On Cyber Bullying…

Although my thoughts on this apply to all cyber bullying, I’m going to attach it here to a specific, recent event, namely the suicide of a gay teen who was outed in a very public way by a so-called “friend”.  If you haven’t heard about it, first of all, where have you been?  But here’s the full story.

Basically, a college student loaned his dorm room to this teen, who was closeted, and then broadcasted his friend having a same-sex sexual encounter live via iChat.  Upon discovering this, said closeted teen went on to commit suicide.

First off, let me just say how sickening I find this whole situation.  This guy was in the closet, which obviously meant he

The original post, DARING people to watch the feed.

wasn’t ready to be openly gay yet, and it was his business, and his alone.  The fact that he was betrayed by someone he thought was a friend makes it even worse.  And how does the friend, Dharun Ravi, react to the fact that he essentially drove someone to suicide?  Not how he should have, being regretful, disgusted, and horrified as what he did, if those words are even strong enough.  Instead he reacts by trying to protect himself from any harmful consequences, by deleting his twitter post(shown to the side) and replacing it with a different one (below the original).  Little psychology for you: this behavior displays, according to Lawrence Kohlberg, stage 2 morality, usually exhibited in young children (the self-interest stage).  Shows how much of a grown up this college student is.  Also shows how smart he is, since most internet users know that anything deleted can be found again, and they found his old posts.  Now he’s being charged in criminal court, and I think he should be.

I have never bought the line of thinking that says that suicide is an act of selfishness.  People don’t get to the edge, with no where but down to go by themselves.  They get pushed there, whether

The altered post

by other people or situations.  No one can remain strong forever under such pressure.  The point is, I believe that whether he meant to hurt his friend or not, he is one of two kinds of people: an idiot or a sadist.  On no level is this ok, and there is nothing that can make him not responsible.  Even if the thus far unnamed teen was depressed before, it is still Dharun’s fault, for pushing him when he was already in that state.  It’s his fault and he needs to be held responsible.

Not to mention that events like this demonize modern media outlets, things that should be used to maintain contact with friends, get to know others, or to learn.

If you read this today (Oct. 19) or even tomorrow, there’s a Facebook based movement to wear purple in remembrance on the 20th.  If you get a chance, please take part.  They deserve it.

Keep A Breast Foundation

Hey,

To anyone who reads this, now and future, I’m just gonna take a second to talk to you about the charity mentioned in the widget on my page: Keep A Breast.  It’s a relatively new charity for breast cancer awareness and research.  They sell some funny merchandise to raise money, like my wristband here:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

So do me, and everyone else (because you can get breast cancer too, guys) a favor, and go to their website here.  Check out their merch, most of it is pretty cool, and funny, so you’ll get some cool stuff as well as adding money to their charity fund!  It’s a good cause, and one that I wholeheartedly endorse.  Click the widget, donate, buy, or just go and read up on Breast Cancer.  Together, we can put an end to this, and I’m proud to do my part!

-CC14

Introduction

To whomever cares to read:

The Media Awareness Network defines Media Literacy as “the ability to sift through and analyze the messages that inform, entertain and sell to us every day. It’s the ability to bring critical thinking skills to bear on all media— from music videos and Web environments to product placement in films and virtual displays on NHL hockey boards.”

Media Literacy Defined

"Media Literacy"

Being media literate means a few things: for one, the actual ability to use current outlets, such as the internet.  It also means something more intellectual though; which is the ability to critically view what we see more and more of every day, to assess its relevance, uses, achievements, and downfalls.  Lastly, it means having the ability to create new media (such as a blog).  As technology advances further in this Informational Age, media literacy means one more thing.

Moving Forward.

And that’s what this blog is about.  The impact of various forms of media on the real world, looking at what’s bad and what’s good, from video games to various websites that occasionally come under fire (such as YouTube) to ones that are constantly under fire (Wikipedia).

So read on! In today’s world, there should be something for everyone here eventually.