What Is a Mass Medium? Part 2

Barriers to Communication

Communication is not always smooth and clear. There are many reasons for this. They are identified as barriers to communication. Barriers are difficulties or obstacles that come in the way of communication. They may be physical, mechanical, psychological, cultural or linguistic in nature.

Physical barriers

There may be a competing stimulus present in the form of another conversation or a loud noise in the background etc.

Environmental stress in the form heat, humidity, poor ventilation etc. can cause distress and come in the way of effective communication.

Ill health, disturbed condition can cause subjective stress and obstruct communication.

Ignorance of the medium in itself can be a big barrier. If the receiver is not familiar with the medium through which the messages or content is communicated, then the medium itself can become a barrier.

Psychological barriers

Each of us has ' a frame of reference' of our own. It is a kind of window through which we look at the events, people, situations and the world at large. Our frames of references are influenced by our upbringing, experiences, cultural environment in which we grow up. However, as we grow up and mature and acquire experience we develop a range of diverse references.

Self Image

Closely linked to the 'frame of reference' is the concept of self image. We as individuals and as communities have our own mental pictures or self images of who and what we are. We tend to be defensive about them and accept messages that boost up our self image, but tend to reject the ones that challenge or threaten our self image. The result us then we receive communication selectively.

Resistance to change

"The risk of being changed is one of the most frightening prospects many of us can face." [Carl Rogers]. The ideas, thoughts or message that seek to convince us of the need to change are the ones we quite often resist.

Defensiveness and fear

The resistance to change breeds defensiveness of who we are and what we are and shuts off any critical look at ourselves. So, we tend to rationalize the mistakes, the opinions and even prejudices held by us. There is the fear of feeling insecure.

Linguistic and cultural barriers

A language is the expression of the thoughts and experiences of a people in terms of their cultural environment. Each language shapes the reasoning of its speakers. Languages outside their own sphere of birth and growth, take on different dimensions and create different hierarchies and structures. English for example, functions in entirely different contexts in UK and India. Each of us enriched and at the same time limited by our own language.

Mechanical barriers

Deficiencies of signal reception, interference by other signals., poor audio-visual quality, inefficient receiving apparatus mar our experiences while listening to radio, talking on the telephone or while watching TV. This can affect the quality of communication and in severe cases interrupts and disrupts the process completely.

How I Met Your Mother: Baby Talk

Baby Talk is the 6th Episode of the How I Met your Mother's 6th Season. It was aired last Tuesday October 26, 2010 at CBS. This Episode was created by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas and produced by Craig Thomas Carter Bays, Pamela Fryman, Chris Harris (II) and Stephen Lloyd.

The TV series have the following as guests: Emily Wilson as Marshall's Stripper Daughter, Joey Russo as Davey, Mikaela Hoover as Stacey, Jadon Sand as Rob, Ashwyn Bagga as Johnny, Bruce Merkle as Michael, Payson Lewis as Morris and Ryan Powers as Marc.

Its regular casts include Josh Radnor as Ted Mosby, Neil Patrick Harris as Barney Stinson, Alyson Hannigan as Lily Aldrin, Jason Segel as Marshall Eriksen and Cobie Smulders as Robin Scherbatsky.

Marshall and Lily trying to have a baby, and with Monday night's installment, How I Met Your Mother covered two of them in one half hour. "Baby Talk" took the obvious bits about naming the kid and trying to control the sex of the baby and gave them a nice, enjoyable How I Met twist.

The series has fully established the ease of their love, which makes them utterly believable, even in the zaniest of circumstances. "Baby Talk" wasn't exactly over-the-top for the couple, but it had its moments. During the opening tease, It feels lovely how sickeningly disgusted they were at the names they suggested for their friends' (Stuart and Claudia's) nameless child. Later, their discussions over the names they did like offered up some enjoyable flashbacks as arguments against. Every name Lily disliked was associated with a child she had once taught, including Johnny who ate the class goldfish and Ryan who stabbed her in the leg with a pencil.

There was also a very dated reference to Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," which unfortunately, even if you got it, wasn't very funny. Marshall had the best and funniest reasons to argue against a name. "Tara" gave us a flashback to Marshall singing a la Boys II Men to the hottest girl in school. He even had a cane. And "Esther" took us back to an unseen stripper. She didn't dance, but the implied things she was doing while naked were some of the best laughs of the episode.

Film Review: The Switch (2010)

By Todd Murphy Todd Murphy
Level: Platinum

Todd Murphy is a film analyst and staff writer/reviewer for the film and DVD review web site, All About Movies.net. He has written numerous reviews ...

BOTTOM LINE: It's not that "The Switch" is not watchable with its reasonably sincere performances by the cast, but it is forgettable and predictable; and the film is unsure of whether to be a romantic drama or comedy, creating a narrative that is clumsy and lacks direction.

THE GOOD: Wally (Jason Bateman) and Kassie (Jennifer Aniston) are best friends. One day, Kassie announces to Wally that she wants a baby and is going to try artificial insemination. Wally is against this, but Kassie continues on and finds a willing sperm donor in Roland (Patrick Wilson). At the insemination party, Wally gets blind drunk, and while in the bathroom, stumbles across Roland's sample and accidentally spills it down the drain. In a panic, he puts his own 'ingredients' in to the cup. Kassie goes through with the insemination, and then leaves town. Seven years later, Kassie shows up with her son Sebastian (Thomas Robinson), who more than closely resembles Wally's personality, especially as the two of them understand each other immediately. Wally then has to confront the truth behind the situation and also realise his true feelings for Kassie. The story itself is simple enough in its premise to hang a romantic comedy narrative, and the film is made watchable largely due to the sincerity in the performances of the cast, particularly Jason Bateman who delivers his smart but neurotic character in Wally to perfection, and Jeff Goldblum as his wise-cracking boss who is there to lend moral support. Jennifer Aniston is quite good in her role. The narrative is surprisingly low key given the genre it is trying to inhabit, and it does at least do the job of holding your interest just enough to see it through to the end.

THE BAD: The basic premise of the film seems more aligned with a silly comedy. When the male protagonist switches his 'ingredients' with that of the donor in a drunken stupor, it seems as if this is a film that could lead to something more potentially funny that what is depicted here. The film quickly moves in to more dramatic territory, and does not offer much of a compelling narrative. There are no situations or setups, other than watching the characters go through the motions of their lives. When things do come to a head and Wally tells Kassie the truth, Kassie's first reaction is perfectly real, but the conventional Hollywood ending slapped on at the end is farcical. Would a woman really forgive a man who hijacked her inseminated pregnancy, no matter how well they got along in the first place? And on top of that, would she decide he is the man for her to give the story its obligatory happy ending? Even if you accepted this, seeing it occur within the space of five minutes, even with the mandatorily edited passage of time, makes the whole thing ridiculous. The 'best-friend' relationship between Wally and Kassie seems a little over the top as well, particularly as Wally actually does have feelings for her. His neurotic, pessimistic and smart attitude may make him get over this, but the inherent concept is not really believable enough to allow you to accept that they could be best friends with no issues or complications (outside of the donor switch). Ultimately, "The Switch" does not have a consistent tone or narrative, which does not give you an adequate sense of what the story is trying to achieve, and as such, is completely forgettable.

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Article Submitted On: January 31, 2011

Weekend Box Office January 30th - The Rite, No Strings Attached and The Green Hornet

The first month of 2011 is in the books as far as the weekend box office numbers are concerned. Overall the first month of 2011 brought us some good flicks but we are excited about what the rest of the year has to offer as well. Below are the top performing films for the weekend of January 30th, 2011.

Coming in at the top of the list for this weekend's box office earnings was the Anthony Hopkins thriller The Rite. Hopkins plays the creepy Father Lucas Trevant who travels to Italy to study at an exorcism school. We remember Hopkins best for his gripping role in The Silence of the Lambs and this movie might just match that performance. The Rite made $15 million in its opening weekend which is slightly less than original expectations. The genre might be holding this film back from bigger success but the word of mouth on the movie is also mixed. If you like thrillers with a bit of a horror twist this film might just be for you.

No Strings Attachedcontinues to see some good success as the Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman film held strong in the second box office spot. The romantic comedy, that has plenty of great visual screen candy, was able to add $13.7 million for the weekend to bring the two week domestic earnings total to $39.7 million. The duo of Kutcher and Portman is proving to be a successful one as the film is really hitting it big with the romantic movie going crowds.

The Green Hornethad another great weekend holding the third place spot in their third weekend at the theaters. The action comedy, which was written by and starred Seth Rogen, was happy to add $10.5 million to their domestic bottom line bringing their three week earnings total to $78.8. Look for The Green Hornet to cross over the coveted $100 million mark sometime in mid February.

In opening weekend news The Mechanic earned $11.5 million for the weekend and grabbed the fourth weekend box office spot. The action thriller starring Jason Statham and Ben Foster performed better than the original expectations for the film. The Mechanic, as well as all of the current box office films, should take a bit of a hit next weekend as they will have to compete with the spectacle that is the Super Bowl.

Check out all of the top performing current movies and their earnings for the weekend of January 30th, 2011 below.

# Title weekend

1 The Rite $15,005,000

2 No Strings Attached $13,650,000

3 The Green Hornet $11,500,000

4 The Mechanic $11,500,000

5 The King's Speech $11,102,276

6 True Grit $7,600,000

7 The Dilemma $5,475,925

8 Black Swan $5,100,000

9 The Fighter $4,055,000

10 Yogi Bear $3,165,000

All data provided by BoxOffice.com.

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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Patrick_Hayes

Hollywood Costumes Can Let You Become A Star For Only A Day

So you want to become a Hollywood celebrity? Oh, simply temporarily? Well, that can be accomplished. If you have never been to Hollywood, you have to get a knowledge on exactly what a real Hollywood costume entails.

Marilyn Monroe embodied the classic description of a Hollywood superstar, stunning, curvy and elegant. Along with Greta Garbo, Lauren Bacall and Rita Hayworth, Marilyn Monroe typified the glamor woman. All of these ladies belonged to a bygone period, and you'll not find the likes of them at present. That Hollywood is gone permanently. So what is left?

Simply, it is based on on which side of Hollywood we're referring to. East is wealthy and lucky turf, and any edition of the Enquirer will reveal enough examples of movie star glitz. West is the true home of the Hollywood costume. West hosts the performers, musicians and more avant-garde contingent of fame. One of the most creative minds call West home. That's where you will discover the "genuine" Hollywood costume.

West is actually the underground of the Hollywood mystique. West Hollywood is the brand new Fillmore, of San Francisco 60's fame. It is Berkeley rammed brimming with shimmer, shine as well as originality. The "true" outfit is absolutely nothing if not original, and not very easily copied. This specific costume is usually crazy and the normal everyday clothing to the native artist inhabitants.

H.G. Geiger, an icon of the 1960's San Francisco art movement, at present resides in the West. Gidget Gein, an ex Marilyn Manson band member, is a popular West artist, with a number of books and Compact discs to his credit, who also finds time to paint in the Pop Art genre with great success. These people are the "true" Hollywood.

For everyone knowledgeable, the Hollywood costume is really a refined combination of classic Hollywood along with a healthy amount of creativity and crazy individuality.

West or East, the community holds the corset for women's wear. A tiny waist is essential to get a successful costume. When you're properly cinched, the Hollywood costume needs certain undergarments, which includes stockings held up by old-fashioned garters as well as an appealing garter belt. Criss-cross and cone-shaped bras help to imitate the classic Marilyn Monroe bombshell appearance.

Vintage clothes provides the backbone of the costume. Stiff fabrics and fallen waistlines emphasize the attractive voloptuous body. Gentle, flowing dresses and 1940's vamp dresses bring about the appreciation for the past, the quintessential costume.

Wigs are the outfit lifesaver. Wigs are available in every style and color imaginable. Hair appointments being what they are, all women within a ten mile distance is lined up for several weeks. Obtain a wig, or two or three. These fashion merchandise are simply plain pleasure, and you don't even have to color or style your hair. Your own hair doesn't have to be perfect for you to effect the Hollywood costume look.

In order to be a star, if only for one day, get real by having a true Hollywood costume.

Film Review: A Nightmare On Elm Street (2010)

By Todd Murphy Todd Murphy
Level: Platinum

Todd Murphy is a film analyst and staff writer/reviewer for the film and DVD review web site, All About Movies.net. He has written numerous reviews ...

BOTTOM LINE: The re-imagining of nightmare villain Freddy Kreuger was done with great care, both in make-up and Jackie Earle Harley's menacing performance, but everything else about this remake of the horror classic is bland, boring and lacking in character.

THE GOOD: As with the original 1984 film, the idea of a psychotic murderer who stalks and kills people in their dreams is a potent one. This remake captures that idea by creating a world where the characters force themselves to stay awake to stay alive, only to see the boundary between the real and dream worlds often disappear, leading to the iconic character of Freddy Kreuger (portrayed menacingly here by Jackie Earle Harley) showing up in various places and forms to terrorise and maim his subjects. A group of teenagers are all having the same dream of Kreuger stalking them while they are asleep, and one by one, they start to die as Kreuger kills them with his insidious knife-fingers. Nancy (Rooney Mara) suspects something more is going on, and eventually uncovers a town secret involving Freddy and his dark past. If anything works in this film, it is the performance of Jackie Earle Harley. He more than adequately captures the chilling menace of Freddy Kreuger, and combined with the fantastic prosthetics, make up and computer work, you have an extremely nightmarish villain that is worth watching. The tone of the film is quite low key in parts for a horror film. Yes, there is blood and slashing, but the filmmakers know that silence and subtlety at the right moments are just as effective. This remake of A Nightmare On Elm Street is worth watching to see Freddy in this re-imagined state.

THE BAD: Much effort was put in to the re-imagining of Freddy Kreuger and his menace. Unfortunately, no effort was put in to the rest of the film. All of the characters, save Freddy, are cardboard cut-outs that have no life in them whatsoever. At times, they seem interchangeable, and it does not really matter who dies when or how, or that you should even care. Since the success of a film like this rests on you caring about the characters so when Freddy shows up you feel 'horrified' at what he does to them, the film falls completely flat when the character are far from engaging. Kreuger himself is scary, but the situations presented do not generate any thrills or scares, outside of the usual cattle-prod scare. Another issue for the film would be stating the obvious: the Elm Street series is one of the most famous horror franchises in history. Most people know about Freddy Kreuger, and even if they do not know the story, they know that he kills people in their dreams, which robs the film of any sense of novelty or surprise at the horror being presented. The film presents nothing new to make Kreuger and his story more innovative and surprising. The film should appeal to a younger generation who may never have heard of Freddy, but to everyone else, it's a lacklustre facsimile of the original, save Harley's performance.

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Article Submitted On: January 31, 2011

Review of the Cave Diving Movie 'Sanctum'

It is tremendously difficult to objectively review a movie if you were in any way involved in its creation. In this case it is doubly difficult as I aim to review 'Sanctum,' the movie intimately linked with the greatest of filmmakers - James Cameron. Still, I'm not one to shy away from a challenge, so I'll give it a shot. Although I might have to be more wordy than simply proclaiming it as 'good', as I initially did.

After I saw the preview of the 'Sanctum' movie my family and friends hailed a thousand questions at me, including the ultimate question 'So... how was it?' My first reaction was a bit lame, I proclaimed it as 'good'... and as an afterthought I added 'it was very full on.' All this, while true, hardly gives the movie justice. So let me expand a little now that I've had a bit of time to digest what I saw.

In case you have been on another planet 'Sanctum' is a movie about cave divers, what it takes to explore cave systems deep beneath the earth and what happens when it all goes terribly wrong. It is not difficult to imagine why someone would want to make a movie about cave diving. Inside a cave system the line between life and death is a fine one, which naturally makes for thrilling adventure or in this case a thriller of a movie.

'Sanctum' flies by at a phenomenal speed and it is non-stop action all the way through. There is hardly enough time to relax and take in a breath between all the action and the drama. The movie delivers the kind of energy and shots of adrenalin that is fitting when telling a story about one of the most exciting and extreme disciplines in the world - cave exploration. Yet, to its credit the actual essence of the story rings true on a number of levels and stays real and down to earth. The movie is engaging because it is a story about people, how they relate to each other under trying and stressful conditions and the psychology of being trapped underground and facing a seemingly hopeless situation.

The 'Sanctum' story was written by John Garvin and Andrew Wight and was inspired by true events. The writers of the script are both cave divers and they have experienced first hand both the ecstasy of cave exploration and the very real dangers that exist whilst pursuing this activity. Obviously there would be no movie if everything on the expedition went smoothly and according to plan, there is an emphasis on all the things that could go wrong. It is worth noting though that the hazards experienced by the characters in the movie have not been plucked from mid air, the hazards are real. Still, while the characters do experience a horrific ordeal the cave itself is not painted as a malicious and evil place, nor should it be. The harsh reality of this unforgiving world is contrasted with the breathtaking beauty that only submerged caves can offer. The opportunity to see such exquisite beauty is one of the reasons people choose to go down there.

'Sanctum' gives a glimpse into the psyche of the explorer and what drives them to keep pushing such hostile environments. It tries to share the joy of exploration and the thrill of finding new cave passage. The idea that you can go around the corner and enter an unknown world and see a place no one has ever seen before... I think that appeals to the explorer in each of us. The phenomenal thing is, this kind of exploration is still possible today!

My favorite part of watching the movie was actually seeing it all come together on the big screen. I love what Alister Grierson, the director, did with the story - I really enjoyed watching his vision. It captures the world of cave exploration brilliantly; the personalities involved, the potential conflicts, the pleasure, the pain, the difficulties, the splendor and finally and most importantly the feeling of hope. Sure, I would have done it differently, but I'm no hot shot director. Watching my world through his eyes was an interesting experience.

The actors (Richard Roxburgh, Ioan Gruffudd, Alice Parkinson, Rhys Wakefield, Dan Whyllie and Allison Cratchley) did a fantastic job, not just because they captured the spirit of the characters so well but also because they actually did the diving. There are no tricks in this movie, the actors were underwater and they were diving! When you see the character Frank MacGuire squeezing through tight restrictions pushing his Sentinel rebreather in front of him, well that really is Richard Roxburgh doing all the work. It was incredible what the actors managed to do in such a short period of time. They went from having zero diving experience to diving rebreathers, carrying stages and riding scooters, which is quite amazing. It is a testament to John Garvin and his excellent teaching skills as well as the pluck and fearlessness of the actors. This level of involvement and dedication from the actors is obvious when watching the movie and it adds that little extra to the experience. It also meant that as a stunt diver I could sit around and look pretty while they did all the work, bonus!

Check out the ' Sanctum' movie trailer and make sure you go see this flick! It is quite a ride and a full on adventure. And yes it is 'good'.