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The videos supplied this week gave me a nuanced look at ethics in media and how its power can be used in both malicious and sincere ways. The first video (McCombs School of Business, 2018) defines ethics as either “the investigation and analysis of moral principles and dilemmas” or “rules and guidelines that establish what conduct is right and wrong”.
The second video (Folding Ideas, 2015) thoroughly examines the work of Marshall McLuhan in his book, ‘Understanding Media’. Most importantly, I found a proper understanding of his quote, “the medium is the message”. This is contextualised through his understanding of media as “any extension of ourselves”. An example demonstrated in the video is how “the electric light reshaped how humans interact with day and night”. As new technologies and mediums develop, the way people interact with the world around them changes drastically.
‘How Dark Patterns Trick You Online’ (Nerdwriter1, 2018) examines a phenomenon started by large corporations to sway the actions of consumers. The most common type of dark pattern is a ‘roach motel’; a situation that is easy to get into, but difficult to get out of. Amazon’s hidden account deletion process is a great example of how customers can feel trapped when dealing with an unfamiliar and intentionally confusing system. There are many other types of dark patterns on the web and in apps. One type I have experienced myself is when websites prompt the user for consent to use cookies. Oftentimes, companies will hide or obscure the ‘disable’ option behind another menu, making it harder for users to prevent tracking.
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| Disabling cookies is hidden behind a 'Learn More' button in this case. |
‘How One Man Manipulated All of America’ (Freedom in Thought, 2017) discusses Edward Bernays and his pursuits in marketing while consumerism expanded in popularity. His belief was that propaganda was “the mechanism by which ideas are disseminated on a large scale”. He felt no objection to propaganda as a method of promotion, if it had no ill ends or was untruthful. This way of thinking allowed him to expand marketing efforts into many different forms of communication, appealing to consumers’ emotions, thoughts, and desires. This is demonstrated through his most famous campaign, getting women to smoke in the USA in 1929. His use of ‘influencer marketing’ created a local perception of smoking as an act of empowerment for women. By getting suffragettes to smoke during a parade, smoking would become symbolic of their cause and convince more women to smoke. He also appealed to the beauty standards of the time by conveying smoking as a health benefit. With doctors and suffragettes pushing cigarettes to the public, it became much easier to influence customers than through direct advertisement alone.
These perspectives on media ethics have given me a greater outlook on the role of media in our everyday lives. It can be easy to miss out on small details within media that can influence you if you aren’t examining its motives in detail.
Sources:
McCombs School of Business (2018) Ethics Defined [online] Available from <https://youtu.be/4vWXpzlL7Mo> [accessed 1 Nov 2021].
Folding Ideas (2015) Minisode - The Medium is the Message [online] Available from <https://youtu.be/OseOb_wBsi4> [accessed 1 Nov 2021].
Nerdwriter1 (2018) How Dark Patterns Trick You Online [online] Available from <https://youtu.be/kxkrdLI6e6M> [accessed 1 Nov 2021].
Freedom in Thought (2017) How One Man Manipulated All of America [online] Available
from <https://youtu.be/nj_UWbifM2U> [accessed 1 Nov 2021].
To begin with my feedback, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this blog post about Media ethics. The post is very clearly laid out, and the paragraphs are concise and informative.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite part of your blog post was you reading your outlook and what you felt from your perspective. I liked how you explained what the videos were about, giving the viewer the important information from the video’s. I think you done very well in giving your sources where you got the information from, as it can be helpful for others to get different resources. What was your thoughts on the video based on Edward Bernays and how he manipulated all of America? I have learned the new term “Roach Motel” for a situation that is easy to get in but difficult to get out of such as hidden cookies. I also enjoyed the order in which your blog post was arranged it was very pleasing to see, which is a technique I plan to implement on my future blogs. What if you added more of a personal aspect on the topic, it would have a better balance of information and opinion, overall great job on your blog!
Name: Bernice Lao
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As I was reading this feedback, I genuinely enjoy reading this post about Media ethics. The post itself is very clear and all the points that have been made are very clear and concise. As for my favourite part about this blog is how you stated your opinion and how in each point you backed all your opinions with evidence which to me shows that you have done your research about the following topics. I liked how you have explained what the videos were about as well as giving the viewers important information from the videos. I think you have done well in terms of citing your sources and referencing. However, you're only fault is that you didn't address your audience, so maybe try doing that for example saying "hello everyone..", "Today I will be discussing...", "Thanks for tuning in" to list a few phrases to really make your readers included. My question is what was your opinion on the video based on Edward Bernays and how he manipulated all of America? Overall, it was really good and I genuinely enjoyed reading your blog!
To begin with my review of the above blog, I would like to say that the layout and structure of the blog is very good and it enables you to flow as you’re reading it. The length of the blog is perfect and it contains great detail. The writer has great in-text citations and I like how each paragraph is referring to a different video. This removes any confusion as you know exactly which video the writer is writing about. The writer also included images to show the reader examples of what is being discussed. At the bottom of the blog the reference list is extremely well structured, all of the relevant information is there and it is easy to read. Some questions I would have for the writer would be what are your thoughts on Edward Bernays? Do you think what he did has any effects in today’s society? I have learned plenty about ethics in the media and particularly how it can affect people in positive or negative ways. Personally I find it hard to make a suggestion for the writer as it contains everything that a blog should, however if I am being really picky I would suggest that the writer could introduce the blog and sign off with a more personal message, e.g. “Hello, my name is … and I will be discussing …” and sign off with “thank you for reading” or something along those lines. Overall this blog is one of the best i've read and the writer did a great job.
ReplyDeleteHi Milo, I really enjoyed reading your blog. It was well written and the structure of the blog was really well put. All the points and information was very easy to understand. I enjoyed reading it from your perspective and it made reading more enjoyable as I could relate, your explanations per video were easy to understand and I personally for the most part enjoyed how each paragraph was a video and how all the information that was stated was easy to source and locate, I also mostly do like that you have used an image, I think using images lets the readers know what they might be reading about or somewhat similar to what the topic is about. The blog is quite well written and it is hard to give any feedback but I feel like an introduction to the readers at the start would be inviting to the readers.
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