(no subject)
I am going to start posting writings I do for school so it will probably be pretty boring to most. Remember these are for classes and require me to curtail most of my thoughts.
This one is for my Media Literacy class on Bush's speech on Hurricane Katrina. I had to analyze the event and the media's coverage.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Presidential addresses have been known to evoke a sense of sophisticated charisma; hence they commonly are broadcasted from the oval office and portray the president in his best attire. Therefore when asked to view President Bush’s speech from Louisiana, I was expecting something along those lines. However, sophistication was out of the question. What ensued was a carefully premeditated setting and dialogue, including a breathtaking backdrop of a New Orleans landmark in perfect condition, untouched by Hurricane Katrina. This, among many other methods, was used to personify a city almost completely destroyed by a hurricane, yet standing as strong as ever with will and resolve. The media, in this case MSNBC, played a large role simply by broadcasting the event.
Aside from the blatant usage of the surroundings as a symbol, there were numerous less obvious signs that someone behind the scenes was attempting to portray more than just what Bush would say. When walking to the podium, the president opted to walk through the grass rather than down the immaculate concrete path a few feet to his left. Instead of being clothed in a flawless suit and tie like most presidents before him, Bush was wearing a simple button up shirt opened at the top. Both of these minuscule details may seem trivial to most eyes, but they help to depict a president that is at ground zero, involving himself with the people and the relief effort. Most of us know that isn’t the case, but in all due respect the citizens displaced from the hurricane would not enjoy seeing a perfectly clad president speaking on their behalf. I am not quite sure who is behind these methods, whether it be the press or the administration, but they certainly add to mood of the event. At the closing of Bush’s address, Chris Matthews of MSNBC quickly turned to numerous political analysts for their judgments. In the pursuit of objectivity, Matthews got reasonably close by questioning analysts from both ends of the spectrum and several minorities. His questions centered on what he felt were significant segments of Bush’s speech, rather than focusing on the material evidence I spoke of earlier. And instead of replaying clips or sound bytes from the speech, the ticker at the bottom of the screen was used to highlight some of these key sections. This seemed unfortunate for those just tuning in late because the visual aspect of the address was just as convincing as Bush’s words.
After watching the address and the commentary that developed, my opinion of Bush’s inadequacy as our leader has not fluctuated. I think that entire ”production” going on behind the scenes to fabricate a setting for the speech, in fact only suppresses the sincerity of it. However, I was impressed with MSNBC’s semi-objective coverage of the event and plan on viewing the channel next time around.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
This one is for my Media Literacy class on Bush's speech on Hurricane Katrina. I had to analyze the event and the media's coverage.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Presidential addresses have been known to evoke a sense of sophisticated charisma; hence they commonly are broadcasted from the oval office and portray the president in his best attire. Therefore when asked to view President Bush’s speech from Louisiana, I was expecting something along those lines. However, sophistication was out of the question. What ensued was a carefully premeditated setting and dialogue, including a breathtaking backdrop of a New Orleans landmark in perfect condition, untouched by Hurricane Katrina. This, among many other methods, was used to personify a city almost completely destroyed by a hurricane, yet standing as strong as ever with will and resolve. The media, in this case MSNBC, played a large role simply by broadcasting the event.
Aside from the blatant usage of the surroundings as a symbol, there were numerous less obvious signs that someone behind the scenes was attempting to portray more than just what Bush would say. When walking to the podium, the president opted to walk through the grass rather than down the immaculate concrete path a few feet to his left. Instead of being clothed in a flawless suit and tie like most presidents before him, Bush was wearing a simple button up shirt opened at the top. Both of these minuscule details may seem trivial to most eyes, but they help to depict a president that is at ground zero, involving himself with the people and the relief effort. Most of us know that isn’t the case, but in all due respect the citizens displaced from the hurricane would not enjoy seeing a perfectly clad president speaking on their behalf. I am not quite sure who is behind these methods, whether it be the press or the administration, but they certainly add to mood of the event. At the closing of Bush’s address, Chris Matthews of MSNBC quickly turned to numerous political analysts for their judgments. In the pursuit of objectivity, Matthews got reasonably close by questioning analysts from both ends of the spectrum and several minorities. His questions centered on what he felt were significant segments of Bush’s speech, rather than focusing on the material evidence I spoke of earlier. And instead of replaying clips or sound bytes from the speech, the ticker at the bottom of the screen was used to highlight some of these key sections. This seemed unfortunate for those just tuning in late because the visual aspect of the address was just as convincing as Bush’s words.
After watching the address and the commentary that developed, my opinion of Bush’s inadequacy as our leader has not fluctuated. I think that entire ”production” going on behind the scenes to fabricate a setting for the speech, in fact only suppresses the sincerity of it. However, I was impressed with MSNBC’s semi-objective coverage of the event and plan on viewing the channel next time around.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++