Film

The coolest part of the mass comm chapter on film was seeing how far film has come since its inception. From Muybridge's running horse to Transformers. These days it seems like you don't even need a camera to make a movie. All you need for a movie these days is a powerful computer and special effects. Film is one of my favorite mediums of all. There are some incredibly great films out there. It doesn't matter what type of movies you like, movies are really entertaining. So much better than watching television. There is something really special about the craft to me. Not exactly sure what it is. I haven't seen a ton a great movies come out lately, but when one does there is nothing like it. Nothing like seeing a good movie for the first time.

Books

The chapter on books in our mass comm textbook was interesting. With all the new technology these days who reads books? Well I do for one. To me books are the ultimate form of entertainment and good exercise for your imagination. It is up to you to fill in the gaps in the story and imagine how the story looks for yourself. Every book is open to interpretation by the reader. Like when you go to see a movie based on a book and your mental picture of the characters is completely different than the movie. These days people are becoming increasingly harder to entertain. Movies have intense special effects that cost millions of dollars just to keep the crowds attention. What ever happened to the plot and characters determining if a story was good? Books are also a window to the past according to the textbook. I completely agree. When I read As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner, it had a total picture in my mind of the South so many years ago. Or Kerouac's On the Road, this is what America looked like in the late 1950's. I wonder what those authors would think about where the culture toady? Books are also supremely entertaining in my opinion. When you read any book by Vonnegut, you can't help but laugh. At least if you're anything like me. So pick up a book once in a while! It's good for you, and you just might like it.

Conglomeration and Concentration

There has been a trend in recent memory of the ownership of media outlets being held in fewer and fewer hands. The concentration of this powerful force in the world is no small thing. There is a ethical responsibility of journalists to tell the facts completely and accurately to the public. When only a few people are in command of all this media, there is a danger of these ethics being compromised. Who do these people have to answer to if they own everything. Conglomeration is even more dangerous in my opinion, which could be wrong, to the process. This is when non-media companies begin to own media outlets. What interest do they have in the facts being broadcast accurately and completely. They came to acquire the media outlets for the simple task of increasing their already bulging bank accounts. These people owning our media creates a conflict between the journalistic responsibilities and their own personal agenda. Who do these conglomerates have to answer to, their stockholders. Media ownership is a business, there is no doubting that. However, the business shouldn't compromise the duty of the journalistic community to be important social agents. These are things we need to watch out for.

Storytellers

The first chapter of our mass comm textbook was interesting. It is true that every culture has storytellers. To quote the book: "A culture's values and beliefs reside in the stories it tells." The mass media is, for a large part, the storytellers of our culture. They have a unique ability to change and mold culture. This is kind of scary when you look at the mass media sometimes. It reiterates the importance of being media literate. As an individual consumers of media in this culture it seems like you are just bombarded with information on a constant basis. It is becoming more and more important to be able to step back and analyze all this information on your own schedule and not the on the media sets. When you just believe everything you hear, you are bestowing upon the media a credibility that is more or less not deserved. Be careful to make your own decisions and be aware of the impact of those decisions. There is a lot of insight into our culture if you take the time to digest the stories that are being told in our culture.