From Fearsome to Fun

When I think of people that have made the biggest shift in public perception, I can’t help but think of the total one-eighty that rapper-turned-actor-turned-family-friendly-role-model Ice Cube. Ice Cube, or O’Shea Jackson, has gone from respected (and even feared) rapper, forming N.W.A., who were as full of attitude as their acronym suggests and pioneered the rap subgenre of gangster rap, to star of the family (read: kids) movie Are We There Yet in just over 15 years. It is just comical to me that people of my age group and spanning especially to those younger than myself see this man as this funny father-figure when less than two decades before he was stirring people up by writing “F*ck the Police.”

It wasn’t Ice Cube’s move from rapper to actor that completely changed his image. His first role as Doughboy in 1991’s Boyz N the Hood was very much in line with the persona that he was cultivating for himself. All this role did was familiarize people with the MC’s face. He was in the midst of releasing very controversial, politically and socially charged solo albums and continued to do this for over ten years. The first step towards a major alteration to his personal image came in 2000 with the release of a comedy that he co-wrote and produced, entitled Friday. Ever since this film he has been heading down the road of comedic actor, writer, and producer.

Ice Cube’s Twitter account is relatively tame focusing mainly on random thoughts of his. N.W.A.-era Ice Cube’s Twitter feed would no doubt be fully of angry and controversial rants. I have never seeked out a rapper on Facebook, but I’m sure a lot of them accept any or all of the thousands of friend requests that they get. I don’t think Ice Cube would be one to buy into this game, however. I think he would try to stay away from it, possibly even to the extent of not having a Facebook at all. He’s all about street cred so this popularity contest would do nothing for him.

For those that do buy into the popularity contest of social media, “celebrity” is a much more loosely used term. I personally don’t feel that this makes it any easier to be a celebrity but rather the standard for what qualifies as a celebrity has been significantly lowered. If a person like Rebecca Black can rise to what some people call “stardom” then we have most definitely changed what that word means to us as a culture.

Some Critics

Michael Azerrad

Michael Azerrad is a music journalist and author that has interviewed some of the most important figures in independent music. I found this man's work initially by reading his book Our Band Could Be Your Life. This book follows the path of some of the bands of the beginnings of the rise of independent music (not to prominence but out of obscurity) through their meager beginnings to their relative acclaim. He covers any subject with respect and enthusiasm. Also, his "Overheard:" series on his blog is pretty entertaining.

Manohla Dargis: Review of The Social Network

While her reviews are not overly filled with personality, Manohla Dargis is an effective, "to the point," movie critic. She is concise and relays facts, and though I usually prefer reviews with a bit more presence, there are times when you just want a quick and thorough look at a film to decide whether or not it is worth your time, rather than sift through someones opinions to try to decide whether or not you will agree. Her reviews are very much a product of the New York Times.

Jon Stewart on Crossfire

I'm not sure if this is what we are looking for here, but it would be hard to deny that Jon Stewart is one of the most important media critics of our day. He utilizes satire and sarcasm to make points about our system of media that would sometimes otherwise go unchecked. People criticize his liberal bias, but if liberals are the ones in the wrong he will almost undoubtedly call them out on it. The conservatives are simply an easier target. His critiques are rooted in comedy, yet his intelligent analysis makes his program on comedy central a legitimate venue for criticism of one of our most prominent sources of media: News media.

On the subject of Alan Sepinwall and objectivity as presented by Slate.com

I found it interesting to think of television criticism as something that was not reviewed on an episode-to-episode basis. I have always witnessed television criticism being handled in this manner, because, in my lifetime, that has been the preferred method. I feel that so much would have to be overlooked in a "restaurant critic" style approach, brushing over the series as a whole and not delving into the specific moments that do or do not work. It is interesting to me to learn about the people, in any discipline, that find new ways of doing things, that then become the norm. I would agree that the style that Sepinwall helped to create is rooted less in objectivity, but in a creative form, such as this, fixed in subjective analysis, I'm not sure that objectivity is, or even should be, an attainable goal.

One hyperlink I clicked on was "Dawson's Wrap" simply because I had no idea what it meant. I came to find out that Dawson's Wrap is a place to find well-written, smarmy episode recaps. It seems to be ideal for shows that readers watch as guilty pleasures, since most of the entertainment comes from poking fun at aspects of the show. This style is interesting to me as I respond strongly to sarcasm and smart-ass remarks.

The second hyperlink I chose was "New York Times ethics policy." I chose this link because I was interested how strict and how immense this policy was. In this thirteen part policy complete with introductions and clause after clause of do-nots (that I skimmed at best) I was reminded why I would never work in a strictly journalistic writing medium. Mainly because I am not a robot.

Show List

(1) Shows you’re watching these days, since school’s been out:
•DEXTER (Best dramatic series on television right now. I will dual anyone who says otherwise)
•Modern Family (At first I thought it was going to be an awful rip off of Arrested Development, but it took me about 10 minutes of the pilot to get on board)
•30 Rock (Tina Fey: The End)
•Psych (It's the best kind of corny. The only "buddy comedy" that I'll watch. Well written dialogue.)

(2) Peripheral Shows--shows you watch because someone else in the house (significant other, parent, roommate) watches them:
•The Big Bang Theory (Nerd humor. LOTS of nerd humor.)
•Tosh.0 (Funny like a fat man falling down a staircase. I can't watch too much of it.)
•Burn Notice (Good action show)
•Bones (Meh... but I watch it to kill an hour on my parents DVR)

(3) Guilty No-Gos--Shows you think you should watch (because critics like them or your friends like them) but don’t:
•The Walking Dead
•Community

(4) Guilty Pleasures:
•Gilmore Girls (C'mon sometimes it is pretty funny. They talk so fast though...)
•Cake Boss (Just cover it in fondant!)

(5) All-Time Favorites-- shows you’ll watch in re-runs even though you’ve seen them many times before:
•Arrested Development (Genius)
•Boy Meets World (Nostalgia fest)
•30 Rock
•Psych
•Lost (I like plot twists)

(6) Shows I Used to Like, But Not So Much Anymore:
•Criminal Minds
•24
•Prison Break
•The Office
•Mythbusters

(7) Shows I Resisted for a Long Time, But Now I’m a Fan!
•Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (He was awful at first, but so is everyone.)

(8) I Would Rather Eat Charcoal Than Watch These Shows: 
 •Anything that is on MTV, especially reality tv

(9) Favorite Late Night Shows:
•Daily Show
•Colbert Report
•Conan
•The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson