Naked Man Hangs Out by Billboard – and Captures Attention

Naked Man – two simple, yet attention-grabbing words. Those two words prompt me to ask, “Why is our obsession with sex (and related subjects) in the media a bad thing.”

I think at first, we want to say, yes – that sex in the media is a bad thing. But if it were so bad, then why would these two words capture so much attention and so many pageviews?

The obsession with sex is based on the forbidden fruit problem. Because sex is still a taboo topic, we’re interested in it – I think it’s only natural.

Instead of blankly complaining about every bit of sex in the media, we should focus on the true (sometimes hidden) messages that come when sex is in the media. And then evaluate it.

Is it sex put out their in a vulgar way. Or does it have something to contribute?

Is it art? Does it make us laugh? Think? Appreciate?

Is it a warning? What did we learn? Sex safety? Date rape dangers?

Is it useful? Can we take this home and improve our relationships? Our lives?

Is it a lesson to “just say no” to drug use (lest this happen to you)?

Just for the record in case you don’t view the “Naked Man” link: the police do not say the man used drugs. They say he appeared to be under the influence of drugs and syringes were found on the ground near him.

Just wondering; feel free to post comments.

America the Beautiful – Dec. 3 class

Watching “America the Beautiful” was a great way to end such a thought provoking class. I think out of everything we’ve watched/learned, this video made me the saddest. And in all, it makes me wonder how I can find balance. I enjoy looking nice (i.e. beautiful); but the pursuit of beauty is neverending. Its an almost unattainable goal. I can always find something wrong if I look hard enough. And that’s sad – especially because there are so many women out there with this same affliction: always trying to keep up with the beauty Joneses.

I don’t want to complete give up my desire to look good. After all, valuing the way you look plays a role in our self-esteem whether or not we like it. And honestly, I feel better when I look better (because I’m not worried about whether or not I can hold my own against the woman standing next to me).

But at the same time, I’m always trying to make sure I don’t go overboard. That I don’t get overly-concerned with my looks. It’s a hard balance: trying to look good without trying too hard to look good (haha). But I think for the most part, I’ve managed to find some sort of sanity. I don’t spend hours and countless dollars trying to look perfect. And I’ve even come to love some of my imperfections. For example, my hair in the front has a tendency to stand up like I’m some sort of cartoon character. This used to really bother me. But now, I just laugh and say its my hair’s attempt to say “hello” to the world.

On a related note, I came across this opinion article in the New York Times: “Bo-Tax Backlash.” I think it adds a similiar demension to this past class discussion.

Disney Princesses – Nov. 12 class

I absolutely loved the class discussion and video, “Mickey Mouse Monopoly,” this week! Prior to taking this class and prior to seeing this video, I had begun to question the affect of Disney on me as a girl, teenager and now woman. I have always loved Disney movies (“Pocahontas” is my all-time favorite movie). But I wonder if some of the messages portrayed in this films have impacted me in a negative way. For years, these movies taught me things about life like what it meant to be a beautiful female, how to attract a male and how to act in society as a woman. However, I cannot say that Disney’s princess messages are intentionally malevolent. I think (as a sad fact) that Disney movies are like a snapshot of our society at the time.

Look at “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” The female protagonist is beautiful (fair skin, dark hair, red lips). She is kind and hard working. She enjoys cooking, cleaning and looking after others. She is young. She is helpless except for the actions of men: First the man who decided to go against the queen’s orders and NOT kill her and then, the prince who “kisses” her and saves the day by bringing her back to life. The female antognist is also beautiful. But beauty isn’t enough. She is selfish, conniving and manipulative of an otherwise good man. She is the older woman and jealous of Snow White’s youth and beauty. The film was made in 1937.

Fast-foward to “The Princess and the Frog.” Now to be fair, the movie doesn’t come out until the end of the week- so much of my opinion is based on the previews. I think in this respect, Disney has come a long way. The definition on beauty now, for the first time, includes the black community. The movie comes out soon. And I’ll have to post an update to this post once I check it out.

Double standards in male/female entertainment/performances

As can probably be expected, American Idol finalist Adam Lambert’s “racy” performance at the American Music Awards has caused quite a stir. Reportedly, Lambert flipped off the audience, kissed a male musician and fondled several backup dancers.

But in his defense, Adam brought up an interesting point about double standards.

“If it were a female pop performer that were doing the moves that were on the stage, I don’t think there’d be nearly as much outrage at all,” said Lambert, according to a Yahoo! News report. In the article, “Adam Lambert on Outrage,” Yahoo goes on to write that Lambert said he thinks it’s because he is a gay male.

I didn’t see this year’s AMAs, but the Yahoo! article also discusses how Lambert is upset that female performers were able to get away with many other “adult material” type things during the broadcast. (Lady Gagasmashing whiskey bottles and Janet Jackson grabbing a man’s crotch.)

I don’t follow enough entertainment news to know for sure if he’s right, but I think he may be on to something. It seems like every few months, we (the public) hear some controversy about some woman doing something controversial on television – Janet Jackson at the Super Bowl, Britney and Madonna kissing, etc. However, we never hear (or at least I don’t) about a man’s controversial performance.

Also, each time one of these female performances take place, I notice some public outcry about what is and is not appropriate on television and at what times. But somehow, the outrage seems more excessive and different this time with Lambert.

According to the Associated Press, ABC reports that more than 1,500 people called to complain about “Lambert’s sexually charged performance.” The AP articles goes on to report that the network characterizes the response as “moderate.”

Soldier mom refuses deployment to care for baby

Many times in class, we’ve discussed the relevance of using “mom” and “motherhood” to define women. So when I came across this AP story, I was pleased to note that the mention of soldier “mom” in the headline was relevant in this instance: Soldier mom refuses deployment to care for baby.

It’s a good example of how being a mom can be an incorporated as an important part of what it means to be a woman, without making it seem as if the only proper role for a woman is motherhood.

“Mom” aside, the story is a good read.

Weight of models once again in spotlight

Saw this article on Yahoo!’s homepage: “Was the Photoshopped Ralph Lauren model fired for being overweight?” It’s got some interesting points to add to our class discussions and might make an interesting “show and tell” item.

… Being in this class has definitely made me more aware of things going on around me. I often find myself seeing something interesting on tv, hearing it on the radio or clicking on it online, and then I want to immediately come and blog about it. Unfortunately, I don’t have enough time in the day to blog about every item I see. … It’s amazing to me how I wouldn’t even notice this stuff if it weren’t for the class I’ve been taking. I can’t say I always agree with everything, but at least I have a more balanced viewpoint of the world, and especially its relation to women.

Advertising – Women & Kids – Oct. 1

We’ve all heard it before. That women are oversexualized in the media. But would we go as far as to compare many female advertisments to porn? Our discussion on the pornographic gaze makes me wonder. That and some of the problems posed in “Kinng us Softly 3″ makes me wonder – who is approving these advertisements. I doubt it’s some evil conglomerate out to get us (women). But rather, ordinary folks who are just acting as they were raised. (Which itself, feeds into a neverending cycle where society becomes increasinly acceptable of the treatment of women in such a manner.) While I think some of the author’s objections were a bit of a stretch (like the “barely there” makeup campaign), I think most of it highlights the world around us correctly – as a sad fact of life that no one seems to realize is “killing us softly.”

The video on kids/advertisements was also disheartening. At the end of class, Tracy asked, is the media reflecting the world of kids around us or vice versa? This is the classic “which came first: the chicken or the egg” question. It could be aruged either way. But I think in most U.S. communities, the answer is that the media is creating a fictional world of children, which they then aspire to re-create in their own lives.

The “Coal black and de Sebben Dwarfs” and the “Evolution of Beauty” were interesting to watch. I wonder, how have advertisements/shows (like Coal Black) portraying Blacks so negatively held back the Black community. It seems like the creators managed to roll every negative black sterotype that ever existed into that one “cartoon.” (I use quotes, because I didn’t feel it was very funny.) As far as the “evolution,” I knew that stuff took place. But I had no idea it was to such an extent. The woman they created was no longer real. They might as well had drawn her on the computer – because by the end of it, that’s all she was.

Overall a very shocking class. The videos we watched and the things we discussed make me wonder how long it’ll take our society to rebound from the negative world we’ve created (if indeed it can.)  I don’t think I’ll ever think of the world (in any context) the same after taking this class. It really does open your eyes. Even if you keep the same opinion, you at least question your beliefs and things around you.

Cop with cornrows pulled from street duty – Sept. 30

A Philadelphia police officer was recently pulled from the streets and assigned desk duty after he showed up to work with cornrows. The officer is white and was required to get a haircut. And according to an article in the Philadelphia Daily News, “dozens of black officers across the city wear cornrows” and are not assigned desk duty.

The article goes on to cite a police spokesperson who said the cornrows were “unprofessional” and that the decision to remove him was not discriminatory.

The police department’s policy prohibits “unnatural” hair colors but doesn’t prohibit specific styles, such as cornrows, unless the style prevents the officer from wearing their uniform hat in a military manner.

… Just makes you wonder.

http://www.philly.com/dailynews/local/59967627.html

Class Presentations & “Grandma Gretchen” – Sept. 24

Of course – the people who presented their research tonight were really interesting. But  Alesha’s stood out in my mind. Alesha’s preliminary study about how biracial people are perceived is a topic I believe will become increasingly relevant as future generations loose the stigma associated with dating/marrying/having children with someone of a different race. It’ll be really interesting to see her study results. The only problem I have is that I wish I had thought of this idea for a research topic!

On a related note to some of our class discussions, a co-worker mentioned this D magazine Sweet Charity blog – Grandma Gretchen Bataille Unveils UNT Business Leadership Building. In it, UNT President Gretchen Bataille is referred to as “Grandma Gretchen.” In addition, throughout the blog, she is referred to by first name – either Gretchen or Ms. Gretchen. Now, maybe I missed this in English class. But I thought titles were supposed to precede last names. I don’t know Dr. Bataille personally, so I don’t know how she would feel about reading this. But it seems odd to me that women are nearly always referred to in the context of motherhood or being a wife.

When are men referred to in the context of fatherhood (Father’s Day doesn’t count). I guess the point it that wow, look at these women, they’re great women AND they did it while raising a family. But why are fathers not given the same label? Is it because our society secretly knows and accepts that fact that many fathers contribute a minimal effort to the role of raising a family.

I obviously didn’t write this blog, so I can’t say what frame of mind the author was in when writing this. But I don’t think that this author’s writing is the exception to the rule. Should we not also recognize that men can be amazing people AND do it while raising a family? Do women always need to be identified in some sort of patriarchal role?

Or am I overreacting? Is this just a blog trying to give women props on multiple levels? Should we as women not be proud of ourselves as mothers/grandmothers/wives?

Just a note about the last name thing. This is a blog, and blogs are known for a degree of informality. I searched through the Sweet Charity blog to see how the author referred to people upon second reference. Mayor Tom Leppert was referred to upon second reference by his last name. But all of the other second references I noticed referred to people by either their first name or by their initials.

Although I lean slightly to the side that questions “why-do-women-have-to-be-moms,” I can see relate to aspects of both sides of this. What are your thoughts? Check out the “Grandma Gretchen” blog (or something else that refers to women in terms of motherhood) and then write your comments. Also, please post links that show men in relation to their role as fathers and husbands (weddings don’t count).

“The Black Press: Soldiers Without Words” – Sept. 17

Wow. There’s so much I want to say about “The Black Press: Soldiers Without Words” that I hardly know where to begin! So warning, these thoughts may seem disjointed (but they make sense in my head). If you’re confused, please post a comment and I’ll try to clarify.

I think in many ways the video helped reveal the elephant in the room that many people either don’t notice or are unwilling to discuss – that the (white) press excluded coverage of blacks (unless it was negative coverage), and as a result the black press (pre-civil war) was created as a way to fill that gap and give a voice that that oft-ignored community.

I’ve seen portions of this video before. I remember the first time I watched this video, being very proud of the willingness of the black press to preserve against the odds – and threats – so much so, that editors like Ida B. Wells would carry a pistol under her blouse.

Speaking of Ida B. Wells – the power of that woman always amazes me. To be a woman AND to be black and to take on such daunting positions – I wonder if I would have her strength were I born in her time period. (I certainly hope so.)

In watching this video, it made me wonder: how far has the nation come in covering ALL groups in the media. I think it’s safe to say that things aren’t as drastic as they were during the time of black press leaders like Robert Abbot; however, we still have far to go. I can’t remember the last (or even the first) time I saw a Native American mentioned in the media. And other groups, like other minorities, members of the GLTB community, the elderly and the disabled are also largely ignored. When these groups do get coverage, it often seems to have a negative persona.

… I’m going to stop now, because I have other assignments to complete. But check back later for more on this discussion going on inside my head.