Musings on Media Representations, Avatars and Jenkins

I have been thinking about representation in media and about avatars. We held a class discussion in week 5 about representation on television in which we discussed who we had seen in the TV programs we watched – what ethnicities and socio-economic levels were represented. Among other groups that had low representation were rural and poor people. I am currently living in a rural, depressed area. I work at an elementary school with 1000 students (three quarters of the county) with a 50% free and reduced lunch rate. So I decided to ask some of my 5th grade students if they saw themselves or their lifestyles represented on TV.

Last week I video taped a discussion with a fifth grade class about rural representation on TV.( I will video one more class this next week and then create a Youtube video to post here.) The kids had many insightful opinions, but let me just tell you that these kids definitely do not see themselves represented on TV and they would like to. With fifth graders I have also been discussing stereotypes that we find in media, most specifically in children’s literature, and the importance of recognizing them for what they are. I did a portfolio in my Intellectual Freedom and Youth class last semester that defended books with misrepresentations of American Indians (Indian in the Cupboard, Sign of the Beaver, The Education of Little Tree and Little House on the Prairie). In the process I read a lot on American Indian representation in media. Carol recently posted links to Asian representation – the piece on Long Duk Dong brought back memories. Kamilla Kovacs in her post about Daniel Pink and A Whole New Mind was annoyed by the representation of Asians in that book as well as the lack of representation of the working class. Klara Kim in her video post reflection for week 6 compares the actual real teenagers producing Youth Radio versus the studio created commentators for Channel One. Everywhere we are trying to find accurate representation of people and dispel stereotypes in media.

I think it is interesting to then juxtapose our search for truthful representation of people with the world of gaming and avatars. In online virtual worlds and games people often (I didn’t say always) create the avatars in the image of what they desire to be, usually emphasizing such desired attributes as beauty, strength and power. One part of me thinks that it is super-cool that people get to be released from their physical restrictions and project their inner-self or inner qualities in these virtual forums. Ideally shouldn’t inner qualities be given at least equal attention to physical qualities in the real world? But I also find a certain irony in the fact that we are creating these dual realities in which our search for representation takes very different paths. In real life we want to media to reflect us as we are and in virtual media we want to be reflected as the image we desire to be.

Gee (in Jenkins) uses the term “projective identity” to describe the relationship between game players and their avatars. It’s actually pretty cool that in a way avatars and virtual reality are like actors on a large stage for our alter egos get to stretch and experiment. Ideally, according to Jenkins, in the education realm these avatars allow students to simulate real life experiences along the time continuum, past – future. This ideally increases understanding and critical thinking, problem solving – a whole slew of desired learning results; helping students prepare for the real world.

In LIS502 summer 07 Professor Estabrook used her World of WarCraft avatar experience to help demonstrate the cooperative spirit that is desirable in the dynamic relationships between organizations – such as library consortia. Players must simulate the roles, boundaries, decision making of group dynamics. I have to say that was the first time that I had a glimpse into games in this light – it kind of blew me away to see a respected, middle-aged professor get so wound-up about the game. But it is a perfect demonstration of what Jenkins is talking about. (sorry, just connecting the dots publicly – I process slowly J)

I personally find it easier to be assertive and create relationships in the real world than in a virtual one. I like to face to face contact and relationships that are based purely on the cerebral, lacking body language, eliminating the tactile and olfactory senses, void of the subtleties of expression (i.e. tone of voice) seem much more complicated for me. I also realize, however, that removing such ‘obstacles’ is a relief for some people. My appreciation of video games as a complex media with great potential is growing. Given my own nature I don’t know if I will ever be a serious or active participant in them, but then again this course isn’t called Media Literacy and ME.

The educational aspects of gaming and avatars excite me. I looked up Supercharged (Jenkins p25) because I recently completed a science unit with 4th graders on, among other topics, electromagnetism. This looks like a great resource to pass on to teachers. My own son (age 8) is excited about baseball season, practice has started and he is also playing a lot of The Bigs, a Wii baseball game. This game stimulates conversations with his dad (I’m not a big baseball fan) about how the league is structured, awareness of different cities and their locations, etc (very similar to the example give in Jenkins p22). I did have to remind him the other day when we were playing catch that he didn’t have to jump like The Bigs every time he went to catch the ball. :)

Ok, I promise I’m winding it up…As Klara pointed out in her post, in the readings for week 11 there is a focus on the interconnectedness of media, learning, experience – of everything There is also a focus on participation culture. So maybe that is how I can tie this all up… Media representation and avatars that’s where I started… we’re all searching for a way to be connected, media is a means by which we make those connections. Maybe some find a connection in popular, traditional mass media even with its restrictive participation controls and if not there is the option to participate and make connections according to our own rules in virtual media. I still, however, find a certain irony to our pursuit of accuracy and our acceptance of inaccuracies in these different mediums. And I do worry about the obsession with image, started in traditional media, that is perpetuated in the world of avatars.

Well this is my very first Blog post ever and I’m happy to have it out of the way as I have been fretting about sharing my musings and ramblings with you. Please let me know if you think I’m way off base. Many of you have much more experience with gaming and creating avatars than I do.