Chapter Eight: Questioning the Media

2) Why do you think people aren't reading daily newspapers as frequently as they once did? What can newspapers do to increase circulation?
Newspapers have been in decline since news companies like CNN went onto the television. The rise of the use of the internet has not helped the newspaper industry either. People aren’t reading the daily newspapers because they are “old news” both technologically and literally. The people of today want to get things instantly and the internet and news channels provide this so therefore a newspaper that comes out once a day is obsolete to these people. I don’t know if there are anything newspapers can do besides what they have been doing to increase circulation. Newspapers have to be able to provide something that online and TV news can’t provide like localized news.

6) Will blogs and other Internet news services eventually replace newspapers? Explain your response.
Blogs and other Internet news services could eventually replace newspapers. However, I think the companies will remain the same will no longer produce a daily paper but more like a weekly paper much like the Sunday paper. This paper will consist of things that happened in the area that week things that are upcoming events and local stories and features about people or things within a certain community. Another major part of this weekly newspaper would be the ads in it. These ads would help finance the paper. I hope the newspaper won’t be replaced in my time because I often enjoy reading the newspaper because it is portable and you have a hard copy that you can keep and hold on to.

Chapter Seven: Questioning the Media

3) How often do you go to the movie theaters today? How often do you rent movies on video or DVD? Which experience do you prefer and why?

I hardly ever am able to go to the movie theaters today. However, this summer I was able to go to the movie theater many times more than I had expected to. Now that I am back in school I rent more DVDs than I did during the summer. I am not able to go to the movie theater that much because it is so expensive. This summer while I was working I could afford to go to the theater. I prefer to go to the movie theater than renting DVDs. I prefer to go to the theater because if the big screen as opposed to my small TV screen.

4) If you were a Hollywood film producer or executive, what kind of films would you like to see made? What changes would you make in what we see at the movies?

If I were a Hollywood film producer or executive I would like to see films that I enjoy watching to be made. I enjoy comedies and movies that you cannot predict what is going to happen next or the ending. I would like to see more movies made like “Fight Club.” The movie “Fight Club” has its comedic parts mixed with action and it keeps you at the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next. I would try to find a way to make movies seen at the movie theater far better than watching it on a TV in your home.

Chapter Six: Questioning the Media

1) How many cable channels do you watch regularly? What programs do you watch? What attracts you to a certain channel?
I watch very few cable channels regularly. I rarely watch television; I watch it whenever I just feel like sitting down and doing nothing. I have trouble finding things on television to interest me; I have to flip through channels for what seems like hours. I do not watch any specific program besides sports games. There are a few channels that have some programming that is pretty decent to watch like the Discovery Channel for instance. I like watching some of the Discovery Channel’s programming because its complex factual information that has been broken down for the average person to understand.

4) CNN and MTV have changed our society as well as the global culture. Have these changes been positive or negative? Explain.
CNN and MTV have really changed our society and the global culture. However, these changes are both positive and negative I feel. CNN has impacted the news world in a huge way. Breaking news is truly breaking news because a Channel like CNN has constant coverage. CNN however has hurt the newspaper business because people no longer need to read a newspaper to get news because by the time the paper is printed and distributed the news is “old news.” MTV at first was great and exposed the world to artists and their music videos. However, now MTV has sold out and isn’t really about the music it seems to be more about whiny spoiled teenage girls and celebrity gossip.

Chapter 5: Questioning the Media

1) Describe your earliest memories of watching television. What was your favorite show? Which shows did your family watch together? Were there shows that you were not allowed to watch? Which ones and why?
My earliest memories of watching television would have to be those Saturday morning cartoons or the Disney channel. I remember I watched a fair amount of television but my parents wouldn’t let me sit in front of the blaring screen all day, so I usually would watch TV in the mornings and after lunch time and the rest of the time I was outside playing. When I was younger I had many favorite shows such as Tailspin, Darkwing Duck, Goof Troop, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I watched shows like Full House with my family. My parents never told me I couldn’t watch a certain show because it wasn’t ever an issue they knew what I was watching at all times.

2) How much television do you watch today? Which programs do you try to watch regularly? What attracts you to your favorite program(s)?

Surprisingly I do not watch that much television. In spite of not watching a large amount of television I do watch the NFL and try to catch a couple of games on Sunday. During the week when I have a little bit of down time and I can’t find anything better to do I will sit down relax and watch a random show on TV, but usually I have to flip through the channels for an hour or so to find something moderately interesting. When I do find something on TV it’s usually something on the Discovery Channel, History Channel, ESPN, or VH1 Classic.

Chapter Four Questioning the Media

My earliest memories of listening to the radio are when I was really young and living in California. My grandparents lived in Minnesota and we would drive and visit them. When we weren’t listening to my Raffi tapes we listened to classic rock stations. I don’t remember a favorite song I liked everything I heard. I was around three or four years old. We didn’t battle over the dial or station that we were listening to. If there was a battle it would have been over what tape we were listening to next. I listened to classic rock because that is what my parents listened to.

3) If you could own and manage a commercial radio station, what format would you choose and why?

If I could own and manage a commercial radio station my format would be very listener oriented. I would play variations of rock music such as new wave, punk, and reggae to name a few. Listeners could request what they want to hear. Anything would be played that fit the FCC guidelines. Possibly we would do remote broadcastings at shows and concerts. I would like to do various promotions for concert tickets and band gear. I think this would be a successful station because it would obviously play the best tunes. Also it would be popular because it would truly pay what the listeners wanted to hear.

Chapter Three Questioning the Media

Raised on The Stones

1) Who was your first favorite group or singer? How old were you at the time? What was important to you about this music?

When I was in third grade I first began really listening to music. When my parents asked me my favorite band I shocked them and made my dad proud by saying “The Rolling Stones.” My favorite song at the time was “Jumping Jack Flash.” I was around eight or nine years old when this happened to me. I had been introduced to the music by my parents because that’s what they listened to. I used to take my dads tapes and CD's and listen to them in my room. I enjoyed the Rolling Stones because I liked the sound of them and enjoyed singing the songs. It also gave me a connection to my parents.

My Radio Show

2) If you ran a noncommercial campus radio station, what kind of music would you play and why?

If I ran a noncommercial campus radio station I would play songs that you will not hear on any other radio show and music that I enjoy listening to. I have numerous friends in punk bands so I would try and get them some radio time and exposure. I don’t care for those popular Top 40 radio stations that play the same songs every hour. Those songs and most of the time the artists aren’t even remembered in couple years. That is the main reason I would play less mainstream music along with timeless classic rock like The Rolling Stones, The Cars, The Clash, and Dire Straits.

Chapter Two Questioning the Media

First Encounter with the Internet

1) What was your first encounter with the Internet like? How did it compare with your first encounters with other mass media?
My first encounter with the Internet was surprisingly for schoolwork. I was in fifth grade and was working on a project about the Viking Leif Ericson. I remember when I worked on projects previously I used encyclopedias and books for most of my research but they soon took a backseat in my research methods. The Internet had everything that I needed at my fingertips. I could find a plethora of information and pictures that I could use and all I had to do was use a search engine and print them out. I’d say that my first encounter with the internet differs from my other first encounters with mass media in the aspect that I used the Internet for research rather than entertainment.

The Information Age

5) As we move form a print-orientated Industrial Age to a digitally based Information Age, how do you think individuals, communities, and nations will be affected?

As we move from a print-orientated Industrial Age to a digitally based Information Age I think that individuals, communities, and nations will be affected both positively and negatively. In the past anyone could read a book or a paper and get the information they required, however in the Information Age less fortunate people who cannot afford means of Internet access will not have the same advantage that those who can afford Internet access will have. There will be a large gap between the classes because the Internet will almost give an “unfair advantage” to those who can afford it. Communities will be able to be linked all over the world and families won’t have to write letters or talk on the phone to stay in touch.