January 14th, 2008—January 20th, 2008

Media Log

By Amy Whitney

January 14^th, 2008—January 20^th, 2008

1. Blogger’s Reply to FBI
2. Carmina Burana
3. Facebook

BLOGGER'S REPLY TO FBI

http://potw.news.yahoo.com/

(Use this link to access video content)

Context/Description:

So I just started my own Blog last week—right—and after that I go to check my e-mail before bed on Monday. After logging out, I come across this crazy story in the “featured” Yahoo News section of the homepage titled: Blogger’s Reply to the FBI: Hiding in Plain Sight. Normally I wouldn’t have paid the least attention to such a story…probably would have associated Blog with a bucket of Frog’s for all I cared…but because I knew what a Blog was now…

IT CAUGHT MY ATTENTION!!!

The story was conveyed through a short video news clip. The Blogger is Hassan Elahi, a University art professor, who was apprehended by the FBI in 2002 after coming off of an airplane flight. He was detained for questioning about an anonymous tip given to the FBI that a storage shed was emptied of explosives shortly after 9/11 by a man fitting his description. This was not true and Elahi was innocent, but it took a little over half a year to clear his name with the FBI. During that period the FBI monitored everything Elahi did from phone calls and traveling to his bank account activity. In protest, and as a political statement, Elahi started calling the FBI everyday after he was apprehended to let them know where he was going… and he started a Blog on the internet tracking every move he made himself. The Blog of Elahi is accompanied by extensive photograph documentation.

Analysis:

The extent to which Elahi monitors himself is beyond eccentric and definitely exploits his paranoia of the FBI. He’s taken pictures of the food he eats, the streets he’s walked, and the toilet seats he’s encountered. But there is something heroic about it that I can’t seem to explain to myself beyond the ridiculousness.

I don’t think his efforts are “proving” anything, but it looks as if he’s started a bit of an art revolution. According to the story Elahi has taken over 30,000 pictures and will be featured in the Sundance Film Festival. I know enough about film to know that it is not exactly easy to get into that film festival.

As far as Elahi’s documentation goes, he’s just making more work for himself when in reality he could invest his energy in much more honorable pursuits. On the other hand, Elahi is fighting for his right to privacy—arguably an honorable pursuit—but he does so by making his life more public and “out there.” It is a classic example perhaps of utilizing reverse psychology through the media… but one must ask “Is it worth it?”

Part of the reason this story intrigued me so much is because last week I speculated about how cell phones can act as “a type of homing or tracking device for their owners.” Elahi uses his camera for that purpose but for both personal aims (protesting the FBI) and personal gains (entrance to the Sundance Film Festival). One might question his motives but also question how much access others have directly into our own lives with or without our permission.

Lesson Plan Ideas:

If you were to stage a protest what media would promote your point of view best?

Art is a powerful voice and has often been created in the forefront of political protests. Consider the famous Boston Massacre cartoon. Have students think about issues they feel strongly about in their local communities or that are going on currently in government (i.e. driver’s license at sixteen, no skateboarding on school property, time limits on computer use, terminating parental locks on media, or the quality of school lunches). Students will view the short clip featuring Elahi’s story. One user Online commented on Elahi’s story saying that “Technology has brought us conveniences but sometimes at the expense of our privacy (Prosperous POSTED Mon, Jan 14, 2008 7:58 AM PST).” Ask students to create their own collection of 10-15 photographs depicting an issue they strongly feel has not been made public enough. Students will then write a one page response and explanation as to why they feel this issue should not remain private but enter the public domain. Students will find out how to use their voices visually to make a difference in their communities.

CARMINA BURANA

http://www.vivirguadalajara.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/09/ofj_carmina_burana.jpg

Listen to “O Fortuna” at http://www.albany.edu/music/chorale/listen.html

Context/Description:

The music in Carmina Burana (particularly the opening chorus) is one of the most famous scores of all time. It was composed by Carl Orff in the mid 1930’s and continues to find its way into contemporary media today. Currently I am taking a Fine Arts Music Course at BYU and we are studying this piece in the classroom. Its influence spreads from film and television to rock and pop concerts—but also tends to be associated with Fascism. It is primarily a piece written about sex but most people do not know that.

Analysis:

In looking at a piece like Carmina Burana it is interesting to analyze its reception history—which is analyzing how people interact with media, in this case, music. The “O Fortuna” chorus of Carmina Burana is about fate and fortune, women and love, and how we should celebrate love before Fate steps in again as the dreaded “Wheel of Fortune.”

The “O Fortuna” chorus starts off boldly pounding and is accompanied by clashing cymbals until it decrescendos into a pitter pattering of choral voices. The voices start softly but slowly grow louder. They ominously build up the tension for a final explosion of chaos and conflict that is perfect for a variety of scenes and contexts. Parts of this opening chorus remind me powerfully of the music composed for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

Today it is more main stream for youth to enjoy music other than classical including pop, rock, heavy metal, techno, and punk—but classical music is becoming more acceptable. It is interesting to know that many attempts have been made to fuse classical songs like Carmina Burana into pop culture or to modernize classical tunes in general. Carmina Burana has been used in films like Excalibur and The General’s Daughter, in television series such as The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, and in music concerts including Ozzy Osborne and Michael Jackson. I think it is not too far-fetched to suggest that within the next twenty to thirty years we will be seeing more evidence of classical music media entering mainstream society.

It is proven that music media is helpful in making connections in the brain with concepts and ideas. I personally know that studying while listening to even the most ominous scores of classical music like Carmina Burana helps me to study. I study to soundtracks from popular films all the time including The Lord of the Rings, Pride and Prejudice, The Phantom of the Opera, and Ever After.

Lesson Plan Ideas:

We listen to a variety of music but we do not always understand the messages behind what we listen to or why it makes us feel the way it does. Perception of music changes when it is accompanied by images. Have students paired in groups of 3-4. Students will then select three different pieces of music to accompany a popular movie scene assigned to their group in class (i.e. Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, or A Goofy Movie). Students will work with Windows Movie Maker to attach the sound files (Computers, movie scenes [with permission] and internet access to music will be provided). Students will bring their final projects to class prepared to discuss the reasons behind their music selections. Students will also analyze how mood and perception change in movie scenes by viewing the projects of other groups in the class, and by writing a formal response paper.

FACEBOOK

http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/images/facebook1.jpg

Context/Description:

I checked my Media Blog for fun on Friday to find that someone left a comment. I thought it was one of my instructors commenting but it was from a girl named Mikell. I was really fascinated and moved by her comments. She was a friend of Rebecca’s and spoke of Facebook and how that media makes her feel “removed” sometimes from situations. I did not have a Facebook account yet, but after reading that I decided to make one.

Analysis:

I had no idea anyone else would ever look at my Blog besides me and my instructors. That really goes to show me how public I’ve made my life now. People have access to me on the internet —kind of cool yet kind of scary at the same time.

I have always been a bit antagonistic towards Facebook. I said I would NEVER join it because I didn’t want to get addicted like so many other people I know. And I thought it would be difficult, time consuming, and a potential hazard for “stranger danger”—I really think Laura and Landon should market that “Little Red” idea; random thought…but it popped in there.

I am still learning how to use Facebook, but I found out that it is not as hard as I thought it would be. Bottom line, however, is this: I was nervous about learning to use a form of technology that was unfamiliar to me. I think many people shy away from contemporary media like Facebook because they don’t fully understand it. I know many people who are frustrated by the new Microsoft 2007, for example, but once they learn to use it they are fine. Anxiety passes with experience and it also passes as you learn to become more connected with the media you must (or choose) to interact with. Facebook is designed to keep people digitally connected.

It is important for me as a future educator to understand the forms of media that my students will be familiar with. And as an English Teaching Major, I specifically have the responsibility to teach my students how to communicate effectively using a variety of tools and resources. Facebook can be included in that instruction because it is a form of contemporary media.

Now that I am joined to the Facebook Network, I expect that my life will not alter much (perhaps in time I may spend more time with Facebook than I anticipated… depends on if I like it or not), but my knowledge has increased and that is the important part. I want to become more media literate so that I can effectively teach others to be media literate themselves.

Lesson Plan Ideas:

The Facebook community can connect people with hundreds to thousands of other people or groups on the web at the click of a button. With that kind of networking the implications for things like Facebook and other digital communities makes it possible for rapid communication and collaboration like never before. A mass protest or revolution could be assembled in moments with the right connections and access.

Create a new group on Facebook specifically for your class (for concerned students… joining groups does not give the teacher access to the general student Facebook profiles). Conduct a tutorial on how to use the features on the Facebook Group. After the initial tutorial, students will interpret and respond to current events, quotes from their weekly literary readings, and hypothetical situations posted online. Furthermore, when new technology is introduced to your school or district let it be a principle of conduct that you make time in your lessons to overview how to use the technology that your students will be required to use in your class.