The Millennials are a generation known to be socially, economically, ethically, and technologically advanced than any other before it. Nonetheless, millennials are also considered as a complex bunch of individuals because of the globalization effect. Taylor and Scott state that, unlike other societies, Millennials have adopted to airing and adapting to issues from a global viewpoint (45). It can be argued that the current society is awash with social, ethical, entertainment, health, and economic changes due to its dualistic set up. That is, its actual and virtual existence has been promoted by the proliferation of technology, particularly the internet. Nowak, Liz, and Janeen aver that the current society is significantly informed, and consequently, social issues regarding gender, race, ethnicity, and religion are faced from a global perspective (76). According to Taylor and Scott, unlike other times, today, there is a constant need to analyze what is going on in both the physical and virtual societies considering the two phenomena have become one (25). In an aim to provide an analytical platform for the aforementioned premise, three articles have been featured ‘Sports, My Media Autoethnography, and Music video content analysis’, representing a different aspect that is prevalent in the current millennial society.
Dissimilar to other societies of before, millennials have a dualistic lifestyle that exists in reality, as well as on a virtual platform; for instance, as cited by Lancaster and David, this dualistic stat has given rise to issues such as online marketing which is a significant aspect of business success (12). Various experts including public administrators, corporate market analysts, and psychologists have all highlighted the need to understand the millennial lifestyles from a variety of social viewpoints. The first article presented takes into account the difference in eating habits from a regional perspective through the ‘Media Autoethnography’ article on healthy living. With the advent of the internet and social media, the virtual media world is awash with different advice on healthy eating habits in a world full of food commercialization.
In some cultures, for instance, the Chinese culture, food is not only a resource to fuel the body but also a medium to protect the body from illnesses a factor that is achieved by taking into account when the body requires replenishing and the types of foods eaten. However, the western culture is different with individuals dinning as frequently as possible on foods that may not be considered healthy (junk food). Different food cultures have identified dissimilar food-related issues, and consequently, from various publications, there is evidence to suggest there are more health issues in the United States than in China (Hopkins 167). The article offers an in-depth analysis into the healthy eating habits that define the Chinese and western food cultures.
One of the articles presented in the program ‘women in sports’ offers an in-depth analysis of the issue of gender in sports. Sports or sporting is perceived as a means of inclusiveness, particularly due to the fact that different people from various parts of the globe express themselves in a similar manner when it comes to supporting a particular team or sports personality. However, for years, various individuals have been known to be quick to collapse the categories of different gender orientations when it comes to sports. For antiquity, different cultures such as that in the Middle East, as well as parts of Asia, and Africa had held a perpetual prejudice against women who were never confined to their homes. As mentioned by Taylor and Scott, women were considered fragile to participate in vigorous sporting activities; subsequently, they were disallowed to take any part in sporting events either through direct participation of supporting clubs or individuals. Additionally, those who take part in sports have often been presented in a feminist manner as some individuals continue to consider women in sports as brand promotional models and not full-time athletes. In a world that has grown to be identified as a ‘village,’ such prejudices have had to be confronted, and consequently, various women’s sporting events have been promoted over the years with the first being the 2006 Winter Olympic Games. Some sports personalities such as Serena Williams, Valarie Adams, and Katie Taylor have shown the world that women are as athletic as their male counterparts proving some prejudices wrong; however, others have been placed under high scrutiny in reference to their sexuality, for instance, South African athlete, Caster Semenya.
Throughout the women in society analysis the article ‘My Media Autoethnography’ provides an in-depth critic oon how women are personified in the entertainment industry. Applications such as YouTube, iTunes, vid mate, and tidal currently provide individuals a global access of a variety of audio and music videos to the masses. Through these mediums, it is possible to make an analysis of video and music content in reference to women directly participating in the music industry, as well as the personification of women by male artists. There are different music genres that are popular with millennials. Nonetheless, the most prominently featured from the aforementioned platforms are R&B, Rock, and Hip Hop. Unlike other periods whereby an individual would give a personal judgment on the role of women in a particular genre, it is possible to adopt a singular analytical system that offers a much clearer and standard viewpoint. In the process, five music videos, namely; “I am a slave to you” by Britney Spear, “Unravel me” by Sabrina Claudio, “Precious possession” by Anna Wise, “Secret” by Goapele, and “Keep running” by Teishi. Through the study, issues such as video quality, camera angles, costume selection, as well as directing will be taken into consideration as all these factors can be used to either increase femininity or show a different aspect of women in the society.
Millennials have been identified as a special society that is influenced by a variety of factors in the real, as well as virtual, life. The 21st-Century community has most of its social, ethical, entertainment, health, and economically aspects influenced by a variety of factors presented by the media. The three featured articles center their discussions on the dissimilarities between people or behaviors. The first article discusses issues regarding healthy living, particularly the difference between Chinese and western food cultures. The second and third articles articulate on gender orientation in the sporting and entertainment industries, with each taking into account various analytical aspects in forming a standard premise.
Works Cited
Hopkins, Jerry. Extreme Cuisine: The Weird and Wonderful Foods That People Eat. Tuttle Publishing, 2012. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=4ZPTAgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT10&dq=Hopkins,+Jerry.+Extreme+Cuisine:+The+Weird+and+Wonderful+Foods+That+People+Eat.+Tuttle+Publishing,+2012.&ots=yj0lrezZRx&sig=TOKF5nQLUZ0vETWk-b4d0Y7mK3Y
Lancaster, Lynne C., and David Stillman. M-factor: Why the Millennial Generation is Rocking the Workplace. Findaway World LLC, 2010. https://hnq5n8sgp03.storage.googleapis.com/MDA2MTc2OTMxMg==03.pdf
Nowak, Linda, Liz Thach, and Janeen E. Olsen. “Wowing the millennials: creating brand equity in the wine industry.” Journal of Product & Brand Management 15.5 (2006): 316-323. https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/10610420610685712
Taylor, Paul, and Scott Keeter. “Millennials: Confident. Connected. Open to Change.” Pew Research Center (2010). https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED575464