How Influential is Mass Media?

Edwin Hollins I think it's extremly influential but at the same time it really depends on who you ask and what type of influence you're talking about.

Steven Lin (Rutgers)

I think mass media has a lot of power over the weak-willed. The main goal of this group seems to be get mass media to be more favored to Asian Americans. That's a good goal..but I think the ideal would be to find a way to get people not affected by whatever crap they have on in television of whatever.

Caroline Hugh (Cornell)

--Do women and men emulate styles and behaviors of fashion magazines and Hollywood stars?
definitely. especially in the summer when fashionable styles are more colorful and flamboyant, i notice girls wear almost exactly what the billboard girls wear. first i like to compare the similarities, but it gets kinda irritating after a while. it's like... okay, you're just wasting money, and you don't like better than any other girl who is after the same look.

--Why do anti-tobacco compaigns target movies so much?http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1609773,00.html?xid=rss-health
i think as more movies show the cool protagonists or villains smoking, cigarette sales go up. of course, movies isn't only one factor that affects smoking rate, but with its prevalence in billboards, magazines, tv commercials, the relationship is pretty convincing.

--Do you think the gay movement was helped over the past 15 years by 'Will and Grace', 'Real World', Ellen Degenres, and the many celebrities who 'came out'?
i'm not sure about this; i notice that there are still people who glare at openly gay couples on trains, even if it's just a guy leaning on another guy. it is easy to justify that homo- or bisexuality is wrong because only a man and a woman can make a baby. thus it is "natural" to be heterosexual. but nature has also shown homo- or bisexual behavior in animals way before there was an openly gay community in america. people just like to interpret and filter things as they please, and even many nonreligious in america are against LGBTs.

--Does mass media influence who we consider to be cool, attractive (and evil, ugly)?
especially for children. power rangers was pretty rad when i was in kindergarten. we look to the tv for the newest toys and the coolest attitudes. running along that vein, kids' shows are very influential.

--Is media the reason why some non-Whites use beauty treatments to look White, act White, or try to marry White?
i don't think so. in ancient egypt, the woman was ideally pale while the man was pretty attractive tanned. it was because it was manly to work and live life in the sun while the woman was supposed to stay at home. art shows this perspective with the tombs of nefertiti & her husband (don't remember the name).
using my chinese background, girls are supposed to be pale too. i'm not sure about boys. my mother was called ugly by her mother because she had naturally darker skin. i think this mindset parallels those of many other cultures and races, like other asians, hispanics, etc.

Calvin Lee (UCSD)

cultural imperialism?

Look back on your childhood. Ever watch power rangers? Ever played with a tamagotchi? How about pokemon? Can't forget about Sailor Moon or Dragonball Z. If you look at programing that popular with children nowadays (and with young adults, etc. etc.) it's mostly anime, etc. Of course I'm just mentioning kid shows, but Asian movies done overseas have been popular in the US (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon anyone?) I think the best way to describe the relationship between different forms of media between the "east" and the "west" is the concept of hybrid culture. Yay for globalization.

Caroline Hugh (Cornell)

"crouching tiger, hidden dragon" was crap. it had very little substance and just a bunch of flying, fake martial arts. (and as usual, zhang ziyi was slutty.) i noticed a lot of non-asians liking it though. i was like... you haven't seen the GOOD stuff.

but yeah, anime is very popular in america. it's so popular that people don't even realize it. my friend said he doesn't care for anime, but he used to like pokemon. so he realized he was exposed to anime at least once in his life.

Steven Lin

I think anime serves as proof that media CAN in fact act as a form of cultural imperialism. I'm sure we've all met the pasty white kids in high school (and college even) who became obssesed with Japan after becoming hardcore anime fans. Hell, some of them even wish they were Japanese.

David Wan

all these kung fu movies just make things worse. I remember so many people wanted to pick a fight with me while referencing martial arts movies. Trying to see how tough I am.

Calvin Lee

I was kinda looking at the idea of "western" imperialism... just wanted to make a point that it's not always "western" media that's taking over the world, anime and kung fu movies do a damn good job of it as well too. whether that is a good thing or a bad thing is definitely worth debating (i agree that in most cases it's not a good thing that all people think about in terms of media from asia is basically kung fu movies and anime) But imo it's also about what the people want (basically what will make companies the most amount of money in the least amount of time possible) otherwise we would see a LOT more foreign films that aren't focused on kung fu and so on...

Calvin Lee (UCSD) I was kinda looking at the idea of "western" imperialism... just wanted to make a point that it's not always "western" media that's taking over the world, anime and kung fu movies do a damn good job of it as well too. whether that is a good thing or a bad thing is definitely worth debating (i agree that in most cases it's not a good thing that all people think about in terms of media from asia is basically kung fu movies and anime) But imo it's also about what the people want (basically what will make companies the most amount of money in the least amount of time possible) otherwise we would see a LOT more foreign films that aren't focused on kung fu and so on... 

Andrew M.J. Chiu (University of Guelph)

if your trying to say anime has had a significant and currently is having a significant impact, i think you should go check the numbers.

Nick Park (Quincy)

Yeah, that seems to be the new fad now even though I don't know why it happened all of a sudden. Before they did't like Japanese culture and now they love it. Unbelievable.

Alvin Lin (MIT)

Here is a challenging question I found. Do you think some young, insecure Asian girls are conditioned through social norms/media to 'act White' and want only White men, and some young Asian American boys are conditioned to think they are unattractive?

Vince Su (UConn)

On the topic of Asian American males conditioned to being seen as unattractive, I wonder if the home environment also comes into play.

Are Asian American guys who are 2nd generation with immigrant parents less confident than Asian American guys who are 3rd+ generation or adopted and raised by white families?

Tim M. Chen (Rutgers)

The thing is, a lot of people in America like to "jump in the bandwagon", so advertising and such is VERY influential in the U.S. economy and society.

Ken Yeh (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute)

I think it is more familial (aka cultural) than anything. White people think asian kids are adorable both Male and Female. I've heard in movies

"Cute like a chinese baby"

And going through puberty this doesn't really change. But by unattractive, we (AM) are never seen as a race you would just wanna have raunchy sex with. It's more like we are seen as cute like pets (which is bad, this is also due to the fact we are so obedient in other werds we need more rebels).

Depending on who you're talking to that is good or bad.

Ken Yeh (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute)

I'm sorry it has more to do with the fact wheter you are nerdy or not which i'm sorry, many college bound asians are at least at my school.

I believe Michelle said it earlier, if you play a lot of sports as a kid (that != tennis, chess), actually work hard at that sport, get good at it, you will never be perceived as unattractive in this society. 1/2 of the asian guys i know are geeks that sit around all day playing video games/at the computer. They get fat, have bad acne, and shit. Of course you are perceived unattractive then...cuz you are (or you can be lucky like my roomate from China who was blessed with natural good looks but is a huge geek and still pulls the ladies haha).

On asian women tho, maybe they do assimilate easier, i don't think it's cultural. I think girls are just more accepting and i think most white guys i know woudl hookup with any girl os.... Then again i grew up in an all white town.

Alvin Lin (MIT)

Here is a piece that Entertainment Weekly recently published with reader confessions about which TV shows and movies influenced their lives and behaviors.

Here is an example of a quote: "Sex and the City cost me way too much money in shoes. And I may have become a little more slutty. —Maureen"

http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20036795,00.html?cnn=yes

Alvin Lin (MIT)

http://money.cnn.com/2007/04/30/news/international/India_usbrands/index.htm?cnn=yes

"Moreover, with high cable television penetration rates, especially among the 200 million-plus middle-class households, Goel said many more Indians are closely watching the brands worn by both American and Indian celebrities and entertainers on networks like MTV or VH1.

"There's a cultural phenomenon in India that is quite pervasive," Goel said. He described it as "foreign envy."

Scott Ramirez (University of Toronto)

The term 'foreign envy' hits it right on. It happens to many third world countries. Bombarded by fantastic & glamourous images of foreign or rich celebrities, the disenfranchised people are subject to 'follow' this image with much envy. Women try to look & act like them & men try to cater themselves in those mannerisms. It's horrid. As an aftermath, they gradually lose their true values, they lose their culture & sense of heritage as they follow the 'conqueror's' image.

Sherman Wong (HKU)

Incredibly influential, people tend to internalise what they see.

Alvin Lin (MIT)

An example of the media's influence on behavior, preferences, and thoughts:
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-sci-smoking6mar06,1,2979426.story?coll=la-news-a_section

White teenagers who are the most avid watchers of R-rated movies or who have television sets in their bedrooms are more than twice as likely to take up smoking compared with white teens who don't, according to a report published today. Experts said the study confirmed Hollywood's pervasive influence by showing that even when other risk factors — such as peer smoking — were taken into account, media exposure remained a powerful force on white children.

Yoo-Hyun Oak (UC Davis)

kids who can afford to have tvs in their room, also can afford to smoke probably

i cant afford it lol but i do on occassion
i think media does glamorize it

ive noticed a lot of asian guys smoke
and in groups
also pretty much every hipster/indie person, when i go to shows people smoke like crazy

Kao Xiong

Haha I don't smoke..for obvious reasons...

But the majority of the interantional Asian guys here does.

Alvin Lin (MIT)

According to a Newsweek poll, 77% of media writers believe that Paris, Britney, and Lindsay strongly influence young women:

http://www.cnn.com/video/partners/clickability/index.html?url=/video/showbiz/2007/05/08/hammer.peeved.at.paris.cnn

Steven Lin (Rutgers)

Yeah, I've been trying to figure out why so many Asians smoke...especially Koreans. I don't recall seeing too many TV ads for cigarettes in Asia.

I know we're all against stereotypes and shit (well, I never claimed to be against it haha) but whenver I see someone smoke...I lose a few respect points for them.

Cindy Fields

Media As An Influence In Youth Culture
http://www.youthandviolence.com/gpage25.html

"TV producers, network executives, motion picture companies and others in the media world downplay and deny any impact of their programs on the attitudes and actions of youth. Meanwhile they continue to spend millions on special effects and marketing geared to increase appeal to youth markets. While corporations spend millions on market research and advertising to create products and campaigns targeted at a youth demographic, they still deny their ability to influence youth attitudes and culture. If this were true to fact, would Nike continue spending millions every year on product development, marketing and advertising? Would McDonalds still be using cartoon like characters to sell hamburgers? Would music labels be increasing the level of violence and sexual content in the music geared towards the youth audience? Would liquor companies be using youth oriented activities in their advertising? Of course it works on influencing youth attitudes and ideals advertising would not be a multi-billion dollar a year business. If it had no influence, M-TV would not have consultant on staff spending huge amounts of money to ensure they keeping up with youth culture. Clothing companies are spending millions to get young good-looking individuals to make plain and boring clothes look appealing to youth. Youth respond to visual advertising more than other forms. This is due to the fact that youth want to visualize them selves using the product or service. An example of this would be simply as follows.

Even adults are manipulated by these practices. For example, Roots comes out with a new hat. You hear an ad for this hat on the radio. You may be curious but you cannot visualize the actual style or yourself wearing this item. Next you see the ad in a newspaper. Now you can visualize the product but it is only a photo. Now you see a television commercial. The persons in the commercial are snowboarding and having fun. A song is playing in the ad that catches your ear. Now you subconsciously associate the product with fun, excitement and style. Now you want to go and purchase that hat. This is a plain and straight example of how the media in it’s simplest for influences youth culture. Now if you consider how often youth are subjected to the idea that you need to look perfect, be thin, use violence and smoke cannabis etc. it is a powerful and effective influence or it would not be such big business."

Blake Tamaki (UCLA)

How Influential is Mass Media?
- very influential, whether we like it or not.