Toronto, the Global City (Week 6W, Globalism)

We are fortunate to live in such a diverse city like Toronto. As residents of this great city we do not have to travel very far to visit Italy, Korea, Greece, India and China among other Countries. Globalization can be explained by the dispersion of people, culture, and businesses around the world. In regards to people and culture Toronto is the best example, according to statistics 49% of the residence were born elsewhere. The Caribana Parade is an annually planned event in its 40th year. The parade offers a chance for Caribbean Diasporas from Toronto and the surroundings areas to gather together and create the sense of being home. Not only does Caribana gather individuals from Toronto, it draws huge crowds from all over the world. It is estimated that The Caribana attracts over a million visitors each year mostly form the United States. One of the members of YouTube even mistook the CNE exhibition grounds to be Trinidad (a Canadian Flag was clearly visible) that is how real the sense home can be for this Diasporas. The Caribana also allows individuals from different cultures to become involved in the Caribbean culture it provides an opportunity to “sample” this culture for anyone who wishes to do so. The Caribana and other ethnic celebrations are great for everyone involved, but it should be noted that the more individuals from other cultures take part in the celebrations the more hybridized it may become. It may someday become “westernized”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=5qMYCPg1ZlE

IPODISKAHN! (Week 3W, Consumption)

The culture industry, Adorno and Horkheimer both argued that the culture industry has taken over our free time. Adorno even claimed that free time did not exist, free time to him was something created by the culture industry to give the masses a chance to recuperate before coming back to work again. If Adorno was around today I am sure he would be even more critical of the culture industry with the invention of the Ipod. According to sale reports, Apple has sold about 42 million Ipods since 2001. 42 million, that is more then the entire population of Canada!! The Ipod has allowed the culture industry to penetrate not only our “free time” but it has allowed the culture industry to conquer time in general. With the advancement of technology, there has been an increasing demand on us the workers to produce goods. The increased demand in labor has decreased the amount of time we have to recover. This is where the IPOD comes in to play, it let’s us consume popular music and movies just about anywhere and anytime. We can listen or watch our IPODs while traveling to and from work, during lunch breaks and even during bathroom breaks. There are many reports of individuals being victimized while using their IPODs in part because they were not aware of their surroundings. How can we as the working classes ever realize that we are being controlled by the culture industry when we are not even aware of our immediate surroundings?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4625262.stm

Overuse of Media and Tech can kill you, literally… (Week 7W, Trust)

We live in a world where the media has become a part of our lives. Everyday brings forth new technology which perpetuates our overuse of the media by allowing us to consume media anywhere and any time. Michael Bugeja in his article “Habits of a High-Tech age” argues that the over consumption of media and technology can lead to poorer interpersonal skills and can accelerate our biological clocks. I would like to note how much his theory is relevant today. More specifically his theory can be now further expanded to argue in light of new stories (a man dying from playing Starcraft) and instances that the overuse of the media and technology (focusing on computer games) will not only lead to a decrease in our interpersonal skills but now even personal skills.
One of the factors of losing interpersonal skills because of the overuse of the media has to do with the simple association of more media interaction = less people interaction. Time spent consuming the media could have been used to go out and socialize with your friends and or interact out in the real world with strangers. One could argue that computer games and especially the genre of MMORPG’s (Massive Multiplayer On-line Role Playing Games) does offer the individuals a setting to interact with other individuals and rightfully so but this virtual interaction can not apply to the real world. Interacting as the Commander of one of three races (two of which are not even human) does not allow you to use those skills in real life. In Starcraft there are unwritten rules about how one should interact with other individuals. There exists even language that players are expected to know and follow like GG= good game, GL= good luck, HF=have fun NR15= no rush 15 minutes. Starcraft does provide a setting for individuals to socially interact during games and when forming clans, but the individual who is immersed in the Starcraft world will have a harder time interacting in the real world. The acronyms gg, gl or ^^ (happy face?) ~~ does not apply to real life interactions.
Bugeja also notes in his article about how media and technology have blurred the boundaries between work and home. For some individuals in Korea (pro-gamers) their home is literally their work. Starcraft in Korea is like a sport, and like in any other sports their exists star players whom attract legions of die hard fans, can be seen as sex symbols and can earn as much (upwards of $500,000/year) as those playing your traditional sport. Following the sports analogies, these so called athletes must also train, just like any other athlete who makes a living from playing sports. The Starcraft athlete trains by being signed onto a Sponsor that assembles players with noteworthy skills and places them in a house similar to a fraternity. These players live in these houses and are expected to practice a good 6 hours a day, and when they are not playing they could be tuned into one of many gaming channels that are available in Korea. It is easy to see how a moderate use of media and technology like playing a computer game, can turn into a hobby, then it could turn into work and finally it turns into your life where it permeates everything from your social life, to how you live. In Canada they would be known as hardcore computer nerds but in Korea, they are in an entire different league. Not bad for playing a decade old computer game.
These gaming channels also add to the problem of overusing media and technology. Where the game offers limited amount of interaction, these gaming channels have eliminated that aspect of Starcraft. The gaming channels are broadcasted 24/7 and employ commentators as well as experts who analyze the game as it happens. The channels allow the individual who is immersed in the World of Starcraft to never leave the virtual community. Instead of going out with friends or interacting with the world after you have finished playing, the channels have the ability to pull the individual right back in, overusing media and technology even further.
Bugeja warns of the accelerating of the biological clock caused by the overuse of media and technology. The link provided below is an article that mentions a man in South Korea who died while playing Starcraft. The overuse of media and technology today no longer only impedes just your interpersonal skills but it can also cause you to neglect your personal skills. It is a scary thought that something as simple like Starcraft can be a direct cause of the death for an individual. This unfortunate soul was recently fired from his job (because he was playing Starcraft) and decided to visit an internet café where he could play Starcraft. He went on to play for 50 hours straight before collapsing due to heart failure. The overuse of media and technology caused this individual to neglect even the most powerful of biological needs. It fought off our evolutionary instinct to survive. These stories must make us realize and fear how much pull media and technology can have on our lives. It can accelerate our biological clock until it runs out and causes our death. Bugeja laments that the further we get carried away into using media and technology; there will be no turning back. Unfortunately I think we have reached that point.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=47GLuOd3QVk

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4137782.stm

PMS: Prehistoric Monster Syndrome (Week 1F, Introduction)

Computer technology combined with sites such as YouTube which allows for distribution of information and media, quick and easy reminds us of one of the fundamental issues in studying the media; to be analyzers and not just consumers. The media has been used by various governments to instill thoughts and beliefs that may not have been true (Propaganda) and if the government is the only source for news and ideas than the citizens of that country would adopt that belief system even if it may be false. The example here is a parody of the 1950’s government propaganda/educational videos that were common when the television was still in its infancy. This video is highly entertaining and a fun laugh for an individual who is familiar with menstruation but for those who don’t they could take this video somewhat seriously (minus the wear wolf transformation bit). Society has already placed a taboo on the discussion of menstruation, it is supposed to be kept a “secret” (tampon commercials that promote their products secretive powers), and this video could be a source for education for some young girls and boys. Imagine a young girl watching this clip without realizing that it is a parody, she could take away the behavioral aspects of PMS and could even fear going through menstruation because she could be transformed into a monster (quite extreme but possible) Internet allows for a wealth of information, and although it can be a good source we should be aware of the fact that some sources may have ulterior motives other than reporting objective information. As we are constantly reminded in classes, internet can be a good source of information but make sure you don’t rely on Joe’s Basement Mystery News.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=mCwKbUVyHLY

Own a Mona Lisa for only $132.77 (Week 6F, Technology)

The Mona Lisa is undoubtedly the most famous piece of art in the world. You can not put a monetary value on this work created by Leonardo DaVinci; that is until now. Fineartprintsondemand.com provides mechanical reproduction of the most famous art for a measly $132.77 (US). The aura of the Mona Lisa has diminished substantially today compared to 1936 when Walter Benjamin wrote his article. Although the original still demands great authority, it gets diminished when you can have a version almost as the same quality right above your bed. Today’s technology can produce prints at levels that make it hard to distinguish it from the real painting unless you are an expert in the field of art. That takes away the impressiveness of the art, that a machine can produce many copies of the same thing and so quickly. Prints allow an individual to disfigure and destroy the art without much reprimand, how can an art command authority when a parent can just replace the art when a child smears red markers all over the print. There is also the questioning of it’s authenticity since these prints are of such high quality that layman would most likely not notice if the real thing was switched with a print at the Musee Louvre in Paris. So you say part of what makes the Mona Lisa so special and still commands a great deal of authority is the mystery behind her smile. Well a group of Canadian researchers using advanced technology believe that they have solved that mystery as well. According to their analysis they believe the reason for Mona Lisa’s smile is due to her being pregnant, technology has even taken that sense of mystery away from the Mona Lisa.

http://www.fineartprintsondemand.com/product.php?xc=53&yc=82&xi=20.9&yi=32.2&attr[2]=&attr[3]=&attr[5]=&attr[4]=&attr[6]=&action=1&product_id=148867&region=us

http://search.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/search/results.pl?tab=all&go=homepage&q=Mona+Lisa&scope=all

First video clip at the top right

World Cup: Creating Nations since 1958. (Week 5W, Community)

The newspaper was one of the first sources which created the notion of the imagined community. Today it has given way to new and more advanced technology such as the television in instilling a sense of nationalism. The World Cup offers us a look into how television and the world cup can instill nationalistic identities. The 2002 World Cup was the first time this event was held in Asia and it took place in Korea/Japan two collectivist countries compared to the West (individualistic). Major sporting events are one of the biggest sources of nationalism that does not involve catastrophic events such as war (some would classify losing the World Cup a catastrophic event), the sporting of a jersey (or a red shirt in Korea’s case) offers us unity and the feeling of being part of the nation. The World Cup gave the citizens of Korea a reason to unite and it instilled pride and a wanting to be Korean. It gave us the imagined community in that we could be sure almost every Korean would be tuned into the soccer game, celebrating the same moments, lamenting the same missed opportunities and sharing the feelings of joy, sadness, anxiety among others. However, while the newspaper could only be read by one single reader at a time, one television set can offer images to thousands and thousands of people simultaneously and this provides the opportunity for citizens to gather in the same place. The areas designated around Seoul provide such an example, instead of watching the event alone and imagining the rest of the nation, you can watch with many people together and imagine others doing the same thing and or by themselves. The television instills more nationalism since it allows for people to unite in a same location while maintaining the imagined community the newspapers offered.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=HliB9VSxU28&mode=related&search=

So You Think You Can Gender (Week 10F, Performance)

The reality/dance show So You Think You Can Dance illustrates nicely, how much your performance rests on the acceptance by others. The chances of any participant going through to the next round depends on how well he or she performs his or her identity (is different for each style of dance and clothing) for the audience and the judges. However an interesting example of performing gender was shown by a contestant on the show who labeled “himself” a gender chameleon. To note, Jamie's (or Jesse) dance would not have been at a high enough level to be accepted into the next round but one of the judges made an interesting point. He commented that when it came to partners he would have to pair him up one day with a guy and the next day with a girl and was worried how his partners would react to this. As Silverstone mentioned gender is performative, and Jamie truly felt he could be both. As he reflected one day he feels like a man and another woman, but because his audience could not accept his performance (even if his dance abilities were of high level) he was punished. No matter how well he performs his role, society will not accept him as neither a man nor a woman. His identity was lost due to the lack of acceptance by the audience. What made this example stand out more than others was the vast audience that tuned into watched Jamie's performance. The audience did not just include the judges but the other dancers that were in the same theatre as well as each and single individual that tuned into watch the show, be it live or a re-run. Jamie now whether he likes it or not is going to be performing his gender and identity 24/7. Anytime that episode is aired on television, anytime the clip is played on the internet, there is going to be an audience judging his performance and deciding if they will accept him (her) or not.

http://www.fox.com/dance/

http://youtube.com/watch?v=6xdGy9iuPCM

Not the specific contestant but these are some sick dance moves!!