Letter to Myself: Future

Dear Bibianna,                                                                                   Read this on 26th September 2017


So before I start I get it I bet you think you are shit. I know you will somehow get the work done but I was seriously stressed out thinking that Uni might not be your calling. May I ask where you are sitting right now? It best be in that damn lecture hall. About that the 9 grand was minor you best shut up and read your book. I get it alright its long and sometimes you don't understand and it takes you a little longer to comprehend. Please for your sanity don't overcompensate, ask for help it doesn't make you any weaker.

I can tell you though the AddVantage course helped you out a lot. you published your first pilot series. Not people watched it but that doesn't matter. One girls who saw it came up to you in Fargo Village just to say thank you she gave you a little hug. Wasn't that the successs that you wanted to achieve? Well then you made it. This is only the start don't get too gassed that job you've been pining for is coming for you. Yes your own radio show. Show all people what a real black girl sounds like.

Anyway I have to cut this letter a little short, listen to because well I'm you but a little older and you know how our culture can is that means I'm smarter than you!!! Bye Bibianna please remember this isn't the end and its not the start. It is simply the foundaton of all your achievements.

With Love Well Me.

Reflective Task 2: Letter to Myself.

When doing a letter to myself I found it quite hard as I knew what I wanted to achieve and how to go about it; I always had a plan. However, writing letters weren’t really my forte. I remember doing something similar is secondary school around year 9 and I had to read it out in year 11. It was simply blank. Not because I couldn’t be bothered but for the simple fact is that I know myself my mind is always changing and evolving itself into the next thing. Long paragraphs never stayed with me. They meant nothing to me.

As a child I started a book of poetry. In a fit of rage, I threw it away and allowed my father to burn it along with the other things I thought weren’t cool. Simply censoring myself. Till this day I regret that. However, one poem stayed with me. The Broken Vase. I don’t remember what it said, but I always remember how it made me feel. Which is why I chose to write my letter in a form of poetry. A haiku no less. In homage to my favourite poet Ms Maya Angelou. Simply because of its short and fast paced form I would remember it. Inspired by a quote that would stay with me forever, ‘My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humour and some style.’ I wanted to have a quote that would stay with me forever. Originally I wanted to do put Angelou’s quote, short and simply my work would be done. However, the same way Angelou inspires me I want to inspire someone else. So that I could perhaps one day simply inspire a generation with 17 simple syllables.  

Reflective Task 1:Cabinet of Curiosity.

1. Being a firm believer in communication, I genuinely am very critical of social media. Even with the control, social media give us. For example, being able to have a voice and giving opportunities to people who hardly come by them. However, in coming to Coventry I see that in a different light. I have expressed how I’m not fundamentally involved in all platforms of social media. leading me to believe that there was something I was missing out on. When speaking to the friends I had made here they also don’t have some forms of social media or are quite inactive on it. This leads me to question further as to whether or not we as human beings are gaining back control.

Media gods was a relative term in my piece, the idea of a higher power telling me what I can and cannot enjoy. I am not a singular being in my journey to find entertainment that narrowcasts anymore. For example, Issa Rae is the content creator of the Awkward Black Girl series on YouTube which has now inspired her new HBO TV series Insecure. Again a young Jeffery Almonte creating visuals on YouTube for what he saw around him growing up. Growing up never did I see something that reflected my young reality. Forcing me to believe that my struggle was my own not knowing that I had worthy allies in my battle to promote honesty.

With the introduction of new media, it is not that I have absolute and utter distain for it. Perhaps it is just finding its feet. There is no good or bad to it. It is the way in which we choose to consume it. I consume it for honesty and to make content which others would appreciate. Hopefully inspiring others to follow.

2. To put it simply I have an overwhelming love for Drag Queens. They are what inspired me to embrace my own femininity. Which then led me to question, 'How do Drag Queens pay respect to women and femininity?'

Motives in Coventry.

http://iateam.tumblr.com/

Letter to Myself.

Dear Bibianna,

Bibianna I know you a little bit too well. I know you are all about quality and masses of words that are just lumped together mean absolutely nothing to you. We both know you speak when you have something to say, some people mistake that as a shy child but we know how you really are. Remember when Mrs. Kemp in the BSU told you the quote that you subconsciously follow every day “Wise men speak because they have something to say; fools speak because they have to say something.” - Plato. So I wrote you something that you could have used. It truly would have helped you to express yourself better instead of you constantly getting into trouble. So here is a little Haiku for you one to show that you shouldn't be ashamed of yourself and two because I know it will stay with you and help you to continuously grow.

Your spirit is loud,

Your voice is incoherent,

Refinement is key.

With Love From You.

Cabinet of Curiosity

I have done two Cabinets of Curiosity. One before I came to Coventry University and one I did which during that I have an interest in.

Do we control media, or does media control us?

Media is the mass communication channel in which the news, entertainment, education, or promotional messages are widely spread. This includes every kind of broadcasting and narrowcasting platforms such as newspapers. TV, radio, billboards, email, telephone, fax, and internet. This means that media’s main standing point is to constantly relay a message/information to us whether it be passively or directly.

Media comes in two forms, both modern (new) and traditional (old) media. Traditional forms of media consist of newspapers, radio, magazines, mail, and books etc. The main principle around old media was to broadcast information that the average consumer would appreciate. For example, old media is geared towards what the majority wants to see and if you don’t adhere to those ideals then you just wouldn’t enjoy media. Old media revolves around the idea that we as an audience need to set our lives around their schedule. For example, in the early stages of prime time TV, there wouldn’t be any repeats of a show and you couldn’t record the show, you’d most likely have to wait at a later date to watch said episode and if you’d missed that you basically missed the episode completely. Basically, old forms of media such as TV and radio would depict how you run your life. Perhaps this reinforces the idea of the ‘media gods’ having so much control over us. Clearly showing that traditional media even though its meant to be at convenience it really makes us the audience lose control, as we have to manoeuvre ourselves around media. 

Modern media forms are defined to be all things related to the internet and the convergence between different technologies i.e. image and sound. It is known that modern media is constantly changing. For example, new media would have consisted of on demand TV and still does, however with online apps such as Netflix’s, Amazon Prime, BBC iPlayer and All4 etc. they have now allowed us to watch whilst we are not even at home in a traditional setting (a building i.e. home, school or library.)  With the evolution of new media, new platform emerged. Applications such as Facebook, twitter, Instagram and snap chat fall under the category of social media. With the introduction it then allowed us to constantly be connected to something else which is online. For example, music websites such as SoundCloud and Deezer allow us to register with our social media accounts. Giving the illusion that it is easier and quick. Perhaps it gives the result of everything being at our convenience. Clearly showing us that new media was made to make our lives easier and for us to regain the control that the old media took from us.

In growing up the online media age I have had a fresh experience of what modern media holds. As a consumer, I know what I take from modern media, however, in growing up in a working class family at a young age I was also exposed to traditional media. With both, I was able to see what I appreciated about each platform as well as giving my own critique. In studying media in both sociology and media A-Level. It forced to think of each side of the argument and analyse whether or not I agree with the traditional values of media.

Traditional media as a whole has notoriety. For being the forefront and foundation for media that we see today old media came with traditional values. Basically, traditional medias’ motive was simply to entertain and inform their target audience. However, good intentions still come negative feedback. Theorist David Gauntlett talks about the idea of ‘media gods’ where we believe everything that is shown in the media because it is supposedly a trusted source. But why do we trust it? Maybe it’s because we know no different? However, it has been known that at the start of newspaper publications that the writers would pick and choose even somewhat fabricate stories with no reprehension. Even though throughout the time that has changed it no longer stops reporters lying to us. For example, in 2011 on a Daily Show appearance where investigating journalist Brian Williams a guest, it showed him to boasting about how he looked into the eyes of an Egyptian soldier in Cairo’s Tahrir Square and seen armed men beat unarmed protesters. From his interview with host Jon Stewart, Williams implies he was in the thick of the chaotic pro-democracy movement down on the ground. However, the Times said, NBC news broadcasts from the time only show that he was on a balcony overlooking the chaos.

Growing up in the digital age I found myself quite misplaced. Not really being active on a social media platform I felt somewhat disconnected from the peer group. Media is a tool which we use to broadcast a message whether that be through entertain or factual information. When studying media at A2 I learnt about how the principles of media changed. When the media became a highly influential institution their primary objective was to broadcast information that the general public could appeal to; presuming that each individual in the audience is homogenous. However, with time media evolved. Identifying that people consume information and entertain differently media generally evolved. For example, Berners-Lee innovative mind leading to the creation of the world wide web and the creation of first smart phone in 1992 by IBM. This completely changed the idea behind how we consume media and caused the introduction of major game changes in media.

Social media is an online application that enables users to create and share content; which has led to the rise in the prosumer. Even though social media is a platform that promotes communications I feel as if due to the introduction of social media that communication has somewhat made us as human lose what actually made us human. For example, snap chat is a tool which allows us to share pictures and videos with people whether it be a few seconds long or 24 hours. I feel as if this ruins a certain level of intimacy when it comes to human connection. As we no longer have anything to talk about when it comes to human interaction so instead of actually communicating with people we swap that for just showing one perception of our life.

On most iPhones, facetime is a prevalent tool which allows us to see the faces of the people in which we talk to. I feel as if this is a positive function of social media. Allowing us to communicate with people when not being around without losing a certain level of intimacy.

To conclude, I firmly stand beside the idea that new forms of media give us back the power that old media once took from us. However, with power comes responsibility and a majority of the world can’t hold on to such responsibility. As media is now convenient we can’t let go of it. Media once controlling us in one way very direct it now controls us very passively.

Drag Queen showing love for women kind.
https://www.tumblr.com/blog/nubianrenaissance