USC-MISC Newsletter: Spring 2018

OP-ED: Men are Appallingly Silent Toward #Metoo

Written by Rob Carpenter

I have grown increasingly uncomfortable with men’s silence toward the #MeToo movement. At first, I thought the silence was because men wanted to actually listen to women’s stories of being sexually assaulted, harassed, demeaned, ignored, and taken for granted.

But this thought was wrong.

Over the last several months, I have had various conversations with men about their perspective on #MeToo. And what I’ve found has been disheartening to say the least.

Now please don’t get me wrong: it’s not that most of the men I’ve spoken with disagree with the movement. But they don’t necessarily strongly agree with it either. Read more.

OP-ED: Why the USC MISC and KWIPPIT Project Hope L.A. Benefit Concert Matters to Me

Written by Lorraine Wheat

On April 19, USC Media Institute for Social Change focused its efforts on raising money for the homeless.

USC MISC partnered with KWIPPIT and joined forces with the hip hop community to host the Project Hope L.A. Benefit Concert. Hip Hop Artists Bishop Lamont, Amp Live, and Angie Fisher used their music to raise donations that went to the Downtown Women’s Center, Skid Row Housing Trust, and the United Way - Greater Los Angeles.

To me, the Project Hope L.A. Benefit Concert was an awesome experience that demonstrated how we as artists can use both media and our artistic talents to unite the Los Angeles community. Uniting Los Angeles is one of the best actions artists can take in order to solve one of Los Angeles’ biggest problems, homelessness.  Read more.

OP-ED: The Objectification of Women in Japanese Media

Reina Akamatsu

Written by Reina Akamatsu

"In the beginning, woman was truly the sun. An authentic person. Now she is the moon ... dependent on another, reflecting another's brilliance,” Raicho Hiratsuka wrote in the first Japanese journal for women.

Raicho Hiratsuka is the first modern feminist in Japan. Raicho helped to start the women’s movement in 1911. Even so, as I was being raised in Japan, feminism was not actively discussed. Even when I was studying in college, I did not encounter any classmates that openly declared that they supported feminism. I started to be more exposed to the idea of feminism when I came to the United States. Coming to the United States led me to start recognizing the objectification of women in Japanese media.

The first time I acknowledged the gender inequality in Japanese media was two years ago. A popular Japanese entertainer named Becky experienced unfair treatment. She had been one of the most popular television talents for roughly 15 years and had recurring appearances on 10 different commercials and 6 variety shows. Then the press found out she was having an affair with a married Japanese musician. After this incident she disappeared from all media. Justin McCurry wrote in his article titled Downfall of Japanese TV’s girl next door highlights wider industry sexism, “her alleged lover, a pop singer, carried on his career apparently unaffected”. This example reveals how Japanese media portrays women unfairly and it highlights the importance of maintaining an image for Japanese female entertainers. Read more. 

 

Production Update

USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center

PSA for New Hope Foundation

PSA for the New Hope Foundation: MISC has produced a PSA for the New Hope Foundation on the subject of hospice care. The PSA intends to promote new nationwide policies that focus on end of life care. Watch the video. 

Cancer Care: MISC partnered with USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center to produce a video that highlights the importance of participating in clinical trials. The video illustrates the value in allowing one's data and tissue samples to be used in clinical studies for the prevention and treatment of cancer. Watch the video.