Blog Assignment #2

William Mazzarella, in his article “Culture, Globalization, Mediation,” argues that processes of mediation are fertile ground for anthropological study in the context of globalization due to their relevance in contemporary society as a basic foundation of socio-cultural understanding. Understanding the level of connectivity between meditative processes and ourselves is crucial in revealing the importance of allowing us to understand media as a structurally ambiguous medium that encourages us to represent us to ourselves. Our ability to distance ourselves from meditative processes can encourage a revival of a certain level of aestheticism, and in doing so, allows for an aura of contextual authenticity to reveal itself in relation to cultural processes within the scope of globalization. Mazzarella uses the terms “cultural proximity” and “resurgence of the local” to characterize the drive towards anthropological distancing and to allow particular awareness of a created cultural reality amidst the process of globalization.

It becomes increasingly important then to understand globalization as affecting our cultural understandings and representations of the world that surround us. We must keep in mind mediation and its processes. If, for example, we place too much acceptance in broadcast media’s selective exposure without being consciousness of it, or understanding our immersion in media, we risk denying the process of mediation because it does not allow for authenticity to occur in understanding the natural aesthetic of the content itself being exposed. With the possibilities of the Internet, the growth of connectivity between various media forms and our selves has increased exponentially, increasing the complexities of mediation and globalization. Thus, an anthropological approach in understanding mediation becomes necessary for those who wish to understand the true relevance of the effects of media and its forms on globalization. For anyone to truly experience authenticity in a relationship with the world that surrounds us, it is clear that a certain level of distancing is required. It is only our self-consciousness of our interaction with media forms that can lead us to awareness of the powerful, socio-cultural and socio-political process that is mediation. 

Sources:

Mazzarella, William. “Culture, Globalization, and Mediation.” Annual Review of Anthropology, June 4, 2004.

Blog Assignment #1

It goes without saying that the presence of media in society has allowed for a global population to find connectivity with the world that surrounds it. In the last century, the centrality of media forms such as newspapers and television has been a powerful force that has brought people together in their communities and homes, uniting them through the events faced all over the world and effectively shaping what we can refer to as public opinion. Today, the characteristics of contemporary society and its aesthetic are essentially mediated by multiple forms of media, which allow connectivity with global networks of people and the cultures they are a part of. It is certain that the most influential form of contemporary media is the Internet and the culture it has brought along with it. Not only has it minimized the gap in communication between leaders and the masses, it has allowed for a more participatory experience in engaging with global issues, their causes, and their solutions. Not only are we able to take in what is being presented to us as an audience, we are able to characterize our own perceptions through blogging, engaging in online discussion, and social networking, effectively allowing us to contribute to a body of information that lends itself towards public opinion.

In light of the recent media revival of the cholera epidemic in Haiti, I understand the media as being responsible for creating global awareness of the epidemic, and effectively allowing for international contribution from both governments and NGOs in order to remedy substandard conditions present in Haiti. However, ineffective humanitarian aid organization, as well as media reports of unsuccessful endeavors has led to a reshaping of public opinion on the matter; one that is negative. It is my belief that we have minimized our distance far too much regarding the cholera epidemic in Haiti, and that the aura of good intent and positive increase in awareness and humanitarian aid has consequently diminished. It has allowed us to become overly critical towards the media for doing its job in bridging the gap between a global community and the events endured by its population based on the political nature of the epidemic.

As Etant Dupain of the Boston Haitian Reporter noted earlier this year, the alternative Haitian media project Noise Travels, News Spreads worked together with the International Lawyers Office, International Action Ties and Let Haiti Live on a shoestring budget to carry out a grassroots education campaign to prevent the spread of cholera. This effective campaign distributed a total of 300,000 educational flyers in more than fifty major camps and heavily populated communities. With a rented pick up truck and sound system, the team was able to reach hundreds of thousands. At the same time, the American Red Cross, which has hundreds of millions of dollars, didn’t distribute even 50,000 in that first week. They have huge logistical capacity and the economic means, but are they working to help Haitians or to help themselves? When an organization like the American Red Cross, which prides itself on expertise in water and sanitation, is still delivering water ten months after the earthquake, one has to ask: why haven’t they invested in long-term solutions for water treatment (Dupain 2010)?

With reports like these outlining the ineffectiveness of humanitarian aid, it becomes easy for us to look critically towards the media in order to establish a certain level of commitment in pursuing solutions to the cholera epidemic in Haiti. The politics of the situation cannot hold media and its mediation responsible for unsuccessful action plans in our world. We need to recognize that the media allows us to increase our awareness of global communities, their populations, their struggles, and their developments. The rest comes down to economic capacity and political restructuring.

Sources:

Dupain, Etant. “Voices of Haiti: Foreign Aid and Cholera.” Boston Haitian Reporter, November 18, 2010.

Gourevich, Philip. “Alms Dealers.” The New Yorker, October 11, 2010.