The Secret Life of a Very Bored University Student: Part 2

Sometime in March, I wrote a post about some rather interesting people I happened across one Wednesday. Yeah, I did just include a hyperlink to my own work. Shame and modesty are both foreign concepts to me.

This semester, I have been cursed with a 4 hour break every Wednesday. I know some people might consider this a blessing, and others have longer breaks (some on multiple days), but this is about me, so we'll ignore them.

Usually I pass the time by eating something unhealthy, and then doing some work on an assignment/procrastinating.

This. Only with less books. Okay, with no books.

 However, I've finished all my assignments for the semester. My exams aren't until the end of June. I could have started studying, but I would have just ended up procrastinating. So really, I did myself a favour by going elsewhere.

I considered roaming the University, but 4 hours is a long time to roam. So instead, I hopped on a bus and went to the city. I was walking past the Treasury Casino when I noticed a strange man wandering through the throng of people heading to their various destinations. Suddenly, he began shouting quite loudly in what I believe was Greek. For a moment I entertained the thought that he was the emissary of Poseidon, come to demand tributes of oxen and silver to placate the Earth-Shaker, lest he raise the Brisbane River and drown us all in a flood of dirty water and tiger sharks.

Cue the song 'Whipeout'

Then I noticed the nearby markets, and figured that he was probably promoting them, not heralding our doom. This was confirmed when he switched to English and began to demand that passer-bys experience the bargains. He probably wasn't speaking Greek originally either. I'm not good with languages.

That experience out of the way, I drifted through Queen Street Mall, looking for a means of entertaining myself. Upon exiting the Mall-proper, I passed Hungry Jacks and encountered a man who I can only describe as "Hobo Van Helsing".



Replace the buzz-saw and crossbow with some Woolworths bags and add
a few feet of beard, and we have our man!

He strode across the street with purpose, his eyes blazing with the determination of the truly driven. I figure he had either spotted Dracula eating out of a bin, or he'd realised he was about to miss his bus. Vampire slaying on a budget - not always a victorious experience.

I figured I'd seen just about all Queen Street had to offer in the ways of weird people, so I returned to St Lucia in order to acquire some cheap, unhealthy food. While in the food court, I took it upon myself to once again inconvenience people with friends by sitting at a table for three by myself. Take that, socialites. I didn't see anyone interesting there, but I just thought I'd make mention of that particular habit of mine. It's not my fault my friends all have different timetables to me, buuuut I might as well make the most of it.

After eating, I passed through the Wednesday markets at the end of Campbell Place. Here I witnessed a fairly brutal argument between a pair of Marxists. They were arguing about whether or not Vladimir Putin can be considered a socialist, and it was getting pretty hectic. But really, all they were doing was 'Putin' on a scene.


HA!

And now, here I am in the Humanities library, whiling away the last half hour or so of my break by fiddling with my blog. Time well spent, I think.

Till next!

JOUR1111 Lecture 10: Today's Agenda

I haven't been blogging much lately, mostly due to a combination of assignments and laziness. Time to rectify that!

I didn't actually go to this lecture. But before the gods of academia strike me down for my transgression, I would like to say that the reason I didn't go was because I had been up all night starting finishing an assignment, and circumstances arose which made it prudent to vacate St. Lucia and return home, in order to catch up on lost sleep.

I did watch it online though. It took about three hours, seeing as I kept stopping the video to write stuff down/getting distracted by shiny things in my room.

Like this, except all about shiny things.

 Anyway. Inability to pay attention to my computer when not wasting time aside, I rather enjoyed this lecture! The video at the beginning certainly made me chuckle.

Something that stuck with me the entire time was that quote by Richard Nixon shown at the very start: "The American people don't believe anything until they see it on television." To me, this was a very interesting insight into the way policy-makers and the higher-ups view media mostly as a form of propaganda. I know that's not what he said, but that was the underlying message behind it for me.

I like the term 'social construction of reality'. The idea that our reality is basically just the collective sum of shared 'issues of importance' that are constructed and mediated by the media is a very interesting, albeit cynical way of thinking. Plus, it appeals to my inner conspiracy theorist.

Hehehehe.

But on the the real issue. What we watch on TV, read in the paper/online and listen to on the radio, all comes to us because someone wants it to. Someone, somewhere, has decided to bring this piece of information to our attentions. It all comes down to the agenda of the person/organisation that send it out in the first place.

Bruce talked about four different kinds of agendas: public, policy, corporate and media. It's fairly easy to distinguish between these. We want to hear about One Direction, Julia Gillard wants us to hear that Kevin Rudd isn't planning another leadership challenge, corporations want us to hear that everything is fabulous and people will never ever ever lose money on shares, and the media wants us to hear about all these things, for varying reasons across different news providers.

Bruce mentioned in the lecture that the more an issue is covered, the more important it is to people. I feel that this was one of the major points of the lecture, especially considering just how much truth is in it. A lot of us are familiar with the Craig Thomson scandal. How could we not be? It's everywhere. But what's going on in Paraguay today? I wouldn't have a clue. Maybe it's an uneventful day. Maybe tens of thousands of children were murdered in the street. I may be exaggerating my hypothetical situations here. The point, however, remains the same. We don't know, because the people who set the agenda don't want us to care.

The media has been setting the agenda for nearly a century. Take wartime propaganda. Support the troops! Down with Hitler! That was what they wanted us to see, hear and read, and therefore that's what we came to believe. It helped that Hitler wasn't a very nice man, but hey, it was still the agenda of the time.

Propaganda is definitely a major part of agenda setting. It's 'a tool to shape images in the minds of humans to support an enterprise, idea or group'. In other words, propaganda plays a major part in the images that form in our minds when we think about a particular topic. Bruce mentioned Mitt Romney being a Mormon as an example of this. Mormons tend to get a bad rap in modern society. Most people have personally experienced or heard a story about Mormon door-knockers who dress nicely and roam the neighbourhoods, going from house to house looking for people interested in joining their religion. You know, like this:

Comes to your house no matter where you live!

Now, I'd like to mention here that I'm not intolerant of other people's beliefs, I'm just using this as an example. If someone is offended though, please let me know and I'll get rid of the picture and change this part of the post. Anyway. I know not all Mormons are like this. Also, there are 'door-knockers' in a lot of religions. So why does this stereotype exist? Because someone (or several someones) at some point in time, for whatever reason, decided that this is what they want people to believe.

So why does the media set the agenda? I liked Bruce's self-quote: "Because they can!" Did anyone read 'The Australian' on the day the budget was announced? I get the feeling Rupert Murdoch might just have had a little involvement in this one:

The Australian is a fairly conservative newspaper (not surprising, given that Murdoch owns it), so it should be expected that they take this sort of view. This might have been a little overt though. Just a little. The Australian wanted its conservative audience to see the Government as a bunch of filthy lefties, so this is what they put out. How's that for an agenda?

However, agenda setting falls flat on its face when we decide that we don't want to believe what we're being told. If one does a little more research into an issue, they might find themselves formulating a different opinion to what a media outlet is telling them. Alternatively, someone might just not care about the issue, and will thus ignore the agenda. Take that, established order!

That's all I have to say for this evening. I was going to do the other lectures I haven't covered yet, but I got more into this one than I thought I would. Oh well. There's always tomorrow!

JOUR1111: Annotated Bibliography

Robinson, P. (2005). The CNN Effect Revisited.  Critical Studies in Media

Communication, 22 (4), pp. 344-349.

Piers Robinson, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Manchester, has gained international repute for his research into the ‘relationship between communications, media and world politics’ (University of Manchester 2011). Throughout the article, Robinson examines the evolution of the so-called ‘CNN Effect’ following the end of the Cold War, and identifies multiple factors that have driven this evolution. The author divides the CNN Effect into three categories: Cold War anti-communist consensus, 1990’s humanitarian intervention and post-9/11 deference to government.  Citing both the works of others and his own previous research, Robinson identifies the anomalies present in CNN Effect, making great note of the U.S. media’s return to governmental deference after 9/11. The author also notes the evidence linking the media to intervention in the 1990’s, as well as referencing controversy surrounding the validity of the CNN Effect. Robinson concludes the article by identifying the humanitarian intervention of the 1990’s as an isolated incident, referencing the U.S. media’s general willingness to conform to the agendas of the government. In comparison, a study conducted by Professor Eytan Gilboa during the same year cited below reached a similar conclusion, but conceded that the situation was still in flux and further research would be necessary.

Collins, S. (2012, May 4). An Ugly Mind. The Global Mail. Retrieved from: http://www.theglobalmail.org/feature/an-ugly-mind/225/

 Sarah-Jane Collins, Environment, Science and Technology Writer for the not-for-profit ‘news and feature’ website The Global Mail, is a recognised Australian journalist who has received multiple commendations for her work. Throughout the feature article Collins discusses the controversy surrounding the actions of accused terrorist and mass-murder Anders Behring Breivik, with particular regard to the debate surrounding his sanity. Collins begins by stating that the real issue is whether or not Breivik is sane, as no-one can feasibly deny that his self-confessed actions were anything but criminal. The author recognises the difficulty most of her audience would have comprehending the fact that Breivik may be sane, identifying his rationale as something that most people cannot conceive. Collins makes excellent use of her sources in order to present the feature in as balanced a way as possible, including quotations from two recognised professionals – a psychologist and an anthropologist – in order to present multiple views on Breivik’s mental state, as well as his motives.  The author also uses hyperlinks attached to key words in order to provide further information beyond the feature. Collins concludes by returning to the issue of sanity, identifying that it is entirely possible that Breivik is not mad, simply prepared to use any means necessary to purport his ideology. 

Walters, G. (2011, July 27). Anders Breivik is not a madman. New Statesman. Retrieved from: http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/guy-walters/2011/07/breivik-murder-future-commit

Guy Walters is a blogger for New Statesman, a leading political, cultural and current affairs magazine based in the United Kingdom. He is a renowned author, editor and journalist, and contributes to multiple British-based news publications. Similar to Collins’ article, Walters’ blog focuses on the debate surrounding Breivik’s sanity. However, the opinionative nature of blogging allows the author to present his personal belief that Breivik is sane, albeit twisted. Walters notes that not every mass murderer is insane, and draws connections between past atrocities and those committed by Breivik. The author pushes his belief that Breivik was taking what he believed to be the best course of action in order to achieve his goal. Walters uses the acts of the Nazi leadership as an example, and includes an excerpt of a speech given by Heinrich Himmler to emphasise his point. The author references the opinions of multiple commentators – some of whom consider Breivik insane and some who don’t – demonstrating that he has attempted to understand the reasoning behind both viewpoints. Like Collins, Walters makes use of hyperlinks attached to key words to provide additional information. The author concludes by stressing the importance of understanding the Breivik scenario in order to prevent it from happening again.

The Telegraph. (2011, August 15). Norway attacks: Anders Breivik returns to Utoya island. The Telegraph. Retrieved from: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/norway/8701595/Norway-attacks-Anders-Breivik-returns-to-Utoya-island.html

The Telegraph is a well-known British online news website, one of several mediums under the proprietary of Telegraph Media Group. The name of an author is not provided, making it difficult to determine the accuracy of its contents. The article consists of a video accompanied by a brief description. The video includes the caption ‘Courtesy: VGTV’, identifying the footage as belonging to journalists for the Norwegian news group VG. The video contains two segments: a press conference conducted by a police prosecutor and an interview with Breivik’s lawyer. The segments are intercut with footage of Breivik explaining the events that took place during a re-enactment on Utoya Island. The video attempts to present the story without bias, as shown by including footage of both the prosecuting and defending sides. Unlike Collins’ feature article and Walters’ blog, the focus of the video is not  Breivik’s mental state, but his return to the scene of the massacre. However, the issue is briefly hinted at, as the video ends with Breivik’s lawyer conceding that ‘it is difficult…to understand [Breivik’s] explanations’. While The Telegraph is a well respected website, the article looses credibility when compared to those of Collins and Walters, due to the lack of noticeable citation present.          

Reference List

Robinson, P. (2005). The CNN Effect Revisited.  Critical Studies in Media

Communication, 22 (4), pp. 344-349. London: Routledge.

The University of Manchester. (2011). Dr Piers Robinson, research profile – personal details. The University of Manchester. Retrieved from: http://www.manchester.ac.uk/research/piers.robinson/

 Gilboa, E. (2005). The CNN Effect: The Search for a Communication Theory of International Relations. Political Communication, 22 (1), pp. 27-44. London: Routledge.

Collins, S. (2012, May 4). An Ugly Mind. The Global Mail. Retrieved from: http://www.theglobalmail.org/feature/an-ugly-mind/225/

Walters, G. (2011, July 27). Anders Breivik is not a madman. New Statesman. Retrieved from: http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/guy-walters/2011/07/breivik-murder-future-commit

The Telegraph. (2011, August 15). Norway attacks: Anders Breivik returns to Utoya island. The Telegraph. Retrieved from: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/norway/8701595/Norway-attacks-Anders-Breivik-returns-to-Utoya-island.html

Romantically Apocalyptic

While procrastinating assignments last night, I stumbled across the strangest, funniest, most warped comic strip ever.

Welcome to the disturbing, hilarious world of Romantically Apocalyptic.

This is an apt summary of the pure insanity present in this comic. It's great!

So follow the hyperlink above, and descend into the madness that is the post-apocalyptic world of Captain, Snippy and Pilot.

You know you want to.