Don’t think media shapes how you behave? Think again, says Hope Schau, a UA associate professor of marketing.
Are you a Homer Simpson or a Dexter? How about a Clair Huxtable or a Carrie Bradshaw? Chances are you don’t think of yourself as a doughnut-loving oaf, a brilliant serial killer, an unflappable power-mom/lawyer nor a lovelorn fashionista.
But when you watch these characters on television, your brain is doing something you may not even realize, says University of Arizona associate professor of marketing Hope Jensen Schau: figuring out who you are. (more…)
“Death in Classic and Contemporary Film: Fade to Black” features essays edited by two members of the UA psychology department.
Most of us can recall a death scene from a movie that struck a particular chord. Perhaps it was an emotional deathbed goodbye between two lovers or a bloody display on the battlefield. Or maybe it was a spine-chilling moment splattered across the screen of a horror movie. (more…)
November is Native American Heritage Month. The UA will celebrate with a variety of events, kicking off on Friday.
The University of Arizona will celebrate Native American Heritage Month starting Friday followed by a full slate of activities, seminars, a film showcase and public television programming.
With one of the largest Native American student populations in the Southwest, the UA has more than 1,000 students who identify as Diné or Navajo, Tohono O’odham, Pascua Yaqui, Hopi, Cherokee and other Native nations. (more…)
USC Annenberg and IBM Film Forecaster Reveals Box Office Winners
LOS ANGELES – 26 Nov 2012: Twilight: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 continued to infiltrate the Twitterverse during Thanksgiving weekend, with competition from Box Office leaders Skyfall and the newly released, Rise of the Guardians – according to the University of Southern California (USC) Annenberg Innovation Lab and the IBM Film Forecaster, a Social Sentiment Index.(more…)
Newly described teen literature genre propagates negative portrayals of the sick and disabled
COLUMBIA, Mo. — A newly defined genre of literature, “teen sick-lit,” features tear-jerking stories of ill adolescents developing romantic relationships. Although “teen sick-lit” tends to adhere to negative stereotypes of the ill and traditional gender roles, it also explores the taboo realm of sexuality, sickness and youth, says the University of Missouri researcher who named the genre in a recent study. Readers and their parents should be aware of how the presentation of disease and disability in these stories can instill prejudices and enforce societal norms in young adults, notes the researcher.
“Teen sick-lit depicts its chronically ill protagonists, who are usually white middle-class females, merely as vehicles for well people’s emotional development rather than as self-actualized women with their own experiences, perspectives, and emotional needs,” said Julie Passanante Elman, assistant professor in women’s and gender studies in the College of Arts and Science. “As the popularity of fiction aimed at young adults, such as the Twilight, Harry Potter and Hunger Games series, continues to grow, it is important for readers and parents to note the ethical subtexts of the books. Similarly, the proliferation of sick or disabled characters on such television shows as “Glee,” “Friday Night Lights” and “Breaking Bad” doesn’t always equate to positive portrayals of those characters.” (more…)
