Running head: MYPLACE: THE PLACE FOR DIVERSITY ANALYSIS 1

Myplace: The Place for Diversity Multimedia Analysis

Ashley Ortega

COMM315

April 9, 2014

Leslie Orr
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The Place for Diversity Multimedia Analysis

Diversity Definition

Diversity can be defined in multiple ways, however there is no concrete definition. The

perception of diversity differs from the source in which provides the definition. The media that

surrounds an individual including and not limited to: reading materials such as books, text books

and even magazines; and popular media such as social networks, television, and internet (Bucher,

2010). Due to the wide range of access an individual has to all of these media outlets, there

continues to be a vague definition for diversity. Although the definition is very vague, diversity is

often used to describe when there is differences between things and people. According Bucher

(2010), diversity is expressed as being or referring to all of the ways in which people are

different. (Pg. 1). Many things can make individuals diverse including characteristics like race,

gender, religion, language, culture, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, and disabilities.

Individual Examples

Many of the characteristics of diversity were found in the Myplace Multimedia Exercise

and their examples of diversity among individuals. The exercise was created to help individuals

analyze their ability to notice non-observable and observable characteristics in individuals that

makes them diverse. Three individuals have been selected to use to share the experience with

diversity: Jenna, Chris, and Michelle. Jennas non-observable characteristics included college

education background, the loss of a family member, and a past in drugs. Although those things

were not able to be seen immediately items observable allowed there to be made a connection

between the non-observable and observable.

Jennas observable characteristics were her piercings and tattoos. Chris much like Jenna had

characteristics that were observable link to those that were not observable.
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Chris non-observable characteristics included college education, traveling experiences,

and being photogenic. Although those non-observable characteristics provided a link was made

between the bio provided, the image of Chris, and his observable characteristics. Chris personal

views of himself shared expressions of his skin color, hit physical activity, and his physical

appearance. Michelles non-observable biography discussed her childhood, her accent in her

native tongue, and her pets. Although her non-observable characteristics were limited a

connection could be made between the ethnicity she provided and the race of the pictures

provided. Michelles observable characteristics included her race, her physical attributes, and

expression of her liking to rock concerts. As each one of these peoples non-observable

characteristics were hard to connect to the individual, one could say that having the opportunity

to read the observable and the non-observable biographies at the time same time would have

made the selecting process much easier.

Individual Tendencies

As I partook in the online exercise, reading the non-observable biographies helped with

many of selecting the correct individual that fit the biography. However there were also times,

where I analyzed the photo of the individual before I completely read the non-observable

characteristics. A great example of this would be when reviewing Jennas non-observable

biography. In a sentence toward the end of the non-observational biography, Jenna explained her

mothers passing and her experimentation and struggles with drugs. Upon finishing that line I

had already grouped her in with this because of the image of tattoos and piercings I was able to

see. My tendency to judge her on this was based on my own personal experiences.

I allowed my emotions and feelings for tattoos and piercings to share a common ground

and used as a judgmental tool. Much like my judgment of Jenna being very physical driven, I
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found myself doing the same thing with Chris biography. At the end of Chris non-observable

biography, he expressing his desire for wanting to take pictures. In Chriss image there was a

mass amount of emotion and I automatically assumed that was the best fit for the descriptive

biography. In Michelles case I also analyzed the color of her skin and the color of her hair with

the non-observable characteristic explaining where she had been born. The tendencies used were

really based of physical characteristics of diversity like: skin color, race, age and gender.

Conclusion

Diversity can really be determined by whomever gets the opportunity to analyze how

different that one individual is compared to the next. It is incredible to learn the many things that

are taken into consideration as far as what is observable to the eye and what is non-observable.

The examples found in the online exercise allowed individuals to analyze how one may or may

not judge someone by observable characteristics versus their non-observable characteristics. The

analysis of diversity, the examples, and the personal experience allowed there to be an

understanding of the personal judgmental tendencies used. It also provided a suggestion that this

class my help provide healthy manners to approach diversity.

References:

Bucher, R. D. (2010). Diversity consciousness: Opening our minds to people, cultures,

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And opportunities (3rd Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.