Blog #4

Option 1:How do the media images & stereotypes of men & women impact how we view each other professionally (at school, at work, in politics, etc.)?

Caitlin Upton, a Miss Teen USA contestant from South Carolina became a YouTube star after butchering an interview question on the Miss Teen USA pageant. Though the incident may not have been a big deal, the media made it into a big deal. By showing Caitlin's moment of stupidity and making it available to anyone at anytime, the media reinforced the stereotypes of pageant girls. The dumb blonde, pretty-girl stereotype of a pageant contestant was amplified.

Stereotypes like this one portrayed by the media affects the way we view each other. Those who don't know many pageant contestants may assume that all contestants are as unintelligent as Caitlin. The stereotype extends to blonde women in general. This causes unequal treatment of people due to hair color, gender, and countless other physical attributes. People view women as the inferior sex because of the stereotypes enforced by the media. In politics, people fear women are "too emotional" to be in a position of leadership. In the workplace, a driven woman is considered a..."b-word." At school, boys are smarter than girls.

Stereotypes also affect the way men are treated. In politics, men are the superior, because they have led the country from the beginning. This leads to the assumption that the man is always the better choice. In the workplace, the man is supposed to be paid more, because he is supposed to be the breadwinner. If he isn't successful, he's not a real man. At school, boys are either supposed to be smart or athletic, not both.

These stereotypes are scapegoats for the unknown and lead us to make assumptions and jump to conclusions. The media reinforce the stereotypes, making it harder for a person to break out of what is expected of them.

Blog #3

TV Show: The Secret Life of the American Teenager
The Secret Life incorporates these American core values:

Youthfulness: This core value seemed to be the most obvious in The Secret Life. The main character Amy is 15 years old and pregnant. Cherishing youth is a common theme as so many people tell her she's too young to have a baby.

Humanitarianism: There are a few characters in The Secret Life who care greatly about others. Grace is a devoted Christian who looks for the best in people and tries to help them out when they are in a tough situation. She has passion for the well-being of others.

Freedom:Though everyone tells Amy to get an abortion, she stays strong and decides to have the baby. It's her freedom and her choice to keep the baby, and it's no one else's.

Individualism: This core value ties into freedom. Characters like Amy, Adrian, and Ricky like to be their own person. Ricky especially doesn't care what others think and does whatever he feels. He's the rebel of the group who got Amy pregnant.

Conformity: In most all episodes, the characters are pressured to conform, especially Amy and Ben. Ben falls in love with Amy, despite her pregnancy. They want to get married but are told everyday that it's not the time for 15 year olds to be getting married.

Though The Secret Life of the American Teenager sounds as though it would contain so many of the American core values, it only stresses a few, the main being youthfulness. The show presses enjoying your life while you still have it, by being your own person and accepting your freedoms.

Blog #2

After viewing the video, I came to a few realizations. America's saturation with the media is more tremendous than I had initially anticipated. I forget how omnipresent the media is in our everyday lives. As made evident by the video, children are heavily targeted by the media. When I was little, there was a time when I wanted to buy a certain cereal because it had a Jurassic Park dinosaur on the box. Let me tell you something. I don't like cereal. This video reinforces the effect the media has on children. Although I knew of America's obesity epidemic, I never really drew the connection to the media. Like the time when I wanted the Jurassic Park cereal, children are easily influenced by what they see. From the moment they are born, someone in the world is trying to get them to persuade mom and dad to buy them a certain toy, game, or candy bar. The saddest part about all of this is, I, myself, didn't realize the problem. This proves how truly saturated we are with the media. When you don't realize the effect the media has on your everyday life, that's when you can truly see how absorbed we are by the media.