Consuming Images

For my advertising piece I decided to use this Axe "Effect" product.  Not only is this image trying to sell this product but it is also provoking emotions.  This product is mainly marketed out to men. This product represents masculinity; whether you are a guy that is out of shape or in shape, this product will help you look muscular and become attractive.



This image was taken by a journalist in Iraq. I think the message that he was trying to portray is that there is still tension between the government and journalist.  Death threats have been issued to journalists if they publish anything public that has to due with corruption of the government.

Toxic Sludge

I came across sources that claim that Republicans are trying to push for anti protesting laws.  In the last couple months, there have been at least 10 new bills that have been filed by state legislatures that attempt to curb the right to protest.
Republican state (Colorado) Senate Jerry Sonnenberg has proposed a bill that would increase penalties for environmental protesters.  It would consist of serving jail time as well as paying a fine that can go up to $100,000.  
Legislators in North Dakota have also proposed a bill that would  "allow motorists to run over and kill protesters, so long as the driver did not intend to kill them."
The people that want to pass these bills are Republican states.  For example, Colorado has seen quite a few of protesters that are against fossil fuel industries.  If these bills were passed, there would be no pressure on these industries to stop from causing harm to the environment.

Sources:
https://theintercept.com/2017/01/23/lawmakers-in-eight-states-have-proposed-laws-criminalizing-peaceful-protest/

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-states-laws-right-protest-free-speech-donald-trump-iowa-minnesota-north-dakota-black-lives-matter-a7562841.html

Fake News

I think that different news outlets have different agendas.  Depending on what news media you are tuned into, that same story could vary in different outlets.  It's difficult to get all the information from one news source.  There are so many news stories that have been altered to gain attention and to make a quick buck.  If you aren't searching for news on a credible site, then it's easy to fall into a fake media site.  Fox news is known to be very biased when it came to the Republican party and lately it seems like they have been asking the "hard questions" so maybe they are leaning towards attempting to return to their original purpose.  One example is Shepard Smith and how he called out Donald Trump on regards to the Russia's involvement in the election.  Link of the Fox News segment I found on youtube..  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJvYTsiFzSk   

Fake news intentionally puts out fake stories to make a quick buck or to get attention.  There are no credible sources to back up their stories.  It has become more mainstream because it's all over our social media accounts.  Some people don't bother looking  looking to stories to see if there is some truth behind.  It's just easier reading the headers of the stories published.  It's so easy to generate a fake story and post it on social media.

I provided an example of a fake news story/site,which is the link below, that claims Obama's birth certificate is fake.

http://www.wnd.com/2016/12/evidence-obama-birth-certificate-fake-heading-to-congress/

It's always important to do your research.  Not everything you see on the internet is accurate.

Gun Violence With The Link To Video Games.

I found this article online "14 Mass Murders Linked To Violent Video Games"
http://www.charismanews.com/culture/52651-14-mass-murders-linked-to-violent-video-games
I wouldn't consider this a reliable source since it is coming from a spiritual perspective.  In this article there were 14 mass murders and the common denominator was that they enjoyed playing violent video games.  I do not think this is warranted because correlation doesn't imply causation.  I know plenty of people that play violent video games and haven't had the urge to go shoot people.  For example the video: The Mean World Syndrome had stated that gun sales have been increasing the same time that violence is decreasing.  Some people are so wrapped up in the media and tend to only get one side of the story and believe what they see/hear without doing any research.  I found one statistic that stated that youth violence has declined in recent years and that was the same time that video game popularity rose.  
https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2015-crime-statistics
Though in 2015 crime did rise 3.9 percent compared to the data in 2014.
There is no clear evidence that states that video games are a cause to gun violence.

Happy Violence

Happy violence is portrayed through out movies in almost every category.  It is where violence in movies are justified by happy endings.  I typically don't watch anything gory on television.  It just makes me cringe when I see someone getting brutally stabbed or of that sort.  I usually stick to chick flicks and occasionally there will be violence that will be justified for the sake of love.  Violence is typically ok if you do it in the name of love.  I am currently watching Jane the Virgin and she is so indecisive between these two men.  They are constantly  fighting for her love, even to the point of beating each other up.  This show has high ratings and I think it something about the drama that attracts the viewers.  Since it is shown on television, I think it makes it ok since it isn't real life.
     

Media Consumption

Before Wednesday's lecture, I wasn't aware that only 6 companies were in charge of the majority of American Media.  I thought there was more variety when it came to who owns what.  Most likely companies that are turning a big profit will always try and buy out smaller companies to reduce competition, which in turn own more of the market.  The majority of television consumption I watch is on Netflix, rarely do I watch cable tv.  If I do happen to watch cable it would most likely be news on CNN or on Fox News.  So essentially I'm getting both sides of the spectrum lol.  Fox News typically leans towards portraying the news in a more conservative republican lens in comparison to CNN being more liberal.  The news is definitely monitored and is filtered on what is shown.  I'd have to go the extra mile and watch the news that isn't American based.        

Allegory Response

After thoroughly reading "Allegory," it was clear that Homer was trying to describe the importance of individuals being able to identify themselves as either stuck looking forward at what is presented in front of us. You can compare this to people being addicted to social media.  People who are addicted are unable to look anywhere else within life and make truly free decisions on there own. They spend the majority of their life stuck on looking at social media outlets to dictate their successes and failures.