Category: Homework

INTERVIEWS

1. Julia Bush (my little sister, who is 16 years old)
   1. She disagrees with the freedoms, saying that they cause more harm than good and people take them for granted
   2. Majorly supports freedom of assembly and speech
   3. Yes, she recognized the law
   4. She is Democratic
2. April Bush (my mom, who is 50 years old)
   1. She agrees with the freedoms for the most part, but doesn’t believe that they are actually represented in our government and laws well
   2. She supports them all, especially religion
   3. Yes, she recognized the law
   4. She is Conservative
3. Cheryl Holden (my nana, who is 72 years old)
   1. She agrees with the freedoms wholeheartedly 
   2. Very vocal about how she thinks freedom of the press has gotten out of hand
   3. She recognized the law
   4. She is very traditional and conservative
4. David Holden (my grandpa, who is 74 years old)
   1. He agrees with the freedoms, but mentioned he does not think they are being enacted in the way that the framers of the bill of rights intended
   2. Same as my nana, said that freedom of the press has gotten out of hand
   3. He recognized the law
   4. He is very traditional and conservative as well
5. Isaac Gibson (my hometown friend, who is 19 years old)
   1. He said he 100% supports all of the freedoms because he is an American
   2. He especially believes in freedom of speech
   3. He did not recognize the law
   4. He is religious and conservative, but possibly blindly due to his upbringing.

ANALYSIS

Comparing the two age groups, the younger generation consisting of my little sister and hometown friend, and the olde regeneration consisting of my mom and her parents, I believe it should be taken into account the culture of my hometown, it being very conservative and biblically based. Their answers were all pretty similar, my little sister being the only left leaning interviewee, but I found it interesting to hear that they all picked out different freedoms that stood out to them, both positively and negatively. I noticed a major emphasis on American pride in the responses of my grandparents, and sensed a bit of disdainfulness in my sister and mom’s responses. 

INTERPRETATION

These patterns indicate that the longer and more personal experience a person has with our country, the more value they place on the freedoms we are blessed to experience. For instance, my grandpa is a veteran and my nana a veteran’s wife. This experience gives them a very different perspective than my little sister or friend, who have not lived to be so directly impacted by the first amendment.

EVALUATION

I really enjoyed these interviews- it was a fun Thanksgiving table topic for sure!!! I believe that even though they expressed different levels of reverence and enthusiasm for the freedoms, they all know the innate value of them and understand that they are a part of our country’s law for a reason. I was very impressed that my sister knew so much about the Constitution, and alarmed that my friend did not!!

ENGAGEMENT

In this blog post, I found it very interesting to read about the differences between races and their opinions on the 1st Amendment.

This is question number 9 from the back of chapter 1 one of Media and Culture!

STEP ONE. DESCRIPTION: The 4 W’s and 1 H! Who, what, when, where, why, and how! This can be just as one would imagine- a super basic and observable description of the media.

STEP TWO. ANALYSIS: This one is alllll about the patterns we can observe throughout the piece of media! For example, some patterns could be the color scheme, the attitudes of the characters, repeated phrases, common themes, technical aspects that strive to make a statement, etc. etc. The possibilities are endless and specific to each piece of media!

STEP THREE. INTERPRETATION: This is where it gets FUN! As analyzers of the media, we get to ask “so what? why are these patterns important?” What message is the creator/author/actor/etc. trying to tell? How do the above patterns and elements work together to tell this message in an engaging way?

STEP FOUR. EVALUATION: Now, we arrive at a judgement! Was the media successful in portraying the message that we deciphered in step 3?

STEP FIVE. ENGAGEMENT: How did people receive this piece of media? Was there a positive or negative reaction? What actions were taken by the audience? Here, as the analyzer, you can also take steps to engage with and share the media as you see fit!

While all 5 steps are important to fully critically analyze a piece of media, I believe that the Interpretation aspect is the most important, in order to dive deep into the author’s purpose in creating the medium!

When asked what question drives my interest in the media, I honestly go back to the basics- why do people consume the media they do? What experiences back their interests in the content that they so readily intake, and how does it make them feel?

Personally, the media I consume is most commonly the kind that leaves me feeling positive, inspired, and content. I unashamedly put on the ‘rose-colored glasses’ that cheesy movies, shows, books, videos, etc. strive to give. Honestly, I feel as if the world around me brings enough ‘reality’ and discouragement into the picture; if an hour spent reading a sweet love story brings me joy and the encouragement to love the life I live, then so be it!

In the same breath, I am so interested in the reasons why others consume certain types of media and what extent of fulfillment it brings!! I personally don’t feel much fulfillment through media consumption, but I know that this is not the case for everyone, and I would love to learn more about the driving factor behind the scrolling of our thumbs.

That’s all for today, folks!

Simply,

Sydney