Most people would seem it peculiar if the husband of the household stayed home and took care of the children while the wife went to work earn the money.  The media gives society an image to follow and people seem to think that anything going against image is wrong. The media portrays women as fragile individuals that are expected to have certain jobs around the house.  Women are not supposed to be the "bread winners" of the household because it just is not their job.  Women are expected to clean, take care of children, and have minimal paying jobs because their husbands are supposed to earn the large income.  Media has made us almost believe that men are incapable of caring for children and women are incapable of earning a well to do living for their family.   Because women are seen as the soft spoken individuals who are supposed to stay at home, they do not have as much influence in the world today.  Men are supposed to make all of the important decisions and have much of the power. 

     I think this same idea can be applied to school as well.  Girls tend to be very cautious about what they say in class because they are often afraid of what others may think of them.  At the same time guys tend to be more out spoken because they feel that they already have a lot of power because they are male.  I think girls think they are always feeling the need to prove themselves.  I think media gives boys and girls an image of what they are expected and at the same time I think many of them are trying to break these stereotypes.  I think it is hardest to act upon this in school because it is a time when students feel they are being judged and are trying so hard to fit in.  

TV Show and American Core Values

I chose American Idol as a popular television show in America that represents many of the American Core Values. The show is so popular because it is a representation of the epitome of the American dream.  Achievement and success is the main value of the show because the American Idol winner endures a stressful competition and their talent is measured by the American audience.  The new American Idol may become the next new big star in the world of music.  One of the greatest aspects of the show is that anyone can audition for American Idol.  The only restriction is an age limitation, but besides that, there is a huge freedom in who is eligible for the competition. The  American audience also witnesses the activity and work of the contestants every week until one idol is crowned.  As the audience watches the show each week, they will notice improvements in the singers and the progress each contestant has made. The judges point out a singer's improvements, work ethic, and overall success for each week.  

The audience of American Idol votes after every live performance to determine who will continue in the competition.  Individuals who are unique are often times the most popular and celebrated contestants, even if their singing ability is lacking. Popular singers are also usually youthful.  There are age restrictions for people beyond their thirties because Americans value the freshness of the someone young.  Although people like individuals, they also like the contestants to have the same accepted standards. People like being able to relate to an individual if there is an adherence to group patterns. The judges often base their opinions on conformity as well, so a contestant that does not conform may not be as popular.  

To keep up its popularity while it still reaps in the benefits, American Idol has had episodes in the past to raise money for charities.  They do this to make it look like they care about people because people like to see kindness and humanitarianism.  They have many sponsors and adds for material comfort things (like Ford and Coke) that people will see while they watch the show.  The show is also aired at certain times that are efficient to most audience members.  It is on a week day after the dinner hour that it is most practical for people to watch the show. 

Ultimately, American Idol has become a cash cow and most people never thought it would become such a success. The reason it has had such incredible success is because the show teaches that talent, success, and fame are some of the most valued ideas of American culture.  While they keep the show appealing for children to watch, they are also aiming the youthfulness at adults as well.  Americans like contestants they can relate to and they like seeing some ordinary person, like themselves, become a knockout star. 

Children and the Media Video

The main idea of this video is that media influences the lives of children more than in the past and this is causing a larger problem for the society than people really understand.  This video expressed a lot of bias because it only reinstated the bad effects that media is having on children. Even though there was evident bias, I still agreed with much of what the video said about the product placement because I do not think it is helping anyone to be surrounded with more media than is already out there. Kids have so much influence because they are the wave of the future, so they are being marketed to more.  The goal of many companies is to insinuate their brands into the children's lives and turn them into lifelong consumers.  They say a result is that there is going to be a health care crisis. 

 There is a lower priority on our children's social development and I do not think kids are benefiting from playing video games, watching TV, and playing on the computer all day.  I agree with the article that kids are consumed more with the technologies they own.  I know that the marketing and media towards kids will only increase and the video made me feel as if there is no hope for the future generations to simply have fun playing outside or doing some other activity that does not involve watching a screen.  I hope kids can be educated about what they watch earlier so they realize how this marketing is influencing them.