Raising Kids in a Media AgeRhonda CarrierIncarnation Catholic SchoolTampa, FL

Pope Francis

• The Internet is a “gift from God” that facilitates communication, but he warns that the obsessive desire to stay connected can actually isolate people from their friends and family.

Pope Benedict XVI:41st World Communication Day

• Educating children to be discriminating in their use of the media is a responsibility of parents, Church, and school.

Pope Pius XII

• It is not an exaggeration to say that the future of modern society and the stability of its inner life depend in large part of the maintenance of an equilibrium between the strength of the techniques of communication and the capacity of the individual’s own reaction.

Mass Media

• Mass media is a means of public communication reaching a large audience.

• Examples are TV, radio, newspapers, and now so much more …

Shift #1: Media Ownership

Shift #2: Media Convergence

• The digitization of information and the development of the Internet blurs the division between types of media.

• Your smartphone, camera, and Internet portal are all one device.

Shift #3: Media and Teens

• 78% of teens now have a cell phone, and almost half (47%) of them own smart phones.

• 23% of teens have a tablet computer, a level comparable to the general adult population.

• 95% of teens use the internet.• 93% of teens have a computer or have access

to one at home.

Shift #4: Media Multi-taskingOften Doing 2+ Activities Simultaneously

• TV• Music• Video games• Reading• Computer Games

• Homework• Instant messaging• Email• Websites• Other ??

Media In Your Home?

• What electrical media devices do you have at home?

• Where are they located?• Who uses them?• Who controls them?• Do conflicts arise over their use? Who

settles any conflicts?

Media InfluenceOur Responsibility: Teach the Children

• How can you help children become discriminating users of media?– Learn the techniques

used to influence attitudes and beliefs.

– Then talk to your children.

Media Literacy TopicsInfluencing Attitudes & Beliefs.

• Language– Narratives– Denotation and Connotation

• Representation – Re-presentation: Whose Reality

• Institutions– Media Ownership

• Audience– Funding Corporate Institutions– Advertisements

* Language *• "When you hear the word language you will probably

automatically think of words, either spoken or written. Words are an important part of communication between human beings.

• But the media does not communicate with words alone. It can also use pictures and sounds to convey meaning.

• Indeed, some media can work purely in a visual language, through pictures that you can understand in the same way as words."

Language and Narratives

• Words and pictures are often combined in media texts in order to create narratives. Narratives are stories told to make sense of the world. – “New stories are

uncommon: most narratives are variations on a limited number of timeless themes. The characters and settings may vary, but the structure remains the same.”

Denotations & Connotations

• If denotation is the dictionary definition of a word, then connotation is the word's meaning by association.– Denotation: a rose is a

bush in the garden.– Connotation: giving a rose

means love.

We Learn to “Read” Media

1950s version Denotation & Connotation• “Your understanding

relies on your ability to respond to both layers at the same time.”

• Compare the text and visual “language” of this 1950s ad with a version that might be created today.

Reading the MediaWhat is the narrative?

Denotation & Connotation• Who created the message?• What is the target audience?• What creative techniques are

used to attract attention?• How might different people

understand this message differently?

• What values, lifestyles and points of view are represented in, or omitted from, this message?

• Why is this message being sent?

2013 version

Reading the MediaWhat is the Narrative?

Denotation & Connotation• Who created the message?• What is the target audience?• What creative techniques are

used to attract attention?• How might different people

understand this message differently?

• What values, lifestyles and points of view are represented in, or omitted from, this message?

• Why is this message being sent?

* Representation *• Representation is the act of communicating by using

symbols. – If I give you an apple, I have given you an apple; – if I give you a picture of an apple, I have given you a

representation of an apple.

• “The difference between reality and representation of reality is not difficult to understand.

• What is not so obvious is that representation is an act or process in which reality is transformed."

Tampa Bay Times & Tampa TribuneRe-presentation = Transforming Reality

Whose Chooses the Narratives?

1/25/2014 – online news 1/25/2014 – online news

Tampa Bay Times & Tampa TribuneRe-presentation – Whose Reality? Whose News?

Printed 1/26/2014 Printed 1/26/2014

Surprise Staged Event Do we see and hear the same thing at the same event?

We each re-present the event through personal perception.

Re-presentationProfessional Accuracy

• Narratives help to explain what is happening in the world, but not all narrative re-presentations are valid or accurate.– What are the

consequences when professionals aren’t truthful or don’t fact check?

Hurricane Sandy photo??

Using Credible Sources

• Checking for credibility and verifying accuracy is a critical skill.

• 5W’s for evaluation– Who published it?– What is the purpose?– Where is the

information from (the source)?

– When was it created?– Why use the info?

Student ProductsTrail of Information:

Bibliography With Annotation to ProveSource of Information is Credible and Accurate

* Institutions *• Imagine you wake up one day and decide to publish

something using mass media.• ”However talented or hardworking you may be, in order

to do any of these things you will need access to technology and money to pay for the resources to get your idea off the ground. You will need these things because you are going to make a product or commodity that you want people to use, in just the same way that any other manufacturer makes a product to be sold.”

• Media institutions are big business. They exist just to make a profit.

Who Owns U.S. Media?

6 Corporations Control 90%

• Comcast:– NBC, Universal, PBSKids,

• NewsCorp: – Fox, Wall Street Journal, New York Post

• Disney:– ABC, ESPN, PIXAR, Miramax, Marvel Studios

• Viacom– MTV, Nick Jr, BET, CMT, Paramount

• Time Warner– CNN, HBO, Time, Warner Bros

• CBS– Showtime, Smithsonian Channel, NFL.com,

233 Media Executives

Institutions CompeteFor Market Segments

Market Segmentation• Music: pop, dance, hip-

hop, Indie• News: for varying political

views, in various languages for different audiences

• Pay per view: subscribers pay additional fee for specific programs – Yea for cricket!

Scheduling Segments• Battle for prime-time• Early for children and

after 9:00 PM for adults• Christmas and other

holiday events• Drive-time for radio and

talk shows

Marketing to SegmentsUS Version Often Differs From Others

All For ProfitAudience Vote Indicates a Market Segment.Then the Institution Markets to the Segment

Marketing to SegmentsRatings Are One Measure of “Success”

* Audience *• Audience is the word used to describe people who

consume media products• “The importance of audience to the media is obvious. All

the papers, broadcasts and recordings in the world would mean nothing if no one read, watched or listened to them.

• Without an audience, the media would be talking to itself.”

Advertising Funds Media

• “Advertising is one of the major ways in which media producers make money.

• Manufacturers pay the media to promote images of their products, which they hope will encourage people to buy them.”

• 2010 revenue for Big 6 was $275.9 billion.

Audience into Customers

• According to the FTC, children between the ages of 2 and 11 view more than 25,000 TV advertisements annually.

• “By some estimates young people see more than 8,000 brands per day.”

Targeting Tweens8 – 12 year olds

• There will be an estimated 23 million tweens by 2020.

• Many have disposable incomes from gift, allowances, and odd jobs.

• Tweens spend approx. $50 billion of their own money/annually

• Tweens influence parent purchases.

• Pester Power: An estimated $188 billion is spent each year because of children directly influencing their parents.

Brand Recognition

• A successful logo is strong enough to be identified even from the first letter of the logo.

• My international school students in Japan could identify most of these brands.

Ads, Ads Everywhere

• Up to 60% of newspapers are ads.

• Ads appear on commercial TV up to 4 times/hour.

• Even many non-commercial broadcasts advertise their own merchandise.

Ads or News?Can Children Tell Which is Which?

Ads as EntertainmentSuper Bowl Ads Are Big Business

Ads as EntertainmentSuper Bowl Big Spenders

What if No One is Watching?

Record to watch later.

Skip the ads.

New Strategies …

Product Placementsnot in 30 second ads on TV

Spamming SmartphonesSuperBowl Ads Via Wireless Spamming

Product PlacementsOlympics – Summer Uniform & Olympic website

Product PlacementsTop Sports Figures Wear the Ads

Placement in Video GamesBrand Recognition = Brand Loyalty = Profits

Computers Report InformationOnline Ads Track Who and Where You Are

Ads on YouTube VideosCatholic Network Relies on Revenue from Ads

Internet Interactive AdsBrand Recognition = Brand Loyalty = Profit

Internet Interactive AdsBrand Recognition = Brand Loyalty = Profit

Pope Benedict XVI:41st World Communication Day

• Educating children to be discriminating in their use of the media is a responsibility of parents, Church, and school.

Raising Kids in a Media Age

• Communicate with kids.• Set limits.

– e.g. Hand in media devices at 9 PM.• Develop non-media based projects with

collaboration at the heart of each.• Develop projects that are media based,

but with guidance.• Help children to develop a balance.

The following are student produced

Links to Student Products

• Grade 8 Spanish class: Advertisement (Bookr)

• Grade 8 Spanish class: Animal ABC for kindergarten (Prezi)

• Grade 7 Blogs (Edublog)• Grade 6 Spanish & Techn

ology class: How-to (Scratch)

• Grade 8 Tech: ICS, a Second Home (Animoto)

• Grade 8 Tech: Loving Incarnation (Animoto)

• Grade 8 Tech: ICS Where Friendships Are Made (Animoto)

Pope Benedict XVI:41st World Communication Day

• “The relationship of children, media, and education can be considered from two perspectives: the formation of children by the media; and the formation of children to respond appropriately to the media.

• A kind of reciprocity emerges which points to the responsibilities of the media as an industry and to the need for active and critical participation of readers, viewers and listeners.

• Within this framework, training in the proper use of the media is essential for the cultural, moral and spiritual development of children.”

Resources

• Dunlap, Jay. Raising Kids in the Media Age. Hamden, CT: Circle, 2007. Print.

• Wall, Peter, and Paul Walker. Media Studies for GCSE. London: Collins, 2002. Print.

• Wittekind, Erika. The Big Push: How Popular Culture Is Always Selling. North Mankato, MN: Compass Point, 2012. Myon. Web. <http://myon.com/>.

• ICS media literacy wikispaces: http://icsmedialiteracy.wikispaces.com/ICS+Media+Literacy+Home

• ICS wikispaces home: http://icstampa.wikispaces.com/ICS+Wiki+home

Works Cited•Slide 6 image: "These 6 Corporations Control 90% Of The Media In America." Business Insider. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2014. <http://www.businessinsider.com/these-6-corporations-control-90-of-the-media-in-america-2012-6>.•Slide 8 data: "Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project." Teens and Technology 2013. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2014. <http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Teens-and-Tech.aspx>.•Slide 13 text: Wall, Peter, and Paul Walker. Media Studies for GCSE. London: Collins, 2002. Print.•Slide 14 text: Photo from my garden•Slides 16 image: "42 Coca Cola Ads." The Interrobang. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. <http://theinterrobang.com/2012/07/42-coca-cola-ads/>.•Slide 17 image: "Press Center." The Coca-Cola Company. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2014. <http://www.coca-colacompany.com/press-center/press-releases/new-coke-zero-campaign-tells-guys-its-not-your-fault-giving-them-permission-to-enjoy-everything>.•Slide 18 image: – The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. <http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303680404579139422972891330>.•Slide 19 text: Wall, Peter, and Paul Walker. Media Studies for GCSE. London: Collins, 2002. Print.•Slide 20 images: Tampa Bay Times and Tampa Tribune 1/25/14 online•Slide 21 images: Tampa Bay Times and Tampa Tribune 1/25/14 online printed•Slide 23 image: Madrigal, Alexis C. "Sorting the Real Sandy Photos From the Fakes." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 29 Oct. 2012. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. <http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/10/sorting-the-real-sandy-photos-from-the-fakes/264243/>.•Slide 24 image: "Statements We Say Are True | PolitiFact." Statements We Say Are True | PolitiFact. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2014. <http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/rulings/true/>.•Slide 26 text : Wall, Peter, and Paul Walker. Media Studies for GCSE. London: Collins, 2002. Print.•Slides 27 – 29 images and text : "These 6 Corporations Control 90% Of The Media In America." Business Insider. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2014. <http://www.businessinsider.com/these-6-corporations-control-90-of-the-media-in-america-2012-6>.

Works Cited• Slide 31 image: "STUNNING: Comparing U.S. & World Covers for TIME Magazine." TruthTheory. N.p., n.d. Web.

31 Jan. 2014. <http://truththeory.com/2013/09/26/stunning-comparing-u-s-world-covers-for-time-magazine/>.• Slide 32 image: "Product Placement Watch: Yale Study on Opportunistic Ads an Opportunistic Ad for Yale?"

Product Placement Watch: Yale Study on Opportunistic Ads an Opportunistic Ad for Yale? N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. http://www.brandchannel.com/home/post/2011/08/03/Product-Placement-Watch-Yale-Study-On-Opportunistic-Ads-an-Opportunistic-Ad-for-Yale.aspx.

• Slide 33 image: "Prime-Time Nielsen Ratings." USA Today [Orlando] 28 Jan. 2014: n. pag. Print.• Slide 34 text: Wall, Peter, and Paul Walker. Media Studies for GCSE. London: Collins, 2002. Print.• Slide 35 data: "These 6 Corporations Control 90% Of The Media In America." Business Insider. N.p., n.d. Web. 22

Jan. 2014. <http://www.businessinsider.com/these-6-corporations-control-90-of-the-media-in-america-2012-6>.• Slide 36-37 data: Wittekind, Erika. "Advertising's Influence." The Big Push: How Popular Culture Is Always Selling.

North Mankato, MN: Compass Point, 2012. 28-29. MyON. Web. <http://myon.com/>. Pp.28, 45• Slide 38 image: ? Original source of alphabet chart• Slide 39 data: Wittekind, Erika. "Advertising's Influence." The Big Push: How Popular Culture Is Always Selling.

North Mankato, MN: Compass Point, 2012. 28-29. MyON. Web. http://myon.com/.• Slide 40 image: ”West Coast Cool is still hot in winter." USA Today [Orlando] 28 Jan. 2014: n. pag. Print.• Slides 41-42 images: "Cost of Super Bowl Ads." Cost of Super Bowl Ads. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2014.

<http://www.pricegun.com/cost-of-super-bowl-ads/?gclid=CILTtdX_oLwCFSUS7AodZzoAzQ>.

Works Cited• Slide 45 image: "Game-Show Placements, Ltd. Gameshow Prize Services and Information for Advertisers,

Producers and Companies." Game-Show Placements, Ltd. Gameshow Prize Services and Information for Advertisers, Producers and Companies. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Jan. 2014. http://www.gameshowplacements.com/?gclid=CNuzp8Lvq7wCFZRr7AodVgkAug.

• Slide 46 image: "The New York Times Replica Edition." The New York Times Replica Edition. N.p., 31 Jan. 2014. Web. 31 Jan. 2014. <http://nytimes.newspaperdirect.com/epaper/viewer.aspx>.

• Slide 47 images: |, Paul Lukas. "O Say Can You See ... Our logo?" ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures, 30 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Jan. 2014. <http://espn.go.com/olympics/story/_/id/9902441/sochi-olympic-designs-proudly-wave-us-flag-lauren-brand>.

• Slide 48 image ”Today’s Names To Know." USA Today [Orlando] 28 Jan. 2014: n. pag. Print.• Slide 49 image: “Product Placement in video games Google Search." Product Placement in Video Games -

youtube - Google Search. N.p., 27 Jan. 2014. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. web.• Slide 50 image: Photo of add on Facdebook• Slide 51 image: "Discovering Our Saints - St. Bernardine of Siena." CCTN. CCTN, 09 June 2011. Web. 02 Feb.

2014. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DG5K6SqlNi8&list=PLDDDABC497B5B4E93&feature=c4-overview-vl>.• Slide 52 image: "McWorld®." McWorld®. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. <http://mcworld.happymeal.com/en_US/>.• Slide 53 image: "Join Now It's Free!" Cartoon Network / General Mills Honey Nut Cheerios. N.p., n.d. Web. 02

Feb. 2014. <http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/promos/201111_honey/index.html?atclk_gp=gp_Arcade4>.