Fohf Blog

I decided to do the Celebrity vs. Hero powerpoint because everyone and their moms are blogging about the gender stereotypes.

Veterens- Hero, because they performed a service that requires great courage and other noble qualities. Whether you support certain wars or not, I think the troops should be supported because they're over there doing a job you're not willing or mentally/physically capable of doing. Some stereotypes associated with veterans, older veterans anyway, is that many of them are crazy. I've seen countless TV shows, movies, etc. that show veterans as people that have completely lost their minds. I'm sure this is the case a lot of the time though.

50 Cent- Celebrity...what has he done that can be seen has "heroic"? I'm not familiar with his full life story, but I'm sure he never saved any kids from a burning building or anything. I guess the biggest stereotype with him is that he is a "thug" or "gangsta". Afterall, he was shot nine times. His lyrics prove the stereotype for the most part.

Blue Collar Comedy- Celebrity. Why on Earth would they be heroes? Why are they even in this powerpoint? The stereotype with these comedians is that they are all idiot rednecks; that's what their entire act is about.

Harvey Milk- I say a mix of both. Back in his prime, I would lean more toward the hero side because he, being a gay man, fought for gay rights and equality. Nowadays, with a recent movie, I'd say he's being turned into more of a celebrity. I guess since he's gay the stereotype would be that he is feminine and wouldn't make a strong leader.

Tyra Banks- Celebrity. Mayhaps she could be a role model for some troubled girls out there, but she's just downright crazy. If you don't believe me, watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOR4qekHWlA. There is no stereotype here...she's cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.

Ellen DeGeneres- This one is similar to Harvey Milk. For some, she could be seen as a role model for gay women. For others, just your average celebrity. She's not really anything to me though, I'm not a fan of hers. Since she's a lesbian, the stereotype with her is that maybe she is too manly.

Mother Teresa- Hero. She helped countless people who were starving, sick, poor, etc. A stereotype of hers could come from her being very religious. She could be seen as "no fun".

Wonder Woman- Celebrity since she's not real...she can't be a hero. Since she's a strong and independent woman, maybe she could be stereotyped as a "b*itch".

Angelina Jolie- I say celebrity. Yes, she's well on her way to adopting half of the orphans on earth, but let's be real. She's a celebrity. A stereotype of hers is that she's crazy. She KISSED HER BROTHER ON THE LIPS at some award show for cake's sake! MULTIPLE TIMES! That's weird!

Jennifer Aniston- Celebrity. What has she done that's heroic? Nothing that I know of, that's for sure. With the whole stupidly publicized breakup of her and Mr. Pitt, she could be stereotyped as a jealous, angry, woman....but oh so attractive.

Donald Trump- Celebrity. He's a greedy old man with abysmal hair. He's stereotyped as a greedy old man with abysmal hair.

Bill Clinton- I guess he's a mix of both. I think he did a pretty good job as president, so I guess the hero factor could come in from that. However, the whole Monica Lewinsky business made him into more of a celebrity. The stereotype is that he cheats on his wife.

Anne Frank- Leaning towards hero on this one. Not for me personally, but for others. Her tale is one of courage. The endless stream of media on her could make her into a celebrity though. I can't think of any stereotypes...only awful jokes that are in bad taste.

Our Parents- I guess this one is hero by default for most of us. Our parents raised us and all that. The stereotype, amoung us teenagers at least, is that our parents are stupid and should leave us alone.

The Third Blog

The program I decided to view was Family Guy. The episode I decided to view was titled, "Don't Make Me Over". The episode featured the daughter, Meg, getting turned down for a date and becoming depressed. The mother, Lois, decides that buying Meg a new wardrobe will cheer her up, so they venture off to the mall. This illustrated the American core value of "material comfort" because the new clothing was supposed to make Meg feel better. Whilst at the mall, the duo happens upon Channel 5's Asian correspondent Tricia Takanawa giving away free makeovers. Meg gets a makeover, becomes attractive, becomes more popular, and gets a confidence boost. I guess this would illustrate the value of "youthfulness" because...uhh...well...just because. While all those shenanigans are going on, Peter, the father, and all his friends turn the local bar into a karoake bar to help it financially. The deed is a rousing success. It's so successful that they decide to form a band. That would illustrate the value of "Achievement and Success", "Progress", and "Activity and Work" because they worked hard, improved upon something, and were successful. Anyway, their band epicly fails...so, the Griffin family rushes on stage to support them during a gig and the audience (of prison inmates) is enthralled with Meg. The family decides to exploit Meg's aesthetics and becomes a modern day Patridge Family. Blah blah blah some more stuff happens, Meg goes back to being ugly, and Jimmy Fallon sucks.

I don't think this show is telling us what we should value, I think it's telling us that we shouldn't value certain things as much. Making all these situations comical shows us that maybe it's stupid to value looks so much and having major success isn't all that is important. Mayhaps they are trying to tell us that a person is a person no matter how they look....except for Meg...she's just awful.

The second blog thing

I watched the video. It didn't really teach me anything, it only reinforced what I had already thought. The sole purpose of most media is to make money, so of course they're going to toss their ads in the direction of children and other impressionable beings. Is it morally sound? Probably not. Should we just sit around complaining and blogging about it? Probably not. If everyone is so upset about this video, which seems to be the case, they should make changes in their lives to stop the "money farming". If girls don't want to stop being "forced" to always look good maybe they shouldn't put on makeup. That's a voluntary action if I ever saw one. I don't think any of these things are ever going to change, they're ingrained into our brains. Girls are supposed to be pretty and guys are supposed to be big and strong, it's been that way for a long time and that way of thinking will never change unless serious changes happen on a large scale. Yes, I'm taking the glass half empty approach to this, but I think I'm being realistic. I don't think the media should take all the blame on this either. They're trying to make the most money they can, that's capitalism at its core. I think a lot of the blame is on the parents' side. The kids who are being exposed to all the media don't have money, transportation, or the cognitive ability to go to the store and buy their own things. Tell the parents to stop being consumer whores and buying their adorable little offspring things they don't need. Hypocrisy strikes again.

End of rant.