No More Selfie Sticks Associated Press via Achieve 3000 (Ed. Achieve 3000 staff. version 980). "No More Selfie Sticks" 29 Apr. 15. Web. 17 Oct. 15. 2015. <http://portal.achieve3000.com/kb/lesson/?lid=16515&step=11&c=1&asn=1>. PARIS, France (Achieve3000, April 29, 2015). Any tourist visiting the Louvre in Paris, France, or the pyramids in Egypt will surely want to capture the memory with a photograph. But tourists hoping to memorialize their travels with a self-portrait had better check local laws before clicking the shutter button. The gadget known as a "selfie stick" has been banned at several famous tourist destinations. It's under review at others. Ever since camera phones made it possible to hold a cell phone at arm's length and say "Cheese!", people have been using their phones to take self-portraits, or "selfies." The fairly new idea called selfie sticks makes it easy to take self-portraits or group shots. They allow users to hold their cell phones or cameras a short distance away. Simpler versions are $5 sticks that can grip the camera. Sophisticated versions can cost up to $50 and use Bluetooth technology or built-in buttons to trigger the shot. Fans say the expandable rods are the ultimate convenience. They make it so people don't have to bother passersby to take pictures. They don't have to fret about strangers taking lousy shots or running off with a pricey iphone. The devices can also capture a wider view than a hand-held camera. Selfie sticks are common in many destinations around the world, from Dubai's skyscraper, the Burj Khalifa, to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. In Houston, Texas, the five-star Four Seasons Hotel offers the sticks to guests. That's "similar to the way many hotels provide umbrellas," said hotel spokesperson Laura Pettitt. But a number of tourist locations have announced bans on the sticks. They are claiming that they can be annoying to other tourists. In March 2015, officials at the Palace of Versailles outside Paris banned selfie sticks. So did officials at Britain's National Gallery in London, saying they need to protect artwork and other visitors. In the U.S., the sticks are forbidden in a number of museums. These include Washington, D.C.'s Smithsonian museums, New York's Museum of Modern Art, and the Art Institute of Chicago. The Colosseum in Rome, Italy, banned selfie sticks in February 2015. It was done as a security measure, both for the objects on exhibit inside and for the 16,000 daily visitors to the 2,000-year-old monument. "The twirling around of hundreds of sticks can become [very] dangerous," Colosseum spokesperson Christiano Brughitta said. Others say that selfie sticks take away from the travel experience. Some travelers miss the loss of that small conversation that came with politely asking a stranger to help preserve a memory. Sarah Kinling of Baltimore, Maryland, said that she was approached 17 times by people selling selfie sticks in Italy. "They're the new fanny pack the quickest way to spot a tourist," she said. "The more I saw them in use, the more I saw how much focus people were putting on selfies, and not turning around to see what they were there to see." When Kinling wanted a photo of herself with her sister and sister-in-law while in Italy, she asked strangers to take the shot. November 1, 2015 Grade 7 Writing Task 2015-2016 1
"Even when the other person didn't speak English, you hold your camera up and make the motion and they understand," she said. But some travelers say it's better to stage your own vacation photos. Andrea Garcia asked a passerby to take her photo in Egypt. Later, she realized he'd zoomed in on her face. The photo didn't include the pyramids behind her. "I couldn't really be mad at him. He wasn't my photographer," Garcia said. The experience made her appreciate the selfie sticks she sees tourists using near her office in New York City. "Take control of your image!" she said. Megan Marrs of Boston writes a travel article called Vanishing Balloons. She thought the sticks were ridiculous when she first saw them. "It seemed so vain and silly," said Marrs. But she bought one as a gift. She ended up trying it herself and liked it. "I don't love intruding on other people's experience, asking them to take my picture. They're there to enjoy their time, too," she said. "Sometimes I feel silly one more tourist taking a selfie [on vacation]. But I'm more comfortable doing it myself than asking someone else." November 1, 2015 Grade 7 Writing Task 2015-2016 2
Museums are Telling Visitors to go ahead and take Selfies Vankin, Deborah. Los Angeles Times via Newsela (Ed. Newsela version 960). "Museums are Telling Visitors to go ahead and take Selfies." 17 June 15. Web. 17 Oct. 15. <https://newsela.com/articles/museumsselfies/id/10702/>. LOS ANGELES, Calif. - In one photo, a tourist in a baseball cap stands heroically, raising a 340-ton boulder above his head. In another, a thin woman, flat on her back with legs in the air, balances the rock on her feet. The Boulder Holder is a selfie that museum visitors take with a giant rock that is also a piece of art. It is called Levitated Mass and it is located at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in California (LACMA). The photo is so popular that one count of pictures of the artwork on Instagram reached 175,000 people in a week. The museum selfie is having a moment. Museums around the globe are creating even more selfie opportunities as a way to attract visitors, especially young people. Some museums are even designing architecture that encourages people to take pictures of themselves. Selfie-Friendly Museum Moments The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is building decks with views. The change is partly to encourage visitors to take selfies. The museum s curators are also discussing ways to include selfie-friendly moments in exhibitions. It d be foolish for museums not to actively consider this," Chad Coerver, who works at the San Francisco museum, said. He added that selfies help spread buzz about a museum through word of mouth. We are definitely looking at what those iconic selfie moments are going to be. With so much to look at, art museums are natural places for the selfie. Just ask Beyonce and Jay Z. In October they famously posted selfies with The Mona Lisa at the Louvre museum in Paris. The Philadelphia Museum of Art has two famous selfie spots, both from the movie "Rocky." One is the statue of Rocky the boxer, and the other is to do the famous run up the museum's stone steps holding fists in the air just like he did in the movie. The National Gallery in Oslo, Norway, has a painting called "The Scream." The Internet is full of people with horrified expressions like the person in the painting. There is even an interactive art museum in the Philippines called Art in Island. It opened in December dedicated to taking selfies with artworks. The upside is that people share their experiences, word spreads, more people come, young people can relate, said Ann Philbin. She is in charge of the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles. The downside is that people do not often have deep or meaningful experiences with the art, she said. That s what we re giving up. Digital Self Expression November 1, 2015 Grade 7 Writing Task 2015-2016 3
The selfie comes out of a generation that thrives on self-expression. It could also be a response to the digital world, where experiences happen with technology instead of in-person. The selfie screams: I was actually here! Kate Flint is an art history professor at the University of Southern California. She said that social media puts a huge value on sharing experiences instantly. We do this with a whole network of people who will fall somewhere between jealousy and admiration. Favorite Selfie Snaps LACMA has launched a new social media campaign. Faces of America is an exhibit that asks visitors to take selfies with artworks. The photos are then projected back to visitors on screens. Everyday LACMA looks for selfies to re-post, said Scott Tennent who runs the museum s social media. He said that it makes people feel more comfortable with museums and inspires creativity. Like many museums, the Hammer museum did not used to allow people to take photos in its galleries. Then last February it reversed the rule to allow flash-free photography. The Hammer s spinning chairs in its main courtyard have become the unexpected selfie standout. Since they were installed in February, hundreds of visitors a week have played on them, twirling on the chairs and snapping pictures. Once those in charge of the museum saw what was happening, they created a hashtag called "spunday." Now every Sunday they post their favorite pictures of visitors in the chairs. November 1, 2015 Grade 7 Writing Task 2015-2016 4
Complete the following writing task. Task: A selfie is a photograph taken by oneself and uploaded to social media. Write argumentative essay to assess if selfies should be taken at tourist destinations. Use evidence from both texts to support your answer. Manage your time carefully so that you can: read the passages plan your response write your response revise and edit your response Be sure to include a claim; address counterclaims; use evidence from multiple sources; and avoid overly relying on one source. Planning: November 1, 2015 Grade 7 Writing Task 2015-2016 5