Ethonographers are somewhat like Detectives

"It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one has to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts."
-Sherlock Holmes (A Scandal in Bohemia)

I first saw this quote on a PowerPoint slide discussing Crime Scene Investigations. It displays a key idea that law enforcement must keep in mind if it wants to do its job effectively.

This is not unlike the job of the ethnographer. In qualitative research, of course, we go into a "project" with some theories in mind, but I would argue that it is critical to not get so hung up on one theory that we overlook other possibilities. Anyone can twist the facts to push them into a theory, but this is not the sign of a truly skilled person. Also, this is unnatural. Think about trying to fit a puzzle piece into the incorrect spot. It may somewhat fit the spot, but upon putting the piece in, we feel that it is too tight. As a child, I would just keep trying to push that piece in. My mom taught me that life doesn't work like that, and in order to get by, I would need to change my strategy rather than the materials in front of me.

To wrap up:
When detectives get hooked on a theory before looking at all of the facts, they can make (sometimes) fatal flaws. Once these flaws are found, if someone has been convicted, their entire career goes down the drain.

Likewise, if a qualitative researcher gets too stuck on one theory for his or her research, they will produce findings that do not adequately fit the situation at hand, and their credibility may be damaged.

Preview...

I am doing a visual ethnography in which I am watching Law & Order and thinking about how it may effect the public's view of the Criminal Justice system.

I am also in a Criminal Investigations class.

There are so many things in the show that I just want to yell out loud, "its not like that!!!!"

I know we're doing a presentation on this soon, but I felt the need to give a small preview.

Stay tuned (a.k.a. come to class on Thursday, April 30th) to find out more...

French Elle shows celebrities without make-up

Here is a link to the article that I found online:
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/beauty/yay-french-elles-amazing-no-makeup-issue-and-why-american-mags-need-to-step-it-up-446538/

If you click the link, you will be able to see a couple of the photographs that the French magazine allowed in. The magazine chose to show the women's natural beauty, which is definitely there, but is very different than a woman with enhancements to her looks.

At one point in the article, Romolini writes, "honestly, French Elle's April '09 issue is not the first time our women's mags have been out-classed by the Europeans. Last year--in protest of the serious lack of diversity on catwalks, ads and in women's magazines--Italian Vogue published an all-black issue featuring models of color from around the world. It sold out in days."

Why is it that we feel we can't show real women in the American media? Real American women don't wear perfect make-up all of the time. In fact, real American women don't wear perfect make-up most of the time. Real American women are not only white. Whites may make up the majority, but they (we, since I am white) aren't all there is to America. I'm not sure why we refuse to show this in popular media because its not like we don't all already know this.

Managing College & the Rest of Life

It's midterms week, and I am really feeling it. This is the first semester that I've had a midterm in every class, and it's stressing me out. On top of that, I work a job and babysit two days a week. Also, I just told my boss that I would like even more hours (because with the economy the way it is, I'm having trouble getting by) so I am going to be even more busy. I know I won't get the hours until after midterms, but then I just remember that finals will be just around the corner. This is making me really think about Nathan's ethnography and her ideas about managing ones life while in college.

Donnie Brasco

So, I am also taking Criminal Investigations this semester, and Dr. McGuire had us read Donnie Brasco. The entire time reading it, I couldn't help but think about this class. Granted, Agent Pistone was not an anthropologist or sociologist, he was an FBI agent. In the beginning of the book, he discusses how he got "in" with the mob. Luckily, he knew somewhat how things worked in the mob, at least enough to know that he should not look too eager to hang around the wiseguys. He did what was acceptable, and that was to start showing his face around the places that the wiseguys hung out. He made sure that at some point someone knew he was a thief, so that word would get back to the mobsters. After a few months of a lot of patience, Donnie Brasco was hanging out with "connected guys," and even further down the line, he got in with some "made guys."

Even after he has made it in, he has to continue to adapt. He has to talk like the mob guys, walk like them, and even dress like them. Lefty, his good friend in the mob, tells him how to dress - he's no longer allowed to wear jeans. After Lefty goes on the record and claims Donnie, he has to shave his mustache because connected guys don't wear mustaches.

Although Agent Pistone (a.k.a. Donnie Brasco) was not an anthropologist, his undercover efforts in the mob were very similar to an ethnography.