Class highlights

There are an overload of information in every aspect of life, by looking in depth of different media's history, industry and controversy helped us to develop more critical thinking skills. As I'm a consumer of media everyday, I am more conscious and aware of the products being presented to me now. I also found the internet search project very helpful. My views of media sharpened and understandings widened. It's a blessing for us to live in a place that First Amendment right is granted and freely exercised; it is all of our good wish in "pursuit of happiness".

Media Ethics/Media Law

  "CBS Wins Odd 'CSI' Defamation Case On Appeal" - by Eriq Gardner
 ('CSI' writer name her house brokers in murder episode after her attempt to buy a home went bad.)

Media laws and ethics involved in the case --- First Amendment/Libel/Privacy

           Scott and Melinda Tamkin brought a lawsuit of "defamation and false light invasion of privacy" against CBS' hit drama "CSI". The show's writer Sarah Goldfinger's fictional characters portrayed in episode 913, hinting in real life the couple are "sexually deviant real estate brokers". The network responded with an anti-SLAPP motion, arguing on its free speech rights. Justice Nora Manella seems to "foreclose much of the 'libel in fiction' legal theory", and finds that the defendants' act are " in furtherance of their exercise of the right of free speech,'.

        People get fired writing angry messages on facebook about their bosses and work; in this case, you get a writer upset, you have the "honor" of being written into the screenplay; which unfortunately, this one particularly deals with crimes, murders, and died bodies. However, as they are freely exercising their first amendment rights, the ethical part is questionable. I've learned that whatever you say or do, it'll somehow always come back to you with consequences.

Propaganda in Advertising/PR

De Beers " A Diamond is Forever"

Slogan/Repetition/Virtue words/Bandwagon/Beautiful People/Euphoria - As it persuades both men and women (especially women) over decades that a diamond is the ultimate gift of love, romance, happiness and forever commitment. Men need to "join the crowd" like the beautiful people in the advertisement, to pay the highest compliment --- diamond, to make their significant other happy.

Internet

I, myself have used amazon.com to buy books. My best friend at work found her trusting companionship through eharmony.com and moved to Seattle with him in hope of searching for a better future together. Amusingly I think everyone in China at some point addicted to the social network game, "Happy Farm". I remember last summer upon visiting my uncle's family, I was very upset in having to wake up by the clock alarm at three in the morning, only to find out that my cousin had to get up and "harvest" and "steal" her own and her friends' crops. Of course, this obsession had to be terminated followed by the end of the summer, because of her heavy load of school works. Its "farm duty" now shifted to my aunt.

Television -PBS

Length: 1:02
Description: PBS KIDS 2010 Daytime Emmy Award Winning Video shows how it is inspiring kids and helping parents as a trusted guide.
Chapter 9: Television
Quiz Question: True or False
PBS is an organization same from commercial networks.
Quiz Answer: False.

Movies

Tangled, even its release date was in November of 2010, it is still playing in theaters now, and some of my friends already watched it for the second and third times. I personally like its visuals, music and of course, its happy ending. I'm planning to purchase the DVD version once it comes out, to add into my favorite Disney classics collection.

My all time favorite so far--- Pride and Prejudice (2005)

I'm always very fond of Jane Austen's works. So when this version starring Keira Knightley was released on silver screen in November of 2005, I had to go watch it. It was very beautifully made and I enjoyed very much of the witted and clever lines in the movie.

"Mr.Darcy: Are you so severe on your own sex?

  Elizabeth Bennet: I never saw such a woman. She would 

  certainly be a fearsome thing to behold."

Loving it so much, I treasured its DVD version.

Magazine Proposal

Online Fanzine

Circulate among fans all around the world, main language in English

Name of magazine: NV   

(Issues Quarterly per Calendar Year, $2.20 per copy)

Concept: It serves fans of K-Pop stars Nichkhun (2pm) and Victoria (Fx) all around the world. It is devoted to focus on the virtual couple also called Khuntoria.

Readers: Targeting both gender but mostly female from age 16-35, majority Asian (Korean, Thai, Chinese, Japanese etc) social status from students to married couples. Interests in entertainment industry (idols, fashion, celebrity gossip etc) 

The fans are passionate, loyal; educated, calm, conscious and warm-hearted. They tend to have very romantic nature and are probably coming from very nourishing, loving, and wealthy families. They are strong, independent and a very kind group. Most of them either involved in a committed relationship or perhaps, looking forward to a “rainbow and butterfly” love encounter. They admire, thankful and praise pretty things surround them and confident of whom they are and what they want.

Competitors might be the mainstream Asia media gossip magazines that cover entertainment and celebrity cultures.

"NV" merely focuses on targeting “Khuntorians”, and fans always have the most buying power when it comes to the people they support and things that are associated with them.

Advertisers:  Cosmetic and fashion, travel agency, wedding planning, dance studios, home design, and language, music, cooking schools.

Articles:  1. Let’s Travel with N & V to Thailand!

             2. Victoria’s Secret: Love, Recipes, and Style

             3. Hey Guys! Learn From Nichkhun --- The Perfect Lover

             4. Dance and Diet, Your Best Shape Ever

             5. Cozy up Your Love Nest

 The proposed cover idea is roughly constructed with magazine template powered by Big Huge Labs. It is a Fanzine's cover, indeed the center piece is KhunToria. Photo shot when both receiving their popularity award. Graphics, font are designed simple for online readers; the colors used to better match the photo in the backgroud.

Books

As much as I would like to be a bibliophile, I transitioned into one of the required readers when I entered elementary school in China. Even when I had the opportunity to come to U.S., due to the language barrier at first, I couldn’t fully comprehend the text to truly start to enjoy a book. However, there are several children’s books even until now, I quite believed, have enlightened me.

Fortunately, throughout the years I was growing up, my parents weren’t overly stressing on how and what I should learn and read. Instead, they had introduced and encouraged books that my classmates’ parents would have called otherwise: “non-nutritious”.

Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales.(Ge Lin Tong Hua) Indeed, it is every girl’s little treasure, to be able to open up the book and share the stories such as the classics: Ugly Duckling, Red Shoes, and The Mermaid. However, the series I’ve read weren’t the ones that are full of colors and pictures. They’re black and white full text of Chinese characters, therefore expanded my imagination and embarked my interested to draw.

Ten Thousand Whys’ (Shi Wan Ge Wei Shen Mei) Ever since this children’s encyclopedia was introduced, the collection had benefited kids like me from gaining the basic understandings of nature, physics, biology, chemistry etc.  My Chinese vocabulary was increased significantly because of the unfamiliar science terms. I was very much drawn to the questions like “Why do you blush when you are shy?”

Mind Twisters (Nao Jin Ji Juan Wan) It is what the title of the series informed, it twists your common knowledge of people and things. It pulls you away from your normal ways of thinking, “what question you can’t never say ‘ Yes’ to?” –Are you asleep? ” It had given my dull student life at the time a fresh breath of air, It brought laughter to our classroom because we were all eager to share our version of the answers.

     As of now I’m reading a book called A Quiet Belief In Angels by R.J. Ellory, slowly making my way from in-between casual and required reader,  to hopefully someday, a bibliophile .

Media Impact: Teen Pregnancy

One day sitting on the couch comfortably, I was enjoying my cozy stay at a friend’s house. It was her aunt whom had crossed the topic of teenage pregnancy. Upon the return of her routine visit at the health clinic, she encountered a young mother “looking like 13-year-old”, reading a celebrity gossip magazine while waiting to be called. It is obvious to predict on our discussions followed afterward; And of course, with her strong opinions on blaming the multiple media sources (TV, magazines, Internet, etc) for influencing teenager’s sexual behaviors, hence causing unwanted babies, single mothers, and climbing rate of school dropouts.

Study: Sex on TV linked to teen pregnancies

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy 

My friend's aunt didn't quite convince me with her statement of causation in terms of "the media industry is all there is to blame". Rather I was sparked to further consider the correlations of the factors that are linking to teen pregnancies: religion, culture, and education. 

After all, the reason it's called "teen pregnancy" is that we undergo stages when we are most curious, adventurous, and dangerously hormone-driven. Then, there comes to the parenting role such as my friend's aunt, exposing us to active discussion on issues like this.

Media Autobiography

Thanks to the One-Child Policy in China where I grew up until the age of 14, I spent most of my childhood with accompany of television, radio, and books.  I was lucky that my parents were “open-minded” enough to let me watch TV for an “appropriate” amount of time.  Well, there weren’t many choices, speaking most of the time I was choosing channels by pushing 7 buttons that were actually working, literally on the television machine. But, I still made the best out of them, quite enjoyed at the time what was popular: my detective cartoon, lost princess soap drama and evening news. My grandfather made radio not a choice, but a must, on every weekend when we kids go visit.   By constantly playing it in the background,  My cousins and I were able to catch some juicy “world news” every now and then, which we didn’t care much to understand at the time. Books are our “Daily Bread” so do speak by our teachers at school, not those self-growing , motivating stories or classic literature you think they would be, but rather encouraged more text books outside of classroom, which those books supposedly to facilitate your better understandings of the materials already in school. I called them “put-your-brain-in-a-box-and-locked-it-up” books. Not until 9 years ago, my parents decided to move to U.S., that I am more exposed to newspapers, magazines, movies, and Internet. The first thing I was warned, when I first landed was not to watch “rate-R” movies , recordings, Internet etc, which I didn’t have a clue what it means until three years later, when I picked up my English from watching Disney Channel.  I am very fond of the media choices I could have now, but I do have to admit I was little intimidated at first. Internet to me was “www.blank.com”, until Google;  Movies ‘ choices were made upon my friends who could read and understand critics review; my fingers were sprinted on trying to  read newspapers because I looked up dictionary way too many times;  Magazines and CD recordings were much more pleasant , of course with the magazine choice of having a lot of visual pictures. So my story now is just like any other typical first generation immigrants, with our horizon suddenly expanded, under great influences from our nourishing Silicon Valley here it is. And now I am writing my first blog sharing my experiences with various media and many more to come.