Module 4
Dugan believes that convergence is more of a threat to democracy than symbiosis in my opinion. I felt that the first video had plenty of benefits of media and symbiosis. While the second one might have confused me a bit because I felt it was a little harder to engage in. I thought Dugan had some great information to share, I just felt a little overwhelmed and at times easily lost in what he had to say. I also had trouble locating what his opinions were on democracy and its threats. I felt that there were more benefits than threats of the media in Dugan’s perspective. Did anyone notice any negative opinions or threats that stood out to them in these videos? The only threat that I could point out in my opinion would be the lack of information that media provides to society is hurting us. This is because people do not have all the information they need to make accurate decisions. The sources that they use are not as credible due to the lack of research.
In chapter 6, Sternheimer proposes a great question, “ do representations of sexuality encourage teens to become sexually active?” (Tollefson, 2016, p. 139).This question is actually quite interesting to me because I did a research study based on this idea. I feel that the representation and images these young pop stars display, in fact, sexualizes their image. These stars are idols and have many teen fans and of course the trends that they set, many will follow. I think that the clothes they wear, such as the crop tops and tiny shorts, that we see becoming more popular in teen culture, definitely sends the wrong message. Any comments or thoughts on this question and how it can affect their health? Sternheimer also brings up a good point and comments “don’t let TV be your teenagers main source of sex education” (Tollefson, 2016, p. 140). Especially with shows that we see today that are very popular such as “Teen Mom” or “Sixteen and pregnant”, these shows are not an ideal representation, although they attempt to be. For me personally, growing up in a very cultural and strict home, sex was not a topic we ever discussed. Growing up, I didn’t find out about sex education from my parents nor did I ever want to ask. I think this is because my parents portrayed this topic as inappropriate and them being so uptight on the topic made it very uncomfortable for my sisters and I to want to ask them questions.
I believe that this has a huge connection with health and media. If parents are not informing their children and providing them with the proper education it can be very harmful to their health. They might not take the proper steps to being safe or protected if they are sexually active, because they were not taught. Dugan touches on the idea that the media provides us a lack of information and I believe it is the same with parents. They are not having the sex talk with their kids and if they do, I would imagine the majority of households do not go into detail. Therefore, they too are providing their kids with an insufficient amount of proof and information, just as the media does with us.
Chapter 8 focuses on the health issues that media has caused among many individuals, such as, eating disorders, beauty images, and obesity. Obesity was a factor that stood out the most to me. Obesity is a great example of media and health. It also connects with what we have been learning in this module, from the lack of information Dugan discusses, to Sternheinmer’s connection on how the media is harmful to our health. If Dugan were to comment on this I believe that he would mention that the media is at fault for some of these health issues because they do not provide or support information to these issues. The media is harmful to our health. If TV shows aired more educated based and informative programs then maybe people wouldn’t feel the need to binge watch so much. I think Sternheimer would agree with this idea because in Chapter 8 she links the issues of obesity to the amount of TV consumed by those individuals. All these issues tie into why media and health have a connection. Obesity has a connection to the media which affects your personal health. If people are spending too much time watching TV instead of exercising outdoors then this may become routine. Dr. Christina Pabers focuses on the body’s need to restore balance. While someone is sitting on the couch binge watching they may feel the need to take a short walk to the kitchen to seek some comfort snacks. After a long day of work someone may find it more relaxing to come home and binge watch on their Netflix series. This might best pair well with a bowl of popcorn and in order to satisfy salty, it needs a sweet treat, so what better idea then to grab a bowl of ice cream. Imagine that someone is so hooked on their show they may not want to go out so they will order pizza and need soda to wash it down. This idea of superficial balancing is your body’s way to balance itself with food according to Dr. Pabers. This vicious cycle is exactly what Sternehimer mentions that negatively affects health and the media that leads to obesity.
References
Dugan, T. (2010). Impact of Media on Culture: The New Media Landscape (Part 1) – Conglomerate vs. Partnership vs. Synergy. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch
Dugan, T. (2010). Impact of Media on Culture: The New Media Landscape (Part 2) – Convergence. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch
Sternheimer, K. (2013). Pop culture promiscuity: Sexualized images and reality. In Connecting social problems and popular culture: Why media is not the answer (2nd ed.). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Sternheimer, K. (2013). Media health hazards? Beauty image, obesity and eating disorders. In Connecting social problems and popular culture: Why media is not the answer (2nd ed.). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
