Sex in the Media - Media-Centered Perspective

The Takeover

Is there a problem with social networking? I don’t think so; there are plenty of benefits that come from these social networking websites. For instance I know there are friends that I haven’t talked to since middle school, but because of these websites I was able to find them and reconnect and catch up on the years we’ve missed. I know all people can relate to this experience because everyone has that friend that they’ve been thinking about and low and behold they have a Facebook too. So it serves well as a way to connect to old friends. Also when I look at MySpace and how people use it now as a place to share your music, many people wouldn’t be in the industry or getting their music heard if these sites weren’t here. For example look at Soulja Boy, he blew up just because everyone was listening to him on his MySpace page, and now he’s a Grammy nominated rapper. There’s no telling what else can come from these websites, we have so many options so why not explore them. Although there are some problems with the sites, I feel it all relies on how you use the website. Sometimes people just aren’t smart and thus certain things happen, but at the end of the day when using the networking sites make sure you’re using them responsible. With the way that the internet is taking over society there’s no telling what the next social networking websites are going to be like, but I just hope that society is ready for them when they do emerge.

First To Do It

It was news to us all when Ellen first came out of the closet, not so much that she was gay because I feel that was sort of obvious, it was that she finally revealed her true sexual identity. When Ellen came out she set the stage high for other famous celebrities to be themselves. By embracing her homosexuality she felt that she was being true to herself. In pop culture today we tend to look down on homosexuality. That’s why I feel most people if they are homosexual tend to keep it to themselves, especially when you’re a celebrity because your life is always being watched. So I was shocked to find out that Latin singer Ricky Martin opened up the world that he was homosexual. After all these years he finally decided to let it be known. I wonder how it feels to keep a secret like that for such a long period of time. I’m sure your close friends and family would know but still you’re living a lie to the public and that has to suck. I guess he finally was tired of living a lie and wanted to be happy again. So does the public accept him more now that he came out and just forgets about the years he lied or to they just completely right him off period? I don’t think we should hold that against him, I think he was trying to protect himself against this judgmental society, and now he felt comfortable enough to reveal his secret. But would any of this been possible without Ellen doing it first?

Fraud!

Fraud! Is that really how they feel or are they trying to portray a bigger message? Okay so last week some college students had the bright idea to spray paint a picture of President Obama on the Multicultural Center and spray the word Fraud underneath it. I didn’t get to see the picture for myself, but when I heard this it shocked me. Why, and for what reason did they do it? Alright you don’t like President Obama that’s fine everyone has their own opinion and there’s nothing wrong with that, the part that losses me is why did you have to deface Ball State’s campus to prove your point, and better yet why did on the Multicultural center. I feel that by spraying it on the Mutli (that’s what we call the Multicultural center for short) you were trying to say something to the minority students here at school. Is it that the students here are frauds? We will never know unless this person/people confess which I doubt they will. Also if you felt so strongly about this situation why not speak up instead of defacing campus. Another factor is the week before this happened N.O.M.A.S. (national organization of minority architecture students) had an event where they had people out to promote the remodeling of the Multi. Seeing as how the Mutli looks like a rundown house the students want to remodel it and they were seeking out help from the ball state campus for ideas. So was the picture in spite of that event? Trying to discourage them to do, who knows? Let’s just hope this person is caught and we can know why they did it.

Hip Hop Realness?

Hip Hop Realness, is there such a thing? Throughout the article different white Hip Hop artists were discussed and if they were real. Well I feel that the article had strong points that I could agree with. The first artist they talked about was Vanilla Ice. Yes the name says it all, with the success of his first single “Ice Ice Baby,” everybody thought that he was going to be a huge success. Well after that one hit he could never reach that type of success again, so what caused it? I think that from when he first started he wasn’t being “real.” He tried to portray this image that he really wasn’t. With hip hop it’s a lifestyle, so most of the rappers that are rapping about events actually went through them. Not Vanilla Ice, he lied about where he grew up and the high school he went to. That right there already makes me feel like if you can’t be honest with little information like that, then how can I believe you in a rap song? With hip hop to me it’s all about credibility and being who you are. If he would’ve started off by letting people actually know who he was I think he would’ve done much better. Like today there are several rappers who say they didn’t have the gangster lifestyle and all that other stuff, but people still respect them for their lyrical content because at the end of the day you’re getting the truth. So what if Vanilla Ice confessed to his true lifestyle, would that had made him a better artist? We will never know now, cause I doubt he’ll get a second chance.

The Face of Hip-Hop?

According to Prof. Griff, whoever thinks Jay-Z is the face of Hip Hop is an idiot. Well I would have to totally agree with that statement. The reason I disagree with that is because I look at what Jay-Z has become over the past years and it has been a complete change. When he first came into the rap game he was just your average rapper trying to get by, nothing out of the ordinary, but when his first album “Reasonable Doubt” was released people began to notice him. From his flow, to his style, he was the beginning of a new breed. Then around 2001 he released one of the greatest hip hop cd’s of all time “The Blueprint” this is when we begin to see the change of him from a regular rapper to the mogul Jay-Z. With roc-a-fella records doing well, also his clothing line Rocawear selling in the stores, he was slowly separating himself from the other artist, and not to mention his rap game was still on point. Then in 2006 he became president of Def Jam records which was a success, bringing acts like Rihanna, Ne-Yo, and Rick Ross to Def Jam. From there it was like he was what most artists were trying to be, even calling himself the best rapper alive and most of the artists at the time agreed. Now look at him the clothing line is still doing well, a new record label, his latest cd “The Blueprint 3” went multi platinum (very good cd!!!), and now he’s married to Beyonce. With all of that success and more to come, I’m proud to say Jay-Z is a good representation of the face of hip hop.