An Intercultural Examination of Music and Lyrical Content

Obviously, cultures vary all over the world.  People in every country value different things, have different life experiences, and have a different way of viewing the world.  Culture is part of the belief structure of people everywhere and has a great impact on their lives, whether they realize it or not. 

Given the massive differences between people from across the globe, one would assume that these cultural values, ideas and mindsets would filter into all aspects of that culture.  This includes films, literature and music.  Particularly focusing on the lyrical content of popular music, would this be true?  Does the music of America differ in subject matter from the music of the UK?  From Mexico?  From the Middle East?  By “popular music,” the music that is currently being listened to and the music that serves as the “chart toppers” in various countries will be studied and its lyrical content contrasted against the country’s culture and the music and culture of other countries.  And, what kinds of songs are found on these charts, and how do they get there?  Does the media in the country play a huge role in determining what the culture will want and accept musically as it does in America?  Are the other countries basically fed their choices and told to accept them?

It is easiest to begin with America.  Through history, Americans have always used music as a way to protest government activity, to tell love stories, or to get out some good old Rock and Roll.  The American musical spectrum is huge and can represent every facet of culture.  But, as history moves on, musical styles and subject matter do change.  In the 1960s, protest music and folk music full of social commentary were everywhere.   From Creedence Clearwater Revival to Peter, Paul and Mary, songs were largely focused on the government, the culture, peace between people and stories about life.  In the 1970s, the successful thing was disco music, as millions of American twenty-somethings strapped on roller-skates and Donna Summer provided the tunes under massive amounts of twinkling lights.  80s music, apparently unclassifiable any other way since we still refer to it as 80s music, was the beginning of what music has become today.  Over the past twenty decades, the most popular music has been evolving into what it has reached now.  The best description of what tops the American charts in the 2000s is “club music,” heavily concentrated on sex, money and partying.  This is not to say all the other musical styles do not exist and are no longer made, but they aren’t what are most sought after.

April, 2006.  The number one song on Billboard’s Hot 100 is “Don’t Matter” by Akon.  Other recent number ones include “Glamorous” by Fergie, “This is Why I’m Hot” by Mims, and “The Sweet Escape” by Gwen Stefani.  Billboard number ones represent a combination of radio airplay and albums sold.  These songs are also top songs downloaded on iTunes, the world’s most popular source for finding single tracks that people want to hear. 

So, what are these songs about?  “Don’t Matter” is about a couple that the general public has no faith in, but they will fight to be together and love each other anyway.  “Glamorous” is about high-class living, shopping for expensive things, drinking champagne on private jets, featuring intelligent lyrics such as “If you ain't got no money take yo’ broke ass home I’m G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S” and “the glamorous, oh the flossy flossy.”  “This is Why I’m Hot” is about is telling audiences the reasons why the singer, Mims, is hot.  The lyrics basically make no sense, but it is understood that “I’m hot cuz I’m fly, you ain’t cuz you’re not hot.”  And finally, “The Sweet Escape” is about someone wishing to be a better girlfriend so her boyfriend wouldn’t leave her.

It is not surprising to see this type of material serving as the population’s most desired music in the current American society.  The media in America has an incredible influence over the culture.  These songs represent exactly the type of messages that the media puts out in America: you need to be rich, you need to be hot, thin and ready to party, relationships are so hard to manage, etc.  Also, Americans are regarded by most of the rest of the world as generally apathetic and uninformed about political issues and world events.  Despite the occasional anti-Bush or anti-war song that gains popularity for a short time, very little amounts of modern American music have anything to do with outside cultures. 

The rest of the Billboard chart is parallel with the chart toppers in overall subject matter, which is obvious from the song titles.  “U + Ur Hand,” “Throw Some D’s,” “Rock Yo Hips,” “I’m A Flirt,” and “Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin’)” are some perfect examples of songs with this same cultural-reflective subject matter. 

It is obvious that American music plays into the culture of America.  It moves with history, and adapts along with the people.  In the 60s, culture and people were concerned about war, the media was concerned about war, and therefore the music was concerned about war.  Now, the media hides the war, the culture is generally apathetic or opposed to the war, and the music reflects what seem to be the priorities of modern Ameican culture. 

The power to say what will be popular lies in the hands of the decision-makers, i.e. the record producers.  This seems like a fairly democratic concept.  So, are the hit songs in other countries representative of their cultures as well?  And, are they more representative of the people’s opinions and beliefs or a product of the high-power individuals as well?

Analyzing the chart toppers in the UK is similar to doing it in the USA.  The power structure of England is not a lot different from America.  The media and radio are still greatly at the whim of major corporations (namely BBC and Virgin Radio) and the media helps to establish the culture and tells people what they want just as in the US.  The top 10 songs right now agree with this concept, as they are basically the same songs that are found on the American top 10 according to the BBC Radio website, which runs the “official” UK top 10.  No surprises there.  This American influence on popular music extends to Italy and even Russia, where American top tracks can be found embedded in the cultural hit lists.

Upon escaping the charts of English-speaking countries, the top songs change.  One or two may still be the same, but the rest are a whole different game.  Looking at the website and top songs list for Radio Helsinki, the largest radio station in Finland, a listing of music much different from the US and UK chart toppers is found.  At the top is Ark, a Swedish glam rock band, Bjork, Icelandic pop artist, pop artist Lily Allen, and down the list a little further there are even songs by Bob Dylan, Frank Zappa, The Doors, Beastie Boys songs that were popular in America ten years ago, and an incredible variety of songs.  None of which are the same music that is popular in America and the UK, with the lyrics full of references to money, partying, women bashing, sex and drugs.  Finland is filled with classic rock songs, modern rock songs, and innocent pop lyrics that drift into the genre of ambience. 

Possibly the most important thing to notice about the songs in Finland’s top 100 is not even the content of the lyrics, but the variety of the songs.  The top 100 in 2007 contains songs from 35 years of musical history all over the world.  That would be an unheard of concept in America or the UK.  In America, songs come onto the scene, dominate the world for a few weeks, and then disappear almost completely.  That is the business model of the producers that are at the top of the media ladder and the demand of the culture.  It is apparently not so in Finland.  The radio station is clearly not operating with that same mentality when a brand new British pop hit, a classic Doors tune and native songs such as “Rakastaa ja tulla rakastetuksi” appear on the same list.  The reason for this is the difference between corporate-owned media and state-owned media.  Finland does not have Clear Channel or Viacom, they have the government, and therefore the media is more reflective on what is beneficial for the culture and the citizenry overall, not so much with turning media and music into unimaginable sums of money.

As far as the lyrical content is concerned with the Finnish music, the songs in this list have much more peaceful and generally positive messages than do the American tracks.  That does seem relevant for a country like Finland, a land with a tiny army that hasn’t been in any kind of conflict since dealing with the Nazis.  I spoke to a Norwegian man, Alex, who gave me a bit of insight on how music relates to Scandinavian culture.  He told me, “Scandinavians are known for a laid-back approach to life, a generally positive worldview and the idea that living comfortably, happily and without stress is the best way to be.  A musical lineup that parallels this concept is therefore no surprise.”

I continued the evaluation by speaking to a Mexican woman, Lima, about music and their culture.  I asked whether Mexican music is definitive of Mexican culture, and how big an influence American music played.  Her response showed another dimension of cultural music. 

Mexicans use music as part of their identity, she said.  They do not really enjoy hearing songs in English.  American music is very unpopular, as the native bands and the Spanish sounds are much more sought after.  She said, “Mexican music is very based in the Mexican sense of living.  It speaks to the society.  Whatever problems are going on in our culture, are easily found in the music.  Right now, everything is about alcoholism and machismo attitudes.  The men are playing a dominant role in the culture and there are gender battles, and that is seen constantly in Mexican music.  Alcoholism has been very big recently as well.  It could be sad to others who hear the lyrics.  It could be very difficult to understand in the rest of the world why this type of thing is popular here, but it is what the people like because it talks about who we are.”

The context of the music, according to Lima, could be confusing to outsiders who do not understand the Mexican culture.  There is a lot of cultural history embedded in Mexican music, which is similar to American music.  Despite identifying the culture with the “depressing” topics, identifying social problems, gender identity and conflict, it is what people enjoy.  The difficulty in other cultures being able to relate to Mexican music would be a type of explanatory uncertainty, where people just do not understand the actions of a different culture.

This type of cultural concept found in Mexican music is also thematic in Middle Eastern music and some other Asian regions.  The political system and daily views of people in those areas are so misunderstood by other cultures that their music gets “lost” and has no appeal, but to them it serves as an essential part of what makes their identities.

Music as a whole is a grand narrative of all the cultures in the world.  It seems that regardless where one lives, the subject matter of popular music is woven to the subject matter of the society at that point in time.  Different forces work to bring the people and the music together in different governances, but the content of the music itself unifies each culture.  Cultural influences and contexts may always separate the industries from one another on a global level, but people are always mainly attracted to what they find similar to themselves and can relate to.  Language barriers and cultural identities sway the possibility of musical culture integration for many places, but the tunes continue to be reproductive of the society in which they are formed.

Fleming’s Wizard of Oz & Burton’s Big Fish

Every good fantasy requires a good hero.  While every hero becomes a hero in different ways, each must accept a call to adventure and face certain trials thereafter.  These stories come in all varieties yet often parallel in many aspects.  In both Victor Fleming's Wizard of Oz and Tim Burton's Big Fish, the heroes have no choice but to face the journeys they are given.  While one's expedition focuses on an escape and a return to a normal life, one's journey is the tale of a "normal" life.  Regardless, the two films provide adequate opportunity for comparison.

            In Joseph Campbell’s novel The Hero with a Thousand Faces, he denotes the beginning of a hero’s journey requires a call to adventure. This call to adventure summons the hero from his known society and transfers him to an unknown land.  These lands vary in description, but always provide everything from torment to delight, from superhuman creatures to polymorphous beings (58). In the example of Fleming’s Wizard of Oz, Dorothy’s first call to adventure surfaces when she first sets off down the yellow brick road.  Her arrival in Oz has already been established, which would be viewed as a call itself, but her journey within this new world truly does not begin until she sets off towards Emerald City.  This is to be the path that leads to her associations with the other characters and the road that leads her to the evil that awaits her.  Not only does a call to adventure happen in the initial stages of a hero’s journey, but several calls may also be present throughout the course of their epic.  In Dorothy’s case, she is called to adventure again when confronted with the task of retrieving the broomstick of the Wicked Witch.  A true call to adventure is something that twists the plot pace during the film.  Before landing in Oz, the plot centered on Dorothy’s troubles at the farm.  Before acquiring the broomstick task, the plot centered on the quartet’s journey to meet the wizard.  Each call to adventure gives the characters something new to search for and requires a new application of courage.

            The character of Edward Bloom also experiences several calls to adventure in Tim Burton’s Big Fish.  The beginning of the story tells the unusual tale of Bloom’s childhood from birth through high school.  After aging and growing ten times faster than his peers, Edward was recognized as “the biggest thing Ashton had ever seen.”  But, until this time, he had never left the town.  His first call to adventure comes when he meets Karl the Giant, a twelve-foot tall man who one day wanders into town.  Edward sees a commonality between the giant and him, feeling that the town was too small for them; physically for Karl, and due to ambition from Edward.  Edward called this adventure upon himself as he left the town with Karl, searching for all that the world outside Ashton had to offer.  The first place he travels outside of Ashton is a peculiar town called Spectre.  Not only is he greeted by a man who is “expecting him,” but a pair of ruby slippers hanging on a clothing wire at the entrance to town as well.  The “shoe” parallel between the two stories is an appropriate metaphor for the beginning of a journey.

Similar to Dorothy’s story, this was not the only call that Edward received.  Even though the story centers on many plots and levels, the general theme of the tall tales of Edward Bloom is love.  Most of his tales center around relationships with abnormal people, and most of all, the hunt for the love of his life.  Upon seeing Sandra for the first time at the circus, when time stood still, his new adventure is to find out everything he can about her and make her his wife.  His adventure starts again as he begins working for Amos Calloway, the circus manager, to find out all he can about his new love.

Because of the nature of people, even heroic ones, not everyone can be constantly optimistic.  This explains Campbell’s second stage in the development of a hero; the refusal of the call.  It is not uncommon for a hero to feel the task is too daunting and turn their focus to pessimism or other interests (59).  The refusal though has many levels and in some cases may merely be a moment of extreme strife.  In Dorothy’s case, she is confronted with glimmers of true refusal, but in the case of Edward Bloom, only sparks of defeat appear in his character before his determination quickly resolves the problem.

Dorothy’s first refusal is truly just an act of confusion.  Upon arriving in Oz, she is greeted by munchkins calling her a hero and Glinda donning her a witch.  She says she cannot possibly deserve these titles, as she is nothing but a girl from Kansas.  This refusal is not a true refusal, but a doubt based on her naivety of the world in which she appeared.  Dorothy’s second refusal happens when she first gives up hope of ever making her way back to Kansas.  Her and her three friends make their way to Oz and he requests they leave.  This starts her crying and telling herself she will never get back home to her aunt and uncle.  Naturally, this sequence of refusal only lasts a handful of minutes or the story would not progress.  The doorkeeper grants them an audience with Oz and the situation is resolved by her second call to adventure, mentioned earlier. 

Edward Bloom’s character is an exception to a true call to adventure.  His personal outlook and history would not allow for something as strong as a true refusal. Even as a young boy, Edward was not afraid to walk up to the Witch’s front door and look into her eye.  He, like Dorothy’s first refusal, experiences mere moments of doubt that are quickly overcome.  The only glimpse of doubt we see in Edward’s eye comes when he finally tracks down Sandra and finds out she is engaged to his childhood friend.  The journey to find her that we had been watching came to a sudden halt and all hope was lost, at least for a moment.  It only took until Edward walked twenty feet from the building for him to overcome this refusal as he shouted up at her window announcing she would be his wife, no matter what.  Aside from that, Edward’s ambition (and satisfying knowledge of how he would die) steered him away from further refusals of the call.

Another important aspect of heroic development according to Campbell is supernatural aid.  This assistance may take many omniscient forms, providing the adventurer with aid and items that may help them along their journey (69).  Supernatural aid is frequently a masculine figure, regardless of what mythical form it may embody (72).  Both The Wizard of Oz and Big Fish contain numerous supernatural aids.  In both films they appear as close partners with the hero, people or creatures that they associate with regularly during the course of their travels.

In Dorothy’s case, supernatural aids are all around her.  Some walk along side her throughout the entire story, some float through Oz in omnipotent bubbles, and one is even strapped right to the bottom of her feet.  As for the first reference, the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion are all examples of supernatural aids.  Though human by form, two of them are realistically inanimate and one is an animal.  Their supernatural classification comes from their ability to walk, talk, sing, dance, and save Dorothy’s life time and time again.  Being with her for the entirety of her time in Oz, they prove themselves time and again to be worthy aids in her quest.  So much so that her quest also becomes their quest, and they become almost as heroic a figure as Dorothy herself.  The second supernatural aid to Dorothy is Glinda the witch.  She proves her ability to watch over Dorothy constantly when she first greets her in Oz with a kiss, then awakens the gang in the poppy patch, and finally reveals the power that sends Dorothy back to Kansas.  There is nothing realistic about a witch or her actions and therefore she falls under the classification of supernatural aid.  Finally, there are the ruby slippers.  Though their power is unknown through most of the movie, it is clear they do posses some enchantment.  They eventually become the key to Dorothy’s trip back home. 

Edward’s character is surrounded by supernatural aids as well.  Given that his stories are fabrications that could never happen, it is required that supernatural things exist for him.  Twelve foot tall men, mermaids, cars that end up in trees and all the other quirky life situations of Edward Bloom are the supernatural aspects of his life.  This mysterious world he lived in shaped his life and the way he thought and lived.

Each filmmaker has to have their own style when it comes to the way they want to tell the story.  This is true both for the development of the characters as well as the actual style of the film.  The films of Tim Burton are renowned for their lush landscapes, imaginative ideas and the quirky, often dark fantastic magical design that trademark them.  This rile stands true for Big Fish. Big Fish’s reality is taken back and forth between the tall tales of Edward Bloom and the real-life quest for truth of his son.  The fantastic part of the story that focuses on Edward’s life, however, is the typical Burton-esque style.  Cars stuck in trees, trees that reach out and grab him (similar to apple-throwing trees) and creepy witches’ houses are common fare during the film.

In The Wizard of Oz, its design looks much like it would if Burton had been directing movies in 1939.  The colorful beauty of the piece immediately gives us a sense that the world beyond Dorothy’s door is not “Earth” as it is known.  Even without seeing the characters, the impression is felt that she is in an unusual place.  It is the groundwork for the fantasy that is to come during the entire piece.

Another point of examination that is quite different between the two pieces is the route by which the stories are told.  The point-of-view of the stories, though visually similar, are in fact different.  As for The Wizard of Oz, Fleming made out the entire journey to Oz to be a dream.  Not knowing this until the end, one sees the travels of Dorothy and her friends through a third-person eye.  The viewer is only privy to as much information as Dorothy is and the road to Oz is just as mysterious and full of possibility for them as her.  The camera stays on Dorothy for the entirety of the film with no references back to Kansas or the life she left.

The story is told differently in Big Fish.  Though the fantastic parts of the story are still shown third-person, they are also narrated by an older version of the character we see.  This is because they are all “flashbacked” stories being told.  The scenes of fantasy are interrupted by scenes of reality; the hunt for truth by Edward’s son.  He feels he has never known a true thing about his father and all he has been given is tall tales.  These scenes of reality set the tone of a charming father-son story but also arouse the fantastic recaps of the father’s life. 

Dorothy left Kansas a weak girl, traveled to Oz, and was given the task of reaching the Emerald City.  She became someone to depend on when she decided to take the scarecrow, tin man and lion with her.  Edward Bloom became a person to depend on for many people throughout his life; Karl, Norther Winslow, the Siamese twin, and the entire town of Spectre for example.  A good hero has the courage and selflessness to do things for the benefit of others.  Both characters could have avoided the responsibility of helping anyone, but their assistance proved their heroism.  This sacrifice of one for others is essential in creating them both as the heroes of their stories.  Edward left his hometown of Ashton, worked for months at the circus, left Spectre, and basically did the more daring option of any choice he confronted through his entire life.  While Dorothy’s journey was focused on getting herself and Toto home, she also sacrificed much of herself to make sure her supernatural aids got to the Wizard.

The villain is the largest difference between the two pieces.  In The Wizard of Oz, the villain is a concrete thing – a wicked witch who wants to eliminate Dorothy and acquire her shoes.  Her weakness is parallel to Dorothy’s.  Merely an accidental contact with water finally destroys her, a demise that is acceptable from a timid young girl and a man made of straw.  While the witch had powers far greater than Dorothy’s, she is rarely impressive as an obstacle. 

Big Fish has a very different image of a “villain.”  There is no beast out to tackle Edward Bloom.  The only villain in the story is life’s resistance to Bloom’s ambition.  The way he accounts his existence reflects a tackling of life’s impossibilities.  Therefore the villain is the series of life-long obstacles that step in the way of Edward’s determination.  As far as Edward’s son’s story is concerned, the villain is life again, specifically the blur between fact and fiction that has bothered him for years.  This villain is only overcome when his father is on his deathbed and he finally understands the reason behind a life full of tall-tales.  A normal life simply was not enough for Edward Bloom.

Both of these stories dive into the realm of fantasy in many similar ways.  Joseph Campbell’s philosophy behind the creation of a hero is validated by the events of both stories.  The heroic character in each confirms that there are certain requirements for building a believable hero.  The sentiment of fantasy is alive in both stories, bringing uniformity to the creation of a hero and proving everlasting reign to a genre that can never be contained.

Works Cited

Big Fish. Dir. Tim Burton. Perf. Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, and Jessica Lange. 2003. DVD.                                  Columbia Pictures Corporation, 2004.

Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Providence: Bollingen; 1972.

The Wizard of Oz. Dir. Victor Fleming. Perf. Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley,

            and Billie Burke. 1939. DVD. Warner Home Video, 2005.

A Response to the documentary "Commanding Heights"

Commanding Heights was another series I found compelling on the basis that it was all nearly evergreen information to me.  I had never previously learned a thing about economics, market economies, planned economies, or heard of most of the people involved in making these decisions for the world.  Though I felt the direction of the film was occasionally one-sided, the information presented, the research gathered, and the people interviewed helped shape the ideas being presented.

            The first chunk of video showed the world moving from market economies to planned economies, then reversing back again within a single century.  Countries like Brazil, Argentina, Soviet Union, and Egypt had especially tricky times completing this free-market-free cycle.  Whether still developing at the time, interested in the rising idea of communism, recently occupied or destroyed by war, those were a few countries in economic shambles for a large part of the century, and this manipulation of the economy was a complex equation to work out.  It is the same woe that current developing countries have for their own economies – what path should they take?  Whose methods should they follow?  The film inevitably shows the failure of Keynesian economics and praises the ideas of Hayek. 

            This first chunk enabled me to see the beginnings of the essence of disproportion of the film; not to say the entire thing is biased, but the concepts of the free market and Hayek’s ideas end up being the “winners” of the economic battle.  Keynesian economics are smashed, despite the fact that the filmmakers briefly mention Keynesian economics helping post-war Europe and Japan mid-century when their free market economies were sluggish.  They also were used effectively during the Great Depression, which is a time that I was surprised to see relatively ignored in a film about economics.  If it worked for those places at those times, when and how could it realistically work in the modern world for developing countries?  Some of their economic states parallel other countries from back then.  That question never comes up, but it seems reasonable to ask. 

Because of all that, I felt that the bit of axe grinding predisposition towards American successes came out.  Propaganda, in a word.  American ideas or successful redevelopment in American ally countries were more praised than others (we all could become Thatcherites after watching this.)  Failures were ignored.  I assume an overview of world economics crafted from the point of view of a non-capitalist point of view would end up being a story concentrated in different areas.  However, most of the world was remade in a capitalist image, so it may be rightly so that it “wins” in the end. 

What Commanding Heights wants to illuminate is the advantage of resource distribution through free markets over government control.  The ‘commanding heights’ were government-controlled industries, which the filmmakers wanted to show ended in failure.  Keynes thought this idea would work; a “mixed economy,” and the ideas were put into work with central planning and regulation.  However, we are to see that this system would not deal with market shocks and inevitably led back to deregulation and privatization of these industries.  What made it work previously but not for the 1970s-1980s world?  Could smaller developing countries with fewer resources and less industry reliant on government intervention still operate through a Keynesian approach?  With the dominance of free markets and capitalist ideas worldwide we’ll probably never find out completely.  However, since the making of this film, there does seem to be a rising appreciation of socialism – a dead idea as far as the film is concerned, but something that has been gaining interest in recent days.  With films like Michael Moore’s “Sicko” highlighting one specific area where a socialist system seems to be working better all over the world than a free system, people are gaining interest and the idea has a possibility to be parlayed into industries in all economic systems worldwide – developing and developed.  One would hope that developing countries could figure out a method of constructing an amalgam of the proven successes of other economies over the past century.

            While free markets do work in the long run, it can be a daunting task getting to the solution.  The second chunk talks about the agonies that countries endure when overhauling their economies.  People prefer not to toil through difficulty to achieve a goal; something required of a switch to free economics.  However, I couldn’t manage to draw much more than a superficial image of this out of the film.  The story traveled across several countries, all talking about how difficult times were during the transitions.  Politicians, idea makers and others were interviewed, all saying, “yes, it was hard. Trillions of dollars of debt were had. Inflation was nuts. Milk was $15.”  All of that is terrible, but I got the impression that there was little that could be done about everything until the free trade system worked itself out. 

            Past the first disc, the dangers of globalism are what we see.  I didn’t quite understand why the tactics they applied worked in this situation and, as I mentioned, why something like Keynesian economics wouldn’t.  I was never convinced that a Keynesian system, especially given its successes in the past for various countries, could never be successful again.  The film seemed to be pumping its pro-capitalist free trade agenda again, concentrating on the victors.  I wondered if a Polish assembly line worker made this film if it would have been the same information.

            The truth of the film, to me, and regardless of its agenda or direction, is showing the failure of economies where the government controls production and sets prices.  It is impossible to argue that every country where this situation went on unraveled, and until the process of supply and demand was implemented, was a disaster.  More importantly perhaps is the failure of these systems on a personal level.  With no incentive to gain ability to sell more products or truly excel, impetus to create and inspiration in engineering don’t exist, no risks are taken, and deficiency occurs.  That is ultimately disastrous for any economy, especially one in trouble, because nothing has the possibility of evolving to guide the economy back to stability.

            That knowledge is especially important to developing nations, as they may not feel they have the innovative power, resources, capabilities or technologies to develop new things in ways capable of sustaining a free market economy.  A controlled economy may appear a logical solution to operation, but history shows people will figure out how to keep supply and demand going and make free markets alive, and boost wellbeing for all people.  The great minds interviewed throughout the film concurred this theory.

            It is evident how well the economic situations of war-torn countries across the world parallel with often worn-torn modern-day developing nations.  Though it is clear particular economic platforms need altering based on the state of a nation (some need “shock therapy!”) we know that total government control of major industries has generally been an unsuccessful method.  The framework of past experiences can be molded into new ideas for newer nations to put them on a track towards free markets, benefiting the economies, innovation, development, technology, and the lives of the people as a whole. 

Legal Issues in Mass Communication

Many areas of U.S. law are applicable to the field of mass communication.  They all play important roles in shaping the way media business is handled and influencing decisions and behaviors.  As technology and communication develop, the laws attempt to keep pace and reflect the needs of the society, sometimes successfully and sometimes not.  Regardless, hundreds of mass media cases in many different areas of law are conducted each year and have a significant impact on the field.

            Libel is one area of mass communication that is a huge part of legal issues in mass communication.  It has a significant impact because libel essentially only exists in the area of mass communication.  It is something that must be constantly avoided by anyone working in any news or information distribution capacity, be it broadcast, newspapers, magazines, advertising, etc.  It keeps people from lying, or saying things publicly that are false and could damage another person’s reputation or business.  It can be a big trouble for reporters, given the high cost of legal cases even if they win.  But, it also guarantees an element of truth in information that is given to people.

            Libel is a civil suit.  There are a few things that must be evident and taken into account in court in order for someone to successfully win a libel suit. 

1.     An idea of whether the plaintiff is a public or private figure.

2.     Actual malice (that is, evidence that the harmful text was published knowing it could be harmful)

3.     Proof of damages.  Proof that the document actually harmed the person.

One of the biggest landmark cases in libel was the Sullivan case in 1964, which established the precedent of actual malice when the New York Times published an advertisement that implied the Montgomery, Alabama police commissioner and his division were involved in unfair practices against the black community.  Sullivan won $500,000 in Alabama court, then the Supreme Court ruled:

“The rule of law applied by the Alabama courts was found constitutionally deficient for failure to provide the safeguards for freedom of speech and of the … under the proper safeguards the evidence presented in this case is constitutionally insufficient to support the judgment for Sullivan.” (Wikipedia)

            Libel’s influence will always influence the character of mass media.  While it protects the truth and keeps people from harming one another, it also discourages a lot of aggressive journalism and information that may be important to get out to people may never surface.  It is somewhat a double-edged sword, but most information that truly needs to be public will eventually surface, so it seems it works more for benefit than discouragement.

            Another undeniably important area of law is copyright.  Copyright laws protect the materials of creators, encouraging further creativity, as people will be guaranteed continued ownership of their property and the ability to make a living from it.  Embedded within copyright is the concept of ‘fair use,’ and from copyright expirations comes the public domain. 

            Copyright law, until the digital age rolled around, had done a fairly decent job of protecting the creative works of artists.  Now, its impact is dwindling as copyright infringement is so easy, and it is losing its character as a force to be reckoned with.  The laws are constantly falling behind, leaving more and more holes for infringement and closure of the public domain.

            The public domain is an important aspect of copyright.  After a copyright expires, the material is meant to be available for public use, to broaden the available pieces that people can use, adopt, alter and change to further the world of creativity.  This area is shrinking because of the copyright laws that do not represent modern technologies and the ability to work around the laws.  Evidence of this is seen in p2p software and the decade-long debates about it, video piracy through downloading and foreign copy shops, and all the other forms of piracy that have become almost daily life to millions of people.

            Free speech is another area of the U.S. constitution that has a big impact on mass media.  Mainly upheld by the standards set by the FCC, there exist regulations about what things can and cannot be said certain places at certain times.  When a free speech case comes up, the battle is always split between people who believe speech can be controlled to protect children and society, and others who feel free speech always means free speech, despite who it may harm.

            Cases like the Don Imus case give insight on where free speech stands in this country, as well as showing the hypocrisy of free speech and censorship interpretations.  He got fired for his comment, an action that some people agreed with and others didn’t.  That was inappropriate, yet many of the lyrics of popular music are accepted and are ten times as vulgar.  We can have all the incredibly raunchy things we have on television, but Bugs Bunny is off-air for being too violent.

            Censorship is a very debatable topic, split down the middle on beliefs just like its partner free speech.    Some say it violates free speech, others say it needs to be moderated to protect children.  Rules about particular words on television (Pacifica – Carlin’s dirty words), violence at particular times on television and the ratings system are all put in place to control images and language that are “explicit.”  Censorship has an important role in the character of mass media because it must always be taken into account when creating because of these rules imposed to regulate content.  The only things that are truly censored and unattainable, however, are things that regard national security or child pornography.

Video Games, Pattern Recognition and Problem Solving

             The purpose of my research project was to gather information about the possible relationship between video game playing and a person’s ability to solve problems and recognize patterns.  Since playing a video game requires constant cognitive work in both areas, it would seem logical that with increased experience via video game playing, a person’s abilities in problem solving and pattern recognition should be enhanced. 

            With so much negative attention focused on video games in the modern world thanks to game developers’ ability to simulate many real-life actions and behaviors, I hoped to seek out something beneficial in the world of video gaming.  If playing video games did increase a player’s ability to solve problems and recognize patterns, it would redefine video gaming as something beneficial to the mind.  It would be an important concept altering the way parents, educators and people in general view the impact of video games.

            It has been proven that complicated thought processes are necessary to play any type of video game, whether it is a puzzle strategy game or a first-person shooter.  Anticipating the upcoming move of the artificial intelligence, figuring out creative ways to accomplish in-game missions and outwitting the challenges implemented by the developers are constant, fluid necessities while playing.  Even violent video games or sports games require this never-ceasing hard thinking, and are often even more mentally engrossing than reading because two-way interaction is required.  Video games promote different ways of thinking to accomplish situations that may represent reality or fantasy.  A person’s ability to be able to enter into a new video game and quickly adopt an understanding of the rules, controls and style of the game are obligatory skills.  With all these truths about the cognitive aspects of video gaming, I thought it logical that the basic skills of pattern recognition and problem solving should be more developed for video gamers than non-gamers.

            My hypothesis is not directly related to any general theory of communication research that I am aware of.  Based more in mental ability, it is closely related to the field of psychology.  The question studies the effects that a media-based piece of technology can have on a person’s ability to develop their mind for use not only in video gaming, but in any situation involving pattern recognition or basic problem solving.  The medium of video games has truly only existed in consumer society for slightly less than thirty years, and its prominence was not felt until the Nintendo boom in the mid-1980’s.  For that reason, not much theory-based research has been done on the subject.

 Literature Review

            In the past few years, a few researchers have been investigating the positive effects of video game usage on people, primarily mentally-developing children.  The studies range from investigations of problem solving and pattern recognition to creativity, attention holding, exercise, interactions with others, cause and effect, visual intelligence, tolerance and non-violence, self-concept, exploration and growth.  Many people believe that by playing video games, all of these physical and mental abilities can be enhanced.  These studies aided me in refining my research question into the two subjects I mentioned before – pattern recognition and problem solving.  Concentrating on something that could actually be measured, the research that has been done allowed me to understand methods of study that others had used and implement their methods into my own.  Concentrating on these two related mental procedures, I would be able to get quantifiable results from my study.

            As stated, other research has been done on the subject.  An article in New Scientist Magazine¹ reviewed research conducted by Steven Johnson, author of the book Everything Bad is Good for You.  The article discusses the hard thinking video game playing requires because of its ever-constant need for analysis and on-the-fly thinking.  Deciphering the rules and methods of any game and building the ability to make decisions and think out problems while playing are outcomes of active video game use.  Johnson demands that popular culture, including video games, is becoming more intellectually challenging to follow than it previously was.  Video games are training developing children to better understand how to analyze situations and solve problems. 

            A popular resource for video game research known as Game Studies houses information on much research done in the field.  One group of people, a sociology professor at Loyola, an anthropologist at Loyola and a Loyola graduate student researched first-person shooting games played over the internet².  Their aim was to understand the problem-solving skills of its players by analyzing their actions.  They visited 50 different servers hosting the online game “Counter Strike.”  Playing and

1.      Unknown. “Are the kids alright after all?” New Scientist 187 (2005): 48-49.

2.      Wright, Talmadge, Paul Breidenbach, and Eric Boria. “Creative Player Actions in FPS Online Video Games.” Game Studies: The International Journal of Computer Game Research Dec. 2002. <http://gamestudies.org/0202/wright> 

observing the game for 70 hours, interacting with 23-25,000 other players, they were able

to examine the language and actions of those involved.  Their research showed people’s problem solving ability was enhanced by their attention to the patterns in other players’ movements and actions.  After watching other players, people would begin to anticipate their moves.  The complexity of team interaction was also greater than they had expected; teams would bond to form offensive and defensive strategies against the other team.

            Another professor, this time of media research at the University of Magdeburg in Germany, did research investigating the pedagogical aspects of video game popularity.  His method was to review the amount of time people spent playing games per country, by particular age groups within certain countries, frequency of gaming, favorite genres of games, reasons for playing and company while playing, to name a few.  His aim was to review research conducted on the positive side of gaming by doing his own.  His conclusions were that children learn how to operate computer equipment before learning in school and that they “learn many ways of thinking and problem solving outside school through technologies such as video games.³”

            A fourth researcher, David Shaffer, reviewed other researchers’ findings to say that children can use experiences from video games to help them deal effectively with situations outside the context of the game, heightening their problem solving abilities.⁴ He reviewed the results of many pedagogical experiments on the subject to arrive at his conclusions, studying the effects of computer-related education on children and students. 

3.      Fromme, Johannes. “Computer Games as a Part of Children’s Culture.” Game Studies: The International Journal of Computer Game Research May 2003. <http://gamestudies.org/0301/fromme>

4.      Shaffer, David W. “Epistemic frames for epistemic games.” Computers & Education 46.3 (2006): 223-234. 

           Another journal revealed a study done in the early 1990s by Suzanne Keller.  Published six years after the release of Nintendo’s NES system, the study examined hand-eye coordination, complex thinking skills and violent thinking as results of video game playing.  The study involved two groups; avid NES players and non-NES players.  While nothing was proven as far as hand-eye coordination was concerned, high school students who played NES scored higher on critical thinking skills tests than those who did not play.⁵   The study reported that the children believed NES helped them think and they were able to apply their thinking skills out of context into real-world tests.  The violence test also showed that children do not think violent thoughts while playing violent games, but think of strategies they could use to win the game.  The method used gave me the idea of using a test to gain information about my subjects, which was the method of evaluation I ultimately chose.

                  The above researchers all helped me narrow down my research question into something answerable.  Other research also aided the process, such as Yuji H’s research on motor skills, proving that reaction times in pattern recognition and information processing are higher in video game players than non-players.⁶  This study, similar to the NES research involving tested study groups, furthered my decision to use a test.  A third test, studying differences in gender, also sparked my interest to see if the results of my test would parallel with it.  The test was done at Wingate University in North Carolina.  It pitted female video game players against male, assuming that women video game players would be better at a mental rotations test than non-game playing women, but it would do

5.      Keller, Suzanne M. “Children and the Nintendo.” Elementary and Early Childhood Education. 1992: 1-19. ERIC. EBSCOhost. La Roche College Lib., Pittsburgh, PA. 11 Apr. 2006 <http://search.epnet.com>.

6.      H, Yuji. “Computer games and information-processing skills.” Perceptual and Motor Skills. Oct. 1996: 643-647. Medline. EBSCOhost. La Roche College Lib., Pittsburgh, PA: 11 Apr. 2006 <http://search.epnet.com>.

no justice for the men.  The hypothesis proved true; the female gamers did better on the test than their counterparts, but the male gamers actually did worse than their counterparts.⁷  It sparked a curiosity in my mind as to whether or not that would stay true for my study. 

      The final few examples of research on the subject I found were on applying video game problem solving techniques to out of context world scenarios.  A peer review of James Gee’s book What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy was helpful in seeing proof that video games can help teach world views by “making [the player] rely on problem-solving skills to read defined goals.  In a well-designed game, people an even learn new skills and see the consequences of their knowledge, or their ignorance.⁸”  The controversial article about video game education says the skills learned while playing games have a lot to do with people’s ability to solve problems. 

      Finally there is a 1992 study at Vanderbilt, as mentioned by Kurt Squire, MIT research manager, that showed “studies have shown that students who learn Algebra through problem-solving are more likely to use Algebra in solving problems than students who learn Algebra through traditional means,” like the classroom⁹.  His article states the skills children learn to use while entertained playing video games are more likely applied in reality than those learned in a non-exciting classroom setting.     

7.      Ginn, S. “Relationships between spatial activities and scores on the mental rotation test as a function of sex.” Perceptual and Motor Skills 100.3 (2005): 877-81.

8.      Carlson, Scott. “Can Grand Theft Auto Inspire Professors?” Chronicle of Higher Education. 49.49 (2003): A31-2C.

9.      Squire, Kurt. “Cultural Framing of Computer/Video Games.” Game Studies: The International Journal of Computer Game Research July 2002. <http://gamestudies.org/0102/squire>

       Lastly, there was an article on puzzle solving in video games that examined the mental necessities of the action¹⁰.  With these past researchers’ work in my mind, I was able to calculate a hypothesis:  People who play video games regularly should perform better on tests involving pattern recognition and basic problem solving.

Research Question

      With a hypothesis derived, a question evolved from reading other research.  Will all people who play video games perform better on the test, or will only females?  Judging by the results of the aforementioned study at Wingate University, only female video gamers should perform better on a mental skills test. 

Methodology & Method

      As stated earlier, I decided a test would be the best way to measure the problem solving and pattern recognition abilities of the respondents.  It would be the best way to quantify the results and make them measurable and comparable in the same context. 

      The first task was to create the test that would be used to gather results.  The first section of the test involved basic questions: Do you play video games?  If yes, how often do you play them?  Then, the particular genres of preference were asked and finally, the gender of the respondent.  These questions would be used to narrow down the results of the test and bring a better understanding to them.  For instance, if 

10.    Newman, James. “The Myth of the Ergodic Videogame.” Game Studies: The International Journal of Computer Game Research July 2002. <http://gamestudies.org/0102/newman> 

players of only particular genres scored better, if only women scored better, if people who did not play at all scored better, etc.  Having the questions about genre and gender would separate the answers into manageable groups.  Also, having the question “Do you play video games?” would automatically create a control group as the test was being taken.

      As for the actual test questions, they were carefully selected to reflect the hypothesis and research questions I was trying to answer.  After visiting several online websites, I collected questions involving recognizing patterns of moving shapes, number sequences, problem solving and a mathematical word problem.  The test was designed to be non-biased as far as gender was concerned, and questions were selected that were not terribly difficult but were challenging enough to suit the assumed mental ability of college students that would serve as test subjects.  The style of the problems would hopefully be adequate to prove or deny my hypothesis and bring a response to my research question.  

      The research was conducted solely at La Roche College, which automatically added a bias to the results.  For this reason, the sample was chosen as randomly as possible.  Students and staff members were both given the test based on nothing other than being in my presence when I was looking for subjects.  This would bring as much randomization to the subject group as possible in a small college community.  The test would be given to at minimum twenty-four people, twelve males and twelve females.  Also, no calculator or any outside assistance would be permitted as that would sway the results and not show the true ability of the respondent. 

Results/Findings

      Initially, on a basic level, it was clear that the results did concur with the Wingate study; women did better than men.  Regardless of whether or not they played video games, and most of them didn’t, they generally scored higher than the men.  Most of the men, however, also did not play video games.  There was evidence, though, that the people who play video games did do better than the ones that do not, for both genders.  Many respondents who marked that they frequently (weekly to daily) play video games got a perfect score on the test, or missed one.  Regardless of game genre, the fact held true. 

      An apparent problem was that the majority of the people I happened to sample do not regularly play video games.  This quelled the number of successful comparisons that I had to work with.  I thought randomly sampling people would prove a higher rate of players, given that the average age of video game players is between 18 and 39¹¹ which includes almost all of the college community.  This furthered the invalidation already established by the bias of doing the survey solely at a small college.  Not having enough comparison material means that side of the study may not have enough substance to hold itself as sufficient.

      So what do these results mean for my hypothesis and research question?  Obviously the video game players did better on the test, but them being in the minority, does it really prove my point?  At least it does show that there may be

11.    "Computer and video games." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 26 Apr 2006, 21:41 UTC. 26 Apr 2006, 22:51 <http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Computer_and_video_games&oldid=50320892>.

some correlation between video games and problem solving capacity.  The ability to recognize the patterns in the test questions could be directly related to peoples’ experiences with video games. 

      As for the females scoring better than the males, figuring out the reasoning behind that would require a whole other study testing cognitive abilities between genders.  Perhaps females are naturally better at those types of things, or perhaps their videogame experiences helped them develop their minds faster than the males. 

      The starting bias is the fact that the test was performed on a college campus.  Though the questions were not easy and were well-suited for college-level thinkers, college students are not a good representation of the population at large, and therefore not an ideal sample to begin with. 

      Essentially, because of the starting bias and outcome of the tests, there is probably too little evidence to come up with a conclusive “yes” or “no” to my research question.  It seems my hypothesis may be valid based on the results acquired but there is probably more research that could be done to support my findings. 

Conclusion & Discussion

      What can be learned from the methods used in this study is that a test is a relatively effective tool to gather information if given to enough people.  Making sure it is administered to a large enough amounts of people to give enough room for all types of results would be very helpful, something I would have liked to do if I had more time.  I do believe I was able to get some good information out of my study that I could someday further by re-doing the test and giving it out to more subjects, possibly a few hundred from all different locations, age groups, SES and so on.  That would randomize the subject group the way it should be and eliminate the locality of having it all done at one college with relatively similar types of people.  With a test like this it is very important to have as random a sample as possible.

      Another thing I would do different would be to add a question along the lines of “how long have you been playing video games?” to the test.  That could be a key element in judging someone’s response.  If a person plays daily, but only started playing a few months ago, they would likely have not yet developed their problem solving and pattern recognition skills yet to the level being studied.  Without that question, as my test was, the respondent could be swaying the results of an entire group that they may not technically be a part of. 

      Also, if this test were to be conducted as a long-term project, people who play video games could be tested again over time to see if their skills had developed at all.  Someone could be tested at age 18, age 25, age 30, age 35, and age 40 with questions of similar composition and difficulty to see if anything improves.

      There are a few further questions that my personal research, and my reading the research of others has inspired; notably, why do women seem to perform better on these tests than men?  And, does it really have something to do with video games?  Further research could be done on each.  Also, all of my highest scoring people were video game players, so my study is a well-grounded framework for a study to continue with that hypothesis.  A further study could build off what I started to prove and see how far it goes.