Student Criteria

Our final project is about the effect of male media representation on boys. If I had students working on this same topic, I would have them collect examples of media representations of men, discuss the examples in class, perform research on their own, and then write their own analysis. Their writing would be evaluated on being able to draw specific connections between their example piece of media, class discussions, and their research. It should contain an example or quotation from each of the three. It should also contain a unified theme or opinion, backed up by evidence, that the student wants to convey to their audience. Finally, the writing should be well-organized, well-written, and free from errors.

Media in the Lifestyle

In a typical week, I read the Start Tribune most days. According to the Washington Post, it was a local, family-owned newspaper until 1998 when it was sold to McClatchy Co. Then a year ago, McClatchy sold the paper to Avista Capital Partners, "a firm specializing in private equity investments primarily in growth oriented energy, healthcare, and media companies." My parents have been reading the Star Tribune for a long time. My dad jokes that a conservative friend of his used to refer to it years ago as the "Red Star" paper because of its liberal bent. Now his comment is that the paper has been getting smaller and smaller these days with less content.

Another media source that I rely on is Minnesota Public Radio (MPR). I listen to their news, classical music, and "Current" music stations on the radio throughout the day and subscribe to a few of their podcasts. As far as I know, MPR is a private, non-profit orgnization that gets funding from foundations, businesses, and "listeners like me." I find MPR's news coverage to be thorough and unbiased, and from their music stations I get music that I can't get anywhere else on my radio dial.

Since I rely so heavily on those two sources of news, I recently decided to branch out and subscribe to the New York Times daily headlines and news alerts by email to get a broader perspective in addition to the Minnesota perspective.

Not Just Another Folk Ditty

My favorite band or type of music changes often and just as there is a time for every season, there is a time for every type of music. Growing up my mom listened to classical music while my dad listened to classic rock and classic jazz. I like classical music because it adds a nice texture to the background of almost any activity. I often turn it on when I am studying or reading or doing something that requires concentration. Classic rock complements yard work, cleaning, or any other physical labor well, while classic jazz adds spice to the atmosphere of an evening gathering. Left to my own devices, however, I would choose folk with a twist where instruments and vocals are used to weave a musical story that goes beyond the cliched predictability of pop music. Perhaps as a result of some time spent in Chicago, one of my favorite bands right now is Wilco. In my opinion, they get to the core of their musical message and deliver it in a way provides an emotional thrill-ride for the listener. The clip below from their film I am Trying to Break Your Heart highlights their song "Poor Places" and their style of musical experimentation that pays off in great music...

Media in the Classroom

Students live in a world that is immersed in media, and they haven't been alive long enough to know that it hasn't always been like it is now. One of the challenges in my teaching career will be to keep up with the new technologies and incorporate them successfully into the classroom. One type of media that I think fits nicely into a classroom is a blog. The blog tool gives students the opportunity to write for an audience larger than just one teacher, perhaps even large enough to include their peers. It also gives them an opportunity to post images and links to websites that relate to their topic.

A resource for teachers that I really like is the New York Times Learning Network. Each weekday they publish a lesson plan related to a current news story. Friday is Language Arts/Fine Arts day. The lesson plans are creative and well-written, and I see them as a great way to give students an opportunity not only to learn about something that is happening now in the world but also to take some action on it. Today's lesson is related to the Notable Children's Books of 2007.

Here's a video from YouTube that promotes using popular culture in the classroom:

Generational Leadership Qualities

Since we are fast approaching the Iowa caucuses and there are big issues to deal with like climate change and the war in Iraq, I would write a documentary about the leadership qualities of different generations. Recently, a friend forwarded me a copy of an article called "Goodbye to All That" from the Atlantic Monthly that spawned this idea. How have the Baby Boomers done as leaders of the country? What kind of leadership styles have they used? What big issues have they handled? How does their leadership style compare to the leadership style of the "Greatest Generation?" What can we expect from the Gen-Y leaders of the future? The intention of the documentary would be to reflect on leadership and how our generational peers affect our leadership style. I would interview national and local leaders from the Greatest Generation, Baby Boomers, and also young leaders from Gen-Y. The difficulty that I would anticipate is creating an authentic representation without letting my biases creep in since this documentary would be largely based on making generalizations about groups of people. I would have to be intentional about letting go of some of my preconceived notions about the different generations to be open to hearing authentic representations of their leadership qualities.

Wonderful World of Podcasts

This weekend at my nonfiction book club meeting, the conversation strayed to music and iPods. One member complained that she loved her iPod when she bought it, but now that some time has passed she has gotten bored with her music selection, and the novelty of the iPod has worn off. Then someone else mentioned the wonderful world of podcasts, a tool that adds spice and new utility to the iPod. I decided to check it out. First I googled "Minnesota podcasts." The list of results was long and I wasn't sure all of it would be worth my time, so I turned to a reliable and commonly mentioned source: Minnesota Public Radio. One of my favorite shows on MPR is Kerri Miller's Midmorning program, which is available as a "regular" podcast or as a "Speedcast." The Speedcast is convenient because it takes less time to listen, but I can't decide whether the time saved is more valuable than getting the nuances of the pauses, intonations, and timing of the conversation. Plus it takes a few minutes to get acclimated to the speed of the conversation. Another podcast that I like, especially as a potential English teacher, is the Grammer Grater program. I can always use a brush-up on my grammar skills, and now I can get it while I walk the dog or wait for the bus...

New News

A morning ritual that I enjoy is waking up to the radio feeding me small breakfast-in-bed nibbles of the happenings of the world outside my warm covers and pulled shades. After I roll out of bed and into my fuzzy slippers, I make my way down the stairs and brace myself for the five-second blast of cold, outside air needed to reach the newspaper laying neatly folded on the front step. I snatch it up and close the door and then bring it in to the warm nexus of the kitchen where I gather a plate or two with the paper to indulge in a breakfast to feed my stomach and socially responsible conscience. It's a comfortable way to wake up to the world in a private way, without having to really deal with the world yet. ...So the concept of blogs and a news source like MinnPost.com shakes my comfortable world a little bit. No hard copy delivered to my door? Oh, there are hard copies but I would actually have to go outside to a local business to obtain one. I could turn on my computer in the morning and replace the physical newspaper with that, but I worry that some blackberry seeds from the jam on my toast will get stuck in the keys. Then there's the business of comments added to stories. No longer is a story full and complete and ready to be put away after I finish the last sentence - now there are little blurbs from other readers in addition to the main story. My privacy is completely invaded. I wanted to think for myself, thank you! ...Another thing that I am comfortably and slowly waking up to is that I am a creature of habit, and change is not always bad - even if the initial shock is as bad as that five-second blast of cold, outside air...


...what I try to avoid when I first wake up in the morning...

Attention All Consumers

Low-Budget Halloween

It's Halloween and there's a costume party to attend and you want a great costume but you're a student and don't want to spend a lot of money on it... Good thing Ragstock put together a low-budget advertisement to tell you that they have a lot of options for you. They show you many images of young people, like yourself, dressed in costumes from decades past. Flashing, popping words and swirling background designs compliment the announcer's speedy delivery of the information - but you already know about Ragstock, being a cheap student and all, so really you don't need a big, expensive commercial like younger kids or older adults might need to be convinced. All you need is something to get your attention and remind you that Ragstock is the place to go for that perfect (and cheap) Halloween costume.

...and they lived happily ever after

There is a basic formula behind romantic comedy films. The lead female is young, thin, beautiful, sweet, and very feminine while the lead male is bumbling and awkward, inept, and NOT young, attractive, or sweet. Often the setting occurs in an idyllic daily life situation such as a beautiful beach, a pleasant outdoor park, a large upper-middle class home, or just in a generally clean and open space. The storyline includes a chase scene, a rescue scene, and a fight scene before they live happily ever after. A common theme is that love conquers all, and heterosexual marriage is the norm. The basic formula is narrow, yet films that follow it continue to do well at the box office. Is it part of our dream of idyllic American life? Do we feel comforted by the predictable storyline and characters? Is this comfort driven by our fear of the unknown? Or what else?

...Just for fun, here's a twist on the classic romantic comedy, When Harry Met Sally...

Interview with Grandma

When I asked Grandma what she likes about watching her favorite show, a soap opera called The Young and the Restless, she told me, "It has a lot of problems but it makes me feel thankful that I don't have them." I remember hearing the theme song and seeing the familiar characters on her small soup-pot-sized, barely-colored, way-before-HDTV television set that sat rooted on the edge of her kitchen countertop as she scooted around accomplishing her daily tasks in her Ohio home. That was the beginning of her time as a Y&R fan. Now things have changed. Now Grandma can record her favorite show and watch it when it is convenient (I caught her watching it on a Saturday when the show is not broadcast on TV). Now Grandma can watch her favorite show on a flat-screen, HDTV big enough to rival the size of a baby elephant. Now Grandma can pause her favorite show if the phone rings or the dog needs to be let out. Now Grandma resides in Minnesota. But a few things have not changed, like the time and channel that the show comes on, the characters who make up the backbone of the show, the amount of problems that the characters encounter, and Grandma's devotion to the show. And also Grandma's gratitude - not just that she doesn't have the problems but for all the sweetnesses and comforts of life and family.

Learning How to iMovie

This is my first experiment with iMovie. Let me know if it makes you dizzy... I don't know if I got the timing down yet. On September 26th, around 5:00 pm, I visited my favorite lake in the City of Lakes and shot a few photos. I left out a few of my favorite landmarks because the photos just didn't turn out well. If you enjoy the same lake, what are your favorite landmarks?

Go Irish

On Saturday, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish take on the Boston College Eagles in South Bend... and two days ago this video was posted on YouTube. A parody of the Bud Light Real Men of Genius ads and Notre Dame fans, it evokes the competitive spirit of two college football teams about to do battle. The entire video is composed of realistic and relevant still images set to the memorable tune and voice of the "Bud Light Real Men of Genius" commercials. My guess is that it was created by a BC fan to make fun of ND fans (no, really? you say...), and yet, the best knocks have a grain of truth and a bit of audacity.

Beauty and the Industry

A friend of mine sent me a link to this Dove ad about the influences of the beauty industry on young girls. It begins with a close-up of one young girl in slow motion, then goes to high-speed images of messages from the beauty industry. The same song plays throughout and the beat of the song corresponds to the speed of the images flashing. I think it's a highly modified version of a Beatles song?

Anyway, the message of confidence and not needing to conform to the beauty industry's version of attractiveness is an important one.

Laughter Therapy

The subject of this YouTube video caught my attention:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuYVUFUtOzA

Alternating between long, medium, and close-up shots, the frames showcase people in a room laughing, led by an instructor. A voiceover by a newscaster explains the situation: it's laughter therapy. Audio evidence of the therapy echos throughout the segment. Frequent use of pan shot displays the entire room and the extent to which the contagion has occured. I like this idea.

Vlog World

The assignment for CI 5472 is to view some vlogs, pick one, and make some comments. The vlog I chose is from the Minnesota Stories site: www.schmlog.com/schmlog/. I like it because it's well-organized and visually appealing. Each video clip clearly corresponds to a date and short description about it. The layout of the site is neat and easy to navigate. I would guess that the intended audience for this vlog is friends and family of the author - it seems to be mostly personal anecdotes and commentary. All of the videos are about the author, her friends, and family. I do like how the author adds music to her videos as well as slicing, dicing, and freezing some frames.