Verified Document

Media Worlds Essay

ZIEGLER Media Worlds

"Exploring sites of memory:" the Kennedy assassination

According to Barbie Zelizer's review article entitled "Exploring sites of memory," "public history emerges simultaneously from the commonplace and mundane, the eccentric and comic, the background of the everyday, and the splendor of life on high" (Zelizer 1999:202). There is a collective memory that shapes our individual memory, and vice versa. While Ziegler's review is applied to a book on recent French history, her analysis is equally trenchant within an American context. Take, for example, the assassination of John F. Kennedy. This is a public memory of record. But for many Americans of an earlier generation it is also a very personal memory. Most people who grew up during the early 1960s say that they know exactly where they were when Kennedy died, and have a very vivid visual picture of what transpired.

However, the public nature of this 'memory' likely shapes the way...

The fact that it is supposed to be such a historical incident causes people to single out this memory vs. other important memories of public note. When the culture collectively goes over and over an incident, forcing people to re-experience the event, their personal memories take on a collective character. With the view of an outsider who did not experience the Kennedy assassination personally, it is hard for me not to wonder if there might be some memory alteration taking place. There are so many similar features to the accounts that I have heard, such as walking around in a daze, watching Walter Cronkite on television, and having school or work cancelled, it is hard for me not to wonder if the collective memory has shaped or subtly altered individual recollections.
Because of the presence of television, public memory has been further interfered with -- unlike personal incidents in individual history, the entire American nation watched the same…

Sources used in this document:
Reference

Zelizer, B. (1999). Realms of memory. Journal of Communication. 49 (4). 202-205.
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Media Worlds
Words: 780 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

MEDIA WORLD & CULTURE The Media World in Today's Culture The Media World and Today's Culture The Media World and Today's Culture The media is the most indispensable medium that most urbanized and developing countries have adapted to accessing first hand and vital information. It is also in the branch category of the most growing industries in today's global economy. However, the industry is faced with controversies from other sectors such as culture and

Media Worlds
Words: 580 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Media Worlds These four readings were written between 1944 and 1955, and to a certain extent represent an outmoded era of media criticism. This does not mean these studies are obsolete, but it does mean that they must be considered in light of the current sea-change that is taking place in media overall -- most notably with the Internet, but also with the effect that the Internet is having upon other

Media Worlds
Words: 673 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Media Worlds According to Erika Engstrom: "because there are no legal rules for the wedding as a social event itself, wedding media such as found in The Knot's offerings provide informal, though structured, instruction (etiquette) to women regarding the correct way weddings should be conducted. In this sense, the uniform weddings portrayed and described in detail in such media, in the form of easily accessible magazines and etiquette books, television programs,

Media Worlds
Words: 753 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

MEDIA & GLOBAL POLITICS Culture Shirky's piece is about the potential for media to change the course of government and politics across the world. He writes of ways that specifically the technology of social media has the power and/or potential for political activism and social change. The 21st century has seen an increase in the frequency and the efficiency of grassroots activism and social movements around the world, due in great part

Media Worlds
Words: 1187 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Parallels in Journalism Studies Culture Chapter 11 by Coleman et al. is primarily concerned with the importance and methods of agenda setting in mass media, communication, and journalism studies. Agenda setting is a set that should come very early on in the production process of media for critical reasons. Without an agenda, the media lacks direction. Without an agenda, it is nearly impossible to judge or evaluate the success of a

Media Worlds
Words: 793 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

New Media and Politics Digital media has been extremely instrumental in the organization and expression of political protest. This case study will examine the impact of digital media and social networking and the importance it plays in contemporary political movements. Citizen Journalism In the work entitled "New Media and Development Communication," stated is that modern mobile phones "…are transforming civilians into journalists." Columbia University, ITU Report, 2005, p.1) The report states that

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now