Meme Culture

In this fast moving media heavy culture, social media is always promoting and bringing new trends to our attention. We use these apps and communication tools as a way to stay up to date on the newest popular culture. Recently memes have become so popular that people claim that tagging their friends is a form of their main communication. Although they have been around for quite some time they seem to have become increasingly popular lately. Different categories of memes enable us to all find one that we have interest in, and share it with the people around us. 

I feel like people like memes because most of them are funny anecdotes that are similar to real life struggles and conversations we have, and making a meme out of it allows us to smile or laugh a real life situations that maybe distressing to us. Personally I love when I see someone tagged me in something because it means they were thinking of our friendship. It almost seems like a form of social currency we exchange. Similar to likes, shares and comments, we feel a higher sense of self esteem when someone tags us. Kermit inner "me" memes have become so popular, mostly in part that they make light of guilty pleasures or bad habits we all succumb to. They give a sense of online "community" even though they are a very detached way of communicating. Ironically, some times people don't even have any type of conversation, they tag someone simply so that person can see and form an opinion on the same picture. 

Memes have had a huge part in the American election, going along with the fact that social media has had an affect on this election like never before. Many have used them to make light of what is an extremely distressing outcome for many. Memes with VP Joe Biden "pranking" Trump have become so widespread and it's interesting to see how social media in general has encouraged or controlled public opinion. There is a movement online lead by Politician Jill Stein, an independent to call for a recount. This is garnering most of its momentum online, weather or not it is effective is something to consider.

Thoughts on my opinions? What are your thoughts/likes and dislikes of memes? 

Considering Hyperreality in Disney Culture and How it Affects Us

In class we discussed the Culture of Disney and the hyperreality it creates. It is shocking to be exposed to the reality of such a large empire that controls a large part of North American culture.  The interesting thing is that before learning about this during my last few years in the Communication program I to was blind to the hyperreality of Disney and how it enables us as a public to live in a simulated reality. Consumer culture thrives on the idea of living in a world where acquiring certain experiences or possessions puts us in a cultural category. Most people you know probably went to Disney world/land as children, therefore leaving them with fond memories and wanting to take their kids there one day. That is how Disney has built their empire, on the notion that visiting their park is an integral part of family life. The culture of a fantasy world where everything is somewhat of a "show" is something the ordinary population desires, as somewhat of an escape into this hyperreal world where the real issues of everyday life do not exist. Disney has perfected a method of tapping into that desire and creating an entire world that enables people to experience, consume and even live in a simulacra. They have certain methods used to constantly ensure the promotion and consumption of their products, not only through media but through material goods, fast food, and real estate. As we discussed in class Jean Baudrillard studied at length the concept of a simulacra and hyperreality and defines things in levels of numbered "orders". Her understanding of why Disney is so embedded in our culture relates back to the notion that it embodies the epitome of the ideal "American Dream" culture and presents it in a "magical" hyper real way that captivates the culture that Western society conforms to. A happy family that can create memories either using Disney products or spending time in the actual parks is considered to be wholesome and innocent un motivated by anything other than wanting to have a good time. The irony in this is, that everything the Disney Corporation does is extremely premeditated and done in way that consumes those into that lifestyle.
Understanding Disney, a book by Janet Wasko, examines and unpacks the Disney Corporation and it's history. It explains how these ideals and methods of insertion into primary North American Society came to leave the company at the global forefront of entertainment and media. It is interesting to consider how much Disney has been apart of our own life as children and even as adults now. Some questions to consider:

Has your opinion of Disney or understanding of your own experiences with it changed after receiving additional information on the reality of the company?

Do you think it's healthy for our culture and society to be hinged on such an unrealistic and unattainable idea of life presented by Disney?

Do We Really have Autonomy Over our Information in This Digital Age ?

Media and technology have transformed our culture and society immensely over the past couple decades. This paper will explore the relationship between media and Internet, particularly if the affordances it creates for users outweigh the information and control that large-scale corporations gain from this.

The invention of the Internet and Web 2.0 opened up new types of opportunities for users to do just about anything online. Consumerism in particular was one of the things that increased with the agency to shop online. Web 2.0 and Capitalistic corporations make the increase in online shopping possible, enabling users to increase their productivity by using their cellphones to continue the production and consumption cycle any time of the day. By doing this they are using their phone as an extension of themselves. Although the public views this as a way the companies are making their lives easier, it allows those corporations to have more access and control over them. The fact that we give out so much of our information online like banking, taxes, address, Resumes and work history etc, gives not only the government access to our lives but also often takes away our rights without us even knowing. This is because the media and the Internet at large is all owned by the corporations and used as a tool to increase the amount of advertising and media we consume. Society views media and the Internet as a mode to express opinions and interact with peers and create a participatory democracy, but we must consider that us having access to these tools of communication is only in our control to a certain extent. The public only consumes and creates culture by what the media owned by corporations allow.

Corporations like Apple dominate the technology market and consumers agree to essentially give Apple full rights and access to their files and information stored on an Apple device. Applications like ICloud and Apple music are designed to basically sell you your own files and media. If you store your files on ICloud which is essentially storage space that lives on the internet than you have agreed to share those files, enabling Apple to view them and remove whatever they wish. The capacity for sharing and communicating allows people to share and interact in a public sphere online, many of those opinions and information can be coded with bias or simply not be pure but rather put forth by businesses. Some of the most popular and successful blogs and social media personalities are in fact controlled by business interest, in order to stay highly competitive they need to be constantly uploading and have those types of support. Something to consider is if the interests of capitalists indeed pollute our agency and autonomy while using devices like the Internet and our phones? Furthermore if the culture we create online is always clouded by those factors, can it be authentic and truly “user created”.