Media Ethnography

For this week's activity I watched my fiancee Melissa watch the Style channel's televsion program called, "Whose Wedding is it Anyway." When she was done watching the program I asked her a series of questions getting at why she liked the show, when and where she typically watched it, and her preferrences for watching the program. Her responses were very intriguing, and they revealed a certain type of transaction that takes place between Melissa and the program. In essence, meaning has been created for Melissa within this show as a result of her position within a social context.

When I asked Melissa why she liked the show she said, "Because it is about weddings, getting married, and it provides ideas for planning weddings, and since we are getting married the show is very interesting." She then went on to name some of the various ideas that the show has provided her with in her own planning. After hearing all of this I asked Melissa if she watched the show before she got engaged and if she knew much about the show prior to our engagement. Her answers were very interesting. Melissa said that she was not interested in this show at all before her engagement saying that it was not relevant, and "I had no use for it." She continued on by saying that she would probably now continue to watch the show long after she got married as she would be able to forever relate to the emotions experienced by the individuals being followed through the entire wedding process. In fact, Melissa has become so engrossed with the show that she says, "It is one of the few shows where I say close to the T.V. during commercial breaks, and I don't tend to multitask when I'm watching it." The very last thing that I asked Melissa was why she liked this particular wedding show over the dozens of others that one is able to find on T.V. She then told me that this was a very educational show in comparison to others, and that "I learn from it." She added that other shows tend to be consumed by drama and conflict, where this show focuses more on the wedding as a process and it shows you how to get from the beginning of the process to the end successfully.

From this short interview it is easy to see that the meaning of this show is contructed socially for Melissa. She is able to relate to is as she is going through the same process as the brides being shown, and after getting engaged she all of a sudden has the social knowledge required to really enjoy the show. Also, she felt very strongly about how this was an educational program. In this way, Melissa is walking away with social capital, in the form of knowlege, that she did not have before. Her habits of focusing solely on the program while it is on and staying close to the T.V. during commercial breaks illustrate the importance that she places on gaining this new found knowledge. Melissa is then able to transfer this knowledge across texts as she looks critically at bridal magazines, retail outfits, and print from other hirable services in the process of planning her own wedding. As the primary planner of her wedding Melissa prefers to watch the show alone, or with those immediately involved in helping her plan the wedding. Therefore, the social environment in which she watches the show excludes her acquantences that have not gone through this process before.

In short, Melissa matches viewing "Whose wedding is it Anyway" with her own process of planning a wedding. In this way, this television text becomes incorporated into her social schema for brides, grooms, and everything in between. Much of the time, what she sees on the show helps her to make decisions and to evaluate how she would like her own wedding to take shape. As a result, the show takes on an intimate meaning for Melissa, and this meaning can only be experience by people within Melissa's same social context. It is for these reasons that the transaction between the text and the viewer has become so powerful in Melissa's case.

Hockey Pictures?

While the two violent hockey photos might not seem to fit entirely with the studious theme of the rest of my blog I assure you that they most certainly must be included. They are a part of our media representations unit which discusses how the media is able to affect our thinking with the way that they present material. In keeping with the whole "Miracle" theme, these hockey photos are an excellent example of how the media shapes the way in which we think. The saying, "I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out" sums up the representations of this sport perfectly. If one were to look through a hockey magazine, or nearly any other publication covering sports, the images of hockey violence abound. Even highlights running on sports center seem to be less about the skill and finess found in the game than they are about the fights and bonecrushing hits that are found here and there. Clearly, the media is representing this sport in a particular fashion. They might be doing it to sell tickets, to increase the size of television audiences or even to distinguish the sport from others. In any case, hockey is a sport that very few people follow and understand in the United States as a small number of states actually have the right climate for which to play. As such, the representations provided by the media speak volumes to people who know very little about the sport. In these situations it is obvious that a select few are controlling the perceptions of a great many through the media. This is just a minor and relatively insignificant example of how media representations affect us everyday, and it should be an eye opener as to some of the effects that much larger forms of media representation can possibly have.

Semiotic and Audience Analysis

While combing through a recent bridal magazine that my fiance Melissa brought over this week, I immediately came across an advertisement for the Earle Brown Heritage Center that caught my eye. It struck me that this ad would be perfect to analyze in terms of semiotics and in terms of the audience for which it was intended.

In regards to semiotics, or the images and signs that are contained in this one page ad, it was clear that the images included in the ad were deliberately included in order to evoke certain feelings in the viewer, and to convey some implicit underlying meanings. Along the right side of the page there are four pictures. The top picture is a close up of some flowers resting on a sliver platter surrounded by jewels of some sort. The next picture is of the outside of the conference and event center, which looks like a large elegant red barn in front of which lies a gorgeous pond with a water fountain accompanied by trees, hedges, and other landscaping. Below that there is a picture of the inside of the main hall as it is set up for a reception. The hall has a rustic yet elegant feel to it as the architecture is made up of strong hardwood beams below which are white tables and napkins with soft white holiday lights strung around the pillars of the room. The last picture, then, is a close up of one of these white reception tables with a boquet of tulips as the center piece. As a collective whole, these images are meant to show the class and versatility of such a center. Like I said it has a nostalgic feel to it, but it is very modern in every sense of the word. The underlying message of these images then is that this is a reception hall that can fit many different tastes. Also, with the close ups it appears as an intimate setting where all of your guests would be close and easily accessible. In other words, it looks as though the bride and groom would be able to interact with all of their guests beyond the standard meet, greet and move on. In all, the pictures display a relaxed world of comfort and togetherness which seperate this ad from others displaying huge banquet halls and modern sound systems.

Thinking about the audience that this ad is meant for it is clear from some of the text that this is an elegant yet convenient venue in which to hold a wedding reception. The text describes the Earle Brown Center as an historic restoration that was once "a gentleman's country estate," and now it has "21st amenities and service" to go along with the classic backdrop of "abundant gardens, walking paths, and sparkling fountains." The center is advertised as being only 10 minutes from downtown Minneapolis, it has free parking, banquet rooms that can accomodate parties of all sizes, and on-site catering. The ad also says that, "We make planning a breeze, with an expert staff to make sure you're completely satisfied all along the way." In saying this, the ad is telling the viewer that in addition to the spectacular surroundings that the center has to offer, the "expert staff" is ready to work with a bride and groom to make sure that things go smoothly and efficiently. There is also a sense the ad gives off that if one were to use the center for a wedding reception some of the stressful planning issues would be alleviated as many things are taken care of for you. Additionally, the ad says "Contact us now for a free, no-obligation tour," and this further serves to put the bride and groom at ease as they are not being forced into making any decisions right away. Therefore, in terms of the audience, this ad is playing to the middle class bride and groom who already have a great deal on their plate. This type of bride and groom would have the money to able to afford such an elegant venue, yet, they might not have all that much time to plan every little detail. This is perfectly alright as the ad tells this bride and groom that many of these potential planning headaches are already taken care of, and for your metro guests, the center is centrally located and a relatively short drive from most places.

In the end, the semiotics work hand in hand with the text to reach the target audience of this ad. In this sense the ad is very inviting and friendly probably prompting many people in the market for such a reception hall to contact the Earle Brown Heritage Center. There is even a testimonial displayed in the upper right hand corner of the ad that further advertises what a great choice it would be to reserve this site for one's own wedding. The ad is put together tastefully and elloquently, and it evokes a sense of calm into the sphere of wedding planning. Thus, in analyzing the semiotics and the audience it is clear that this is a successful advertisement.

Editing Film

Last week I analyzed a clip from the movie "Miracle" in terms of the effects created by the camera shots and the camera angles. This week I want to re-examine this same scene in terms of editing techniques. While these two lenses of analysis might appear to be covering the same topics, there is an important difference that seperates the two. When editing film one is selecting which camera shots and angles should be used in certain frames and what order these frames should be placed in to evoke certain reactions within the viewer. Therefore, by examining the editing techniques used in the clip that I selected, where team U.S.A. plays the Soviet hockey team for the first time, it is easy to see how the scene is able to create a tense and suspensful feeling that keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat.

The first major editing technique that stands out in this clip is the producer's decision to throw in a shot of a banner being unfurled at the game that says "Soviets, get the puck out of Afghanistan." By doing this the audience is reminded of the political tensions that existed between Soviet Russia and the U.S. during this period in history. As such, the viewer's disdain for the Soviet hockey team immediately rises. After this sign is shown, the producer uses another editing technique to keep the tensions high. The producer edits the film by following a shot of the U.S. players with a shot of the Soviet players. This is most evident when the centers for their respective teams are coming to take the opening face off. We first see the American center, and then we see the Soviet center, and then we go back to the American. This happens several times and the result is that the audience gets drawn into the center of the conflict that exists between these two teams. Shortly thereafter the audience is shown a shot of Herb Brooks and the Soviet head coach talking to their teams at the same time. This further intensifies the conflict as the viewer sees both teams making final preparations for the game and a potential victory.

The last major editing element of this clip is found after play has begun. The producer cuts and edits many different camera shots and angles together in order to provide the illusion of speed. At one instant the viewer is seeing the game from the perspective of the puck, and at the next instant the viewer is focused upon a big check in the corner. Over all of this action the sounds of sticks, skates, and a television broadcaster's voice are impossed and magnified through sound editing techniques. This puts the viewer right in the heart of the action significantly drumming up hose feelings of suspense, speed, and intensity that were previously mentioned.

In all, these various editing techniques and strategies allow the picture to come alive for the viewer. Without them the viewer would be distanced and relatively uninvolved with the action taking place. Instead of being a third person observer to the events that are dipicted, editing allows the viewer to be more like a first person participant in the story itself. For these reasons editing is a vitally important piece to any movie.