Media Critique

Link to full article: http://www.wlky.com/article/oldham-county-board-of-education-approves-tax-increase/3869521

   In summary, This article is about the Oldham County School Board increasing taxes. There is very little information in the article. It is also lacking in sources, and there is no explanation as to why this is important.
   There is also no point of view from any civilians, spokespeople, or sources of power. This news is very objective, and does not clarify, explain, of elaborate on any facts listed in the article.
   The execution of this article is obviously very rushed, because noy only does it look very sparse, I looks sloppy and unprofessional.
   It is clear from this article and many more of similar quality that WLKY's website is not the best place for reliable and important news.

Peer Response: Ella

newsveiwsella

   Read Ella's blog post titled :"Jimmy Bittner Body Found- Local Relevance Lost" here : http://newsviewsella.blogspot.com

   After reading both the article and Ella's response, here are my thoughts on Ella's post. Ella is completely correct in her identification of the lack of local relevance within this article. There is no mention of why the death of a boy in North Carolina affects us all the way over here in Kentucky. No moral educating the public to stay away from dangerous waters or to donate to a fund to help prevent this . It just stated what happened and gave first person accounts of the article.
   I also think that Ella is correct to say that it does explain how it affects a small community, and it does include interviews and lots of information in that category. This would be a good article if it was published in a local North Carolina website.
    As I am also in the WLKY group, I agree that WLKY seems to have an abundance of silly and  non-newsworthy stories. I would expect more from a local news channel than a lot of crime stories, fluff stories, and stories like this, that will affect no one locally. This is exactly the contact that WLKY provides. I am sure WLKY is not the best or most reliable local Louisville news source.

Media Critique 

   Find the article here:  http://fox61.com/2016/09/16/galapagos-tortoises-savior-is-a-dirty-dirty-old-man/

   This article is about a galapagos tortoise who mates many times to help repopulate his species. This topic itself is newsworthy because it concerns the fate of an entire species. This will affect an entire ecosystem, and, in turn, may affect the surrounding people, economy, and trading. And because of our globalized economy, this has the capability to have international importance.  There is little of this explanation in the physical article.

   The execution of this article was very poor. This article originally appeared on Newser, which may explain the quality, but it still makes the important interesting in all the wrong ways. They made it interesting in a way that makes people want to read it. Most ordinary people would want to read a story about a sex-crazy tortoise who's a "dirty old man." But what this author has failed to do is make it interesting in terms of making it relevant and easy to understand.We were not informed of the consequences of the revitalization of this tortoise population, or how it came to happen. So this article gives us no context as to why or how this event came to happen.

   (Note- Another Fox story about this SAME topic that used the SAME interview to write the article gives much more backstory and relevance to this story. here it is: http://fox61.com/2016/09/16/galapagos-tortoises-savior-is-a-dirty-dirty-old-man/)

Media Critique

Original Article can be found here:http://www.wlky.com/article/official-139-animals-seized-from-ohio-farmyard-of-horrors/6802805

   This article describes a house found out to be inhabited by over 130 animals. This article is not newsworthy because it will affect very few people. This event will not likely be reoccurring, and is not really in a common category so that this story would fit into an overall message or theme in the same a way a homicide story would fit the narrative of the heightening crime rate in an area.
   This article was most likely written simply because it happened, and it is interesting to hear about. In some settings this would be appropriate, but it is expected of local news to covers stories that are of importance to the local residents, and not just stories that are fun to read.

Media Critique

While browsing through WLKY's website, I came across this:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/wlky.relaymedia.com/amp/article/did-you-see-this-amazing-moment-on-the-price-is-right/6809054?client=safari

There are many thing wrong with this, and it is barely even an article because it is just a small bit of information paired with a picture. 

   This article is not newsworthy because the outcome of this "The Price is Right" show will only matter to the winners, and the die-hard fans of the show, which are few and far between. There will be no long term impact because this event. Not in the show, and definitely not in the real world. 

   So why would anyone write this? It is not a hook to put at the end of a broadcast, because this is online and there is no need for an article to keep people engaged. This article also does not elicit a strong emotion or any significant feeling. 

   One reason that this could have been written is for ad revenue. One can assume from the vauge title and lack of content in the article that this was made specifically for click-bait purposes.
   To conclude, This article is unprofessional, uninformative, and not worthy of the news.

Class Response: Rise and Fall of Movies

   In class we have discussed the silver screen and its ups and downs. We went through its history, and its modern appeal. Today, the most targeted age group for movies is around 15-25, as discussed in class. Companies do this because high school and college aged kids have the time, money, and interest in movies. I am within this target age group, but I don't enjoy going to the movies very often. Here's why.

   Movies are appealing to many because they are immersive. People like to be in a dark room with comfy seats and a very high quality sound system. But this is not appealing to me because i feel like using a good set of headphones and sitting in a chair at home is just as immersive.

   People also like movies because of the social aspect. They like to see movies with their friends. But I would much prefer some other form of interaction. And I think because I like to talk, my ideal interaction involves much more talking than a movie. I am also not good at watching movies because I talk all the way through them, and my friends and I have non-verbally agreed that a movie would not be enjoyable for either of us with me around.

   The last and most prominent reason is the cultural need to see a film first, AKA, at the premier. I have never been passionate enough about a movie that I felt the need to see it before anyone else. I like music and books, but movies just aren't as enjoyable to me. I don't really like superhero movies, teen movies aren't very interesting to me, and adult movies are too sophisticated for me to enjoy or understand.

   To conclude, I am outside of the majority when it comes to seeing movies. I feel like movies are not the superior medium, and ever if I were to watch a movie, I would prefer to do so at home, by myself.

Class Response: Media Conglomerates

 

   All of our media comes from a few select sources. This is bad for many different reasons, including a lack of diversity. In class, we talked about how media conglomerates limit diversity of content and perspective, but with lack of perspective also comes a lack of racial diversity, as well. The vast majority of companies in the media are headed and employed by white people. Because of this, media often glosses over the thoughts and opinions of people of color, poor people, and uneducated people. Every main media source is told through a white eye. And while I'm sure companies exist to cater to minorities, these people, a hefty portion of our population, should not be treated like a niche audience.

  All of this makes me think of a certain media conglomerate: Disney. Namely, Disney princesses. When one thinks of Disney princesses, the most common examples provided are usually Cinderella, Aurora, or Ariel. The remaining "brown," or, "racially diverse" princesses like Mulan or Tiana are often seen as after thoughts. What I'm trying to get to is that for an Indian girl, she has Jasmine. For every Native American girl, there is Pochahontas. But every girl can look up to Snow White. Why? Because in our culture, white is seen as "raceless." A white person is the "default" person. There is one princess for Black girls, but multiple white princesses that can be role models for any girl.

   Another major factor in this discussion is that white is often seen as the ideal beauty standard. This is why Tiana's lips are small and her nose is cute and tiny. We see whiteness as correct and beautiful, and i think that a huge part of our opinions are the predominantly white perspectivs the media throws at us.