Reflect and Refract

The HISP sophomore class of Critical Thinking taught me so much more about media than I already knew. I am always consuming some type of media. Whether it is talking about a meme, listening to music, or watching a show. Media is what tells me what is cool, and this effects my actions and thoughts. I used to think that I was very different than the always changing, mainstream "cool." But after taking this class, I understand that I was told by media I was super different. In reality, I was not too far off what teens think of as cool. As well, I follow trends. I have a Snapchat, an Instagram, and a Twitter, which are mainstream social medias. I used to see the ads and scroll past them or think "Wow, I really like that!" But that is because ads are catered to us. Our browsing habits effect what ads we see.

This class has taught me all the traits of a Critical Thinker. Because of this, while browsing or watching media, I now don't view things blindly. I now understand the secret life of ads. I have also noticed that before this class I was on media much more. I realize now that many lived with out this media. I am able to too. Instead of being on my phone, now I talk to my friends much more. I avoid texts and snapchats to spend time with friends. But I will always go back. This is because media is a distraction. It distracts us from real life. Real life is stressful. I know I would rather watch YouTube or go on Snapchat than do homework or realize Donald Trump is becoming POTUS tomorrow.

This realization is important for people to understand. If you don't have some level of skepticism, you will believe everything you see on media. And automatically not believe anything you see on media that conflicts with your views. Keeping this blog has allowed me to write my feelings, type up knowledge. It helps me look back on what we've done and see how much I have learned. Running over my blogs show me that my knowledge has grown exponentially after taking Critical Thinking. 

My media window is no longer broken. I can see clearly outside. But media is always changing and breaking my window.

Mama's Girl

What kind of world is one where women are not represented equally to men in both media and politics? Not the best one to raise your baby girl.

Much of media today teaches girls that their lives must revolve around men. Whether it is for love, or if it is for the men to get their goal. Women protagonists are found so little in media, and when you find one a majority of them are seeking men's approval. Men own the big media companies so this makes sense. Men create standards for women. The decide how women should be told to look and act. They base their ideas for this off of idealistic thoughts.

The idealism they possess has led to 65% of women dealing with an eating disorder. they do this to maintain a weight that men say is desirable. This is such a sad statistic based off of other people. You should be able to love yourself and not be bombarded with the ideas that you aren't good enough.

One way to stop the discrimination of women, is to teach your daughters they don't need to fill  the mold. This can be hard as you get older because you want to fit in and not get mad fun of. But there are others who are like you. Breaking the mold.

Missrepresentation: My Thoughts

This is displayed in the constant struggle of women to prove themselves. Just like they said in the film, women have to work twice as hard as men to even seem equal. Women are paid 77 cents to every dollar a man makes. Women are told they have to look and act a certain way, but men can just exist. I feel like every day this boundaries are being broken. Women are becoming more carefree, feminism is raising in popularity. It shows that as a country we are beginning to understand something.Women are just as great as men, if not better.

Recently, our class watched a documentary film called Missrepresentation. This film covered the ever so prominent discrimination of women in media. While I did understand that this was occurring, the film brought it to light and got me thinking.

Why? Why are women discriminated against? Not just in media but as well in daily life? This is because the idea that men are stronger and better has been ingrained into our minds since forever. Woman was just a piece of man's rib. Men have been ruling the country, men have been the bread winners of the family. But women should be equal.

Grow Up Heather, Bulimia's So '87

In class, we watched another Frontline episode called Merchants of Cool. The episode went deep into how media and advertisers find out what is "cool." The hard thing about that is, cool is always changing. That means the "cool hunters" are always hunting for what is popular amongst teens. These correspondents are always looking for what is cool before it is cool. They walk on the street, they have focus groups, and they even pay kids to hang out for their brand.

While we, as teens, seem to think we control "cool," it is media that maintains a certain level of it for us. Without media, how would anyone knows that I was cool? One representation that cool is always changing is the movie, The Heathers. All of the 80s lingo like, "That's so very." or "What's your damage?" is never said now. If we heard that, we would find them weird. This weirdness comes from idea that the are different than what is cool. But what confuses me is that, if being cool isn't what a small amount of people are doing, then does that mean it is a large group of people? And then doesn't that make it not cool?



In Merchants of Cool, we also found out about something that has always been in our media. Mooks and Midriffs. Mooks are the dirty, dumb, flatulent-filled characters who make stupid jokes for you to laugh. Midriffs are the sexy, sultry characters who push the whole "sex sells" idea. Although these two ideas seem like they would fade, they haven't and they seem to keep media going strong. Britney Spears has lasted for a long time as a midriff. And right now she doesn't look like she is going anywhere.

Trend Alert! | Everyone Hates Themselves

A new theme I have noticed through media is that people really hate themselves. They are constantly judging themselves and posting about it. Whether they are seeking sympathy or not, I don't know. But because it is so easy to send hate to someone through a screen, that happens a lot, which will just perpetuate a cycle. A constant "I hate myself" and "We hate you too." Not only are these people getting judged without asking, some are even asking for it.

Just the other day, my friend posted on their Snapchat story, "Swipe up and tell me how attractive I am on a scale of 1 - 10." Shocked by this, I swiped up and just typed "omg." I couldn't believe someone would ask the "public" what they thought of them. It is not really the public because it is only people they add as well, they know each other so they may be more biased to not want to hurt their feelings. 

I got a reply back saying, "what." To which I replied with a spiel about how you shouldn't put yourself out there to be judge. And the answer I got in return really shocked me. They told me that they believed that they were a 3 on the 10 scale and gave reasons why. They were too fat to be attractive and too ugly for anyone to have a crush on them. So want to have others tell them what they believed and then he could find an average number for him. My automatic response was to say look at who you are talking to. My way of being empathetic was to bash myself.


It has taken me a long time to be okay with my body and know I probably will never have the "perfect" body. But even still I can feel insecure about thing no one else notices. Social media has caused not only ourselves to be our worst critic, but to allow for many other individuals to do so, just to make their flaws seem lesser.

I'm a Big Kid Now!

On my snapchat, I constantly see a flood of videos and pictures of my friends having sleep overs. I see them, and have had many in the past, but recently things have changed. My parents have allowed for much less opportunities for sleep overs and at others houses. I don't know exactly why, but I do have some theories.

All over media you see dumb teenagers making dumb decisions, as the name would entail. Many participate in illegal actions, and some just dumb. But, for the most part, this is a small percentage of teenagers that do so. The only reason people see a small percentage of people doing this, is because of the ease of media. With the tap of a finger, bam! I sent it to all my friends. It spreads like wildfire. But still, people associate this behavior with the behavior of all teenagers. I feel that my parents may be doing exactly what people do and thinking I will follow in the footsteps of someone online. They feel that if they can't see me after a party, or if I go somewhere, I will be the next kid they see online doing dumb things. This assumption is completely irrational! I am my own person, I make my own decisions. I am always honest with them when it comes to what I did somewhere or what others did. Just like I don't lie to them, they should not lie to me. They need to tell me how they feel so I can speak to them and explain to them why I won't be participating in these types of things. I don't see a need. But, even so, I need more freedom. I wore diapers, I am finished with Pull Ups, I think... Just like Pull Ups says, "I'm a big kid now!" Just like every teen out there and on t.v. I should be allowed to hang out with my friends and stay over night. I won't dissapoint you!

I am not what you see on social media, I am a real person. I have terrible FOMO, and I think you should understand that. My name is Dylan, not Dumb Instagram Teen #1,117.

The Worst Thing About Prison Was The Dementors: A Prison Mike Story

Just this past summer, one of my best friends turned me to an NBC show that I had never taken the time to watch before, The Office. This show is my absolute favorite ever. The comedy is to die for, the characters are to live for.

There are an endless amounts of quotes and gifs from the show that I could recite and watch forever. The majority of the gifs are filled with the characters looking straight into the camera and making their "signature" camera face. Its predecessor is usually Creed, Dwight or Michael doing or saying something conpletely irrational but hilarious.

One of my favorite things about the show are the cold openings. They are before the credits but not a a part of the show. My absolute favorites are the day that Kevin brought in his famous chili, or when Dwight stars a fire in the office. I laugh myself to crying every time. The writers of the show are some of the funniest I have ever heard of.

When I watch this show it makes me happy. It allows for an escape from the hectic world around me. I know that if I sit down in my back house and press play, Pam and Jim will get married, Dwight will eat his raw eggs, and Michael will scare people with how much they love him and I will be okay.

Television may be a pass time, but it is also a rock. Not just for me, but for many.