Hi. HERE are the lecture slides for this week.
Feel free to expound on some of our discussion questions:
1. Discuss Chouliaraki's typology of news items on suffering.
2. Media fatigue? Or compassion fatigue?
3. What is the significance of the concept of proper distance?
4. What are the continuities and discontinuities of Orientalist discourse in contemporary media?
Alternatively, you can post about the class presentations. I'm expecting similar work at a larger scale for your case study.
HOMEWORK for WEEK 7
1. Read Gillespie's Media Audiences Ch 4. Available in Filipiniana.
2. Prepare for an essay-based quiz based on the Gillespie reading.
3. Submit working case study proposal (title, research questions, abstract, key concepts, methods). Feel free to email me at bertiebott@hotmail.com for consultation.
4. Website posts this week count as 10-point quiz grades.
As there are many Potterfans in class, you can reflect upon the media event of the Book 7 launch from an audience/fan perspective. Happy reading!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
22 comments:
Hi Sir, I've been reflecting on Chouli's theory about media fatigue, and I think that man is headed toward an age I will call the Age of Apathy. Since the development of media technology is only progressive, meaning that there is no such thing as the undevelopment of media technology (or technology in general). Hunamity will only get better at creating devices that help us feel connected to all parts of the world. It is also because of globalization that this is happening. Indeed, we are breaking down the barriers in all aspects of life. This allows us to be witnesses to some event that happens in the other side of the globe. But this constant 'witnessing' of events through media has made the images of violence and suffering old in our minds. When I heard about the genocide in Darfur on BBC I thought to myself "Genocide nanaman..." It was only when i researched about the genocide in school that i truly felt the gravity of the situation. I am amazed at how fast technologuical development is going. I think we are going on hyper drive when it comes to technology. One has to ponder about when this technological overdrive will reach overheating. It is both a blessing and a curse that this is happening. Because in all things, too much of a good thing is bound to become unenjoyable.
Kryng
Yesterday, I overheard an Atenean say, in the context of the SONA, that rallies are pretty much useless nowadays and that we should just “let [PGMA] finish her term.” The people around that person agreed vigorously. While this sounded like fairly acceptable opinion, it got me thinking if there’s truth in what people say that the Filipino youth, and Filipinos in general have grown indifferent. If yes, what led to this seemingly apathetic demeanor?
Year after year, SONA after SONA different groups clamor for the sake of their own objectives. While relatively more media coverage and hype is focused on the assemblage along Commonwealth Ave. than the SONA per se, does visibility equate to attention (from the target audience, i.e. those in power)? With all the media time rallyists get, it seems like the real issues are sometimes ignored. What common citizen doesn’t get tired of watching tired and/or angry faces on TV, most of which you can’t tell from the next? Your run-of-the-mill media fatigue—check. Even the way these news bits are treated promulgates a kind of othering. Instead of feeling one with the rallyists, the only thing this hype manages to elicit is a warning to motorists and commuters. Rallies look, feel and seem “too far” away. Is this what our already half-baked democracy have become—a register of groups chanting and whining for more attention, heat-stricken faces and bodies on a screen? Or perhaps the question should be, is this what Filipino media has morphed into?
But then again, perhaps history has finally managed to teach people a lesson—that Filipinos should see the donut instead of the hole. But the lesser of two—or more—evils is still not decent enough to carry our country out of its current slump. Sometimes, this settling for less than best makes me think that we draw Orientalist discourse on ourselves, too. Case in point, while we make allowances for a former President who robbed our country of its invaluable money (and dignity), we condemn the former US President who was not able to keep his delicates in his pants. Do we, as a nation, expect less of our leaders just because we don’t have the USA’s so-called “perfect” democratic system? (Another, those of us who can, followed Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie’s tirade, or the Brangelina versus Team Jen clash while we continue to look at Pinoy showbiz as “jologs” or “baduy.”) Why do we feel “closer” to and envy the US when some, if not most, of their concerns do not even mirror ours? This sort of escapism can be read as a counterflow of compassion fatigue. We are desensitized, tricked into believing that since we can’t effect immediate changes in our country, we should turn to the West for a physically distanciated, thus more pleasurable voyeuristic, pseudo-socially concerned experience. Call it colonial mentality, making friends with THE Superpower, whatever you like.
Apathy? Maybe it’s not that we don’t care. We just set our sights and concern to farther, Western pastures and sited our country at the periphery of our existence. (Excuse my sarcasm.)
Re: media fatigue/compassion fatigue
The problem with the presentation of most quote-unquote bad things happening in the world is the fact that most media outlets tend to sledgehammer you with the information ala "THESE PEOPLE ARE DYING, DYING I TELL YOU!!!!!!!!!!"
And quite frankly, if you're going to turn on the boob tube after a long day of work and you're looking to relax, that's quite frankly the last thing you want to hear, more grief and pain and suffering, so the viewer is inclined to watch other fare.
Which is why I think something like the American Idol Gives Back show is great because you would not normally reach American Idol viewers through standard means like ads (ONE Campaign) or news segments. By easing it in gingerly while still keeping them entertained, you enthrall a wider audience that will be more likely to contribute, without having to go with resorting to very unsubtle methods.
I don't wholeheartedly agree with the concept of media fatigue as we do still have some degree of control over our media intake, and we still do think when we turn on the tube. thus, proper distance might really just be proper closeness... meaning we are not close enough, not necessarily to the point of sensationalizing a tragedy but eliminating some alienation from the other.
As for orientalism or Other-ing, i wonder if the concept of the Other could be completely eradicated by globalization. We could go so far as to eliminate cultural distinctions (if this is ever possible), however, geographical distances and physical appearances still can't be disregarded. (this is just a stream of consciousness now.)
as for orientalism, the first time i heard this term was on japanese films, wherein Japaneseness would actually be emphasized, like in akira kurosawa's films for example. funny how the term orientalism is based on a western standpoint yet the orientals themselves (more specifically the japanese)view themselves, or would like to be viewed, from such a perspective.
there's actually a book of stock images called the nihonjiron which is how Japan would like to be viewed. Funnily enough, the things exchange students say about Japan are the same things you can find in the book, e.g. "Japan's economy has risen out of the ashes of war," etc.
Interesting point about Japan, Dre. That's another excellent example of "internalized Orientalism" (Fanon), where the non-West see themselves through a Western lens.
Media Fatigue? Compassion Fatigue?
Sir, I actually think that compassion fatigue was caused by media fatigue. I mean, media has been sensationalizing each piece of news and it's just really tiring to hear another one. Take for example, the issue of the whole Garci scandal a few years back, it was quite alarming at first, but after hearing it every minute at each television station and reading about it in the news, it does become kind of old and well, pathetic. I think that the problem with media is that they say everything that they think they can say, excercising their so-called freedom of speech but they never really pointing out what it means especially to us, the citizens. We've been so saturated with those polititians blaming one another and never having the actual chance to know the truth. Which leaves people indifferent about the whole situation because they think that the whole issue is way out of thier concern. It's even kind of sad when they make fun of it, just goes to show how much thay don't really care.
about concept of proper distance
I have taken Levinas in Philosophy and we have talked about proper distance and proximity towards the Other, and I think that these are one of the things that media practitioners forget about today. You know how shows like TV Patrol seem to highlight news that show this guy bieng hit by the victim's mom after he was accused of raping so and so... and there's always this one shot of the mom beating up the suspect, to make it seem that justice was served, no matter how inappropriate the methods are. And yes, the suspect may be guilt the show doesn't care, it has action.
So, I guess, proper distance only implies respect, that no matter how juicy the story is, there is still some sense of ethics that should be observed.
- Myka M.
hello sir! i think the media fatigue is something that we can all relate to with regards to certain media events (the war in iraq for example) but i do also think that we are able to exercise a certain amount of control over what we watch on tv. I for one, dont watch much tv and go to youtube instead. it is in cases like these, i think, that exemplifies how the media of our generation has evolved, showing how we still ultimately are able to choose what we view.
on the issue of orientalism, i dont think of it as something threatening or offensive especially if we take note of where it stems from. sure the western (like the US) media tend to generalize and portray asians in a certain way. but at the same time, asians media is also guilty of generalizing
Americans in a certain way.
still i think that orientalism is far from an all-encompassing thing with regards to western media. films like "lost in translation" and hey even "tokyo drift" show an interesting side of japan that american media often overlooks. :)
-franz
my turn! my turn!
Many eons ago, before I entered college, it was my ultimate dream to make PSA's and creative material for Unicef. I thought that it was just a matter of being a good enough director or designer. But having been exposed to all sorts of media concepts and theories made me realize that it's not just a matter of mere talent anymore. Three years and a million and a half help-them-they're-dying images later, trying to communicate a heart-wrenching, action-provoking message seems more daunting than ever. With all the (sym)pathetic images bombarding our screens now, imagine how much harder it’ll be in the years to come?
Media fatigue and compassion fatigue are very much relevant, not just to the audience who experience these things, but also to the producers who try to connect to the audiences. Perhaps the overdose of shocking images is because each one is trying to outdo the others in communicating the message better. In trying to keep up with the fast-paced media, the producers have outrun their audience, and the tired audience couldn’t care less to keep up anymore.
As someone who would like to work on the side of the producers, the task of using media to generate compassion is one of the most challenging things I can think of. Because in this case, it’s not just about grabbing people’s attention and making one’s ad noticed; it’s about making the audience care. And how can a producer make its audience care if it doesn’t care about its tired audience? I think media fatigue and compassion fatigue are very serious issues, because they get in the way of actually helping people and making a difference.
Hi Sir!
Before anything else, I was going over the slides from the last lecture, and I really found the quotes from Silverstone's Media and Morality striking. Would you know where we could get a copy of the book? Is it for sale in the Philippines? How about Chouliaraki's The Spectatorship of Suffering?
Anyway, here are my comments on Chouliaraki's typology of news items on suffering and the significance of the concept of proper distance:
a. Adventure News --> suffering or othering without pity
I understand adventure news to mean reports wherein distant suffering is merely presented as is, without any attempt to invite the viewer to empathize or sympathize with the other. In journalism lingo, adventure news just answers the 5W's (who, what, when, where, why) and one H (how) without answering the questions, "So what?" and "What now?" In relation to the concept of proper distance, I think that adventure news would be the reports wherein the other is depicted as too far from the viewer.
Perhaps an example of adventure news would be the use of figures of dead or injured people. How can the media expect us to pity numbers?
b. Emergency news --> suffering and othering with pity
Unlike adventure news, emergency news somehow tries to engage the viewer. The viewer here feels that he/she is not totally distant from the other and can, at the very least, feel for the other. Here, the other is now more closer to the viewer as compared to adventure news.
An example of emergency news would be the reports on victims of floods and other natural disasters wherein they are interviewed and are able to narrate their ordeal and feelings.
c. Ecstatic news --> reflexive identification
Ecstatic news explicitly tries to get the viewers and other interviewees not just to feel for the other but also to do something for the other. Hence, the viewers become closest to the other. Here, the effort to rouse the viewer and other sources to action is strong enough to enable reporters to transgress the journalistic norms of objectivity and detachment.
An example of ecstatic news would be the reports on the Southeast Asian tsunami. I can't remember the specific reports but it seems that ecstatic news really surfaces whenever there's a great disaster.
On the significance of the concept of proper distance: As I've mentioned in the explanation on the typology of news suffering, the concept of proper distance is vital in challenging the viewers to recognize their moral obligation in the face of mediated suffering. At the same time, it also calls media practitioners to a responsible representation of the other that is appropriate to the topic's context and specificities. =D
- Ayee Macaraig
Hi Sir
After reflecting on Chouli's typology of News on Suffering. I wanted to look back and talk about WHO exactly constructs these kinds of typologies...The adventure, the emergency, the ecstatic. All are ways of grabbing and keeping our attention. Making something that could typically sound "boring" and "academic" to something "riveting" and "emotionally shattering." Not to say that some stories indeed shake our very realities, but im talking about how some news stories can be constructed in an entertaining way in order to increase ratings and increase interest. I noticed that HOW people say things is just as important as WHAT is being said. These minor elements that we see, the music in the background, the slow motion screen shots, all contribute to the overall feel of the news story. So my question is, is this really news? or Is it an attempt to romanticise reality to capture our attentions? Id like to question the politics surrounding each news story.
Id also like to point out how we experience these news stories. Often times, our points of contact are the television, the documentary, the newspaper, or through the internet. We do not have a direct contact with these "others". Our experiences with them are through the experiences that are presented to us. Because of this kind of experience, we are forced to accept the "Other-ing" of the "others" because we have no other source of information...
Therefore, it is also hard to take them into our own realities and accept them as real issues. Because they can be presented in a romanticised/ adventurous way that is similar to movies. Is it possible that we fail to distinguish the line between reality and entertainment? Does the lack of first hand experience result in us classifying them into the latter?
Media Fatigue is a real experience that we all go through. With all the clutter, it is a battle for audiences attentions... But despite the benefits of media in broadcasting an important issue, (i.e. spreading the cause, increasing information to a wider audience), too much of it can cause audiences to block out their intial sentiments to this issue and thus, leave them desensitized. Perhaps media fatigue leads to compassion fatigue...
- Vicky Herrera
PS I deleted my old comment because of gramatical errors! :-)
Regarding orientalism and the other, I'd like to focus on comics, specifically manga. It is very funny that an Asian medium like manga has a solid following in the US comics scene. Their popularity there is incredible. This, of course, may help in the continuity of orientalism, seeing as they (US) translate the Japanese titles in English. Hence, they (ideally) should also translate the Japanese culture exactly. If they filter out some things, we can't really tell unless we know both languages and cultures well. Can this be seen as a new form of control over what the US audiences see?
Over here in Asia, manga has long been debated as a bane, an impediment to the growth of Asian comics since its distinct art style is almost always copied in a way in comics all over Asia. Here in the Philippines, manga (and anime) is overly popular. Most comic artists draw in a more manga style than the traditional Filipino art style. This subject is obviously very tedious/complicated to explain but basically, I think this situation can be seen as an sort of continuing teh orientalism of manga not only in Asia but also in the Western countries.
This is not to say that manga had a negative effect on comics. To be honest, manga revived the stagnant/fledging interest in comic shere in the Philippines and likewise increased the interest of Asian comics to the US market.
From a comics critic's POV, I think that the art style matters little as long as the comics creator makes good use of the style. Of course, in these times of fledging originality, one can only assimilate styles in order to better address that "question" of distinctiveness in various comics for a specific country.
As a final note, orientalism in comics is a two-edged sword. It does attract the West to Asian cultures but for how long this interest will last is debatable. Another thing to remember is that this orientalism can equate to the West seeing all Asian comics as manga in style, since most Asian comics are drawn LIKE manga, even if they admit it or not. But for me, as my friend said, the story (of the comics) is what's more important. Style is just a shallow matter.
-Hub
Btw, HERE is a link to a great read on which i based my comment.
compassion fatigue/media fatigue:
I think it’s not really much of media bombarding us news of suffering, but us choosing not to be 'there' for "others". Although I agree that media do tend to ‘sledgehammer’ audiences of news of death, suffering and all that, it is us not choosing to empathize with others that are far remote physically, culturally, or whatever word you may want to insert here, that plays the part more. By ignoring the other we make ourselves unavailable, thus creating further distance. Then they’re just too ‘far’ from us, even though they can be right in front of us. Example, the beggar on the street, the street children knocking on the car window, the so-called 'kalabit-penge’s'. People, at least most of them, simply ignore them.
It's just plain apathy, not choosing to do something about it is what's the problem. Given that suffering has seemingly become so prevalent, with the media facilitating the flow, we become too complacent of such suffering that we tend to see it as being normal, thus justifying our inattention and/or inaction.
I guess my point is that our concern has become something as not really "other-friendly"
- zulueta
Franz and Adrian are the American apologists in this class, I see. :) Franz, what "interesting things" about Japan is represented in Lost in Translation and Tokyo Drift?
Adrian, about the Other in the context of globalization... it is good to point that globalization will not (and SHOULD not) eliminate the Other. If we respect the proximity-distance dialectic, we have to be respectful and accepting of other people's difference and not subsume everyone to a global "we".
Myka, I agree with you about how media's relentless, in-your-face, 24-hour disaster marathons or spectacle marathons contribute to the numbing and desensitization that audiences feel. And Philippine media is especially known for this overkill. As in pigang-piga ang issue, nawawalan ng Mystery!
Hi sir!
I think that although media has time and again magnified the same things, the root of the fatigue is too much othering. The more the camera tries to capture a pitiful moment in the lives of these people, the more the audience sees the gap or the discrepancy between them and what is being shown. They are objectified and boxed (in a box no bigger than our television sets) in a context that the audience identifies as something far from or even worse, incommensureable from their own lifeworlds. Othering is an unavoidable effect of trying to arouse compassion and sympathy. And to constantly remind the audience that these others continue to exist despite attempts to help or to reach out to them can lead them to be disensitized.Hence, compassion fatigue sets in. It's not running out of compassion but running out of reasons to stay sympathetic when it does not do anything to free the other from their suffering. :)
Kristine Faustino
Tami, I share your concern/sympathy with producers of media images. Although I wholeheartedly believe in our cause to be CRITICAL about media producers, especially if we regard the media as central in the politics of marginality and difference, I do see also how media producers are in an unenviable position. With every move that they make, with every choice of shot, people will always find something to say. But our objective here is to provide spaces for dialogue and spaces for alternative discourses to emerge if we are indeed to strive for inclusion and respect for the Other.
Ayee, those are brilliant examples for Chouliaraki's typology of news items on suffering. That's an essay (or even a case study or thesis) waiting to be written right there! My Media and Morality book is with Leloy right now; I'm getting it from him next week. You are free to borrow/photocopy it. Leloy also told me that, as lecturer, I can order as many books as I want from the Rizal Library. Today I placed an order for both books to be stocked in Rizal. (Should take three weeks or so, I think). I am in the process of pitching an elective on Media and Morality to the Department. Please tell me if you may be interested. As you know, media studies electives are perpetually in the periphery. :)
Vicky, your point about audiences and how they experience news stories and (in turn) how they relate to the Other is a very significant issue that we will discuss in this course. We will touch on it tomorrow, but this will be developed fully in our culminating block on "cosmopolitanism."
Hub, I'm curious to know how Orientalism figures, if at all, in the content aside from the style of manga. To look at whether discourse is present (or not), one needs to look at form/style as well as narrative.
Hi Sir,
Media fatigue and compassion fatigue is a problem because people(including myself) will eventually get numb and de-sensitized to the shocking and fantastical media now. This is even a problem in marketing. All of these different people screaming for people's attention. Depending whether the style of the ads are over the top and extreme or overly simplistic or minimalist these ads are trying to set themselves apart from other. After being bombarded with all of those supposedly original ads one tend to feel overwhelmed and after a while we start ignoring similarly styled ads. Or the ads aren't just as effective to people anymore.
That would be the same case with media today I guess. After being bombarded with these images of dead people in crime scenes or bodies in the morgue on tv most of the time I don't feel muct sympathy for the dead person. The victim or whatever is now excluded from my conciousness. Instead of "Oh my God someone just died!" to "Ok, there a dead guy on tv." So I think there has to be constant change the way new is presented to keep the audience captivated else people will start to feel de-sensitized or lose interest.
But I also think that media need to learn to have a little responsibility. For example a Danish National Newspaper PUBLISHED different caricatures of Muslims, specificaly about their religion. (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/75/Jyllands-Posten-pg3-article-in-Sept-30-2005-edition-of-KulturWeekend-entitled-Muhammeds-ansigt.png)
I first saw these cartoons on CNN I think last year. I was really shocked with the image of the Prophet Mohammed with a bomb as a turban. Of course its not as if Christianity hasn't been bashed before with images that can be a bit offensive but it did not recieve the reaction that it did with the Caricatures of Mohammed. The Danish National Newpaper could have exercised a little bit of sensitivity, but they didn't so the reaction was of outrage. There were Muslims rioting in the streets of London saying they will bomb Denmark, Denmark will pay, they love Osama.
Anyway that was a digression, anyway because of media fatigue and compassion fatigue sometimes I can't help but not care of the supposedly shocking images on tv. Im just not shocked anymore...
Firstly; Media Fatigue is apparent and will only get worse with respect to reasons already cited. [perennial battle for viewership, normalization of supposedly shocking news, et al] But us (ahem) advertisers would like to think that this need not always be the case, for there is a way to “Rise above the Clutter”. In a nutshell, it is to establish a brand not emblazoned with a BUY ME sign but rather an undersized “buy me” sign. Subtlety is key, not pushing and shoving for the consumers to purchase your product. Brands have to establish a lovemark connection with the clientele.
Well, the point is Media Fatigue is only present because media practitioners are all trying to get to their audience through one little avenue. And it’s all cramped up. What they need to do is to find or establish a new street to get through to them subtly by connecting through a lovemark. Rise Above the Clutter.
Sir. Is there such a thing as a fully objective portrayal of an occurrence? Whether it be a film or some news channel covering. Doesn’t human intervention immediately make anything subjective? [whenever it goes through a mental distillation of any sort or a brutal editing by maladjusted network executives] Prolly the least we could do is portray events responsibly. Show both sides of the coin in order for the viewers to be able judge fairly and act accordingly. Be responsible enough to not leave any critical bit of information out. I’m saying this coz I read an article yesterday off PDI Metro page A22 with a banner “Heat Wave Kills 500; Britain Flooded”. It mentions of record-breaking high temperatures in central and southeastern Europe killing 500 Hungarians including 12 romanians, it also recounts of a similar heat wave in France in 2003 that took away lives of 15,000 individuals. This was reportedly caused by the unusually heavy rains in Britain. And by unusual, I mean “thousands of homes have already been evacuated because of flooding” unusual. And someone was irresponsible {or idiotic} enough to report that “there are no enough data to judge whether climate change was a factor in the flooding” and consequently, the deaths of 500 people. Come on, you can do better than that Reuters.
Marvin, I agree. The challenge is not to represent events/people "objectively" but fairly and responsibly. And your job as media studies students it to make your (unreflexive) journalist friends aware of this. :)
Media Fatigue? Or compassion Fatigue?
I think one cannot talk about media fatigue without discussing compassion fatigue. These concepts, for me, go hand in hand as they reinforce each other.
As we’ve discussed in class, compassion fatigue suggests that one becomes desensitized to images of suffering, whereas media fatigue blames the media for inaccurate representations of suffering and whatnot.
From a journalist’s or a media producer’s perspective, the main goal is to appeal to an audience, to present what is “out there” as accurately and objectively as possible. This is the business of the media, particularly of news organizations. The media are both a public watchdog and a business enterprise, and more often than not these two roles of the media clash, as represented by the type of news they broadcast. For instance, to appeal to the public, a media organization must present news in the most attractive way as possible, and this is done through the use of images. Story lineup in newscasts is dependent on the video clips that reporters gather within the day. Reporters select details from an event that would give their audiences a sense of identity with the event. Thus what is presented is politically and culturally determined. Thus, images or news reports are dependent on the context to which they are seen – either from the local’s perspective or from an “outsider’s” perspective. Since what is presented is culturally or politically determined, images or video clips follow a “formula” that work best with audiences. This can be identified by sensationalized and formulaic pattern of images or video clips being broadcast. Since this formula serves both the audiences’ and the media’s interest – infotainment on the part of the audience and ratings for the media – the same pattern of reportage proliferates, and this results in the audiences’ attitude toward the clips – they become sensationalized and detached to the images they are seeing. Thus compassion fatigue results from the overexposure of audiences’ to the formulaic pattern of images being presented. But this is not to categorically blame the media to the kind of reporting or shows they air. Obviously, the media also have interests to protect – primarily that of the state’s interest. Thus we cannot really blame CNN for showing “nationalistic” images when 9/11 happened.
One scholar said (Susan D. Moeller) that style coverage is not always an active choice – it can be the result of the logistics of covering global news. Moreover, she also said that some events are reflexively covered in the media, and that sometimes too many catastrophes are happening at once, thus “compassion fatigue may simply work to pre-empt attention of competing events.” However, sometimes the media do go overboard (media fatigue) thus people become exasperated with what they see (compassion fatigue): “The Americanization of crises also plays into this proclivity. Americans are terribly preoccupied with themselves. The Americanization of events makes the public feel that the world subscribes, and just subscribe, to American cultural icons – and if it doesn’t or can’t it is not worth the bother, because clearly, the natives are unworthy or the issue or event is. Media consumers are tied to a tether of cultural images. This is a fact well known yet rarely acknowledged. Peoples in other countries know that when they use Western icons to help define their struggles the West pays greater attention.” (Susan D. Moeller)
Hi Sir,
Yes, I'm definitely interested in the Media and Morality elective. I think I can also get some people to take it. I hope it pushes through next sem. =)
- Ayee
hi sir!
i just got my internet back..
anyway, i really am not sure i agree with the concept of media fatigue.
if we put the interest and concern issue on a graph with a slope as an illustration, it would have graceful ups and downs that consistently reaches further out to the right. the ups are the concerns of the people, and the downs are the times when the people get disinterested, or, as put by Chouli, are in the stage of "media fatigue."
but then again, in my illustration, the slope slowly but surely rises up again, which means to say that the audience will again spark interest on the issue.
what i'm trying to drive at is that human beings, by nature, CANNOT perpetually be consistent incessantly. there must be break points, or down-slopes, (just like life, you have your ups and downs, right? In religion, you don’t go to church all the time or read the Bible everyday, but if you’re a Christian, you sooner will repent your ways and get back on track. Or in your love life, you tend to get tired of your present partner and wish for another new one, or just get into a phase where you just don't care about that person and act as if you hell don’t care about him/her..then you eventually break up, or repent and try to make up, right? or just like the parable of the prodigal son...etc etc etc)
When no conclusion has been reached of the shocking issue for some time already, like maybe the first time US declared war on Iraq, or when Iraq declared the Jihad, people would step into a phase where they feel somewhat relieved of the anxiety and fear, that something terrible might happen next if they don't do something soon, and get back to their own lives so they can feed their family and get on living.
It's not that they're tired of it or don't care anymore, I believe, it's just that they're being realistic.
i mean, just because the issue is drastic and all doesn’t mean they have to give out their whole guts to it alone, right? I mean, they would have a family feed, work to attend to, etc. And if it lags on and on without any clear-cut conclusion (solution, suggestion, action, or even consequence, on the individual’s side), of course, the person would get somewhat relaxed, putting it nicely, or numb, as what the Chouli’s article says, and would tend to get on with his lifefor then). But it's not that the issue has swum over the person's head anymore, it’s just that it’s been laid back for awhile, for the moment.
Yeah, you MIGHT be affected and get killed from the war, but you would also eventually die of hunger and cold (heat, in the phils) if you don't get back to work to feed yourself and your family.
Of course, i'm not saying that the media should continue to make repetitions of the news or issues over and over again, but of course, there must be an effort from the side of the media, which acts as the mediator and ambassador between us and the "others" over the other side, to responsibly, passionately, and meaningfully deliver the problems that we should share with them, like, propose or simply give out a suggestion, or try to make the audience THINK of a suggestion, thereby allowing them to become participative citizens of this world, and of their country, to alleviate the burden of those "others" and help contribute to society, and to the world.
It's a matter of how one views the issue, and how one is introduced to the matter at hand, i believe, and also a matter of concern and interests of the personal, and public, in general.
i'd like to take the Iraq-US war as an example.
first time we heard of the news, i'm sure most of us was shocked, (but i'm also sure there were people thinking: "it's not in my country anyway, i won't have to fear being bombed, why should i care?"
most of us care,(i hope) now, some of us, if not most or all, are in a fatigue phase. it's not that we don't absolutely care and it's none of our concern, we just have it put at our backs, why? because we have work, studies, tests, parties, to attend to. right?
so i really don't believe in "absolute media fatigue"ness, or whatever,
but it's just a matter of the nature of human inconsistency and boredom,
and media must fight this by presenting new angles and perspectives, new suggestions and solutions for more participation, and continue to call in the people's attention and concern.
it's like a vocation, or calling, i believe. you don't stick to your religion everyday and pray consistently everyday repenting of your sins, you tend to miss mass, tend to be worldly, but tend to come back sooner or later, since you already have that seed within you.
this is the media's biggest trial and job, i think.
to plant a good seed to the audience.
Post a Comment