Media Criticism

Hello everyone,
I just wanted to quickly say thank you to everyone who has read this blog over the last nine months. I am leaving Media Criticism to another writer who can devote more time to posting on the good and bad in media. My other writing projects have piled up, I am teaching in the fall and I am planning other projects that allow my critical side to get some fresh air. Thanks again and I wish all of you the best.

Sincerely,
Nick

An intersection of personal reading and casual conversation this weekend led me to think again about the issue of gay marriage. I read an article in this weekend’s New York Times Magazine written by Benoit Denizet-Lewis about the trend toward young gay couples getting hitched that was interesting. The article rings true in my life even among straight couples who rush to get married due to some unseen prime mover. I was speaking with a few friends about upcoming days of silence in local schools and the primitive protests assembled by anti-homosexual students and teachers.

We need to stop letting Christian conservatives and other opponents of gay couples transpose civil unions with the institution of marriage. I would wager that many gay and lesbian couples are interested in the legal rights associated with marriage rather than the pomp and circumstance of church weddings. It would be wrong for state governments and the U.S. Constitution to force religious groups to facilitate gay marriages due to the long-accepted precedent of the separation of church and state. The only reason that gay marriage arises is that conservatives want to play off the fears of God-fearing voters who may not distinguish between the religious and legal aspects of marriage.

The allowance of gay and lesbian unions throughout the United States should be palatable for conservatives for several reasons. The fact that many gays and lesbians have been in faithful relationships for decades should show that homosexual unions have been forged with stronger materials than traditional marriages. The sinking of the Christian right in the United States due to corruption and scandals in the last eight years should force religious leaders to bring in homosexuals to bolster their faithful ranks. Free market lovers and capitalists should salivate over the millions of dollars per year that would be generated by expanding the potential marriages in need of over-priced catering and attire. It is time for groups in favor of civil unions to play these cards to expand rights from Maine to California.

Everyone who has stayed up late to watch bad movies and old TV shows is familiar with ads from non-profit groups soliciting funds to feed the poor. These commercials use heart-rending images of children sleeping in streets, drinking dirty water and dealing with other hardships to guilt donations out of TV viewers. The negative stigma of infomercials and the deeper roots of starvation throughout the world make these commercials ineffective.

Foreign Policy’s interview with UN World Food Program director Josette Sheeran provides a good overview of the issues involved in feeding the world. Sheeran’s responses to questions about the scope of the looming food crisis show that bureaucratic inactivity and narrow-minded approaches to humanitarian aid are the primary culprits. I am sure that Sheeran and other experts on this issue could point out several other reasons for poor food distribution if given more space in public policy periodicals.

It is impossible to get food from point A to point B anywhere in the world without paved roads. The lack of roads and highways in many places throughout the world lead to gathering relief packets in airports instead of aid facilities. We need to offer significant portions of each relief package toward building highway systems and public transit networks that can facilitate economic stimulus.

The bigger issue lies in the massive boondoggle that is the ethanol and biofuel industry. These alternative fuels may seem attractive with the rising price of gasoline but they are draining food surpluses. The use of corn and consumable organic materials in the creation of gas-biofuel blends is an affront to the billions of people who may starve in the next century. We need to focus on clean electric, solar and wind power to achieve affordable fuel without placing our energy burden on the backs of the poor. There is no singular solution to the problem of starvation and malnutrition in the developing world. We need to heed the warnings of people like Josette Sheeran who have seen suffering communities in person.

I was reading one of The Onion’s AV Club lists about summer blockbusters the other day that made me think about the upcoming crop of bloated, overrated films. The article listed 18 summer blockbusters from the past that did not disappoint in terms of entertainment. A subsequent list discussed the potential ruin brought by the blockbuster class of 2008 including the Indiana Jones movie and Speed Racer.

Many people would equate The Onion with humorous headlines and irreverent articles that skewer annoying aspects of daily life. The AV Club has a fantastic website and provides great reviews and insights into the world of music, movies and books. The problem I have with both lists mentioned above is that critics have been lamenting (if not hoping) that summer blockbusters in past years would force change in the movie industry.

The massive amounts of money spent on Indiana Jones and other movies may be high in terms of raw numbers. A look at the production budgets of 1997’s Face/Off ($80 million USD), 1977’s Star Wars Episode IV ($11 million USD) and 1988’s Who Framed Roger Rabbit? ($70 million USD) shows that movie studios have been willing to fork over exorbitant amounts of money to feed the blockbuster machine. The last two movies listed here are comparable to most movies that will hit theaters this summer in terms of the branding and merchandising associated with the films.

I guess I am trying to say that this summer will not be the season where movies miraculously change from shallow cash cows into pieces of art. There will not be one summer where films change; rather, consumer tastes over proceeding years will dictate the types of movies that will be shown on local screens. I look forward to ignoring the hype, listening to good radio, watching old movies and hoping that other consumers choose other forms of entertainment this summer. I am not alone in saying that my entertainment budget cannot afford more lukewarm films like X-Men 3 and Spiderman 2.

I watched some of Tuesday’s hearing in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation about the “future” of the internet. The name of the hearing sounds like it was created in 1990 when the Internet was still in its early commercial stages. I would love to hear what Byron Dorgan, Daniel Inouye and other members of the committee think about Facebook, iTunes and other popular Internet resources. The hearing may have had a silly name but it featured a discussion that is critical to the long-term prospects for democratized Internet technology.

There were several members of the creative community including Writers Guild West President Patric Verrone and actress Justine Bateman who promoted freedom on the Internet as a necessity. An unlikely ally in the Christian Coalition joined these creative types in lamenting network manipulation and closure. The conservative religious organization’s representative Michele Combs was concerned that supposed maintenance and network management practices are limiting free speech and religious practice.

Industry representatives and academic experts covered the rest of the spectrum regarding net neutrality. Professor Lawrence Lessig and the American Enterprise Institute’s Robert Hahn urged moderation in regulating cable companies while allowing flexibility to ensure network freedom. NCTA president Kyle McSlarrow urged Congress to avoid regulating an industry that has succeeded without government intervention.

McSlarrow’s statements highlighted the investment and commitment by cable companies in developing broadband networks. The idea that networks have been left relatively untouched by federal legislation does not mean that this state of existence should remain over the next generation. These statements could have been uttered by the meat packing industry at the turn of the 20th century and the automobile industry in the 1960s without seeming out of place. It is important for the federal government to take gradual steps toward ensuring net neutrality and monitoring cable companies to avoid censorship on the Internet. A victory for the cable companies in this round of legislation would lead to a wide range of forces including the left, right and apolitical in an uprising against virtual authoritarianism.

I love sports and I am a huge football fan (I grew up in Green Bay so I don’t think I could be anything else.) It is tough to admit to everyone that I spend hours on Saturdays and Sundays watching football games while letting projects gather dust on my desk. There are many places where I diverge from fellow football fans including collecting sports memorabilia, calling sports talk radio about my fantasy team and devoting all of my small talk to sports. The NFL Draft represents one of those points of divergence and I think that it represents some of the worst aspects of professional sports.

ESPN has been covering the NFL Draft since the New York Giants won the Super Bowl in February. There is no reason that ESPN needs to show the same stuff 24 hours per day and it would be great if they showed some world sports that may be taking place at odd hours. The worst part about ESPN’s coverage is that it shows the useless nature of speculation by football experts like Chris Mortensen and Mel Kiper Jr.

There is a bigger problem with the NFL Draft that makes me uncomfortable about my level of fandom. One look at the crowd and announcers in New York City shows the salivating, fan-boy nature of the (mostly) male fans of the NFL. There is no compunction by anyone involved in the coverage about the first overall pick, Michigan tackle Jake Long, receiving the largest contract for any tackle in the NFL. There is a mixture of naivety and harsh tones when the experts speak about the legal or personal troubles of some of the young players involved in the draft.

I think we should look at the NFL Draft as another form of the stock market. Rich people manipulate young players, the media and average fans to pad their accounts. The draft shares other characteristics with the stock market including the boring nature of the event and the uncertainty of each “stock” purchased. If I were an investor looking for a new cable channel, I would create an ESPN-like network for the stock market with celebrities, loud-mouth experts and talking heads shouting about various markets. The fact that the NFL Draft is televised is a testament to the ability of TV’s creative minds to turn crap into gold.

I know that this post does not relate directly to the media though it does point out yet another problem with 24-hour channels. I hope that fans like myself become more mindful of the ridiculous nature of sports coverage in general and the NFL Draft in specific.

My regular complaints about politics, media and society will be replaced today by one of my biggest pet peeves. I hate commercial radio stations whether it is the Morning Zoo with Fart Man and Zonkers (I hope I made that up) or two old people talking about their colonoscopy. The terrible playlists, crappy promotions and annoying DJs on these stations are so unbearable that I haven’t listened to commercial radio for more than five minutes in the last five years.

The realm of satellite radio is just an extension of commercial radio since Sirius and XM are plastered all over racecars, TV commercials and other moving billboards. I came across New Jersey’s free-form station WFMU a while ago in my search for alternative sources of entertainment. I was surprised that a station without commercial support and underwriting could survive in a world where listeners are constantly assailed by crass commercials.

WFMU is a free-form station in Jersey City, New Jersey that has been operating for 50 years as of April 24, 2008. This station does not have ABC News at the top of the hour, commercials for the local Kia dealership and awkward interviews with terrible comedians performing at Funny Bonez. I have looked to WFMU as a refuge from cable television as well as commercial radio when I am not interested in listening to the voices on public radio.

I would suggest several programs on WFMU as a sampler of the station’s eclectic approach to radio. The Best Show on WFMU is a comedy show hosted by Tom Scharpling that features enough music, interviews and calls to entertain comedy fans for three hours a week. Seven Second Delay is a one-hour comedy show hosted by Monk creator Andy Breckman and WFMU station manager Ken Freedman. Dave Emory’s interesting show For the Record is offered on several independent stations throughout the United States including WFMU. Emory’s program deals with fascism, world politics and current events that are left untouched by other media outlets.

I have been away for the last week for several reasons including burnout from writing for several blogs at the same time. My major reason for taking a week away from Media Criticism was a desire to get perspective on the state of the 2008 presidential race. I know I am not the first person to say the following but I don’t think I have made comments as cynical as the ones in this post.

I was watching coverage on MSNBC, CNN and listening to coverage on NPR of Tuesday’s Pennsylvania Democratic primary over the last week. The daily posts that I submit for this blog and others do not allow me to see the forest for the trees in many cases especially with my hyperactive coverage of the presidential race since last summer. I have to say that it doesn’t matter if Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton wins any one of these primaries. It also doesn’t matter which candidate gets the most delegates by the end of the primary process. There will be unseemly machinations and underhanded deeds performed by handlers on both sides during the party’s August convention.

We are all aware of Hillary Clinton’s reputation as a lurker and a political figure who works in shadows and gray hues to achieve her goals. Barack Obama speaks a good game but the fact that his past is relatively unknown compared to Clinton and John McCain creates an aura of invincibility around the candidate. Every politician is a pig at the trough, pushing aside competitors in search of the biggest reserve of slop. The situation would be the same if John McCain was in a pitched battle with one of his Republican competitors. There is no difference in the process of nominating candidates from either party and marginal differences in the policies they would pursue when in office.

I am going to continue analyzing alternative newspapers and media of all types with tomorrow’s post beginning a series on independent radio stations. The political realm seems to dirty and unrewarding to waste time talking about on a daily basis. I think I have reached a point where I have gone from a political junkie to someone who realizes that political junkies are to promoting good policy as fantasy football players are to enjoying individual football games.

Hello all,
I will not be posting until Thursday, April 24th. I have several projects that are wrapping up in the next week that need extra attention. I will return on the 24th with new posts about alternative media.

Nick

My final entry in this week’s showcase of student newspapers is The Daily Mississippian. This publication is the student organ of the University of Mississippi (commonly referred to as Ole Miss) and distributes five days per week. The paper’s website states that the print run is 15,000 with thousands of other readers coming to The Daily Mississippian on their website. This newspaper is one of the few in the nation that competes with daily newspapers and professional publications within the state for the attention of readers.

The Daily Mississippian sets the tone for a professional and well-run publication by keeping all operations in-house. There are 15 editorial staff members, 5 photographers and 20 writers that supply fresh news, sports updates and opinions for each edition. This publication maintains quality control by running its own printing and advertising departments. Students interested in the school’s Rebel Radio and Ole Miss Annual yearbook can find links and information through The Daily Mississippian.

I was interested to find out that The Daily Mississippian is connected intimately to the state’s professional press. The newspaper is a member of the state’s press association and competes with daily newspapers in annual contests to determine the best media in Mississippi. It is admirable that a student-run newspaper with high amounts of turnover on an annual basis can stay competitive for media readers in the region.

I would be remiss if I didn’t speak about the journalistic endeavors of writers and editors at The Daily Mississippian. The Newsblog available on the paper’s website features school news, investigative reporting and points of interest for Rebel students and alumni. There were several news stories as well as multimedia presentations that vividly capture life in Oxford, Mississippi.