xavier jefferson

Taking the train by Joe Austin initially addresses the concept of framing stories constructed by the mass media which ultimately build for different groups and individuals their perceptions of the present and future of New York City. From this, at its pinnacle New York could be seen as the New Rome but just as there are two sides to every story there are framing stories which focus on the negative aspects of the city and bring about the perception of the Naked City. The question becomes, that during that period in the postindustrial era of the 1950s and 60s when major transformation was occurring physically, economically, and socially, were the driving forces behind their efforts to restructure the city a part of rebuilding the perception of the New Rome, or was this merely a disguise used by private sectors to weed out undesirables and bolster the private interest?

In the reading there is also a discussion of fame and the economy of prestige associated with writing on the personal, local, and regional levels. It’s noted that while the early writers may have initially been focused on the aesthetic appeal, the notoriety evolved and urban youth subculture began to place value in the concept of spreading a name. What was the ultimate accomplishment for these writers in seeing their names in the mass media whether placed there intentionally or not, and did there writing really have an impact on individuals outside of the urban youth subculture?

In the reading there is also a discussion of fame and the economy of prestige associated with writing on the personal, local, and regional levels. It’s noted that while the early writers may have initially been focused on the aesthetic appeal, the notoriety evolved and urban youth subculture began to place value in the concept of spreading a name. What was the ultimate accomplishment for these writers in seeing their names in the mass media whether placed there intentionally or not, and did there writing really have an impact on individuals outside of the urban youth subculture?

In Chapter two there is a discussion of the influences on writing within the history of writing itself, writing being a formal title for tagging. As discussed in the previous chapter the idea behind framing stories is that ultimately the events which occur within the public and social spheres are filtered into a single idea which constructs perceptions of the city. Could the way in which events in the public sphere effected how writers perceive their writing and the way in which they presented it, be compared to how framing stories are constructed and if so was this channeled through the writing to those who viewed it?