Talk.

“Talk it out, don’t text it out. Things can come across wrong in text.”

YOLO people!

An End.

Grace College Valedictory Dinner 2012
"Once a Gracie, Always a Gracie"

Here's what our parents never taught us

Here’s what our parents never taught us

You will stay up on your rooftop until sunlight peels away the husk of the moon, chain-smoking cigarettes and reading Baudelaire, you will learn that you only ever want to fall in love with someone who will stay up to watch the sun rise with you. 

You will fall in love with train rides, and sooner or later you will realize that nowhere seems like home anymore. A woman will kiss you and you’ll think her lips are two petals rubbing against your mouth. 

You will not tell anyone that you liked it.

It’s okay. It is beautiful to love humans in a world where love is a metaphor for lust.You can leave if you want, with only your skin as a carry-on. All you need is a twenty in your pocket and a bus ticket. All you need is someone on the other end of the map, thinking about the supple curves of your body, to guide you to a home that stretches out for miles and miles on end.

You will lie to everyone you love.They will love you anyways.

One day you’ll wake up and realize that you are too big for your own skin.

Molt. Don’t be afraid.

- Here’s what our parents never taught us (Shinji Moon)

Entry #12: Investigative Journalism

This lecture was all about Investigative Journalism, its deeper meaning and purpose etc.
It went in depth on the 5 "INS", which were:

1. Intelligent
2. Informed
3. Intuitive
4. Inside
5. Invest

The lecture further explored the deeper meanings and the purpose of Investigative Journalism. As for me, I'd almost always hit up "handy-dandy" website, Wikipedia for definitions.
So here it goes:
Wikipedia defined Investigative Journalism as a form of journalism which involves reporters deeply investigating a single topic of interest, often involving crime, political corruption or coporate wrong-doing. Other terms used for this kind of Journalism are "Watchdog journalism" or "Accountability reporting".

And obviously, I had to Google "Investigative Journalism" (oh boy, what would I do without Google...have I mentioned this before?), and I came across this website. It's by The Age, and it is solely dedicated to Investigative Journalism in Australia! And the amount of investigative articles being published on the site is awesomely saucey AMAZING! I mean, the amount of time, effort and dedication (not forgetting the guts) to actually put yourself in harms way to get a story, to educate the public about what is happening, to make sure that information is provided to everyone so that democracy is maintained- by interrogating the judiciary, executive and legislature.

During the lecture, Bruce covered a number of gutsy investigative journalist who shaped and changed the world. At that moment, I thought of Anna Politkovskaya. I learned about Anna when I got into the "right-side of Youtube". Okay, side track for abit: when  I mean by right side of Youtube- you know sometimes you end up at a weird video of someone trying to pop a pimple (why are you even filming it?!) or, watching horses go crazyyyyyyyy? Yeah, this was not like that. I stumbled across this documentary called "Letter to Anna", which was about her life and death. Anna was killed in 2006, after being shot in the elevator of her apartment block.

Anna was a Russian Journalist who was "into" the whole "Chechen conflict and President Putin" never-ending war. She published her investigations and "inside stories" through a well-known Russian newspaper Novaya gazeta, which heavily focus on Russian politics and social issues. She wrote several articles against Putin and the Chekists. Despite receiving several death threats, she did not back down and continued publishing articles about the government. Her murder was described as "robbing too many of us of absolutely vital sources of information and contact" by Jon Snow, a well known news anchor for UK's Channel 4. I can find no words to express how I feel about Anna. I mean, to know that people are out there to kill and still continue writing and exposing the truth is beyond bravery. To me, she will always be a real hero for Russia, and aspiring female Journalist out there. She taught me that, if you want something so bad- be it news, grades, results, anything, go all the way and do not stop until you reach where you're going. Even when the going gets tough.
I feel like she knew that she had a duty to her country, and her people. And like how the saying goes, "the truth will set you free", and obviously, she was trying to set her people free. I am sure that her hardwork would be continued be someone.

From this example itself, I have learned how dangerous Investigative Journalism can be. It requires times, dedication and heaps of courage.
And now when I think about it, I am not someone who will be into such stuff- I mean come on! I run the other way when I see a spider. But maybe with time, and if I find something I am passionate about, I might consider IJ...but at the meantime, I am sticking to Cosmo.

NAOTB: Lianne La Havas

Okay, so it has been ages since I actually put up a "New" Artist on the Block/blog (? whatever you take it brooooo). Anyway, I was recently catching up on "Pretty Little Liars"'s third season. And I came across this amazingly awesome-sauce song by Lianne La Havas.

AND I AM HOOKED!
So, you- yes you, get hooked. And I promise, you won't regret it.
Trust me on this.

AOTB: Ellie Goulding

Speechless.
Ms "Gold"-ing is back.

Annotated Bibliography- The TA(bortion)BOO and Media

Press, A. L. (1991). Working-class women in a middle-class world: The impact of television on modes of reasoning about abortion. Critical Studies in Mass Communication. 8(4), 421-441. doi :10.1080/15295039109366807.

The author, an Assistant Professor of Communication at the University of Michigan and well known for her research studies addressing feminist media issues, investigates how small-scaled focus groups of working-class and middle-class women deliberate abortion- before and after viewing a television show that treats the issue, using qualitative research techniques in Social Sciences. The author also explored the differences between the discourse of the social classes on the issue. The differences or similarities in the influence of television on abortion discourse between the two groups was also investigated. Through this study, Press determined that the group of working-class women exhibited a clear analytical mode of speech compared to the middle-class women, when discussing abortion. Groups speeches were also shown to be skewed following the viewing of the 30 minutes version of a television show, Cagney and Lacey, where characters discussed several issues surrounding abortion. The limitation of this study was the small sample size used. Opinions expressed on abortion were also based on a 30 minutes clip of one television show. The author concludes by providing a frame of reference for other researchers to analyse if class differences cause similarities in response to other types of shows, such as documentary programming, television movies, or the new “docudrama” form. The framework developed in the article is useful in providing an understanding of the parallelled relationship between media and abortion, as a social taboo.

Good, C. (2012, October 17). Mitt Romney, the Abortion and Contraception Moderate in New TV Ad. ABCNews- The Note. Retrieved from: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/10/mitt-romney-the-abortion-and-contraception-moderate-in-new-tv-ad/

The author, a political reporter for ABC News who had previous experiences as a national political online reporter, validates the new TV advertisment released by Mitt Romney, a US Presidential hopeful. The article describes the advertisement as platform to portray Romney as an impartial on abortion and contraception, after being slammed for his opinions on women’s health issues. The author proposes that with the airing of the advertisement, it would improve Romney’s campaign by significantly narrowing the gap among women, after the first presidential debate against current office holder, Barrack Obama. Good carried on by analysing both, Romney’s advertisement and Obama’s advertisement “Dangerous”, which debuted in September. He argues that the claims presented in the ads, on both sides are convoluted, and provides further evidences for his statement. The author also used a subset of the Tampa Bay Times, Politifact.com, which reviews statements made by Congress, the White House and other prominent political individuals in the United States, as a reference to suggest misinterpretation of views. He suggest that the Democrats misconstrued Romney’s support for a constitutional amendment defining life as beginning at contraception as, support for a no-exception abortion ban. The author continues by highlighting the reason for Romney moderating his standpoint on abortion, by emphasizing his comment to the Des Moines Register regarding his retreat from the abortion legislation as president. 

Piazza, J. (2011, November 2). Abortion No Longer Taboo Topic on Prime Time Television. Fox News. com- Entertainment. Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2011/11/01/abortion-no-longer-taboo-topic-on-prime-time-television/

Jo Piazza, a journalist for well-known commercial media platforms like CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and NPR- where the audiences are the consumers, covers the increasing trends of abortion being worked into storylines of popular prime time television series like Friday Night Lights and Grey’s Anatomy. The author begins the article by establishing that although plotlines involving abortion has become increasingly common- with some appreciating the erosion of stigmas surrounding abortion, there are a handful who are alarmed by this deviation. She supported the latter by quoting Dan Gainor, vice president for business and culture at the Media Research Center, who stated that the usage of television as a platform for liberal media to win the abortion issue is dangerous. However, the author also provided a contrasting view and argument made by Chole Angyal, a writer for the blog Feministing.com, who claimed that the increasing number of depictions of abortions in pop culture accurately outlines the experiences of real women. She further discusses the the context of abortion portrayed as a viable option, by referencing Jessica Wakeman, who blogs about women’s issues, who suggested that abortion should not only be brought up by TV writers as a “vehicle  to make the woman have a miscarriage”.

Williams, D. and Conlan, T. (2012, 18 October). Judges condemn TV for censoring abortion film. Daily Mail. Retrieved from: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-105104/Judges-condemn-TV-censoring-abortion-film.html

Williams and Conlan’s article surrounds the ruling of Britain’s TV companies, namely BBC and independent channels ITV and Channel 4, after refusing to broadcast a party political advertisement featuring the products of abortion. As the world’s largest public service broadcaster, BBC was quoted by the authors, arguing that their decision was made on grounds of decency and good taste. The authors showed evidence supporting BBC’s decision by mentioning BBC’s chief political adviser Anne Sloman’s viewpoint, stating that the Parliament has entrusted TV companies with the obligation not to air materials that offends against good taste and decency, or likely to be offensive to public feelings. The article proceeds to claim that the requirement has been overridden by the Court of Appeal for the benefits of party election broadcasts. Reactions to the ruling was balanced by Willams and Conlan, as the ProLife leader Bruno Quintavallae was described as “hailing” the ruling an achievement for freedom of speech. The authors diverted their focus towards the ruling judge, Lord Justice Laws, and explored extensively into his reasons for passing the "guilty" verdict.Comparing this article with that written by Piazza (2011),it is evident that the media platforms, together with broadcasting laws, are moving towards a new era, with freedom of speech. This would significantly push the topic of abortion out of the "taboo" zone. As quoted by Williams and Conlan (2012), freedom of political speech has to be given to an accredited party at a general election, and interfering with the freedom of speech should not be based on "taste and decency alone".

Entry #11: Agenda Setting

Image obtained from Google.com

I think this image perfectly describes Agenda Setting, which was the topic for this lecture. In this lecture, Bruce covered the definition of Agenda Setting. In the beginning of this lecture, I had problems understanding the definition of Agenda Setting (awkies...) So, obviously- I used Wiki, and you can stop judging me thereeeeee.
Anyway, here goes the definition:

Agenda-setting theory describes the "ability [of the news media] to influence the salience of topics on the public agenda (Source: Wikipedia)

He also went on by introducing us to the different types of Agenda Settings: which included 1) Public, 2) Policy, 3) Corporate and  4) Media Agenda- which are all inter-related. The "Agenda-Setting Family" was discussed as well. This included:

• Media Gatekeeping - where the media decides what would be revealed to the Public
• Media Advocacy - where the media promotes an important message or cause
• Agenda Cutting - where most of the important "bits" which are going on in the world, like AIDS, Child Trafficking, isn't represented due to importance on other issues like "Lady Gaga's OOT" - like seriously, if she wore meat, that would be front page! oh wait....she did that already! -_-
• Agenda Surfing - where the media follows the crowd and trends, and shows how the existing public opinion influences others towards a particular opinion.
• Diffusion of News- portrayal of an issue influences how one perceives it.

I came past this quote, and it perfectly explains how I feel about Agenda Setting:

“The social world is … a kaleidoscope of potential realities, any of which can be readily evoked by altering the way in which observations are framed and categorized."

— Edelman

 Its amazing how once something is portrayed in the media, we automatically believe that it has got to be real. I mean, why would they release something false, right?...NO! Recently, there has been a number of "Twitter Deaths" where celebrities were killed on Twitter. Every single time I went on twitter, guess what was trending? (okay no jellybeans for correct guesses. Poor Uni student here :/) Yeah, you got it- "SO-AND-SO, RIP". I mean seriously, MORGAN FREEMAN?! That dude is a legend okay! >:(
This shows that you can never believe everything you read or hear. So, everyone got to do our little homework (on top of Uni work) to find out if whatever information we are getting is actually reliable.

Happy 22nd, My Travel Buddy!

So, it was my travel bud's 22nd over the weekends!
As a birthday surprise for her, my sister and I booked a makeover package at Bodyshop and boyyyyyyyyyyy, we turned into beauties. YEAP WE DID!

Honestly, I am not a makeup person. I don't know how to put on makeup.
So, when the makeup artist was explaining about the brushes and whatever not, I was thinking whether I should do my laundry tomorrow or the day after.

But, I must say...the makeup artist did an AMAZING JOB.
Highly recommend: The BodyShop! woot woot!
And after that, we decided to go for a casual dinner at Saint Lucy. Little snippets of our shameless selfies and other shenanigans.

Entry # 9: News Values

So, for this lecture, we discussed about News Values- which determines how much of prominence a news story is given by a media outlet and attention given by the audience. One thing which was discussed what the different services and cultures will have different news values...but obviously- everyone follows the all famous "Inverted Triangle"!
Recap on the awesome-sauce Inverted Triangle:

Image obtained from here

So, I decided to compare the prominent stories between Australia and Singapore (waddup homeeee!)

Australia- Sky News Australia's Main Headliner:

Hockey says nothing to praise govt about

This article was about Joe Hockey, the Shadow Treasurer, saying that the federal government shouldn't be happy about bringing down a $43.7 billion deficit in the past year. And it goes on describing that if Australia was a company, "you would have sacked the board of directors for their incompetence".
Harsh words there buddy.

Singapore- ChannelNews Asia's Main Headliner:

Vettel wins Singapore Grand Prix

This article describes the events of yesterday's Formula One Grand Prix which took place in Singapore...(yeah I should have been there! :( ) and how Red Bull's Sebestian Vettel clinched the pole position. Ferrari's Massa was deemed the "biggest loser", as he had to return back to the pits due to a punctured tire. And Lewis Hamilton crashed...again. -_-

Obviously, we can see a huge difference in their News Criteria.

ChannelNews Asia placed more importance on the sporting event of the year (in Singapore. Trust me, this is the best it gets when it comes to Sports...unless its Singapore vs Malaysia). I reckon its because it would promote Singapore as a tourism hub and loosen up its "strict" identity. Whereas, Sky News Australia focused on the political side of things. I guess it depends on what would be more well perceived by the audience in different countries.

To me, this news caught my eye:

Prophet film protests continue

by the Sky News Australia.

I guess this caught my interest because, being brought up in Singapore, we were thought to respect each other's religions and believes. Respecting each other's traditions was one of the important lesson which we, Singaporeans learnt from the second World War.
But to realise that this has not been practised in other parts of the world is extremely disappointing.
I MEAN COME GUYS...really?!
The movie wasn't even that...funny. It was just stupid. :/

“I wanna know what you see when you look in the mirror on a day you’re feeling good. I wanna know what you see in the mirror on a day a day you’re feeling bad. I wanna know the first person who ever taught you your beauty could ever be reflected on a lousy piece of glass.”

—	Andrea Gibson, Asking Too Much

Entry #8: Ethics...Say what...

Finally I've decided to do this! Yeap, no more procrastination! :D

Anyway, this lecture was conducted by Donna Meiklejohn- and she is amazing!

I loved her style of delivering the lecture, her inputs of personal stories and real-life events.

So, this lecture was all about Ethics in Communication.

The 3 Main Ethical Theories were discussed.

They are:

1) Deontology- which is where an individual follows the rules, be it established by the government, stated as an ethical codes or principles or/and duty related.

2) Consequentialism - where its all about the outcomes. And it is just focused of achieving the right outcome- ignoring how we got there.

3) Virtue Ethics- where what's wrong and what's right is evaluated.

To me, I always follow my heart- which has led me down the wrong path a lot of times, trust me. But, I think that if we're going to enter a tough and competitive field like Journalism, you've got to become the "Shape shifter". You've got to be a "Ice Queen" for certain occasions, and an expert Sympathiser the next- AND THIS IS HARD! You've got to be someone who is able to think with their head at times, and switch the heart off sometimes.

I have read about a number of Journalist getting injured, jailed or even losing their lives- just because they were trying to tell the truth.
An example would be the death of a Syrian Blogger- who was burned to death by the regime forces. Okay, let's be honest...I was terrified when I read this. Burned to death for exposing the truth?!
This was one of the few stories where Journalists were jailed or killed for exposing the truth. The lengths which these people would go just to make sure that justice is served...it's amazing. Especially at current times, where every-single-thing is being exposed and out of the bag- be it the government, the army, scandals, etc etc.
Wow...I am actually speechless right now. I guess this is the price of (freedom) of speech truth.

Okay, let's go to the less serious side of things now, shall we?...All the worried faces are making me worried as well. :/
So, while I was typing out the definition of " Consequentialism", I got reminded of my favourite fictional Journalist.
And it is none other than Gale Weathers from the Scream Series!
Oh-my-God, this chick is amazing...! She is strong, ruthless and always out to get the story...and of course, get on people's bad side >:)

"Hey! You need to check your conscience at the door sweetie, we're not here to be loved"

AOTB: Birdy

This week on Artist on the Block, is Birdy.

Well, I know she is much more well know now, and I apologise for my lack of updates...but this is a good one.
I am not a big fan of cover songs. I feel like the original song is lost somewhere in the middle of the all the "mash-up" and "bash-ups"- which annoys me so much!
But what Birdy did to Bon Iver's Skinny Love made me thank God...Finally someone who did justice to a beautiful song!
And I realise that most of her songs are covers. And did justice to all of them! What a marvellous talent!
The cover which I loved was "The A- Team", which was originally by Ed Sheeran.

Entry # 7: Public Media

Defining Public Media: "Mass media denotes a section of the media specifically designed to reach a large audience."
According to Wikipedia, Public Broadcasting should be:

1. Universally accessible
2. Universally appealing with general taste and interests
3. Particular attention to minorites - seen in ABC with Indigenous shows
4. Contributing to sense of national identity and community
5. Avoid vested interests

and more..

Okay, so! This lecture...
It focused on the role of Public Media- which was supporting and promoting public and democracy values. And it went on explaining about the functions of Public Media, which includes Nation Building, National Heritage and promoting National Identity. Examples which were given were, ABC and SBS channels.

WAIT WHAT?!
Ok, so before this lecture, I never knew that these channels were classified under public media. (Yeap, living under a rock...more like a coral reef.)
I've always enjoyed watching ABC. I like how they do not just focus on the "dramas", "breakups" and "you slept with my boyfriend/ husband!" blah blah blah (sorry Home and Away!).
It incorporates alot of regional, international and rural programs. And they are extremely informative! So, since I'm staying in College (waddup, Gracies!), we've got the God-sent DC+ -and I practically download every single TV show, movie and music from it. I had no idea that Angry Boys was produced by ABC! Mind= Blown.

Another broadcast cooperation which is recognised as Public Media is SBS.
Okay, I know I've mentioned that "late-night" TV on SBS isn't all kids-friendly at times...but hey! During the day and appropriate timings (ahemmm...), they do televise some informative shows like "Living Black" and oh boy...Soccer.
I can go on about Soccer, but please...STOP ME NOW!

Factual Storytelling: The Angel(ine) who saved me

“Beautiful people never put themselves down nor wish they were someone else, something else, and somewhere else.” 

This was how we ended every other conversation; with her reminding me to never put myself down nor wish I was someone else, something else and somewhere else.

Being a closet bulimic wasn’t easy; keeping up with appearances wasn’t an easy task. It was a vicious cycle and my love/hate relationship with food was getting out of control. By the end of 2010, I was purging at least 5 times a day. On the outside, I looked fine, happy and in control. But deep inside, I knew everything was spiralling out of control.

Until I met Angeline.

Image obtained from here

 “Stumbling” upon Angeline’s Fitness blog (www.fitbunney.tumblr.com) was how I “first met her”. She reminded me of an Asian Barbie doll, except with biceps and deltoids. Her blog was filled with quotes, pictures and random writings/posts about her life as a University Honour Roll student and a Fitness enthusiast. But something else drew my attention away from her amazingly carved arms: her recovery from binge eating.

When asked about her binge eating, she said “I was in a very low place of my life. Food was my only comfort. Sugar was my drug. While I was binging, everything seemed alright. But, right after a binge, I’d feel awful about myself. All the trashing-talking I did to my body…If I did that to my friends, I would have been a very lonely person.”

At that moment, I realised what I’ve been doing to myself. I have been slowly destroying myself, just to make myself feel better for a minute. I’ve never thought of it that way.

“At my heaviest, I found everything hard- Standing, Climbing up a flight of stairs, even walking seemed impossible” she said.

I realised that I was in the same situation after every binge/purge as well- but mentally. All I wanted to do was crawl up in a corner, avoid any social contact and hide in my room. Everything was hard. I was extremely curious about her transformation- from the girl with an eating disorder to Iron Barbie.

Her reply was a 3-page long Word document. At that moment, it finally sank it- I am not alone in this.

“I went to the local mall one day, had 3 Cheeseburgers, hid out in the toilet and bawling my eyes out. I didn’t understand why I was doing this to myself. I deserve better, my body deserve better. At that moment, I walked to the Gym located at the 4^th floor of the mall, signed up and never looked back since.”
“It may be hard and scary to just walk in to the gym and sign up without knowing anything. But trust me; everyone who’s training at the gym didn’t know what they were doing at first. They learn, and they conquer.” 

The word “conquer” hit me hard.

I need to conquer my addiction.
I need to conquer my fear of food.
I need to conquer to stay alive.

So that’s what I did. 

I signed up at the local gym and started learning my way around the gym. All my focus was on getting my postures and lifts right instead of “what am I going to eat next?”
When I emailed Angeline, telling her that I signed up at the local gym, she didn’t reply me with a bunch of workouts to do. Instead, she replied with “Now, it is research time for you!” I had to research about my meal plans, workouts, reps and sets, etc. The more I read into the articles available, the more interested and excited I became. Instead of being spoon-fed with the information, Angeline made sure that I took interest and researched about fitness. This wasn’t going to be a “one-off” thing; I was and am still very much interested in being part of the fitness community and paving a path to recovering from bulimia.

Image obtained from here

And I’ve never looked back since.

The gym has trained me to work hard and play even harder. When I’m in there, I’ve learn to block everything out and focus.

Focus on my next rep.
Focus on my breathing.
Focus on my posture

If Angeline was able to overcome her addiction, sign up for Singapore’s First Women’s Pro- Figure competition, I am certain I’ll be able to do anything.
This is what I call “Fluffy on the outside, Iron on the inside”

Our frequent emails and text messages keeps me motivated and focused on all the good things I have in life- Family, Friends, a home, Health and glad that I am still breathing. I can’t imagine what would have happened to me, if I was still going through that vicious cycle of binging and purging. I can’t imagine what it would have done to my parents, knowing that they couldn’t save their daughter from something that destructive.

Who knew that “stumbling” across a blog would change your life forever?
Angeline Jeunveirre inspired, and will always inspire me.
I can safely say- she saved me.

Image obtained from here

Having trouble with "Mars"?

Having troubles with understanding your man?- if you have a man, that is... :/
Well, then let Superwoman set things straight for you.

Yes yes, I know I am behind by 2 lectures.
Geez, calm downnnnnn...they will be up soon.
And by soon, i mean-not now

Three Cheers to Procrastination!

Just a thought

Nutella-ing my Peanut Butter

Peanut Butter with Nutella Icing

If Uni doesn't work out, I'd move to the mountains and become a baker.
Oh yes, I am a (secret) baker. ;)

Europe in (some) pictures

Notre Dame de Paris

Paris Disneyland

Dome of St Peter's Basilica 

Sistine Chapel, Vatican City

Colosseum, Rome

Eiffel Tower, Paris 

Edinburgh Castle, Scotland

London eye

Travel buddies 4 lyfeeeeeeeee.

New Artist on the Block! : Sid Sriram

Okay, I am a HUGE fan of acoustic versions of songs!
When they tone it done, just them and the guitar/ piano...pure love!

And I promise, this doesn't disappoint.
Wait till the ending for a special "surprise"!

Currently, I'm...

Call/Chat me, Maybe?

So if you haven't realised, I am a little obsessed with "Call Me Maybe" by Carly Rae Jespen- okay little is an understatment :p
but, look what I found!

I am trying to control my laughter in the library right now...
Yeap, no luck :x

Entry #6: Commercial Media

Define Commercial Media: Media which derive part of their income from advertising

This lecture talked about different types of Commercial Media available in Australia, which includes Channel 9, Channel 7, Yahoo MSN etc. It also talked about the form and function of Commercial Media. The lecture also discussed about the ways which commercial media is kept under control. This includes 1) Formal State Requirements, 2) Legal Prescription and 3) State Oversight. In Australia, there is the Australian Communications and Media Authority and Australian Press Council.

Okay, all these just sound wayyyyy too formal and lecture-yyy. So, let's break it down!
Basically, for any type of media to be aired or delivered to the public, it has to be reviewed by those organizations mentioned above.

I'm from Singapore, where chewing gum is banned and if you're caught spitting- you'll be fined 1000 bucks - no, I'm not joking. So you can expect Media censorship to be... strict. In Singapore, the Media Development Authority is the "middle man" before anything is aired- be it TV shows or even a commercial. So, what is considered out of bounds? Anything involving politics, racial and religious issues. Personally, I think that the media in Singapore is controlled- and when I say controlled, i mean tightly, by the government. Every-single-thing has to be reviewed before we (audience) watch it. Even when a certain movie is shown on TV, certain parts of the movie would be cut out- as it is "inappropriate".
So when I came to Australia, 11pm TV shows weren't...exactly what I expected them to be, I must say. I remember once, my friends and I were having a sleepover. After all the ritual stuff- popcorns, hair braiding, nail paintings, gossiping- were done, we decided to watch what was on TV.
Oh, you guess it- naked guy showing off his "pe-pe" to the entire world. Obviously we laughed about it, but now when I think about it, I realised that different countries have different censorship rules. I think it depends on their culture, and whether the country has a "conservative" image to keep up with. I can imagine how tightly controlled would the North Korean media would be. I remember watching a show about North Korea, and it mentioned that all media outlets were controlled and owned entirely by the government. They are so strict about media broadcasting that every media equipment (television sets, radio, etc) bought from North Korea has to be approved with a SEAL (i know right!) to prevent tampering with equipment to obtain broadcasting outside of North Korea! And guess what, internet connection is illegal in North Korea! Yeap, I am actually speechless right now...
So, Singapore isn't that bad after all! (y)
When I was in Paris, nothing was censored! Yeahhhh, it was "my eyes! my eyes! " moment. But hey, at least the cute French men walking about the streets weren't censored. Or else, my poor heart...

Ellen's Dance Dare DESI EDITION

Oh boy, I am so doing this one day!

Entry #5: Pictures, Images, Photos photos photos

I loved today's lecture!
Everything was about pictures. I am such a visual creature.
Pictures are a huge part of social media. We are visual creatures.

The lecture talked about picture stories in Australia, where the Indigenous people of Australia craved and painted on stone, and in France as well.

It just reminded me of my roots.
The Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India has one of the most elaborate paintings and carvings about the life of Buddha. They are considered to be masterpieces of Buddhist religious art! Imagine, a picture story which would be able to re-tell the life of the founder of Buddhism! HOW COOL IS THAT?!

When I was at the Vatican City, I saw many beautiful painting, and I've always wondered "Why paint when they could have written it out?!" After today's lecture, I found the answer: BECAUSE THEY COULD READ.

( if only i gave this excuse during my exams, i would be able to draw my answers out and ace the exam! pfft.)

"What makes a great photo?" section was interesting.
As an avid photographer myself, I find myself always trying to find the perfect shot. And it was great to find that individuals have different taste and likes when it comes to their visuals and pictures. To take good photo, framing, focus, angle and point of view, light exposure, shutter speed and "capturing the moment".

I love taking photos of building and architecture. It makes me wonder about the hard work put into building a fantastic structure. Maybe, I might switch Zoology for Photography... who knows? :)

Eyeing London

Colosseum Faces

Entry #4: Sound Lecture

This online lecture was rather interesting.
Listening to an actual radio interview! When I was young, I've always wanted to work in the Media Industry, especially in the Radio. Being a DJ was such a "cool" thing, until Science and Zoology took over :)

From this lecture, I discovered my passion for being a DJ again!
I learn that Radio and TV are two different medium- exact opposite! Radio is much more intimate, and can be used for multi-tasking. When I was studying for my GCSE, I used to listen to radio while I was studying. It helped me to concentrate much better! (Pro at multi-tasking aye!)

I also learn that the most important thing about being a DJ, is to ensure that listeners are always felt included. I mean, what's the point of going on on on and on about a certain topic when no one is listening to you?!
I have realised that I have never listened to a PODcast before (well, before this- that is). I am always into listening to FM radios- pop radio stations, BBC Asian stations. Even when I was in Paris, I even tuned into the French radio station- even though I don't understand anything.
But everything sounded so sexy and yummy ;)

Radio channels in London were...different.
For one, they had HEAPS of radio stations, so it got alittle confusing to which one to choose. As for me, I am guilty of always switching between radio stations depending on the song :/ Yeap, if it's "Call Me Maybe" on the radio, I am not going to switch the station until the song ends...even though I hate the song...with passion though. :D

Grace Ball 2012

best night everrrrrrrrrr.

My Media Usage Log

I must say that doing a Media Usage Log made me realise how reliant I am on the Internet. Technically, my life revolves around the internet, and sometimes I wonder what I will do without it…Probably leaving my room, into the outside world (beyond Uni, of course) and get involved in awkward social interactions. My Media Usage and Production Log was done over a period of 10 days: from the 1st to 10th of August.  

Date, Day	Time Spent	Medium used	Location
August 1, Wednesday	5 hours 20 mins	Facebook Tumblr Sciencedirect.com YouTube	College
August 2, Thursday	5 hours 40 mins	Facebook Tumblr Spotify Skype Scienedirect.com DC+	College
August 3, Friday	6 hours 30 mins	Facebook Tumblr Sciencedirect.com Spotify	College
August 4, Saturday	6 hours 16 mins	Facebook Tumblr DC+ Spotify Online Banking Youtube	College, University Library
August 5, Sunday	3 hours 10 mins	Facebook Tumblr iTunes	College
August 6, Monday	4 hours 29 mins	Facebook Tumblr Spotify Pinkisthenewblog.com CNN.com	College
August 7, Tuesday	6 hours 12 mins	Facebook Tumblr Sciencedirect.com Blogshopping Youtube	College, University Library
August 8, Wednesday	6 hours 10 mins	Facebook Tumblr Blogshopping Skype Sciencedirect.com Blog iTunes	College, University Library
August 9, Thursday	5 hours 30 mins	Facebook Tumblr iTunes DC+ ChannelNewsAsia.com Sciencedirect.com	College
August 10, Friday	3 hours	Facebook Tumblr Spotify	College, Handphone

Table 1: Types of Media used over a period of 10 days.

Figure 1: Comparison of the different types of media I used from August 1 to August 10, 2012.

My Media Usage Analysis
Oh well, the usual suspect- FACEBOOK.
I have spent at least a few hours a day on Facebook for the past 10 days. But what I found about my Facebook usage was rather interesting. I don’t spend the ENTIRE day on Facebook, going through my feed, waiting for something interesting to happen. I actually keep it on in the background, appearing offline while I’m doing my assignments or infact while I’m typing this out! Since I am an international student, Facebook is the only way to get instant updates about my family and friends- I mean, with my Mum on Facebook, I don’t have to call/ text her all the time!

Figure 2: Most common source of news voted by the cohort of JOUR 1111

Other than that, latest news and happenings are always updated on Facebook- which is why I rarely visited any Online News Websites in the 10 days. The only days when I visited a “Online News Website” was 6th August and 9th August. 6th August, as I heard about the shootings at the Sikh Gurdwara in Wisconsin. Since Sikhism is very close to my heart, CNN.com was rather efficient in letting everyone around the world know about the situation. The next time I visited an “Online News Website” was on the 9th of August, which was Singapore’s National Day. Despite being away from home, ChannelNewsAsia.com kept me updated about the happenings and everything about the National Day Parade which will be held every year, on the 9th of August.
Comparing my usage of Facebook as a new source, I am glad to know that I am not the only one! Althought most of the them voted “online newspapers” to be their “go-to” source for current news, 13.9% voted Facebook to be their source of “online newspaper”. I guess, since most of us are on Facebook most of the time, why not get updates about the happenings around the world from there as well?! From this survey, I have learnt how reliant I am on Facebook to provide me with all the latest happenings.
I have learnt so much more by visiting CNN.com for A DAY. Imagine, I’ll be updated with current happenings if I just spend 30 minutes out of 6 hours to read some online news platforms.


Tumblr was ranked the 2nd highly used Media platform in my log.
I love having a Tumblr as I get to share photos, reblogged some pretty cool GIFs and meet new people around the world. And in the 2 years of having a Tumblr, I have made heaps of friends around the world. Also, I have a fitness blog on Tumblr. After getting to know some girls who are extremely into fitness and love working out, I decided to be part of that community. From then on, I’ve never looked back.
Despite the time differences, my friends and I always send messages via Tumblr to one another- for motivation, sharing training tips, wonderful recipes etc. Thus, like Facebook, I’ve always kept Tumblr in the background while doing my assignments and other stuffs.


A trend regarding the usage of DC+ is evident.
DC+ is a program which is kind of…the life of every College kid. Being in College, TV is not always available. Either someone is watching a show, or you have to watch it quietly or- this is my reason- you’re just plain lazy to leave the comfort of your room. That’s why we have DC+, which allows us to share multimedia- E.g. Songs, Movies, TV shows, Photos, eBooks etc (I bet you wish you were in College now ;) ) Only on Thursdays, is when I used DC+. This might be so as on Thursday is when “Suits” get upload on to the site. 

As a Science student, research and getting reliable information about a certain topic is part of our very day (sad) life. Which is why, Sciencedirect.com was a frequent site which I visited at least 4 times in the 10 days. I was working on Research proposals and Laboratory Reports when this Media Survey was being carried out, which suggests the frequent visit to the site.
Least media usage was observed on the 10th of August. This is so as it was Grace College’s Annual Ball. With Uni ending at 2, I had to pretty much get ready in 3 hours- and as girls, we know this is not an easy task! This explains my limited usage of the media that day. Since I do not own an iPhone, Instagram was not included in the medium used- if not, TRUST ME: Ball + Instagram= total flooding of your Instagram and Facebook updates!

Figure 3: Different media usage by Cohort  

Comparing my media usage with that of the cohort, Facebook was obviously our Numero Uno. General surfing and browsing ranked second, while YouTube ranked third in the cohort survey. I do experience the whole “General Browsing and surfing” thing. I always wonder how I end up at certain sites. For example, after watching “The Tunnel”, I started googling about the Tunnels in New South Wales and ended up at this weird website about trolls (i know!). From this, I learnt that the internet is a huge place and it is so easy to get lost. Therefore, BE CAREFUL, MY YOUNG PADAWAN. :P
Youtube is my “to-go-site” for procrastination. The amount of cool videos, weird ones...OMG. It’s the perfect place to go if you need a laugh, a tear-jerker movie or just watching a girl putting her make-up on for millions of people to see. Over the 10 days, I visited Youtube thrice. Due to the amount of assignments I had due that week, procrastination was definitely not on the to-do list. But on weeks were I’m free, Youtube would be on my “must visit” sites of the day.

 Figure 4: Types of music platforms used in JOUR 1111 2012. 

Comparing my usage of music platforms with that of the course, I found that I was a frequent user of Spotify compared to iTunes. This is so as Spotify is FOC! And we can learn about new and upcoming artists without having to buy their music first. 83.6% of students who did the survey claimed to listen to music from their computer. I am not a big fan of storing music in my laptop as one album would lead to another, and another, and another… you get the idea.
And with the amount of articles, photos and TV shows (ahemmmm, from DC+) I have to store in my computer, listening to music via Spotify saves a lot of space. With Spotify, I frequently listen to playlist created by my friends- a great way to learn about new artistes.

My Media Production

Date, Day	Task	Medium
August 1, Wednesday	Uploading of photos	Tumblr
August 3, Friday	Uploading of photo	Facebook, Tumblr, Flickr
August 5, Sunday	Uploading of photos	Tumblr
August 8, Wednesday	Uploading of photos	Blogger
August 10, Friday	Uploading of photos of Grace Ball 2012	Facebook, Tumblr, Flickr

Table 2: Media Production Log

My Media Production Analysis

From this log, I realised that I don't produce much media of my own. Most of them are just random photos of my recent travel to Europe, random Uni photos during breaks. On the 10th of August, I uploaded heaps of photos on Facebook and my personal Tumblr- which is a form of Media Production. I think, despite having a personal Tumblr, I rarely "produce" anything of my own. Only when I have something interesting to upload, I would. Otherwise, I am mostly "reblogging".

I upload some of my photographs on to Flickr, which is Photo-sharing website. However, I am not always on Flickr as the uploading takes WAYYYYY too long. Uploading on Facebook and Tumblr seems the easiest to me.

I've got friends who are into uploading their music on Youtube and on iTunes, which is such a great platform for exposure. I wish I was talented enough to upload my singing/dancing/ random movements on Youtube.

How the different use of media affects my Journalism? Hmm, let's see.
Some of the last things I do almost every night includes checking my Facebook and Tumblr. My wake-up ritual consists of checking my Facebook for any new likes (y), replies on Tumblr, important emails, etc etc.
With Facebook and Twitter, everybody can be a content producer. Everybody can join in the conversation. It has helped me understood that Journalism is more than one dimension. It is not all about writing. It is also about "producing" media- songs, photos, videos,text and so on.
When the Time magazine announced “YOU” as the person of the year in 2006, it seems right to point out that communication revolution is taking over the world.There is a thin line between those who produced and distributed news and those who received them.

In all, this Media log was interesting, in a sense that I actually learnt alot about my Internet usage and Media Production. I feel like we are all so reliant on Social websites and other social mediums that we actually forgot about the "old-fashioned" interaction- using our voice. Gone are the days where we will get excited if a rather so-so looking boy (ahemmm, he better be GORGEOUS!) asks you out for coffee in person. Now it's more like this:

"Hey, i just met you
And this is crazy
But, you looked adorable today
So, coffee- with extra shot, maybe?" -over Facebook chat.