Essssay!

PROPOSAL

I’m not going to beat around the bush so I’ll just say it – media reporting on religion is crap. And by crap, I actually mean really crap.

Not only is it the amount completely disproportional to the importance of religion, the reporting that is actually done is some kind of vomit pool of tabloid journalism, “human interest” stories and distorted hyper-reality. Any intellectual discussion into the matter is swiftly beheaded before it even gets to poke its ugly head out.

So, with such problems in the quality AND quantity, you can see why I’ve found it quite difficult to formulate a question which relates to the coverage. Therefore, questioning such unsubstantial bollocks is automatically and by-default redundant.

But, like some really wise guy once said, the question should be what’s NOT said, as opposed to what is. And, because what is not said is so infinitesimally gargantuan in proportions, there is a need to limit that down somewhat.

Nowhere in the world do you see such a high concentration of idiocy as popular culture. By some mutation process, the significant ideas that we work so hard to put forth are diluted, dumbed down if you will, until only an insulting semblance remains. It is only natural then, that I wanted to explore popular culture.

My intended essay will focus on the Cronulla Riots. I choose to analyse through three very significant questions:

1. The hyperreality of it all.

2. The circulating discourses.

3. The emergent schemas.

The first question is a peering-glass exercise into how the popular media refuses to publish anything except the most exaggerated of stories. I mentioned the Ram Bomjon story as an example in my blog, although these type of stories are far more vast than my blog would suggest.

The second question is a look into the discourses which are circulating through society. These are particularly apparent in the citizen media – where discussion is lively and far beyond the simplicity of the story. I’d like to look at forums and talk-back radio as a source of such discourses.

And finally, the last question proposes to look at what kind of schemas come into fruition from such discourses. The example that directly relates to my topic and which is commonplace is the schema of Muslim (which, in the stink of the unwashed masses, is synonymous with terrorist, Lebanese and thug).

From such questions inevitably rise others such as war and peace journalism, the best role of the media in cultural conflicts and how big a part the popular media and citizen media played in the Cronulla Riots. Big questions and, as of yet, no big answers.

So, having said all of this, I guess my essay question would be something like:

Briefly analyse the under-representation and the hyperreality of popular media coverage of religion. What kind of discourses emerged from the Cronulla Riots through more informal news venues such as talkback radio and internet forums? What schemas circulated through such venues? And, what is the place of the popular media in such a conflict?

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Myth, Chronicle and Story – Exploring the Narrative Quality of News, Bird and Dardenne

In the Cronulla Riots, there was most certainly a narrative been played out on the proverbial stage. It was the ancient story of the natives versus the invaders, the conformists versus the subversives, the left versus the right. It was a war on many fronts and, naturally, my research would start somewhere here because this reading is a great insight into the narrative qualities of the media. It is also an important reading for its definition of a narrative as a cultural construction.

2. Simulcra and Simulation, Baudrillard

One peculiar aspect of religion coverage is its incessant reliance on drama. It, by all means, seeks to create some sense of mysticism or myth which is non-existant (or created only because it is agreed to be existent). Hence, Baudrillard’s theory of hyper-reality is something which is both interesting and very relevant to my essay topic.

3. Language and Power, Fairclough

Fairclough’s analysis of discourse is relevant because of its analysis of discourse through three separate dimensions – texts, production/distribution/consumption and discourse as a social practice. As a body of work, Fairclough’s books and essays are pretty airy fairy so the best advice I can give myself is to limit such readings as they are likely to confuse the matter somewhat.

4. Internet Forums

The one internet forum I looked extensively at was the Whirlpool Forums which originated as a place of discussion for Internet Service Providers. However, it has now since expanded into a place of discussion of a great many other areas and the amount of talk that surrounded the Cronulla Riots was phenomenal at minimum. It’s therefore useful as a place to collect raw data for my essay in an attempt to apply the philosophical ideas to the words of the people.

5. Talkback Radio

Of particular interest here is Alan Jones who was the centre of the newspaper and television blame game in the post-war period of the Cronulla Riots. It’s obviously not such a simple connection, though. The participants of such discussion are not mere sponges who absorb anything that Jonesy might say. Nor are they completely oblivious to his insidious words. Nevertheless, there are a great many questions that arise from studying his words and they are mostly to do with psychology.

CONCLUSION

So, despite the fact I’ve raved on for what might seem an inordinate amount of time, I’m not quite sure if I’m closer to answering the question. If I knew the answer, I’d have already submitted my essay and I would’ve already gotten a great mark. But I haven’t and so I leave this proposal with the promise that what is now currently a complete mess will transform into a true beauty. It’s a real ugly duckling.

Just a Little Healthy Conversation

And so, a month on from the Cronulla riots, I thought it'd be an interesting experiment to have a look at some threads on what some people thought. The links are below:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

That's a ridiculous amount of posts for just one news item (although the topic has been going on and on and we often see the word religion mentioned).

There is one particular thing, though, that came to surface in the Cronulla riots and which is something that, despite our unfathomable knowledge collectively, we haven't quite figured out. Generalisations is what I'm talking about.

And at the heart of the very concept of generalisation is limitation. By this I mean that it's called a generalisation because it is merely that - a piece of information that may apply generally but which people are forced to rely on due to their limited capacity to understand the whole world in and out. Even from when we're babies we begin to create categories (cognitive schema) in order to create an efficient way of understanding the world but through the sacrifice of accuracy. It's a trade off really - we can process information quicker but the information we get has limited application. I suppose what I'm really saying is that the whole world works on generalisations. The Law applys general rules in an attempt to maintain social stability. The media gives us general information because, at the end of the day, all we want is to be able to read our news and get a rough idea without having to do a PHD thesis on the given topic. And, people generalise about a particular ethnicity because visually, a particular ethnicity may very well be distinct, and then, because it is not within the mind power of any one person to understand and know every single person of the given appearance, we say that these people act a certain way and do certain things.

And in the Cronulla riots, all we ever got was generalisations - no real hard-hitting information. It was once again the media perpetuating the intellectual fallacies of society.

Generalisations are not in themselves dangerous things. It's when people think they know too much, think that their held generalisation is more then that - a universal truth - that we get such problems. It's the internal arrogance of the people, the refusal to fess up to our own stupidity and perhaps that fear that, no matter what, perhaps our minds will never be good enough for such things. Like Socrates said upon his trial, as he stood before a group of people who seem remarkably familiar, it is the smart man who knows that he is, in fact, a stupid man.

The proverbial Socrates knows that these riots were never caused by any one factor. They were not mere racism, nor retaliation to hooliganism. He also knows that any such hooliganism is, likewise, caused by varying factors each with their own degree of influence. It's complex beyond words, something which was never truly realised by the media and which will only ever be understood by the most brilliant of us.

And so, in playing the blame game, let's face it - we just don't have enough pointing fingers. Perhaps some day, when humans have evolved to have an almost infinite number of hands, we'll reach closer to that quintessential finger-pointing exercise.

A Comparative Study of Religion In Society Between Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and Shanghai

Now not being able to read a country's predominant language is an obvious disadvantage when trying to study the news and deriving the meaning of life from it. However, due to my most acute eye I have been able to compile a most comprehensive comparison of the religion in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and Shanghai.

Now most of us are aware of the terrorist faction who self-lovingly call themselves Muslims. In Australia we do not and cannot put up with these subversive non-integrators. It's a different situation altogether in Malaysia. In Malaysia, under some crazy follower of Islam, the predominant religion is Islam. Never before have I seen so many nuts! The dumb black locals actually have pride in their religion and display this through various forms of Muslim dress. Everywhere I look I see towel-wearing terrorists and I just imagine the bastards running down the streets with their AK47's and strapping a bomb underneath my car in the name of Allah.

This, of course, is not possible in Singapore where the prime minister's constant paranoia has resulted in police, with sub machine guns, stationed almost everywhere. They also have sniffer dogs which I believe (indeed I hope) are for the sole reason of detecting the sweet smell of C4 to prevent the terrorists from showing their true nature - namely blowing up people with general extremism.

And what about Shanghai? Shanghai has virtually no churches (this is dissapointing to say the least) except one extra-large one which resides on a hill where the tops of the towers are closest to God. Unlike Malaysia, there are no Muslims here (I derive this conclusion from the lack of terrorist symbols such as the Quaran and guns and other crazy shit).

What's the lesson here? Well for all you lamers i'll put it in dumb person language:
Muslims = Terrorists = Bad
Other Religions = Misguided = Bad
Christianity = True = Good

And thus concludes my PHD thesis.

Godcasting - From Jesus Direct To Your iPod!

While chucking a piss and watching it freeze right before my eyes in good ol' Shanghai, I overhead something rather phenomenal! A CNN special news story on the television featured an upcoming fashion item - godcasting. Those good samaritans among us who haven't yet heard of podcasting, I suggest you go buy an iPod right this moment so you can jump onto the Christian bandwagon and hear radioevangelism right before your very ears!

Now I assume all you good Christians have your F.R.O.G. bands, Tsubi clothing, crucifixes and what-not so why not add to your Jesus freak paraphenalia with some daily godcasts to get your latest fix of Christianity?

And why not indeed? First there was televangelism and to complement that we now have yet another way to mass-distribute God's good word - it's another example to show all you heretics and disbelievers that religion is NOT incompatible with capitalism.

Elton John marries David Furnish in fag ceremony

With the current climate in Australia (namely, the discontent of the queer community), we perhaps watch in jealousy, or fascination, or perhaps even titillation as Elton John connects in the symbolic sense with David Furnnish in a civil union in THE supposedly conservative Great Britain.

And what's the press' response? Well it's definately a mixed bag from the journos although, predominantly, the media have been abstaining from any gay jokes. That is, most, of course. Check this one out.

It's most unfortunate, though, that journos hide behind the veil of objectivity most of the time. And by objectivity, I mean some half-assed attempt at it (for those who like seeing a lot of half-assedness, have a look at the Fox News Network). Still, it's not hard to see where the value judgements come in.

So, in support of subjectivity which is most probably an inherent trait of human nature, i'll give off a little bit of my own opinion - if this civil union will indeed allow the queer female community to "come out", then that's tip-top, fantastic, bloody oath awesome! Long live the lesbian porn!

In search of a little peace and tranquility

In the sprawling urban wasteland that is our popular world, finding a little peace and tranquility can prove difficult indeed. This is so much so that a little boy, dubbed the "Buddha boy" by the media (but whom i like to call "the boy who could not find a nice place to sit and think"), has gone to the great length of sitting within a tree in an attempt to block out all that is wrong with the world. Nothing summarises the futility of such an attempt as the proverbial Australian family of The Castle who somehow find that little bit of "serenity" in a DIY house in the rural Bonniedoon (ibid?).

Ram Bomjon should've known better, though. He shoulda known that he would've become the latest religious fascination just like the tortilla with the image of jesus bestowed upon it. Unfortunately, the locals don't yet have that omniscient hallmark of the modern (and quite possibly, greater) world - the internet - and hence cannot make millions out of Ram Bomjon memorabilia from eBay auctions. However, they've certainly done it the good ol' way - that is, by surrounding the poor boy with various stalls in an attempt to rip off tourists and religious freaks alike.

What is apparent though, about such stories though (and this is certainly something that is reflected by the discourse of our society), is the general population's reluctance to accept that new brand of religion. The media recoils in horror as soon as any religion capitalises on the desperation of the great unwashed masses.

Could it be memories of lesser times when the Church WAS the State? Are these unwarranted fears? Is money necessarily contradictory to all religions?

And, the most important question of all - What is the meaning of life?

Alan Jones - Sedition, Hatred and Plain Old Wankerism

Scouring the great information network that is the internet, I came across a rather "interesting" photo of our beloved "shock jock", Alan Jones:













His face depicts an open-mouthed look of pure ecstasy. In fact, I'm quite sure that he was in nirvana - orgasmic at the idea of his new tattoo and his new-found relationship with the bodymod culture.

His new tattoo (and a thumbs up to the artist who did it...it is simply stunning!) coincides with his recent escapade with Muslim and Middle-Eastern bashing. I would say it perfectly complements his persona and we all know that a tattoo should do that, right? Check out this article.

Now if any person were ever a fashion icon, it should be Alan Jones. I think that 2GB should hire me as their PR-man and my first move - to really bring out the true nature of the station. This would involve placing glorious red Nazi banners outside the station and encouraging everyone to grow a hitler moustache. Additionally, Alan Jones' affiliation with white supremacists should be made public because no one likes a person who beats around the bush.

It made me think of our new sedition laws which are hallmarked by our good Prime Minister as enabling ASIO and the police to catch terrorists or those who merely lead them. I guess the premise behind such rhetoric is that the Godfather, who controls the Family, is just as bad, if not worse, than the Enforcers who dispense the Mafioso justice. At least that's what the Australian public is saying about Abu Bakar Bashir and one need only look at the Daily Telegraph to see this point.

So if the riots on Sunday and Monday (and for God knows how long) were spurred on by the Godfather of racism, then surely ASIO should do something about this? It is simply not on - spreading propaganda, inciting hatred and being generally devious. And when there's 5000 odd people willing to walk behind Jones' banner, the situation is more than serious.

My solution? Lock him away..or execute him. That's what an extremist Muslim leader would get in a similar situation, wouldn't they?