Diasporic Cinema

Diaspora refers to the dispersion of people from their original homelands across different cultures and countries. Due to the acceleration and number of immigrants continuing to increase, it is contributing greatly to the number of cross over films and media being produced. Khorana states that ‘Crossover cinema is used to encapsulate an emerging form of cinema that crosses cultural borders at the stage of conceptualization and production… as well as crossing over in terms of its distribution and reception’ (Khorana, 2013).

Danny Boyle’s ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ is a prime example of a cross over feature film. Although Boyle does not consider his film an example of cross over cinema, his experiences as the son of Irish immigrants has been influential in creating his cross over film. Slumdog Millionaire’s cross over elements are present as the film blurs the lines between seemingly ‘exotic’ Indian locations and culture and western customs and scenes in order to communicate the films cross-cultural themes and messages.

As Cottle states, cross over cinema as a form of Diasporic media has the potential to “enhance the confidence of minority ethnic individuals and communities” and will therefore “increase access to, and active participation in, media production” (Cottle, 2000). Cross over films and media are becoming increasingly popular as people are now more enriched and engaged with multiple cultures, they seek to learn and become connected in a more prominent way than in previous decades.

Internationalising Education and Cultural Competence

Internationalising education has a direct correlation to different communities of people being more accepting and tolerant towards different cultures. Hannah Marginson states, “International education is not the rich cultural experience it could be” (Marginson, 2012). This can be due to a number of reasons including a cultures ethnocentrism and parochialism. Ethnocentrism refers to an individual or community viewing themselves as superior to other differing cultures and parochialism refers to an individual having a limited outlook and knowledge of different cultures. Due to these close-minded behaviours, international students find it difficult to interact and make connections with local students, feel less safe and secure and may be exploited due to their differing cultural background.

In order for an individual to be culturally competent and move away from ethnocentrism and parochialism, an individual must exhibit critical thinking, have empathy, exhibit cultural negotiation, be understanding of differing viewpoints and be conscious of identity history. Furthermore, Marginson discusses the ideal international society were international students are able to be fully accepted and embraced as equals regardless of their cultural background. This embrace of different cultures is referred to as ‘cosmopolitanism’, meaning ‘a citizen of the world’. A person who adopts cosmopolitanism encompasses a sense of responsibility to all people regardless of culture, accepts and values differences and diversity, is open to change and engaged with international issues of history and politics in order to create an engaging cultural experience with regards to international education and all other aspects of life.

The Rise of the Korean Wave

In the last few decades, South Korea has risen as Asia’s leader of popular culture in a phenomenon, which many refer to as ‘The Korean wave’. This Asian branch of popular culture encompasses a wide range of media and cultural industries including film and television, music, fashion and cosmetics. The Korean Wave has sparked popularity across the world, with many countries adopting the popular culture trends of South Korea.

In an article exploring the emergence of ‘The Korean Wave’, Ryoo states that “South Korea has become the seventh-largest film market in the world” and that “the South Korean media industry and its stars are increasingly defining what the people of East Asia see, listen to and play’ (Ryoo, 2009).

The growing international popularity of South Korean culture can be construed as a means of globalisation. This issue of globalisation surrounding ‘The Korean Wave’ is further explored by Cho Hae-Juang as he states, “the Korean Wave is not an incident centred in South Korea but part of the phenomenon of capitalism’s rise in Asia… the Korean Wave was a pop culture spectacle that appeared as part of the process of global capitalism”(Hae-Joang, 2005). Cho Hae-Juang’s perspective of ‘The Korean Wave’ can be viewed not only as a spread of culture across boarders, but as a construct of underlying global capitalism and globalisation.

South Korea’s high production values, their ability to produce content relatable to the Asian region and creating closer ties with japan and other neighbouring countries has allowed them to emerge as Asia’s popular culture leader, changing culture trends on a global scale and effecting the lives of thousands around the world.

Does It Really Matter Who Owns the Media?

Both Australian and worldwide media outlets have seen a decrease in diversity in recent years, as media tyrants have expanded there ownership across a multitude of media sources. Australia in particular, has incurred a rapidly decreasing range of independent media outlets due to their take over by media entrepreneurs such as Rupert Murdoch who now owns over 70 percent of Australian media outlets across radio, television and newspaper sources and Australian mining magnate Gina Rinehart. Although having vast ownership of media sources seems non-threatening, a closer look can reveal the negative effects that occur when media outlets are privately owned by a small group of individuals.

The general public’s concern surrounding ownership of the media is whether the information we are receiving is of a non-bias viewpoint or is being manipulated by the personal opinions of the media sources owner. An example of this issue refers to international media proprietor, Rupert Murdoch. His takeover of Australian print media, in particular ‘Daily Mail’ and ‘The Sun’ has created discussion surrounding the bias news stories that the newspaper has presented in regards to Australian politics. These newspapers have been at the centre of controversy in recent years, as they have been criticised for presenting a bias view of political events and advocating for particular political parties.

The Newspapers’ support of specific political parties is directly caused by Rupert Murdoch’s personal political opinions. This abuse of media by the owner in turn persuades public opinion, thus manipulating election results. As Murdoch remains in control of the majority of Australian Media Sources, this issue of bias remains a common occurrence

Gina Rinehart is another example of how media ownership negatively impacts the general public. Her 10% stake in Australian free to air channel ‘TEN’ has enabled Gina Rinehart to have some control of what is being aired and thus altering public opinions. An instance of Rinehart’s media control occurred when ‘Channel 9’ broadcasting network aired a television miniseries ‘House of Hancock’ detailing how Gina Rinehart obtained her fortune. Upon viewing the series Ms Rinehart claimed the series defamed her, ordering the series producers to film and air an alternative plot line that she approved of.

The issue of media ownership is extremely important as individuals controlling the media have the ability to manipulate public views. It is clear from reviewing the actions of Media tyrants Rupert Murdoch and Gina Rinehart that the issue of media ownership becomes and issue when diversity of ownership is not present.

Further information can be found on the Australian Communication and Media Authorities website, providing a snapshot detailing the main media owners involved in  commercial television, radio and newspapers.

View Snapshot

 

Media Texts Effect On Their Audience

Media texts have the ability to evoke many thoughts and emotions by employing particular signs within their advertisements in order to convey a specific message to the targeted audience. In particular, American clothing line ‘Urban Outfitters’ has been at the centre of controversy surrounding the meaning behind some of their clothing pieces. Urban Outfitters release of a particular t-shirt by designer ‘Wood Wood’ is a strong example of how certain texts have the ability to manipulate the meaning of an image.

Initially viewing the image, the audience gathers that it is a promotion for a new piece of clothing by the urban outfitters brand. This is shown by the ‘urban outfitters’ logo at the top of the image, the price of the item exhibited on the right hand side and the model depicted wearing the shirt. Although many urban outfitters clothing pieces signify that it is a new item on sale, this piece in particular has caused public outrage due to the negative connotations of the clothing item.

Urban Outfitters has been subject to ridicule over their choice of apparel designs on more than one occasion. This is seen in the image above as it initially denotes a simple clothing item targeted at male consumers with an interesting design on the pocket of the t-shirt. Although some public advocates have looked deeper in to the image and made connections between the image on the pocket and the Star of David that Jewish people were forced to wear during World War II. The connotations the shirt has to the Star of David has caused widespread offence amongst the Jewish community and the general public, forcing Urban Outfitters to remove the clothing item from their stores.

Upon reviewing the image of the urban outfitters clothing piece, it is clear that each person decodes information differently and concludes their own connotations. This is seen as some public advocates became offended as saw that the t-shirt had connotations to World War II. However other people did not decode the image in the same way, with the clothing item still becoming sold out despite the controversy. Every media text is able to be analysed in multiple ways depending on the audience. It is important for creators of these texts to realise the possible connotations the images may have and consciously create images that have positive connotations for their targeted audience in order to successfully convey their intended message.

Further controversial signs and symbols in Urban Outfitters products are available in the following article:

View Article

An interesting presentation providing information on how audiences read media texts is available by clicking the link below:

View Presentation

The Loss of Innocence: Media’s Effect on the Ideals of Childhood

The loss of innocence occurring via decensitising media content is a growing anxiety affecting children which are considered society’s most vulnerable and influenced group. Mass media platforms are expanding at an exponential rate. The creation of films, television shows, video games and social media websites have caused public anxiety about how these new media resources are effecting childhood and the idea of innocence.

Childhood has been assumed as a socially constructed ideology since early 17^th century perceptions surrounding childhood had dramatically altered past ideals. The notion of the ‘romantic childhood’ was born out of the industrial revolutions discard of child labour thus creating the modern perception of childhood as a period of dependence and innocence.

There is a growing concern that specific media outlets such as film, television, video games and social media depict an alarming amount of content considered inappropriate for children. This includes drug use, violence and sexually explicit material. Some measures are taken to ensure children are not exposed to inappropriate material such as content age ratings and parental locks on television and internet access. Despite these restrictions there is still an increasing amount of inappropriate material being accessed by minors. In a 2012 study by leading internet security company ‘Norton’, 19,000 parents were surveyed regarding their children’s online activity. It was discovered that 7% of poll takers were unsure what their children were viewing on their phones and computers. These findings support the public’s anxiety that children’s unrestricted media access allows them to access age inappropriate content thus altering the perceived ideas surrounding innocence in childhood.

This normalisation of explicit content in mainstream media has essentially decensitised children to adult and criminal behaviour, in turn promoting this loss of innocence. The notion of innocence is a key concept of the ‘romantic childhood’, which is seen by society as something to be protected. As media becomes more easily accessible to impressionable children, an increasing anxiety surrounding media usage is formed as mainstream media manipulates society’s initial perception of childhood.

It is possible that the traditional perceptions of childhood have been effected by society’s use of media. This anxiety is further explored in Martin Barker’s ‘Ill Effects: The Media Violence Debate’, discussing the effects of mass media on the constructed concept of childhood.

The public anxiety of the changing perceptions of childhood through uncensored media is a widely discussed topic. Additional readings relating to this issue will be posted below.

• Ill Effects: The Media Violence Debate View Book

• BBC News Article ‘Child Safety Measures to Protect Against Internet Threats’ View Article