Monday, November 23, 2015
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Poster propagating propaganda (Caring)
Rationale:
This propaganda poster aims to present ‘Caring’, one of the essential IB learner profile ideals as the most important. The poster has been created using propaganda appeals such as card stacking which involves testimonials, glittering generalities and transfer device.
The transfer device takes the form of an image where a dog is feeding milk to a goat using a bottle. Since most people will agree that the picture is cute, they will also identify the fact that the dog and the goat are from 2 different species and this gives an essential realization that we as one species should take care of each other. The quote from Mahatma Gandhi has been provided to contribute to the ethos of this propaganda just as the picture of the caring dog has been used to apply to the pathos of the viewer in a subtle way.
The testimonials provide physical evidence on the importance of being caring, and solidify the message being conveyed.
The glittering generalities (...Strive to be EXCELLENT at...) provide a new dimension to the poster. It showcases an IB learner as one who shines even amongst the most clean of mirrors.
The visual language contributes to the importance of caring for each other as the bold font emphasizes the ideal. The background picture also provides a general overview, as the heart sign made using the hand is a mainstream thing and it can be easily identified. The picture of the globe within the heart has an obvious connotation, to love and take care of the world around us.
Poster
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Reflection on Propaganda
Throughout the past week, we have been exploring propaganda and some of it's subtle and not-so-subtle forms in the media. Before beginning this journey, we played a little game of 4 corners. The prompt: "It is okay for the government to mislead in order to promote security." was the one that hit me more than the others. Such a statement has been nibbling me at the back of my mind for the entirety of my bring. Initially, my response was that 'misleading by the government' was morally wrong. It was unethical, and the abolition of such a totalitarian statement will be the only path to a Utopia. However, throughout the past week, my stance on the statement has changed.
Propaganda has taken over our life, whether it be in the form of media or the daily talk we have with our family at the dinner table. Propaganda is everywhere, and is unstoppable as it is the by-product of human nature. This extreme form of bias is natural; if there was no propaganda in this world, there might as well not have been emotions.
This is evident from the Jessica Lynch case about which an article was assigned to us as a reading. Some consider the rescue of the then 19 year old American soldier heroic; others less so. The BBC and American media have taken widely different stances on this issue. The media in the USA had been accused of tweaking and manipulating the fine details of the story. It was portrayed as a very heroic story, one similar to those in action movies. This led to the induction of a new cult symbol in the USA. Even if the story is exaggerated, it gives hope to the Americans, and upholds the very fabric of society. Sure, the fact that the US government is not doing too well on foreign soil, or the fact that they shouldn't be there in the first place is not mentioned anywhere in american media. However, it is this confidence that holds America together: what's the point of reporting news that's going to bring a society apart? Societal structures in developed countries like the USA are fragile, and need to be maintained with great care in order to prevent the breaking down of one of the most powerful economies in the world. Imagine an America in turmoil: everyone running around in panic due to their lack of confidence in their military. This does not make a very pretty sight does it? Propaganda through the subtle impact of the American Government on American media provides an identity to an American even though they might not be wholly true: as those who stand for justice to anyone anywhere.
The documentary 'Control Room' also further emphasises my point on the importance of propaganda. Everyone considers Jazeera News to have some form of propaganda. The owner himself says that the main objective is to bring the Arab World to the forefront of technology. Iraqi media says that they have an American bias, whereas American media says they have an Iraqi one. This intertwining and mingling of different viewpoints on propaganda proves that everyone is human: objective reporting in extreme cases (such as the Iraqi one) is quite simply impossible. Since propaganda is going to be present anyway, wouldn't it be better if the almighty power of a country use certain propaganda and information in order to strengthen the identity and quality of life of a country?
Such a view might seem extreme if thought about initially. However, throughout the lessons, these are thoughts that have been going through my head. Propaganda is inevitable: you might as well use it for good purposes, even if it involves manipulation of facts. Willing citizens can make what they want to of the news being reported. This has finally changed my perspective to that of an "strongly-agreeing student" about this prompt. I can't say a lot of the others would say the same...
Propaganda has taken over our life, whether it be in the form of media or the daily talk we have with our family at the dinner table. Propaganda is everywhere, and is unstoppable as it is the by-product of human nature. This extreme form of bias is natural; if there was no propaganda in this world, there might as well not have been emotions.
This is evident from the Jessica Lynch case about which an article was assigned to us as a reading. Some consider the rescue of the then 19 year old American soldier heroic; others less so. The BBC and American media have taken widely different stances on this issue. The media in the USA had been accused of tweaking and manipulating the fine details of the story. It was portrayed as a very heroic story, one similar to those in action movies. This led to the induction of a new cult symbol in the USA. Even if the story is exaggerated, it gives hope to the Americans, and upholds the very fabric of society. Sure, the fact that the US government is not doing too well on foreign soil, or the fact that they shouldn't be there in the first place is not mentioned anywhere in american media. However, it is this confidence that holds America together: what's the point of reporting news that's going to bring a society apart? Societal structures in developed countries like the USA are fragile, and need to be maintained with great care in order to prevent the breaking down of one of the most powerful economies in the world. Imagine an America in turmoil: everyone running around in panic due to their lack of confidence in their military. This does not make a very pretty sight does it? Propaganda through the subtle impact of the American Government on American media provides an identity to an American even though they might not be wholly true: as those who stand for justice to anyone anywhere.
The documentary 'Control Room' also further emphasises my point on the importance of propaganda. Everyone considers Jazeera News to have some form of propaganda. The owner himself says that the main objective is to bring the Arab World to the forefront of technology. Iraqi media says that they have an American bias, whereas American media says they have an Iraqi one. This intertwining and mingling of different viewpoints on propaganda proves that everyone is human: objective reporting in extreme cases (such as the Iraqi one) is quite simply impossible. Since propaganda is going to be present anyway, wouldn't it be better if the almighty power of a country use certain propaganda and information in order to strengthen the identity and quality of life of a country?
Such a view might seem extreme if thought about initially. However, throughout the lessons, these are thoughts that have been going through my head. Propaganda is inevitable: you might as well use it for good purposes, even if it involves manipulation of facts. Willing citizens can make what they want to of the news being reported. This has finally changed my perspective to that of an "strongly-agreeing student" about this prompt. I can't say a lot of the others would say the same...
Saturday, November 7, 2015
Biased newspaper article (Pastiche)
Sierra Leone: Is it really free of Ebola?
Thousands of people took to the streets of the capital, Freetown, at the stroke of midnight - marking 42 days without a single declared case of the disease. What they don't know is that the virus is slowly multiplying and rebuilding itself in a part of their body which the immunity system finds hard to reach.
There were further cheers when the WHO local representative made the official announcement later on Saturday.
But for Ebola survivors this milestone does not mean the end of the impact of this disease on their lives. The last month has significantly altered our understanding of how Ebola virus interacts with the human body, based on new research publications as well as information from the case of Scottish nurse Pauline Cafferkey.
Cafferkey, who volunteered at an Ebola treatment unit in Sierra Leone, contracted Ebola last December. She survived after a protracted battle with the virus only to have it reappear as meningitis months later. This information, taken together with the evidence that Ebola can also survive in the sperm of a quarter of male Ebola survivors up to nine months after recovery, tells us that the virus invades and hides away in areas of the body where the immune system does not wield a strong response. It then lies in wait, all the while slowly replicating in the background and posing a potential threat to the health of the host.
But for Ebola survivors this milestone does not mean the end of the impact of this disease on their lives. The last month has significantly altered our understanding of how Ebola virus interacts with the human body, based on new research publications as well as information from the case of Scottish nurse Pauline Cafferkey.
Cafferkey, who volunteered at an Ebola treatment unit in Sierra Leone, contracted Ebola last December. She survived after a protracted battle with the virus only to have it reappear as meningitis months later. This information, taken together with the evidence that Ebola can also survive in the sperm of a quarter of male Ebola survivors up to nine months after recovery, tells us that the virus invades and hides away in areas of the body where the immune system does not wield a strong response. It then lies in wait, all the while slowly replicating in the background and posing a potential threat to the health of the host.
The outbreak killed almost 4,000 people in Sierra Leone over the past 18 months. This is the second highest number of people killed by Ebola in the extremely affected countries.
Ebola deaths
Figures up to 1 November 2015
Source: WHO
Getty
At the scene: Tulip Mazumdar, BBC News, Freetown
Figures up to 1 November 2015
Source: WHO
Getty
At the scene: Tulip Mazumdar, BBC News, Freetown
11,314
Deaths - probable, confirmed and suspected
(Includes one in the US and six in Mali)
- 4,808 Liberia
- 3,955 Sierra Leone
- 2,536 Guinea
- 8 Nigeria
Many gathered around a giant cotton tree in the centre of the city. There were candles lit around a cotton tree in memory of the dead.
Dr Oliver Johnson, from the King's Sierra Leone partnership, worked at an Ebola clinic in Freetown, and has strong links with medical professionals there.
"[For] everyone I've spoken to, there's a sense of relief that this might finally be over and maybe a bit of disbelief that after so many false starts, or false ends, we might finally be there," he told the BBC.
A country is considered free of human-to-human transmission once two 21-day incubation periods have passed since the last known case tested negative for a second time.
This is the moment Sierra Leone has been waiting for. Thousands of people took to the streets of the capital on the run-up to midnight.
Women's groups came together to organise a march through the city centre; the final point was a 600-year-old cotton tree which sits on a huge roundabout. Usually, the area is jammed with cars, but last night it was packed with people. Some held up candles, others jumped around dancing and a military band led the procession through the city.
There were waves of celebrations, and then silence as names of some of the dead were beamed on to a screen. Health workers in particular were honoured for their bravery and sacrifice, they were some of the first to die when Ebola struck. Today is an enormous milestone for Sierra Leoneans, and people are overjoyed. But this historic moment is bittersweet.
Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Koroma is due to address crowds in the city later.
On Friday, he blamed the WHO for delaying Sierra Leone declaring a state of emergency and restricting movement during the Ebola outbreak.
He said his government did at the time what it could do and did not have the knowledge to fight the disease.
Indeed, the lack of infrastructure of the country did not help slow down the spread of the life-destroying virus that combines the nastiest symptoms of some of the diseases out there. They delays were indeed inappropriate: not due to the fact that the delays were long, but rather due to the fact that delays were shorter than they should have been.
He said his government had to put up with the delays because international organisations such as the WHO "were the experts".
Neighbouring Liberia was declared Ebola-free in September following 4,800 deaths there.
A handful of cases are still being reported in neighbouring Guinea. Sierra Leone has said it will take heightened security and health screening measures at their shared border.
Nevertheless, we have to assume that the late manifestations as discussed in Cafferky's case at the beginning are already happening in some of the nearly 17,000 Ebola survivors in West Africa.
These new findings about Ebola reveal a severe blind spot in the medical community. Were these symptoms present in Ebola survivors from prior outbreaks as well? Did we just not pick them up because we weren't looking for them or had no capacity to look for them? How confident can we be about our knowledge of Ebola and other emerging pathogens when the majority of the cases are occurring in communities that lack the medical resources to pick them up.
The Ebola survivors in Sierra Leone and the other affected countries have taught us — the medical and the public health community — the importance of sticking around. Good medical infrastructure and the presence of enough sharp clinicians in the affected areas could not only make a significant difference for the patients but also contribute to the preparedness of the larger global community. For West Africa, the most critical question is how do we equip these healthcare systems, which have been severely debilitated by the Ebola epidemic, to handle the new disease burden among survivors, alongside the burden of other communicable and non-communicable diseases?
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