#mediafree

[rannedomthings]

Post #3: Media Free Challenge

I took the media challenge on 4/18 but did not write about it until now because I finally found time to do it. I had 2 midterms last week and a job application due and I felt that media free would increase my concentration. I started my media challenge around 12:30 pm and I spent that time until 5:30 preparing for my exam. It actually worked really well and I avoided all forms of media until dinner time. As I was driving to dinner, I didn’t realize that the radio was on until it was too late (it just plays in the background without me realizing it). Although I could have cancelled the challenge by then, I decided to carry on and avoid as much media as I can. After dinner I went to a relative’s house and they turned on the t.v. so I couldn’t decline watching. Afterwards I went home and studied some more. At 3 AM I decided I was still hungry and went out to eat. The restaurant had a t.v. running and I instinctively looked at it. I realized I was still doing media free and looked away after a minute. I went to bed later that night and woke up for dim sum. At 12:45 I finally pulled out my phone and contacted my friends and family about the end of my media free challenge. 

I think it is really hard to do the media challenge. In this day and age, media is everywhere and even if I try to avoid it, it’s still there. I did not use any of my own electronics but external factors made it hard for me to be completely media free such as the radio in the car, my relative’s t.v., and the t.v. in the restaurant. Media has become so integrated in our society that it is difficult to think of a world without it. I would encourage others to try to go media free for a day to experience a world without the influence of technology that has so tightly bound our lives. Without the distractions of technology, perhaps people could focus and concentrate on work more like I did. 

[mlevinwrit105m-blog]

Media-free challenge

Although this no-media challenge seemed daunting the first time I heard about it, my day without media came rather easily.

  To prepare for my technology-free day on Monday, I only told a total of 7 people about my task. First, I told my five housemates, as I assumed they would be trying to get a hold of me for various, unimportant requests, as they do every weekday. Second, I told my good friend Jake who has been helping me study for my Econ midterm that took place during my media-free day. He definitely would have been asking how the test went and sending me pointers. Finally, I told the one person for whom a lack of response via text would be a big problem: my mother. My mother, who clearly still suffers from separation anxiety after my three years of being in college, texts me everyday and will continue to text me until I respond. The “mom, I’m not going to be ignoring you nor will I be dead” text was appreciated.

  Originally, I had intended to try this challenge on Superbowl Sunday; however, I had my big Econ midterm the next day and I knew I would be texting and e-mailing my accounting major friends throughout the day for clarification. That being said, Monday was the best bet for me to live media-free.

  My day started out smoothly as I turned my phone on airplane mode so I would not be distracted by any notifications. I wore my watch to tell time through the day and the day went on normally. I kept my attention focused on class and my midterm until 2:00 p.m. After that, I went grocery shopping which was rather difficult without my electronic list that I update when I run out of food. I wrote everything down on a piece of paper and wandered the aisles.

  Throughout the day, the only difficult part of this challenge was not being able to text. I have gone social media-free (aka Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.) before for weeks at a time, but giving up texting was hard. Although I caught myself before habitually pulling up my Facebook tab on more than one occasion, the temptation was still there. I was more inclined to use texting for smaller things like asking a question that popped up in my head or to confirm meeting times, rather than just chatting. The few times I wanted to text someone was after my midterm to ask a classmate about the test, ask one of my friends about plans later this week, and finally to text my mom after I failed my midterm (and yes, I admit that I contribute to her separation anxiety issue a little bit).

  By 4:00 p.m. I was getting antsy and decided to catch up on reading for one of my classes. I felt like I needed to be productive with my time since I was not wasting it on social media, for once. By 5:30 p.m. I had a meeting and many people actually came up to me asking why I never texted them back. Apparently, many things were also posted on Facebook prior to the meeting that I did not know about until I got there. My meeting ended by 7:30 p.m. and before I knew it, 8:00 p.m. came around and my twelve-hour challenge was over.

  This was an interesting experiment because it taught me how much we rely on texting and other media as form of communication. Even for the smallest things, texting makes life a lot easier to communicate with others and get responses immediately. I noticed that I function with a higher level of stimulation everyday and by stepping back, I can make better use of my time and appreciate information when I hear it in person.

[quirinius]

So school has this great idea.

No really, it's great! No media for 4 days! Perfect! No facebook, no phone, no mail, no tv, no paper. 

they didn't mention Tumblr. I see no problem. It's not like i do anything else... 

[ferenckuminblog]

Council of Europe Cites 'Significant Progress' in Hungary

This time some positive news to highlight from international groups commenting on Hungary. Recently, we've heard from the Council of Europe, the Heritage Foundation and Freedom House.

First up: the Council of Europe tells us that "significant progress has been made." The Government of Hungary's media legislation has been widely discussed, and criticized, internationally. The government has undertaken, as we see it, a rather modern reform of what was outdated legislation regulating the media. However, some points of the lengthy laws have required further clarification or alteration. We have received detailed suggestions from the Council of Europe and the Commission of the European Union, which we either adopted or clarified. Yesterday, at a press briefing, Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjoern Jagland said that "[c]ooperation between the Council of Europe and Hungary will continue to further improve media legislation."

"Discussions with Hungary," according to the Bloomberg report, "also led to several proposed amendments to the nation’s media law, including limiting the mandate of the president of the media authority and media council to one nine-year term. In addition, journalistic sources are now adequately protected in Hungarian law in line with the European Convention on Human Rights, the Council of Europe said.”

Logo of the Council of Europe

In addition we also hear earlier this month from Freedom House, which issued its annual  Freedom in the World Report for 2012, giving Hungary the best grade (1) in political rights category and an overall 1.5 grade on freedom. Last year, Hungary was given an exemplary grade on internet freedom. 

The Heritage Foundation in the US also just released its annual evaluation on the topic of economic freedom, putting Hungary’s economic freedom index 7.7 points ahead of the world average and 1.1 points ahead of the European average with modest overall gains.

Good news such as these mean our efforts are finally bearing fruit.