In his book Media Unlimited, Todd Gitlin identifies several styles of navigating the so-called "media torrent." Which style best describes you? Why? Cite a specific example of your media use (or non-use) for illustration.
Your response is due by 6 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 22.
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After reading Todd Gitlin’s Media Unlimited, I realize that the media torrent style that most fits me is being sound bitten and a fan. An example of being sound bitten is whenever I walk onto campus whether it’s going to class, the gym, a dorm or an eatery; I always have my headphones on. This sense of tuning out and tuning in to me almost creates a soundtrack to my life. Although, I sometimes try to make contact with people as I walk, I realize that just like me, they are also walking without expression and wearing white or black headphones in their ears. The sad part of this trait is that I enjoy it because it gives more meaning to the way I look at things as I pass them by.
I’m also the fan because on occasion I will look up movies or actors on the Internet Movie Database Website (IMDb.com) and become an expert on entertainment. Even though this information is useless, it causes me to become a fan of it. I usually do not watch much TV but when I do I have a set of Television shows that I enjoy as well as my friends. Shows that my friends and I watch usually become part of a conversation. My friends usually will crack jokes based off a TV episode or a popular film. I’m also an avid fan of music and collecting and adding as much music to my ITunes library as possible. I own over 8,000 songs and part of the reason is because getting the music is easily accessible by the internet.
Although, I might think I’m plugged into the now and apart of the wave of media. I usually feel that the buzzing in the ears and entertainment searches is causing me to be less connected to the world and making me anti-social. When I go off these forms of media I realize how people in society desire these devices and have a hard time having a normal conversation with another person.
The navigation style that best describes me is the Ironist. I do pay attention to trends and celebrity gossip even though I am fully aware trends come and go and celebrity gossip is contrived and ridiculous. I don’t seriously care, but I’ll give it my attention because it amuses me. I can alternate between two levels of consciousness. I watch reality shows. On one level I’m a fan that roots for certain characters and despises others, or maybe despises all of them, but still watches every week. On another level, I know what I’m watching is hardly reality, but more so scripted entertainment and junk. Then I’ll watch The Soup which mocks reality show clips and characters.
According to Todd Gitlin and his book Media Unlimited, there are different navigational styles for the ways people "approach the media onrush... respond to its temptations and risks, variously enjoying it, steering through it, trying to redirect it, and protecting ourselves against it." The style I most relate to is the Ironist. Gitlin describes the Ironist as an individual who "tries to relax and float downstream," someone who goes with the flow of things but at the same time is aware that "the spectacle is nothing but weightless contrivances." Gitlin states that an Ironist is someone who "follows Nielsen ratings, the movie box-office figures, follows gossip columns," and is actually intrigued by celebrities. In my case, none of these things are true, but I do find myself reading tabloid or fashion magazines from time to time and also like the Ironist, I know these celebrity images are fabricated and that famous people dramatically alter their appearances to make impressions. I am aware that celebrities and entertainment through media is all highly edited and for the most part fake. I do not agree with all of the aspects that make up the Ironist view in navigating this media torrent, but it is the style that I relate to the most.
A secessionist. I am most definitely a secessionist. I barely watch TV, i dont even have one in more dorm room. The non-use of cellphones and computers does not apply to me, but the reasons I utilize them resonate with the secessionist attitude.
I try not to let myself be swayed ever by advertising and political opinions. I'm also overly critical of the messages being delivered to me, never speaking my opinion on something unless I feel I have done a good job researching both sides of the argument. I'm very big on the idea that it is your own responsibility to deal with the media dispensed to you and being aware of what is being delivered to your mind is half the battle. The other half is having the "self-discipline," as Gitlin puts it, to ignore those messages. I really would want to have my children grow up in a house devoid of cable TV, if it is even around by then.
I guess a little bit of ironist can be mixed in there because some of the articles I do read are less than relevant and are for entertainment purposes only.
I will state again. It is your responsibility as an aware individual to stop complaining about what the media is doing and do something active about it. Wether it be as a jammer, or a secessionist.
I definitely feel that I would fall under the Ironist category. I absolutely see media and entertainment on two levels. I often think more than some of my friends might about a tour or a TV show. I like to try and attempt to understand why things are happening in the entertainment world, rather than solely enjoying what is happening.
A great example of this in my life is with Conan O'brien. I am a huge Conan fan because I think he is really funny. When the whole situation between him and NBC was happening, as he was getting booted from the network, I was the one looking into the actual business side of the situation, while at the same time thoroughly enjoying his final few shows.
I sometimes have to stop myself from thinking that I really know what's going on, as if I'm an insider, when really, I know inside information that I get from different media sources.
I definitely pay plenty of attention to entertainment, because I grew up enjoying it, and still do to this day. However, I take entertainment with a grain of salt. Unlike some, I know that I'm being entertained. I watch and pay attention solely because it entertains me. That is why I watch the Jersey Shore. I think they are the dumbest people ever, but it can be a nice, funny escape from life to watch stupid people do ridiculous things.
Once I read Media Unlimited, I considered all the styles Gitlin points out. The one that targets my personality and media use the most is the Ironist. I think that you almost have to be an ironist in some ways because of how media-saturated the world has become. It's like how Professor Good said that he knows how some movies are doing in the box office, but he really doesn't care. I'm like that with this style. I watch some shows like Jersey Shore and I make all the right references and joke about how so-and-so is such a moron, why are they famous, etc., but at the same time, I honestly don't care. Todd says this, which applies to me: "She reads People and Vanity Fair, follows the gossip columns [...] but makes a point of knowing that their images are fabricated, likes celebrities and politicians tailor their appearances to make impressions." That's me. I do admittedly read People magazine, scouring the gossip columns, but I know most of it, if not all of it, is garbage.
After reading the excerpt from 'Media Unlimited', I would say the navigation style that most fits me would be the Ironist. One of the main reasons I chose the major of Radio/TV Production was my desire to learn more about behind-the-scenes development of entertainment. While I love to be amused, I also am aware that most of entertainment is fabricated. That hasn't stopped me from wanting to become a knowing insider and become involved in production myself. Everytime I see a movie or watch television I often wonder about the actors themselves, how the movie/show was developed, and how many takes a particular scene might have needed. I love watching movies and therefore I always look at movie ratings or reviews before I got see one.
Because I am fully aware that politics have as much to do about appearances as their political position, yet I buy into the craze, I am an Ironist. I do follow shows like Jersey Shore and other dramas that serve no purpose and essentially make us more dumb, but I am aware of this. I do watch the Daily Show, but unlike some, I take it with a grain of salt because I do know that he is a comedian on a comedy network.
I see the special effects, the smoke, the screens, the actors and the scripts, yet I am a part of it for my own entertainment.
Ever since I can remember, I would always watch television with a critical eye. Not in the sense of content, but how the show was put together, how all the elements made the whole. I've always been interested in what takes place behind the scenes and have become very conscience of all the production decisions people had to make. I am a fan of the bonus features on DVDs, which gives me an insider's edge into whatever I've watched. I take reality television with a grain of salt and am well aware that there is hardly anything real about it. A few of my classmates have mentioned the Jersey Shore, which has become a pop culture phenomenon. I'll watch the show because it is entertaining, but I know it is scripted and if I miss a week's episode or the season finale I'll be just fine. I just laugh at their antics and marvel how it has brought them fame. Reflecting on it now, I realize that I am somewhat skeptical of all media, not in the sense that it is destroying the fabric of America, but that it is all fabricated. Out of all of Todd Gitlin's styles of navigation, I would have to say that I identify best with the Ironist. I think the fact that I'm a Media Management major furthers this because ultimately I am being trained to become a media insider.
In Todd Gitlin’s book Media Unlimited he identifies several styles of navigating the “media torrent.” The one that he talks about that I believe best describes me is the ironist. To Gitlin the ironist tries to “relax and float downstream.” They can enjoy the display on two levels at once, or alternate between them. They can take the latest stuff or leave it, along with “never being taken in by any person, cause or event,” but is more playful and less suspicious. Compared to the fan, who one could consider the most influenced by the media, and the abolitionist who Gitlin states as one who “refuses to accept their existence,” the ironist I think is right in the center. I think I relate most to the explanations given by Gitlin about the ironist in the manner that I am not obsessed with media, but I care about what is going on to a certain extent. I know what is real and what is going on, and I don’t give into anything that I know is not true. Like Gitlin states, the ironist “knows that models are airbrushed and collagened, that commercials do not depict slices of live accidentally stumbled upon, that actors are not characters, etc., but I am aware and knowledgeable about information portrayed on the television. For example, sometimes I watch the Daily Show because it is pure entertainment and amusing to watch, yet I know that in the end the Daily Show is not real news, it is just pure entertainment for the audience who cannot concentrate on real news because it is boring or does not interest them.
Based on Gitlin's styles of navigation, I would classify myself as a hybrid secessionist/ironist. I largely ignore and dislike the media. I rail against mainstream television, (most) mainstream music, and most popular internet trends. My cellphone use is very limited; a glance at the ingoing/outgoing calls on my phone for any given week will likely turn up: Girlfriend, Girlfriend, Dad, Girlfriend, Brother, Girlfriend, Dad, Housemate, Girlfriend. I live with my girlfriend but we both work and attend classes at different schools so the bulk of the calls are simple things like coordinating dinner. For 99% of the rest of my communication I simply talk to my friends/housemates directly, face to face.
I often criticize my girlfriend and housemates television watching habits and generally insist that I could live without television entirely. Unfortunately, we live in a social world and when one of the only ways TO socialize with your friends is to sit down in front of a tv with them and idly chat about the programming, it's hard not to become at least a little bit invested in the show. At the same time that I sit and (usually) enjoy the program I constantly have a dialogue in the back of my head reminding me that it is scripted, mindless and whether intentionally or not, can only dumb us down. I guess that's why I consider myself a bit of an ironist as well. I can involve myself in the mainstream media without investing in it or really caring about it.
There is one aspect of my media consumption, however, that goes entirely against my character otherwise. When it comes to hockey, I am a fan. When I have nothing to do and no housemates around to annoy with conspiracy theories and warnings about the dangers of enjoying The Jersey Shore too much, I find myself unconsciously going to my computer to read up on the latest news regarding players from all around the world, monitoring statistics, and keeping up with the latest gear to hit the market, etc. I do play hockey so it's not as if I'm deeply invested in something that I never experience in a hands on manner, but I still realize that much of that time spent online could be better spent elsewhere.
I would have to be an Ironist and a fan. Despite how much I may rail on other people for their media intake habits, I am just as bad in other ways. I may not watch the Jersey Shore but I do drop 20-30 bucks a week on comic books. I am fully immersed in media. I work for the Oracle which i now both in print and developing a web presence and I am also a web intern for Marvel Entertainment. But I do try to maintain a certain level of awareness about the kinds of media I expose myself to and I try to not let it overtake me, a difficult task when most of my time is spent in front of a computer screen.
After reading this chapter I couldn't really put my finger on one style that I associated with. I did interestingly see that I use a little bit of everything when looking at the media. I now know that I am a fan, content critic, paranoid, exhibitionist, ironist, jammer and secessionist all in one. I did notice which I think is a positive that I never fully agreed with one of these styles of navigation when looking at the media.
I would say that I’m a pretty weak fan of anything in the media but still exist in this style because I am young. I do admit that there has been times in my life where I would watch television or movies and think that what it depicted was the way reality is supposed to be and base my experiences off of ones that I have seen in the media. I mean I think we are all a little guilty of watching a movie where sex was involved as a young adult because quite frankly 14 year olds aren't having sex but “know” because of the media that it will inevitably happen and are curious to as what it will be like. As Gitlin says the goal is to “experience emotion” or in my and many other case to experience “perversion” at a young age.
Eden the content critic looks at things in a more enlightened way. I understand infotainment and I understand that the stereotypes that are portrayed in the media are negative but I cant necessarily tell what I should do with these criticisms. Personally I don't think that video games are the complete source of violence but I do see how they contribute. I don't think that it is realistic to blame the media for everything. Like Gitlin mentioned video games didn't cause columbine but I believe they definitely could have aided to the boys feelings of violence. I definitely think that the little bit of paranoia that I have about the media is then covered with what I get from being a critic.
The secessionist section of the chapter was very interesting to me because its truly something that I try to live by and envy in others. I have eliminated TV from my repertoire for the past 2-3 year and I have zero complaints. I have been learning to deal with the fact that I wont know what happened on the jersey shore the night before, and it feels awesome. Every day I try hard to eliminate a couple of minutes that I would normally be on the computer or phone, but this is hard for me. As much as I would like to not think this, THE MEDIA IS EVERYWHERE and its hard to completely abolish it from your life.
All I can do for now is be a picker chooser and critic.
After reading this chapter, I found it very interesting how Gitlin was able to so accurately describe the different types of media and their followers. I think for me, I switch between identities: I'm a fan during the football season, an ironist mostly, but am attempting to become a successionist. Sometimes I become all three at once.
For example, I can watch the Jet game on a Sunday Night, and in the course of the game 1) thoroughly enjoy the game and get into what's going on, 2) ridicule the sensationalism of the half time show, and other superficial promotion, while watching it at the same time, 3) see the same commercials throughout the game and exclaim to my friends "I hate being brainwashed by the fucking television and one day I'm not gonna have one."
And I believe that reason why these attributions of TV watchers can coexist is the weirdest thing that Gitlin points out. I can go to the deli and see a guy wearing a Jets jersey and all of a sudden my impression of him is "I like that guy because he likes the Jets" while watch television and criticize the same thing -- people liking people because of what they like (sorry if that's confusing). I allow myself to become a fan, but only at certain times.
When I act as an ironist, I think it's just due to my laziness of my procrastination. If my friends are watching a dumb reality show, I'll plop down, become emerged in it and at the same time constantly think about how stupid and fake all of it is. The scary part is that shows are appealing because they are empty -- their selling point is to look ridiculous.
The idea of being a successionist is just an ideal -- eventually I want to limit my use of television (but also the use of computers and cell phones and video games) and in a sense I've become better with that. However I know that I must become the kind of person who wants to genuinely decrease my media dependancy, instead of wanting to become the person who does so.
I would say I could fall into many categories that Gitlin identifies. Mostly I believe I fall in between the ironist and the fan category. I am an ironist and a fan because I do watch television and participate in many different media related activities, but I do realize that much of the information given to me is superficial and I rarely take it for face value. This definitely corresponds with Gitlin’s definition of an ironist, which he explains to be someone who is aware of trends and things occurring in the media, but realizes how ridiculous they are.
I am also a fan because I do know very much about celebrities, movies and television shows. I enjoy have knowledge about these things, but I do not consider myself ignorant to what media does to society. I understand the impact of the technological revolution we live in where the media rules all. I am also a fan because I do utilize many types of technology very often and it is hard not to be surrounded by media at all times. We live in a world where entertainment is king, and it is very hard to avoid all of that. I am not obsessed to the point where a Gitlin’s definition of a fan is, but I definitely am much more aware of entertainment and media related things than the ironist. Sometimes I wish I could just disconnect myself from all types of media, but it is much harder said than done.
After reading Media Unlimited by Todd Gitlin, I think I can identify with a few of his styles. First is the ironist because I, as other people have mentioned, watch the Jersey Shore and other “reality shows” for entertainment. I watch these shows because it is what people are always talking about and I want to be able to contribute to conversations. I, however, don’t feel as though I need to watch this show and do not care if I miss it. I do not have a television in my room and only watch it if it is as a social event with friends. While I watch it, I don’t consider it important or entirely true at all. I understand that it is scripted and bullshit but I watch it anyway.
I can also see how I may be a secessionist because of the fact that I do not have a television of my own and never watch television unless I am in a room where other people are watching television. I have not seen my ipod in years and I only use my computer in recent months for the purpose of e-mailing, and very occasionally facebook. I agree with Colin that the half of the responsibility lies within the audience. It is their responsibility to weigh all sides of an issue before making a decision.
I'd be hard pressed to believe that the majority of us in the class weren't at least partly Ironist. I consume a great deal of media, especially for someone without a TV. I watch a number of bad television shows, watch mind numbingly dumb movies, and read crappy things, but I'm always aware.
For instance I read GQ fairly often, and I enjoy it, but I'm also aware that most of it is one big commercial. Flipping through a random issue I have lying around (it's from January 2010), they seriously recommend spending $140 on a tie. I know that I'm not their main target demographic, and they know I'm not going to buy the tie, but I also know that they want me to want to buy the tie. It's a pretty decent looking tie, too.
Gitlin states "The ironist's style pours into the media, in the form of postmodernist knowingness." This idea, this "postmodernist knowingness" is ingrained into the minds of nearly everyone in our age group with access to Cable TV and the Internet.
That being said, I am also a fan of certain things. There are bands whose albums I will get as soon as possible, and give a disproportionate amount of slack to. A lot of it does have to do with the sense of nostalgia that Gitlin details, but I also use teh bands I listen to as "markers of distinction." Perhaps not to the extent of pretentiousness, but the seed is definitely there.
I would identify most with the fan category of Gitlin’s Media Unlimited. Since I was a child I have always obsessed over fads, which later tuned into music and other media consumption. Gitlin claims that fandom is especially of the young and I would have to agree, however in my case it has carried over into my adulthood. I view the endless torrent of media as an opportunity rather than a curse. After accepting that it is impossible to digest the entire thing, it becomes very enjoyable to savor small bites of the whole. I have used sites like last.fm and Pandora to discover new music and connect with people who share my love for certain bands. Gitlin even mentions my favorite band, The Grateful Dead, as an example of a fan community, of which I have taken part in both in person and on the web. I consider myself a fan because I enjoy the media, not as a whole, but as bits.
(this is late but i want to answer too!)
The style that most accurately fits me would probably be the Ironist. I am completely guilty of becoming obsessed with reality shows, and sometimes talking about the reality stars as if I know them. I live vicariously through these people at times but at the end of the day understand that it is totally ridiculous. I see the way people on Jersey Shore act and am repulsed by it, but yet I can't help turn it on every Thursday.. I am thoroughly entertained by the lives of these crazy people and I enjoy letting them amuse me week after week. That way, at the end of the week I can make as many jokes as I can about their antics from the previous episode.
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