Month: February 2022

Categories
My Digital Project Uncategorized

Project Proposal

My Digital Public History project is a podcast that discusses the lives of the children and young adults who lived within the White House. I came up with the idea for this project when I realized that as a society, we have constructed expectations for how the president and first lady should act, however, we have never created these expectations for their children. The first set of the podcast will be an investigation into the lives of Alice Roosevelt and Amy Carter. I choose these two girls to begin with because I believe we can learn from their experiences. Alice was the eldest daughter of Theodore Roosevelt and Amy was the daughter of Jimmy Carter. These two daughters led incredibly unique and different lives. This project will examine how they were able to create their identities. To gain a full perspective on their lives, I will be asking a series of history-related questions; How did they adjust to life in the White House? , How did external/ societal pressures affect their behavior? How did they engage with White House staff?, and Were there new responsibilities or duties given to them once arriving at the White House?. I believe these questions will allow me to analyze the period in which they lived.

The digital technologies that will be used in this digital project will include podcast software such as audacity. I will be utilizing various audio and visual clips on YouTube that have been provided by certain archival groups. An example of one of these videos is First Lady Rosalynn Carter escorting her daughter Amy to her first day at her new school. I will admit that it has been difficult to find primary sources from Alice Roosevelt, as the National Archives keeps many of these documents and audio recordings under “request only”. However, I have found many digital images of the two, which has helped me learn how to characterize their potential moods, thoughts, and feelings. I believe that these digital images, videos, and recordings will help us uncover the reasons as to what caused their behavior.

My target audiences for this project include two groups, young adults and adults. I am hoping to target those who live in urban cities or suburban neighborhoods. To get more demographically specific, the primary age ranges of these groups are 16-24 and 30-45, have completed high school or some form of higher education, and belong to the middle class. However, I am hoping to still attract those who may not belong to any of these groups. I encourage those who have the following interests to listen to this podcast; U.S. history, those who enjoy breaking the rules every once in a while, life in the White House, and the lives and families of the presidents.

The reason I chose these specific questions, topics, and audiences were to learn what makes these children/ young adults different from the rest of the public when they were that age. I believe that many children and young adults contract mental health issues due to the societal pressures and expectations that are established. I wanted to explore this connection between historical figures and the rest of the public. As many of us idolize certain historic figures, it is important to remember that they are just regular people. During childhood and young adulthood is when we begin our journeys of self-discovery. I imagine that it must have been quite difficult for the children of the presidents to fully engage with life. Therefore, this project will serve as a testament to those who grew up under the watchful eye of the public and the Secret Service.

Categories
My Digital Project Uncategorized

Persona #1 and #2

Name: Jessica Brown

Demographic: 17-year-old, female, middle class, high school, lives in Ohio

Descriptive Title: Jessica Brown, A typical high school student

End Goals:

Jessica wants to get an A on her history paper, but she needs to develop a topic first. She is embarrassed, as all of her friends have already turned in their papers. Jessica is hoping to find an interesting history topic without having to ask her friends for help.

Quote: “I want to follow my passions”

A Day in a Life Narrative:

Jessica Brown is like any ordinary high school student. She is a very active part of her community through her soccer team. She has organized many fundraisers including a car wash and a bake sale. Although soccer takes up a majority of her time, she does prioritize her friends and academic work. Jessica values the opinions of her friends and thinks very highly of them. However, this can lead Jessica to keep her feelings to herself. Although History has not been Jessica’s best subject, she does take interest in historical figures. Due to the fact that history is not Jessica’s best subject, she tends to neglect the work in that class. She is much more interested in her English class and the poetry of Seamus Heaney. However, with the History midterm looming, Jessica would like to write about an historical figure who is close to her age.

End Goals:

Jessica wants to get an A on her history paper, but she needs to develop a topic first. She is embarrassed, as all of her friends have already turned in their papers. Jessica is hoping to find an interesting history topic without having to ask her friends for help.

Name: Bobby Sherman

Demographic: 35, male, upper-middle-class, lives in Charleston, South Carolina, unemployed

Descriptive Title: Bobby Sherman, Career Crisis

Quote: “I want to follow my passions”

A Day in a Life Narrative:

Bobby Sherman has always had a comfortable life. His mother was a lawyer and his father worked at a large publishing company. Bobby has never needed to worry about money, which has allowed him to live his life frivolously. He recently proposed to his girlfriend and has begun moving into a new house together. To make this task go by faster, Bobby decided to quit his job at his father’s company to work on the house full time. This hard-manual labor has made Bobby realize that he never really enjoyed working at his father’s company. He reminisces on his old college days and begins to look toward subjects that inspire him. Bobby has an open mind and is willing to explore new fields of study.

End Goals:

Bobby is looking to find a new job in a subject he is passionate about. Although he has experience in the publishing world, he is looking for something new that will spark his interest.

 

Categories
My Digital Project Uncategorized

User Research Summary

My user research has allowed me to have a better understanding of those who might be impacted the most by my digital project. My ideal age demographic consisted of sixteen-year-olds to twenty-four-year-olds. The two people who I interviewed were twenty-one and twenty-two. They both were recent college graduates and have backgrounds in U.S. History. They appeared to have a good understanding of the project. It was enjoyable to discuss times and feelings of rebellion against your parents. This segment also illustrated that there is a shared moment in everyone’s life in which it is time to rebel. This point of my user research allowed me to have a better understanding of the ways in which listeners can relate to my project. Although these two people had a good understanding of the academic portion of my project, that does not mean everyone will. However, it has made me rethink the way I would like to talk about my project. I would like my project to be accessible and enjoyable for all.

My user researcher has shown me that my topic cannot be fulfilled solely through interviews. Although I was able to engage with those who had similar experiences, it was difficult to not delve into more about the presidential children. In order to make my project more focused on the history of presidential children, their story also needs to be told in depth. Although, it was very productive to address how unavoidable and external factors can play a large role in the person that we become. The interviews provided more depth to the topic, as first-hand experiences with mental health problems were discussed. This created a deeper human connection to the individuals we were discussing. In history, we tend to think of those who are in the history books as heroes, villains, and everything in between. However, we forget that they were also just ordinary people like the rest of us. This user research helped shed light on similarities and slight differences that we have with those in the history books.

 

Categories
Reviews

A Comparative Review of the First Ladies Exhibit

The First Ladies. https://americanhistory.si.edu/exhibitions/first-ladies. Created and maintained by the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian, Washington, D.C, https://americanhistory.si.edu/firstladies-interactive/index.html. Reviewed Feb. 11, 2022.

The comparative review I chose was The First Ladies exhibit that is located in the National Museum of American History. I chose this exhibit because I found it both peculiar and interesting. The set-up of the physical exhibit is incredibly easy to navigate through. It primarily provided a single flow of traffic, which made it nice to not bump into people. There is a single loop within the exhibit. The loop is defined by Michelle Obama’s Inaugural Gown. The digital presence was also incredibly easy to navigate. Everything is individually categorized by either name, object, activity, etc. The physical exhibit has a much more regal, almost pageant-like feel to it. When looking for the argument of the exhibit, the digital site encourages the viewer to consider the ways in which the role of the first lady has changed over the course of the years. Although this was the argument for the physical exhibit, I came up with my own while walking through it.  The argument that I felt was embedded within the physical exhibit was “what was the true role of the first lady?”. I felt that this argument was also applicable to the virtual tour of the exhibit. The items that were on display within the exhibit included gowns worn by the first ladies, pieces from their china collections, as well as other small trinkets. I found that the answer to this posed argument was simply entertaining guests at the White House. The physical design of the exhibit made this answer easier to reveal. The design consisted of a very dim room with glass display cases. In each case was an object under a spotlight. I felt that this design decision accurately described what life was like for the first ladies. They were constantly in the spotlight in terms of when it came to the public. They were expected to be the perfect wife and role model for the rest of the women in the United States. When looking at the digital site, users are able to take a virtual tour which helps create a similar experience with those who visit the physical exhibit.  The main audience for this exhibit is women or young girls. This was apparent in both the physical and digital presence. When I was at the physical exhibit there was a majority of women and children viewing the exhibit. I believe the assumptions that can be drawn from this exhibit is that those who curated believe that these dresses and china collections are the best expression of what a first lady is. These were prevalent more in the physical exhibit than in the digital presence. The digital presence had more information concerning other activities of the first ladies such as campaigning and other political advocacy. There are some interactive elements for the exhibit on the digital presence. When on the site, you are able to take a virtual tour of the exhibit and look through the belongings of certain first ladies. During the virtual tour, the user is able to click on the dress of a first lady. Information is then displayed about who the dress belongs to, which event it was worn at, and a description of her shoes and jewelry that were worn with the dress. Although there are not a lot of interactive elements on the digital space, it does give a good idea and feel as to what the exhibit is like in person. The interactive dress selection is very neat and almost feels a bit like online shopping. I think the small amount of interactive elements on the digital space is due to the size of the exhibit, as it is rather small compared to many others. Unfortunately, there were no interactive elements within the physical exhibit. However, I do not know how they would incorporate an interactive element in this exhibit due to the items on display. When visiting the physical exhibit, I saw those who worked at the museum within the exhibit but I did not see much interaction between them and other visitors. The digital space does not have opportunities to get in touch with the specific curators of this exhibit.

If I was given the opportunity to change the physical exhibit, I would include more than just dresses and plates. Many people tend to think of the first lady as just some pretty face that is used for the gain of their husband who is running for office. It is their job to make the public believe that they are a happy couple. However, there is much more to many of these women. I felt that the physical exhibit represented the idea of the first lady and who the country thought she should be. I would like to add more items, objects, diaries, etc., that showed what made them different and unique to the position. Many first ladies were very politically active. I would like to include other materials that represent the power that the first lady is granted. I believe that this would make the exhibit more effective and open up the curiosities of more people than just women and children.

If I was given the opportunity to alter the exhibit on the digital space, I would include a page where visitors can exchange thoughts, ideas, opinions, etc. The main reason I believe this would be effective for the digital space is that the main question is posed on the first page of the exhibit. The curators are asking for visitors to see if there are any changes in the first ladies over the years. I think that this space would allow people to generate answers to this question. It could also allow for new questions and opinions to be formed. Another interesting addition to the digital space could be linked to some of the organizations or projects that have been created by certain first ladies. It would give the user more information concerning who that first lady was as a person, her beliefs, and values. This would not only help establish a better connection between the viewer and the material but also between the viewer and the first lady herself.

Overall, the physical exhibit and digital space of the exhibit are incredibly similar. Again, I believe this is due to the size of the exhibit. However, both presented the viewer with many questions concerning the lives of the first ladies. They are both incredibly easy to navigate through and leave you wanting more. I believe that this exhibit, both physically and digitally, offers more than just one argument. This is mainly a result of the items that are on display. It was the same items for every woman, which can encourage the visitor to become even more curious about who these women were as individuals. I think that this exhibit is beautiful and showcases the elegance and regality of these women. However, it also represents how these women were more than just pretty dresses and fragile dining china. I hope those who decide to visit this exhibit leave feeling more curious than ever.

 

css.php