Week Six: Recommended Media

Chapter 1 of the assigned reading offers a unique vantage point to understand the history of the production of the "transnational gang crisis" from the perspective of media representations of the 1992 riots and the 1993 film Falling Down. Before reading chapter 1, familiarize yourself with some examples of media coverage of the riots as well as excerpts from the film:

1. "From the Archives: LA Riots TV News Coverage" (watch Watch NBC4's original coverage of the event to consider what narratives are similar to those discussed in Chapter 1 of the Zilberg reading).

https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/from-the-archives-la-riots-tv-news-coverage/34623/

2. This 2017 review Eric Deggan of 5 different films that were aired during the 25th anniversary week following the 1992 riots points out different "angles" of representation and includes embedded videos for you to watch. The author concludes, "What I learned from these films today that I couldn't have known just after the riots in 1992 is that 25 years' time hasn't been long enough to break the cycle. Even as advances in technology allow viral videos of black people gunned down by police to fill up social media, the same pattern of anger over police brutality translating into violent unrest has continued."

Link to reviews: https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2017/04/25/492994148/five-films-look-at-the-l-a-riots-from-almost-every-angle
As you read Chapter 1, consider what Zilberg's approach to neoliberal security scapes might offer in terms of a possible explanation fir why this cycle continues.

Watch this original trailer for the release of 1993 movie Falling Down to get a sense of the historical moment in which a "world falling apart" was unfolding. As discussed in Chapter 1 of the reading, production of the movie was halted during in 1992 due to the LA riots and the film took on new significance following its post-riot release. As Zilberg suggests, the film acted as a form of cultural politics in that it depicts the "boundaries of what constitutes the official and legitimate public sphere," by "reasserting the cultural and racial hegemony of the Anglo American male over a disconcerting proliferation of multiple counterpublics" (2011, 65).

As you watch the trailer, try to identify ways in which such a racial hegemony is depicted.

https://youtu.be/BD5ofrSNDFA

This clip from Falling Down (1993) depicts the confrontation between the main character, William "D-Fens" Foster and the Latino gang members that Zilberg uses to open the chapter.

https://youtu.be/hlKMLkrSrDo

The Warner Bros. tagline that accompanies the trailer offers a window into the racial hegemony Zilberg refers to, especially with the emphasis on "their story" as the center of the thriller:

"Freeways are clogged. Terror stalks our cities. At shops and restaurants, the customer is seldom right. Pressures of big-city life can anger anyone. But Bill Foster is more than angry. He's out to get even. Foster abandons his gridlocked car license plate D-FENS on the hottest day of the year and walks straight into an urban nightmare both absurdly funny and shatteringly violent. Academy Award winner Michael Douglas is Foster, an ordinary guy at war with the frustrations of daily life. Fellow Oscar winner Robert Duvall is the savvy cop obsessed with stopping Fosters citywide rampage. This spellbinding thriller is their story, asking 'Are we falling apart?' "

Before going on to the lecture videos, revisit the very last concluding section of Chapter one and us this trailer to try to describe Zilberg's main argument in your own words.