Wednesday, April 30, 2008
TV Violence Effects Children
This is a recurring issue in this day and age with all the violence that goes on on a daily basis. When the school shooting happened at Colombine High School everybody was trying to figure out who it is we should be blaming for the shooters actions. Is it the parents, the media, or maybe video games. I would like to know what you think? Do you think that video games can create killers? Do you think all the violent movies children see have something to do with the way they will act in the future? Many studies have been done but still there seems to be no conclusions drawn. "Fifty years of research on the effect of TV violence on children leads to the inescapable conclusion that viewing media violence is related to increases in aggressive attitudes, values, and behaviors. The changes in aggression are both short term and long term, and these changes may be mediated by neurological changes in the young viewer. The effects of media violence are both real and strong and are confirmed by the careful reviews of research evidence by various scientific and professional organizations that are concerned with children's mental health and development" I personally think that we cannot solely blame television or video games for the crimes that people commit. I have always thought it starts at home with the partents. I don't think you can just blame it on the media. I know I have played the most violent games I can get my hands on and see the most violent movies possible and I haven't killed anyone. I think it has everything to do with the home the children grow up in. What some of your thoughts on this issue? Make sure you read this journal for further insight. http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=8&hid=105&sid=bf4faebb-c52c-4a7f-9d55-79b27ddcea53%40sessionmgr107
Stereotypes in Video Games
This was a topic in class we discussed plenty of times and even saw a couple of videos about the topic. I don't know about the rest of the class but I for one never thought of this being a problem. Don't get me wrong the way women are portrayed is not a good thing but I just never really thougt about it. It has been the norm for as long as I can remember so seeing women depicted the way they are, not only in video games but everywhere, is something I haven't questioned.
This Mass Communications class is the first time I have thought about it and really examined the problem. The facts are more astounding than I could have imagined. "Male characters were almost four times more frequently portrayed than female characters and were given significantly more game relevant action. However, in spite of their less frequent appearance, female characters were more likely to be portrayed with exaggerated, and often objectified, sexiness. Further, violence and sexiness was paired more frequently for female characters than violence and muscular physiques for the male characters." (Sex Roles)
Its not only about the sex of the character either because race is an issue as well. In the video we saw in class it stated the fact that first hand shooters, the games where you can only see the hand of the character and the gun, quite frequently have a white hand. When I heard this I it started to make sense. It was like I was finally starting to put the puzzle pieces together. What your thoughts about all this? Do you think this is simply an over reaction about an issue that doesn't need to be discussed?
What made it all clear to me was when the video showed the picture of the video game makers. They were pretty much all white males and I believe we see their stereotypes and their personal beliefs in the games they make. The scary thing is buyers of these games may start to think the way the creaters of the games think because they are so submerged in the game. Gamers are subconsciously taking in these stereotypes of the gamers and seeing it as normal. Please give me feed back on this topic I would like to know I am not the only one worried about this fact of life. Make sure you read this journal for yourself so you know I am not just making this stuff up. http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=7&hid=105&sid=bf4faebb-c52c-4a7f-9d55-79b27ddcea53%40sessionmgr107
This Mass Communications class is the first time I have thought about it and really examined the problem. The facts are more astounding than I could have imagined. "Male characters were almost four times more frequently portrayed than female characters and were given significantly more game relevant action. However, in spite of their less frequent appearance, female characters were more likely to be portrayed with exaggerated, and often objectified, sexiness. Further, violence and sexiness was paired more frequently for female characters than violence and muscular physiques for the male characters." (Sex Roles)
Its not only about the sex of the character either because race is an issue as well. In the video we saw in class it stated the fact that first hand shooters, the games where you can only see the hand of the character and the gun, quite frequently have a white hand. When I heard this I it started to make sense. It was like I was finally starting to put the puzzle pieces together. What your thoughts about all this? Do you think this is simply an over reaction about an issue that doesn't need to be discussed?
What made it all clear to me was when the video showed the picture of the video game makers. They were pretty much all white males and I believe we see their stereotypes and their personal beliefs in the games they make. The scary thing is buyers of these games may start to think the way the creaters of the games think because they are so submerged in the game. Gamers are subconsciously taking in these stereotypes of the gamers and seeing it as normal. Please give me feed back on this topic I would like to know I am not the only one worried about this fact of life. Make sure you read this journal for yourself so you know I am not just making this stuff up. http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=7&hid=105&sid=bf4faebb-c52c-4a7f-9d55-79b27ddcea53%40sessionmgr107
Obama and His Long Time Friend Mr. Wright
I would like to know what you guys think about the Mr. Wright comments. I don’t know if you are familiar with the issue but Mr. Wright and Barak Obama have known and been friends for 20 years. Mr. Wright married Barak and his wife and baptized his children.
Mr. Wright recently has made some comments that Barak apparently doesn’t believe in at all. These comments have shed negative light on Barak and his campaign.
Mr. Wright made comments suggesting that the government has used Aids to commit genocide against minorities and that Reverend Louis Farrakhan is one of the most influential speakers of the twenty first century. Conspirosy theories such as saying that the government has something to do with Aids are something Obama just cannot stand for. Barak expressed to the public how the comments made by Mr. Wright are no where near close to the beliefs of him and his campaign.
I would like to know what you guys think. Do you think there could be any truth to what Mr. Wright had to say? Do you think Obama has overreacted by having no more affiliation with Mr. Wright after all these years? How do you think the media is doing on the coverage of this issue? Do you think they blew it out of proportion or is it something you haven’t even heard about till now and you would like to know why you never heard anything about it? Trying to become the first black president is already an enormous obstacle but now you have someone who you trust trying to change your image. Do you think the press would have handled the issue differently if it was Hilary or one of the Republicans running for president who had the incident? How do you think you would react if a very close friend of yours for twenty years who is supposed to helping with your campaign for the presidency sends it the other direction with comments such as this? Make sure you read it for yourself to get a better understanding of what exactly is going on. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/30/us/politics/30obama.html?ref=us
Mr. Wright recently has made some comments that Barak apparently doesn’t believe in at all. These comments have shed negative light on Barak and his campaign.
Mr. Wright made comments suggesting that the government has used Aids to commit genocide against minorities and that Reverend Louis Farrakhan is one of the most influential speakers of the twenty first century. Conspirosy theories such as saying that the government has something to do with Aids are something Obama just cannot stand for. Barak expressed to the public how the comments made by Mr. Wright are no where near close to the beliefs of him and his campaign.
I would like to know what you guys think. Do you think there could be any truth to what Mr. Wright had to say? Do you think Obama has overreacted by having no more affiliation with Mr. Wright after all these years? How do you think the media is doing on the coverage of this issue? Do you think they blew it out of proportion or is it something you haven’t even heard about till now and you would like to know why you never heard anything about it? Trying to become the first black president is already an enormous obstacle but now you have someone who you trust trying to change your image. Do you think the press would have handled the issue differently if it was Hilary or one of the Republicans running for president who had the incident? How do you think you would react if a very close friend of yours for twenty years who is supposed to helping with your campaign for the presidency sends it the other direction with comments such as this? Make sure you read it for yourself to get a better understanding of what exactly is going on. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/30/us/politics/30obama.html?ref=us
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Man freed by DNA testing after 27 years
I recently heard a story about a man that was wrongly convicted and served 27 years. Like many people who are convicted he would not admit to his charges. James Lee Woodard is his name and he is finally free thanks to a DNA test that proved is innocense. The first thing I wanted to know was what is the color of his skin. I know it is a sad fact of life but odds are that had something to do with it. The report from USA Today doesn't say anything about but if you type his name into google the first thing you see at the top is the picture of a black man with captions that read man acquitted of rape charges thanks to DNA tests.
I would like to know what everyone thinks about this story. I have always thought that the judicial system is not as just as it could be and hearing this story just reinforces my preconceived notions. Do you guys think people are in jail because of the color of their skin? Don't you think a black person is going to have a harder time getting a fair trial than a white man? I would like to know if any of you think that this country will ever treat people equally and not treat them differently because of how they look? I personally think that the judicial system will never be just. I would definatley say it has plently to do with the media. How people are portrayed in the media affects every part of our enviornment and people don't even know it. Black people are often portrayed as criminals. A perfect example of this would be the video games how people of color are quite often the people who are doing bad. Don't you guys think this is a direct correlation to how our judicial system is? Without a doubt it is a domino affect.
Take a look at the write up from USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-04-29-dallas-dna_N.htm and read it for yourself.
I would like to know what everyone thinks about this story. I have always thought that the judicial system is not as just as it could be and hearing this story just reinforces my preconceived notions. Do you guys think people are in jail because of the color of their skin? Don't you think a black person is going to have a harder time getting a fair trial than a white man? I would like to know if any of you think that this country will ever treat people equally and not treat them differently because of how they look? I personally think that the judicial system will never be just. I would definatley say it has plently to do with the media. How people are portrayed in the media affects every part of our enviornment and people don't even know it. Black people are often portrayed as criminals. A perfect example of this would be the video games how people of color are quite often the people who are doing bad. Don't you guys think this is a direct correlation to how our judicial system is? Without a doubt it is a domino affect.
Take a look at the write up from USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-04-29-dallas-dna_N.htm and read it for yourself.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)