SXSW is a growing force with today’s young adults. Over the last few years it has grown by the thousands each year. The problem I have with festivals and concerts like SXSW would be the eventual change to commercial sponsors. When most of these festivals first begin they are relatively small with local sponsorship only which lends to the overall vibe of the festival. As the media catches on the following years of festivals will suffer due to the infusion of billboards and restrictions provided with corporate sponsorship. I consider this a media failure as they diminish the experiences of the audiences with their rules, so they can make money rather than caring what the overall purpose and responsibility of the festival originally was. I am sure others have experienced this with any of the many festivals located near the panhandle as well as across the nation.

 Has anyone else had a personal experience with the effects of corporate sponsorship on your favorite event?

Iraqi Emo Stoned...

A topic that has been in the news recently is that of Iraq and its targeted killing of people who are perceived to be emo or gay. Now I have read different reports of as many as 14 people were killed this week fitting a stereotyped description. Other reports have it at more than 100 have been killed. Where is the media coverage of that I guess the media would rather waste our time with the presidents March madness bracket then actually cover hate crimes that are internationally illegal. As this is a developing story I am going to keep an eye out for any new information and any media failures. Do they push this story to make room for Santorum’s win? Will it get the proper coverage it deserves? I doubt it.   

The picture above is one of the so called emo Iraqi’s he was found stoned to death for the way he looked and dressed.

Here is a link with the best coverage of the story I have found so far.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2112960/90-students-Iraq-stoned-death-having-Emo-hair-tight-clothes.html

The people shall suffer..

So I have recently noticed a lot of information on political candidates and their campaign tactics coming across my new feed in Facebook. I kind of like the vast differences of people’s opinions constantly posting new information which either helps their candidate or tries to demean the opposition.  The thing I don’t understand is how people can be accepting to messages that are obviously out there to be hurtful to other opponents. What happened to running on one’s own good name rather than running a campaign focused on smearing others images? Today political campaigns seem to feed off of one another as each candidate takes turns trying to slam the other one. Then news stations like Fox and CNN pick a party and do everything they can to make their party seem like the right choice. To me it is as if we have lost all ability to choose who we want in control and are now forced to choose between the media’s favorites. It’s like the true act of running for the supreme position in this country has lost its credibility. These failures of not being able to find a decent candidate , biased political coverage by varying media outlets and poor campaign decisions have limited the confidence the American people have within the system. With all these issues it makes it hard to know what information can really be trusted. As the media plays its games with the political process they damage the credibility and confidence that was created with political campaigns of FDR and Abe Lincoln. For me as I see the situation, when the media fails to relate accurate information it is like the rippling effect when you throw a rock into a pond. Its waves go out and reach farther than anyone would imagine after starting in such a tiny point, just like that of the messages of the media.

We should be able to believe what we hear on television, we should be able to believe in our president’s promises, we should be able to pick a candidate without a bunch of bull and we should be able to rely on our media not to mislead. We can’t though and until we are able to have true change in the role media plays we the people shall suffer.

 Has it become a time where we are more concerned about reality television and social media than our own electoral process?

Today I awoke with to find a comment on my blog. In fact what is so awesome about that comment is its subject matter. I have been trying to find a topic that appeals to a broad range of people rather than a few idealists. There has been a lot in the news about the KONY2012 and I have seen plenty of people posting the video all over social media websites. So when I awoke to a comment recommending that I choose KONY as my next topic it made sense.

I feel like most people are in support of the KONY2012 project, but some of the things others are saying makes me question its motives. On two different news stations yesterday I actually heard members of other non profits come on the air and plug their foundations as they were unsure if the KONY2012 was a reliable source to send funding. I thought wow, why would anyone go through all this trouble to make awareness of the issue if they weren’t really going to help? So you might wonder what two organizations would go on air saying that they are unsure if the KONY campaign can be trusted. It was none other than UNICEF and the Red Cross. This to me was a media failure. There is something I find wrong with stealing the thunder from a group of dedicated filmmakers and activists. I believe this is a failure because UNICEF and Red Cross had to go on air to question KONY2012’s motive rather than being supportive and getting involved. Instead they were happy to have all who wanted to help KONY2012 send the Red Cross and UNICEF donations. I believe that these two organizations need to revamp their marketing and advertising campaigns in a creative way that reaches millions like that of the KONY  film. There is a truth within the KONY2012 film which enables viewers to relate and react. They have given viewers the key to help, make a difference, and stop KONY. That’s how you get people to react and that’s what other organizations like the Red Cross need to do. I don’t see enough about UNICEF and the Red Cross and when I do it has almost become trivialized as a normal occurrence.

The KONY2012 movement is exploding; people are making choices to be active in making KONY famous. I am excited to see what happens when people blanket the streets on April 20^th in their quest to stop KONY.

http://www.kony2012.com/

In the beginning....

This is the first blog I have ever done. I am unsure as to what to expect as I explore this unfamiliar technology. As I will be focusing on the broad topic of media exposure and impact it’s hard to say where exactly this blog will go. I try to keep current on my events and especially if the media is having some sort of metaphorical breakdown. I know right now that there has been a lot of hoopla about our politicians and the upcoming election so I’m going to try and use that to my advantage along with a mixed range of damage control and media failures. This should be an active topic as the election gets closer the politicians seem to be more deviant in their tactics. I would like to use specific examples with further explanation on subsequent posts.    

As this is my first day blogging I want to make sure I cover at least one topic that has been hot on the presses for months now. Syria. It’s a sad time when a country resorts to violence to metaphorically cull the herd. The Syria situation to me is one that has exemplified what I consider some true media failures. I say this because in a world where instant access to information is only a click away, there has been limited media access within Syria during these government crackdowns. The media has been unable to consistently get news from activists and dissenters within Syria because of the inhumane treatment of the Syrian people by a corrupt dictator who is doing everything in his power to maintain control while limiting outside influences. With such advanced technology I see no reason why we shouldn’t be able to more accurately view the hardships being faced by Syrians. This is a media failure. Things seem to get swept under the rug for a few days until our own election seems less interesting. It seems to me that the election provides us as Americans a distraction from other worldly concerns. There are so many little things that I want to touch on like media biases and their station to station differences as well as the impact that these messages have when exposed to the masses.

I’m sure I am not the only one who is becoming increasingly more aware of the failures of media exposure and impact. Feel free to leave feedback and please help point me in the right direction. Are there any specific topics you think I should write on or be more aware of?

Thanks,

Keith