Assessment
The Commercial is the Show
By Bryan Berlin on 10/29/2009
Category: Assessment
Last weekend during Saturday Night Live, Anheuser Busch, the producers of Bud Lite made a bold move. They bought all the commercial time over the course of the entire show. It's the first time in the show's 35-year history that they've ever had one sole advertiser providing all the nationally aired commercials. They also looked to strengthen their ad campaign with a segment called "Backstage with Bud Light Golden Wheat," which aired never before seen SNL clips as a way to help draw in fans during commercials. MORE »
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Bad Relations
By Sara Newman on 10/16/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
It's the classic power struggle of the mass communications industry. Journalism versus public relations; two businesses who are pretty much opposites of each other. Public Relations puts out one kind of image about a person, company, idea or product. Journalists put out the truth about a person, company, idea or product, whether it's kind or uncomfortable or positive or negative. MORE »
My Problem with Twitter
By Scott Maucione on 09/24/2009
Category: Assessment
It seems like everywhere I look these days someone is talking about Twitter. I'll get home from a day of classes and turn on CNN to find Rick Sanchez bragging about his Twitter feed as his rock-hard, hair sprayed mop sits inertly on his head. Or I'll look at a newspaper that tells me to check out its up-to-date Twitter postings for minute-to-minute news. MORE »
Ethics: When Being a Journalist Meets Being a Human
By Sara Newman on 09/24/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
No one knows what Lance Cpl. Joshua "Bernie" Bernard's thoughts were when he died from being struck by a grenade while in an ambush in Afghanistan on Aug. 14. Is it possible that he would have wanted his death to be told to the world in an effort to show the reality and brutality U.S. troops have faced over the past eight years of war? Associated Press photographer, Julie Jacobson, felt a duty to photograph the 21-year-old lying on the ground with severe leg injuries; his fellow Marines tending to him. Against Bernard's family's wishes, the AP distributed the photo MORE »
Susan Moeller Interview: Role of Photography in Journalism
By Phil Robibero on 09/21/2009
Category: Appreciation, Assessment
An interview with UMD professor, Susan Moeller about the the idea of "promote" and the role of photography in journalism. MORE »
What's the Deal with Media Concerning Third Parties?
By Scott Maucione on 09/17/2009
Category: Access, Assessment
Let's do an experiment. This may remind you of some Freudian psychoanalytic ink blot test, but let's give it a try regardless: I'm going to give you three names and I want you to think about your first reaction to each name. Ready? MORE »
MMM Podcast: Media Coverage of Swine Flu
By Phil Robibero on 09/10/2009
Category: Action, Assessment
An eye opening examination of the media coverage on swine flu by a panel of Mexican media students and teachers. MORE »
Product Placement: The Rise of Colonel Colgate
By Eric Ivanov on 09/09/2009
Category: Assessment
Today I decided to sit down with a nice refreshing can of Coca-Cola and write about the ridiculousness of product placement. My Macbook Pro was able to pick up a Comcast high-speed Internet connection and let me surf the web with ease, to research the content of my post using Google's endless database. All kinds of products are being show to us when we might not even know. But thanks to the insight and unbiased opinion of IFC's Make Media Matter we are able to cut through the fat and get to the meat, Bore's Head meat that is. MORE »
Manipulating History Through Analogy
By Phil Robibero on 09/04/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
In 1990 author Mike Godwin, coined the the satirical term Godwin's law which states "As a Usenet discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches". His prediction could have never been more accurate. MORE »
Boycotts or Censorship?
By Michelle Giametta on 08/24/2009
Category: Action, Assessment, Awareness
Boycotts once used as instruments of peaceful protest designed to put pressure on public and private entities to change policies for social good have morphed into weapons used by groups of people to silence, intimidate and destroy people with differing ideological views. Martin Luther King led the infamous Montgomery Bus Boycott when they arrested Rosa Parks for sitting down and not offering her seat to a white passenger. Blacks refused to ride the buses for over a year until they were given their rights. This boycott put enough economic pressure on the buses and community that they were forced to MORE »
Freedom of Speech
By Michelle Giametta on 08/10/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
Last time I checked, freedom of speech and the right to protest were two very fundamental rights for American citizens. So why is it that when a photo surfaced depicting President Obama as the Joker, a villain from the infamous Batman movies, there was so much public outrage? While it may be distasteful and disrespectful to portray the president of the United States in such an evil light, there is no law against doing so. Besides, where was all of this public outcry when President Bush was portrayed as this very same villain? Since when do we condemn Americans or MORE »
Infomercial Madness
By Eric Ivanov on 07/29/2009
Category: Assessment
Imagine a world where you turn your TV on and no one in a blue shirt is screaming at you to buy something. Imagine a world wiped clean of thirty-minute specials highlighting how great products like a solid flavor injector, Snuggies, The Magic Bullet, and the Shamwow, really are. As much as these pitches try to sell us something for only the low price of $19.95, they are giving us something to watch, smile, and talk about. MORE »
Chubbies Need Not Apply
By Michelle Giametta on 07/27/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
To be fat or not to be fat? That is the question... Or is it? Dr. Regina Benjamin has been under fire ever since President Obama named her as his pick for the next Surgeon General. "Critics and supporters across the blogsphere have commented on photos of Benjamin's round cheeks, saying she sends the wrong message as the public face of America's health initiatives." Since obesity is a growing epidemic in the United States, is it appropriate to discount Dr. Benjamin as a credible Surgeon General because of her weight? Is it wise for Americans to place so much importance MORE »
Where Have All The Film Critics Gone?
By Phil Robibero on 07/27/2009
Category: Appreciation, Assessment
Film critics have long been held as the great be all end all voices of the entertainment space. Their words were sacred within the entertainment world and so powerful that they were able to make or break a product. But things have changed drastically ever since the golden age of Hollywood. The growing ability to instantly communicate with others quickly and effectively have left many critics on edge, especially film critics. People are going to Twitter than reading a film review in the New York Times. The rise of the "word of mouth" factor is a growing determinant for people, but is also undermining MORE »
To Catch A Predator: Media Blunder or News Triumph
By Eric Ivanov on 07/22/2009
Category: Assessment
To catch a predator was either Dateline's greatest triumph or supreme blunder. It captivated audiences from around the nation and showed them what could happen in your own neighborhood. It was real, it was edgy, and it was a foundation shattering show. But was it actually news or just another project of the American media corporations? MORE »
The Art of Dating
By Michelle Giametta on 07/20/2009
Category: Assessment
The art of dating has become a phenomenon in American culture. It has morphed into a complicated process with a lengthy list of do's and don'ts that leave many of us confused and frustrated-- wait three days before calling the first time, don't seem too available, and follow the appropriate text messaging protocol. And the frenzy doesn't end there. Dating is the underlying cause for Americans' obsession with improving their physical appearance. The media is constantly bombarding the public with the need to be in love through movies, magazine ads, billboards, television shows and even commercials. MORE »
Is Corporate Media Breaking the First Amendment?
By Doria Montfort on 07/16/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
The First amendment was ratified to protect the freedom of press and preserve the masses from the oppressive governmental control and sociopolitical manipulation that often results from the mass reception of important information from a single source. However, with the current press controlled and funded by giants not limited to News Corp., Viacom, and AOL/Time-Warner, it seems reasonable to evaluate how much freedom actually exists in the press. MORE »
Welcome to The Whatever Nation
By Eric Ivanov on 07/15/2009
Category: Assessment
Do you care enough to get up from your couch and try to solve world hunger, or AIDS? How about finding a way to get out of Iraq without getting everyone screaming at you? Don't want to do that? Well I guess you're in the same boat as almost everyone in America. MORE »
Turn It up to Eleven
By Phil Robibero on 07/09/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
During the medevil times a blasphemous attack towards the crown would have cost you more than an arm and a leg. Subversion was suppressed by an iron grip and free speech was a privilege rather than a right. As technology advanced so did the level and range of discourse. Leaders came out of the woodwork and sparked revolutions. With them they took the voice of the people to the door step of the deities and in the end those who were in power had no choice but to concede to our right to free speech. MORE »
How Gracefully Does our Media-Based Art Age?
By Nickolas Weingartner on 07/09/2009
Category: Access, Appreciation, Assessment
As we waltz our way into the ever-present future, it may be helpful to ask ourselves if the work that we leave in our wake will pass the test of time. With new 'masterpieces' arriving every few years, one has to think how long these pieces of art will hold up. MORE »
Polticial Children: Another Casualty in the War of Politics
By Michelle Giametta on 07/06/2009
Category: Access, Assessment, Awareness
There seems to be an almost unanimous understanding that making fun of or bashing the children of political candidates and/or officials is off limits and when done is often distasteful and uncalled for. Growing up under the media microscope can be extremely tough for young children. That is why a majority of the public is sympathetic to President Obama and his wife Michelle in their efforts to shield their young children from the brutal reality of the press. MORE »
Michael Jackson: The King of Media
By Eric Ivanov on 07/01/2009
Category: Assessment
What is in the news today? Is it North Korea's defiance of international warnings? What about the contested results of the Iranian election? The sad truth is that all of those stories have been pushed into the sidebars and archived by the news networks to make room for hours and hours of Michael Jackson coverage. MORE »
Death in 140 Characters or Less
By Phil Robibero on 06/30/2009
Category: Access, Assessment
In the past month we have witnessed a string of celebrity deaths which resulted in a tidal wave of media exposure. While news channels vehemently cycle the stories like clockwork, social networking sites and new wave communication have also added to the widespread exposure. MORE »
Aaaauutttttooooo-TttuuuUnnnee
By Nickolas Weingartner on 06/18/2009
Category: Appreciation, Assessment, Awareness
Last February at the Grammys, indie rock outfit Death Cab for Cutie sported blue ribbons in order to "raise awareness of auto-tune". This was probably the first time that the ribbon method has been used to raise awareness about anything other than disease (discount the "bringing our soldiers home" ribbons which don't seem to work). MORE »
Cable Killed "Breaking News"
By Eric Ivanov on 06/17/2009
Category: Assessment
BREAKING NEWS: CABLE NEWS NETWORKS ARE BEING TAKEN TO COURT FOR THE MURDER OF "THE BREAKING NEWS STORY." MORE »
Media Violence: Has Television Crossed the Line?
By Michelle Giametta on 06/15/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
In today's media environment notions of violence, sex and money seem to have saturated our television programming. The rampant use of this kind of risqué content is crucial for the survival of most, if not all, television programs. If networks desire to stay on top they have to be able to compete with all of the other explicit television programs already out there. What does this violent and rated-R content mean for the youth of America? MORE »
Don't Eat The Junk You Wouldn't Feed Your Children
By Doria Montfort on 06/12/2009
Category: Assessment
It's no secret that children's entertainment has a history of containing threads of adult humor woven amidst lessons about building strong moral fiber and maintaining good dental hygiene. "Rocko's Modern Life" and "Ren and Stimpy" are extreme examples that contain an ironic tone and subtle social commentary beneath a surreal, slapstick heavy exterior. Riskier films and television shows certainly allowed the genre to grow into a specimen more evolved than a simple goldfish spitting bubbles of traditional values popping and dispersing mutely within... MORE »
Will Jon and Kate + 8 meet their fate?
By Michelle Giametta on 06/08/2009
Category: Action, Assessment, Awareness
For weeks now we have read countless articles and seen numerous pictures of the infamous "Jon and Kate + 8" splashed all over magazines and tabloids, television and even radio. Like all other celebrity drama, the media has taken this scandal and have run with it. Did Jon cheat on Kate? Is Jon and Kate's relationship over? Will there be another season? MORE »
The Reality Movie Awards
By Danielle Newman on 06/03/2009
Category: Assessment
The 2009 MTV movie awards which aired, Sunday, May 31st, 2009, made for a classic jaw dropping moment in MTV history. Rapper, Eminem, got up close and personal with the openly gay and overly flamboyant character, Bruno, played by actor Sacha Baron Cohen, who "flew" into the movie awards dressed as an angel. Bruno, who was sporting a thong under his saintly costume, was headed due north towards the stage. As he flew over the crowd, his body flipped upside down, revealing his bare buttocks, and landing him directly on top of Eminem, providing a half naked public scene. Eminem MORE »
Is Youtube Becoming the New Napster?
By Nickolas Weingartner on 06/02/2009
Category: Assessment, Awareness
What's a music video without music? Well, just visit YouTube and you'll find out soon enough. Masses of music videos, both fan-made and legitimate, have recently been exiled from YouTube, due to a step up in copyright infringement laws. They have either been taken down entirely, or strangely muted, leaving only a silent slideshow of pictures or people dancing to an invisible beat. MORE »
IFC's Truth Behind the News
By Eric Ivanov on 05/06/2009
Category: Assessment
Is it possible to see all sides of a story? Can anyone actually get "all" of the information? What does it mean to be fully informed? In this age of information, IFC's "Media Project", hosted by Gideon Yago, takes on a series of topics to reveal the truth within the vast and increasingly converging news environment. MORE »
Television News as a Lapdog
By Kirsten Boye on 04/20/2009
Category: Assessment
As 24-hour cable news networks continue to proliferate, they increasingly blur the line between fact and fiction, entertainment and news. Within this environment, it has become somewhat more difficult to find truth. Starting with Edward R. Murrow as her reference point, junior television major Kirsten Boye asks if news organizations still fulfill their role as watchdogs for the American Public? MORE »
Media Bias In A Media Obsessed World
By Michelle Giametta on 04/15/2009
Category: Assessment
In today's hyper mediated environment, it has become nearly impossible to turn around without interacting with some form of media. Within this complex web of messages we have to decide which information to trust and which information to regard lightly. We can't all be skeptics and yet, in today's society, we must be if we desire to be informed citizens. MORE »
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