CNN vs. Al Jazeera Journalism April 28, 2008

 

 

Can you guess which image came from which media source?

I decided to analyze visual images of the U.S. Election in both CNN and Al Jazeera.

The CNN article can be found at:http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/23/democrats.race/index.html#cnnSTCText

The Al Jazeera article can be found at:http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/9DABF8A0-8F5A-45E0-BD17-84888599344F.htm

Both of them discuss Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and the dynamics of her struggle to stay in the race.

If you guessed that the image on the left is from Al Jazeera and the image on the right is from CNN you would have been correct. This did not surprise me and I am about to explain to you why.

In the image from Al Jazeera, it shows the people holding up signs supporting Hillary Clinton. In the image from CNN, it shows the politician herself, Hillary Clinton. I know this seems like such an incredibly simple analysis, but I personally saw their choice of photographs to be immensely significant in the manner in which the world percieves the United States of America. To me, I see Al Jazeera subconsciously throwing out the image that Americans are almost like “calves” following a shepherd. The fact that the image also shows mutliple people (not just one) also shows America as a united force. In conclusion, it seems as though the image of Americans that is painted is one of unity, enthusiasm, and complete support for the potential President.

The image from CNN, on the other hand, shows Hillary Clinton as a friendly, potential presidential canidate. She is waving as she is stepping onto a plane. I think it is interesting that they chose a photo in which she is engaged in a typical activity that the “common man” does from time to time. It suggests that the presidential canidate is like “us” and not glitzy and intimidating. If I wasn’t an American citizen myself, I could see this visual communication tactic as being somewhat “bad news” if the canidate was someone like Adolf Hitler. It seems as though it could serve as a brainwashing technique. This then made me think, how do I know we, the Americans, are not getting brainwashed? The compare and contrast of both of these photos led me to a variety of thoughful questions about the media in general and their impact on the state of affairs in the world!

In continuation, however, I just wonder how professional that was of CNN to put such an “unprofessional” picture of Hillary Clinton up. Obviously we have seen images like this in the magazines before, but I wonder what kind of images they have of McCain? Is he serious looking, uninviting, impersonable, and unapproachable? I am going to have to look after this….Nonetheless, this really made me realize that media sources are definitely “control centers” just as shown in the film that we watched in class. They have a way of exposing visual images to consumers/voters that can be subconsciously manipulative and affect their decision on whether or not they buy a product or vote for a politician.

In the two visual images I chose to discuss, I see them both painting “the other.” For example, in Al Jazeera, they painted America (the other) as being tight knit and a supportive, following crowd of its president. In CNN’s coverage, it seemed to me as though they painted “the other” (Hillary Clinton) as being personable, friendly, and nothing typical of what would be expected of “the other” qualities. I almost think that they identified what “the other” was and then chose a picture of Clinton that was the opposite. Consequentially, I see that as biased photojournalism and therefore unprofessional. As a result, I think Al Jazeera may have more professional photojournalism skills. At least in the photo they did not favor one party over another.

Well, I am 99.9 percent sure I answered all the questions that were asked of me for this assignment. Ok, now I am 100 percent. I think this assignment really served to broaden my mind to the fact that there still remains biased photojournalism that I need to make myself more aware of as a consumer/registered voter. I think it is all too easy to believe what we see when it is before us. I am all about getting informed and questioning!!! :)   

 

That’s Questionable 4/24 April 24, 2008

I was unable to make it class last week (the first one I ever missed, I promise! ) and so the assignment about the “evil other” is completely new to me since I was not there to hear the discussion that I am sure took place during class. I am disappointed since it seems as though it would have been an interesting lecture that day! As a result of my absence, however, I have many “that’s questionables.”

In this week’s assignment, you said,”In his video presentation, Keen argued that acts of war and terror are often generated as a response to the perception of an ‘evil other.’” That statement itself is very “questionable” to me. In my religion, Catholicism, we are raised to believe that Satan is the “evil other” by nature and that evil comes from him. In fact, there is a whole story about how he was originally an angel in heaven and was thrown out by God. How is it then that he was a “response to the perception of an ‘evil other’ when he is traditionally the origin of the ‘evil other’? I guess I am just a little confused and would love to hear an explanation of what the author, Keen, would say in reference to this question. (Without having to purchase the book… ) PS: You will see me in class today!

The “Evil Other”: The Demon from The Exorcist April 23, 2008

The picture I chose comes from the legendary, horror film, The Exorcist.  In fact, this Academy Award winning film is popularly known and referred to as “The Scariest Film Ever Made.”

This picture shows the classic scene in which the possessed little girl does a 360-degree head twist. In the movie, she then proceeds to spider-walk on the staircase. Needless to say, I think this has to be by far one of the scariest movies I have ever seen!

When assigned this assignment, I thought about the images that I had collected over the years of the devil. This one came up immediately, especially this particular scene from the movie. I feel as though it is engraved in my memory. When I think of satan, I see this image. Consequently, I think the image I chose potrays the “evil other” beautifully. It obviously made quite the impression on me!

In one of the other blogs for this class, I analyzed the movie poster of The Exorcist. To give a quick recap again for those you who didn’t read it, the movie is about a young girl, Regan, that is possessed by demons. A priest is summoned to perform an exorcist on her. Well, I guess the title is somewhat self-explanatory. It is the epitome of good vs. evil.

Personal

My personal reaction was fear and suspense throughout the entire film. I don’t think there is one movie that I actually jump around while watching it like I do in this one. I first saw the original film when I was a young girl and couldn’t sleep for about a week. It was re-released in the theaters with enhanced special effects when I was in high school. Once again, it scared me like crazy! I don’t think you can ever be a “big girl” for this movie!

Personally, I felt sorry for the little girl while being horrifically scared of her all at the same time. I never thought compassion and repulsiveness could be two mutually exclusive feelings! I was definitely siding with the priest, though. I wanted him to help her get rid of the demons. 

Historical

The movie is based on the 1971 novel, The Exorcist, by WIlliam Peter Blatty. I did not know this, but I just discovered some fun movie trivia about the movie that would fall under the “historical” sub-code of this analysis. I guess one of the most famous scenes in the movie and the shot used in the posters (refer to my earlier blog to see it! ) and the cover od the DVD/VHS was inspired by the 1954 painting “Empire of Light” (”L’Empire des lumières”) by René Magritte. This image can be seen at the top of the blog next to the picture of the little girl.

 

Another fun, “historical” movie fact is that when the film was first released in 1973, it caused mass hysteria. There were people screaming, fainting and paramedics being called to theaters. This is what made the film one of the most controversial films ever made.

The plot of the movie takes place during the 1970s.

Technical

The photo is a high-key lighting photo. I am suprised actually that low key lighting was not used. Regardless, I am impressed it still manages to provide an eerie affect. I feel as though the knocked over lamp and the corner of the dangling frame serve to be graphic vectors pointing toward the subject of the photo, the possessed little girl.

I think it is weird or ironic that the possessed little girl is wearing white, a color that symbolizes putiry and “goodness” (righteousness).  In my last analysis of The Sixth Sense the boy was always wearing red. Red is a more common color in horror films. In The Shining red was a huge symbolic color too. Maybe the directors were aiming at showing the conflict between good and evil? How she is a mixture of both?

 The lighting in the picture is very concentrated on the little girl. Like I said earlier, the photo definitely uses high-key lighting and utilizes a vairety of graphic vectors.

I feel as though the signifier in the scene is the color white on a “demon-girl.” The signified is the contradiction of good vs. evil upon the little girl.  The denotation is that a little, innocent girl is possessed by satan. The connotation is the war of good vs. evil or innocence vs. corruption (sin).

Ethical, Cultural, Critical

The ethical side of the movie is that it colorfully depicts what religions such as Catholicism believes in regarding good and evil. Ethically, some religions may see the film as being offensive to their religion since they are utilizing their beliefs as entertainment. While on the other hand, they may also want people to see the dangers of sin.

Morally, the viewer is going to be on the priest’s side.  He is the image of “goodness” combating evil. He is the “savior” of the little girl. He is “good” and the demons possessing the little girl are “evil.” 

The critical view is the unique, contradictory visual cues involved in showing the message of good vs. evil. I think movie critics admired this film for a reason! I would like to read even more up on it!

That’s Questionable. April 17, 2008

I am a little confused at where the Arab Woman Feminity assignment is going. In the assignment it asks us to analyze their interpretation without stereotyping. Is that possible? I have been looking at my peers’ blogs and I find us all seem to be making our best effort, however, they all seem to say the same thing. We all seem to have the same impression about Arab feminity. If all we have is access to the internet and the visual images that we have grown up with about Arab women, then how can we NOT stereotype? I think that to ask a question about a whole race/gender is basically looking for a stereotype answer. If Arab women were asked to talk about American women feminity then I am sure they would generalize as well. The fact is that I think your question about not stereotyping about a whole race/gender is quite ironic and impossible.

Arab Women Assignment April 16, 2008

 

To the left is an Arab woman and to the right is an American woman. I am sure I am not the only one that can see the obvious differences in ‘feminity’ in each of their cultures…

I found the picture of the Arab woman on a website entitled “Arab Woman Today.” www.arabwomantoday.com/english/culture_detail…

If there could be one word to sum up the essence of Arab feminity I think it would be ‘ultra-conservative’. As you can see, they are clothed from head to toe with just their eyes being revealed. While this woman does not represent the style of ALL Arab women, it does successfully portray the kind of clothing that is valued and worn in their culture. For example, not all Arab women do not dress in clothes that completely cover their face and hair. However, the image does suggest extreme modesty which is valued in their culture.

Personal

My personal reaction to this image is one that kind of feels sorry for the woman. Being an American girl that was raised in a society that embraces individuality and creativity, I can not imagine what it must be like to not be able to express myself. While I do not think of myself as a vain or materialistic girl, I do believe in the importance of acknowledging myself in even of the smallest of decisions such as deciding what to wear. To eliminate color and variety from my life would be very sad. So, yes, personally I feel sorry for her. At the same time, though, I wonder if she even knows what she is missing out on.

Historical

I think this photo shows the history of the Arab culture very simply. The picture is understated and simple, however, the message is huge. How come she is wearing black? How come she is so conservative? Why is she wearing a veil? These are all questions that can be answered by looking up the history of the Arab culture. What the woman is wearing and how she acts is all a product of what has happened over the past years in her culture.

Technical

The key light of the photo seems to be coming from the right side of the photo. It is obvious that the photo was taken outside with natural light since the mountains are visible behind the woman. A signifier could be the black that the woman is wearing. I looked up the color ‘black’ and found that it symbolizes ‘death’, ‘earth’, and ’stablility’ according to the website: http://www.crystal-cure.com/color-meanings.html. Also, the website also says that “white reveals” and “black conceals”. I think the signified, therefore, would be that women in the Arab culture are “concealed”. Feminity is masked and not encouraged to be embraced. Another thing that I thought was interesting was that according to the website the color ‘white’ symbolizes ‘cleanliness’ and ‘purity’. This makes me wonder, does the color black in their culture suggest ‘dirtiness’ and ‘impurity’? If so, I would like to continue this thought in the next subheading of “ethical, cultural, and critical”…

Ethical, Cultural, & Critical

As I just mentioned, the color black could suggest that the Arab culture thinks of woman as “dirty” and “impure.” Ethically speaking, is this right? Is this a sign of sexism? Are women brainwashed to believe the treatment they are recieving is acceptable? Also, as I had mentioned earlier in the blog, the wardrobe they wear discourages independence and individuality. Is downsizing an individual right? Keep in mind, this is all coming from an American girl! I am not amongst their culture- I just have the images that I have grown up with. For all I know, they want nothing to do with the American culture especially with that of our interpretation of “femininity.”

Culturally speaking, the image shows much about women’s role in the Arab culture. It shows they are not valued because of their bodies or appearances. Critically speaking, could it then be said that they are more valued than American women are valued in America? Afterall, American women are judged on appearances….

That’s Questionable April 11, 2008

In class we watched clips of The Exorcist. Someone commented on how every scene was completely thought out to mean something. I wonder if that statement is entirely correct. I can recall the one scene that we watched where the butler and small boy are sitting at a table. The little boy was eating ice cream. We paused the scene and deciphered it as a class. “The exit sign is there for a reason,” someone commented. “The knives suggest separation,” said another person. For my “That’s Questionable” this week, I question just how much was meant to mean something. Maybe the knives were just put there because a stage man just put it there without even thinking about what it could suggest. Also, I don’t understand the importance of the symbolism for a common audience member viewing the film. I know when I first saw The Exorcist, I was not thinking about the placement of things in the scene or what they could mean. Naturally my attention goes full front to the obvious like many other viewers. Is it supposed to subconsciously suggest things to the viewer? If that is the case, then that makes sense. I just wonder how successful this technique is. All in all, I question most the purpose of the placement of everything in each scene. I wonder if maybe, just maybe, some things were unplanned and just worked out to be a great sign of symbolism we all made up in our heads.

The Sixth Sense: “…I See Dead People” April 9, 2008

For my scene analysis I chose to review The Sixth Sense. I thought this was a perfect choice for this assignment mainly because I can still remember being fascinated by the symbolism in the movie the first time that I saw it. This was the first movie that I had ever seen that blew my mind and really made me think about all the scenes throughout the movie. The director, M. Night Shyamalan, uses color, line repetition, and visual effects to demonstrate pivotal ideas throughout the film. Needless to say, this movie is one of my favorites. Each time I watch it I feel as though I pick up something new. The symbolism seen throughout the film is well thought out and makes viewing it each time more enjoyable and interesting than the last!

Link:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0167404/

Here is the clip I chose. It is 3 minutes and 7 seconds long. Watch it!~

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The cast in the film includes Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment, and Toni Collette.  The scene I picked is when the young social outcast boy, Cole, attended a peer’s birthday party. While at the party, Cole sees a red balloon and deserts the party to follow it in the house. He follows it up a winding staircase and is led to a small room where there are voices.

If you are not into watching the included clip, this image that I am providing will help jog your memories for those of you that have seen the film!

http://img229.imageshack.us/img229/7579/sixthsense04hr7.jpg

 Personal

I really liked this scene because it really had me engaged in the film! I remember being so scared for the little boy. It was a very intense scene and was very memorable for me!

First of all, the scene shows a small, innocent character that I had come to love sitting outside the party as a social outcast. A red balloon catches his eye and ascends up a spiral staircase. He starts to go after it and  deserts the cheery, loud noise of the crowd coming from the birthday party. The distinct contrast in noise served to increase the “scary” effect. It made it clear that the young boy was on his own. My mind kept telling the boy not to follow the balloon!

As Cole,a character wearing a red sweater, is going up the staircase, his shadow on the wall is made visible. As he is pursuing the red balloon, he starts to hear a pleading, angry, masculine voice. He stops and seems scared and hesitant. He starts to creep up the staircase slowly.

The film then jumps to two small boys at the bottom of the staircase talking about Cole very meanly. They are devising a mean trick to play on him.

The film then jumps to Cole again breathing hard looking intently at an area of which the voice is coming from. Two shadows encroach behind him which belong to the two peers. Cole turns around and tells one of them happy birthday. The boys tell Cole they want to play a pretend play called “Locked in the Dungeon.” The boys grab hold of Cole and throw him in the small closet are with the voice. Cole begins screaming and his mom rushes to his side only to find him out of breath and beaten.

The first time I saw this, I was shocked at the heartless behavior of the mean little boys. I was also impressed by the warm love of the mother ane her heartfelt concern for her little boy. 

Technical

Here are a few technical things I noticed about this scene. For one, the voice that Cole was hearing was clearly a voice-over.

There is a high-angle shot of Cole when he is looking at the door with voices coming from it.

There is a decelerated motion shot of when Cole’s mom takes Cole’s seemingly lifeless body from the small room.

There is a two-shot in the scene in which the two boys are talking to Cole.

Low key lighting is used in the shot.  I don’t think the director could have established such an eerie mood if it were not for this lighting.

 The spiral staircase serve as graphic vectors that lead our eye up toward the small room and/or balloon. 

 The signifier is the color red.  The signified is the presence of ghosts. 

Historical

 The movie takes place during the 90s. However, there are many other historical references in the movie. For example, Cole’s teacher is history teacher. Looking over links online, I found some things interesting. For example, look at this scene:

http://img85.imageshack.us/img85/9963/sixth2dt6.jpg

Needless to say, history is a very important component to this film. I especially remember the scene at the end of the movie in which Cole sees dead people hanging in the schoolhouse. Earlier in the movie, Cole told argued with his teacher that the school used to be a place where hangings took place. Being a typical ghost movie, this film is full of symbolism relating back to history.

Ethical, Cultural, Critical

One ethical issue addressed in the film is how people treated Cole, a “freak.” His peers were incredibly heartless toward him and even his mother had her doubts about her son. The film shows the aftermath of meanness on children for being different. As you can recall, in the beginning of the movie there was one of Bruce Willis’ character’s old clients all grown up disstressed and ready to commit suicide. I think the film did a great job of showing the importance of The Golden Rule. It shows how everyone should treat one another the way he/she would want to be treated.

 The culture shown in this film is that of the American culture. Psychiatry, birthday parties, and school plays are all popular in the United States.

In addition: 

Here are some other intersting symbolism in the film I thought I would include for your entertainment:

-The names of the character’s are not at all by coincidence. Crowe = crow, traditionally a familiar of the dead; Sear = seer, as in someone with supernatural vision.

-The plot takes place during the fall which is the time of the dead.

-Notice the doorknobs and how he never really touches them!

Great movie—-I suggest you watch it!!!!!!