Location Activity: WBAY TV Tour

On Friday December 7, my group and I took a tour of the WBAY news station building. At WBAY, we saw all the aspects of the news station, and even were able to watch a live broadcast!

We toured the entire building, from the offices, to the control center, and all the way to the stage where the news anchors sit during the news. We also had the oppurtunity to talk with Steve Beylon, who is a meterologist at WBAY, about where he gets the weather information from. He said before, meterologists would get a bunch of papers telling them what the weather is like, but now he says he just uses the internet to make his weather report based on certain reliable weather websites that he has bookmarked on his computer. I thought it was interesting how he uses one major form of mass communication (the internet) to relay information to his viewers throught another major form of mass communication, the television.

I also thought it was interesting that right on the table the news anchors sit behind during thier live broadcast, the anchors have laptops sitting right next to them, and during commercials or when they are not on the air, they are constantly looking things up on the internet. You don't see the laptops during the news, but they are sitting right next to them at all times.

Here's us in a picture with Steve Beylon, and a picture of main anchor Kevin Rompa browsing his laptop just before the show was about to begin.

Taking the tour of WBAY made me ralize how important news on the television has become. Before TVs, people had to get their news from newspapers and radio. The problems with newspapers is that breaking news cannot be heard about until the next paper is printed, and the problem with radio is there is no visual so people have a hard time picturing what actaully was going on. Imagine not having TV news when the World Trade Centers were hit. People would not see the devastating destruction that happened, and wouldn't have realized just how severe the damage was. I also learned how the internet is starting to take over the news. Seeing Steve Beylon and Kevin Rompa looking up news on the internet made me realize how news is becoming more and more accesible, and how news stations are finding more and more ways to communicate important events to their viewers.

http://www.wbay.com/

Location Activity: WBAY Tour

Location Activity

Lauren Robertstad

Mass Communication

On December 7th, 2007 my blog group and I went to the local television station for a research activity for our Mass Communications class. We arrived alongside other group members and were guided on a tour throughout the station and giving brief descriptions of what it is like to work in an environment like the one we witnessed at the WBAY television station.

Our tour guide was a very friendly gentleman that was in charge of the department. He first showed us the news room where many cubicles were set up and many journalists were scrambling around rapidly researching and finding the news stories of that day. They were essentially picking and choosing what we as the viewer were going to be shown.

The second stop on our tour was the editing room where there were two men sitting and dubbing things on to tapes and files and putting the show in order so that when the anchor was reading the news it wasn't just him the whole time talking. Some of these files were interviews of locals who had seen or heard something and we're giving their take or story on it and and some of these files were shots of news conferences of political figures who had spoken that day.

Finally we were taken into the news room. All of us were really surprised at how small it was. There was the weather center and then directly next to it was the news desk were you see the anchors speaking and then slightly in front of that was a green screen that the weatherman stands in front of to point out certain fronts and storms that are coming in.

Overall this was by far my favorite activity of the semester. Not only did we get to meet the anchor and the weatherman we got to get pictures and we were even on the news! The last 30 seconds of the show were open for any content and so the anchor had us all wave and he introduced our class and said that this was proof to our professor that we were there. It was awesome!

http://www.wbay.com/

Research Activity: Changes in Use of Media

Lauren Robertstad

Mass Communications

Research Activity

"Write down ways you think you are changing your use of media as a result of your study of media."


The Internet is a medium of our generation. It's something that is new to an extent and ever changing. The elderly don't bother with it and the middle aged pay for classes on it's many wonders and uses. But how safe is the Internet really? After studying reading the chapter on the World Wide Web, as well as listening to the lecture in class about it's many advantages and disadvantages I began to wonder how I would change my Internet practices?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071205/ap_on_hi_te/facebook_about_face_2

Facebook is an online social network that connects millions of users threw multiple networks that those users have in common. Facebook was invented by Mark Zukerberg, a Harvard student, who initially created the network for only Harvard students. Within months it was expanded to all Ivy League schools and as of September 11, 2006 and one thirteen and over can join and be connected threw a college, high school, work establishment, or geographical region. It has been estimated that by the end of this year Facebook will have 55 million members world wide. Facebook is also ahead of Flickr in photo uploads with over 60 million photos uploaded weekly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHi-ZcvFV_0

Before attending Intro to Mass Communication classes I really didn't see any harm in posting photos of my friends intoxicated, or writing on other people's walls about how smashed so and so was last night. I never thought in a million years that those things would ever catch up to me or anyone for that matter. I had heard a "rumor," about someone getting media attention after they weren't hired on a job because of their Facebook page.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/12/03/technology/face.php?WT.mc_id=rsstechnology

Before we really got into the lecture of the Internet our class had a brief discussion of Facebook and what it is and what it's functions in our society. Many students said that Facebook was a way to communicate with friends from high school who went to different colleges etc. Other's said Facebook was a great way to get everyone to go to an event since sending out a mass email to an email account could just be spammed out where as on Facebook regardless of your settings you will always receive an invite which is a very powerful thing when it comes to bands trying to get people coming to their shows. If you see your friend has been invited and has said that they are going you'll probably end up going too. One thing that was brought up was the issue of identity and privacy on Facebook. Recently or in the past year, teachers and staff members have been using Facebook as a way to monitor weekend behavior of students. Members of Law Enforcement now have profiles in order to keep track of underage party invitations.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071205/lf_nm/facebook_relationships_dc_2

The privacy part of discussion really freaked me out. I really wanted to know what Facebooks privacy stances were on giving out special privileges to Law Enforcement officials, Teachers, Campus Safety, Principles etc. I then emailed a privacy personal affiliated with Facebook and asked them there stance on that issue. The email I received back was vague and tip-toed around the "control," of their website and who can access what. The following email is the response I got and due to it, I have severely limited what is published on my profile as far as pictures, notes, wall posts, and general information about me goes. Because of my studies in Mass Communication I now look at the Internet as a "frenemy," if you will. A frenemy being a person that you have a relationship with but you know could stab you in the back at any moment. I use Facebook on a daily bases and consider it a friend but I know that if anything ever goes on my profile that is questionable and the wrong person sees it...Facebook will be the first one to stab me in the back.

http://www.facebook.com/

Hi Lauren, We appreciate your concern. Although Facebook was never intended as a tool to monitor users, we cannot always prevent it from being used this way. The only people who can see your profile are friends and people on your networks. That said, we cannot prevent people with affiliated email addresses from joining the corresponding networks. For instance,if a campus police department gives its employees a college email address, these people will be able to affiliate with that particular college's network. Aside from such situations, however, we do not grant anybody - whether employers, law officers, school administrators, or even parents - any kind of special access to information on Facebook that they would not normally be able to view. In order to avoid any problems regarding your Facebook information, ween courage you to make use of your options on the Privacy page. These options allow you to restrict certain people from viewing your profile or even finding you in searches. For example, you can block all people with faculty/staff status, and you can also block specific users. Please take a look at the Privacy page and you will see the many options we provide to keep your profile safe and private.

Thanks for contacting Facebook,

Jamie

Customer Support Representative

Facebook

Research Activity: " Ways I am changing my use of media as a result of studying media"

Even before studying media I was well aware of pretty much all different types of media. I listened to music, listened to sports talk on the radio, watched television, used e-mail, had a cell phone, downloaded songs from limewire, had an ipod, watched You Tube videos, and went to movies. I was already using almost every form of media before I started studying it.

So after studying media, my use of media didn't really change in my daily routine. It did, however, change my thought process as I used the different forms of media. For instance, before watching the film "This film Is Not Yet Rated" in class, I didn't really give censorship much thought when I watched movies. I didn't really realize that movies rated worse than R were actually real movies and not just porn. I thought if a movie was rated NC-17, it was just a porn movie, and not a real movie with a storyline and a meaning behind it. I didn't realize how violence was perceived as less important in rating movies than sex.

Soon after I saw "This Film Is Not Yet Rated" I saw the new movie "Halloween" directed by Rob Zombie. It was the most graphic movie I have ever seen aside from the Saw movies, and it also had multiple sex scenes in it, and it was rated R! Then you go to the movie "Orgazmo", directed by Trey Parker and Matt Stone (the creators of South Park), which is a comedy about porn, but it is not actually a pornographic film, and it is rated NC-17, and in my opinion it is less graphic that "Halloween". If a kid saw the movie "Halloween" I think he or she would be way more traumatized after it then had they seen the movie "Orgazmo"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0124819/.

My others uses of media were much less impacted from studying media. Studying media did not change the way I listened to the radio, watched T.V. shows, listened to my ipod, check my e-mails, visited websites, or used my cellphone. I guess the reason is because I am so set in the way I use media, that studying it doesn't really change the way I use it. The fact that I now know the history of radio or television or how computers came about doesn't change the way I use them, it's just more information that I know now that I didn't know before.

Research Activity: Favorite Lyrics

Lauren Robertstad

Mass Communications 102

Research Activity

“Make lists or note lyrics of favorite songs, rock videos, TV shows or other media and explain why you like them”



Music is a very powerful form of communication. Music is not just a creative outlet or just a from of entertainment; it's a message. A very powerful message that has the power to persuade and change the views of millions of people or receivers. The message can be anything as simple as "Mmmbop," by Hansen, or as complex as "Sunday, Bloody, Sunday," by U2.

I pay close attention to the message in all of the songs that I listen to, acting almost like a gate keeper, to really get a feel for what the artist is trying to say. One of the songs that has truly spoken to me in my life is "The Streets of Philadelphia." It is by far one of my favorite songs of all time. Not only is it my favorite song due to it's beauty musically but due to it's graphic message about AID's and gay rights. The underlying message in the song being that we all come in and leave this world the same way and should be treated the same way while we are living in this world. It was written for the major motion picture, "Philadelphia." http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107818/


The movie Philadelphia is about a gay attorney who works for a conservative law firm and is fired shortly after the law firm finds about his newly contracted AID's virus. Andrew Beckett (the gay attorney,) then sues the law firm with a help of a homophobic attorney who eventually looses his discrimination against gays when he sees that they are truly just like all of us. This movie is inspired by the true storey of Geoffrey Bowers.




The song was written by the great Bruce Springsteen. The lyrics in the song are the following...

I was bruised and battered and I couldn't tell what I felt

I was unrecognizable to myself

I saw my reflection in a window I didn't know my own face

Oh brother are you gonna leave me

Wastin' away

On the streets of Philadelphia

I walked the avenue till my legs felt like stone

I heard voices of friends vanished and gone

At night I could hear the blood in my veins

Just as black and whispering as the rain

On the streets of Philadelphia

Ain't no angel gonna greet me

It's just you and I my friend

And my clothes don't fit me no more

I walked a thousand miles

Just to slip this skin

The night has fallen, I'm lyin' awake

I can feel myself fading away

So receive me brother with your faithless kiss

Or will we leave each other alone like this

On the streets of Philadelphia

http://artists.letssingit.com/bruce-springsteen-lyrics-streets-of-philadelphia-b46vwbt

Why I love this song is because the message at the time (1993) was pretty controversial. I love songs that start a movement and really speak honestly about an issue. The lyrics speak of "Wasting away," these two words speak volumes of how that not only is AID's a devastating disease, but that it is even more devastating when fought alone. "Ain't no angel gonna greet me," speaking to the long held believe that homosexuals are sinners who will never be accepted by any God. "Receive me brother with your faithless kiss," speaks to the uncertainty in our world about faith and what is right and what is wrong. I love the message in these lyrics that regardless of everything this guy did to fight for his rights as an American he was still dying of an illness that he could never win. In the end he was just like everyone else on the streets of Philadelphia but he didn't get the respect he deserved before he passed on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L9_8vwx2w8

Research Activity: My Favorite Song Lyrics and why I Like Them

My favorite music lyrics are the lyrics to the song "Hurricane" by Bob Dylan. The song "Hurricane" is a powerful song about the wrongful sentence of an African American boxer named Rubin "Hurricane" Carter for the murders of three white people in the 1960's.



The Lyrics to the chorus go as follows:



"Here comes the story of the Hurricane

The man the authorities came to blame

For something that he'd never done.

Put in a prison cell

But one time

He could have been

The Champion of the World..."

(I couldn't put all the lyrics because there isn't enough room. To see the entire lyrics, go to http://www.seeklyrics.com/lyrics/Bob-Dylan/Hurricane.html)



The reason I like these lyrics is because they speak about a true story of an innocent man whos life was changed forever due to something that he had nothing to do with. He was sentenced to life in prison for murders he didn't commit. This man was on the verge of becoming the middle-weight champion of Boxing, and a racist court system and prejudice jury ended his hopes forever. The song handles real life issues that were happening in America in the 1960's. Bob Dylan used his stardom and popularity to spread the word of the injustice brought upon Rubin "Hurricane" Carter and played a part in his release in the 1980's. It is the only song that I have heard that gave me chills and made me angry toward the people who aided in sending Rubin Carter to prison, and made me feel embarrased to be white.



Bob Dylan's "Hurricane" is one of a kind, and there will never be a song as powerful and thought provoking as "Hurricane". I hope every American can hear this song, so they know what Rubin Carter had to go through, and how racism corrupted the Southern Court System. After I heard this song, I found out Rubin Carter was actually released from prison in the 1980's. It was decided his sentence was based on prejudice, and in modern court there was virtually no evidence that Rubin Carter was guilty. When Rubin Carter was released, he was given an honorary Boxing championship belt in 1993 by the World Boxing Council in Las Vegas, and I'd like to think Bob Dylan's song "Hurricane" had something to do with it.






Rubin "Hurricane" Carter

Research Activity: Ad That Doesn't work and Irks Me!

I am big fan of McDonalds. I love Big Macs, McFlurrys, MgNuggets, Fries, pretty much everything on the menu. But one thing about McDonalds is that no how the food is advertised, almost everyone knows that McDonalds is terrible for you, and that eating it consistently can give you serious health risks down the road. The food is loaded with fat, calories, sodium, and pretty much everything that is unhealthy for you.

So that is why I couldn't believe I started seeing Donald Driver, wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers, in all these McDonalds commercials showing down a Quarter Pounder and french fries. With the childhood obesity epidemic sweeping the United States, why would a Green Bay Packer Player, someone who kids love and idolize, be promoting the very thing that is causing kids in the United States to be so fat? It's obvious that Donald Driver doesn't eat McDonalds all the time, because if he did he would look more like Gilbert Brown, but young kids will think that if Donald Driver eats McDonalds, then I should eat McDonalds too.

The thing that obviously works for this ad campaign is that it is local, so everyone who sees the commercial know exactly who he is, and is more than likely a Packers fan, so the commercial will definitaly draw attention. Also, Wisconsin is one of the fattest states in America, so alot of Wisconsinites already eat McDonalds.

Another irk of mine that works for the ad is that it says to stop in today, and receive a limited Supersized cup with Donald Driver on it. So if the crazy fans want the special edition cup, they have to Supersize thier meal, which only speeds up the heart disease and diabetes process for the obese children.

Hopefully America will eventually stop advertising this way, and kids in America will have a chance to live to see their kids graduate, get married, and have grandchildren. The way McDonalds lures these mindless bottomless pits for fast-food needs to be stopped. America needs to get healthy, and that will never happen with commercials like this airing for all kids to see.