Just like my last post, I had a hard time finding something to write about here. I was flipping through the book and the nonverbal section looked interesting and then soon after, I found myself reading the section of Increasing Nonverbal skills.
In order increase our non-verbal skills Trenholm states that we need to just be more aware of the things we are not being told by words but by body language and gestures. As simple as that may seem, it is very true. I work retail and every customer tells me so much with their body language rather than their words. This may seem like a "typical salesman" but there are some dead giveaways that customers do that tell me they are not going to buy anything and I should not waste my time. The customer will constantly look at their watch or phone to check the time, they avoid eye contact, they pretend to be on the phone when they see an associate in the area, they take pictures of the products and price tags, their pace of walking increases when they are approached by an associate...the list goes on. Trenholm also states that we need to be aware of our own nonverbal cues and we can even be offensive or threatening to others. When we stare at people for too long, walk in front of them when he/she is looking at something like a television in a store.I have taken my personal experiences from the time I spent selling televisions and when I apply it to the textbook, it is very true.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Week 16 - Interesting Concept
There are so many different concepts that we have covered and learned in this course. I feel that picking just one would not display what I enjoyed most about this course in terms of learning from the textbook. If I had to pick one concept to discuss from the entire semester that I enjoyed, I would pick table 10.2 on page 283 pg 283 pf the textbook.
This table shows different ways to end a public speech. When I was taking public speaking at Sacramento State, the professor required us to end our speeches a certain way. According to the textbook there are six examples, which I believe there are a lot more, of different ways to end a speech. I never really thought about ending a public speech with a personal intention. A personal intention is when the speaker leads by example in hopes that the audience will feel the same way. An example of this is - "I know for sure I am voting Yes on measure J, because it is the right thing to do for our community and I hope you do the right thing too."
I give a speech in front of people almost once every other month, not just in the major but with family and friends. Whenever there is a get together due to an occasion, usually speeches are required by popular demand (people chanting for individuals like myself to give a speech)and I am ALWAYS chosen. It has come to the point where I anticipate giving a speech even though no one has told me before hand. The speeches are usually impromptu but I give it a twist when I pull out note cards. It gets a few laughs but for the most part, people still want and expect me to give a speech about something.
With that said, I think next time I will try these new methods. Believe it or not, my other textbooks do not even have this table or something close to it.
This table shows different ways to end a public speech. When I was taking public speaking at Sacramento State, the professor required us to end our speeches a certain way. According to the textbook there are six examples, which I believe there are a lot more, of different ways to end a speech. I never really thought about ending a public speech with a personal intention. A personal intention is when the speaker leads by example in hopes that the audience will feel the same way. An example of this is - "I know for sure I am voting Yes on measure J, because it is the right thing to do for our community and I hope you do the right thing too."
I give a speech in front of people almost once every other month, not just in the major but with family and friends. Whenever there is a get together due to an occasion, usually speeches are required by popular demand (people chanting for individuals like myself to give a speech)and I am ALWAYS chosen. It has come to the point where I anticipate giving a speech even though no one has told me before hand. The speeches are usually impromptu but I give it a twist when I pull out note cards. It gets a few laughs but for the most part, people still want and expect me to give a speech about something.
With that said, I think next time I will try these new methods. Believe it or not, my other textbooks do not even have this table or something close to it.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Week 16 - Research Method
Out of all the different types of research in table 13.3, I feel that ethnography is the most interesting out of all of them. I feel that getting in there and seeing everything unfold first hand whether the researcher is undercover as a pretend participant of the cultural group or his/her presence is being known and the people of the group are aware they are being observed, there is no experience like it. I have conducted many ethnographies as a Communication Studies major and I must admit, at one point the assignment no longer feels like an obligation and it becomes pleasure. The level of personal interest that I had in all my ethnographies were either extremely high or it got better as each day progressed.
If I were to conduct (another) case study of my choice, I would choose to study the culture of shoe collectors pertaining primarily to Jordan and Nike fanatics. The research question I would ask is - "What causes the fetish of shoe collecting for those who seem to spend all their free time and extra money into shoes, primarily Jordans and Nikes and is there any correlation between the shoes and sexual arousal."
I personally wanted to conduct this research before I graduated but unfortunately for me the classes I took in the last three semesters did not assign any ethnographies or case studies. Since I am graduating this May, I no longer have the opportunity to conduct this research for a grade. I am extremely interested in doing ethnographies overall because I learn so much and I am exposed to a whole new aspect of thinking and behaving. It was actually thanks to my Comm 156 (Qualitative Inquiry) course that made me drive to finish college. I conducted an ethnography on the football team I was coaching at the time, on locker room culture and how it is different from one the field behavior before, during and after practice and games. It was not my findings of the players that convinced me to get my college degree, but it was when I interviewed the other coaches. To make a long story short, I interviewed the coaches and based off their answers, I realized that a college degree is more powerful than I thought. The other three coaches do not have any college education and their answers were not only incomplete, they would contradict what they JUST said less than two minutes prior to the answer they were giving. Throughout the season I decided to continue my observations of the coaches and it just got worse each day. During the presidential election when Obama became president, NONE of the other three coaches(and keep in mind that the head coach is in his mid sixies, the assistant head coach is in his early thirties and the other coach is in his mid twenties), knew that the electoral college was what decided who becomes the next president. When I explained that to them it was like I was telling them 2+2= 5. They were not only in shock but told me I was wrong. Later, when they realized I was right, they all went on about how the electoral college is bullshit and it was "not like that for the other presidents."
As you can probably already tell, I have a passion for conducting ethnographies. I can seriously write a 30 page paper on the sneaker fetish without even blinking. I would choose the ethnography over the other methods because I get to experience something new in a hands on manner and what I find is going to shock me one way or another. The other styles of research involve studying and observing, whereas ethnographies require a hands on experience. There is no doubt in my mind that ethnography is the most interesting one to me. =)
If I were to conduct (another) case study of my choice, I would choose to study the culture of shoe collectors pertaining primarily to Jordan and Nike fanatics. The research question I would ask is - "What causes the fetish of shoe collecting for those who seem to spend all their free time and extra money into shoes, primarily Jordans and Nikes and is there any correlation between the shoes and sexual arousal."
I personally wanted to conduct this research before I graduated but unfortunately for me the classes I took in the last three semesters did not assign any ethnographies or case studies. Since I am graduating this May, I no longer have the opportunity to conduct this research for a grade. I am extremely interested in doing ethnographies overall because I learn so much and I am exposed to a whole new aspect of thinking and behaving. It was actually thanks to my Comm 156 (Qualitative Inquiry) course that made me drive to finish college. I conducted an ethnography on the football team I was coaching at the time, on locker room culture and how it is different from one the field behavior before, during and after practice and games. It was not my findings of the players that convinced me to get my college degree, but it was when I interviewed the other coaches. To make a long story short, I interviewed the coaches and based off their answers, I realized that a college degree is more powerful than I thought. The other three coaches do not have any college education and their answers were not only incomplete, they would contradict what they JUST said less than two minutes prior to the answer they were giving. Throughout the season I decided to continue my observations of the coaches and it just got worse each day. During the presidential election when Obama became president, NONE of the other three coaches(and keep in mind that the head coach is in his mid sixies, the assistant head coach is in his early thirties and the other coach is in his mid twenties), knew that the electoral college was what decided who becomes the next president. When I explained that to them it was like I was telling them 2+2= 5. They were not only in shock but told me I was wrong. Later, when they realized I was right, they all went on about how the electoral college is bullshit and it was "not like that for the other presidents."
As you can probably already tell, I have a passion for conducting ethnographies. I can seriously write a 30 page paper on the sneaker fetish without even blinking. I would choose the ethnography over the other methods because I get to experience something new in a hands on manner and what I find is going to shock me one way or another. The other styles of research involve studying and observing, whereas ethnographies require a hands on experience. There is no doubt in my mind that ethnography is the most interesting one to me. =)
Friday, April 30, 2010
Week 14 - New Concept - CMC
In the textbook, there is a section on page 325 about Computer-Mediated Communication and it is about the communication through the internet and how it has grown so rapidly over the years. Books too 400 years to develop, Newspapers in 200, magazines in 170, sound recordings in 60, movies in 50, radio in 40 and television in 30 years in order for consumers to ascend the use of it. It took only 15 years for the internet to not only be accepted as a norm, but to become a media powerhouse.
I absolutely loved this section because in my journal #5 I wrote about the growth of the internet and how it has changed the way things work in today's society. It is so true that internet is the newest and largest medium for mass communication. An extreme example of this is when I saw on the Philippine news channel that an actress had a sex tape scandal with her doctor and it was released by the doctor on the internet and instantly she was defamed by the media. The doctor expressed his deepest apologies but it was too late, millions of people in the Philippines and in America had already seen it. Her reputation was instantly destroyed all because of the internet. That is just one example of how powerful the internet is and with the way our technology keeps moving, it will only become more powerful.
I absolutely loved this section because in my journal #5 I wrote about the growth of the internet and how it has changed the way things work in today's society. It is so true that internet is the newest and largest medium for mass communication. An extreme example of this is when I saw on the Philippine news channel that an actress had a sex tape scandal with her doctor and it was released by the doctor on the internet and instantly she was defamed by the media. The doctor expressed his deepest apologies but it was too late, millions of people in the Philippines and in America had already seen it. Her reputation was instantly destroyed all because of the internet. That is just one example of how powerful the internet is and with the way our technology keeps moving, it will only become more powerful.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Week 14 - Marshall McLuhan Theory
McLuhan's theory is very interesting to me. I actually felt that it was so interesting that I would have chosen this as my concept for question 3 lol.
I feel that McLuhan has something going when he stated that the channel through which the message is being sent is just as important as the message itself because in a way he is right. When he stated that printed advertisements like flyers use linear logic, a sequence that follows one after the other, and television uses mosaic logic, bits and pieces of information are all over the place and it is our job as viewers to put it together, I felt that he had a point. Then I realized that McLuhan is wrong.
I have noticed so many times in public places and even on the SJSU campus that there are advertisements for everything that are more than just word after word, sequential idea after the other using only linear logic. I have seen collages, elaborate portraits, a simple picture and very little to zero words on it and the advertisement says so much. A picture says a thousand words and artists and creative advertisers have taken printed ads to a new level.
When it comes to television, it is no different. McLuhan states that television advertisement uses mosaic logic, bombarding us with changing bits of information that we must cognitively reassemble. I feel that this is also a wrong statement. TV does not just throw out a bunch of random clips, unordered mixed signals, which leaves us to put together on our own. If anything, commercials, with the exception of the few humorous ones, are very straight to the point. Even if McLulan is referring to older commercials, I still disagree with his statement because even in the 1980's, when Apple first came out with Macintosh, it had scrolling text on the screen as a narrator read it aloud.
I think that McLuhan to an extent is correct when stating that television is a "cool" medium, meaning that viewers must fill in detail. I think even today we all still have to fill in details to some commercials but for most of them, there is almost nothing to fill in. Let's take a look at the newest Old Spice High Endurance Body wash commercials with comedian Terry Crewes. He has so many commercials where he "fights odor" and his comedic skills are what make the message funny. After watching one of those commercials, what detail is there to fill in? There is nothing left up to the viewer to figure out. This is just one example of many out there.
I usually read theories and agree with them or at the very least find them interesting, but I think this is the first time I read one and did not agree with it after assessing it for a few minutes.
I feel that McLuhan has something going when he stated that the channel through which the message is being sent is just as important as the message itself because in a way he is right. When he stated that printed advertisements like flyers use linear logic, a sequence that follows one after the other, and television uses mosaic logic, bits and pieces of information are all over the place and it is our job as viewers to put it together, I felt that he had a point. Then I realized that McLuhan is wrong.
I have noticed so many times in public places and even on the SJSU campus that there are advertisements for everything that are more than just word after word, sequential idea after the other using only linear logic. I have seen collages, elaborate portraits, a simple picture and very little to zero words on it and the advertisement says so much. A picture says a thousand words and artists and creative advertisers have taken printed ads to a new level.
When it comes to television, it is no different. McLuhan states that television advertisement uses mosaic logic, bombarding us with changing bits of information that we must cognitively reassemble. I feel that this is also a wrong statement. TV does not just throw out a bunch of random clips, unordered mixed signals, which leaves us to put together on our own. If anything, commercials, with the exception of the few humorous ones, are very straight to the point. Even if McLulan is referring to older commercials, I still disagree with his statement because even in the 1980's, when Apple first came out with Macintosh, it had scrolling text on the screen as a narrator read it aloud.
I think that McLuhan to an extent is correct when stating that television is a "cool" medium, meaning that viewers must fill in detail. I think even today we all still have to fill in details to some commercials but for most of them, there is almost nothing to fill in. Let's take a look at the newest Old Spice High Endurance Body wash commercials with comedian Terry Crewes. He has so many commercials where he "fights odor" and his comedic skills are what make the message funny. After watching one of those commercials, what detail is there to fill in? There is nothing left up to the viewer to figure out. This is just one example of many out there.
I usually read theories and agree with them or at the very least find them interesting, but I think this is the first time I read one and did not agree with it after assessing it for a few minutes.
Week 14 - Cyberspace Friendships
I think to some extent everyone, at least in college, has cyberspace friendships whether they be a lot or a little. Social networking websites are making such a big boom and they are only getting bigger. Websites like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter allow people to connect or reconnect with each other without having to meet face to face. I personally have multiple friends that I only seem to talk to through Facebook. Just about all of those friends on Facebook are people I have met before in person but either rarely see them face to face or never have seen them face to face since I met them. Since I am friends with them on Facebook, I am able to talk to them and see what they are doing and our friendship never goes beyond Facebook. So I do technically have friends that are exclusively on cyberspace.
I would say that the differences between the face to face relationship versus the cyberspace relationship can be both a good and bad thing. The good is that it allows people the capability to connect with others without having to spend the time and money meeting up with them. Sometimes in a friendship all there is to talk about is what is new in their lives and how things are and meeting up is not necessarily needed. The bad thing about cyberspace is that it takes away from the intimate emotions that come as an attachment to the friendship. If two lonely people only talk to each other online and never meet, it is possible that a great friendship, or more, is being sacrificed. Cyberspace becomes this barrier between people and friendships, although could be massive in numbers, lacks intimacy.
I would say that the differences between the face to face relationship versus the cyberspace relationship can be both a good and bad thing. The good is that it allows people the capability to connect with others without having to spend the time and money meeting up with them. Sometimes in a friendship all there is to talk about is what is new in their lives and how things are and meeting up is not necessarily needed. The bad thing about cyberspace is that it takes away from the intimate emotions that come as an attachment to the friendship. If two lonely people only talk to each other online and never meet, it is possible that a great friendship, or more, is being sacrificed. Cyberspace becomes this barrier between people and friendships, although could be massive in numbers, lacks intimacy.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Week 12 - Rules of Disclosure
The section in the text book that covers disclosing personal information really intrigued me because I applied it to my own personal experiences and I must say, Trenholm hit it on the nose with this one. Disclosing with confidence to someone is always a major risk no matter who it is that you could be talking to. Some of the closest people in your life can really turn on you and expose your personal business to anyone at any time. The scariest part is that you do not know that until it actually happens AFTER you have already told them.
I reflected back to some of my own friends who randomly share things with me when the moment is inappropriate and I will admit that I do not keep their information to myself. I go around and I start to tell so many people about their personal information, but that is not 100% my fault. It is actually mostly their own fault for sharing sensitive information at the wrong time. A particular situation where it was not my fault and actually their fault was when me and few friends went to a bar. We drank a lot and we had a good time and we talked about the typical guy stuff. The night was going well, when out of nowhere the designated driver (who happened to have a few beers in him, bad I know) started to vent about his girlfriend drama. He shared that his girlfriend has a father or uncle ( I do not fully remember) who disrespects him and one day threw bones at him while they were eating lunch or dinner. As sad or messed up as it sounds, I laughed so hard at him. That night I had so many beers, I'm having a great time, I want to relax from a long day at work and out of nowhere I hear this story. How was I supposed to know it was supposed to be serious? Not only that, but I had a fair amount of alcohol in my system so I am not in a state where I can be serious.
Trenholm in this section covers the different rules, which seems to be more like common sense, on the when, how and why someone should disclose personal information to anyone. As simple as these rules are, people should read it just so they can appropriately share personal information and not have to worry if it was the right time or not to do so.
I reflected back to some of my own friends who randomly share things with me when the moment is inappropriate and I will admit that I do not keep their information to myself. I go around and I start to tell so many people about their personal information, but that is not 100% my fault. It is actually mostly their own fault for sharing sensitive information at the wrong time. A particular situation where it was not my fault and actually their fault was when me and few friends went to a bar. We drank a lot and we had a good time and we talked about the typical guy stuff. The night was going well, when out of nowhere the designated driver (who happened to have a few beers in him, bad I know) started to vent about his girlfriend drama. He shared that his girlfriend has a father or uncle ( I do not fully remember) who disrespects him and one day threw bones at him while they were eating lunch or dinner. As sad or messed up as it sounds, I laughed so hard at him. That night I had so many beers, I'm having a great time, I want to relax from a long day at work and out of nowhere I hear this story. How was I supposed to know it was supposed to be serious? Not only that, but I had a fair amount of alcohol in my system so I am not in a state where I can be serious.
Trenholm in this section covers the different rules, which seems to be more like common sense, on the when, how and why someone should disclose personal information to anyone. As simple as these rules are, people should read it just so they can appropriately share personal information and not have to worry if it was the right time or not to do so.
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