Online Media Has Become A Very Useful Tool Media Essay

Online Media Has Become A Very Useful Tool Media Essay The online media or the New Media has also been a consequence of dynamic communications technology developments and the need of a universal platform that emerges traditional media with the interactive power of computers and the participative aspect of the Internet. I strongly believe that online media has indeed become a very useful tool for citizens to play their role in political and social participation. The reasons are various: Internet is very popular and user-friendly, it give people the opportunity of engaging in civic discussion and there is a common lack of time, interest and proximity issues hinder their willingness in participating, As Margaret Scammell also pointed out in her paper The Internet and Civic Engagement: the Age of the Citizen-Consumer, (anul) the Internet, we hear constantly, will change everything. Thus far, however, the evidence for politics is rather small. We see vastly expanded information sources for citizens, new delivery systems for political institutions, greater opportunities for politics at the margins. But mostly we see the same old electoral and institutional politics with no evidence of huge new communities of participating citizens. What is actually emphasized here is the fact that we expect a greater involvement of citizens in political and social aspects on online media platforms, whereas new media online only endows us with brand new instruments of citizenship performance. Internet, as one of the 20th centurys most important developments, facilitates old and new functions of media, by orientating traditional media, like newspapers and television towards more participation, interactivity, flexibility, real time interaction, experiences and information sharing at a low cost. Politics and political participation of citizens is one of the topics of discussion over the Internet. The basic function of media informing people, is clearly seen in the huge World Wide Web community. Politicians have recently started to be aware of the impact that the Internet has, especially on young generations and therefore have moved online, where they have their own blogs, participate in online political forums, and get in direct contact with their electors. A very good example in this sense is Barack Obamas famous online campaign which helped him engage more with his voters and actually gave them the opportunity of integrating and even creating a political campaign. I think it helped us to access a lot of people by giving them to tools to organize, to create events, to connect with each others and giving them everything that they needed, so that when they had talking points to pass onto their families, videos, events in their area that were happening, community outreach pro grams in their state. Everything that we did was to connect people, because it was a movement that was fundamentally about people. (http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2008/12/04/felesky-rahaf.html Rahaf Harfoush interview) Moreover, even in 2000 American elections, American Online reported that seven of the all-time top ten live online chats were political, suggesting an increase in interest and involvement in the political process (Marlin 1999: 12 in CAROLINE J. TOLBERT AND RAMONA S. MCNEAL, KENT STATE UNIVERSITY). Another essential aspect of online citizenship is the civic engagement. One might argue that civic engagement online is one of the pioneer activities promoted online and which had a tremendous success among both nongovernmental organizations and participants to different online campaigns, petitions, manifestations. Its mobilizing character has had a very good outcome in community volunteer work, environmental causes and protest behavior, as it has engaged people in various discussions on social media platforms or in sharing experiences and thoughts about problems of common interest on YouTube, Blogs, MySpace, Facebook and websites. A very good example of a civic engagement campaign that has attracted many participants is the Greenpeace campaign. Promoting their activities in environmental causes and simultaneously asking for peoples direct involvement online has ensured the success of their campaign. Online medias main advantage that of offering great opportunities of sharing information and experiences to its users can sometimes turn into a disadvantage, because normal people are becoming journalists. This facilitates subjectivism and might sometimes lead to misinforming the other users. Moreover, many organizations, politicians or public figures have sensed the potential impact and success of online campaigns and therefore tend to control certain information flows for their own interest and even manipulate the content of forums, blogging, etc. The Web community facilitates the achievement of different types of citizenship, whether they are political, cultural, social or national. Citizens have often declared themselves dissatisfied with traditional media coverage; due to media concentration, the information and knowledge they get seems most of the times to be influenced by particular view that media moguls try to impose indirectly. Therefore the online media give them the opportunity of expressing themselves without restrictions and engage actively in different knowledge sharing activities and even direct participation to political decisions. Taken all this arguments into consideration, I believe that the new media indeed contribute to a better citizenship by means of more interaction, delivering own experiences and thoughts towards different political topics, being informed and having access to a greater range of knowledge sources. Online media, creates opportunities for all the Internet users to contribute to the main attribute of democracy and that is, being able to take part at political and social decision making process.

Character Analysis: Pride and Prejudice Essay

In the beginning of reading this classic love story, I could have fallen asleep while reading and I actually did; but while the story went on it grew more interesting I couldn’t put my book down. The pride and prejudice referred to in the title of this Jane Austin novel prepare the reader for the character flaws of the main characters, Miss Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy. Elizabeth’s pride and Mr. Darcy’s prejudice prevent the two from recognizing and admiring their love for one another. And all the same, I truly believe that Elizabeth mistakes Mr. Darcy’s pride because, she herself is just as stubborn as he. Jane Bennet is the eldest Bennet sister. Twenty-two years old when the novel begins, she is considered the most beautiful young lady in the neighborhood. Her character is contrasted with Elizabeth’s because she is sweeter, shyer, and equally sensible, but not as clever, but her most notable trait is a desire to see only the good in others. Jane seems to be her mother’s favorite because of her beauty, which Mrs. Bennet brags and boasts about often. Elizabeth is around the age of twenty in the novel. Her family calls her â€Å"Lizzy†, her friends and neighbors call her â€Å"Eliza†, and the narrator usually calls her â€Å"Elizabeth†, but her mother never calls her Elizabeth. She is an intelligent young woman who is described as having â€Å"a lively, playful disposition, which delighted in any thing ridiculous†. She often presents a playful good-natured impertinence, which does not offend. Early in the novel she is depicted as being personally proud of her mental quickness and her acuity in judging the social behavior and intentions of others. Elizabeth is the second of five sisters and her father’s favorite, and is described by him by having â€Å"something more of quickness than her sisters†; though she is often distressed and embarrassed by the behavior of her mother and of her younger sisters. Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy is an intelligent, handsome, wealthy and reserved gentleman, who often appears snooty or proud to strangers and is the owner of Pemberley. Mr. Darcy’s inflated personal pride, snobbish indifference and arrogance cause him to consider Elizabeth Bennet as unworthy and plain, â€Å"tolerable† and â€Å"not handsome enough to tempt him.† However, afterwards he becomes attracted to Elizabeth, and courts her clumsily or â€Å"against his better judgment,† while struggling against his continuing feelings of superiority. His arrogance and rudeness enhance his desirability, and they are reconsidered later as a sign of his bottled-up passion for Elizabeth. Women love Mr. Darcy because: 1. He is open and honest 2. He is not defensive at all 3. He does not try to change her but likes her â€Å"just the way she is† 4. He knows how to listen 5. He knows how to apologize 6. He is not afraid to change 7. He defends Elizabeth publicly 8. He does something extraordinary and he keeps quiet about it 9. He can be engaging 10. He has a private reputation of kindness and goodness Bingley is a man of few and very mild principles, whose easiness of temper and want of proper resolution impair his worth in Eliza’s eyes. Bingley lacks Darcy’s pride or self-importance. He values Jane’s beauty and her good nature, which matches his own character. He feels free to pursue his interest in Jane only after his two sisters have given their approval, but his ultimate standard of reference is Darcy. He submits to Darcy’s objections about the marriage, and because of this, many call Mr. Bingley spineless. It is Darcy’s authority that ultimately determines Bingley’s choice in life, supported by Jane’s physical appearance and pleasant character. Even after learning that Darcy had concealed from him the truth about Jane’s presence in London and after Darcy encourages him to revive the relationship with her, Bingley still wants Darcy’s active approval before proposing to Jane.

Critical Book Review of “Fast Food Nation” Essay

In this essay, an attempt is made to critically review the book, â€Å"Fast Food Nation† which deals with the process of emergence of fast food culture in America leading to significant social changes. Analysis The meticulously researched book â€Å"Fast Food Nation† is written by the journalist Eric Schlosser. The author devotes much attention to unhealthy fast food, labor violations, and many cases of food poisoning. The author gives information regarding the process of emergence of fast food culture in America; the health issues related to fast food culture, and the government regulations regarding the fast food. In this book, the author demonstrates the ugly side of American food culture. According to the author of this book Americans spend more on fast food than on books, movies, etc. In 2001, Americans have spent $110 billion on fast food. There are 43000 meatpacking workers. Fast food industry spends $3 billion to attract the young people to the fast food centers. The author states that every American consumes three hamburgers and four orders of French fries every week. He says that the social price of fast food has neglected the traditional American values. The attempt of the author is to argue against the consumption of fast food by the Americans. He obtained information through fieldwork and by interviewing different categories of workers involved in fast food production. The author argues that the main reason for opening so many fast food centers was to attract large number of people to the fast food culture. This is a part of the capitalist agenda since the fast food centers have increased the capital of the owners of these centers. Due to this, few corporations have dominated the fast food business in America. The author does not hide his distrust regarding the fundamental principles of the capitalist system. He has given information regarding the economic strategies of the capitalists in popularizing the consumption of fast food among the American youth and other sections of American society. The book also gives information regarding the problems faced by the teen-aged workers who were paid low wages. The author mentions that one out of every eight worker in America is employed in McDonald. McDonald’s hire nearly million people a year. However, they work under dangerous working conditions. It is mentioned that three companies master 80 percent of US demand for frozen fries. The author visited the slaughterhouses and comprehended the potential health hazards both to the workers and the consumers. He mentions that each year one in three workers go to doctor due to problem with their stomach. The author gives the information that two thirds of fast food workers are under 20 and most of them work 12 hours shift. To demonstrate his argument the author has used the examples, logos from the companies such as MacDonald’s. The fast food culture has few negative impacts on the health and society of America. For instance, this has increased the problem of obesity. These restaurants use items such as potatoes and cattle to produce the popular food. The use of items such as oil and method of production of meat has increased the problem of obesity in America. Obesity in the recent years has emerged as the one of the most severe social and health problems among the American youth. Thus, fast food culture can be considered as one factor leading to this problem of obesity in America. However, the author has neglected the role of consumer while discussing the growth of fast food culture. The author points out the need for government regulations to curb the freedom of multi national companies in imposing their capitalist agenda on the people. The fast food mostly produced and consumed by the younger generation are not healthy. Regarding the health hazard, the author refers to E. coli and salmonella infection. The author blames the politicians for taking money from agri business capitalists, which has increased the number of fast food restaurants throughout America. The author has urged the readers that they should run away from the fast food in order to maintain their health. The fact that fast food culture is becoming popular indicates the emergence of significant changes in the American society. The fast food centers have on the one hand created health problems, and, on the other, they have led to changes in the social values among the American youth. The author says that everyday one-quarter of adult population in America visit fast food centers. Although people are aware of the bad effects of the fast food, still fast foods have not lost their popularity. Thus, the author does not give clear explanation regarding the reasons for the popularity of these fast food centers. However, the author, by the use of statistics, symbols, and examples has succeeded in arguing against the monopoly of few companies in fast food business. He has demonstrated the negative impact of fast food on health and society of America. Those who read this book would not send their children to the fast food centers. Conclusion The book â€Å"Fast Food Nation† has convincingly proved that fast food culture has led to problem of obesity and affected the workers and health of consumers of fast food. This also demonstrates that the nature of changes that would emerge in the future American society.

`` Buried Child `` And The Color Purple By Sam Shepard,...

Most aspects pertaining to what we know as the conventional family norm or values can be seen challenged in novels such as â€Å"Buried Child†, â€Å"The Little Girl Who Was Found of Matches†, and â€Å"The Colour Purple†. In all three novels themes, such as murder, abuse, and family relations, along with other taboo related or unacceptable behavior in society are displayed by characters reflecting to us how the authors of the novels have chosen to portray family life in their works. In each novel, we are given an outlook into the darker aspects of what we may know about occurring in society, but maybe not in the detailed or graphic manner presented by writers Sam Shepard, Gaà ©tan Soucy, and Alice Walker. It can be said that these dark elements of family life employed in the novels are unconventional yet are not things that are unknown to us, as they are existing problems in society. The assumptions made by the three authors of each novel, pertaining to the oc currence of such activities happening is plausible and does happen, which only means that outside of challenging the notions of family, the authors chose a specific approach to how their novels portray family life. Interpretations as to why each author chose to reflect darker aspects of family life can be assumed to be for the basic reasoning that these are not things that do not happen and while it may be uneasy for readers it only speaks on what really does happen or could happen to which we can contribute to the writers andShow MoreRelatedThe Portrayal Of Families Throughout Contemporary Literature Essay2003 Words   |  9 Pagesthe conventional gender roles associated to each member of the society that are projected to the basic unit, which is distinctly present in contemporary literary works and of particular in Sam Shepard’s Buried Child, in Gaà ©tan Soucy’s The Little Girl Who Was Too Fond of Matches and in Alice Walker’s The Color Purple. Typically speaking, portrayal of families before modern-day technology seems to be unrealistic. The ideology convey was full of easiness, less wariness and just a life worth living, full