Question 9

1) Find a “news” story from the Onion News Network, and compare it to a contemporary news story or clip from a “real” news source (a TV channel, newspaper, etc.). Discuss them both in terms of gatekeeping and agenda-setting functions, as well as the breakdown and reevaluation of discourse that Baym talks about in his article. Citing Baym will help (100-150 words).

Study: Americans Get Majority Of Exercise While Drunk

This was blocked from embedding...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03skL35IjFI&feature=fvw

“Parody can be defined as a relatively polemical imitation of a given cultural practice, an aping that simultaneously reinvokes and challenges the styles and standards of a particular genre (Dentith, 2000). Parody is a moment of criticism, one that employs exaggeration, often to the point of ludicrousness, to invite its audience to examine, evaluate, and re-situate the genre and its practices. The parody pieces may generate a laugh, but their deeper thrust is subversion, an attack on the conventions and pretensions of television news.”I apologize for the lengthy quote, but it directly defines what the ONN is doing with this “story.” As you can see, the Onion clip employs many of the same techniques used in the CBS clip (statistics, street interviews, “expert” interviews, etc.). Even the screen layouts are strikingly similar. I chose these two clips because their similar story theme (alcohol) highlights how the Onion lampoons the content of the news, as well as the structure. The CBS report is clearly designed to illicit shock, worry, or fear in adults about this “deadly” product, but, if viewing it through the eyes of a young adult or teenager, it actually comes off as an advertisement of sorts because the reporters continually stress the high alcohol volume, party conducive caffeine effects, and cheap price. The Onion story is doing the same thing (endorsing massive consumption of alcohol), but it is doing it explicitly, thus making the satire relatively clear.

Question 8

1) Watch the first part (at least) of Mouse Trapped 2010 and Mickey Mouse Monopoly, and explain USING SPECIFIC ELEMENTS FROM THE FILMS how they are good examples of the different approaches of political economy and cultural studies. Define each approach briefly, and CITE GROSSBERG’S ARTICLE IN YOUR RESPONSE. (100-150 words)

Mouse Trapped takes a political economy approach while Mickey Mouse Monopoly exhibits a cultural studies approach. As the name suggests, cultural studies is the study of culture. Political economy focuses on the monetary and political causes and effects of things. As Grossberg said when discussing cultural studies, “It often recognizes that pleasure can be manipulated by or at least to repressive forms of power and existing structures of inequality.” This can be seen in the first section of Mickey Mouse Monopoly when the woman mentions her daughter asking why all black men were bad. Concerning political economy, Grossberg states, “For political economy, in every instance, in every context, somehow, almost magically, the economic appears to be the bottom line…” This points to the employees being interviewed in Mouse Trapped because they focus solely on the economic issue. A few of the employees still contended that Disney is a magical and great place; they just need to pay their workers more.

Question 6

1) By drawing on the articles on the exotic and globalization from class, discuss the following advertisement: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIZCtDJtFPw (100-150 words).

This is an interesting advertisement to look at for this subject. Immediately, I picked up on one notable difference from the Ghosh article; this ad features Conan, an American celebrity, venturing into India rather than showing Indians (?) in Western civilization. Despite this “progressive” step forward, the ad makes sure to exoticize (?) India. The sitar is clearly heard in the background, monkeys are seen among the citizens, and Conan is showed performing manual labor to dye the silk. These things highlight the “exotic” aspect of India because they are not common in American culture. As a matter of fact, by making the ad about silk, it feels like they have taken us back to Marco Polo times when the East was this mecca of silks and spices and exotic things. This adds to the mystique and wonder of the Orient that Said discussed. It also shows globalization through the familiarity Conan has with the people. Based on the ad, one would get the impression that Conan has been through the area multiple times and respects the foreign culture enough to produce his curtains in the "native" manner.

Question 5

1) Discuss the following Flash game in terms of ideology and hegemony. Define each term, and then explain them through the game (100-150 words).

http://gamescene.com/The_Urinal_Game.html

Ideology is basically the ideas held by the Dominant. Our “common sense” is ideology. Hegemony is the system that introduces ideology. For example, a person’s family (hegemony) might ingrain the idea of “proper manners” (ideology) into he/she. The game’s basic rules per level are the ideology. This urinal etiquette is supposed to be common sense; however, there are no actual rules to using urinals in real life. The game itself is hegemony because it acts as a vehicle supporting and pushing this ideology. Through hegemony, American men consider bathroom etiquette to be “common sense,” although men from other cultures might have completely different ideas of what is proper or not.

Question 4

1) Discuss the implications of the following image for cultural studies and the process of signification (semiotics): https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwxjLKWaJtjCb6ic6jx-scFdFENceqZOKn4fA2yuaebGfTDXkNBbkf0nO7GLuLw64XGFMnuLQevr4MpGz-B_BWKwf_oc2a00IhjN8eR8vq9OUlQUTh48AcHAakgnYK0-6IBw12vR1dmAM/s320/fs_Magritte_Pipe.jpg (50-75 words)

This painting provides a revealing look at signification, which is essentially the process of assigning meaning to signs or objects, like the stop sign or “Man” and “Woman” symbols on bathroom doors. It presents seemingly contradictory viewpoints between the pipe and the text, which states, “This is not a pipe.” This is not contradictory, though, because the artist is correct. It is not a pipe; rather it is the image of a pipe. It points out the way in which people utilize signifiers. It has all the makings of a pipe so it is thought of as a pipe, even though it is just a painting. It shows how people attach value to things based solely off of cultural signifiers to claim reality.

Question 3

1) Discuss the way in which race is portrayed in these two videos:

a. Ghetto Delta Airlines

b. Everest College advertisement

How are they the same, and how different? (50-75 words)

They portray common "stereotypes" of black men. They give the impression that black men are lazy by offering to cater to them and by basically yelling at them to go to school.

Similarities – First thing that stuck out was the fact that both characters are making commands or statements instead of requests. Also, they both have ebonic lilts, if you will, dropping the “g” in “ing” endings and using sentences like “They out to help you.”

Differences – “Ghetto Delta” is mocking the use of ebonics in advertising, while Everest is utilizing this character to appeal to the target audience. Also, Everest is a legitimate commercial instead of an online video.

Question 2

2) Why do we avoid what I call “audience fallacies” and “authorial fallacies” in our writing? Define each, provide a brief example of each, and explain the significance. (50-75 words)

Audience fallacies - I guess it would be when the author assumes that the audience knows something.

Authorial fallacies - When the author uses his/her opinions in generalizations i.e. "society feels this way'

We avoid them because they are not necessarily true and are value statements with no support. One person cannot claim to speak for an entire group.