Module 4 Recap- Taylor Wing
Module 4 Recap
Taylor Wing
EDUC 345
This week is definitely flying by. I cannot believe class is almost over. I am really enjoying these blog posts and I appreciate the feedback I am getting from my fellow group members. The videos and readings this week truly opened my eyes to the influences media has on us.
To start off, Karen Sternheimer discusses the myth that media causes teenagers to be sexually active even though sexual activeness with teens is the lowest it’s ever been with teens. The transition of women moving into different roles into the workforce is connected to sexual promiscuity. Pop culture and mass media are connected. Pop culture can be shared through magazines, newspapers, television, and all other forms of media. Pop culture has the ability to dominate our attention. Media and pop culture are constantly changing. Race, class and gender are directly linked pop culture’s influence on teens sexuality. Media also reflect unrealistic images of women and this casts as a false sense of reality. These fake images lead to dissatisfaction with women and their bodies. They then use this feeling of inadequacy to market products that will “help” their imperfections. It is horrifying to think how much media pressures people to look a certain way. This is a huge reason why there are eating disorders and issues with obesity. It was amusing to find out our youth are the ones that are not as influenced from pop culture and media as adults are.
Terry Dungan’s YouTube video series gave me insight on the relationship between mass communication and cultural values. He begins by talking about family culture and values portrayed by media. We learn about what is an acceptable family lifestyle through the media. The media is the story teller. People can be negatively influence because media does not show consequences for bad behavior. Terry Dungan shares with us that people fear what they consume in media because they will be encourage to act in bad ways. Cultural influences effect all forms of media, especially television. Mass media can shape our lives positively and negatively. Media and culture are a huge part of our lives. Not only can culture shape our media, but media can shape our culture. Although media has such a big impact on our lives, Dungan talks about how people are not letting media influence their beliefs and life choices as much as they did in the past. Popular culture is arising and is becoming the new social and emotional influence on our lives. Karen Sternheimer states, “We must look deeper than popular culture— we need to look at the structural roots to understand issues such as bullying, violence, suicide, teen sex and pregnancy, divorce, substance use, materialism, and educational failure” (Sternheimer, 2013). We need to encourage mass audiences to not let the negative influences of media shape their lives. Just as Caterina says, youth is heavily influenced on the media for the image they have of what they are truly supposed to look or act like. Often times the media influences our self- image negatively and that is when eating disorders and risky behaviors are formed. The video I watched in this module that links to the same feelings of dissatisfaction was the Dove Real Beauty Sketches. The Dove Real Beauty Sketches explores the gap between how we view ourselves and how other people perceive us. This commercial is a way media can influence our thoughts and ideas in a positive way. There are ways the media can help change the way we view ourselves and society positively.
