Reflection 1

For the first class reflection I wanted to reflect on the discussion we had about stereotypes vs. culture.

In class it was mentioned that stereotypes are "widely held but fixed and oversimplified images or ideas of a particular type of person."This generally agrees with what my former definition of what a stereotype was. However, I really think a key point from the class discussion which I hadn't really considered with much thought was the fact that not all stereotypes are bad. The term "stereotype" generally has a negative connotation because we usually hear about it in our culture as something that people are trying to break, or as the punch-line of an offensive joke. However, I do agree, upon consideration and thought, that there are definitely some stereotypes in this world that have benevolent consequences. For example, someone in class brought up the stereotype of "Asians are smart." While this is still generalizing an entire group of people which I do not think is okay, this stereotype could possibly have a good consequence, such as a potential employer stereotyping an Asian man as smart, and therefore hiring him based on that preconceived notion. In contrast, the very same stereotype could have a negative effect, such as an Asian student being bullied because his peers view him as a "nerd." I think it's really important to think about the effects a stereotype can have on a person, whether they be beneficial or negative.

Someone also brought up how "stereotyping" is an innate reaction in the brain. The human brain is constantly trying to process new information and therefore it is necessary to group and categorize information. There have been times where I have caught myself stereotyping without even realizing it.

It is important to point out that many stereotypes come from the oversimplification of a culture.
Culture is not the same thing as a stereotype. In class, we defined culture as beliefs, norms, behaviors, customs, values, and shared identities that are characteristic of a particular social, ethnic, or age group. Some of these things can include food, clothing, celebrations, and language. Someone might stereotype a Mexican woman as someone who only eats tacos and wears flamboyant outfits, simply because that is something "typical" of the culture.

This also reminds me of a way that I personally get stereotyped. I live in East Harlem, which is has the appropriate alias of "Spanish Harlem" because many people who live there are Spanish speakers. I, on the other hand, do not speak Spanish, yet I get stereotyped as a Spanish speaker simply because I have olive skin, dark hair, dark eyes, and live in East Harlem.

Media Moment, "Herbal Essences"

I've seen this commercial dozens of times and every single time I think, "What does any of this have to do with shampoo?" Without looking at the screen one might think that the channel had been switched to cinemax or HBO. This commercial completely sexualizes SHAMPOO. Is shampoo something that has inherent sexual qualities? Not generally. So what I really don't get is WHY they did this? Was it simply for the "attention" factor? Furthermore I don't understand how "family" networks let this air on their channels. Did this upset any of you as much as it did me? Maybe it's just because I am thoroughly over "sex" being the topic of literally everything media related...


What other type of reading might someone have of this commercial?
Do you think this commercial is using the sexual factor just for attention?

Weekend Buzz About Possibility Of An NBA Female Player

Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA team Dallas Mavericks, caused a media frenzy in the sports world this weekend when he made a comment about possibly drafting Brittney Griner, a WNBA player. He even took a step further and tweeted Brittney about his interest in her.

Brittney is ready to take Mark Cuban's challenge.


 http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-brittney-griner-nba-tryout-20130407,0,223091.story

 Brittney Griner will not be the first female basketball player to try out for the NBA draft picks, however, the world will be watching her to see if she will succeed or not.

The debate of whether or not women can play with men in sports is still split. There has been an out pour of support and disapproval from many sports fans, NBA players, and sports officials.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/9134616/shane-battier-miami-heat-says-nba-female-player-our-lifetime

Shane Battier, Miami Heat's forward, stated that if not Brittney Griner, it will be another woman and that we will someday have a WNBA player in the NBA in his lifetime.

Brittney is 6'8" tall and weighs 208 lbs. If she was to play for the NBA, she would play most likely the small forward. The possibility of having an NBA female player has certainly given Brittney a lot of attention in the media, but not all the attention is on her athletic talent and skills this past weekend.

When I searched for Brittney Griner on Google search, it already shows the public's curiosity whether with her femininity and if she is really a woman, or a man, or lesbian. In social media, the public seems to be more interested in her gender, sexuality, and physical looks rather than her impressive and very talented basketball skills and her breaking historic barriers in sports.

Week 9; The Veiled Women From a Different Angle

Here is a video on one of my favorite documentary photographers doing a series on successful and educated (veiled) women in Saudi Arabia. I thought it would be an interesting addition to this week's readings.

Fascinating documentary about Korean women

http://www.vice.com/fashion-week-internationale/seoul-fashion-week-full-length

I work for this company, and they have a bunch of different web series that cover a variety of aspects of culture. Some of their series are better than others, however this one is actually quite interesting. I didn't embed the video because it is really gruesome—they sit in on a really young girl getting plastic surgery. The video talks to Korean women about a surgery which is called "Westernization". Korea is the number one place in the world to get plastic surgery (surpassing the US and Brazil) and getting surgeries to make your eyes look rounder or more "western" is common, so much so that it has become a typical graduation gift for high school graduates. Anyways, if you have half an hour watch it. It is a great documentary. It also talks about K-Pop.

Prom Season

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/03/prom-dates-hey-its-ok-if-_n_3001587.html?utm_hp_ref=less-stress-more-living

I saw this post while browsing today and it caught my attention because I find it ridiculous that there even needs to be a blog post reassuring girls that it is fine to attend prom without a date.
I have to confess that I never attended prom because my schoolmates and I felt like it wasn't a necessity. I also went to a small international high school, so the cultural difference is present. I'm not sure if it is only an American tradition, but the pressure for both girls and boys to find a date is really exhausting.
I think girls especially have a lot of pressure to get a date because society has somehow declared that having a date is the only acceptable way to attend prom. There have been too many movie scenes or TV episodes dedicated to this topic.
I think that society shouldn't encourage young girls to depend on others for them to be accepted or make them happy. There isn't anything wrong with attending prom by yourself or with a group of friends.
I feel like guys do not experience the same pressure, which is a double standard. If a girl goes by herself it is automatically assumed that no one asked her out, but that almost never happens with guys.

What do the women and men think about this?
Did you attend prom with a date? Is it necessary to have one?

secret escapes or secret affairs?

I saw this commercial recently and wasn't too sure about what the intended message was, but what I got from it was that "secret escapes" is where women can book secret trips with out their spouses knowing about it. it sounds to me like its trying to promote cheating, making cheating seem easy ( with the "70% off" incentive) and glamorizing it in a way.
It makes women look sneaky and dishonest.
The thing about it that made me weary was that it appears to be targeted to women, but it came on while I was watching basketball, and usually commercials during sports are targeted at men.
 I wonder if it is really trying to tell men to cheat on their spouses, while using a women, so that men don't feel as guilty about it.

What is this commercial saying to you about women?

Am I the only one that sees this meaning in the commercial?

What other types of readings could you get from this?