COMM396/Journal tips

From Driscollwiki

What are the characteristics of an excellent journal entry?

The Basics

• Typed, printed, stored in a folder
• Edited for spelling and grammar

Media artifact

• Describes the artifact clearly and concisely
• Highlights multiple juicy details
• Expresses the context or contexts that draw out these details
• Suggests multiple approaches to reading, interpreting the artifact
• Especially considers contradictory, conflicting readings and interpretations

Reading reflection

• Works from direct quotes in the text
• Locates and engages with the argument
• Talks back to the author(s)
• Suggests additional examples to support or complicate the argument
• Finds areas of agreement, disagreement, tension, and confusion
• Talks about relationships among two or more readings
• Considers the historical and social context of the reading
• Speculates about how the text might be read by different audiences

How to read a media artifact

• Production characteristics
  • Color? Black and white?
• Sounds
  • Music? Sound fx?
• Dialogue
  • What is said? Who says it?
  • Language from other areas: science, fashion, pop
• Casting
  • What do the people look like?
  • Celebrity?
  • Age?
  • Size?
• Location
  • Recognizable location?
  • Indoors, outdoors
• Action
  • What is happening?
  • Who is doing it?
• Props
  • What objects are in view?
  • Labels? Logos?
  • Wealth?
• Tone
  • Humor? Irony?
  • Sexy?
  • Romantic?
  • Serious?
  • Scientific?
• Audience
  • Who is the imagined viewer?
  • Do you feel welcomed in?
  • Aspirational?
  • Inclusive? Exclusive?