Through the Eyes of Media, The Life of Karen

This project examines what it is like to grow up with the influence of media around us.

Presenter: Beatrice Pitts

Presenter Status: Undergraduate student

Academic Year: 20-21

Semester: Fall

Faculty Mentor: Michaela Grobbel

Department: Modern Languages & Literatures

Funding Source/Sponsor: SYRCE Symposium

Screenshot URL: https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1eH7N1fssWJL5YAy5XtvQTOpmHCARrXSS

Abstract:
From a young age, media usage can be the most influential platform that we consume. Whether it is coming from the Tv screen, a computer screen, or a smartphone, the media has taken control of the world. In examining this idea, we can look as far back as childhood cinema, Walt Disney, to get a grasp at where many social norms and minority stereotypes might have started. In allowing children to watch these films, we must acknowledge that these films can be highly educational, not necessarily teaching the right thing. Moving forward on a larger scale, we have seen films and media also construct social norms from an individual standpoint, being that we must be this picture perfect image, though we can question who got to decide what that looks like. We must step back and examine who we are being influenced by, and though that person may be trying to make an impact, we as consumers can take this information in very different directions. With that being said I also took a look into fake news and how this has come to influence people and how monitoring the news we receive is a very important step into becoming who we are without the robotic influence of the media. All in all, my research aims to investigate the influence of the media into how that changes our perspectives on the world.