Transforming Cultures in Songbird's World

2005-12-08T22:36:00.000-08:00

Globalization & Culture

Jan Nederveen Pieterse

Pieterse took the study of globalization & culture to another level. His thoughts made you think and reevaluate the way you think. This book challenges your views of the world and the culture you live in. For a man or woman who desires to study globalization and cultural differences, this is the book that will help to zone in on social issues and topics that may need to be looked at. It is authors like Pieterse that are showing sociologist new ways to view the world.

Reading this book for me was difficult due to terminology. I have learned about culture and global concerns through the other books for this class. It is with this book that every thing is taken to a deeper level. I would really recommend this book to those who are studying missions and making a career in that field. The book has many good points and it is quite helpful.

With this wealth of information, if I were a teacher and this was my field, I would use this book to teach from. Deeper is the call for the day and we ought to take many more topics andn issues deeper than just the surface. The author has done a great service to not only students but to other professors. This book really opens ones eye to how all cultures mesh together.

2005-11-29T11:40:00.000-08:00

Inventing Popular Culture

John Storey

How do we or how have we invented popular culture? What topics and cultures are involved in this inventing process? How does this affect the culture of yesterday and today? Where does the inventing process begin? Who is involved?

The scope of this topic was shown in the preface of this text. "Culture is an active process" this statement says to me that culture is ever evolving. Culture always changes whether it wants to or not. It says that culture never changes in the same way but in many different ways for many different reasons. We must be concerned whether or not cultural change is meaningful and beneficial.

As stated in chapter one popular culture began to be invented in the 19th Century. During the inventing process the discovery of "folk culture" and "mass culture" established the traditionb of seeing ordinary people as a masses. Folk culture included folklores, folk songs, and those who sought to preserve the traditions. When looking a little deeper, the light sheds on how the fantasy of folk culture has "helped to heal wounds and safeguard the future by promoting a memory of a past which had little exits." Pg. 13

Looking at the mass culture, I understand that fear, urbanization, and urban-industrial working class are what fueled this culture. As many cultures endured segregation and oppression they were classified by other cultures because of methods of fear. those who sought to maintain social authority sought to classify the masses and thus keep the definition alive and kicking. This culture has been looked at as masses that manipulate and play the revolutionary role and others see it as being a threat to social privilege. This information has solidified mass culture as a dominant paradigm.

Througout the next chapters, Storey gives is cultural views that have helped to further define what inventing poplular culture is and what it will become in the future. Although there are many facets of cultural change we must be able to embrace it and honor it in all cultrures.

2005-11-28T00:10:00.000-08:00

The Weight of the World: Social Suffering in Contemporary Society

Pierre Bourdieu et al.

"The View from the Media"

As I was reading the table of contents for this assignment the topic of the "Media" jumped out at me since this was the area that I was researching for our Wiki. The information that I found spoke volumes about what our Wiki says. Just as I spoke about how the media seeks to invoke FEAR and WORRY, the same was present in the reading. The Weight of the World, went into the depths of journalists and honed in on the story that took place in what seemed to be an ethnic neighboorhood. As we look a little further, I would like to show you how media all over shares the commonality of how the media shapes our minds about different topics and issues.

As this article opens up on page 46 the statement, "Undoubtedly, journalists do not make up the problems they talk about out of whole cloth." is a statement that tells me that when we see the news and read the paper that we do not get the whole story at times. There are underlying themes that we are not allowed to see that may give us what we really need to be concernend about. The media often times tells us how we should feel and at times they should allow us to decide. There seem to be times where the media acts on the spur of the moment when stories hit and may forget how the story will effect the parties involved if not told in the right way.

What we view as top hot stories are viewed as "Events" by the media. The View from the Media offers this on page 49, "an "Event" is never in the end anything but the result of the spontaneous or provoked mobilization of the media around something that they agree, for certain time, to consider as such." Whatever is happening at that time is what the media jumps on and they each tell the same story in many different ways. It is when urban areas attract media attention that things seem as if they are bad when infact there are bad apples who make it bad for the good people in a society. This view can change if the media portrayed it as such.

The way stories are portrayed is how we come up with prejudices and opinions that we should not have. Once we get the news we must use our own investigative tools and get the real story. If there ever was a time where we could have trusted the media, then our mindsets may have a chance to be renewed and restored. The times we are in really calls for honest literary investigating from all journalists. They should seek to tell the complete truth about all stories.

As I reflect on Africa the same journalistic approaches that are used here have trickled over to this continent. We now must ask how they used to report news before we went over there. We now have to go into Africa to get the real story. How do we really know how serious the plight is in Africa. It is our responsiblity to seek God in how we are to give information. It should be honest and untainted.

2005-11-13T19:13:00.000-08:00

Global Trade, Global Markets...."How is the African Media affected by it?"

"Widely available technology means that a book published by a small company in Britain can be ordered in bookshops around the world." Pg. 149 this statement opens up to how the media market in Africa has changed over the years. Many who sought to begin early radio stations to play the beginnings of reggae and the homeland music in the beginning did not have to worry about trade to enhance the sound that was to be produced. It was later on in their history where trade and politics allowed the airwave technology to be enhanced in Africa. I am not sure what they began to trade for quality production, but I am sure that airtime may have been traded in order for quality production.

Reading further in chapter three, I see that during the period of the emergence of global markets that, Africa had major opportunities to grow and enhance their media just as the US has done and is doing globally. With their resources and ideas of how to enhance their printing press, radio and TV, Africa can help themselves and other media companies in the nation. This section 3.4.2 opened the door to how free the market is and was after the second World War. It may just be a hope that Africa falls in line with the trade networks and be able to spread God's message that is in secular arenas and Gospel arenas.

This chapter does not specifically deal with the media trade market, but it has signs that may have been used in this area of trade. It is the conclusion of chapter 4 on page 187 that helps me to understand how the media in Africa has grown so much thanks to the US. It is with this growth that in many cases, Africa is more advanced than the US.

As I move on and try to understand connections, I have to take into account the financial markets internationally. Understanding trade and how it works then looking at how things are financed it is a wonder that everything in these lasts chapters comes together. We see that money is what really governs everything that happens and does not happen. The most prevalent trade that we see is actually with the broadcasting companies from the US as they seek to broadcast western Christian services and music videos and magazines in Africa. International money markets are what help to make it possible for the media to exist at all.

2005-11-06T20:57:00.000-08:00

This week as I asked some our classmates if they had done the reading, I found that most did not know how to connect the information to their particular issue. I just want to encourage everyone to pray and ask God to open your eyes to the relative issues for your topic that lie within the reading. I pray that what I have found is what coincides with Issues in Africa.

1) As I read section 1.1 I realized that the media in Africa actually has evolved from a small empire to a Modern International entity. The statement, "The existence of the otherwise isolated Americas and Austrailia from Eurasia-Africa would have surprised those in each of these spheres, " shows me that there was a portion of Africa that was isolated from the good portions of what the media was supposed to be because someone did not want them to be aware of what was really going on or how God could change their lives if they could hear His word.

2) I am not sure how much power the military in Africa had on the mass media but I could imagine that what is described in section 1.1.1 has played a part in how they are fed the rules of politics and how diplomatic issues affect them.

3) As in section 1.1.4 Changing forms of political globalization, The political forum in Africa has changed and we have seen that in the form of Nelson Madela being elected President. We can see that the media has been changed in a sense that pertinent information is now being brought forward.

4) As we look at the UN system, I see that due to the charter that this may have led to the evolution of the media in Africa. This was a bright light but also allowed the US to capitalize on how they could influence the African Media.

5) It is very important that we take a look at the History of the political system when it comes to freedom of speech. If they have infact adopted our "Freedom of Speech" law then that maybe the cause for the rise in secular vs. religous stations.

6) Chapter 2 expounded upon organized violence. African Media must be careful in how they present news because often times it can spark reactions that may not be intentional.

7) Over the years there has been military rule and they may have played a vital part in the portions of news that bring forth despair and fear for its' citizens. This is expounded upon in section 2.3.2

8) Section 2.4.5 shows me that the media can also be seen as a form of military arm. The media infact feeds the nation what it wants the people to believe. This violence is a form of brain washing.

9) As I look at just the title of section 2.8 "Contemporary Military Globalization and its Political Consequences," I focus moreso on the Political Consequences. When there are people in power they affect everything. It seems that since the media is divided that political figures might just control certain portions of the media. It is a blessing that the political figures allow godly broadcast into the continent.

10) Finally, reflecting on these chapters has shown me how Politics and Military play a major role in how the media is ran. There should be room for good things to be viewed and known about. I just wonder where they will place God in the years to come.

2005-10-25T11:50:00.000-07:00

Speaking of building communions and communities. I decided to look at the community that provides the music that we hear from Africa and the dances that go along with them. Within this link, http://people.africadatabase.org/en/n/cat/245/ there is a list of music producers and coreographers that have helped to keep African music either what it was intended to be or much like the western culture. So, keeping with the theme I wanted to look at the lyricist that provide the secular words that are songs over the beats that are produced. Searching for this, I found this link to be helpful, http://www.radiopalmwine.com/artist_section/bands/45/about.php this link shows us a profile of a rap artist that is compared to the likes of Jay-Z. As I continue my search I have come across a link that shows us how the Western way of worshipping God has changed Africa. You can see what we offer them at http://www.godnetwork.com/Africa/Schedule.asp. After reflecting on the group discussion about community and how we really need to experience Africa to see what needs to be changed and what is okay, I have realized that we see situations from the outside and see how WE want to change things but, we never SEE how good things maybe for Africa. We see in this link that churches have come together to work on solutions to the issues of HIV/AIDS, Poverty, and Youth. You can see here http://www.warc.ch/update/up134/12.html what there efforts are. As I move on to look at other churches since they have web pages I am looking to see how Christ in this portion of Media is making an impact. Here lies a church in Uganda that is not willing to conform but to spread the gospel in their church and online. http://www.ugandachurches.org/. It seems that what we as Westerners are presenting to Africans in the area of church media ministry has been excepted and formed to how their culture worships God. I found that the one thing that African churches have kept from us and maybe improved upon is creating church websites. Here are a few that have been provided, http://www.active-ss.com/christian_churches_searchengin/christian_churches_africa.htm. As I go back and look at broadcast I can't help but wonder where African music is anymore. It seems that African music has much become like ours. http://www.yfm.co.za/ this site is a radio station for Youth. it reminds me of www.100.3thebeat.com. Just to see how much we have influecned this culture I would like for you to look at some Christian sites from the US and let me know what you think. http://www.klove.com/, http://www.rejoice.org/, and http://www.praise1065.com/.

2005-10-24T09:07:00.000-07:00

Thursday @ 12noon was an experience for me. I have had friends of the Jewish faith but I never knew the plight of their situation. As I sat and listened to the presentation, "A New Prospective of Jesus and the Jews," I was wondering how this tied into our class and what we were doing. I listened as the first speaker spoke about the location of major Jewish Communities and that fact that the word of God was being ecplained to them in such a way that is not fair. I sat and scrunched my face when it was explained that, some Jews want a relationship with God without going through Jesus and then some know Jesus and not God.

I was perturbed because it raised a question of "How are Jews and Christians different?" I take that we are the Gentiles spoken of in the Old Testament. I am confused at this very moment of the differences. Do Jews have the same rights as Christians or are there major differences and rules for Jews and Gentiles (Christians)?

When I look at the issues that are within Africa, I see that there too is an underlying issue that would answer the questions that we seek in the area of "Corruption" I believe that attending this session will help us to identify better what the needs are and what areas we should focus on and then, see how God would have us to move or how He is going to make a change.

This was a very wonderful and enlightning experience and I wish we could have gone to the three O' Clock session because I feel it would have given us more insight to the underlying issue.

2005-10-22T22:24:00.000-07:00

As I reflect on the discussion we had on Tuesday, I was trying to decide what to focus on to narrow down the media portion of our topic. I have decided to focus on the Music Industry this week to gain some insight on where the root of the problem lies. I have begun looking at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_South_Africa#Early_South_African_music I have found that this page provides and outline to the history of African music. http://www.ccpworld.co.za/ is a glimpse of how America has influenced the music in Africa. It is hard to find such original music anymore. We can always go on sites such as, http://www.southafrica.info/what_happening/news/features/kwaitomental.htm to find new music that takes on what we have in America. It would be nice to infact hear original African Music. If we are even interested in the history of the African Music we can look athttp://www.acslink.aone.net.au/christo/histmain.htm and gain some insight on where African Music came from and how it has evolved over time. As I look through the various resources I have not seen too much as to when Christianity hit the music scene. I did not stop looking and low and behold I ran into a site that gives a history of Christian African Music and when it was a presence in Africa. You can read more at http://www.ecu.edu/african/sersas/kidulaF99.htm. Furthermore, there are many other sites that show how Christian music has helped to shape the industry in Africa, there lies and article that speaks on the industry from a Missionary standpoint, http:// www.christianity.ca/entertainment/features/music.html. Finding this topic on the internet is very interesting. I found this site about gospel music in africa. I did not think that this topic would be readily available on the internet. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ . I also found a site on the internet that talks about the African Gospel All Stars. http :// www.panafricanallstars.com. The site mentioned the following people who are considered the all stars of african gospel music today. I found a site that has the latest and most update Christian Music in Africa. Read more about this topic on www.twrafrica.org/music.asp. This Trans World Radio Africa Website. This site also features the latest news on Christian Music in between each program. I found an article that discusses Gospel and Christian Singing Stars from around Africa this article can be found on http://www.afrodrive.com/Gospel. It has been an experience reading different articles on this topic.

2005-10-17T00:13:00.000-07:00

As I am thinking about how the media as a whole has played a role in the corruption in Africa, I am reminded of what we as US citizens have thrown into their culture. We never really asked if they wanted to know about the music we listen to or the movies that we watch or even if they wanted to know how we live our lives here. We have used our power to basically tell them listen to our music and watch our movies and make your lives to be as you see and hear them. We have failed in giving them a choice in the matter. I wish I could say the same was not true about Chrisitian radio bit that too in a sense has changed how they view God and how they should praise and worship Him.

I do agree that we should look at how they play their music and how they live their lives and how they want to praise God and learn about him. It is not fair for us to push our ways onto them. We should be kind enough to ask them what they want. After all we are only looking in from the outside. We need to show them the humbleness of Christ by asking the people of Africa what they want.

I am interested in finding out how I can incorporate everything that Matt and Colleen have said. Media is broad but I will try my best to take you into the realm of Radio Broadcasting. Below, you will find sites that help to take us a little closer to the root of the problem and solutions. I want this information to help the church decide how we can give Africa a clear view of God.

Thank you for your input from last week. As a result of the comments rendered, I have decided to focus on Radio Broadcasting corruption in Africa. I will prove this is happening through the use of various radio stations and their content. I believe through the things they talk about and the words of the lyrics, we will be able to see how God is needed to transform this portion of corruption.

1) http://www.radiopulpit.co.za/ Radio Pulpit is a virtual church in itself. This site provides music, the word an links to the artists that are featured on the site. This is a way for Africans to get a taste of Jesus. I plan to use the content of this site to show how corruption via the radio can be changed.

2) http://www.702.co.za/onair/lineup.asp Looking at this line up shows me that Africans are given a light into what is going on in the world and in some instances, they are not given an alternate way of viewing how life should be led in their country.

3) http://allafrica.com/music/ This site has shown how Africans are breaking into US soil with their music. Not only do we give them new ways to view things, we often see how we have influenced them.

4) http://www.musicuganda.com/groups/act.htm This may be the highlight of all my findings. A group of music artsits have come together to fight corruption, AIDS, and poverty. Through music and the performing arts, they aim to fight these causes. This will help me to see how Africans are seeking to change their culture without heavy Western ways.

5) http://www.twrafrica.org/0045.asp This site provides ministry and ministry insight to those people in Africa who need to know about Christ. There is even a picture of a church greating visitors. This site allows us to see the community in African churches.

6) http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/158834214X/103-5314072-0523850?v=glance This books takes us into what corruption has become in Africa and how so many people are looking for suggestions and ways to make it obsolete. This book takes us into the culture of Africa and how life is there.

7) Public Administration in Africa: Main Issues and Selected Country Studies
Book by Ladipo Adamolekun; Westview Press, 1999
Subjects:
Africa, Sub-Saharan--Politics And Government--1960-, Public Administration--Africa, Sub-Saharan This book shows how the media has played a hand in corruption by manipulating situations and playing on both sides.

8) http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000005IWH/ref/701-7572672-1537959 When looking at the root of the problem, this CD may have the answer. With this resource we have to look at how we can present away to Africans to trust in God and not witch craft.

9) http://www.suzannaonline.nl/ As I think of how we want to show them immorality through the lyrics of our music, I see that we have not shared our resources when it comes to music artists. We see in this link that this artist is basically promoting herself. The good thing is that she performs in her home country first and foremost.

10) http://www.hcjb.org/mass_media/radio/overview.html This radio station is committed to spreading the gospel. We need more radio broadcast that are geared towards letting Africans and other countries who God is.

I pray that these resources are helpful in any shape form or fashion. I look forward to reading your comments.

2005-10-06T19:57:00.000-07:00

Through discussions within our group is has become a task to find out how the media has played a role in the corruption of Africa. I want to look at how Pastor's and other religious entities are going to help and are helping to spread the Gospel to the people of Africa. I am interested to see how the media has played a part in the corruption of Africa and how the broadcasting culture can change.
Here are my 10 resources thus far.1) http://www.godnetwork.com/Africa/TuneInSouthAfrica.aspthis site is a satellite brodcast that sends different church broadcast to South Africa.
2) http://newafricaradio.com/This site has been provided for the Muslim religion in Africa.
3) http://www.familykenya.com/TBN has designed a way for people in Kenya to hear the word of God and interact with other believers.
4) http://www.hwy777.com/radio.htmlThis station provides Christian Music for everyone around the world.
5) http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/pubs/whip/whip44.htmlThis link provides information on how the radio and broadcasting system has changed in Africa.
6) http://www.twrafrica.org/0055.aspThis site allows Africans to read about ministries and listen to music and read devotionals.
7) http://www.christianvoice.co.uk/africa.aspProvides Christian Music to Africa.
8) http://www.answers.com/topic/list-of-television-stations-in-africaGives a list of T.V. Stations across Africa9) http://www.mio.co.za/article.php?cat=radio_opinions_letters&id=427MTV in Africa
10) http://www.pilotguides.com/tv_shows/globe_trekker/shows/africa/This site seeks to take us into the heart of Africa.

2005-09-27T22:42:00.000-07:00

God's Blessed Woman

2005-09-27T22:17:00.000-07:00

Hello,
My name is Jameka Redmon and this is my first quarter here at Fuller. I come from Los Angeles and the African Methodist Episcopal Church. My father was a minister in the AME Church and now I am in training for the Itinerate ministry. I am in the SOT and the M.Div. Program and my concentration is Youth, Family, and Culture. I love to work with youth and what I hope to gain from this class is to learn ways to transform the youth culture that does not know God and why we need him in our lives.