My Aunty, The Radio Star (Lecture 5)

When listening to this weeks lecture on sound and the way in which it was broadcasted to us like a radio show it instantly made me realise what it was I wanted to blog about this week.

In the mid 1990’s the Australian public met a vivacious, outgoing and unique young woman on one of Network Ten’s longest running television shows The Panel. Her fierce wit and individuality put her in a league of her own and Kate Langbroek quickly became a household name. However, to me, she was simply ‘Auntie Katie’. Kate, my father’s younger sister, has been my role model since before I can remember. I always looked up to her and aspired to have the same kind of charisma that I noticed she had from a very early age. She could tear down any opponent with her humour and biting wit. And whilst she was considered one of the sharpest and funniest people on Australian television, she still had a soft side; she loved and cared very deeply for her family and never let them forget how much they truly meant to her. She always said that the love she had for her family and friends gave her the strength to go out into one of the toughest industries in the world and make a name for herself. No matter what Kate always stayed true to her morals and values.  This reason, and so many more, is why I have and always will admire Kate Langbroek.

Of course in order to break into the journalism industry some skill is actually needed; this was never a problem for Kate. She was always making people laugh, whether she meant to or not, and it seemed as though her sole purpose in life was to make people happy – I can safely say she always succeeded. Kate was first came to the Australian public’s attention during her stint as a co-host on the iconic Melbourne Community radio station Triple R, where she was part of the popular morning show the Breakfasters.  Her unrestrained opinions and insightful remarks quickly got her noticed and she was soon asked to bring her distinctive and very conversational style to the new radio station Nova 100 in 2001. It has since become common knowledge that Kate was one of the catalysts that initially projected the station to its ratings success. 

It was around this time that I really started to notice Kate and the effect she had on people; the way that strangers would approach her to let her know how much they admired her really made me realize that that was the kind of career I wanted. Over the years I have continued to look to Kate for inspiration and motivation. She has always provided support for me, as well as many opportunities to break into the journalism industry. She constantly graces television screens, radio stations and magazine pages, as well as somehow juggling motherhood. She continues to support me and my decisions, encouraging me to get involved in the journalism industry. 

We have been taught that radio is a lot more intimate than television. The voices that are broadcasted to us come as though 'from our own heads'. Although, when it comes to my aunty, sometimes this voice can be incredibly loud and full of shrieks, it's still a voice that thousands of people tune in to listen to every morning on Nova fm in Melbourne. Her successful multi-tasking and thriving career makes Kate Langbroek a fantastic role model for someone hoping to break into the journalism industry.

Personal Media Use and Production Diary

Our first piece of assessment for JOUR1111 required us to keep a record of our own personal media usage over a period of 10 days and then provide an analysis of our results. Throughout the analysis, the reasons behind my results and why I tend to favour certain media portals over others will be discussed, as well as my relationship with Journalism and Communication. A comparison between my results and the results of a survey conducted to the entire JOUR1111 cohort will also aid in the analysis of my personal media use. These results will also be placed in graphs and tables and any patterns that become evident through the data will be discussed and explained. 

In order to produce accurate results I recorded the amount of time I used every kind of communication tool and media that I came across throughout the day. To aid in the analysis of my results, I chose to divide the media that I access regularly into 2 categories: Computer and Other. Although most of my media intake is completed via my computer and the internet, there are alternative media forms that I engage in daily. 

The following spreadsheets indicate how I recorded my personal media and communication usage and will provide an accurate insight into the amount of time (minutes) I spent on each outlet:

Computer:

Other:

The following graphs are a result of the data from the two spreadsheets. They demonstrate how each outlet compares to the other in terms of usage:




Computer:

Other:

As can be seen from my first graph, a huge majority of my media and communication usage is completed via my laptop. I am able to search and locate any news article ever written. I can listen to old radio broadcasts. I can re-watch television programs and interviews. This has resulted in the low media usage of these same outlets (radio, television and newspapers) seen in graph 2. It seems that the concept of acquiring something as soon as possible is what's most appealing about computer-based media and communication portals.


Whilst you may assume I have an addiction to social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, I feel it is important to highlight that whilst my usage was incredibly high for these websites (seen in Graph 1), this is due to the fact that often those particular sites are left running on my computer. Being a resident at The Women's College, they are my basic tools for communicating on a social level. They provide me with the information I need when it comes to social, sport and cultural activities. It's how I communicate with other colleges, university peers and my family and friends from home. Without those outlets, I would most likely be a lot less social. 


A survey was conducted in which the 432 students undertaking JOUR1111 answered questions regarding their daily media usage. The results showed that 43.1% of students who took the survey got their news online, 29.6% of them spent two to three hours a day on the internet and 91.9% of these people spent most of their time on Facebook. I seem to fit into every one of those percentages. In terms of television and radio usage, the majority of students watch television for one to two hours a day and they listen to the less than one hour of radio daily. This is where I differ.  As I am a resident of The Women's College my access to radio and television is limited. This has significantly reduced my access to news broadcasts resulting in a reliance on other (online) media for information about world news. 

In conclusion, my media usage follows the general trends of today: high social networking use and a decreasing use of traditional print media. This should not be a surprise as my generation is referred to as the technology generation. The internet has always been accessible so we rely heavily on it to provide us with news and entertainment. Our generation is so lucky to have the internet at our disposal. At the click of a mouse we are able to access more news portals via the Internet than anyone could have ever imagined. 

How much is too much? (Lecture 4)

What would celebrities and models look like if they didn't have photoshop? Normal!

This week in our JOUR1111 'Picture Stories' lecture Dr Redman briefly discussed the notion of photoshop. As I am not a) a model, b) a photographer or c) a celebrity i personally have not had a lot to with photoshop. However after my latest purchase (a Macbook Pro) and the iPhoto application that came with it, it is very easy to see how users of photoshop can become addicted to removing any and all blemishes, no matter how small, on their subject. I have to admit, it was nice to be able to remove the small mole in the middle of my forehead that I was born with. Although no one has ever been able to see it in photos I knew it was there. and in the quick click of a mouse, it was gone. just. like. that.

This week there has been a lot of controversy surround the recently released photos for Demi Moore's Helena Rubinstein 2012 campaign. 

Let's see, there's absolutely no wrinkles or facial lines whatsoever, her nose and chin seem a different shape and suddenly, her tan has vanished. I understand that all ads and widely distributed photos get some retouching done, it's part of the biz, but it's freakin' Demi Moore. How much do you really have to fix?

Photoshop has become a regular aspect of the photography world. That's not to say that it's been perfected. This is a link to just some of the worst photoshop disasters: http://abduzeedo.com/20-biggest-photoshop-disasters-2008-photoshopdisasterscom 

and the famous youtube video that we've all seen before (almost 15 million views), but for good reason. it highlights the true monstrosity that is excesive-photoshopping: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U

What is encouraging in a world where already beautiful, rake thin models are photoshopped to look even skinner (god, what chance do the rest of us have?)is that most countries are taking a step in the right direction when it comes to disclosing in articles and publications when images of models and celebrities have been altered. 

So whilst it is generally accepted that no one is perfect why are some people trying so hard to make it seem that models and celebrities are?  

It just doesn't seem fair. 

Is our generation news intolerant? (Lecture 2)

'This latest generation has absolutely no idea about what's going on in the world. They're so out of touch. Half of them have never even read a newspaper!'

Yes. This was just one of the ignorant cracks made at our generation (a mixture between Gen Y and Gen Z) that i overhead whilst waitressing at a small gala on Saturday night. You can only imagine the self control it took to not correct this misinformed guest (who I'm guessing was from the Gen X era) that not only does our generation read newspapers but that at the click of a mouse we are able to access more news portals via the Internet than she could ever imagine. 


Our generation generally gets a bad wrap 98% of the time. We're seen as lazy, unmotivated individuals who don't possess the brainpower to stick to doing one job for the rest of our lives. But they're wrong. Yes, we aren't the most decisive generation but that's because a generation has never had as many options as us before. We're able to change our university degrees, our majors, our jobs. We are able to multitask. We have the most amazing tool at our disposal - The internet. 


In our second lecture of JOUR1111, Dr Redman spoke about the concept of 'old media'. e.g. Newspaper, television, radio. We also discussed the the evolvement of the different Web Iterations. We are currently in the midst of Web 3.0 - The Semantic Web. We are finally making sense of information, using meta lag (multi layered questions), and being mobile with the use of tablets and smart phones. Dr Redman went on to explain how this is going to result in hyperlocalization (essentially it means the Web is being highly local, right down to what's happening on your street) and specific content delivery. 


So how can the older generations call us out of touch? We are able to search and locate any and every news article ever written. We can listen to year old radio broadcasts. We can rewatch television programs and interviews hundreds of times. 


Through combining the elements of 'old news' and the internet, our generation is going to be far from news intolerant. It seems to me like the older generations are the ones who are 'out of touch'...

80 Million in 8 Days (Lecture 3)

I'm gonna give you all the benefit of the doubt and assume that you have seen the KONY 2012 documentary or read something about the huge, world wide movement in order 'Make Kony Famous'. But just incase you haven't I'm going to give you a very quick rundown of what's been going on...


Joseph Kony of Uganda is leading the terrorist group known as the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). Within this group he abducts children, forces them to kill their parents, mutilate others' faces, rape, torture and murder innocent civilians along with countless other unthinkable acts. Approximately 65 000 children have been kidnapped. His unforgivable acts have seen Kony top the world's most wanted criminals list. So why exactly do we want to make such a monstrous man famous? 


The majority of the world still does not know who he is or what he has done. So on April 20th, 2012 the Kony 2012 project will take to the streets of the world, powered by the Invisible Children. Millions of poster and flyers will be plastered throughout the streets. This will hopefully make the U.S Government aware of the horrible goings-on in Uganda and agree to assist the Ugandan Army in arresting Kony, bringing him to justice, and rescuing the real invisible children. 

“Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time is now”

In just over 8 days the youtube clip has garnered over 80 million views (available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc), Invisible Children have sold out every single article of merchandise advertised and millions of people have signed up to different Facebook groups to 'plaster the night' on April 20th. 


We have to put this into perspective. 5 years ago this kind of following would not have even been possible. Invisible Children owe this entire movement to the expansion of social networking. I, like many other university students, found out about Kony 2012 through Facebook. Then, through twitter, we were able to spread the word, create a trending tropic and make the movement international news. Oh the power of the internet! 


Never underestimate the power of a) the internet b) our generation (and apparently we're the lazy and ungrateful ones). 


One of the most powerful quotes that we've heard since beginning JOUR1111 was in our 3rd lecture on 'Text'. “Bloggers’ use of and engagement with various social media tools is expanding, and the lines between blogs, micro‐blogs, and social networks are disappearing.”


As we learned through JOUR1111 and in our 3rd Lecture on 'Text' anything is possible when the right idea comes along at the right time. And due to this perfect timing, something big is going to happen. The United States is taking action not due to self defence but because the people demand it. 


Wow.

Me, Myself and The QLD Election.

#qldvotes      #QLDLabour       #QLDLNP       #alpshame       #time4change

These were just some of the trending topics on Twitter on the weekend of the 17th of March. Or in pollie talk - the beginning of the end. 

Next weekend (the 24th of March 2012), thousands of Queenslanders will take to the polling booths and cast their votes in the State Election. And if you are go by what the newspaper, internet, television, and radio are saying, it's going to be a pretty ugly battle. Whilst 'polls suggest an LNP victory across the state' there is still the question as to who will lead the LNP if Campbell Newman fails to win the seat of Ashgrove. He was neck and neck with ALP member Kate Jones but Jones has recently been able to gain a little bit of ground on her competitor due to her long-standing history with the electorate and her popularity amongst the women of the community. So the question remains: Who will lead the LNP if their leader fails to win a seat in parliament?

Whilst it may sound like the QLD election really interests me and I'm utterly enthralled by the goings-on behind party doors, the truth is I don't really have a choice in the matter. See my father is John Paul Langbroek, former leader of the LNP and now a senior shadow minister for the LNP. My dad has been involved in politics for more than 10 years so I've practically grown up with it. When Dad was leader everyday I would get up, read the paper with mum at breakfast and digest the awful things journalists would say about him. All before 8am - Now that's just cruel. 

Things became a lot easier once Dad resigned as Leader. Other people started to get the blame for problems out of their control and their families were thrown into the spotlight. But that isn't to say I've stopped taking an interest in politics. I still read the paper, watch the news and listen to the radio. Lately, there isn't really anywhere that isn't broadcasting something about the QLD Election. Lecturers discuss it, there are tutorial questions on it and it has become a general discussion point over the dinner table at college. 

 

As I don't always get to talk to my dad as often as I'd like, i do enjoy the fact that I can read up on him daily and find out what's been going on with him. However, after reading my fair share of newspapers and listening to more than enough radio and television interviews I can tell you to always take what you read/see/hear with a grain of salt. 

I sometimes feel like newspapers, radio and television can often be summed up in one of my favourite quotes from the outstanding 2010 award-winning film Social Network. 

'When there's emotional testimony, I assume that 85% of it is exaggeration.
'And the other fifteen?'
'Perjury. Creation myths need a Devil'

So don't always believe what you read :)

New Year, New Start (Lecture 1)

I started the year 2012 very unsure as to where my life was going exactly. 

That's right; at the tender age of 19 I was having the first of many (I'm sure) mid life crises. I had just finished my first year out of school at a university where, from the beginning, something just didn't feel right. I didn't know if it was that I didn't fit in or that the university didn't fit with me. Either way, after the end of a difficult and complicated year long relationship we decided to part ways. It was a mutual decision and even though I'll remember my time there with fond memories and moments, it was time to move on. It was time to find a university that appreciated everything I had to offer. 

As, for the past year, I had been living on campus at The Women's College on the UQ St Lucia ground it was surprising to most that I hadn't begun my university life at the university where i was now living my life. Everyday, I would watch enviously as my fellow collegians walked the mere 300 metres to their classes were as I had to leave an hour early for my classes and catch 2 buses in order to get to my university. So when the time came to transfer from QUT the choice was simple; I would attend the university where my sister had just graduated, where my father had collected his doctorate and where my grandfather had taught. And when i stepped onto the beautiful, fresh cut grass of the Great Court on Monday the 27th of February I finally felt home. 

My first class of my new degree was Introduction to Journalism and Communications (JOUR1111) and just from that lecture alone i knew i had made the right decision to transfer. My lecturer, Dr Bruce Redman, was a funny, honest and warm fellow who instantly had more knowledge on the industry than any of the lecturers I'd had at the university for the real world. He seemed more real than any of them. 

My first tutorial where we found out we'd be keeping a blog throughout the semester I was over the moon. The idea of a blog always intrigued me but I never thought I was interesting or special enough to write one. I was happy that I was going to be forced to write one :) The other great thing about that tute - by the end of its 2 hours I had garnered 40+ followers. Talk about feeling special!

So now here i am. Writing a blog. Enrolled at a university that I love. Actually attending my classes and doing the work required. I am doing things that at the beginning of the year I never thought would be possible. and that's why I am going to keep on top of this blog thing. Not because I have to but because i WANT to.