Sports as pop culture

I recently read an article title "The Gulf War TV Super Bowl" by Jim Castonguay. The article is the first one that pops up when you Google "Gulf War Super Bowl". As a huge sports fan, I have become intrigued by the prominent place the Super Bowl has taken in our culture. If I were not such a sports fan, I think I would actually be more likely to not watch the game. It seems like it is so over-hyped and it is given such a prominent and unrealistic place in our culture. I think American Idol is an interesting example. I've heard enough sound clips over the years to understand what it's about although I've never seen a show. Yes, William Hung was funny in a sad, pathetic kind of way. I've listened to Fox 9 news in the morning because I like a few members of the broadcast team. When they talk about the latest contestant to leave the show as part of the news cast, I become a little irritated. I don't see that as news! When a speaker at an in-service at school took time to discuss his favorite American Idol participant, again I was a bit irritated. So, I completely avoid any reference of talk of American Idol as much as possible. I have the same attitude towards auto racing. I could see why people would become disillusioned with the Super Bowl. I intentionally avoid the two weeks of hype leading up to the game.

In the Gulf War/Super Bowl piece, Jim Castonguay describes how the broadcast of the game was used as propaganda. The article is filled with many assertions that I think are controversial. For example, he talked about the many troops of color fighting the war in Iraq. He said they were killing in the interest of establishing the New World Order, the immediate beneficiaries of these performances were white men whose economic and political interests these performances served. The televised Super Bowl thus unwittingly reflected the demography of US soldiers who, left with few economic and institutional alternatives were coerced into fighting on the front lines in the middle east. I think it is important to offer counter views to something like the Gulf War Super Bowl broadcast, however, the example I described above seems to me an extreme assertion. It made me think of the controversial Reverend Wright who has been in the news recently.

Another example of an asserti0n that I would consider to be a debatable point was when he discussed Ramsey Clark's letter. In that letter, Clark said that US led sanctions against Iraq have now killed more than 750,000 human beings, perhaps twice that many..... I'm not sure if it was Castonguay or Clark who put the blame on those who imposed the sanctions for the killing of so many people. Although it is a tragic situation, should the blame be placed on those who impose the sanctions? What are some alternatives to sanctions?

Castonguay talked about a soldier who said she would go back to watching the game if a Scud attack happened and if it wasn't too bad. He comment about the strength the religious conviction of someone willing to risk their lives to watch the Super Bowl. I felt he took a fairly innocent comment and took a leap as to what that particular soldier said. Castonguay also asserted that during the gulf war, the media coverage became complicit in killing by adopting an uncritical, self-censored position toward the conflict which facilitated the slaughter of Iraqis. In addition, there are other examples of terminology and opinions that could generate a lot of interesting discussion.

Although this particular article takes place before most current students are born, it may be an effective example to use. If anything, the Super Bowl has grown to an even bigger medial event so students today could certainly identify with that aspect. You can consider the article in so many ways. Is it a good thing to tie a military operation so closely to sporting event? Do you share similar feelings about some of the author's points? The topic provides an excellent opportunity to teach some history about Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Given what we know now, did the first President Bush make a mistake by not going after Saddam back in the first gulf war?

I feel like the article would be most useful as an opportunity to debate how media events like the Super Bowl should or should not be used to promote a cause.

Example lesson plan: Where politics and pop culture meet.

Split students up into groups of four or five. Each group is given a topic and side that they must argue. For each group there would be another group with the same topic but arguing the opposite point. For example, Group 1a would argue that playing Super Bowl 25 with a patriotic theme was the right thing to do. They could use some of Castonguay's ideas but should also try and come up with their own. Group 1b would argue that either the game shouldn't have been played or that some sort of anti-war message be part of the broadcast. There would be room for each group to develop the best arguments possible as long as they were in opposition to the other group.

Group 2 - Super Bowl in 2002 after 911 where the government purchased time for Super Bowl commercials to promote fighting the war on drugs.

Group 3 - Acceptance speeches during the Academy Awards that deal with opposition to the war.

The lesson could be structured differently depending on the size of the class and time available. In general, I would allow 10 to 15 minutes to discuss the topic and come up with bullet points to support their argument. The next part of the lesson would be where each group summarized their points, first group a and then group b. Depending on the maturity level of the group, an opportunity to debate and ask each other questions could be added.

In summary, it be would meaningful to discuss how it felt to argue a point that you may be opposed to, are there times when it is alright to only present one side to an issue that may be controversial?, what are some other media or popular culture events that students are aware of where controversial messages are presented?

Linkin Park Powerpoint

Week #7 popular music assignment

Linkin Park

I chose the band Linkin Park as the focus of my research for this assignment. They are a very popular group who has recently stopped in St. Paul as part of their current tour. As least one of my students attended the concert. When I asked my 11 year old nephew what type of music he listens to, he named Linkin Park as one band he likes. At that point, I decided to give them a listen on Youtube. I wanted to conduct my research on a band who is popular with my students.

I learned that Linkin Park is made up on several American young men. Although Mike Shinoda is actually Japanese American, they were all born and raised in the states. The first few members were high school friends who formed a band called Xero. They grew and added new members until they scored their first record deal as Hybrid Theory. They changed their name to Lincoln Park because some of the members used enjoy their time in that park in Santa Monica, CA. They changed to Linkin Park because they weren't able to use the traditional spelling.

I feel this band is somewhat culturally significant for the teenagers of today because of the impact music can have on us at that pivotal time in life. I still listen to music I came across as a 17 or 18 year old. I feel like people like the band because the tunes are catchy, the lyrics are fairly easy to understand, and it blends some rap music with other types of music in a smooth manner. As someone who does not like rap music at all, I found myself enjoying Linkin Park's brand of rap metal. I think the lyrics are pretty shallow. On one of the band's fan website's, the lyrics from their first two albums were described as having a similar "woe is me" theme. For that reason, I think it could be argued that the band won't have any lasting historical impact, however, they may stay around a long time and venture into all sorts of different directions. It is impressive that they have already done some pretty significant charity work in terms of helping relief efforts from recent natural disasters.

I don't think it's really necessary that all students share the same feeling of significance of Linkin Park. After reading Cameron White's article "Integrating music in history education", I struggled with the educational relevance of Linkin Park. Then I realized, although they may not provoke a lot of history education, there are plenty of ways to tie them into meaningful instruction. For example, I work with students working on transition skills. They are all experiencing some setbacks along the way. The members of Linkin Park are great examples because things didn't work out as they planned initially. It took awhile to earn their first record deal. One thing that is different from a lot of other bands in the Nu metal genre is that Linkin Park didn't have any curse words in their songs, at least on their first couple albums. I did hear a couple of F-bombs on a song off their latest release. They felt like the cursing would detract from the music. One of the members, Chester Bennington, has made it through some horrible things, like child abuse and substance abuse, to make it as an award winning musician.

Although the lyrics are incredibly deep, I think the youth of today can relate to them in many ways. Lyrics like, "I want to find something I wanted all along, somewhere I belong", "one step closer to the edge and I'm about to break", could start some interesting discussions in small groups. A band that I'm more familiar with, Dream Theater, would be an interesting contrast. They are a progressive metal band that is not nearly as well known. They deal with some interesting subject matter like 911 and the stem cell research debate. One of their band members is writing the Alcoholics Anonymous Suite where he reflects on his experience in the 12 step program. Although not as well known, they are current and could add to some thought provoking discussions in groups a school counselor may run.

In the end, I think it will take time to learn if Linkin Park will have a lasting impact on society. When I think of bands that started in the 1970's, I didn't know who would matter in the future. I think it depends on a lot of factors. Queen, for example, would have a significant historical impact in my opinion that I wouldn't have been able to predict it at the time. I think it would be an interesting discussion with young people. Who, of the artists they consider the best of this era, will be around 30 years in the future? Will Linkin Park be mentioned very often? I doubt it but you never know.