The Television Show South Park

The influence of media is ubiquitous as we are all exposed to it, and influenced by the messages they attempt to sell. For example, the trope of science gone wrong is a classic plotline of science fiction that is present enough in media to give anyone a sense of paranoia. Media is indeed a force to reckon with. In a world in which the success of media is based off of its audience, the question arises to: to what extent may media alter truth to gain attention, and how may media influence society’s values?

Jenkins talks about how the consumption of media products is a collective process, in other words, the collective intelligence is seen as an alternative source of media power. He describes how within popular culture, the collective meaning making is shaping and changing the ways religion, education, laws, politics, advertising and how the military operate (4). Jenkins discusses a process called “convergence of modes”, he explains that media and communication are becoming interconnected like the telephone and television.

I argue that authors and producers often attempt to impose their own set of cultural and political ideologies on its audience through a certain depiction of right and wrong. In this manner, works of fiction might influence, perhaps even alter, the ideologies of the audience.[3] Accordingly, analyzing the depiction of ideologies in media content can serve as a basis for further research on if and how producers intend to influence their audience.

All throughout history we have used metaphors to describe people, places, events and emotions; so it is perfectly fitting to describe the mediums with which we project our ideas as a metaphor as well. This is Neil Postman 's basis for his book Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. Television and other media outlets have conditioned us to accept entertainment in every aspect of life; but most of all it masks the state of public affairs and politics. Through his book, Postman begs that we recognize the ways in which media shapes our lives and how we can use them to serve us instead of hurt us. Broken into two parts, Amusing Ourselves to Death focuses on a historical analysis of media, then discusses the television media-metaphor in more detail. Postman examines how media has infected every aspect of public discourse by prizing entertainment as the standard of truth.

Popular culture is the artistic and creative expression in entertainment and style that appeals to society as whole. It includes music, film, sports, painting, sculpture, and even photography. It can be diffused in many ways, but one of the most powerful and effective ways to address society is through film and television. Broadcasting, radio and television are the primary means by which information and entertainment are delivered to the public in virtually every nation around the world, and they have become a crucial instrument of modern social and political organization. Most of today’s television programming genres are derived from earlier media such as stage, cinema and radio. In the area of comedy, sitcoms have proven

With a lower purchase price and a large expectation of growth from NOI, Laflin could make

Dick Cavett, a famous American talk show host, once said, “Censorship feeds the dirty mind more than the four-letter word itself.” Censorship limits free speech, and it is used constantly today. In South Park’s situation, the writers use logic and evidence to express their opinions on controversial issues, and people think that it should be censored. Just because the show uses morally questionable techniques, does not mean that it is useless. In fact, South Park has taught people a lot; it changes our point of view and encourages us to think deeply about the issues at hand while simultaneously making us laugh. For people unfamiliar with South Park, it is an animated comedy television which airs on Comedy Central. The show revolves

3. What price should Laflin offer? What conditions should be attached to his offer? How might Lonestar try to justify a higher price? What might Southpark IV be worth in five years?

Ever since 1997, South Park has revolutionized the cable TV scene as a profane and obscene program that isn’t afraid to mock religious, political, and cultural topics and not get away with at least offending somebody. Throughout its twelve seasons, some of the most prominent events in pop culture have suffered the wrath of ridicule from the show’s creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, and succeeded in making millions of Americans laugh until they cry. The creative genius behind these cultural and controversial statements has exalted the series to iconic status in our entertainment industry for its satirical voice in each episode. Throughout its ten years on air, South Park has broken multiple political,

For this paper, I have chosen to analyze the sitcom That 70s Show. This show follows the lives of a group of teenage friends: Jackie, Donna, Hyde, Kelso, Eric, and Fez. The show addresses many social issues of the 1970s, including: Sexism, sexual attitudes, drug use, and the recession. It also highlights many of the inventions and developments of the entertainment industry, such as the remote control and Star Wars.

South Park began airing in 1997. The commercials that preceded it gave the impression of it being another stupid cartoon; however, when I began watching, I realized important issues were being covered through the repeated behaviors and actions of its characters, through the influences these actions could have on the viewers, through the reinforcement and rejections of certain stereotypes, through the long-term effects that could result from watching the program, and through its reflection of social reality.

Four theorists are the contributing authors of the active research theory. These authors evolved the role audience play and their ability to actively engage with communication medians. The idea of deconstructionism was the focus of the work of Jacques Derrida and Michel Foucault during the 1960’s. Later in the twentieth century theorist Raymond Bauer developed The Obstinate Audience. In the early 1980’s a theorist by the name of Stuart Hall challenged the traditional theories of an audience role in the media and developed his encoding/decoding theory. Each contributed to the current understanding of the active role audiences engage in when information is presented.

Although the concepts underlined in Hall’s encoding/decoding paper seems to form a highly systematic theory, several external factors are not incorporated into it. It is widely held that the effects of media are very much moulded by the contexts and happenings in a certain time and place. There is a dynamic and fluctuating influence by means of various environmental factors. Of those environmental factors, there are many including the activities of lobbyist groups, those with special interests, the influence of the government and judicial bodies, the wavering tide of public opinion, technological innovation and advances, and the education of the decoding members of society. To put in more in perspective, consider the case of media messages they are transmitted within a certain sociocultural environment. These very messages must rely on conventions and restrict potentially unintended meanings to bear the consensus value of the dominating ideology.

The book begins with Neil Postman describing how the way we communicate, whether it is orally or through written material, has an effect on how we interpret our world. He then goes more specifically into how television has changed our culture. Postman’s intention for writing this book is to “show that a great media-metaphor shift has taken place in America, with the result that the content of much of our public discourse has become dangerous nonsense”(16). There is no problem with television being used as a form of entertainment, but when entertainment takes over serious issues, it may become dangerous. I agree with this to some extent; I think that there are current events that need to be taken seriously, but some audiences may need that comic

The technological evolution has played an inevitable and indispensable role in changing the facade of the world. In particular, recent developments and innovations in the field of science and technology have transformed the entire paradigm of media industry. It has been established that in the contemporary or technology driven media environment, the traditional concept of ownership, intellectual property, as well as copyright has become a controversial point (Sutherland-Smith, 2015). It is due to the fact that the technological advancements have created such practices that have completely redefined the ways in which media was being consumed by the audiences. Most importantly, the contemporary media practices have also played a major role