2/21 reflections

Paul said...

Ad Nauseum
This book is full of "ah-ha" moments for me, and the Subliminal Seduction section was one such moment. Of course the sexuality is more subtle in some ads more than others but I did not realize it could be so rampantly used. I know subliminal advertising is a real thing but this book takes it to another level. One theme from this section would be overkill, a little bit of over-analyzing of ads. That is what makes this interesting though subliminal messages are supposed to make us react subconsciously so my question is if this in depth investigation is really needed? Another theme I found interesting is the one on a smarter consumer. Companies such as Geico have definitely taken advantage with commercials featuring intelligent humor. It is funny how blatant the old advertisements were. A third theme is fro the section down memory hole, about company mascots. Always ironic how a mascot that was originally appealing and selling becomes problematic and hurting business. This not only happens with mascots but other facets of business. My question for section 6 is will I get arrested if I was caught placing "no parking for SUV" signs in a lot? I though that was a brilliant idea.

Twitter
a. There is more to Twitter than 140 character bits of information, it is a social and innovative phenomenon
b. I agree with Johnson that Twitter is a new way to spread information efficiently. The Summize tool makes this very easy. I would also agree with the idea that it takes people's minds off stressing events such as the economy. It serves as a media similar to what the movies serve a purpose as. I disagree that Twitter can evolve into more than what it already is. I can see marginal changes especially if Facebook or Google ends up buying. Other than being a way to spread news or Shaq's daily routine in 140 characters there is not much more Twitter can do. I would also disagree that Twitter makes bad first impressions, at first it appealed to me than after a month or two I stopped following.
c. I am not using Twitter, I did shortly after it became popular last year only because I thought you needed a page to follow people. Now I do not even follow anyone's tweets, and I disposed of my page which was blank anyway; I could never think of anything to tweet about

The Merchants of Cool
1. That people are used as pawns to connect media images to consumer atitudes
2. Images such as female beauty are pervasive
3. Corporate labels create trends and opinions among vulnerable teens "TRL" "Spring Break"
4. Family values become entangled in teen marketing on television "WB"
5. Violent messages do the same as advertising by influencing behavior

Environmental Art

For my Art project I filled a Dasani water bottle with all types of money and coupons. The simpleness makes people form their own metaphor from the project. For me, the money in the bottle represents all of the hidden costs that go with consuming such a project and for Coca-Cola to produce it.

Quick Introduction

Hi, my name is Paul Smith and I am from Utica, New York. I attended a ski academy in east Burke, Vermont my last few years of high school, and now Burlington has been my home the past three years.
One interesting media experience I had over break involved watching an abundance of Anti-drug advertisements on television while in Quebec. Nearly every other commercial was sponsored by the Canadian government who used very strong images to get the message across. I normally do not watch much television but the string of ads in Canada definitely attracted my attention and made me compare it to government ads in the United States. It is always fun to view media in different countries and gain perspective on culture and language.
21st century media has certainly created an ease in which to gain information and transfer ideas. I like how technology has helped with access to media, particularly access to the internet, and newspapers and text being transferred online. While I enjoy reading news online, I realize there is an aspect of media slowly being fazed out such as newsprint. One thing I do not like about 21st century media is the ability to have a cultural influence on so many, particularly children. Between the corporate advertisements, and the technological materialism these influences are creating an unsustainable culture which is harmful to the environment in many ways.
I am not sure about my future, I hope to graduate in a year in a half with a degree in geography and environmental studies. From there the list is long and vague, a career in sustainable development maybe? Architecture? Or maybe even ski coaching.