There are so many things in the media that influence each and every one of us in a different way. While I may take the meaning of a song, book or TV show one way someone else may take it a totally different way. I do not have satellite television in my home and I do not have internet at home either. This, I feel, makes it slightly more difficult to speak to my media influences. I also do not watch You Tube channels or listen to podcasts. I know what some of you are thinking right now as you are reading this post, this lady must be some old lady that lives in the stone age. Nope I am a thirty year old new mom that is the sole provider for my household. Up until a year and a half ago I lived off grid and only had electricity when the generator was running. Before that I had never had a well paying job where I could afford the extra luxuries like television and internet. I spent a lot of my time outside gardening and riding my horses. I have on the other hand always watched movies and DVD’s so I do have some kind of media influence. I also have a Facebook account so there is always media influence there as well. Some of my favorite shows to watch are NCIS, Law and Order Special Victims Unit, and The Big Bang Theory. I don’t have a lot of time to read books between work and school and a new baby. I do listen to music all the time as I have found that it is a good way for me to get ready to go to work for the day and also a good way for me to wind down before I get home after work.
After reading through all the theories on Purdue Owl, I am not sure that any one theory fits with the media influences that I do have. I think this is because I do not have that many influences so I do not see a pattern that jumps out on me of what theory may be best to describe them. I know that Law and Order looks at some of the marginalized groups of people and how they can sometimes be easier targets of sexual assault so I would say that falls into the Gender Studies and Queer Theory. This show examines the assaults on several different marginalized groups including the LGBTQ population. On the Purdue Owl site it states, “Gender studies and queer theory explore issues of sexuality, power, and marginalized populations (woman as other) in literature and culture.”
Lastly, I come to the two commercials. I am not one to really think that the first commercial is sexist. We do not know if she asked her husband for the bike for a gift as maybe she wanted to keep in shape in the comfort of her own home and be able to shower after working out in her own shower. I feel that people took this commercial slightly out of context. I can see where people could construe this as sexist but we are only getting a small clip out of the bigger picture. Some of the woman’s facial expressions do make you wonder if this was something she asked for or if her husband just felt that she needed it. If we look at it in the way that she did not ask for the bike then yes I believe it is at the very least rude. The woman is already very small. The second commercial I did not really fully understand other than the woman was made to look disheveled and in need of alcohol. I am sure everyone has their own opinion on these commercials.
Shayla's Blog 
Super first blog post, thanks! It’s rough to tackle school along with a new baby and being the sole provider for your household. That’s huge and congrats on your obviously high energy levels.
Your response to the Peloton ad uses the common sense of “Hey, maybe she really wanted the bike.” Which is a good argument. But why does she want a bike? What makes us passionate about exercise or this particular tool for exercise? Are there social/media messages that go much deeper than husband buys present for wife? Would the ad work as well if the gender roles were reversed? Those are the kinds of questions that get a critic started looking at not the face value of a media message but what’s going on in the fibers of representation. And how that impacts our understanding of our selves, our gender roles, etc.
Welcome to class, Shayla!
Also, my inner mother of many appreciates your blog title “Small Children, Big Problems.” No doubt! I finished school while raising kids myself and now I’m raising grandkids.
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Hey Deidre, thank you for your response. my blog title comes from the fact that my daughter is very small for her age and it is causing big problems. I have to go to appointments for her every week, I just went to UCSF and there are constant threats of people turning me into CPS because my daughter is a failure to thrive as she is six months old and only eleven pounds.
As for the Peloton add, I did not really think of it the way you did. I feel that I am out of the loop in most things since I do not engage in Social Media. I understand that many women feel they are told they need to be smaller and more fit. I am overweight myself and get looks all the time but I also know some people that their addiction is working out. I do see both sides of the story but I also feel that we live in a time where instead of holding a conversation about these things, people get very upset and blow things out of proportion.
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Thanks for the explanation of blog title. It does sound like you are in a “big” and difficult situation. That’s rough to drive so hard for medical care and to face the unknowing criticism of people who don’t get the whole picture. Hang in there!
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I actually think that it’s really impressive and super healthy that you’re not living with a lot of screens taking up your time. I want to go off grid and separate myself from those influences as much as possible. I really respect that type of lifestyle.
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Hey John, it is a hard lifestyle living off grid and can be expensive commuting to work depending on how far out you live. For a while years ago we would spend the summer at our cabin we built by hand and it was two hours out a dirt road so you wanted to make sure to stock up so you could be out there for about a week at a time without going back into town. I do appreciate not being so connected and attached to Social Media though but sometimes I feel really out of the loop on things at the same time.
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Shayla. I love that you have had even less media influence than I have, that is probably why we get along so well. There is no way to escape t all, no matter how busy we get mass media messages make their way into our lives. I know you said you watch a lot of movies and even those show different ideals of the era they were made in. I know the movies we were watching ten years ago are much different that today. Thanks for your openness and insight, I think this will be an interesting class for all of us.
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Shayla…. You have such a logical way of thinking and I love that. I appreciate your candidness and willingness to be vulnerable. In all the time that we have known one another I did not know how “offgrid” you were and I love that. My life is consumed with screen time and that sucks, between work and school it’s insane. I also feel like a teeny bopper sometimes because I enjoy the mundane scrolling. I look forward to learning even more about you and your little family moving forward.
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