salience
June 12, 2003
1. It's Thursday, which is good. At least now when I look away from the computer screen I can think, "Tomorrow's Friday." :)
2. We oscillate here, between mountains and droughts, when it comes to work. Since I work directly for Angela, I'm handed short term projects which only require about five hours of my time, unlike the other interns, who have month long projects. So when Angela is in meetings all day, it is hard for her to throw stuff my way. ...and here I am, waiting for something to do. Really, it's not so bad. I'm paid regardless, and I can get to almost all of the sites I read on a regular basis. My new thing is staying current. I never noticed that the news is updated every half hour until yesterday, which is kinda cool.
3. Speaking of news, my brother and I were talking about paranoia yesterday. I was saying that when the war first broke out, MTV was the best source for information: it was unbiased, purely informative, geared towards an audience that was clueless (e.g. the youth of America). Now, before I elaborate, I will admit, the majority of stuff MTV airs is so-called "reality tv" or unrehearsed over-dramatization. Yet, true to abiding by our collective ADD, every hour there is a five minute news break, usually pertaining to whatever law suit our ghetto entertainers are having to deal with. That being said, the station took the news seriously, catering to a young audience with no real, accessible outlet for real world information. Instead of taking advantage of this situation, MTV sent the VJs out with camera crews to present the facts from a real person's perspective. There was no reporter sitting behind a desk, rattling off the latest list from the Associated Press from a camera screen, ad libbing comments under her breath.
La mama however, became enraged. She said MTV would never pull such a stunt because it is a network that relies on the entertainment industry. Why then, would they actually want to inform their audience? She went on to say that she preferred CNN to MTV news anyday, or FOX news, as it is more conservative. Be her personal, political convictions as they may, I tried to initiate a debate.
My brother sided with me with MTV. He said he was impressed that the VJs would give the facts of what was going on, plus the organization of the government and why things were happening as they were, and then go above and beyond, talking to real people who were deeply affected by the turn of events. Not only did MTV follow young, "encouraged," enlisted soldiers (and yes, they were ALL Army, thank you), but they held forums where kids could ask questions and get answers.
La mama just stared at him, surprised at his seriousness. I took the opportunity to add that her wanting her information with a political spin implied her need for entertainment. She did not want to just know the facts, she wanted to know a certain position on the situation. I pointed out that when something happens, she is the first to turn on CNN and adopt the severe paranoia the channel perpetuates. Take the confirmation that Suddam is still alive (what a shock, lemme tell you) and that he has withdrawn all funds from his bank for bounty on American soldiers. My mom was horrified, describing in detail her shock. My entire family just looked at her and shook our heads. I mean, really, that is obvious. Why should that be surprising??
My brother added that the common media has taken it upon themselves to dramatize everything to gain interest. Even the police botter in the Alpharetta Neighbor has taken a Dr. Phil approach to addressing its encounters of the past week. ...and la mama is the first to condemn Alpharetta as "going downhill." It's gotten to the point now, where she is afraid to be in the North Point Mall parking lot after dark, for fear that someone will attack her. And, let's be honest, yes, if one is by herself at night she might be easier to attack. But who goes to the mall by themselves, really? Not many people, and especially not at night.
It was an interesting dialogue, with el papa eventually siding with my brother and I, saying la mama was falling into the "paranoid geezer" mentality of believing everything she hears/sees/reads and not forming her own opinion, thus closing all discussion and settling the debate.
And yeah, I do think it's easy to fall into the paranoid mentality. But there is crime, violence, and prejudice everywhere. If one actively seeks it out, she will find it. You know?
2. We oscillate here, between mountains and droughts, when it comes to work. Since I work directly for Angela, I'm handed short term projects which only require about five hours of my time, unlike the other interns, who have month long projects. So when Angela is in meetings all day, it is hard for her to throw stuff my way. ...and here I am, waiting for something to do. Really, it's not so bad. I'm paid regardless, and I can get to almost all of the sites I read on a regular basis. My new thing is staying current. I never noticed that the news is updated every half hour until yesterday, which is kinda cool.
3. Speaking of news, my brother and I were talking about paranoia yesterday. I was saying that when the war first broke out, MTV was the best source for information: it was unbiased, purely informative, geared towards an audience that was clueless (e.g. the youth of America). Now, before I elaborate, I will admit, the majority of stuff MTV airs is so-called "reality tv" or unrehearsed over-dramatization. Yet, true to abiding by our collective ADD, every hour there is a five minute news break, usually pertaining to whatever law suit our ghetto entertainers are having to deal with. That being said, the station took the news seriously, catering to a young audience with no real, accessible outlet for real world information. Instead of taking advantage of this situation, MTV sent the VJs out with camera crews to present the facts from a real person's perspective. There was no reporter sitting behind a desk, rattling off the latest list from the Associated Press from a camera screen, ad libbing comments under her breath.
La mama however, became enraged. She said MTV would never pull such a stunt because it is a network that relies on the entertainment industry. Why then, would they actually want to inform their audience? She went on to say that she preferred CNN to MTV news anyday, or FOX news, as it is more conservative. Be her personal, political convictions as they may, I tried to initiate a debate.
My brother sided with me with MTV. He said he was impressed that the VJs would give the facts of what was going on, plus the organization of the government and why things were happening as they were, and then go above and beyond, talking to real people who were deeply affected by the turn of events. Not only did MTV follow young, "encouraged," enlisted soldiers (and yes, they were ALL Army, thank you), but they held forums where kids could ask questions and get answers.
La mama just stared at him, surprised at his seriousness. I took the opportunity to add that her wanting her information with a political spin implied her need for entertainment. She did not want to just know the facts, she wanted to know a certain position on the situation. I pointed out that when something happens, she is the first to turn on CNN and adopt the severe paranoia the channel perpetuates. Take the confirmation that Suddam is still alive (what a shock, lemme tell you) and that he has withdrawn all funds from his bank for bounty on American soldiers. My mom was horrified, describing in detail her shock. My entire family just looked at her and shook our heads. I mean, really, that is obvious. Why should that be surprising??
My brother added that the common media has taken it upon themselves to dramatize everything to gain interest. Even the police botter in the Alpharetta Neighbor has taken a Dr. Phil approach to addressing its encounters of the past week. ...and la mama is the first to condemn Alpharetta as "going downhill." It's gotten to the point now, where she is afraid to be in the North Point Mall parking lot after dark, for fear that someone will attack her. And, let's be honest, yes, if one is by herself at night she might be easier to attack. But who goes to the mall by themselves, really? Not many people, and especially not at night.
It was an interesting dialogue, with el papa eventually siding with my brother and I, saying la mama was falling into the "paranoid geezer" mentality of believing everything she hears/sees/reads and not forming her own opinion, thus closing all discussion and settling the debate.
And yeah, I do think it's easy to fall into the paranoid mentality. But there is crime, violence, and prejudice everywhere. If one actively seeks it out, she will find it. You know?
lasaliente, 10:41
