I was very offended by the ad I saw in a magazine advertising the Ralph Lauren brand. I find it very offensive that you airbrush a beautiful  model the way you did and cause her to look unhealthy and disproportionate. Not only does this cause girls and women all over the world to have negative views of their bodies, but it also opens up doors of eating disorders and other unhealthy ways of losing weight.

I find it disgusting that you fired her for being overweight and then airbrushed this photo. Think of the image that you have sent to people about women and your company. Women now think that in order to be beautiful, they have to look like this fake, airbrushed figure that you have put in your ad. Not only is this an impossible goal for any woman to achieve in a healthy manner, but it is also not ideal in any way. A survey of men shows me that men do not find that figure attractive. In fact, they are deterred by the way her head cowers over her immaculate body.

I hope that in the future you will consider who you are affecting with your ads. Women should not strive to look like bones. They should love themselves the way they are and strive to be healthy. Your ad encourages women to develop eating disorders and depression disorders all because they aren’t Ralph Lauren’s view of perfect. One more thing, good luck finding a girl to fit the mold you have set in this ad by firing Filippa Hamilton. You have pushed the bar of disgusting. Consider my advice.

Sincerely,

Alexie Flook

Here is a link to the ad and an article about it.

I went home two weeks ago and of course went to my high schools football game. Football is a pretty big deal where I’m from, and the boys who play it put their hearts and soul into it. Plus, it’s the perfect place for unknown groups and clubs from around the high school to make a little extra money. Before I could even walk through the gates, the lady selling me my ticket asked me politely if I would be interested in buying a seasons pass for the upcoming season. I declined, knowing that it would be a rare day that I would come home to see a football game. As I continued walking, she continued blabbing about how I would get a free meal at every game, reserved seats, and other special offers, all for the measly price of $100.00. Again, I replied, no thank you.

As I continued through the stands to my seat, the “Band Boosters” who recognized me from my high school days, stopped me. They asked me how college was, if I was still in band, how my grades were etc. We had a nice conversation, and at the end, they bribed me with a small bag of cookies. They said, “You know you love us, help out your band! We miss you,” and with that, I picked up the bag, passed them 2 quarters, and walked away. It’s funny because just knowing these people and talking about the past, and the present made me want to help them. Knowing that they did the same for me a year ago made me want to do the same for them. Now that’s good PR. Get the people you know can’t say no!

As I continued walking, I said hi to a few people whom I recognized from high school, and one of them called me over to a small table where she was sitting. I had recognized her from Student council and realized immediately what trap I had fallen into. In front of me, was a table full of students from student council, all begging me to contribute money. I told them I didn’t have any cash and began to walk away. I never realized how annoying we had been when I was a part of this. If only I had known. One of the students followed me back to my seat where she continued to beg until I pulled a dollar from my wallet and shoved it into her fist. This annoyed me because not only did I not know where my money was going, but I also didn’t want to give them money in the first place. I know first hand where that money goes. NOWHERE. I guess the annoying tactic works after all.

The game ended in a win against Smithsburg, but I unfortunately lost a lot of money. Looking back on that night, I realize that they had no magnificent tactics, no famous people to convince me to donate money or that they needed it. They just did what they knew. Maybe if the lady who sold me my ticket would have reminisced good times in high school, or reminded me that I love my high school football team, or just never stop asking me, I would have given in. Everyone else that night got lucky. I’ve solved my own problems, next game; I’m not bringing any money at all.

Here is a link to the football game.

While walking through the mall a week earlier, I had seen this same advertisement on the window of the GAP: A cute circle of adults in winter wear, smiling, with a baby in the middle. Cute right? Maybe, but more importantly, it is definitely something I didn’t have trouble remembering, and that’s the point of these advertisements. To make sure that you remember what you saw. Go to the GAP website and you will be bombarded with the same silly pictures. This is their holiday campaign, and it is definitely a success. Anywhere that sells GAP clothing, or where there is a GAP slogan: be it TV, a billboard, a magazine, anything (I’ve seen them all). That picture will be there. Reminding you to go to your nearest GAP and buy some cute winter clothes for the ones you love this holiday season, no matter what holiday you celebrate.

This specific campaign is one targeted to many audiences. Obviously, by looking at demographics, we see a target to all different religious groups and ages. The campaign has something for everyone. Whether it be the little kids dancing around, or the dad doing flips, or the mom and dad sharing a moment, or the teens just having a good time; “If your a part of a family, then these clothes are for you.” I also feel like the company wants you to realize how comfortable the clothes are. The people in the commercial are doing flips, bends, jumping around, the works, all in these clothes. Obviously, GAP wants you to realize that comfort matters without having to come out and say it. Even in the picture campaigns on websites etc, the people are in a position that would require comfortable clothes to work.

For psychographics, I would have to say that the company was aiming for the young at heart: The people who would appreciate the small things in life such as family, friends, and happiness. They knew that because of the holiday season that their campaign would be effective in sharing the holiday cheer. In fact, the slogan of their campaign is “Ready For Holiday Cheer.”

I’m not sure of the schedule of this commercial, but I do know that it is a frequent flier. In the short amount of time I watch TV a day, I can assure you that I’ve seen it on nearly every channel and multiple times. This only goes to show that they are trying to reach a big audience of people. In my opinion, they have a good strategy and have chosen a perfect time to run their ad. It is the holidays and that means its time for people to be in a good mood and begin looking for presents. The fact that this commercial has a catchy toon, lots of smiling, and people of all ages, all for the common goal of wishing a happy holidays is a great idea. Keep up the good work GAP, just chill out a little bit. It’s slightly annoying.

One more thing, this is a link to an interesting article I found about multimedia campaigns, and this is an ad to the gap website where you’ll be bombarded with gap-holiday-ness.

Anne Frank is the true story of a thirteen-year-old girl who was forced to hide in the attic of her fathers store for two years during the holocaust. She lived with her family, and two other families. They were forced to be silent during the day and lived in complete fear of what the next minute would bring. Anne stayed strong through all of this, and chronicled those two years in her diary that is now one of the most read books in the world. Throughout the book, she had a crush on a boy named Peter, had many spats with the people she lived with, and had to live in the dark even during the day. When she was taken by Nazi soldier’s to an internment camp, her diary was left behind and found by her father who was the only one in the family to survive.

This book had such a huge impact on my life because I saw myself in Anne Frank. I saw that this strong willed, bull headed girl did something magnificent with her life just with her words. I saw a girl who stood up for what she believed in and wasn’t afraid to speak exactly what she was thinking. Having the opportunity to sit there and read what was going through her head while she was sitting silently in a dark room, curtains closed, listening to soldiers footsteps outside the door, awaiting her fate was something that inspired me to continue writing. Writing is a passion of mine, and seeing the strength and encouragement it gave Anne Frank made me want to use my freedom of speech and of press to write my own feelings.

Ever since I read “The Diary of Anne Frank,” I have truly changed as an individual and as a writer. She has inspired me to be myself and not hold back anything. She was thirteen years old when she first started her diary. Reading it made me feel as though I watched her grow, like we were best friends. If she were alive today, we would be friends. We have a lot in common and I would love to commend her on her bravery in all that she did while she was alive. In one word, Anne Frank was a trooper.

Her book hasn’t necessarily inspired me as an individual to read more. I have always loved to read, so I don’t need incentive or reasons to read. All I need is a good book and I’ll be satisfied for hours. I hope that other people will take the time to sit down and read Anne’s diary. It is a beautiful, true story that could inspire anyone. Here is a link to her book.

Nearly every child at one time in their life has watched a Disney film. In fact, most children have seen all of them and hope to one day have a life, a prince/princess, and the wealth of the characters they see in these films. Some people believe that Disney us bad for children because it instills bad values and beliefs in their heads before they are even old enough to understand. They think that because a child sees Cinderella with a tiny waist, big breasts, and long legs, that the child will grow up thinking that that is how they have to be. Boys may watch Disney and think that they have to be like the males in the movies.

There are a lot of common themes that run through the Disney movies from the past up to the present. One important thing is that women are always depicted as beautiful, flourishing girls. Also, there are few Disney movies that have African Americans, Indians, Asians, etc. Race is very exclusive to Caucasion males and females in most Disney films. Another very common theme in Disney is the idea of a perfect world. Disney makes films that depict the world as perfect and teach children that the good guy always wins in the end. Before I end this paragraph, I’d like to point out that although people say that Disney is “racist” and doesn’t put different races in their films, this is not so true. Films such as Pocahontas, Mulan, and Aladdin all have characters of different races.

Although these themes may be projected in many Disney movies, I think it is important to see the other side of Disney too. Because of people saying things like I was saying above, Disney has drifted away from its previous human characters, and has resorted to using personification in its movies instead. “Finding Nemo”, “Cars”, etc., are perfect examples of films that have strayed away from what Disney was originally seen producing. In such films, children cannot get a sense of racism or sexism. Also, it allows them to use their imagination in new ways.

Personally, I grew up without much of a Disney history. I watched Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Beauty and the Beast. Now that I’m older, I have seen many Disney movies and am better equipped to give an opinion on them, but as a child, I wasn’t deeply immersed in the world of Disney. In my opinion, Disney didn’t have a huge impact on me or the way I live my life as an adult. To this day, Disney movies are some of my favorites, and I love lying back and enjoying a good classic.

There is a lot of hype recently about the subliminal messages in Disney films. Can this impact a child’s brain? Do they comprehend what they are seeing or are the animators just trying to have some fun? This is just another factor into the Growing up Disney scheme of life. I feel as though EVERY child will at one point in time, watch a Disney classic. I also feel as though the positive morals of Disney films greatly outweigh the negative aspects. Most children who watch Disney don’t think about “Oh, that girl is doing all the housework,” or “There are no African Americans in this movie,” or “This is rotting my innocent brain.” They are thinking about the magic of the story and the magic of Disney itself, whose popular stories will be around forever.

Below is an article discussing subliminal messages. Decide for yourself on how you feel about them.

Yes, Disney may be a little bit over-commercialized, but it’s a legacy. Children have been watching and passing on these movies for ages. I just don’t understand how the genius work of Walt Disney himself could be spat on the way it has been and made out to be something nasty. Yes, some films could be read into certain ways, and analyzed certain ways by certain people, but Disney will never die. Lets take a step back and remember our childhood. The days and nights we sat around the TV as a family and enjoyed Beauty and the Beast, or The Little Mermaid…I think most of us turned out just fine.

It’s interesting to think that just years ago, the only thing employers knew about someone was what they got in a just a few interviews. Nowadays, it seems that with just a click of the mouse, employers can see exactly who you are out of the office. Whether it is Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn, or just a personal blog, your life is as accessible to them as a reference call. With information this easy to obtain, the workplace is becoming a much more competitive endeavor.

I read an article in the New York Times about employers using social networking sites to gain information about future employers that really caused me to stop and think about the information I post on my personal websites. The article said that 45% of employers use social networking sites to screen job candidates. They look at comments, photos, or status’s etc., some employers even followed their possible employers on twitter! A survey of employers pointed out that people were denied jobs due to, but not limited to, provocative pictures, pictures involving drugs and/or alcohol, posts about the company or other employees, and even poor online communication skills.

Personally, I think that it is very smart on the employers end to screen job candidates using their social networking sites. I also think however, that it is an invasion of privacy. If an employee can come to work and do a great job for the company, I don’t understand why it is any of his/her employers business what he/she does outside of the workplace. Granted, using social networking sites is very helpful in weeding out the “bad eggs” in a group of potential job candidates, I’m just not sure how much I approve of the method. A Facebook is “a place for friends.” A future employer is not a friend, and thus, the information on any given persons website is none of his/her potential future employers business.

Understanding this fact is really important for people my age. We’re college students, and its very natural for us to want to post pictures of us enjoying college online. However, as we grow up, it might cost us great opportunities. I would be devastated if I wasn’t offered a job purely because of something I had posted on my Facebook. Even now, I realize that anyone can see what I post. Although it is possible to make your Facebook (and most other social networking sites) private, employers can still request to search them, and if you deny them access, then they will just as easily deny you the job.

This is a video that proves the importance of looking good to employers not only during an interview, but also through things that you post online, such as social networking sites.

So I was watching a documentary on rollercoasters today, and I realized the pure bliss, yet pure terror of what a rollercoaster really is. For any thrill seeker, being taken hundreds of feet into the air and plummeted straight down, into a loopy-de-loop of screaming and grabbing the seat in front of you like its no ones business is a ton of fun. However, at the same time, the danger of knowing that the track could break at any moment, and you might not make it up that next hill doesn’t give someone quite the same enthusiasm.

Similarly, as I was thinking about technology in the year 2035, I realized that it could also go both ways. When I first thought of how fast the development of technology was moving, I became excited about what life will be like in 26 years. Just 26 years ago, in 1983, color television was a new sensation, and Sony was just coming out with the first compact disc player! Before I talk about the utopia that I see as the year 2005, lets take a quick look at our world just 26 years ago:

As is made VERY obvious in this short film, technology has skyrocketed since this time. In 1983, the rollercoaster had just begun, and the trip up the steep hill before the fall had only just begun. Looking at technology now, we see a huge advancement. We have HD television, Blu Ray players, DVD, VCR’s, ipods, texting, Skype, media convergence, touch screen everything, BlackBerrys, Instant Messaging, and SO much more. Some people will say that, because of the increase in technology, and decrease in personal relationships, that our world has already begun its steady decline down that steep slope on our technology rollercoaster. Others however see this new technology as a great addition to our ever changing and ever stabilizing world. Finally, lets look at how I see things.

Lets Keep Going Uphill

Hopefully, the year 2035 will be a much better, safer, and more economic world. In my eyes, I envision a healthier planet made possible by new types of energy that can replace fossil fuels that are harming our atmosphere today. I see bluer skies, greener grass, more brilliant flowers, and less smoke crowding our skies.

Another thing I hope to see is better medicine. Advancements in medicine are happening every day. I see hospitals as a place of joy rather than a place of sadness. People go into the hospital knowing they will be cured rather than expecting death. Cures for diseases such as cancer, autism, diabetes, asthma, everything will be available through new technology and ideas.

Finally, in my utopian society, technological advancements will open doors to new forms of travel. Teleport systems will be established, and cars will be virtually fuel-free. Computers will be more compact, have better and more advanced functions, and viruses will be eliminated. There are so many things that could contribute to a happier and healthier 2035, but now to the steep downfall of things. What if technology continued to grow, but instead of helping the world, it just made things worse?

The Steep Decline

The year 2035 could, as I said above, be an ugly one. Already, people are beginning to rely solely on technology for communication. In this world, I could see people sitting around computers all day. Learning from computers rather than going to school, talking to people on computers, having things delivered by robots and never stepping a foot into the outside world.

I can imagine people thinking that everything they need is at their fingertips so why would they need to go out of the house. They have social networking, they have newspapers, internet, texting, news, television at their fingertips; Why would they need anything else? Americans everywhere would rely solely on technology for everything they do. Obesity rates would skyrocket, and employment rates would plummet. No one would need anyone to work because they have technology to do it for them for much less cost. Here is an article that explains a similar problem that Americans face today in 2009. Imagine what happens if this continues.

My Life in 2035: The Real Rollercoaster

In the year 2035, I will be a successful broadcast journalism. Whether the world turns upside down or continues on a steady incline of success in technology, broadcasting is a career that I know I can find work in. People will always want to watch other people experience and speak about things that they cannot see personally. Whether I’m on a crime scene, talking about the latest news, or traveling the world, I’ll be doing something that someone out there will be interested in. That is such an awesome feeling. Knowing that whether the world sucks or not, that I’ll still have a job.

I’m sure that although the field of communications will be drastically changed, I will still have a part in it. Communications is my passion, and I know it is where I belong. Maybe, I will be a hologram in everyone’s house saying the daily news or broadcasting a talk show. Maybe I will be busy teleporting from place to place learning about cultures and telling the world about it through a new technology. I’m not sure exactly what I will be doing, however one thing I’m sure of, is that technology, and the changes of it, will have a huge part in my future. I will just make the best of it, and ride my rollercoaster until the very end.

]]> http://atflook.wordpress.com/2009/10/06/blog3/feed/ 0 atflook rollercoaster1 images-1 http://atflook.wordpress.com/2009/09/17/blog-3/ http://atflook.wordpress.com/2009/09/17/blog-3/#comments Thu, 17 Sep 2009 20:55:46 +0000 atflook http://atflook.wordpress.com/?p=22 ]]> That’s right people. I am most definitely an addict. Attempting to go two days without a cell phone was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. As You read in my last entry, I start my day with the internet, and expose myself to media constantly throughout the the day. The hardest thing for me though, was going without my blackberry (aka, my source for everything”). The video I found below opened up my eyes to the truth about this addiction.

Similarly to what the people in the video said, I also felt anxious, and depressed when I didn’t have my Blackberry to look at. Getting online and not checking my personal email, and social networking site was nearly impossible. I realized as the day went on, that I felt detached from the world and modern society.

Another very hard thing I tried to adapt to was no music. That was definitely impossible. I go to the gym everyday, and music is what keeps me energized the whole time. Not being able to take my ipod, or plug headphones into the tv, or even listen to the radio (excuse my french)..sucked. One thing I noticed was that my performance at the gym decreased profoundly. Usually, I run 3 miles a day, but on that particular day, I only ran 2. I found myself getting tired faster, and not being able to focus on what I was doing. That just shows how much of an impact media has on my life specifically.

I found myself frequently getting into my purse to grab my cell phone, and then freak out when i couldn’t find it, only to realize that I hadn’t brought it with me that day. I was worried all day that I had missed important news, or that a friend may need me, or that my mother had called me, or a friend put up new pictures from the weekend on her facebook.

Needless to say, I didn’t even last a day. I found myself bored, and, as I usually do when i’m bored, I pulled out the cell phone, turned on the computer, and switched on the tv. Perhaps not all at once, but little by little, media found its way back into my life. Honestly though, how could it not. As a college student, text alerts, e-mails, facebook groups, event invitations; all are necessary in being successful in what you do at Towson. Not to mention, most media is just fun to have around.

Here is a link to an article describing the ten signs of an addiction to social media. My guess is that more of us are truly addicted than we may think. Addict?

Every morning, I get up, open my eyes, and the first thing I do is run to my computer to check me TU email account. Okay fine, I check my TU email account, my google email account, my facebook, and on a lot of occasions, I get distracted by whatever other sites I randomly find. I had never really thought of this as media before, but more as just a part of life; a routine. A very addicting routine, but a routine nonetheless.

The two days that I payed attention to my consumption of media shocked me. Not only shocked me; They blew my mind. Things that I never even realized I saw, or never payed much attention to, or just simply didn’t realize affected me were popping out at me everywhere I went. First of all, when logging on to facebook, I saw that the left hand side of the page was blotted with advertisements for colleges, acne products, jobs for the recession, and more.

After about thirty minutes online, I walked to the elevator, and in that walk alone, saw up to 20 posters advertising activities, clubs, sports teams, politics etc. Down the elevator I went, doors opened, and there was a poster advertising the URG campaign going on in our tower. The rest of the day continued as so. Everywhere I looked, every corner I turned, every logo on every tee shirt; Media was everywhere! As best I could, I calculated my time spent viewing media. Thankfully, my time in classes was, for the most part, media free. SCORE! However, even with that totaled in, my time spent consuming media was a whopping…76.4%. That means that out of my approximate 17 waking hours, nearly 13 of them were spent consuming some type of media.

My reaction to that? Wow. I’m sure, like me, you may still be staring at that number, wide-eyed, jaw dropped, brain fuzzed, but let me tell you something; Media really has taken over. Its everywhere. When you don’t even mean to notice something, its still there, the message is still lingering in your mind, and the next persons, and the persons after that. What a brilliant way to communicate too. A way that everyone will see and understand. Now before I go on (assuming you’ve managed to blink a few times, shut your mouth, and wipe the drool from dripping down your chin) I’d like to give you a breakdown of exactly what types of media I was consuming. Lets take a look:

Looking at this pie chart shocked me. I couldn’t believe that THAT much of my time was really spent online and on my cell phone. As I replayed the days in my head though, I realized the ugly truth. My cellphone is glued to my hand ALL DAY, and when i’m in my room, i’m usually on the internet. It’s sad, but it’s true. Such are the facts of life.

One thing that surprised me is how different the newspaper has changed since the printing press first started making them. I was shocked that a newspaper was only one page and was designed primarily for businesses and enterprises. It makes sense, but to see the huge leap its made in that amount of time is crazy. Now, you walk to your mailbox and pull out a million page, pound and a half, colored newspaper that everyone gets a copy of! Not to mention, business is just one small section in the many lettered and numbered categories. Thats some intense business right there.

Another interesting piece of information I got out of this ancient movie was that the industrial revolution introduced mass communication as a product. Hearing this was a little weird to me. Mass Communication today is not only a product, but many products. All types of mass communication bring in revenue-and lots of it. It made me take a moment to think about the world before it was considered a product. All businesses, people, schools, everything is exposed to, and pays for some type of mass communication. Life without it is a weird thing, and something I’ve investigated myself, but thats a whole different blog.

All in all, it was a very informative movie. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that it was interesting, but at least it gave me a look at the history of mass communication and helped me reflect on my own life, and the world around me. Mass communication is everywhere, and its history is an essential part of understanding how far its’ come. From oral, to written, to the invention of the printing press, to morse code, to the internet, cell phones and email, its’ caused our world to do a 360 degree turn on how we communicate, and communicate to large groups. So lets take a moment and feel how bad the cavemen must have felt when the only way they could communicate was through pictures on the wall and the occasional grunt.

Now, look ahead at the future of mass communication and the possibilities of what are to come. Again, very scary thought.