Too Much Media?

When I thought about this topic, I thought it would be easy, and I could rant about how everything has changed because of our continually evolving electronic media. But then, I looked up the definition of media at Merriam Webster. Surprise! What a morass I discovered. Media in the meaning I meant it as is plural for medium or ‘a channel or system of communications, information or entertainment’ (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2004). Right now we have so many channels of media people are getting lost in them.

That was one of a number of meanings. Medium also refers to the size of something; medium lies between small and large, or in being in a middle position. Medium is also a way to effect or convey something such as money allows in trade. It can also be a surrounding or enveloping substance such as water or oil containing pigments to create paint; or a mode of artistic expression (paint, pencil, pastel, ink, photography, etc.). A medium is someone who has a channel between here and the world of spirits, which I suppose in another communication method if you believe such. And the medium in environment is where something flourishes, such as roots thrive in soil. 

The meanings for media also offer some interesting takes on the word. AND this is only one singular-plural combination of one word with multiple meanings in the English language! No wonder using words can lead to so much misunderstanding, and yet words are the basis of communication.

Communications media deals with the visual, audio, gestural, and written aspects of presenting messages. From ancient times we have oratory which is often linked to gestural inclusion including hand and face movements and vocal inflection in speeches, sermons, prayers, and plays (let alone just talking to someone); visual communication is whatever we see and so includes the design of architecture, painting, sculpture, written, carved, and sewn, and all are open to interpretation. Since the 19th century, we’ve added photography, radio, TV, movies, and videos. Within the last forty or so years we’ve added the computer media, the Internet, and other digital devices. Is fashion a medium? I think so as it is a form of self-expression which is important in many media. I’ve probably missed some, too, plus many of these media have genres added into the media. 

Communication is important in employment. Many forms of media affect business. Media companies need employees and purveyors who want to spread their particular medium's usage. Most businesses use the medium of advertisement to spread their product's usage while increasingly using digital communication between management and workers.

With 7.5 billion people on Earth that gives a very wide array of interpretations for any communication. No wonder we have so many miscommunications. 

Can media become addictive for the general public? Yes, but maybe a necessary addiction. We know of a growing problem with many addicted to digital devices, but sometimes in more of the drug type of addiction. This is not new. People have been addicted to different types of media before, such as TV. Was Socrates addicted to oratory? He did a lot of it; most artists, musicians, and actors strive to succeed in their medium, too. Are they addicted or just driven to succeed?
 
Communication is necessary for everyone's mental and physical health. We all need to be connected to our world, and media helps us achieve this even to creating a global community.  

The most essential medium, though, is the vocal and gestural communication between family and friends in the present, real world. Yet when a person ignores what is happening in real time-space for what happens in the digital world, it can cause problems such as isolation which leads to depression. To ignore what it happening in real-time for the digital world makes the medium dangerous.

Staying Current in a Digital Age

As I've aged, I've found it hard to keep up with current trends in music, art, new phenoms, and changes in human perspectives, usually of those younger than me. I don't listen to much of the new music, its musicians and singers, and often not to the newest actors or artists in any medium including the movies which I used to love. Their messages do not address me. My son informed me the older you get, the faster time passes, and it certainly seems true. I also think this might happen because we are in very different time frames, perhaps because I've already collected many memories while those younger than me are still in the collection process.

Matter of fact, I think I've become rather reclusive. At the same time, I think I have more cognitive outlooks and broader perspectives and understanding on everything over what I once had. I think, too, that I've become more open-minded and interested in different cultures, personalities, and perspectives.

The digital age has greatly changed the way everyone lives and interacts with everyone else. Some of the changes are very positive, like how books and other media are available on digital devices, and some are the exact opposite, which is beginning to be proved harmful to its users. Keeping up with the changes in technology can be difficult and cause trouble, not only in a knowledge of technical accomplishments but also in the user's face-to-face relationships.

Knowing information is gathered on everyone worries me about the lack of privacy. Plus this information can be on crimes committed (so far I've committed no legal ones only social mishaps), sentences served, economic position, employment, relationships, etc., with no limit on the time frame on which this information can be kept online.

Now we face artificial intelligence and how it might control our lives. A recent 60 Minutes episode spoke to Chinese venture capitalist Kai-Fu Lee on that country's developing AI. It showed the facial recognition of facial emotions. With the tracking of already in place with public cameras how soon will it be before people cannot move without digital knowledge? I find it rather scary and wonder how it will affect everyone in the future.

Isn't funny how technology has also changed how we describe relationships? They can be face-to-face in real-time and reality, or online and digital which can stretch the time frame of the interchange. Yet, online meeting apps redefines face-to-face. I suppose those apps provide face-to-face in real-time, even if everyone is hundreds of miles apart.

All the things people once gathered to appreciate can now be experienced online, but differences abound. The experience of being one of a massive crowd at an event and the different senses it engages and the expectations engendered is far different from experiencing such an event while sitting alone and plugged in. It also gives access to episodes some would like to forget, but hundreds of thousands of viewers find humorous. Immersion in social media can create a void in a person's life of what is really going on around not only them and their community but also the rest of the world.

In some ways this advantage changes humanity. Constant use of technology makes users cogs in a network and might lead to a dehumanizing effect. Learning about its use in bullying and spreading hate and disinformation already seems to indicate this phenomenon. On the other hand, the ability to attend an online class from home and arrange your time around job and family commitments makes learning more accessible than being tied to attending a classroom at a certain location.

Another digital connection problem seems to be what many forget: a large portion of the human populations and cultures are not connected through technology. Those with better circumstances and easy availability to communication sometimes remain unaware of how those who live in very harsh or neglected environments survive. This ignorance also makes it difficult to gain awareness of these people.

Moreover, attending to all relationships on your iPhone dramatically changes those relationships. Being in the presence of another person, family, and friends, or even strangers, changes relationships more than just talking and hearing or seeing them. The sense of touch, missing from digital, adds a dimension to close relationships. Holding someone's hand whether in a handshake or just holding for friendship or comfort, feeling the heat of that body, hugging, sharing close moments of sadness or humor, strengthens relations far more than the most heartfelt digital message. It gives a foundation for accepting another as a distinct individual and as a necessity to your own life.

A Memoriam to Wendy and a Media Conviction

I love detective stories and find the real-life programs an irresistible draw. They say fiction can't be as bizarre as fact, and I often believe that.

Last night I couldn't sleep, so I turned on the TV. Two hundred plus channels and there were only movies I've seen at least three times each, reruns of programs I didn't like when they were new, and The Investigators.

On the show, Chuck Chambers at the behest of the husband investigated the murder of the man's wife in Florida. Okay. Good fodder for if I ever want to write a murder mystery. And then something I never expected happened. They mentioned the man and woman's names. I knew the victim. That changed everything.

Now, a few years ago my brother told me about Wendy's murder and that her husband Ed had been convicted. Seeing this information presented as a TV show rocked me, and not in a good way.  I did not know the details of what happened. So I listened with my media doubt alert on high.

Reading this, I hope you know not everything you hear is true, and that there are often multiple versions of true. The investigator raised doubt about the husband's conviction. What I heard and saw was one version of the truth. But an incontrovertible fact remained that Wendy was murdered.

I know others who have had acquaintances and loved ones murdered. It is a sad commentary on humanity and a strong comment on our culture that we use their tragic stories for entertainment. I hear you--guilty as charged.

So here is my testimony to Wendy. I graduated from high school with her. I can't say we were best friends, but perhaps good acquaintance-type friends. She was a lovely girl with a beautiful smile that lit up her eyes. Wendy was friendly and had a contagious laugh. There was often a spark of mischief in her eyes, but kindness lingered there, too.

Like so many others, I lost touch with even my closest high school friends. Some of my classmates, I must admit to my shame, I barely remember. I remembered Wendy. I just had no inkling of what happened in her life after graduation. Times change. People change. I hope I am a better person now. I'm sorry murder cut Wendy's life short. No one deserves that. I wish her peace in her afterlife, and I hope those who loved her found peace, too.

Changing Boxes for the New Year

I've decided to do away with my standard web site rhobinlee.com, which I've had since '03. Instead, I am in the process of moving my site to this blog, with many changes of course, under a new domain name www.rhobinleecourtright.com. This is much easier than maintaining a website, plus I will have more time to write posts rather than play with HTML and CSS code. This led me to think about a fresh start with a new domain name that reflects my entire author's name. Situations are always changing, aren't they? It's like crawling out of a box--new views, new ideas, new challenges. The first one? All my followers and all the blogs I was following have disappeared. Hmm; and I bet it's too late to change my mind. Okay, so this is another dark box I'm slowly feeling my way through. I'll find the light and freedom somehow.

Web presence is important for all businesses, and especially for authors who write electronic media. Once a web page was obligatory, but the net has changed very fast. Time is still valuable, and if something can be done more efficiently, why not change? Isn't that how the New Year is supposed to engage us?

Are You Helping to Make A Difference?

If you don't watch NBC nightly news and have missed the Making A Difference segments, you are missing some inspiration from everyday Americans, the type of thing that is going to get us through this financial crisis faster than in the '30s. Go to Making A Difference and see what ordinary, every-day Americans do for strangers. I am a huge believer in random acts of kindness. It balances so much that is bad in life.

Real Characters, Stories, and Legacies

As a storyteller, everything I learn about or experience comes into play when I write. Which is one reason I like to watch people and everything in which they are involved, for, after all, stories are about people, even when they don't seem to be.

This is why this blog seems to be all over the place with no one all-inclusive topic but a rambling of thoughts and experiences.

I've heard there is no new story, and I tend to believe that premise, but there are different ways to tell it. This is what I like to try to do.

So isn't the current affairs page interesting right now? All that fodder for stories about Wall Street, banks, fraud, greed, and power. And who is pointing the finger but Representatives, Senators and other governmental staff? Funny stuff if it weren't so tragic.

Those representing the government speak of the banking industry or the financial markets as if they were entities in themselves, not institutions guided by people who are all too human. And yes, I know the synergy effect of many humans putting their efforts in one direction can create, and this can often turn into an institution that seems to take a life of its own, but it is never safe to assume human foibles can't get the upper hand. Nothing is as simple as it seems to be.

Then there is this exciting election, one based on race and gender. It might be one of historical significance than any other since the very first election. I'm sure more writers than me are watching all the chaos, pandering, hate-mongering, lies, shenanigans, hypocrisy, hysteria, promises and strong conviction of this election process. What anxiety for voters! What fodder for fiction!

Or how about religion? I told a friend more than twenty years ago that religious belief would become more important to the general population the closer we came to the turn of the millennium, and that it would take ten or more years after 2000 for the fervor to calm down. That was based on what was recorded about the year 1000. So what do we have -- a war in the Middle East and dissension between two of the major religions of the world. Since the first crusade was in 1095 ad, and taking into account the speed of modern society, it seems right on time. I eagerly await moderation and tolerance, although the hyperbole makes excellent drama. How many new crusade stories can you count?

Update: 2019: We are still at war, the longest in U.S. history.

Your Call

I’ve done something I’ve never done before. Let me first explain, I've studied media and marketing, and that I know just by talking about it, I am promoting this product, that marketers no longer seem to care about negativity, only that their product is mentioned. I'm doing it anyway.

After seeing a commercial twice on TV, I called the Frito-Lay company and complained about their commercial made by Goodby, Silverston, and Partners. The commercial in question takes place in a laundromat with two women. In a snotty voice, the tired older woman tells the younger, who has just picked up a piece of the woman's clothing from the floor, ‘that other people are trying to do their laundry, too.’ Huh? Did I miss something? Obviously, the woman missed something, like she was being helped? You know you can't trust older people; they're blind, all kids know that. The girl sees an imaginary Chester Cheetah who tells her, ‘Felicia, those are her whites in the dryer.’ Whereupon Felicia sneaks over and puts a handful of Cheetos in the dryer. Oh good! A revenge prank! How funny. You can see this on YouTube.

Most of the comments about the commercial on YouTube seemed positive (probably from the 18 to 23 crowd who have never done six or more loads of family laundry in a laundromat — do you suppose this applies to those who dreamed this ad up at advertising company, too?), but I think most of the kudos were for the young actress, Felicia Day, who has at least five comedic episodes about a group of computer gamers she wrote and acted called ‘the Guild’ on YouTube. Very funny stuff. The commercial has the same insouciance as the YouTube episodes. Since I haven't seen this commercial lately on national TV, I'm assuming they placed it on YouTube to reach their target market.

The woman from Frito-Lay® (I had to go to their Cheetos® website and with a little searching found a number — and guess what? The website is aimed at children) was very polite and said Frito-Lay® was always interested in their customers' views, both good and bad. I explained I love Fritos® (good kayaking snack), I love Cheetos®, too (just have to contain my love for these fat-laden products), but told her what I thought about the commercial. She offered me some coupons, and I accepted and hung up. A few days later I received an envelope in the mail with three coupons for any Frito-Lay® product up to $3.49 and a letter. I guess I wasn’t the only one who was appalled at the ad's message. The letter stated the commercial was ‘intended to be a tongue-in-cheek, light-hearted way for us to talk about Cheetos®’ … and … ‘In the adult-focused advertising, Chester Cheetah has gone from a larger than life character to an inner, mischievous voice for adults.’

Speech fails me. My mind reels and spirals downward on so many levels over this whole episode. If interested, go view the commercial and form your own opinion. If you like light-hearted mischievously vengeful, well hell, I’ve just passed into the old fogy part of my existence and my steps have slowed too much to keep pace with today’s society. If you are impressed or unimpressed, call Frito-Lay® at 1-800-352-4477. They answer the phone Monday — Friday, 9:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M., Central Standard Time. At least the coupons pay for your time. I wonder if Frito-Lay® is going to pay for all the re-dos of white laundry loads? Because you know some young 'adult' is going to think its just too funny to pass up a prank opportunity and snippy elders abound in laundromats.