Bandslam, Marx and Aer Lingus: Mass Media, Commercialism and Human Communication.

Tonight I attended a showing of Bandslam. This is a teen, high school story about growing up and taking negative and making it positive. The movie was fine, but my 13 year old daughter was sitting beside me smiling, giggling and enjoying. The experience in the moment was beautiful, a father and daughter enjoying a movie together.

The social, psychological and economic issues raised by the content were overshadowed by the moment in time. Quality time spent with my daughter, without communicating directly during the movie with each other but, experiencing the enjoyment of a media production. The product placements were obvious and were even alluded to in the dialogue of the movie. The main character once commented on the commercialization of bands and band names so that the original artistry gets lost in the commercialism.

It is interesting that the dialogue brings our attention to the over commercialization of art. Of course the lesson is ironic in its very existence in a Hollywood movie. But I wonder if it is better to have this reference in the movie or not? Is the lesson learned and/or communicated to the viewers that too much commercialism is not good? Maybe.

As educators we aspire to educate. Some (academic) bloggers argue continuously that education is not for employment but for the development of the self or the intellect. Why can't the two be interconnected?

Bandslam is probably a mediocre movie overall but it is a very professional production. Is there really anything wrong with helping students be capable of working on a professional Hollywood movie like Bandslam or on TV news or radio etc? We, my daughter and I, just did two days in Universal Studios in Hollywood. The professional attitude and development of the Universal Studios theme park is of a very very high standard.

Interestingly, I spent a lot of my time there critiquing the commercial aspects of the park but was asked to complete a survey as I left. I did. I could not fault the place for entertainment and courtesy of staff. Maybe it is a little pricy but I just thought that it was a great experience with my 13 year old daughter (if commercialism is ignored).

Is there really anything wrong with the commercial characters and the themes? Is there a better model? What is it? Let's be realistic with our answers. Is a Marxist (society) theme park really feasible? If so, how?

As I ready for my one way trip to Ireland on an Aer lingus flight I have heard from a responsible source that Aer Lingus is stopping direct flights from San Francisco to Dublin because of Irish Trade Unions demands. I am informed that the requirements made for Aer Lingus crews on long haul flights are over and above the requirements made and granted to other air transport companies.

I'm all for the employee. I'm all for less commercialism, even a little sharing and caring. But when demands for changes are made in any situation we must be careful to consider carefully the alternatives. I will benefit (it seems) from the direct flight from San Francisco to Dublin but I will be one of the last. Perhaps a little compromise could have saved the route? I don't know.

Proposing media theories which inevitably tear down the structure of the media without an appreciation of how it actually works is a one sided pedagogical approach. A little compromise/balance might give the student an appreciation for the theories of Marxism, sociology and psychology WITHIN the structure that is reality. Knocking it all down all the time will only turn them against one side or the other. We can engage the theories of criticism while at the same time appreciating the profession which the students are expected to operate within, hopefully happily.

What I do know is this. A Hollywood movie on a Friday evening in San Francisco was enjoyed thoroughly by a 40 year old man and his 13 year old daughter. It gave them material for discussion and chat. They smiled and giggled at happenings on the screen which identified that they had something in common. Laughter.

I'll take this experience without questions. Hollywood or Marx - at the end of it all, it is about human communication.

Advertising for religion in Ireland

The Minister for Communications said "advertising shouldn't be used for promoting a particular religion or as an agent for recruitment" (Minister for Communications in Ireland, Eamon Ryan). Why not? This is an interesting statement from the Minister for Communications. Is he dictating what we can be exposed to? What's next? Will he be inclined to say that a company like Microsoft should not be allowed to advertise their corporate motto? Or will he tell us that a bank organization should not advertise investment accounts?

The 2001 legislation, to which the Minister refers when he says that it is interpreted narrowly, says that, "an advertisement which addresses the issue of the merits or otherwise adhering to any religious faith or belief or of becoming a member of any religion or religious organization" is not allowed for broadcast.

The light is being shone on this issue after Veritas, a company which sells books and things, and is owned by the Catholic bishops, was unable to satisfy the wording requirements for an advertisement. The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) said that the phrase "Christmas: aren't we forgetting something" and "Why not give a gift that means more?" was not in keeping with the rules. In 2007 the word "crib" had to be removed from the text of an advertisement before it could be broadcast.

I don't mean to be petty about this but doesn't this all seem a little trivial? Are they having double standards here? What's the difference who is selling stuff? What's wrong with advertising for recruitment? The minister said that "at the same time, I don't want to completely restrict advertising that has a religious connotation." Why be bothered at all with advertising? If he is going to weigh in on advertising, why isn't he simply concerned with equality?

Or if you are to be concerned with advertising then where does it stop? Of course many will agree with the decision to ban advertising for cigarettes (some won't). But what of alcohol? Should the advertising of alcohol be banned? Cigarette advertising was banned for obvious health-issue connotations and this has been accepted, but we have to ask where does this intrusion on the media end? Should we ban advertising of chocolate, sweets/candy? At what point will rules and regulations cut in on our freedom of access to information? And more importantly, when is it o.k. to do so?

Cutting in on advertising seems a little intrusive to me. Advertising is the financing of the mass media (more in some countries than others). I'm no religious advocate but I don't see the big deal in taking money from a religious organization in payment for advertising. Now, I do think there are ethical issues with religious advertising and all that - but I'm open minded enough to see that these ethical issues can be argued against any kind of advertising whether it is for a size zero dress or an alcoholic drink or a mineral/soda which is loaded with sugar.

I suppose sometimes I just wonder. Why is time spent discussing these petty issues when there are bigger fish to fry? Oh, the article was published on April 1st?

Source for this post:
Minihan, M. (2009, April 1st). Controls on religious ads for broadcast to be relaxed. The Irish Times.

Ireland

Travelling around Ireland is time demanding and therefore leaves little time for writing. As I move around while listening to U2's new cd I am thinking about my next few blogs.
The rental car company told me that I didn't need an antenne for the radio to operate on the car. Note: don't believe this ever again! I like to listen to the radio stations when I am here but without the antenne, U2's No Line on the Horizon is getting a lot of play.....
More later.
T.

RTE and Racism in Ireland?

Is Irish society and the Irish media in particular ignoring the apparent racism of the post celtic tiger Ireland?

Listening to Marian Finucane, is the most popular way to learn of current events for many in Ireland. The other day, as I was travelling south through windy and wet weather I tuned in. Her show covered a lot of ground but the issue that stuck in my mind was her coverage of one particular event which happened the night before.

A bus driver was spat at and dragged from his bus and beaten. The delivery of the story was matter-of-fact but the moment I heard of harsh words uttered at the driver and the act of spitting I thought of a racially motivated attack. Perhaps I am at fault here to assume this but my thoughts were, I believe, confirmed when later in the story we were informed that the driver was a Chinese man.

If this story was reported in the U.S., I imagine the ethnic identity of the driver would have been reported close to the headline. However, in this instance on RTE Radio One, the ethnicity of the driver was made known only when an interviewee was asked by Marian Finucane. She reported the event, introduced the interviewee from a Dublin Bus company and conducted the interview. At the end of the interview, almost as if an afterthought, she asked where the driver was from.

I suggest that the ethnicity of the driver might be the headline. I suggest that there is a high probability that the event took place as a racially motivated event. I suggest that if the driver was not a "Non National" (a term I hate which is given to immigrants living in Ireland) this event might not have taken place at all.

Should the media acknowledge the ethnic identity of the characters in the story? Is it racist to ignore the racial identity of the person being reported on? Would the story be more objective with or without identifying ethnicity? Should the media be color-blind? And how can it be?

Later on I watched the RTE Television news. The story was covered and the ethnicity of the driver was not mentioned.

I wonder if the lack of importance given to the ethnicity of the driver in this story is ignoring the real headline? The real headline may be that racial attacks and racism are alive in Ireland and may be gaining traction in these economically difficult times.

In this instance, I believe the ethnicity of the driver was an important fact in the story. Educating the public to the existence of racially motivated attacks is one of the duties of the media.