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COMM_302_Mass_Communication_Theory_Annotated_Bibliography

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Mass Communications and Media Studies

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Social media has taken the front seat to the various means of media communication in an industry that is constantly evolving due to the fast-paced technology industry. Society is heavily influenced my information they gather through these channels when it comes to real-world news items, celebrity news, or as consumers. These media channels have opened a whole new world to marketers and businesses in ways to share their messages. Due to this growth, there has been an increase in the many theories that are being studied on the effects that media has on its society, culture, and audience. The articles below helped increase my understanding of media on a psychological level. What is the core purpose behind media outlets such as Twitter or Facebook? What are businesses hoping to accomplish by having a strong social media presence? The various studies help the readers understand the influences that mass media has on a person’s lifestyle and daily habits.

Cavender, Kurt. “Media, Society, World: Social Theory and Digital Media Practice.” Cultural Studies (2013): p656-p659.

Author Kurt Cavender shares the views of various researchers who have studied the effects that different social media channels have on its audience. Furthermore, rather than asking how Facebook or Twitter are being used, one researcher (Bruno Latour) wants to understand what habits are formed because of these social media channels and the influence they have on our day-to-day productivity. There are many theories discussed such as; object-oriented media theories, system-oriented media theories, and a new theory introduced by Latour known as actor-network theory (ANT). Latour introduced ANT as “a method for following the circulation across space of people and objects as actors make up their worlds”. The main takeaway is that “social practice occupies an intersection between the semiotic and the material, that the movements of actors within media have both symbolic value and material implications in society.” Media and its traditional term is evolving which is highlighted in the journal article to help readers understand the impact of media and society.

Saat, Rafeah, Selamat, Mohamad. “The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility Information Richness on Trust.” Issues in Social and Environmental Accounting Vol. 8 No. 3 (2014): p67-p81.

The authors of this study set out to test the effects that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has on the success of a business. This concept “describes the relationship between company and society.” The article focuses on how a new culture of communicating has been created through the internet which allows companies to share their CSR message with society. The authors designed a study to further understand the benefits of CSR through the Media Richness Theory (MRT), where companies can share their messaging through this avenue. The study is designed to help readers understand if sharing CSR through social media channels results in sales or if consumers become skeptical of the company’s mission and building trust in consumers. The study helps us understand how audiences receive and interpret messages through media.

Bechmann, Gotthard, Stehr, Nico. “Niklas Luhmann’s Theory of Mass Media.” Society Vol. 48 Issue 2 (2011): p142-p147.

In this paper, the authors study Niklas Luhmann’s theory of mass media and its true reality. Originally, Luhmann set out to prove the public’s suspicion of mass media as the basis of his research but shifted his beliefs as he got further into his research. The authors highlight that Luhmann’s thoughts about mass media is that they “do not present an image of a reality that they have distinguished but rather they themselves create the reality which they communicate daily as news, reports, advertising.” But this reality is what Luhmann refers to as “manufactured reality” that is circulated selectively by mass media. Further on, Luhmann widens his research to view mass media communication from the end users point of view to better understand the effects of mass media on our culture.

Coming to an End The Weekend

Coming to an End: The Weekend

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Coming to an End: The Weekend

After extensive research and examination of the Weeknd’s music, lyrics, styles, over comings and life hardship, I have found myself to be extremely well aware of every aspect of his life (that I could get my hands on). The Rhythm and Blues famous artist is hugely inspirational in consideration of his humble background to where he is now regardless of the hardships he underwent through as he was growing up. Also, proving himself as a legend in the music industry was not that easy due to his race and the fact that his family did not have the capability of supporting him. As a tolerant, the Weeknd does not only inspire through the touching music and lyrics but also through supporting the marginalized racial communities. In this paper, the issue of racism is discussed in a more significant context on how it has significantly affected the Weeknd’s life and shaping him to who he is now in the music field.

The Weeknd also was known as Abel Tesfaye was born at Toronto in Canada by his parents Makkonen and Samra who were Ethiopian immigrants. When growing up, there was a challenge regarding his race, his voice and the family’s poverty level considering the community was racial biased. Due to his race and color, the Weeknd faced bullying and segregation in high school which made him abandon his learning at the age of seventeen. The legend takes this challenge as an inspiration and gets the idea of majoring in music as a way of spreading togetherness, giving him someone to talk to that no one wants to hear and a theme to talk about that others did not want to listen about it. The talent in him has been significant to people’s life nevertheless his race which he belongs (Eells, page 12). His fans would have disliked his appearance, but the power of music speaks making the get in touch with his art.

In consideration of the Weeknd’s music, the issue of racism enhanced a significant impact. The facts that he has faced in live acts as an experience and motivation stimulator as there is the urge to change the way of taking things among the society. The racist learns from the art that all people have equal rights and every person has different capabilities which are all constructive if well natured regardless of the ethnicity. The positivity and encouragement that the Weeknd got from the people who looked down on him have enabled him to acquire many trophies more than a hundred awards in the music industry. The uniqueness equips the artist many precious opportunities in the entertainment field not only performing and encouraging fans but also enhancing perfection of other artists work. For instance, he has produced a variety of songs in the soundtrack of various favorite movies such as The Hunger Game among many others (Kumru, page 20).

It is awkward to come across a Rhythm and Blues artist addressing social issues affecting the society such as rape and race segregation, but the Weeknd do this correctly. Many of other artists majors in making allusions to drugs, violence, and alcohol, use of pejorative language and the humiliating of people women in particular. On the other side, the Weeknd makes take a positive perspective of the mentioned above matters and relate them to the happenings in society to bring a positive impact and social-economic development. The artist has diversification in his physical and actual being, and he is oriented in his capabilities. In the today’s world, there is racism, and a pessimistic character will not survive in the competition as Abel did. One can just say that the fact of Abel being an Ethiopian disadvantaged him on achieving his objectives in the music industry which is not the case. The Weeknd did not and is not at any time looking back to give this mentality an opportunity to draw him back, and he believes in the capability of doing even more than anyone expects in the music industry.

The issue of racism is evident even today and the Weeknd takes it as a degrading matter in that renders society development by bringing enmity between the American people. It hurts Abel to the extent that made him address the issue in public. The specific issue he talked about regards the police brutality when dealing with blacks. The artist did not have interest in politics, but it was inevitable to expose the issue according to him as it is touching and against human rights and justice. He broke up the silence that the police unfairly treat the blacks after the recent shootings. Furthermore, the Weeknd has kept the legacy of donating two hundred and fifty thousand dollars to the Black Lives Matter Network (Wagstaff, page 6). The organization deals with facilitating freedom and justice to the black people living in North America, and it has gained popularity after challenging police treatment to the minorities.

As discussed above, the Weeknd is a hero who is passionate in the music industry and has the capability of coming up with racism crisis. It is a lesson and urges to the minority communities and people coming from a humble background who sees like there is no future ahead to have a positive perspective of working towards the targeted objectives. Racism is an excellent society back draw that has to be dealt with to ensure equality and justice in the country. Abel has proved it that no matter how hard situation that one goes through seems to be, at the end there is victory after achieving the expected goals.

References

Eells, Josh. “Sex, Drugs and R&B: Inside the Weeknd’s Dark Twisted

Fantasy.” Rolling Stone. 2015. Web. 28 Oct. 2017.

Kumru, S. “Category: Slang and Language Subcultures.”

“The Weeknd in Washington – Macleans.ca.” Macleansca. 2016. Web. 30 Oct. 2017

Vozick-Levinson, Simon. “Ready For The Weeknd.” Rolling Stone 1243

(2015): 15. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 30 Oct. 2017.

Wagstaff. Keith. “10 Things You Should Know About the Weeknd.” GQ. 2015. Web. 30

Oct. 2017.

Coming To America Movie Review

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Coming To America Movie Review

Coming to America is a movie written by Barry W Blaustein and David Sheffield. Craig Brewer directs the movie, and it is a 1988 American romantic comedy. It is created by Eddie Murphy, who is also a star in the movie. He casts as prince Akeem, the soon-to-be king of Zamunda. The main cast includes Eddie Murphy as Prince Akeem, Arsenio Hall as Semmi , servant to the prince. A friend to the prince, Shari Headley as Lisa MacDowell, is Akeem’s love interest, James earl Jones as King Jaffe Joffer, Akeem madge Sinclair as queen Deleon Joffer, John Amos as Cleo McDowell Lisa’s father, and Pauls bates as Oha, a royal servant.

Discontented with his pampered life, an African prince decides to move to America to find his wife. It is on his 21st birthday that a wife is selected for him. Unfortunately, he is not pleased with his wife to be since he would love to have a wife who will love him for who he is and a wife who will share with his knowledge, not one who will follow all of his commands without questioning. He moves to America’s poorest area, and he lives as a working-class man. This is an indication of the current situation when people want to change their environment and move on to a new phase of life whereby they feel better and fresh to start a new life.

On his first days of searching, he is not contented with the women he meets. He claims that they all have a severe emotional problem; therefore, he asks an older man at the barbershop, Mr. Clarence, where they can find a nice woman. They go to the black awareness rally where Lisa catches the eye of Akeem. Akeem gets a job at the McDowell so that he could get to know Lisa better. Once Lisa accepts him, the king travels to America by the word of Semi and informs Lisa that Akeem is to marry someone else. On his wedding day, Akeem is surprised to find his bride is Lisa. All this is to help us understand the concept of love and how it is always a challenge to many people. In conclusion, therefore, this movie reflects the struggles a person gets in their lives and how different people deal with them. It also brings us to the face of the complicated issue of love.

Works cited

Landis, John, et al. “Coming to America.” IMDb, 29 June 1988, www.imdb.com/title/tt0094898. Accessed 16 Mar. 2021.