GAIA

Hey everyone, I know some of you had an interest in the presentation I gave at the beginning of the quarter on Global Action in the Interest of Animal's campaign against the food foie gras.

GAIA is a Belgian animal rights activist groups. Their foie gras campaign was against the process of making this French delicacy due to the mistreatment, suffering, and animal abuse that the ducks and geese go through in order to produce this food. Here is a link to the add as well as the website.

Ads:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/2001/foiegrasthumbty0.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.blameitonthevoices.com/2008/03/anti-food-capaign-ads.html&usg=__HY_2K1wLuIh6VD-zdthzp2JDbys=&h=552&w=375&sz=38&hl=en&start=1&sig2=4FDr4OVZ-V1YM7xx-a4flA&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=5xNWkrN07IvvfM:&tbnh=133&tbnw=90&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dfoie%2Bgras%2Bactivist%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Den%26tbs%3Disch:1&ei=0acCTN-4B5jkNJuvmTU

and

Here is the link for GAIA:

http://www.gaia.be/

Environment Colorado

Hi everyone--

Here's my video I showed in class yesterday. Any input for improvement would be greatly appreciated? Can this video be considered activist? Is there an applied call to action to join the organization and enter into the democratic process?

Environment Colorado from Ben Zenner on Vimeo.

Free Speech TV

hey guys,

here's my video that i presented today. hope you guys enjoyed it.

Performance from DJ Spooky

DJ Spooky At TATE Modern London 2010 from Nonlineari.nteractive on Vimeo.

Gives a little taste of live performances by DJ Spooky and how he utilizes a lot of new media techniques in his alternative media shows.

Flash Mobs!

I participated in a flash mob on campus on Tuesday and I wanted to post a video and see what you guys think about the topic of flash mobs in general.

Flash mobs are becoming more and more common, especially because of organizations such as Improv Everywhere.

(Check out their YouTube channel:http://www.youtube.com/user/improveverywhere?blend=1&ob=4)

They are supposed to be a complete surprise, and performed in a public place, so that people going about their daily lives can witness the event. Sometimes they can be used to spread a message as well, therefore, in my opinion, becoming a form of activist media.

In our particular situation, we performed the event during a carnival for the DU May Days event because we knew people would be there. The object of this flash mob dance was to bring about school spirit in a creative and fun way. Unfortunately, as you will see in the video, a few too many people found out it was happening beforehand. But regardless, it was a lot of fun.

University of Denver Flash Mob from Jerad Larkin on Vimeo.

What do you guys think about flash mobs becoming a form of activist media?

Yo Peace

Here is the link for yopeace.org that I was thinking of doing my final project on, but decided on something else. Although I decided to focus my energy on the Help Elephants' campaign, I am still really interested in this organization as well. At yopeace.org, you can find a lot of information regarding their campaigns to stop the wars going on in Iraq and Afghanistan. They try to use their different artistic images from graphic artists, printmakers and visual artist to inspire a broader audience to be alternatives to violence.

Help Elephants

Here is the link to the website that In Defense of Animals created solely for their Help Elephants campaign. Here you can track how individual elephants are doing and the progress of their campaign and get involved.

http://www.helpelephants.com/

Free Speech TV: The Global Report (BP Spill)

So, for my project i interviewed some folks over at Free Speech TV. they offer alternative/progressive television programming that you really would not see on mainstream television broadcasting. because the organization does not accept money from governmental or corporate interests, they are not subjected to the same "bottom-line" policies that affect the content of their broadcasting. in this sense, they are able promote a more fearless type of journalism and social activism.

here's an example of one of the shows they have on FSTV. it's called "The Global Report." i think it's a good example of how FSTV differs from major news networks and how certain issues are reported.

what do you guys think of this style of news reporting/commentary? how does the content, presentation, and tone differ from what you would see on something like ABC?

Allie Pohl

Here's a link to Allie Pohl's website... I've had a lot of fun scrolling through her pictures and checking out her blog. It's great seeing the interesting pieces and relating them to the class and the greater media and art landscape as a whole. She said she didn't know of any other Denver artists who have a message like hers... Do you guys know of any other artists here in Denver with aims similar to Allies'? Hope you all buy a necklace and give Allie's art and message a stronger voice!

I just found this article on M.I.A., the artist who sings "Paper Planes". She seems very interesting because she is a mainstream musician/artist and yet her music is very politically driven. She focuses most of her energy on her native country of Sri Lanka and the injustices done to the Tamil.

It's a really long article that gets into her fashion style, personal and stage life, but some things really caught my attention. Everyone knows the "Paper Planes" song from Slumdog Millionaire, but I doubt everyone knows about her political views and statements she makes through her music. She has been called a "terrorist sympathizer" and has been criticized for being "unsophisticated about the politics of Sri Lanka". In addition to this she in controversial in the way she dresses and acts as a celebrity. She was 9 months pregnant on stage and began to have contractions, she finished the performance even though she probably should have been in the hospital. She was also in a very revealing outfit at this performance.

I know a lot of celebrities act like this, but she sees herself as an activist. Credibility plays a huge role in who she is and how she adds to the Sri Lankan cause. Can one person be a fashion and pop star at the same time as being an activist? People like Bono and John Lennon have done this, but in a peace making way. M.I.A. on the other hand, is militant in her approach and has not received positive feedback from it and her fans don't seem to listen to the lyrics close enough to care.

M.I.A.'s Agitprop Pop

Mr. Brainwash-ed himself

Hey guys, last week I went and saw the movie "Exit through the gift shop" at the Mayan theater. Wow. It wasn't really what I expected the film to be like or about, but not in a bad way. I think the main message of the film fits perfectly with what we have been talking about all quarter - activism versus mainstream. In the beginning of the movie you're like oh this is interesting, we're going to see a bunch of different street artists while we learn about this cool French guy who likes to film a lot. The interviews with Shepard Fairey, the Invader (I think that was his name), and other graffiti artists were really interesting; you got to see their motivations, how they worked, and get a taste for their own specific style. I think it's important to note that each artist had their own style and their own theme to make them unique even though they were all kind of in the same section or type of activist or alternative media. They had similar intentions of trying to question authority and hegemony, but each one displayed their message in a different manner, which I think shows their respect for the art form and also their really honest intentions with their work. Shepard Fairey especially you can tell just loves what he does and loves creating subversive messages for everyone to see and have conversations about and ask questions. I think when the framing of the film switched over to Banksy taking the camera and having Thierry become the artist that's when the intention of the film really came out and matched up really well with the theme of our class. I think Thierry giving himself the name "Mr. Brainwash" is really ironic and coincidental because he not only brainwashed the hoitey toitey uninformed art collectors and the people who came to his exhibition and fell in love with his completely unoriginal work, he alos brainwashed himself. He moved out of doing the thing that he loved so much and into a world where he could finally get noticed. Instead of fostering creativity and innovation and change, the opportunity of creating meaningful work that would actually be seen by the world (unlike his failed attempt at a documentary) went to his head and really destroyed any possibility for him to make something meaningful and actually alternative/activist. He brainwashed himself into thinking he was an almighty important artist after only a few weeks/months(?) of making this art, before he could even really get his own style. Well actually, he did have a style - a copy cat style. He did cliche Andy Warhol-esque "art" which he didn't even make himself; he hired people to do what he "wanted" so that he would have an excess of art on time for his premature exhibition. This is a perfect example of mainstream motivations corrupting activist ones. On another note, I've been hearing some rumors that some people think that Thierry is actually Banksy himself since no one actually knows what he looks like. They're saying that the movie was just an inside joke and wasn't actually based off of anything real because they can't find any information about a Mr. Brainwash. I looked him up on google and he has a website that dates back to 2007 or 2008, apparently, and the wikipedia page wasn't very helpful either, so I'm not sure what I think... What do you guys think? (About the movie, what I said, and/or the theories that Mr.Brainwash is either made up or Banksy himself).
Linna

Exit Through the Gift Shop- Extra Credit

I saw “Exit Through the Gift Shop” over the weekend and I really enjoyed it. After talking about graffiti art in class, it was interesting to be able to have some sort of knowledge of street art in watching the film. Thierry, the main character in the documentary showed the issues that involve street art in comparison with mainstream art. At the end, Banksy explicitly brings up the issue of having no rules to art, but is it really okay for “Mr. Brain Wash” to blow up in popularity when so many street artists never get that popular or rich by doing something they are passionate about? It’s really up to one’s own perceptions and values to define what art is. It also shows that credibility helps frame certain things like art. The reason why people heard about and were interested in Theirry’s art was because Banksy and Shepard Fairey endorsed him. I guess it’s really something to think about.

Graffiti Art

This is a little delayed, but I was reminded of the day when Jenny Whitcher came in to speak to the class as a guest about graffiti art. I was walking through downtown and noticed some graffiti on a building and was reminded about how to read the tag and what it may have meant besides from just spray painting something on a wall. Before Jenny came to speak, I didn't really know much about graffiti art besides from when I encountered it passing through cities, for example. When she spoke a little about the poitics in regards to graffiti and basically how to read what the peice is saying, it really helped me put into perspective how much work and planning can go into peices like these that, otherwise, seem so simple.

I really took note when she passed around a graffiti artist's sketchbook. This was really interesting for me as an art minor because having the ability to look at someone's sketches can be very personal and invassive, however in this case, I think it helped me take in all of the steps that the artist's takes before even thinking about putting paint to a wall. Before this guest speaker, I wouldn't have really thought of graffiti artists to have sketchbooks and things of that nature, even though it makes complete sense that they do; they are artists after all.

Hope Is Ready

Hey guys, here's the link to Hope Is Ready on Facebook. Pretty cool to see what they're working on and how people keep adding them as friends. Here are the rest of my discussion questions for you guys to ponder.

•Most of the mainstream media framed their stories to be very pro-Hope Is Ready. Do you think there is a way that the media could write a story that would frame the trustees to be the “good guys?”

•Do you think the alumni, students, faculty, or media, have the most pull in changing policies? Consider that the alumni fund many of the building, etc. on campus.

•Why do you think Hope College is sticking with its old policy for now?

Also, you can check out this story on lots of different sites, but Huffington Post articles were great.

Aaron Huey's photos of prison art

Aaron Huey is a DU alum and a famous photographer, and I have been looking at his work a lot ever since his TEDxDU speech. I came a cross an interesting category in his blog: PRISON ART.

This category is dedicated to the photographs Huey took of Travis Lone Hill's artwork. Travis is an inmate at the Springfield State Penitentiary, and he draws all artwork on prison paper, such as parol hearing notices & agreements.

Here is one of the photos:

Do you think this is activist media? What kind of message do you think Aaron or Travis were trying to send?

Here's the link to the PRISON ART category page on his blog:

TWLOHA UChapters Tour

I talked about the organization To Write Love on Her Arms in my class presentation, and I just wanted to post a few things to expand on some of the things we talked about.

I talked a little about the UChapters that are developing, but I wanted to post a video about the UChapters tour. This tour is an attempt to celebrate and support the UChapters and bring the message and mission of TWLOHA to college and university campuses. Evenings of "Lyrics and Conversation" take place when the TWLOHA reps stop at each campus, and they post videos about the chapters as well.

Here is a short video about the tour as a whole:

They mention in this video one example of how TWLOHA actually helps those who have issues with depression. The university chapters act as a support for students and a link between students and the places of help, especially counseling services on campus. This is one way that TWLOHA connects people with help, and they also work to educate everyone about depression issues and when to help loved ones find help.

Do you think these "Lyrics and Conversation" nights are a form of activist media? What other events could be considered activist media, if any?

CODEPINK

For my final project I interviewed a woman from CODEPINK - a women-initiated grassroots peace and social justice movement working to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

I will tell you more about it tomorrow, however wanted to leave you with this entertaining video of CODEPINK women calling Donald Rumsfeld a "war criminal" to his face.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDmRdfyAUio

What do you think about this video? Do you find it funny, too extreme, inappropriate? Do you think they make differences with protests like these?

Postsecret

Hi everyone,

For those of you that missed my presentation last class, below is a youtube video about postsecret.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6rTkp1dek4

I didn't have time to ask you questions and was really curious about your thoughts on this particular post card:

http://www.kickaction.ca/node/1166

Do you think sometimes the post cards can be too extreme and offensive? (like the previous example) or do you like the idea of no censorship?

More Censorship

http://www.ypnation.net/censorship-pakistan-youtube-and-450-urls-blocked

Here is a link to a site discussing the recent censorship in Pakistan. What are your guys' thoughts? Do you think there are ways around having youtube blocked? maybe other social networking sites?

Free Speech Activist Arrested Over 40 Times

So, here's an artist and free speech activist who protests the requirement of vendor's licenses for selling street art. He believes that such a requirement is unconstitutional in that it restricts an individual's right to free speech and expression. What do you guys think? Should vendor's licenses be required for all street artists, performers, etc.? Or is that a violation of constitutional rights?

Brainwashing by Kotex???

I came across this ad when I was watching TV the other day and I was shocked. This commercial is selling Kotex which has been re branded with new packaging. The advertisement is telling the consumer all the subtleties that commercials use to get young women to buy their product. When watching the ad I felt uncomfortable because it was telling me what I was thinking, even if I did not know I was thinking it. What kind of media do you think this is? Why would this messaging useful in advertising?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOM4AMV050A

Nina Berman: documentary photographer

I did my short presentation on Berman. I focused on her personal story photographs documenting the effects of war. There are other series she has that focus on cultural aspects of the war. Berman's series called Homeland shows military presence in the US during the Iraq war. Even though many of her series focus on war and the military she brings up topics such a mega churches and the Obama campaign. She does not claim to objective. Berman wants to show the affects of war on America. Is she creating media or art? Is there a difference between the two? Is Berman's art activist or alternative?

http://www.ninaberman.com/

Robert McCheasney Speaker

Sorry for the delayed post. But, I noticed that McCheasney's talk has a lot to do with our class. More so than i originally thought. I find it interesting how he discussed the differences between old media versus new media. Today's new media has now become part of the private sphere, /(and must originate from the private sphere) before it can become a public good. His example of this was with the internet... it was originally part of the US military (private sphere) and has now gone into the global public sphere. I never thought of seeing things that way but now it all makes sense.

Molleindustria

Sorry for the late late late post, but here is the link to the Molleindustria site, the one i presented on. Now you can play the creative commons game or anything other game they have. Just click the games tab to see a list of them all.

Brian Ulrich - photographer

Brian Ulrich is a photographer that focuses on the consumerist lifestyle runs this country. He is interested in exploring the intricacies of our culture that is controlled by capitalism. His project, Copia, meaning “a plentiful supply,” deals with “the roles we play in self-destruction, over-consumption, and as targets of marketing and advertising,” according to his artist’s statement. I’m interested in how he uses the medium of photography to subvert the hegemonic power of capitalism that permeates every aspect of our lives. Check out his projects here. Do you think his photographs are effective? Do you think photography is an appropriate medium to explore retail, thrift, etc. consumerism?

The Ruckus Society - Take Action: Donate Today!

hey guys,
I just looked and for some reason the video i asked you all to watch didnt post, here it is. Sorry about that confusion.

More backlash against airbrushing

Newsweek recently published an article concerning the airbrushing of models and celebrities. According to the article, France is considering a bill that would prohibit "from pro-anorexia Web sites to advertisers to editors, to publicly incite "excessive thinness" or extreme dieting." I was shocked to read about this and how the current policy on photo-shopping was being threatened. The video that goes along with this website was also very interesting. Would you want to be photo-shopped if you appeared in a magazine? Do you think this type of censorship is called for? Do you think it's too harsh? Do you think it's the government's job to monitor magazines and the internet, or do you think it's the industry's job to monitor itself?

CANstruction

Hey guys, I saw this while I was watching Unwrapped: Canned Foods on the Food Network the other night and I thought it was really unique and interesting. There is an food charity organization called Canstruction that organizes competitions between architects, engineers, and students all across America and in a few other countries around the world. The competitors must build a huge structure made entirely out of canned foods and can only use glue, tape, and rubber bands (nothing permanent) to keep them together. After the competition the thousands and thousands of cans used in the construction are donated to local food banks to distribute to the needy. Here's a link to their website; check out some pictures of the impressive structures built in past competitions, they're really fun! Let me know what you think,
Linna

http://www.canstruction.org/index.php?option=com_expose&Itemid=29

"Exit Through The Gift Shop" - Official Trailer [HD]

Health Magazine Airbrushes model

http://www.stylelist.com/2010/05/17/healthy-magazine-airbrush-skinny-model-adds-weight/

This is a link to an article about a British magazine, Healthy, that admitted to airbrushing weight on to a model who was too thin. I thought that this was a good article because it relates to what Kat and Kaelen said in their presentations. So what are your thoughts? Is it ok to airbrush if they add weight or is itjust better to pick a healthy looking model?

Economist TV commercial - India May 2010. Football

I got this Economist advertisement on my facebook updates. I thinks it's really interesting who their target audience is, what they are trying to accomplish, the timeliness of it all, and that it is a mainstream media/new source that is choosing to take a stand on a specific issue. What do you guys think? Why is it affective/not affective? Keep in mind that it is an advertisement in India.

(additional) Reading for Thursday

Hi Everyone:

Please read and explore the information on net neutrality here.

And here is a link to the Creative Commons website. Please check it out. And also please listen to this NPR interview with Larry Lessig.

Thanks and see you Thursday!

The Ruckus Society - Take Action: Donate Today!

Hey guys,

So I know this is a bit of a spoiler alert but I wanted you to get a chance to watch this before my presentation in class Thursday. If you dont get a chance to view it dont worry, I will most likely show something similar to introduce the organization to the class. However I thought it would be nice for you guys to have a little familiarity with the topic and the actions this group, The Ruckus Society, takes part in. I think what is so interesting about this is the actual action part, and allowing interested parties to not only get involved but have a physical training and commitment.

If anyone has any thoughts or suggestions please feel free to share. Obviously I will show you more video and explain the organization in greater detail Thursday.

Thanks

Ali

Don't Die for a Diet TV Commerical

Hey Guys,
Here is the television commerical I used in my presentation. The British organization Don't Die for a Diet, who created this commerical did not renew their website domain in 2010, but they are still heavily active in television production to get their message across. Do you feel this is activist media in that it is critiquing another form of media ( pro-ana-mia websites)? Do you feel that there should be censorship on websites that promote destructive behavior? Or do you feel restricting web content goes against freedom of speech?
-Kaelen

Final Project Specs

For those of you who missed the email...

1) The focus of the project should be on the media products, strategies, tactics, dissemination and so on. Find out how media is being used and to what end. What are the aims (of the group, individual, or organization) and how to they use media to achieve them? Are they trying to change how people think? Are they trying to influence policy? Are they trying to raise awareness? Are they drawing on traditional methods or protest or are they breaking new ground? Are they trying to get mainstream media attention or are they communicating outside the mainstream?

2) You must conduct an interview or interviews with the activist media producers or the people designing the media strategies.

3) You might also want to interview fans, supporters, community members related to the media you are focusing on.

4) You need to contextualize the work by drawing on theories of media power and resistance that we are studying in class. This means you must draw from some academic sources. For example if you are focusing on an artist you need to include a discussion about the relationship between art and activism.

5) Extra credit is given to work that is particularly theoretically rigorous or work that can be of some promotional or other use by the group or person you are focusing on.

6) If you are doing something other than a paper you must include a written component that describes a) the research you did and what you found out (including interview(s) with your subject and theoretical context that informs your work); b) a explanation of why you made what you did; c) any other relevant information you want to include. This written component should be at least 6 double-spaced pages.

7) If you are writing a paper only, the paper should be 10-15 double-spaced pages.

The project is due the last day of class.

Please email with any questions.

Pirate Radio

I saw this quite a while ago, and thought it was pretty interesting and well done (not to mention relevant).

What does it mean when an activist is not only creating their own media, but creating the means for media distribution?

http://www.palladiumboots.com/exploration/london-pirate-radio

EDIT

Don't know why google is signing Ryan Jeffers... This is Dillon Doyle!

Here is the link to Du's TEDx event Thursday.

The original TED conference site is here. The TED videos hosted on the site include amazing talks by innovative speakers in the fields of technology, education, and design (hence the name TED). They use the word "mind-blowing" on the site a lot to describe the talks.

Here are two I'd like you to watch, both of which help clarify what Twitter is and what it does (to follow Claudia's lead in bringing this tool into the discussions we've been having).

I found this article in the economist about Twitter for politicians. I know I should know more about Twitter, but I don't. I have only heard about it for celebrity gossip etc. I thought it was interesting that companies and now politicians are using it in everyday life rather than just for campaigns. Barack Obama used it during the 2008 elections, hiring 100 people to deal with his social networking accounts. Now over 400 Japanese politicians, Hugo Chavez, Denis Coderre, and Sebastian Pinera use it as well.

This idea of politicians using Twitter makes it seem as though these icons, for many people, are more accessible when in reality they are not even reading the "tweets" or responding to them personally. Here is a quote from the article:

"The days when tweets involved a sweaty-thumbed real-life politician giving candid thoughts on the day’s events may be passing. Risk-averse politicians are likely to make their tweets bland, and bland tweeters may be less likely to be followed. Once politicians understand that everything is public, they are much less likely to offer the unadorned truth, at least to ordinary voters."

Do you agree with this comment? Do media outlets like this sometimes seem new, exciting and "activist" at first but the more people use it, the more diluted it becomes?

What do you think about how Twitter has and will affect politics all over the world? Will it change public perception of these people?

Here is the link to the article:

Politics and Twitter: Sweet to tweet

Disabled Artists - Angryfish

As Katie and I have been researching the arts and disabilities, and how they involve activist media for our final project, I have come across some interesting groups and individual artists that create media that addresses issues that people with disabilities have. This is a pretty interesting one, and I thought I would share with you all:

Robin Surgeoner, also known as Angryfish, is an established Disability Arts singer songwriter in the UK. He writes songs with powerful lyrics that are about realisation, oppression, potential, determination and one worldism. I would consider this activist media because Robin is part of a minority group and he is creating media to spread messages about the different obstacles he has because of his disability.

This is the cover for his album, entitled "Barbed Wire and Pot-Holes" ->

Angryfish's lyrics page:

http://www.angryfish.co.uk/lyrics/

Here is an example of lyrics from Angryfish ("Silent Tyranny"):

"Look at me, what do you see?

Do you see a man who's got no guts or destiny

But that would be true, it will happen to you

If we don't deny their silent tyranny"

Thoughts?

banksy

Hey Guys

I came across this while I was exploring today in class and I think it is pretty interesting considering what Jenny talked to us about during her class discussion.

The infamous Banksy quotes, "The segregation wall is a disgrace.... The possibility I find exciting is you could turn the world's most invasive and degrading structure into the world's longest gallery of free speech and bad art...."

He is a controversial figure but has gained highly publicized access in the media and continues to challenge the message that the wall represents. Do you feel as though his artwork has an influence on the greater public and how they perceive the wall?

Monk burns himself to death

When does activist media go to far? For instance, suicide bomber’s not only kill themselves and others for their religion but to create publicity. Another example that involves someone taking their own life in an act of protest took place in 1963 when a monk burned himself to death. A Buddhist monk from Vietnam placed himself at the busiest intersection in Saigon and then proceeded to light himself on fire. He did this to bring attention to the repressive policies of the Catholic regime that controlled the South Vietnamese government. The Catholic regime implemented strict bans on Buddhist monks and nuns. For instance, they prevented the flying of the Buddhist flag. Supposedly, the monk never moved a muscle.

Here is a picture of the monk burning himself. Just to warn you all, it is pretty disturbing.

Public Access Faves

Here's one of the videos that Tony mentioned as evidence of the value of public access channels.

And here is artist Ravi Zupa's website. Scroll to the bottom to watch some of the music and other videos Tony was also talking about.

M.I.A. - Born Free [WARNING: EXPLICIT CONTENT]

So, I just saw this video last week and it blew my mind. There are a lot of subtextual elements at play in this video... and I don't want to give too much away before anybody watches, but I think there's a lot of meaning and purpose in this music video, as violent and disturbing as it is.

I definitely regard this video in activist terms, but I wonder what you guys think it is trying to say about: A) American power and figures of authority (especially considering that M.I.A. is British), B) the absurdity of profiling, and C) fear of those that are "different"?

WARNING: CONTAINS EXPLICIT VIOLENCE, SEXUALITY, NUDITY, AND DRUG USE. FOR REAL.

M.I.A, Born Free from ROMAIN-GAVRAS on Vimeo.

Banksy Gets Erased

A group of street-cleaners in Melbourne painted over one of famed graffiti artist, Banksy's pieces of work. This is raising concern over graffiti and whether it should be preserved and protected like other more conventional forms of art. I feel that graffiti is just as worthy of protection under the law as "fine art". What do you think, what defines "real art" or "fine art", and can we even put a label on one's creation?

Here's the link:

http://www.good.is/post/banksy-gets-erased-should-some-street-art-be-preserved

Robert McChesney and John Nichols

Robert McChesney and John Nichols came to speak about their book that was recently published, the “Death and Life of American Journalism”. They discussed the importance for Generation Y to get involved in Journalism. McChesney stated that there are now 4 P.R agents to 1 journalist in the United States today. McChesney and Nichols blame the lack of content that is present in the news you find today.

McChesney and Nichols argue that journalism should be seen as a public good and that the government should help save American journalism by granting more subsidies to newspapers and media outlets. They believe that under the first amendment the government should help subsidize journalism. Nichols said that the first duty of the state is to make sure the press system exists, and that is a structural requirement.

Finally, I found it interesting how they stressed the importance of printed journalism and discounted online media such as blogging. Blogging is more of an opinion based media however, I disagree that people who blog cannot be considered journalists. What is your opinion of bloggers and journalism? Can people who maintain a well respected blog be considered a journalist, where is the line drawn?

-Erika