Seeking unmediated truths (excerpt).

Seeking unmediated truths (excerpt). Before most of us arrive at work, or school, or even thisconference, we have been exposed to dozens, perhaps hundreds, of mediamessages. You might wake up to a clock radio, stumble downstairs to turn onthe TV while perking some coffee. While sipping that coffee, you mightread a newspaper, or surf the net To browse the Internet. The most common Internet browsing today is done on the Web. Before the Web, the Internet was "surfed" via Archie, Gopher, WAIS and other search facilities. See surfing and how to access the Internet. on your computer. On your drive to work or school, you likely have a radio on in yourcar. You might see several billboards along the way. Once at the office,you could walk through a waiting room with magazines on a table. Then,you might check your e-mail before getting into the bulk of your day. All of these media convey information, but also values, norms,sales pitches and images that go into forming what I call "mediatedtruths." By that term, I do not only mean that media companies arebringing you the messages. I also mean that the intended meaning of themhas been carefully mediated, or deter-mined, by those within the mediaindustry. They then are further mediated, or negotiated, by you as thereceiver. Without a certain awareness, and careful, critical scrutiny, yourown mediation process might become quite passive. You might reject themessages as propaganda or garbage, and thus miss some important elementsof them. Research shows that more of you are likely to rather passivelydigest the messages, and perhaps in a rather unthinking way accept theinformation, values and norms as truths. It is my contention that we live and function very much within amediated world--one that is of our own creation through our feelings,perception, etc. Increasingly over recent decades, mediamessages--ranging from advertising to entertainment to the news--feedand influence how we formulate those feelings and perceptions. Think ofthis world as a "bubble" around your head, filled with theseimages and values we have mentioned, that serves as a filter, in somecases even an obstruction, to your abstracting with the actual territoryaround you. I contend that if you "buy into" these mediated truthsyou can be setting yourself up for a great deal of stress, possiblestrains in relationships and a lack of tolerance for other world viewsand perceptions. Individual "goals" can become"demands" in this mediated world. Relationships can be judgedby norms established in commercials or fictionalized media accountsrather than on their own strengths and weaknesses. Political and socialviews can be packaged and sold to you, as commodities. Other world viewscan be seen as threats, or obstacles, rather than simply diversity. If you get entrapped within your own mediated world, you can losetouch with your actual environment--nature, friends and family, yourcommunity, etc. When you lose touch with that environment, which we willrefer interchangeably to as the territory, you risk losing touch withyourself. Thus, seeking what I label "unmediated Adj. 1. unmediated - having no intervening persons, agents, conditions; "in direct sunlight"; "in direct contact with the voters"; "direct exposure to the disease"; "a direct link"; "the direct cause of the accident"; "direct vote"direct truths" can becomea very worthy and important effort. But, how do you seek such"truths"? I believe you can do so first by becoming more medialiterate, second by becoming more aware of your own abstractingprocess--from the sensory level all the way to the higher order levelsof theories and world views--and third by recognizing differingstructures between many mediated messages and the structure of thenatural world. General semantics gen��er��al semantics?n. (used with a sing. verb)A discipline developed by Alfred Korzybski that proposes to improve human behavioral responses through a more critical use of words and symbols. has been my guide in 20 years of developing andteaching media literacy Media literacy is the process of accessing, analyzing, evaluating and creating messages in a wide variety of media modes, genres and forms. It uses an inquiry-based instructional model that encourages people to ask questions about what they watch, see and read. . Using it as my theoretical foundation, as wellas practical guide, I developed two university courses, an outreachprogram to more than 30 middle and high schools in the U.S. andAustralia, and have written two books. I am using general semantics nowto develop a program and book called, "Seeking UnmediatedTruths." In this paper, I will draw from observations made duringthe presentation of this program and numerous courses in media literacy. Two Worlds The concept of "two worlds" should not be new to thosewho have studied general semantics. Alfred Korzybski Noun 1. Alfred Korzybski - United States semanticist (born in Poland) (1879-1950)Alfred Habdank Skarbek Korzybski, Korzybski wrote about the"intensional (philosophy) intensional - A description of properties, e.g. intensional equality, that relate to how an object is implemented as opposed to extensional properties which concern only how its output depends on its input. world," of ideas, feelings, world views, etc.,and a world outside our skins, what we often refer to as reality.Korzybski encouraged taking an "extensional" approach, toexplore the territory beyond our own skin and to be aware of our ownformulations, and what influenced them. (1) S. I. Hayakawa Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa (July 18 1906 – February 27 1992) was a Canadian-born American academic and political figure. He was an English professor, served as president of San Francisco State University and then a United States Senator from California from 1977 to 1983. applied general semantics ideas to analysis ofpropaganda. (2) Irving Lee used general semantics in teaching andresearching verbal communications and rhetoric. Most of these early general semanticists primarily looked atapplications to the written and spoken language. Books, magazines andnewspapers served as the primary media through most of their lives. Of course, today, television and computer images dominate. We cancreate "virtual realities." We have the technology to changethe color of your sweater, put Oprah Winfrey's head on AnnMargaret's body (as actually was done in one publication), makeSaddam Hussein Saddam Hussein(born April 28, 1937, Tikrit, Iraq—died Dec. 30, 2006, Baghdad) President of Iraq (1979–2003). He joined the Ba'th Party in 1957. Following participation in a failed attempt to assassinate Iraqi Pres. or George Bush look like Adolph Hitler or have you take avirtual tour of Australia while sitting in Milwaukee. The spoken andprinted word remains very important, but we also have to consider thepower of visual images. In recent decades, researchers such as Neil Postman POSTMAN, Eng. law. A barrister in the court of exchequer, who has precedence in: motions. , John Merrill,Geraldine Forsberg and yours truly have used general semanticsprinciples to explore media messages of all types. (3) The Mediated World So what are the underlying values of this so-called mediated world?And, what factors go into shaping them? Research in media show that children and adults pick up thefollowing values as being important from various forms of media: (4) * Consumerism consumerismMovement or policies aimed at regulating the products, services, methods, and standards of manufacturers, sellers, and advertisers in the interests of the buyer. and materialism materialism,in philosophy, a widely held system of thought that explains the nature of the world as entirely dependent on matter, the fundamental and final reality beyond which nothing need be sought. . Success often is measured by what weown, where we live, what kind of car we drive or what clothes we wear inthe mediated world. * Patriotism. The United States' way of life--freedom, freemarket economy, etc.--is the best in the world. This value has beenconveyed even stronger since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack.Conversely, those who disagree with Verb 1. disagree with - not be very easily digestible; "Spicy food disagrees with some people"hurt - give trouble or pain to; "This exercise will hurt your back" our way of life are considered theenemy, evil-doers, oppressors, etc. * Physical attractiveness Physical attractiveness is the perception of the physical traits of an individual human person as pleasing or beautiful. It can include various implications, such as sexual attractiveness, cuteness, and physique. is very important. This value begins inteen magazines This is a list of teen magazines.ACED Magazine Bop Magazine Bliss CosmoGIRL! Dolly ELLEgirl Faze It's HOT! Pop Star Sassy Magazine Seventeen Shameless Sugar Teen People Teen Scene Magazine TeenBeat and other media geared at young people, especially femaleyoung people. It is carried on through adult media. * Information must be entertaining. That means it must berelatively easy to understand--dumbed down in some of ouropinions--fast-paced, delivered by those physically attractive peoplementioned a paragraph earlier. (5) * Individualism. You can be successful if you act aggressively andtake on the world yourself. Work hard, compete, be tough. After all,it's you against the world. * The natural world primarily provides resources for humans--fuel,food, materials for shelter, recreation, etc. These values, and others conveyed in media messages, should beunder-stood as constructions that are shaped by world views andparadigms both in broader American society, and within the mediaindustry. So, a media message producer, like any citizen, is influenced bythe broader cultural values, which are conveyed not only by media butalso through family, peers, schools and other institutions. Meanwhile,that producer also is influenced by values and paradigms within themedia industry. These include ways of doing business within thatindustry, and longtime values that often are used when making decisionsabout what is news or what should go into ads or entertainment products.These include values such as timeliness, making deadlines, proximity,conflict, personalization Custom tailoring information to the individual. On the Web, personalization means returning a page that has been customized for the user, taking into consideration that person's habits and preferences. of issues, unusual qualities, etc. The media producer is in a rather unique position in that themessages he or she produces are then sent right back out into thebroader culture, and help feed the values and world views within thatculture. The Unmediated World If you really examine the natural world--which we are calling theunmediated world--the structure and underlying values differ from thosewithin the mediated world in many ways. * Basic needs. The natural world requires inhabitants :This article is about the video game. For Inhabitants of housing, see Residency Inhabitants is an independently developed commercial puzzle game created by S+F Software. DetailsThe game is based loosely on the concepts from SameGame. to acquirebasic needs of food, shelter, perhaps fuel. It does not demand excessiveconsumption. It basically only requires that inhabitants do what theymust do to survive. * No boundaries. Political or governmental boundaries within thenatural world are meaningless. Yes, some animals will guard a certainterritory out of instinct, but this protective instinct does not developfrom some philosophy or higher order image or theory. It is notfurthered by propaganda. * The natural world is very much an inner-connected system. Yes, itis true that the strong might survive over the weak, and that physicalattractiveness is important in mating, etc. But, an eco-system balancesitself out over time--unless human intervention or some othercataclysmic cat��a��clysm?n.1. A violent upheaval that causes great destruction or brings about a fundamental change.2. A violent and sudden change in the earth's crust.3. A devastating flood. interference becomes involved. All living things Living Things may refer to: Life, or things in nature that are alive Living Things (band), a St. Louis musical group Living Things (album) by Matthew Sweet in aneco-system are related in some way, and therefore depending on oneanother--whether it be as part of the food chain, etc. * Diversity abounds. Within the eco-system, diversity of species,etc. abounds. In fact, the system is very dependent on a diversity ofliving things to provide that balance mentioned in the previous section. This is not a pitch for a "back to nature" movement. Noris it trying to say we as humans should live like animals in the woods.In fact, this writer has enjoyed a great deal some aspects of themediated world--financial gain, status, intellectual challenge, sense ofachievement, and other rewards. But, to lose touch with the structureand values that can be found in nature creates the risk of disconnection dis��con��nect?v. dis��con��nect��ed, dis��con��nect��ing, dis��con��nectsv.tr.1. To sever or interrupt the connection of or between: disconnected the hose.2. from other living things and oneself. You can easily become entrapped inan either-or structure. If you adopt the values of the mediated worldwithout thinking, you run those risks. NOTES 1. Alfred Korzybski Collected Writings 1920-1950. Editor, M.Kendig, International Non-Aristotelian Library and Institute of GeneralSemantics The Institute of General Semantics is a not-for-profit corporation established in 1938 by Alfred Korzybski, located in Fort Worth, Texas. Its membership roles include members from 30 different countries. . 1990. pp.189-271. 2. Language in Action, S. I. Hayakawa, Harcourt Brace & Co.,1939. pp.22-23. 3. Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of ShowBusiness, Neil Postman, Penguin Books, 1986; The Dialectic dialectic(dīəlĕk`tĭk)[Gr.,= art of conversation], in philosophy, term originally applied to the method of philosophizing by means of question and answer employed by certain ancient philosophers, notably Socrates. inJournalism, John C. Merrill, Louisiana State University Press This article needs sourcesorreferences that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Alone, primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of this article are not sufficient for an accurate encyclopedia article. , 1989;Critical Thinking in an Image World, Geraldine Forsberg, UniversityPress of America, 1993. 4. Center for Media Literacy materials, Los Angeles Los Angeles(lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. , California;National Telemedia Council materials, Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison.The 2006 population estimate of Madison was 223,389, making it the second largest city in Wisconsin, after Milwaukee, and ; and originalsurvey research done through the Milwaukee Media Connection medialiteracy outreach program at UW-Milwaukee. 5. "Media as Epistemology epistemology(ĭpĭs'təmŏl`əjē)[Gr.,=knowledge or science], the branch of philosophy that is directed toward theories of the sources, nature, and limits of knowledge. Since the 17th cent. " in Amusing Ourselves to Death.pp.16-29.