Representing ourselves

) Read the article and summarise each section in one sentence, starting with the section 'Who are you?'

-The representation of cultural values, the construction of role models and the way the media informs us about lifestyle and fashion choices have an influence on who we want to be, who we want to be seen as and, possibly, who we actually are.

-The past  was a time where the notion of the individual was less central than it is now is. We were part of a number of collectives and therefore our identities would be determined by our lives that were constructed outside of our selves; class, religion, gender and the predetermined roles deemed fit.

-During the early 20th century, there was a  transition from people being seen as citizens to consumers. This was done by those in power convincing people that it was no longer enough simply to buy what you needed to survive; advertising and marketing was persuading people to consider

what they wanted – a radically different way of thinking. Consumer goods were about creating and then satisfying desires; and advertising informed people about what they could, and indeed, should want.

-By the late 1960s and 1970s the notion of individualism began to take hold, reacting against what can be seen to be the more conformist values of the past.

-Branding is the association of a ‘personality’ with a product. Advertisers sell the personality rather than the product, so that people will choose products that match their own self image.

2) List five brands you are happy to be associated with and explain how they reflect your sense of identity.

Apple: this brand association would reflect on me as 'modern' and 'one of the crowd'.

Karen Millen: this is my favourite designer clothing brand which would reflect on my identity as                                modest and classy.

Bobbi Brown: this is my favourite makeup brand which would represent me as an individual who                                prefers natural, old fashioned looks as opposed to 21st century modern makeup trends.

Khaadi: this brand is a part of the retail industry they sell traditional Pakistani clothes along with the more recent designed clothes this brand is a part of me as it represents my culture.

3) Do you agree with the view that modern media is all about 'style over substance'? What does this expression mean?

I agree with this expression to an extent- I believe that younger generations in particular are more prone to being tempted to show themselves off on social media in such a way that would represent them as part of a higher status group in their age group- in other words, they want to be one with the crowd.

4) Explain Baudrillard's theory of 'media saturation' in one paragraph. You may need to research it online to find out more.

Argues that we live in a media saturated society, in which media images dominate and distort the way we see the world, e.g. TV presents a sanitised version of war where all corpses, blood and violence is removed from screens. Often we see explosions but not how people look after being burnt or heads blown. This is known as "Hyperreality"

5) Is your presence on social media an accurate reflection of who you are? Have you ever added or removed a picture from a social media site purely because of what it says about the type of person you are?

I believe that I am to an almost full extent representing myself accurately on social media- this is due to having only a following of my close friends and family whom I speak to everyday in real life, therefore I do not put an effort to create a new representation of myself as they all already know me. However, the reason as to why I say 'almost' full extent is because we tend to not publish negative parts of our lives for people on social media to see and manipulate our content to only show positive parts of our lives. 

6) What is your opinion on 'data mining'? Are you happy for companies to sell you products based on your social media presence and online search terms? Is this an invasion of privacy?

I certainly believe that this is an invasion of privacy as I do not feel comfortable with companies tracking my digital footprints and in a sense 'spying' on what I log on to online for their own benefit.