http://eldritch00.wikidot.com/jesus-martin-barbero

“The film drama is the Opium of the people…down with Bourgeois fairy-tale scenarios…long live life as it is!”

This statement gives people a holistic glimpse of Vertov’s ideologies in the film, all of which areshown through the Kino- eye or the cinema eye.

Reality captured: Kino-Pravda

The Russian film world during Vertov’s time was heavily into fiction. His antidote, in response to the film‘s condition as a “dying organism“, was “reality.” This notion won Lenin’s support, who declared that since people were drawn to theatres by nonsense films, then must be a counter for this through films that deal with world realities. This paved the way for the authorized launching of Kino-Pravda, or film-truth, headed by Vertov.

In the film, Vertov manifest this notion of making film straight from, or by capturing “life caught unaware” through the camera. This means that the film will have to be made without any acting and manipulated apparatus apart from the camera. It rejects staged cinema with its cast, plots, and set designs. It is a cinema of fact, one that captures the real, un-manipulated world. In this sense, the documentary is superior to fiction, because film should depict the world, life, as they are without the aid of theatrical apparatus.

Various shots exemplify this principle. The camera depicts daily life and routines in Moscow. All the shots were directed to random people— some of which were aware they were being filmed while some remained unsuspicious. The point is these people were not cast for the film, they did not follow some script and just went about with their activities. The reality shots included cycles and images of industrial Russia and technology, the factories and laborers, the production processes of the film, landscapes, sports events, musical performances and other leisure activities. People marry and divorce; a funeral and a birth take place. All these are captured as soon as the camera’s eye opens in the beginning until it closes at the film’s end.

Reality as seen through the cinema eye: Kino-eye

The film truth is aided by another of Vertov’s key propositions on the capacity of the film and the camera. The following text provide Vertov’s early outline of the film:

“I am the kino-eye. I am a mechanical eye. I, a machine, show you the world only as I can see it.Now and forever I free myself from human immobility. I am in constant motion. I draw near, then away from objects. I crawl under. I crawl on top. I move apace with a galloping horse. I plunge full speed into the crowd (…) manoeuvring in the chaos of movement, recording movement, starting with movements composed of the most complex combinations.Freed from the rule of sixteen to seventeen frames per second, free of the limits of time and space. I put together any given points in the universe,no matter where I have recorded them. My path leads to the creation of fresh perception of the world. I decipher in new ways a world unknown to you.”

This is in line with his project of exhausting reality through the camera’s cinema eye, which essentially extends the limitations of humans’ commonplace ways of seeing. Such a project enables an experience of reality-transcendence while shooting reality at the same time. The camera’s eye travels, simultaneously and freely, even to the point of invincibility, where the human eye may not have the liberty of doing so and thus, showing the viewers a more conscious, detailed and transcendental view. Also, this may be linked to Vertov’s ideals of how cinema should be— transcending and realist at the same time, in motion, and revealing of new sights and, the term used as a construct, worlds in contrast to the traditional fiction-heavy narratives of his time.

In the first few moments of the film, we see an empty theatre in different angles and points of view. One is through curtains, which was voyeur-like; another is a wide shot from the entrance door and is thus a very inclusive view— in it is the screen, the empty chairs, the floor. Through this, one gets the feeling that the camera has a control of what it can capture, as the audiences see through the camera’s eye while watching. To further this, the camera zooms in to rather minute details such as when seats of chairs are slowly moving down— suggestive of the fact that these are about to be used by yet-to-arrive audiences. By shooting and choosing such scenes, Vertov shows how utilizing film, cameras in specific, can come with great control on perspective; and control, too, by showing the minute things that take place, which the human eye may usually neglect or may not normally have access to.

This consciousness is prevalent throughout the film. There are scenes where one sees the cameraman, a film character, pointing his device from different vantage points— from the top of a building, a moving car, on top of a bigger camera in the opening scene, through a window. Along with these are sudden scenes of immense intensity and activity, many of which take place behind closed doors and walls— people signing contracts for divorce, a lady in slumber, a woman beautified inside a parlor. Apart from reflexive scenes that show the man with the movie camera are close ups of the camera itself, examples of which are the scenes where viewers are shown a zoomed in perspective of the camera’s eye as it blinks. Apart from the man holding it, all these make the camera an important character in the film, because of the control, even power in a political sense, it enables the director and the viewer to have by using it and seeing what it shoots, respectively.

Montage: Elevation of Labor, Productionism, Socialism and Marxism

The use of montage in Man with the Movie Camera was a juxtaposition of shots that shows the difference between still photography and cinema, and to achieve an organic whole. But perhaps more importantly is the exemplification of processes, and this is where the elevation of production processes and labor surfaces.

The film shows shots of the very ways it was created— a cameraman in the midst of shooting scenes, the editor handling rolls of film, and the projectionist. This is in line with the Productionist doctrine where the work, the process of production, is of aesthetic value, and not the end-product. Apart from processes of filmmaking, labor is elevated by filming scenes that were paralleled to the working class. The camera zooms in to several activities of workers such as those that take place in factories and street-selling. It also compares elite women riding carriages to commonly dressed and worked up faces of other women who just walk in the streets, some even barefoot.

Vertov’s ideological milieu in the film is early Soviet communism and Marxism. These are fleshed out by providing positive shots of Russian economy and industry— happy workers and the strength of industry in Russia, the importance of factories and machines as fundamental to an ideal society. One sees that the machine is in harmony with its workers, as in the notion proposed in an ideal communist setting. Productive recreation and leisure is juxtaposed to self-serving shots of the elite who are more concerned with vanity in beauty parlors and vices. The working class, the labor and production processes of immense activity and relevance, are given their rightful and essential places in the daily life/routine of Moscow from sunrise to sundown.

(1st pair: the production process) (2nd pair: productive labor) (3rd pair worker juxtaposed with the bourgeoisie) (last still: worker in harmony with the machine)

—-

Sources and Helpful Links

Notes on Ideological Undertones and Vertov's Theories in the Film
Movie Stills
Film Career and Biography of Dziga Vertov
Kino-Pravda
Insightful Film Review
Another Insightful Review and Assessment

submitted by 052328

http://eldritch00.wikidot.com/appadurai

There are lots of pictures there but i they don't come out, please do check the preview of the image files in the files section of the said page.

Thank you very much.

Gershom Chua

Okay. Do Appadurai, Gershom and Kat. But do it well! With multimedia and substantial discussion!

what do we do sir?

I'm doing Appadurai now and am typing the webwork typing the web work section by section already.

I was wondering why the pictures that I have uploaded to the files section of the page and inserted in the work do not come out. Every time I check the files in the file manager, the pictures are there and they show previews of it, but when I save my web work with the inserted pictures on it the pictures just appear as boxes with exes on them. How do I fix this problem?

Thank you.

Gershom Chua

Perhaps this time I can consider two takes on Herman-Chomsky without cancelling one or the other. I do think you should try your hand at Appadurai though. Whatever happens anyway, I'll consider your Herman-Chomsky WebWork as part of your grade.

Technically, it can still be challenged though. But yeah, okay.

Thank you.

Gershom Chua

Hello, Luigi! Are you reading this? You should be! *grins*

Sir, if you would much rather for the ease of communication, my cellphone number is 0926-6724082.

Thank you.

Gershom Chua

Looks like ARMAZ was just put up recently by a couple of jokers. I just did a russian whois search and turned up this lot. Check out the nservers!

They just bought it when the book came out to f*ck with us. Wish I'd read the book earlier and snagged that domain. I truly do. Sorry for all the fuss.

domain: ARMAZ.RU
type: CORPORATE
nserver: som-ns-1.fsck.com.
nserver: eero.baz.org.
state: REGISTERED, DELEGATED
org: Anonyme Company "Datacenter Luxembourg"
phone: +352 26 19 16 24
phone: +352 26 19 16 1
fax-no: +352 26 20 29 96
e-mail: infoSPLATdclux.com
registrar: RUCENTER-REG-RIPN
created: 2003.02.10
payed-till: 2004.02.10
source: RIPN

in this case, art is not copying reality. instead, reality is copying art. :D

-michelle pang
com105 a

I don't know if it's too late, but I wanted to share this video I just saw. It's pretty cool. Hope you guys can find time to check it out amidst the hustle and bustle you guys may be going through cause of the finals.

http://www.vimeo.com/3365942

Enjoy!

The film made into a semi-documentary style was a brilliant way of emphasizing on the film's story as a supposed depiction of reality. The film was a feast for the eyes because of the great cinematography and editing. The partly improvised dialogues added to the naturalness or authenticity of the film (how ironic) and made it not difficult to understand.

…the characters experience growing up but not maturing. Like a lot of art films, Velvet Goldmine celebrates the sense of wonder that refuses to subside despite age and the repetitive, redundant bombardment of the same sensations, emotions and recycled situations.

Picking up from this thought, I find that Velvet Goldmine was a film about a phase - perhaps brief, lasting only a couple of years, something one has to leave behind, but isn't entirely forgettable. I would say that Arthur Stuart had a storehouse of memories and this period in his life when he was acquainting himself with his sexuality vis-a-vis the crazy, alluring world of music and beautiful rock stars, was his goldmine, at the risk of being cheesy. Shut out, left dark, but once returned to, just as bold and bright as it was when he first stepped into it. Equipped with reason from age, he even came out of it with his own little jewel.

As earlier mentioned, the audience grew sympathetic towards the injustices of Titus' family - although, I felt no connection with the boy, despite recognizing the purpose which he was intended to portray. This barrier that kept the audience from being affected, however, could have been crossed and would have reached a more personal level, I believe, had Titus gone on throughout the film, lamenting and remaining an upright man. This would have spurred an injustice to the audience, whose sympathies had been gripped to no satisfaction of their own. As Titus began to plot against Tamara, I fostered a fear that he would not succeed with his revenge - reflecting, I think, the audience's desire to acquire justice through violence, without getting their hands dirty and letting Titus do the work.

If we could get away with violence, if it didn't stain our consciences, would we be as willing to act as Titus did? In our seats, we knew everyone was going to die, even Titus. At the same time, no one pitied him or his death, nor wanted him to live after that - what for? We wanted the "justice" to be done, we needed the violence to exist, just so we could rid ourselves of the feelings when the credits rolled.

According to Kahn and Kellner, “some critics claim that the internet is producing a cyberbalkanization of “daily me” news feeds and fragmented communities, while other theorists like Jodi Dean have argued that the internet might appropriately be likened to the circulation of noise and effectless content in a new stage of “communicative capitalism”.”

In our generation today, Facebook has evolved from being a mere social network to a massive phenomenon influencing politics, culture and the economy. One specific example would be the Virginia Tech massacre that happened a few years ago. During the ordeal, Virginia Tech students used Facebook as a bulletin board to communicate with classmates, friends and families to let them know if they were safe from harm. Due to the 236 Virginia Tech related groups on Facebook, people were quickly updated on the tragedy that killed 32 people. According to Dr. Jeannette Sutton of Colorado University Boulder’s Natural Disaster Center, "People who were distributed across these networks were able to identify all of the names of the deceased before the official announcement came out about who was deceased." Disaster organizations such as Red Cross and FEMA have not only publicized their services on Facebook but have also turned to the site as a source for updates regarding disasters occurring around the country. The link below shows a video clip on how Facebook and Twitter could save lives in times of disaster situations.

http://www.theindychannel.com/video/18894228/index.html

To further elaborate on how Facebook has been revolutionizing the world today, Obama's campaign is a prime example of how he used the social network to promote his candidacy. According to reports, Facebook received $467,000 from the Obama campaign. A lot of speculators have said that Facebook played a pivotal role in leading Obama to win the presidential election. This goes to show how powerful and widespread Facebook is on modern society and even politics. Based on The Wall Street Journal, this interactive graphic below shows statistics indicating the popularity of the candidates on blogs and sites such as YouTube and Facebook.

Source: http://megroberts.wordpress.com/page/2/

In terms of economics and marketing strategies, a lot of companies and brands have used Facebook to implement viral advertising techniques. In a recent Vitamin Water campaign shown on CBS, the brand advertised their Facebook profile instead of their official website. This shows how publicly recognizable Facebook is that it has almost become a household name.

Source: http://www.allfacebook.com/images/vitaminwater.gif

According to Kahn and Kellner, "Howard Dean's use of the internet showed that it could generate political enthusiasm amongst the youth, connect people around issues, and articulate with struggles in the real world. The Dean experiment demonstrated that internet politics was not just a matter of circulating discourse in a self-contained cybersphere but a force that could intervene in the political battles of the contemporary media culture" With regard to this statement, Facebook has become a setting for individuals to voice out their ideologies and political preferences. From environmental activists to anti-Obama protesters; the seemingly endless variety of subcultures within Facebook shows how it has become sort of a melting pot of diverse personalities, corporate advertising and socio-political advocates.

Sources: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?sid=9b0e0986021c7889939d671801008307&gid=60626416216
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?sid=570dc132c492c808bb990598ce711a4f&gid=2452206220

In conclusion, the present culture is clearly showing a growing reliance on the internet; more specifically on social networking sites such as Facebook. In a positive aspect, it pushes globalization to a whole new degree since it allows people to gain access to different cultures through the different applications, friends and groups. Moreover, it gives people options on which stance or beliefs to take, making them choose how they want to be recognized in the cyberworld. However, in a more cynical context, Facebook merely symbolizes a "mirage culture", which may not necessarily translate into real action or conviction. For those people who say that they are pro-Green, how many of them really make the effort to recycle and save gas? The point here is that it is so easy to pick out a cause or an activist group and immediately become part of it in an instant. But in reality, is it really that simple? Nowadays, the internet seems to make everything accessible in just a click of a button. What people need to realize though is that we cannot simply join the bandwagon and believe that we are a part of something just because we have been "accepted to the group." We should remember that being a part of a cause or any particular group means taking action and standing firm on those beliefs. And it isn't just about Superpoking or throwing gifts at our online friends, no matter how much fun and addicting it is.

Today’s youth is continually influenced by MTV. In the documentary “Merchants of Cool”, the power of MTV can be clearly seen. In that documentary, MTV feeds its audience different ideas and even to the point of influencing their buying pattern. It is not clear when this influence of MTV will stop but for sure it will lose its luster. Gramsci states that there should be a provision for hegemonic power, that there is an end to it, that at any point in time, once the ruling class is no longer dominant, a new class will emerge. Currently, MTV boasts of a very strong hold on its audience that whatever they see cool is transferred to its viewers and adapted by the viewers as cool. It seems that MTV can brainwash the audience on whatever ideas they want and can get away with it.

MTV is actually a media phenomenon that expresses its hegemonic powers not just in the music industry but also in the consumption pattern of its viewers. Its dominating powers can be seen further in its bid to provide the necessary boost for new songs to be recognized and be sold. If you want to sell your songs or albums, MTV is the answer. At this point in time, MTV is celebrating hegemony on our lives, especially on the young people of our generation. Its hegemony is further seen in the Sociological aspect as many social scientists refer to certain age groups as “MTV generation.”

The Oprah Winfrey Show also provides hegemony to the American audience. To further illustrate this, it was said that when Oprah said that Cheeseburger is fattening, the sale of Cheeseburger went down. Oprah’s influence to the American public is over the charts.

In the Philippines, the show “Wowowee” has become hegemony in show business. Lately, Yes! Magazine accorded Willie Revillame as one of the most influential personality in Philippine show business. This can be a result of the success of the show “Wowowee” on Philippine television. Before “Wowowee”, “Eat Bulaga” has that hegemony. As was stated by Gramsci, it can be transferred to another class, in our case, it was transferred to Wowowee.

These are some forms of Hegemony in media. Just like the rising and the setting of the sun, these will in turn fade and be replace by other forms and other classes.

In light of this hegemonic power, certain subcultures emerge. It can be a form of resilience or revolt and it can take two forms. The first form is about the conversion of sub-cultural signs into mass produced objects and the second form is about the labeling and redefinition of deviant behavior by dominant groups like the media, police and judiciary. Sub-cultures, like cults, exist because certain movements desire separate identity from the mainstream ideologies. Society through the intercession of certain bodies dictate trends that the general population may tend to ride with. Despite a society that has a tendency to dictate, certain sub-groups end up emerging with their own respective stands. Perhaps a desire for attention, identity and maybe just a downright desire to contend with the popular belief are the primary motivators for such sub- cultures. Ironically though, as these sub-cultures assert their own trends, they some how gain appeal of the larger population and it ends up having its own following.

There come a time when small groups attain a certain culture. For one, the emergence of hip hop, dance crews and gangs are examples of a subculture. These groups emerged out of different circumstances, mostly because they want to be unique. There is a certain manner of dressing and talking when one belongs to a subculture. Hip hop shirts and boggy pants speak for the way hip hoppers dress. Some would go to the extent of graffiti to display their allegiance to hip hop. Subcultures like these arise in reference to the hegemony or the current dominant idea or class. It is not always a negative thing but there are some groups who would go way over the distance to make it a way of life.

In the movie Green streer Hooligans (Elijah Wood), the subculture of the fans is put at a negative light when they fight against the fans of the rival team. It was clearly seen in the movie that being a part of that subculture is a deviance in society.

In the Philippines, there came a time when the fans of Ateneo and La Salle created a subculture. Some Ateneans and La Sallians were able to bash the cars of the rival school and other things to the point of firing a gun to the rival fan. In the first form, the subculture of La Salle and Ateneo comes from selling shirts and color that represent their school.

Currently, there are many gangs and fraternities that emerged. These subculture speaks of their own mode of dressing and the place where they hangout. The dominant class do not see gangs and fraternities to be part of “normal” society. These subcultures emerged in response to different situations and ideas.

http://eldritch00.wikidot.com/hebdige

I know I'm going to be coming back and editing my entries or others' (at least, in terms of cohesion and flow, god knows I don't want to edit content that's not mine) even after the class, but for now, is it okay to be just really messy in the postings? :D

Interestingly, and I agree with this, I think the main pull JCVD has on most people who actually like watching his movies (guilty) is that they're genuinely fun to watch. When you sit down to a JCVD movie, there is no other expectation than some brainless, action-y, things-blow-up everywhere which is perhaps offset by the subplot of the distressed maiden or the random baby, or both at the same time. Like how every Arnie movie is prefaced by him losing his wife and child and he is now forgiven to setting fire to random property not his own.

Come to think of it, it's much like the Wrestler Movie formula highlighted in Barton Fink (1991) by the Coen Brothers.

Anyway, the point is, any takers on that movie date? JCVD is best enjoyed with more people to poke fun at appreciate it. :D

Your comments about the norm established by certain film texts (which could arguably be applied to something like Velvet Goldmine and most other films, actually) are valid, but the reasons why many viewers still can't get into certain films is because our film viewing exist occurs within an intertextual tapestry compared with the other films that we've seen.

Personally, I find some of the films we chose in class weird, but I like them and seek them out precisely for being weird, for being outside the norm when compared with the other films that I often see.

Make sense? (I just woke up and have not yet tanked up had coffee.)

I have also never before seen 24 Hour Party People, and I don't know why. It's definitely in my top 3 out of all the movies we saw this sem.

I agree with what you started off with, that the wit is in the dialogue. There's just such wry, blunt humor in this movie. But what I appreacited most about it was, I think, the friendship among the characters. They're essentially just a bunch of blokes with day jobs who want to do something a little different, with the kind of music they like listening to. Whatever shitty, cool, fun, not-so-fun, downright-depressing thing happens to them, they still end up in a room somewhere getting wasted and laughing about it.

And, of course, it sort of helps that I find Steve Coogan oddly hot.

I think to some extent, this point applies to Titus. Violence has been established from the get-go, even with the little boy (who we later find out is Lucius, Jr) and his antics at the breakfast table, and is therefore the "norm" of the movie. Granted, some of the visuals are disturbing for most or insanely awesome for some (of which yours truly is firmly entrenched in the second camp), but they should not be taken as some form of extremist imagery, i.e., completely deviated from the norm, if only for the fact that Titus IS a violent film on violence, who tells its audience so from the beginning, and does not pretend to be anything else otherwise.

ALSO: I wanted to link you guys to the scene in Naked Lunch I'm talking about, but youtube took it down.

But perhaps for other reasons as well. Fellini’s film centered on the artistic process that a director undergoes, or more specifically, its absence under the experience of artistic block. Fellini did not know what to do for his “8 1/2th” film and so he decided to film about that point of emptiness, a production of that which tackles un-productivity. The title makes more sense that way— to support the film’s project on artistic block, Fellini simply adhered to the un-creativity that he and the film’s main character experienced. How else to wittily show this than by naming a film perhaps as "Untitled," "Blank" or "____," or on the basis of counting Fellini’s films and ending up with its place in the list: a number for a name, his 8 and 1/2th.

Again, a reminder to everyone: posting on the forum does not fulfill the online requirement. Creating (or editing) a page does.

You can edit your WebWork page by clicking on the lower-right-hand side of the screen.

i wanted to post a video from youtube but i tried several and it wouldn't work.
i then tried on google video but it was the same thing. i already posted by web
work though. what can i do sir?

Not only do we see this evident in films but as well as particular advertisements or gossip columns where they show women in a sexual manner.
We not only see phallocentrism in film but in our own existence of everyday things that demonstrate the unconsciousness of how our society operates.
Advertisements such as that of the series Gossip Girl is publicized in a very sexual manner that it was heavily criticized in the United States but
was still allowed to be exposed showing the structure of their society.

We see in the movie of American Pie where cinema is used in depicting women as a “bearer of meaning” and not the “maker of meaning”
because there is the silent form of imposing what men desire on to the woman. We see how mainstream film, unchallenged, continues to
manipulate us in films such as American Pie where erotic language and scenes is inserted in part of what we think is reality because of the
many “realistic” features the film holds. We as the audience, most especially men, find such films fascinating because they relate their
subject to the objects (characters) of the film where they identify themselves with such specifically in erotic identity this is known as
active scopophilia. We see the identification of the male erotic ego, where the “glamorous impersonates the ordinary” allowing male viewers
to have the fascination of attaining a particular woman because of the portrayal of the character as an ordinary person. Examples of such in
the film is like the character of Jason Biggs where an ordinary college student is able to get “hot” girls that are not in his league. It’s a
vicious cycle where majority of mainstream films depend on this type of portrayal of women as given by society.

Scopophilia is also evident in American Pie because there are a lot of teaser scenes where the characters in the film are used
to arouse the male audiences in particular. Such as the many nude scenes present in all the series of American Pie.
The characters do not necessarily have to be fully nude but show enough skin to bring about the erotic pleasure in male audiences.
We see the traditional sense of how women are viewed as objects and are simply displayed by the various male characters in the
film where characters such as “Stifler” sees all these women as objects he wants to conquer. He views them as skin deep.

Each American Pie series represent women in different manners such as the “dumb blonde” or the “sexy cheerleader” where
each male in direct scopophilic contact with the female form can fantasize with the woman of his choice. Not only does it
remain to be a shallow film but relationships form where the male character and his counterpart fall in love making it more
realistic for the spectator where he indirectly possesses the female character as well in relation to how “realistic” the film is
portrayed. We see that not only in the movie American Pie where we see the woman being dehumanized but in many other
films as well. The representation of a woman as an object where they are suppressed by the male desire is not only dehumanizing
to woman but to our culture in general.

Sources:
“Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema” by Laura Mulvey in the Sexual Subject. A Screen Reader in Sexuality, pp.22-34. New York and London: Routledge, 1992
http://img2.timeinc.net/people/i/2008/features/tvblog/080804/gossip_girl1_240x320.jpg
http://www.thomaslockehobbs.com/2004/04-08-31-01.jpg

The film can't help but be intertextual not only with the lives of the people as mentioned in class, but also in other things: historical events and how they played out and shape the events in the film, the different movements in music and art and the like.

A few things to drop in the mix:
The Factory is Andy Warhol's creation. The Factory, like Tony Wilson's Factory Records, is what he calls his studio(s) in New York where he gathers different types of artist. Supposedly, there is an encouragement in creation of art here. Andy Warhol made the famous psychedelic Marilyn Monroe piece that most people love recreating with their MacBooks. He was one of the leaders of pop art. Based on the film, I don't think Tony Wilson intended the similarity in the name of their production houses (because like a factory, it has produced so many artists and so many works). The similarities that come with it are undeniable though.

Pink Floyd was a bunch of rich kids who had enough money to not conform. According to my very punk guitar teacher from when I tried to play another instrument but failed, they had the resources to learn how to play, experiment and deviate. Also, Vivienne Westwood used to dress the band. She, along with the band, popularized the padlock pendant. Of course, they wore real locks.

Jazz is the ancestor of Rock. It was quite funny when people complained when A Certain Ratio played something jazzy sometime in the film. Even though Jazz is the ancestor of Rock, it still makes you think if the band was starting to run out of new sound that they needed to go back to the roots. I don't think Jazz sucks. I also don't know the band's music enough to determine whether they're good or not.

And secondly, Marxian economic theory states that one should view the state just the same as any other private institution. The government as well seeks to increase its profits in whatever means necessary, whether it be through a fundamental or subsumed class process. And it more often than not, ends up also having a multiple class status in both processes. As stated in the article, the government controls many of its own media agencies that divulge news also stemming from the government itself. At the same time, it also gets more profit by providing other media corporations protection and licensing within the media industry. Why is this so? The government itself is also well deep inside the market system of capitalism. It ensures its survival based on power and profit garnered in such a system. Thus, governments become hungry for profit opportunities wherever it may find them.
Upon reading a segment in the article about how ITT once tried to overthrow the Chilean government, it made me recall a book I once read that was very much similar to what ITT had tried to achieve. A word of caution, this book known as the Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins, as shocking as it will seem, is a true story. The video is about how the author of the book was recruited by a private institution that worked hand-in-hand in the government in making other countries dependent on the US market. The beauty of this video (which will give you a crash course on the book) is that it shows the symbiotic relationship between the government and various major corporations and how in this day and age, there are no longer any clear divisions among one and the other. To put it simply, profit-seeking institutions see themselves as a united front in maintaining their power as the dominant figures in society. Their interdependency among each other has caused them to work hand-in-hand in finding more opportunity to make a killing on those that are not part of the group.

Fox News Kills Monsanto Milk Story

Here are two comic strips from two different magazines from two different countries

The first one is from a US news comic section that shows even Arabs complaining about terrible credit card service. The second one is from a local middle-eastern magazine as a comedic look into terrorist school. We can find here an example of the elements of third world and first world colliding onto a common ground in a comedic manner. Moving on to matters relating to media. Here in the Philippines we find a very good example of all the known anime's and cartoons (not necessarily the japanese made ones) gathered and dubbed to Filipino on one channel. The Hero Channel features everything shows like G.I Joe, Power Rangers, Samurai X, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and a mix of all kinds of cartoons and shows from all over. Though take note of the important fact that they are all dubbed in Filipino, sometimes very badly. Translating from Samurai X a line like, "I will cut you down from where you stand" to "hihiwain kita hanggang hanggang hindi ka na makatayo!" Very comedic in nature but very painful to think that the storyline and intention of a show can completely be altered because of bad dubbing.

On a more global scale. We can recently find a surge of scary Asian films, a good example of these are The Ring and The Grudge.
Here's a side by side comparison of the Ring (western version) and the original Ringu (japansese version).

Though the original Ringu as a local japanese myth was made onto film. The Americans adaptation called The Ring took it too the usual level of a meaningless horror movie looking for nothing but the scare factor through visuals. Even worse is that the they tried to make The Ring 2 which took it to the next level of senseless horror without a story (barely even related to the first the Ring.) Yet globalization kicks in and most of the time when you talk about The Ring, it seems the images of the American version are the images that fly into a typical American's head, of course choosing the domestic version just like Ringu strikes a Japanese person when you talk about the Ring. Of course here in the Philippines, despite bad dubbing, a majority prefers the dosmetically made, local shows not only because of language barrier but also because it is a story or theme they are familiar with. Probably why they would dub and show Marimar as is. Unlike something like Ugly Betty which most Filipino's would probably not be able to relate to due to its western nature. So instead they, in a sense colonize the idea and turn it into something like I Love Betty La Fea

The problem with all of this is the line between what is truly what get blurred because of all the translations happening. Shows may no longer mean what the original production intended. Yet I guess it is good that the local scene is empowered, if only the shows could be given more meaning. Quoting from the reading that "Global" rarely means "Universal." In the essence of the quote as the start of the reading.

"A Third World in every First World
A Third World in every Third World
And Vice-Versa"
-Trinh Minh-ha, 1987

We find an identity that is both global and local, somehow trapped in between. Though we are not the epitomy of the third world, we have a blend of both. Some translated into our own local sense, others retaining its original form. Whatever this may be, it is deeply rooted into our culture as through media, we have found a way in which we are both the local and the global as well as everything in between.

Today’s youth is continually influenced by MTV. In the documentary “Merchants of Cool”, the power of MTV can be clearly seen. In that documentary, MTV feeds its audience different ideas and even to the point of influencing their buying pattern. It is not clear when this influence of MTV will stop but for sure it will lose its luster. Gramsci states that there should be a provision for hegemonic power, that there is an end to it, that at any point in time, once the ruling class is no longer dominant, a new class will emerge. Currently, MTV boasts of a very strong hold on its audience that whatever they see cool is transferred to its viewers and adapted by the viewers as cool. It seems that MTV can brainwash the audience on whatever ideas they want and can get away with it.
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MTV is actually a media phenomenon that expresses its hegemonic powers not just in the music industry but also in the consumption pattern of its viewers. Its dominating powers can be seen further in its bid to provide the necessary boost for new songs to be recognized and be sold. If you want to sell your songs or albums, MTV is the answer. At this point in time, MTV is celebrating hegemony on our lives, especially on the young people of our generation. Its hegemony is further seen in the Sociological aspect as many social scientists refer to certain age groups as “MTV generation.”

The Oprah Winfrey Show also provides hegemony to the American audience. To further illustrate this, it was said that when Oprah said that Cheeseburger is fattening, the sale of Cheeseburger went down. Oprah’s influence to the American public is over the charts.
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In the Philippines, the show “Wowowee” has become hegemony in show business. Lately, Yes! Magazine accorded Willie Revillame as one of the most influential personality in Philippine show business. This can be a result of the success of the show “Wowowee” on Philippine television. Before “Wowowee”, “Eat Bulaga” has that hegemony. As was stated by Gramsci, it can be transferred to another class, in our case, it was transferred to Wowowee.

These are some forms of Hegemony in media. Just like the rising and the setting of the sun, these will in turn fade and be replace by other forms and other classes.

In light of this hegemonic power, certain subcultures emerge. It can be a form of resilience or revolt and it can take two forms. The first form is about the conversion of sub-cultural signs into mass produced objects and the second form is about the labeling and redefinition of deviant behavior by dominant groups like the media, police and judiciary. Sub-cultures, like cults, exist because certain movements desire separate identity from the mainstream ideologies. Society through the intercession of certain bodies dictate trends that the general population may tend to ride with. Despite a society that has a tendency to dictate, certain sub-groups end up emerging with their own respective stands. Perhaps a desire for attention, identity and maybe just a downright desire to contend with the popular belief are the primary motivators for such sub- cultures. Ironically though, as these sub-cultures assert their own trends, they some how gain appeal of the larger population and it ends up having its own following.
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There come a time when small groups attain a certain culture. For one, the emergence of hip hop, dance crews and gangs are examples of a subculture. These groups emerged out of different circumstances, mostly because they want to be unique. There is a certain manner of dressing and talking when one belongs to a subculture. Hip hop shirts and boggy pants speak for the way hip hoppers dress. Some would go to the extent of graffiti to display their allegiance to hip hop. Subcultures like these arise in reference to the hegemony or the current dominant idea or class. It is not always a negative thing but there are some groups who would go way over the distance to make it a way of life.

In the movie Green streer Hooligans (Elijah Wood), the subculture of the fans is put at a negative light when they fight against the fans of the rival team. It was clearly seen in the movie that being a part of that subculture is a deviance in society.

In the Philippines, there came a time when the fans of Ateneo and La Salle created a subculture. Some Ateneans and La Sallians were able to bash the cars of the rival school and other things to the point of firing a gun to the rival fan. In the first form, the subculture of La Salle and Ateneo comes from selling shirts and color that represent their school.

Currently, there are many gangs and fraternities that emerged. These subculture speaks of their own mode of dressing and the place where they hangout. The dominant class do not see gangs and fraternities to be part of “normal” society. These subcultures emerged in response to different situations and ideas.

http://eldritch00.wikidot.com/hebdige

Experts say that counterfeit dollars have attained perfection
About 560 billion dollars in cash circulates through the world at present. About 70 percent of this cash is used beyond American borders. The USA believes that Russia comes second (after the USA itself) from the point of view of quantity of dollar cash circulation. About 363 million counterfeit dollars were confiscated worldwide from 1929-1995. Only one-third of this sum was withdrawn from circulation in the States. The counterfeit dollar boom occurred in 1993, when 120 million counterfeit dollars were seized outside the USA.

Russian banks received of counterfeit dollar numbers in 1993, for it was believed at that time that there was no other way to detect them. Kevin Rodgers, a special agent with the American Treasury's secret service, visited Russia in 2000. "I was surprised to know that counterfeit money is not an issue for Russian authorities. They have a well-developed system for find and withdrawing counterfeit dollars from circulation in Russia," Kevin Rodgers stated. The agent was could not have been more wrong.

According to data from the Russian Federation Central Bank, Russian citizens have up to 25 billion dollars, and one-third of them are probably forged. US dollars make 97.5 percent of all counterfeit currencies in the world. The Russian Interior Ministry said that 42,352 counterfeit dollar notes had been withdrawn in Russia in 2002 - four million dollars, that is. There were 23,000 forgeries registered in 2002, but only 2,700 of them were exposed, since about 60 percent of counterfeit notes had been withdrawn from banks.

Any perfect protection has its perfect way of getting around it. Cocoa beans used to be a Mexican currency centuries ago. Mexicans cut open the cocoa shells and exchanged real cocoa beans for others beans, then gluing the pods together. Russian forgers have managed to make perfect five-ruble coins: the Russian bank put new five-ruble coins into circulation in January of 1998, and counterfeit coins had appeared already in March. Specialists had to acknowledge that these counterfeit coins were excellent. However, a 100-dollar note has always been the most popular note for forgers.

Forgers use the same technology for their counterfeit dollar notes: they use the same printing methods, the same paper, protection elements and even the same watermarks. A well-made counterfeit 100-dollar note can go through any detector. Even American secret services do not know where they come from. The counterfeit money quality has been growing recently. Experts say that counterfeit dollar notes have already obtained supreme quality.

However, American manufacturers of money often make mistakes in their production. For example, many authentic dollars have damaged protective magnetic paint. US dollars can be cut or printed improperly. Sometimes one can find dollars in pink and blue hues, as if they were washed with jeans and then pressed. One can also find notes on which one and the same American president has different facial expressions; there is even an official catalogue of such images. It is needless to mention that these facts all complicate law-enforcement bodies' work in finding and withdrawing forged American dollars from circulation. One-third of all dollars in the world are forged. About 50 percent of US dollars that are in circulation in Russia are forged as well. Every fifth forged 100-dollar note can hardly be distinguished from a real one.

M. Vostrikov
Agropromcredit Bank advisor