Why Did Denzel Have to be Crooked Before He Took It?

The other day I went to go see “The Town” with a couple of my friends and after the movie I started to think about the role that movies have on our society. I consider movies to be one of the largest media in our society. They are able to reach a national audience, they are accessible to nearly everyone, and they can be watched at one’s convenience. What is amazing to think about though is the influence that a movie producer can have on our society. Producers and directors have a specific vision that they try to get across to their audience. They use several different tactics, including actor choice, camera angle, lighting and dialogue, to get their point across. Often times, if a producer is good enough, he can manipulate the audience and get his point across without them every noticing.

Chapter 6 in Media Society discussed the different stereotypes that movies have reinforced over the years and how different minority groups, specifically African-Americans, have been portrayed in movies. One of my favorite movies of all time, “Training Day”, stars one of my favorite actors, Denzel Washington. Unfortunately, this movie reinforces some negative stereotypes about African Americans. Denzel plays a glorified cop who is the leader of a Narcotics police force. His team deals specifically with high profile drug traffickers and criminals. Throughout the movie the audience learns more about Denzel’s character and discovers that he is in fact a crooked cop. Years after the movie came out a Rapper named Jadakiss wrote a song called “Why”. One of the lines in this song is “Why did Denzel have to be crooked before he took it”. This line is referring to the fact that while Denzel Washington has played numerous roles before “Training Day”, the first time he received an Oscar was for his role as a crooked cop in “Training Day”. I think this is extremely disappointing and that the first time Denzel is recognized for his acting achievements is when he played a role that reinforced an extremely negative African-American stereotype.  

Training Day Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caqE0DY5t_8

Jadakiss "Why":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-cpL--0AQA&ob=av2e

Football, TV Commercials and Budweiser

As I was watching football, like I do most Sunday afternoons, I noticed that one of the first commercials I saw was for beer, specifically Budweiser. This got me thinking and I started to remember some other memorable beer commercials that I have seen while watching sports on TV and I couldn’t help but think of the famous “wassup” Budweiser commercial (link below). When it originally aired everyone adopted the “wassup” saying and it soon became the social norm. You would greet your friends or start talking to them on the phone with a long and over-emphasized “wassup”. Looking at the commercial now, there are several things that I noticed that I overlooked when the commercial initially aired. First, only the males say “wassup” to the other males, the females are either silent or not in the commercial. Second, everyone in the commercial is relaxing and having fun while watching the football game. Thinking about it this commercial made me assume that I could only say “wassup” to my male friends and not my female friends, and that in order to enjoy myself while relaxing or watching a football game I needed a Budweiser to make my experience complete. I have obviously learned that this is not the case, but I think it is extremely interesting that a commercial could have such a large impact on me. I believe that this ties in to the chapter 5 reading because the commercial, without me realizing, caused me to make false generalization. Budweiser viewed me as the consumer they were trying to reach and determined that the “wassup” commercial was the best way to do it. They used imaged and real life situations to influence me in a way that I didn’t realize until now. It is very interesting to think of the effects that a beer commercial can have on me without me noticing and can change the way I interact on a daily basis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDTZCgsZGeA

Define Media

           There are many factors that contribute to the constant struggle to accurately define media.  People have millions of unnoticed interactions with media every day, as they have saturated the global culture. Media are constantly changing as new technology develops and people discover new ways to utilize their surroundings. However, the biggest factor that makes it so difficult to define media is that it can have a variety of meanings to different people. People consider a number of things, such as cupcakes, lights, cards, or even tables to be media which makes it very challenging to explain. However, with close examination it is clear that media are anything that can be used to help communicate information with others or to express a specific thought or opinion in a way that will reach an audience.

            A crucial aspect in the definition of media is that it helps aid the process of communication or expression. One person must try to convey a certain message in an understandable way to another. In the book Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man Marshall McLuhan writes “the content of writing is speech, just as the written word is the content of print, and print is the content of the telegraph” (8). McLuhan provides examples of the different tools available for use through media and illustrates that media are used to interact with a variety of people. These tools are utilized in order to effectively express a belief or get a message across. Without media these interactions would be empty, leaving individuals no means to express their thoughts.

            Another key element of media is that it is something that anyone can utilize in order to share a piece of themselves with others. It is a way for the individual to let their opinion or belief be heard and to receive feedback from the audience. Sometimes it is not important what people are saying, but rather that they have a means by which to say it. One of the greatest functions of media is that “media [are] the extensions of man” (1). It is a tool that is available to individuals in order to interact, learn and grow with others. The global society continues to expand as media evolves; it is furthering the reach of mankind and turning what was once a limited society into a universe of endless possibilities.

             Often times an individual has many different media to choose from in order to communicate information or express their opinion. What is important to understand is that different media are not equal and choosing one medium over another may have varying results. An important aspect of media is the reaction of the receiver and that “each medium tends to produce a different experience for the [audience]” (26). Media can be used when expressing a certain idea but it does not guarantee that it will be appropriately received. An individual may choose a medium that leaves very little room for interpretation or they can choose one that invites interpretation and new ideas. There are a countless number of media in our society and it is important that when considering which one to use the individual chooses the medium that is right for them.

            The global society has been shaped by the media it is surrounded with. Evolving media has resulted in new ways to communicate with friends, receive news and important information, and grow in a world that is constantly changing. Media is a central part of everyday life, and because of that “if the media were eliminated, nothing else would be the same” (6). Society has grown to take for granted the millions of media interactions that go unnoticed every day. People don’t think that by wearing a Red Sox shirt they are communicating to the world that they are proud of where they live, or that a family recipe passed down from generation to generation expresses their strong family connections. However, any object can be used as a medium, as long as it is being used to communicate information or express a thought or opinion.