Media Issues and Their Impact on the Audience

Mass communication involves the transfer of information to a large number of people through various types of media such as internet, television, and newspapers. The concept of mass communication is based on the idea of information exchange from one person to another. The media greatly influences the way people undertake their day to day commitments (Baran and Davis 35).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Media Issues and Their Impact on the Audience specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The relationship between the media and the audience seems to be influenced by the changes that occur in the former. The emergence of digital media is the main change that appears to shift the balance between the media and the audience (Dewdney and Ride 253). It is evident that the media serves a crucial role in the society and the changes that occur in it have a great impact on the audience. The mass media, in particular, is seen as a gro up of media organizations. The media organizations are known for their ability to send mediated information through various channels, mainly television and radio. The information sent through mass communication is organized according to the mass media industries such as books and newspapers. The information sent through mass communication also must conform to subsidiary industries that carry out public relations and advertisement practices. This is one of the facts that affect the balance of the power, which resides in the relationship between the media and the audience (Baran and Davis 262). The mass media platforms also affect the society through many ways. Their limited number and vastness of the available mass media imply that just a few individuals can make decisions on the kind of content that is transmitted through mainstream media. Since the information is meant for a large population, it should not be regulated by just a handful of people. In addition, the fact that the inf ormation is produced in a large-scale implies that such information can have mass persuasion on its audience. Although mass production and mass persuasion can be used by a company to control market trends such as competition in a particular industry, it is used by a few organizations to create monopolies in certain sectors (Chaffee and Metzger 366). The vulnerability of the audience is considered one of the main issues that result from the inability to regulate media institutions effectively. The problem seems to be worsened by the emergence of industrialization. The audiences, especially those of the mass media, do not have the power to resist the kind of information that is dispensed by media messages.Advertising Looking for essay on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The audiences of mass media are considered dependent and powerless. It is believed that mass media is likely to continue exploiting the aud iences since they do not have an alternative source where they can obtain the information they need (Chaffee and Metzger 366). Mass communication also influences the audience through obtrusion. Mass media, such as television and radio, are unprecedented and conspicuous. This problem emanates from the pervasive effect of broadcast media. The fact that broadcast media reaches audiences right in their homes makes it difficult for them to control the consequences it has on them. The content shown through mass media, especially the one that consists of violent and obscene scenes significantly affects the morality and safety of the audiences (Chaffee and Metzger 367). The end of mass media instigated the emergence of a number of new developments in the field. One of these new developments is the digital media, which has brought a lot of changes in the field of communication. The changes brought by digital media assist the audiences to free themselves from the entanglement that the mass me dia has brought them (Baran and Davis 361). One of the main changes that have been brought by digital media is faster speed in sending information from one point to another. Before the emergence of digital media, companies mostly passed their information to the intended audience through print media, which took a lot of time to get delivered. Currently, companies can disseminate the information they deem important and urgent through social media, emails, internet ads, or their websites, which are extremely faster compared to print media (Dewdney and Ride 255). The use of digital media also assists the audience to have full control over what they do with it. Digital media provides audiences with numerous options from which they can choose from. Unlike in the past when audiences could only use one form of media at a go, they can now effectively create and use a combination of several forms including interactive, visual and audio platforms. Such a combination helps the audiences to use the media in a way that is beneficial to them (Dewdney and Ride 256). The issues that are seen in the media, especially in the digital type, as addressed in Chaffee’s and Metzger’s article can be compared to what was outlined in the story of the Obama Hope campaign poster.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Media Issues and Their Impact on the Audience specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Both the story of the poster and the one narrated in Chaffee and Metzger magazine article reinforce the fact that digital media, which marks the end of mass media, brings about the use of new and effective technology to create and promote communication. The new technology can be used to create media that in turn can be useful in expanding businesses as well as the economy (Chaffee and Metzger 372). Works Cited Baran, Stanley J., and Dennis K. Davis. Mass Communication Theory: Foundations, Ferment, and Future. 6th ed. Bel mont, CA: Wadsworth Pub., 1995. Print Chaffee, Steven H., and Miriam J. Metzger. â€Å"The End of Mass Communication?† Mass Communication Society 4.4 (2004): 365-379. Print. Dewdney, Andrew, and Peter Ride. The New Media Handbook. New York, NY: Routledge, 2006. Print. This essay on Media Issues and Their Impact on the Audience was written and submitted by user Joey Bray to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The eNotes Blog An Owls-Eye View of National PoetryMonth

An Owls-Eye View of National PoetryMonth National Poetry Month began in 1996 and has become the largest literary celebration in the world. It is an important reminder to engage with poetry through public and private readings, lectures, and support of local authors. Poetry challenges us to broaden our thinking about the physical and metaphysical by using beautiful imagery, various sonic tools, and myriad forms both classic and contemporary. To celebrate one of our oldest literary forms, we took a peek at what the folks over at Owl Eyes are doing with their poetry library. In honor of this past National Poetry Month, the staff at Owl Eyes compiled and annotated some of their favorite poetical works. At Owl Eyes, the process of celebration was more involved than simply reading the poems; it also encompassed round-table discussions which became a vehicle for categorizing the poems into a few specific, thematic groups based on their elements; namely, the romanticism of natural subjects, the transience of beauty, and criticism of patriarchal influences. The team read each poem, gathered together to collect and share ideas, and then annotated each poem based on core themes. Alongside their annotations, they have begun the process of creating beautiful and original cover art for each poem. Weve gathered our favorite covers and quotes from selected poems- and we invite you to read the rest of the poem and their annotations for free on Owl Eyes. Mending Wall by Robert Frost â€Å"He only says, Good fences make good neighbours. Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder If I could put a notion in his head: Why do they make good neighbours? Isnt it Where there are cows? But here there are no cows.† There Will Come Soft Rains by  Sara Teasdale â€Å"There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground, And swallows circling with their shimmering sound;† Pied Beauty by  Gerard Manley Hopkins â€Å"Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings; Landscape plotted and pieced- fold, fallow, and plough;† The Fish by  Marianne Moore â€Å"sun, split like spun   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  glass, move themselves with spotlight swiftness   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  into the crevices-   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  in and out, illuminating† Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard by  Thomas Gray â€Å"Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-trees shade,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Where heaves the turf in many a mouldering   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  heap, Each in his narrow cell for ever laid,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The rude Forefathers of the hamlet sleep.†

Critical Analysis of strategic Issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Critical Analysis of strategic Issues - Essay Example In conclusion, the report gives suggestions and recommendations on how the issues can be amicable. Oman national carrier, Oman Air started its operations in the year 1993. The organization primarily began operating in the local religion before expanding its services to other markets. Within a short period, the company had solidified its position as a leader in the airline industry. Since its formation, Oman Air has managed to transform Muscat into a major economic hub in the Middle East religion. In addition, the city has been able to tap into the numerous business opportunities that have emerged in the market. There has been an increase in population something that has brought up industrial, tourism and commercial business opportunities in the countries capital. Oman Air offers flight services for passengers traveling to different destinations in the world. However, the journey has not been rosy for the airline company. Serious challenges have faced the company in the recent days if unresolved could see the company’s fortunes dwindle. Competition and escalating fuel price s have been some of the challenges facing the airline company (Oman Air, 2015). Oman Air intends to be the leading airline company through the provision of quality services to its customers. In addition, the company hopes to link the world with the Omani and promote its cultural values globally (Oman Air, 2015). Oman Air has made a bold step to ensure provision of quality services to customers by exceeding the expectations of the customers. Reliability, safety, comfort and quality services are some of the factors that the company strives to employee secretly to attract more customers. In addition, the airline also seeks to be involved in community development projects in promoting of tourism activities (Oman Air, 2015). The industry has grown over the years. With the growth of the market, there has

Senior Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Senior Philosophy - Essay Example Aristotle begins by investigating the fundamental purpose of humanity. In doing this, the renowned scholar determines that happiness is not just a feeling or a sensation. According to him, happiness is the ultimate goal of human existence. In his investigation of happiness, he seeks to determine the nature of happiness and its role in the life of an individual. He discovers that happiness is fundamental in the life of every human. Unlike the most prevalent definition of happiness, that attributes happiness to either a feeling or sensation, Aristotle determines that happiness is a prerogative for a successful and fulfilling life. According to him, happiness is a relative concept that means different things to different people. He says, â€Å"Happiness depends on ourselves† (Aristotle 121). In the phrase, Aristotle claims that everyone is everyone’s prerogative. Everyone understands the things that make them happy and in an ideal society one should therefore pursue only s uch. In his foundations of metaphysics, Immanuel Kant begins by defining morality as the personal decision and ability to distinguish between right and wrong. From his definition, Kant understands the relativity of the concept. This implies that morality means different things to different people. This therefore validates the need for base of argument in which everyone counterchecks his or her definition of morality. Morality is behavioral and arises from the traits that one exhibits. The basic definition of either ethics or morality thus rests on the limitation of harm to either self or a third party (Immanuel 61). The social decisions that people make must therefore not harm others. Taking a loan while consciously aware of ones inability to repay is a deliberate cause of harm, which qualifies as both a crime and a sin. The two define unethical conducts that also cause harm to third parties. Question 3 Pleasure is yet another relative concept that means different things to differen t people. Pleasure is an abstract noun and therefore not measurable. However, however, John Stuart Mill sough to develop a concept that would help one measure the quantity of pleasure in an individual and therefore compare the amount of pleasure people feel at different times. The difference in personalities influences the difference in pleasures that people feel. Most people derive pleasure by holding a dominating position (John 66). Whenever people engages in an activity that earns them gratification, they always seek to control such This way, the essence of pleasure sets in thereby fulfilling a previously existing void. However, Stuart explains that it is equally imperative that one concentrates and participate on the activity fully. According to his hypothesis, the level of involvement in the activity is directly proportional to the amount of pleasure that one derives from such. Additionally, pleasure is portrayed in the on both verbal and nonverbal reactions. Through the observ ation of such features as facial expressions and other types of responses as the little gibberish that people make when engaging in such activities, help one determine the amount of pleasure in another. However, the relativity of the concept implies that the level and amount of pleasure depends on the individual and may not correspond with the feelings in another. Question 4 Morality as defined earlier is a behavior determinant that helps people exhibit desirable behaviors. However, the concept is relative as people exhibit various behaviors. Sigmund Freud investigates the concept and determines that morality is social feature that arises from the nature of the society. Coincidentally, Lewis determines that as well. The two psychological scholars agree that morality moderates human behaviors thus limiting harm in the society. Morality as a social concept is therefore relative to the society. This implies that an action considered moral in one society may not be in another. Howe

Ethical issues in Packaging Practices Research Paper

Ethical issues in Packaging Practices - Research Paper Example The world today has progressed towards being more consumer-oriented. One of the most important aspects of marketing is packaging basically since it portrays the origin of a particular product. From a marketing perspective it is important to ensure that the packaging is such that it allures the potential customers and increases the sales of the product. It is important to present sufficient information about the product on its package so that the customers have enough information before deciding to buy a particular product. However, several ethical issues surfaces with the aspect of packaging since in order to ensure proper sale values several factors are compromised with leading to unethical practices. Shrimp present four different ethical issues that are involved with packaging. The four issues primarily include representation graphics, information present on the cover or the label, safety of the packaging material and environmental issues. Graphics for starters, is the key factor which represents the product meant for sale. Some producers and marketers utilize pictures on the packaging case which do not appropriately represent the actual product and in most cases maybe misleading and present a false representation of the product. Labeling and providing information on the labels is another vital aspect of packaging a certain product. The information printed on the body is meant to provide sufficient details to the potential customers.

Role Of Semantics In Communication English Language Essay

Role Of Semantics In Communication English Language Essay The word semantics means the study of meaning. It typically focuses on the relation between the signifers, such as words, phrases, signs and symbols, and what they stand for. Linguistic semantics is defined as the study of meanings that humans use language in expression. Other types of semantics include the semantics of programming languages, formal logics, and semiotics.The word semantic itself denotes a range of ideas, from the fashionable to the highly technological. It is frequently used in ordinary language to denote a problem of understanding that comes down to word collection or connotation. This problem of understanding has been the subject matter of many formal investigations, over a long period of time, most especially in the field of formal semantics. In linguistics, it is the study of interpretation of signs or symbols as used by agents or communities within particular situation and contexts. Within this observation, sounds, facial terminology, body language, phonemics ha ve semantic (significant) content, and each has several branches of study. For instance in written language, such things as paragraph structure and punctuation have semantic content; in other form of languages, there is other semantic content .As mentioned above. the official study of semantics intersects with many other fields of inquiry, including lexicology, syntax, pragmatics, etymology etc though semantics is a well-defined field in its own context, but is often with artificial properties. In language philosophy, semantics and reference are related fields. Further related fields include philology, communication, and semiotics. With the interrelationship between them the formal study of semantics is therefore multifarious in nature. Semantic is in contrast with syntax, the study of the combinatory of units of a language (with no reference to their meaning). In the scientific vocabulary semantics is also known as semasiology. Introduction One of the major reasons for agent abstraction importance in engineering purposes is that it allows necessary complication and disability of todays computer systems to be dealt with better than before. Also the most conventional perspective of agents that intelligent software components, acting on an erratic environment. The typical solution to this problem is to employ a black-box approach, e.g., describing the agent behavior solely by means of its inputs and outputs. Modeling agent behavior within MAS introduces taxing issues, since both the agent internal behavior and interactive behavior are concerned. This is the problem that is addressed by formal semantics of agent communication languages (ACL) (Kone, Shimazu, and Nakajima 2000).This relationship between an agent abstract structural design and the specification of ACL semantics can be highlighted by considering the case of current semantics for ACLs such as, FIPA ACL (FIPA 2000) and KQML (ARPA Knowledge Sharing Initiative 1993; Labrou and Finin1997a; Labrou and Finin 1997b), which relate agent communications to agent mental state (Sadek 1992). For instance, in FIPA ACL, each communicative act specification is equipped by a feasibility precondition (FP).that must hold for the sender, and a rational effect that the sender may suppose to occur on the receiver, even though such an effect is not actually mandatory for the receiver, so as to preserve its autonomy. Both these specification, as well as the actual message content, are given in terms of a quantified, multi-modal logic with modal operators for beliefs (B), desires (C), uncertain beliefs (U), and intentions (I), called Semantic Language (SL) (FIPA 2000), which has its root from the work on the BDI framework. Despite FIPA not mandating any actual architecture for agents, FIPA ACL Semantics perfectly assumes that the agent behavior can be interpreted in terms of a BDI-like architecture,1 which can be pictorially represented. The agent internal machinery should be clearly aware of any communicative act sent or received by the agent (Act). It should be noted that since rational effect are not obligatory for the agent, their logics are not conceptually part of the represented portion of the agent. Instead, details about rational eà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ ects can be used by an agent internal machinery to assume the effect on the receiver of the acts it sends, whereas details about the feasibility preconditions can be used to infer the mental state of the sender. Decoupling Specification from Implementation Almost all the known semantics for ACLs are based on the concept of agent mental state, which may result in sending a communicative act, and how the reception of a communicative act may affect the receiver mental state or at least, which are the effects on the receiver that the sender may suppose to occur. In spite, these semantics do not mandate any specific architecture for agents, and are meant to be applicable in general fashion; they implicitly promote the concept of mental state as a notion in the specification of ACLs. This is likely to provide a good support for the cooperation of agents built over BDI frameworks. In fact, these specifications may drive the design of agent protocols (Bergenti, Botelho, Rimassa, and Somacher (2002), may help designing agent planners exploiting the notions of feasibility preconditions and rational effects to understand the effect to communications (Bergenti and Poggi 2001), may provide support to the verification of conformance of an agent implementation with respect to a specification, even though, at this time, this problem has yet to be faced (Wooldridge 1998).On the other hand, serious limits in the workability and applicability become apparent when the ACL specification has to support cooperation among agents built over different architectures. In practice, in those cases where the agent wraps a physical resource, a legacy system, an information system, and so on, it is unclear what is the benefit of supposing its behavior can be understood. Viroli and Omicini (2001).For instance, it is unclear how do feasibility preconditions apply in these cases, and what is the benefit of supposing that some rational effect may occur. Also, this kind of specification is useless to the end of designing the agent wrapper, and makes the problem of proving conformance even more complex. As far as an ACL is concern to help standardizing age nt cooperation, it is clear that the agent abstract architecture implicitly assumed by the ACL. Semantics should be as much abstract and implementation-decoupled as required in order to provide for a widely applicable specification tool. To this end, this easy consider the abstract architecture for agents derived from the ontology developed in Viroli, Moro, and Omicini (2001), which captures the very notion of observation in computer systems. By this framework, agents are represented as observable sources of information, providing their unique individual viewpoint over the world and making it available to other agents. Here the roles of semantic in communication could be explained succinctly by examine the following sequences of communication conversation with the use of semantic set. There are certain number of magnitude of semantic in term of space in this case is four: the normative positions of the speaker and hearer before and after the utterance. Therefore, if d = 4, the number of possible communicative acts is 22352! (Computation of this figure may not be necessary in this context). Consistency is to be anticipated in a domain in which, assumption that agents can observe a common scene and ground their utterances in it, is simply irrational .The focus of that consistency needs to be squarely upon how communication can be described, rather than up library of communication primitives. The aim is to provide agents with a system by which they can tune a language with great accuracy to the needs at hand, and the ability to do this outweighs the potential pitfalls of any particular language. Const ruction process, such as Support Vector Machine (SVM) is thus well suited to domains in which agents might reasonably be expected not to suggest a huge number of different primitives. Primitives were to be submitted for consideration. This would bring down the complexity dramatically (it would no longer be necessary to work on the power set of the points in semantic space), but at the cost of requiringlonger sequences of primitives in from it is one of the advantages of the approach. To explain the function of SVM, three agents could be considered, each of them wishes to introduce communicative acts such as commands, permissive, and co missive acts into a shared communication language. Each act specifies (or partially specifies) transitions of the speaker and hearer acts are represented Lindahl (1997).Here with a set of transitions for the speaker and an equivalent set for the hearer. For instance, an act may state that, before the act, the speaker, i is permitted to remain passive toward the propositional content of the act and after the act, i is committed to remain passive. In other words, i is, before the act, in any of the Lindahl states 1, 2, or 4 and after the act in the state 6. Thus, the set of transitions for the speaker is: {(1, 6), (2, 6), (4, 6)}. For the hearer j, before the act, j is permitted to bring about p and after the act, j is committed to bring about p. In other words, j is, before the act in any of the states 1, 2, or 3 and after the act i n state 5. Thus, the set of transitions for the hearer is: {(1, 5), (2, 5), (3, 5)}. This particular communicative act results in the hearer being obliged to bring about p and the speaker being obliged to remain passive toward p: the hearer must bring about p and the speaker cannot interfere. The initial state of the semantic fixing between these three agents is that agents 1, 2, and3 are interested in the following sets of communicative acts being included in the language: Agent 1. This agent wishes to introduce two actions into the language. 1. a, A command that commits the hearer to bring about p such that the hearer is not a priori forbidden from doing so. Speaker: {} Hearer: {(1, 5), (2, 5), (3, 5)} 1.b An act that commits the speaker to bring about p such that the agent is a priori forbidden from doing so. Speaker: {(1, 5), (2, 5), (3, 5)} Hearer: {} Agent 2. This agent wishes to introduce two actions into the language. 2. a An act that permits the hearer to bring about p such that the agent is a priori committed to remain passive. Speaker: {} Hearer: {(6, 2)} 2.b An act that commits the hearer to remain passive toward p such that the agent is a priori permitted to doing so or remaining passive. Speaker: {} Hearer: {(2, 6)} Agent 3. This agent wishes to introduce two actions into the language: 3. a, A command that commits the hearer to bring about p and the speaker cannot Interfere. Speaker: {(1, 6), (2, 6), (4, 6)} Hearer: {(1, 5), (2, 5), (3, 5)} 3. b A put-option act. Speaker: {(2, 6)} Hearer: {(6, 2)} SVM then proceeds in the following way: Round 0. Agent 1 broadcasts initiate (1, 2, and 3) (1-2-3 is the casting vote sequence). The language, L is initialized. Each communicative act specification refers to the changes in normative position of the agents that will take on the roles of speaker and hearer when the act is used during communication. This could be seen in this conversation between three agents Round 1. Agent 1 has the casting vote. Agent 1 broadcasts suggestion (1.a); agent 2 broadcasts suggestion (2.a); and agent 3 broadcasts suggestion (3.a). There is a tie. However, rather than using its casting vote to compel the inclusion of 1.a, agent 1 decides to endorse agent 3s suggestion. Agent 1 broadcasts suggestion (3.a), and so this act is included in L. Round 2. Agent 2 has the casting vote. Agent 1 broadcasts suggestion (1.b); agent 2 broadcasts suggestion (2.a); and agent 3 broadcasts suggestion (3.b). There is a, tie, and so the agent with the casting vote, agent 2, broadcasts suggestion (2.a). 2.a is included in L. Round 3. Agent 3 has the casting vote. Agent 1 broadcasts suggestion (1.b);agent 2 broadcasts suggestion(2.b); and agent 3 broadcasts suggestion(3.b). There is tie, Although 2.a and 2.b use the same transitions as 3.b, 3.b is being introduced for a different purpose-for the trading of options-and so agent 3 uses the casting vote to broadcast suggestion (3.b). 3.b is included in L. Round 4. Agent 1 has the casting vote. Agent 1 broadcasts suggestion (1.b); agent 2 broadcasts suggestion (2.b); and agent 3 broadcasts suggestion (null). There is a tie, and so agent 1 uses the casting vote and broadcasts suggestion(1.b). 1. b is Included in L. Round 5. Agent 2 has the casting vote. Agent 1 broadcasts suggestion (null); agent 2 broadcasts suggestion (2.b); and agent 3 broadcasts suggestion (null). 2.b has the only vote, and so this is included in L. Round 6. Agent 3 has the casting vote. Agent 1 broadcasts suggestion (null); agent 2 broadcasts suggestion (null); and agent 3 broadcasts suggestion (null). SVM terminates. L = {3.a, 2.a, 3.b, 1.b, 2.b}. Here, suppose that agent 2 is responsible for access to an information source. The two acts introduced by these agents, 2.a and 2.b, allow it to permit and forbid access. Although agent 3 is not in control of this information source.. Agent 2, the manager agent is interested in issuing commands and allowing agents to commit to activities, hence its interest in 1.a and 1.b. It does, however, accept the inclusion of 3.a rather than 1.a-it accepts that it should not interfere with agents to whom it has given commands. This simple example explains sorts of communicative actions that can be included in a common language and how the simple voting mechanism may be used to construct such a language. This language can be seen as a subset of a more complete language for managing the activities of agents within an organization. Indeed there all kinds of slight distinctions, but these distinctions have real operational value, which can be exploited by the agents themselves. Finally, the work of Steels and Kaplan (1999) tackles the problem of language acquisition by an axes .Thus focus on a specific semantic space, having axes of color and position. The individual primitives discussed have either specific values on one or more axes (red, blue and on the edge), or have ranges of values on one or more axes (toward the center, close to the left and toward the top). This easy advocated a new approach to agent communication languages. Rather than viewing the specification as an off-line, design-time process, it is clearer now that open multi-agent systems should be a dynamic, run-time process.. Thus, agents can use their knowledge of the dialog type, their communication objectives, and their social relationships with one another to tailor the communication language to their prevailing circumstances hence the role of semantic cannot be underrated in communication.

Black Uhuru :: Essays Papers

Black Uhuru Black Uhuru emerged at the perfect and ideal moment when Jamaica was faced with turmoil, confusions and difficulties. Throughout the late 1970's the country and its people were being faced with outside imperialist threats, political violence, a teetering and unstable economy, covert United States intervention and an angry, politicized youth. Reggae music no longer reflected change and was in need of its own uprising. Black Uhuru was seen through some eyes as the saving grace of this desperate time. The band was originally formed by Derrick"Duckie"Simpson, Don Carlos and Garth Dennis in 1971, and like almost all the front-rank Jamaican groups Black Uhuru proclaims a Rastafarian faith that has been crucial in shaping its music and its message. The religion's core belief is that Haile Selassie, emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 until a year before his death in 1975 was"a divine being, the Messiah, and the champion of the black race." Carlos left the group for a solo career and Dennis left to perform as a member of the successful roots group, Wailing Souls. Simpson remained to what seemed like one of many secondgeneration, Rasta-inspired vocal groups until he was drawn to the powerful and magical voice of Michael Rose. Shortly after Simpson and Rose began recording, they heard the ethereal voice of South Carolina-born, Columbia-graduate and Rasta sister, Sandra"Puma"Jones. It wasn't until Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare graced the stage along side the trio that they became the Black Uhuru that most are familiar with. Their music combined a deep spirituality, edgy political anger and rhythm driven by the superstar combo of Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare. The internationally renowned musicians and record producers Sly Dunbar now 46, and Robbie Shakespeare, 45, were both born in Kingston, Jamaica. They started their individual careers as session musicians for local reggae acts, Sly as a drummer and Robbie as a base guitarist. In an interview Sly recalls how he come to know Robbie,"Robbie and I were both playing at different clubs in the same street in downtown Kingston. He was playing at Evil People and I was playing three doors down at Tit for Tat. Our breaks were at different times, and each of us would go to the other club during break and listen to the other band playing. The first time I saw Robbie playing bass I asked"Who's that?"He just seemed so relaxed. We got talking and we would just stand and talk about music for hours.