Media Crit

I really enjoyed this class this semester and it definitely made going to class at 930 slightly easier. My favorite thing about it was definitely the class blog, I’ve never used it in any of my previous classes but I think it is such a creative and novel idea! Writing blog posts is so much more engaging than using blackboard and this should really be continued in future classes. The layout of the blog is just so much more aesthetically pleasing than blackboard and it facilitates student interaction as we can comment on each other’s blogs. What made the blogs so interesting to read was attributed to the fact that all the readings and subjects we touched upon in class were so informative and extremely relevant to every day life. I specifically enjoyed the readings on stereotypes in the media as its interesting to note that the stereotypical portrayals which have dominated the media since the beginnings of television still continue to exist today. I also found the readings on queer theory as well as the video on transgenders very intriguing and it was unfortunate that we didn’t get enough time in class to finish it.

            However, I do feel like there were some weeks when the readings were a bit much and it was hard to finish the readings as well as write a blog post (specifically for Thursday classes). Also, there were a few times when I was totally at a loss as to what to blog about and found it helpful when we were given distinct topics to help steer us in a certain direction. Furthermore, there were a couple articles which I felt were a bit dull, such as Chandler’s Semiotics for Beginners Article and Arthur’s Sex and the City and Consumer Culture. In addition, even though I found the articles regarding crime and the way it is presented in the media highly fascinating, I didn’t really feel like it pertained as much to what we were studying in class. I know it would be really hard to reduce the readings from Tuesday to Thursday for future classes so maybe students could write a longer blog post on Thursday to Tuesday instead of writing two shorter ones throughout the week.