it sends a very positive message to young women or all shapes and sizes.

Sources: Derenne, Jennifer. Body Image, Media and Eating Disorders. Retrieved from: http://ap.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleid=50181

Henderson, Katherine. Eating Disorders and the Role the Media plays. Retrieved from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2533817/

http://www.facebook.com/about/timeline
The above is a link describing the new Facebook Timeline and how it works. 





Facebook Timeline

Over time, your profile evolved to better reflect how you actually communicate with your friends. Now you can can share photos of what you did last weekend, and updates about how you feel today. But since the focus is on the most recent things you posted, more important stuff slips off the page. The photos of your graduation get replaced by updates about what you had for breakfast. Say you’re catching up with an old friend – would you rather find out that they had eggs this morning, or hear about their new dream job? The way your profile works today, 99% of the stories you share vanish. The only way to find the posts that matter is to click “Older Posts” at the bottom of the page. Again. And again. With timeline, now you have a home for all the great stories you’ve already shared. They don’t just vanish as you add new stuff.Timeline is wider than your old profile, and it’s a lot more visual.  The first thing you’ll notice is the giant photo right at the top. This is your cover, and it’s completely up to you which of your photos you put here.

As you scroll down past your cover, you’ll see your posts, photos and life events as they happened in time. You choose what’s featured on your timeline. You can star your favorites to double their size or hide things altogether.


This is making Facebook more of a blog.  If you want to see how your Timeline looks to other people, you need to click on the gear menu at the top of your timeline, and hit “View As.” “You can choose to see how your timeline appears to a specific friend or the public,” There’s more info on managing Timeline on the Facebook blog.

Personally, I have yet to get the Timeline and I probably won’t until I am forced to. I do not feel the need to look back at posts from 5 plus years ago. I am more concerned with the present posts and photos. I also do not like the idea that anyone visiting my profile can have access to posts made years ago. However, eventually I see everyone with a Facebook user account will be required to have the timeline.  I also do not like how almost every month Facebook changes something creating it much more complicated. Thinking back, I can’t even remember what the original Facebook looked like, thats how many times its changed!

Sources:  Choney, Suzanne. Theres no escaping the Facebook Timeline. Retrieved from: http://www.technolog.msnbc.msn.com/technology/technolog/facebook-timeline-theres-no-escaping-it-now-84762