"Why Write for the Masses?"

Michelle Ruszat
#WFMM
“Why Write for the Masses?”
April 26, 2012

Wait, Who am I?!

Without the media, life would be drastically different. So much of our identity relies on social media presence and those without certain forms of media are considered “strange” or “outcasts” by the majority. This doesn’t only apply to society today. Media in various forms has always influenced the general public. It is easy to allow the media to shape and mold our lives. By understanding the history of mass media and the influence it has created upon our lives, we are better equipped to form our personal identities and definitions of being human.

Identity is so important because it gives one a sense of “being.” When someone goes through an identity crisis or a loss of personal definition it is devastating. What is the point of life if we do not feel as if we belong?

In the past, identities were formed predominantly by various cultural groups. Even before the written word, masses were sharing amongst themselves in the very foundation of media. The oral tradition was used predominantly to share stories about a group’s past or beliefs. Immeasurable respect was given to the story-tellers and orators of tribes because they laid the foundation of culture and created a sense of pride. Group identities were formed because of the oral tradition and the stories told to the mass. Often, these tales would be long and expressive with many details and require an incredible use of the memory to recall.

When the written word was put into practice, it was easier for various groups of people to share and remember their traditions, practices, and beliefs. Take for example, the Sofers who were upheld to the strictest standards when it came to writing and preserving the word of the Torah. This wasn’t just a job, it was (and is) a lifestyle and an identity. So much importance is placed upon the Sofers because they are insuring that the Torah will live and be respected for years to come. Records of any culture are highly significant to keeping said culture alive. Even if a person doesn’t belong to this group, information is available for increasing a cultural knowledge base.

As technology advanced it became easier and easier to share messages, ideas, and thoughts. The printing press could mass-produce books filled with new content that challenged the thoughts and beliefs of peoples cross-culturally. When people realized words could be used to persuade and change ideas of others, the creation of (or coining of the term) propaganda took place. Edward Bernays revealed his ideas of propaganda in 1928 which is using mass media to influence the present and the future. Newspapers, books, magazines, movies, radio, and television all spread multiple messages around the world. Advertisements were created to influence customers to purchase a particular brand. The brands people buy help to shape and create the identity of the consumer. Pepsi portrays the idea of youth by appealing to younger consumers. New cars are status symbols. Purchasing lattes from a certain coffee shop gives the image of being sleek and professional. Mass media has shaped the way people identify with themselves and with others.

In today’s world, media is more used and more popular than ever. The popular social media website, Facebook, has over 900,000,000 users world-wide and Twitter boasts a grand number of 175,000,000 users. We use social media to create our identity and share it with the world. By simply liking a band or sharing a controversial post, perceptions are formed and an image is created about each and every one of us. Buying a certain brand or product still shapes our perceived character but now with the addition of social media, we can actively demonstrate how deep these brands or products influence our lives by liking their page, re-tweeting, commenting, or checking-in and almost brag to those in our social circles about our personal experiences with said brand.

It is arguable that we are more in control of our identities now than ever before. Though there are some exceptions, we have the power to decide what is displayed to the World Wide Web. Our culture is becoming more global and instead of having to sit and listen to a story teller recount histories we can instantly search a video, find the transcript, or just ask a Yahoo question to anyone around the world. We no longer depend on creating a group identity, but strive for a strong, influential, and individualized persona.

In conclusion, mass media and the history behind it have lead to the creation of more personalized identities. While cultural identification still plays a role in many lives, we are moving toward a “me” society. We want people to see us as the one –in-a-million, not just one-in-a-million. Mass media has given us the tools to create our personal identity and fulfill the human need of belonging.

So, what's going on?

This is sort-of a status update/bragging post about the final project John McPherson and I are working on. So far we have met a few times, done a lot of planning, threw out everything we had, started over, and are now in the process of creating the true final project.

Also, it rocks.

Maybe I'm speaking too soon, but after working today, I am stoked.

The portion I am heavily working on is the creation of our interactive blog. First I created a fairly basic (aka BORING) blog: Social Media for Higher Education

Not a good representation of our vision at all.

So we scrapped everything including our "company" and went back to the drawing board...literally.

Most people would be incredibly nervous at this point, but I think we have everything under control. I know I work best with my deadline looming over me. The new blog I created is one of the best blogs I have done (I have three and helped create/manage my dad's blog as well) and I am super excited! This is a sneak preview because I don't want to give EVERYTHING away.

I really want to show off the new company logo, but that's John's doing so I'll leave that up to him!

Now we're working on our physical guide, finding content, and I'm desperately trying to learn HTML coding within a week.

Another incredibly exciting aspect about this project is how much support we are getting! Connie Haugen, Marketing Coordinator for The College of St. Scholastica, commended our work after John sent out this tweet!

Like I said, I'm totally psyched about this project! Perhaps that isn't the most professional way to express my feelings, but it definitely is the most accurate!

College 101 2.0

In order to show improvement throughout the course, Team College 101 grabbed our Flip Cams, awkwardly filmed ourselves again, and produced the new "College 101" Version 2.0.

We grew from this:



First Treatment and Outline

To this:



TREATMENT

OUTLINE

Follow College 101 on Twitter: @collegeoneohone

Press Release

I wish this would be a big larger, but the conversion from PDF to JPEG wasn't working on my computer, so I had to take a screen shot. It's not the quality I want, but I will make improvements soon.

Don't be a Bag Lady [Radio Script]

88.1 KCSS
News from Scholastica

Title of program: Feminist on Fashion

Type of program: Talk radio

Date of airing: TBD

Time of airing: TBD

Host/Scriptwriter: Michelle Ruszat

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1 HOST 1: The College of St. Scholastica has a rich and beautiful history. Seriously, those ladies knew
2 fashion. Perhaps every student was born with high-style, but columns in past newspapers, like
3 “Shelia Shops” or selections from Mademoiselle Magazine kept early Scholasticans up-to-date
4 with the latest fashion trends. In fashion, classics are always in style. Wanting to be a stylish lady
5 myself, I decided to dive into the past to update my modern wardrobe. I discovered quickly that
6 the classic fashion may uphold, but the classic mentality leaves a lot to be desired. The April
7 seventh, nineteen thirty-seven article “That Mysterious Bag” cautions women to be neat, fresh-
8 smelling, and tidy with their purses because that is the true mark of a feminine lady. The article
9 even states:
10 HOST 2: “As far as character and temperament are revealed by the contents of handbags, surveys of
11 the situation show that women have been caught with…miscellanea in their bags…We’re no
12 crystal gazer but we think we can give as good a performance…when a female purse is opened to
13 our inquisitive gaze.”
14 HOST 1: If a purse reveals a character of a woman, then my over-stuffed satchel with a notebook,
15 a deck of cards, some tissues, and pens only lead to one conclusion. I am Indiana
16 Jones, with a cold. Even having a full bag is an issue because, as the article states,
17 HOST 2: “The woman whose bag practically explodes in your startled face-she’s the one…
18 handicapped by her muchness in career or home life.”
19 HOST 1: It is possible I am ambitious, but to me, that’s not a problem. I like being a driven, modern
20 woman who wants my purse to be a second home. I am not the ideal lady of the late-thirties with21 a clutter-free bag, lightly perfumed, and dripping with feminine charm. Like many women in the
22 twenty-first century, I’ve got places to go, people to see, and things to do. Plus, how are you
23 supposed to sneak in snacks to a movie theater with such a dainty bag?! Priorities, ladies.
24 While past fashion is fun to look at, it may not be applicable to me. My love of functionality in a
25 bag will always win over dainty, lady-like purses.

Teleprompter Script

The College of St. Scholastica has a rich and beautiful history… Seriously-- those ladies knew fashion. (1) Perhaps every student was born with high-style, but columns in past newspapers like “Shelia Shops” (2) or selections from Mademoiselle Magazine (3) kept early Scholasticans up-to-date with the latest fashion trends.
In fashion, classics are always in style. Wanting to be a stylish lady myself, I decided to dive into the past to update my modern wardrobe. I discovered quickly that the classic fashion may uphold, but the classic mentality leaves a lot to be desired.
The April seventh, nineteen thirty-seven article “That Mysterious Bag” cautions women to be neat, fresh-smelling, and tidy with their purses because that is the true mark of a feminine lady. The article even states:
“As far as character and temperament are revealed by the contents of handbags, surveys of the situation show that women have been caught with…miscellanea in their bags…We’re no crystal gazer but we think we can give as good a performance…when a female purse is opened to our inquisitive gaze.”
If a purse reveals a character of a woman, (4) then my over-stuffed satchel with a notebook, a deck of cards, some tissues, and pens only lead to one conclusion. I am Indiana Jones, with a cold.


Even having a full bag is an issue because, as the article states,
“The woman whose bag practically explodes in your startled face-she’s the one…handicapped by her muchness in career or home life.”
It is possible I am ambitious, but to me, that’s not a problem. I like being a driven, modern woman who wants my purse to be a second home. I am not the ideal lady of the late-thirties (5) with a clutter-free bag, lightly perfumed, and dripping with feminine charm. Like many women in the twenty-first century, I’ve got places to go, people to see, and things to do. Plus, how are you supposed to sneak in snacks to a movie theater with such a dainty bag?! Priorities, ladies.


While past fashion is fun to look at, it may not be applicable to me. My love of functionality in a bag will always win over dainty, lady-like purses.






**Pictures can be found on weightywording.blogspot.com
**Highlighted numbers SHOULD NOT be spoken

Pictures for News Package

Picture (1)

Picture (2)

Picture (3)

Picture (4)

Picture (5)

Don't be a bag lady...

I have always loved history, especially the lives of ordinary people in a specific decade. Looking at old photographs is one of my favorite activities, so it is fantastic that St. Scholastica has so many wonderful historical pictures and preserved papers.

The Scholastica library has an awesome archive with every Scriptorium (now know ast The Calbe) saved online. I found an article titled "That Mysterious Bag" which drew my attention.

Of course I had some thoughts, so here's my feature regarding "That Mysterious Bag."

Don’t be a bag lady…

Michelle Ruszat, Feature Writer

At The College of St. Scholastica, we have a rich and beautiful history. Seriously, have you ever noticed how those ladies dressed? They knew fashion. Perhaps every student was born with a high sense of style, but I bet columns, like “Shelia Shops” or selections from Mademoiselle influenced these stylish Scholasti-cats. Wanting to become a chic co-ed myself, I perused the Scriptorium to learn from the past. Little did I know, the quest for fashion would unleash the raging feminist within me. In celebration of Womyn’s Week, which took place at Scholastica March 26 to March 30, I am giving Mademoiselle and The Scriptorium a little piece of my modern-woman mind.

On April 7, 1937, The Scriptorium ran an article “That Mysterious Bag” from the magazine Mademoiselle about the purse being a reflection of the woman. Of course, I immediately thought of my own purse and its uncanny resemblance to a satchel. Purses and bags are often an expression of the user, and I like to think I am easily relatable to Indiana Jones.

“As far as character and temperament are revealed by the contents of handbags, surveys of the situation show that women have been caught with such miscellania [sic] in their bags…We’re no crystal gazer, but we think we can give as good a performance…when a female purse is opened to our inquisitive gaze.” Sure, I have some strange things in my purse (for example: a legal pad, a deck of cards, a few pens, a pack of tissues, and a set of knitting needles) but is this truly a glimpse into my life?  As I continued to read, my hopes of learning from the strong, fashionable women of St. Scholastica’s past decreased.

“The woman whose bag practically explodes in your startled face-she’s the one who can never throw anything away, an acquisitive creature handicapped by her muchness in career or home life.” Now, this concerns me. My bag doesn’t “explode” per se, but there is a definite fullness to it. Am I a hoarder?! Will I find a dead cat crushed beneath my wallet the next time I go to pay for groceries? Also, I don’t think having a giant purse with many interesting things means I am too ambitious in my career or home life, just that I’m an interesting person who occasionally likes to play a game of cards.

“Her husband is bored by it all and would like to start housekeeping all over again…and a checkrein on the little woman.” First, I am not a barn animal. Yes, I carry a saddle bag, but please don’t consider using a checkrein (a horse restraint) on me. I am a woman and being 5-foot, 8-inches, there isn’t anything “little” about my body or my personality. Plus, the joke is on you, article! I don’t have a husband or a house to run. So, I think I’ll keep my giant purse, thank you very much. Unfortunately, the article doesn’t stop there. According to “That Mysterious Bag” being feminine relies on many facets that are all revealed by the state of your bag.

“Ah, but when a bag opens to a delicate aura of perfume, a glimpse of immaculate white handkerchief, no clutter, no cramming, ah, ah, ah! This lady has her life to rights, tolerates nothing even bordering on mussiness in her home, professional or emotional life. She bathes often…has her lingerie…sent expensively to the French hand laundry for perfection. Her beau thinks she’s just wonderful, epitomizing feminity [sic] at its daintiest.” Who perfumes her purse? I’ve never heard someone being condemned for having a purse that smells like purse. Hand laundry is darn expensive and I know my Fruit-of-the-Looms don’t deserve more care than some Tide and hot water. If a smelly purse and fancy laundry are the only ways to woo a beau, then I am out of luck.

There is no way the ideal purse from Mademoiselle would even be applicable in this century. We’ve got places to go, people to see, snacks to sneak into movie theaters! If anyone carrying a purse at The College of St. Scholastica approaches me and shows me a functional, dainty purse with a crisp, white handkerchief, I promise your next bundle of French laundry is on me.

There is a cliché which states “history is the best teacher” but more often than not, the past gives an example as to what should not be done. I began this search trying to improve my style with advice from the fashionable ladies in Scholastica’s past, but realized my love of functionality will always prevail.