15. My Overall Reflection on Media

With every end comes a beginning, no? Though this media blog has come to an end, I think that my time as a more aware consumer of media has just begun.
I, myself, think that I consume a fairly large amount of media. I don't watch a lot of TV anymore, but I do spend a good four or more hours on my laptop during school days. I think this impacts the amount of media i consume because when you're online, you're exposed to so much more media-copious amounts of advertisements are confined to a smaller space and the headlines (whether they are about Kim Kardashian or international affairs) are shown in a smaller place as well. I think the fact that I consume a lot of media impacts me, but not in the way that analyzers of the media's affects think it might.
 Many have said that teenagers, such as myself, are brainwashed to believe that they should be a certain way and look a certain way. I will admit that I'm quite permanently convinced that the ideal woman should beautiful and slender, but I most certainly don't think that the media has convinced me to be promiscuous with my body. In addition, in the documentary "Miss Representation," it was stated that females have been less enticed to want powerful positions because of the media's portrayal of women, but I don't think that I've ever felt that way. My closest friends and I have always wanted to do well in school, go to good colleges, and become wealthy and powerful. Even though the media has portrayed woman to be a certain way, I think it is safe to say that many females see right through it and choose to be who they want to be regardless of what the media tells them.
Throughout this quarter, as a result of keeping this journal, I think I have become more aware of the media I consume. Most of the times, now, when I see a commercial, I'll think about the techniques the advertisers are using and the needs the advertisers might be appealing to. I've also started paying much more attention to the product placement in TV shows and in movies.
 In keeping this journal, I also think that it has helped me to increase my media literacy. In my opinion, it's important to have this because it's just more important to be aware in general. Why go through life unaware of what advertisers are showing to us consumers? Why go through life without knowing what brands are doing in television programs and movies? By becoming more aware, we are less likely to just go along with the ideas and perceptions the media wants us to simply accept.
I've come to enjoy this online journal of mine and I owe it to this assignment for making me more aware of the media. This is the Tsoi Bean signing off. This may be the end of this blog, but it's only the beginning of a lifetime of being aware.