Reflection

     Media. It's an interesting aspect of our culture. As a teenager, I have the ability to be picky about what I choose to let into my life. Media is everywhere and I make a lot of conscious decisions about what I choose to see. Or, so I thought. I used to think that I was above consumerism and being marketed to, that I was nobody's target audience because mainstream media didn't actually know who I was. Boy was I wrong. They know me all right. They may not know my middle name or my social security number, but they know what I like, they know my hobbies, my music taste, where I like to shop, what I'll be doing this summer, what I excel at in school, they probably even know what I'm going to do with my life and I don't even know that yet. How? How have they managed to give me a label? It's simple, I told them. All those hours spent logging in, liking, reblogging, following, googling, friending, poking, gaming, listening, tweeting, watching, scrolling. That's how they've learned who I am. In media, everyone has a label, and that's exactly what they've given to me.

     I used to think that I was beyond media. That those 3,000 ads I came in contact with daily weren't actually making an impact on my life. Little did I notice that I only acknowledge a handful of those ads. They would either be the ones thrown right in front of me between reruns of How I Met Your Mother, or the ones with hilariously obvious ad techniques and bright colors in an uninteresting issue of Teen Vogue. I was completely unaware of the effect that media had already had on my life. You see, I was already subscribed to Teen Vogue. I've already watched six seasons of How I Met Your Mother. Media had become a part of me before I could even comprehend its possible effect. 

     Now, at the peak of media consumption in my life, I am faced with the task of understanding who I am through all the clutter and confusion of advertising with its various techniques and subliminal messaging. Since the beginning of the quarter, I am happy to say that my view of media has changed. I am no longer the doe-eyed magazine addicted girl I was a few weeks ago. That girl is gone, in her place blogs a cynical, media literate, critically thinking, feminist who doesn't need media to tell her who she is and what band she should listen to next (she can find that out by herself thank you very much). Emerging from my abyss, dripping with my knowledge of ad techniques and emotional needs that they apply to, I am ready to face the world of social media and pop culture that lies around me.

     But being aware of media, how it is used, and how it affects me is only the first part. The next is being the consumer that I want to be, not what MTV tells me I should be. Just like in an episode of Hoarders or My Strange Addiction, the first step in dealing with your problem is admitting you have a problem. So here goes: I, Hannah Ross, find myself to be guilty of buying in to advertising techniques, wasting countless hours on social media, reading (and rereading) hundreds of fashion magazines, and accepting stereotypes, given to me through media, of myself and others. The next step has two options, I can either learn to live with my problem or do something to change it. To change it, I not only have to continue on with media literacy but also have to apply it to myself, as the consumer. I think I'm up for the challenge.

     If this unit has taught me one thing, it's that I am not different. I am exactly who media wants me to be and without my new found ability to see this, I would be unable to break out of my own stereotype. Humans are naturally dynamic. We shouldn't let media teach us otherwise. We have the power to destroy stereotypes, change our politics, end global warming, and quite possibly save the world if we make an effort to be aware of what we are exposing ourselves too and in general, be media literate. 

Media Log 12

     

Okay so I'm pretty sure I can touch my un-moisturized skin without it shredding. Don't know about all of you, but I'm also pretty sure that firm skin comes from usage, not moisturizing to make it soft. I counted, there are around eight different words or phrases that could be viewed as glittering generalities or weasel words. This ad really says nothing but adjectives. I thought the most interesting one that they used was touchable. Soft couldn't be used because that would counteract firm, so the advertisers used a different word for soft, hoping that people wouldn't notice the antonyms as much. Also, they include alot of fancy terms to make it look like there is patented technology to this like "Q10" and "Celluite Gel Cream". Neither of these ideas are explained in the ad but they are used to convince you that their product has a science to it, and is more than just your average moisturizer.

     In regard to how this may fit in with "Miss Representation", I thought that the slogan "touch and be touched" was pretty interesting. The ad was obviously targeted toward women. It tries to sell the idea that if you use their moisturizer then you can have a happy relationship like the one picture, show off your skin, and be touched by your boyfriend. Honestly, I think that if he's your boyfriend, he won't mind if your skin isn't firm and touchable, because his won't be either. It's not like he's going t be moisturizing, but it's expected that the girl should in order to be the ideal that I had started mentioning in my last post. This ad depicts a more wholesome ideal, but still encourages girls to meet it and sets up unrealistic expectations of what one's life should be like, and what the product could do for you.

Media Log 11

     Just in time for summer! I hope this "Boot Camp" can also tech me how to get my skin to glisten like that too. 

     This is an article I found in some Instyle published long ago in a summer season far  far away. The message is simple: Get your body ready to rock a bikini before summer starts. However, it's not this message that really stood out to, the stereotypes that this page plays to are what caught my attention the most and reminded me of the documentary "Miss Representation" that we watched this past week.

     The intro blurb at the bottom of the page that is supposed to attract you into reading this article. The part that stood out most to me was "Those teeny two pieces have all the forgiveness of a Housewives reunion. Luckily, we've got everything you need to look hot in a swimsuit this summer." This statement implies that women should only wear swim suits once fit to be seen as beutiful. The girl pictured is extremely thin, tan, and in shape which contributes to this idea of a "perfect bikini body" and creates an ideal. This ideal is used to make the reader feel inferior. Looking closer, this picture is totally unrealistic. (Just one thing I noticed) The only way you'll be able to get your skin that shiny on a beach is from sweat and some spray on sun screen. Trust me, it's just about as glamorous as it sounds. This ideal that they create is unattainable unless you follow the steps they've detailed in the article. Still, the workout they propose can only take you as far as it can. It won't give you a supermodel body, a killer spray tan, and beach waves. In "Miss Representation", the idea of girls becoming self-concious because of what they are taught to see as ideals in the media is discussed, and I think that this article provides a great example of what girls are exposed to. Images as unattainable as these, with captions telling you that this is what is required to be seen in public is what's behind such wide spread insecurities amongst teenage girls.

     After watching Miss Representation in class, I thought I'd be totally full of ideas and insight to provide you all with on your Sunday evening scroll through media blogs in hopes of finding one short enough to comment on. However, when I had my picture loaded and my document open in front of me I came to the realization that I completely forgot every idea that I had planned to discuss. I apologize for this being not the quality that I had planned on it being. I blame it on the four hour head ache and  the cold that I've been wrestling all day.

Something I Thought Was Funny

Reasoning fallacies in Saturday's comics? Doesn't get much better than that.

Media Log 10

     Okay I'm sorry for all of you Nokia Lumia users but this is the second commercial for this phone that I'm going to bash on this blog. I can't help it they just really irritate me.
     I originally chose this commercial because of the music that was used in it. I don't know if any of you are familiar with the band Alt-J, but this is their song "Fitzpleasure" being used. This was the first thing that caught my attention about the ad, it was loud and had a strong, recognizable bass. However, the editing is absolutely garbage. I can understand why they'd want to take the lyrics out, they're pretty incomprehensible, but they could have at least made the instrumental flow a little better. Honestly, that editing hurt my ears and made me uncomfortable, killing any effect they hoped to achieve with it.
     There was another thing about the music that I found weird. I'd assume that whoever chose this song for the commercial had not done adequate research or perhaps just didn't care enough to. This song is based off of the book,  Last Exit to Brooklyn, by Hubert Shelley Jr. Alt-J has said in past interviews that the song was written about the gang rape scene from this book. This isn't that important to the advertisement of this phone because I doubt anyone would know that trivia unless they had been reading YouTube comments under this song and had decided to do their own research to back it up (guilty). So I suppose there really was no point in me bringing up this story but hey, the more you know...
     Besides, there are plenty of other reasons not to like this ad besides their use of a creepy song and horrible sound editing. Again, Nokia chooses to compare their phone to other leading brands to prove their importance. True, the low light pictures do appear to have better quality, but they didn't have to compare . They could have just said good quality and I would have been sold. They should leave it up to the consumer to compare this product with others. In my opinion, it seems unprofessional when brands mock other brands, especially in the case of Nokia, as brand with a history of commercials dedicated to bashing the quality of other phones.
     Nokia has once again failed to pull me out of my iPhone only mind set. This is a big task to handle, so I give them props for trying, but I don't think I'll find any of their commercials good until they stop insulting my phone.

Media Log 9

     Just give me a minute while I look for some tissues, this commercial just brought tears to my eyes. Man, the human race really is great, just look at all the progress we've made! It really makes me want to go out and put my money in a Wells Fargo bank.
     This ad I thought was really interesting because of how unrelated it really was to the actual company it represented. What they are trying to advertise is Wells Fargo chat rooms. They claim that communication is what has brought the world to where it is today. Communication is the key to success and progress (never mind what it's done in terms of creating conflict). The advertisers really play on your own emotions to get a response out of you in this commercial. The most obvious need it satisfies is the need to achieve. They do this by showing us pictures of successful people doing great things and saying how communication helped them get there. This ad is also very optimistic, it appeals to the need to dominate by giving the viewer an opportunity to be as successful as the people pictured in the ad through these Wells Fargo chat rooms. Though I don't know what in those chat rooms could possibly make me as successful as the Wright brothers or Jane Goodall, there sure as heck make me believe my dreams can come true.
     This ad reminded me of the red bull commercial someone used for the "Show Us Your Clip" assignment where the whole ad is spent showing amazing feats that weren't a direct effect of what they were advertising, but the company used them for it. When thinking about what common advertising techniques both of these ads had in common, I decided that diversion seemed like the best fit. These ads both associate great things with very mundane products in the last two seconds of the commercial. They are both meant to inspire but provide a product that does the opposite.
     Maybe this technique was used to glamorize the product and the brand, but after watching it, all I'm left thinking is that the human race has done some pretty cool things. Also, what does anyone have to "chat" about in a Wells Fargo "chat room"?

Media Blog 8

(Sorry for the lame picture quality but for some reason my printer doesn't believe in scanning correctly so I'm forced to resort to iPhone pictures)

     This ad did a really good job in selling its product. This ad is really well done. It's honestly such a great idea and I'm really impressed with the advertisers for thinking it up. What you see before you is an ad disguised as a part of the magazine. A DIY project (do it yourself project for all those of you who don't know what it stands for) that appeals directly to the reader, and the company's target audience. I would assume that teenage girls reading Teen Vogue like keeping up with fashion and most of them cannot afford much of the designer clothes marketed to them in this magazine. By putting this DIY project as their advertisement, the company is showing a cheap and easy way to have trendy clothes for so much cheaper than the ones advertised in this magazine. I thought this was a great ad technique because it is original, and shows the companies knowledge of their prime consumers, teenage girls.
     There is some disconnect that is found in this argument. The advertisers know their target audience, but advertising to it only gets you half way there. The ad would be perfect if it made more sense. The connection between how to make jean shorts your own and Venus razors has me a little confused. What they're trying to argue is that if you have a razor that shaves you as well as Venus Embrace does, then you can wear these cute shorts and feel confident. Truthfully, and maybe it's just me, but i don't shave every time I wear shorts. I don't need to shave to wear them, and I don't need to shave to feel confident, so the connection is lost on me.
     Despite the advertisement's gaps, I think that overall it was successful in catching the reader's attention because it made a really good appeal to the reader and was original. It may not have gotten more girls to buy their razor, but I'm sure you'll be seeing a few girls rocking a pair of shorts like these this summer, with or without shaved legs.

Media Log 7

     This ad really speaks to me. You know, I've been considering getting a tattoo of the Apple logo on my chest too.
     I found this ad while catching up on TV shows I haven't watched since winter break. In between episodes of New Girl and The Mindy Project, I found myself actually watching the commercials instead of using the fast forward minutes I'd so rightfully earned. I can't tell if this unit in Critical Thinking has been helpful in regards to my exposure to advertisements. For one thing, it's made me aware to all of the scams and techniques used to trick me into buying a product. On the other, it's broken me out of my previous system of just blocking out advertisements all together. Hm. Maybe that's a discussion for another blog post.
   So, I guess what the ad is trying to do is make a point about how people are too attached to their cell phone and different brands. They're trying to demonstrate how the attachments people have to different brands leads to conflict, and to avoid this, we should all just switch to the Nokia 920. Right, just like how everyone in the whole world should speak English, because it'd make everything easier for us. At one point, the waitress even says, "I don't know, I think they kinda like fighting."Wait, hold on just a second, did a Nokia commercial just explain the reasoning behind every conflict that has ever been documented in human history?
   On the actual techniques used in this ad, there's the obvious wit and humor aspect of it. The whole commercial is essentially an exaggerated scenario where people get a little extreme about their favorite cell phones. Sprinkle in a few lame puns and some comical fistfights and there you have it. One thing I was thinking about while watching this commercial is that Nokia must have some pretty big insecurities to spend the whole commercial taking jabs at all the other cell phones out there. We get it, you'll never be as good as Apple, doesn't mean you've got to be all but hurt about it. The other technique used to appeal to the viewer is plain folks. This ad is definitely relatable, I don't know if you can find one person who doesn't seem to have an opinion on what phone is the best. But in a way, I do't think this technique did Nokia any favors. They want me to switch brands, but the only reason they've given me to is that it will end all conflict over who's is the best. If anything they'r just adding to the conflict by throwing another brand into the mix.
    This ad is trying to convince me to switch phones, but all it's really done is convince  me that my iPhone is (and will forever be) the predominant smartphone.

Media Log 6

     You don't have to know fashion to know Chanel. If you've managed to go your whole life without opening one fashion magazine or tabloid I have a few things to say to you. First, I don't believe you. Second, I suppose I should congratulate you for not getting seduced by the glamorous, shiny lure of an unopened Vogue at the grocery store checkout. I'm probably eligible for an episode of Hoarders and My Strange Addiction combined. They could air back to back, a two hour special entitled, "The Teen Who Never  Left Her Room: The Journey From Addict to Hoarder" It has a nice ring to it. Right, my point. Lastly, even if you've never opened a fashion magazine (I reiterate: I don't believe you) you know who Chanel is. You may not know what the product it sells is, you may not know if its a designer, brand, or a department store, you may not know the story of the designer, you may not know the logo, you may not have watched a two hour documentary entirely in French about the life of Coco Chanel (guilty), but you have heard of it. 

     Chanel. The Queen of fashion. That's really all you need to know. Chanel has built an empire. They don't even have to sell a product. In the ad I've featured above, they're selling sunglasses, but I would have been just as sold if they had picture nothing but the word Chanel over a black background. In dealing with such a big, iconic brand, there really is no boundaries on advertisements. Its a company with a fan base that's built themselves over 92 years on a simple, classic, sophisticated persona. It sells not just a product, but a lifestyle. They have the best reputation in the fashion industry because they've never done anything wrong. It's this 92 year old credibility that has made Chanel so successful in everything it does. This ad is one of the billions of ads that could be used to demonstrate just what I mean. In this instance, it is the ethos that sells the products. No gimmicks, no techniques, just the brand. In a world where practically every ad is trying to fool you into buying their product, Chanel provides a refreshing classic break from it all. 

 

Media Log 5

I'd like to apologize up front about the terrible quality of this photo. iPhone you have let me down again. This is what it says: "He may pose ridiculously, a behavior born from years of absurd underwear advertising." (top right)

"Tommy John underwear gives your man a 10-pack - 2 more than the competition." (right middle

"His body will cover itself miraculously - in baby oil, every time he puts them on." (left top)

"Your man will look like this. Your man will look like this. Close your eyes and he will look like this."* (left middle)

*"He won't look like this but he might feel like this. Our Quick Draw fly and revolutionary 360 degrees stretch fabric make any man feel like a super man."(bottom left)

     So let me get this straight, my man won't actually look like this, but if I buy him this underwear I will not only boost his self esteem but also mine by tricking myself into thinking I've scored myself an underwear model. That's two for the price of one! 

     Looking at this ad, I can't help but be reminded of the Frontline episode we watched, "Making Cents Out of Teens: Merchants of Cool". I remember someone in the show talking about how teens had wised up to the standard techniques of advertisements and found it boring and ineffective when ads took the boring route and simply advertised their product. One technique they used to combat this was pointing out the absurdity of advertisements. This ad does just this. Looking at this picture, it shows a strong resemblance to the Calvin Kline underwear ads that also feature oiled up, buff males in briefs. However, this ad is poking fun at the typical underwear ad. It points out how weird underwear advertisements are and in the process, sells their own. They argue that underwear ads sell more than just underwear, they sell sex and attention. The advertisers saw this and as well as how over done this angle is, and opted for another way to stand out amongst underwear ads. The addition of the wit and humor technique really separated this ad from the rest of them. Even though the point of the ad is to make fun of underwear ads, it is still selling you underwear, the advertisers just admit to their tactics. 

     I think the perspective the advertisers took in this ad is really affective in making the reader want to buy their product. By admitting that they are advertising, they establish a credibility with the reader. We are now in on the joke (it's advertisement, just in case you haven't picked that up yet), and are more taken by the ad. I found this ad to be very effective and entertaining, as, I'm sure, many other Instyle readers  did when they stumbled upon it amidst a flurry of spring trends.

Media Log 4

     I'd like to start this log off by informing the public that I am not allowed to sing in the shower unless everyone is out of the house. I'm that bad. I suppose then, that I am not the target audience for this shampoo. For those of us that are good shower singers (and I suspect that is a very small portion of us) then this shampoo is definitely for you.
     This shampoo ad catches your attention quickly. The use of bright red color on everything in this picture makes you stop flipping through the magazine and take a closer look at what they're selling. Now that it has your attention, what is it trying to say? This ad uses the technique of testimonial by having Carly Rae Jepson as a spokes person for their product. So I guess the point they're trying to make by using her here is that if your hair smells this great you can have a one hit wonder too. Simple enough.
     The use of magic ingredients, or in this case, magic scents, helps them further sell their product. Grapefruit and thyme are not two things I would have paired together. I find it interesting that all this ad focuses on about the product is the color of the product (red, if you hadn't noticed) and the scent. What does that mean for how effective the product actually is? Every other shampoo argues volume, color lasting, shininess, waves, curls, heat resistant, etc. This shampoo only says that it smells good. I'd think that if it really is as great as they want us to think it is, they'd have more to say about it besides how it smells. Some people like the smell of car gas, doesn't mean they should rub it in to their hair.
     This ad does a really good job of saying stuff about their product without really saying anything at all. They promise fame, talent, and good looks all through the use of this magical product, and in this way, it is an effective ad. Looking closer at what they really have to offer, all that they have going for them is a one hit wonder spokes person and a pretty bottle. I'm assuming they've done some research on their demographic, because in seducing teenage girls into buying a product, the only thing they could have done better is promised that the shampoo would make One Direction fall in love with them.

Media Log 3

     Very weird commercial for soap indeed. After watching it about fifteen times, I think i'm finally starting to understand what's going on here. This ad is using the Gestalt: Subliminal Persuasion technique in an attempt to lure in buyers, or at least, re-watchers.
     The first time I saw this ad, it wasn't on TV. Someone had posted a link on Tumblr, and I'm not one to pass up a chance at seeing weird commercials. I watched this one five times before the idea even came into my head to use it as a media log. By that time, the jingle was already stuck in my head.
     This commercial does a really good job of catching your attention and holding it. It's only eighteen seconds long, and in in that time, they manage to defy the rules of the universe not once, but twice. The reason I ended up watching this commercial so many times is ultimately because of the basketball. First off, why would there be a basketball in the locker room? I've never been in a boys locker room before, so my assumptions that it's smelly and gross can't be proven first hand, however I've watched High School Musical enough to be certain in the fact that the basketballs stay on the court, not in the showers. Then it tuns into a watermelon. If you haven't seen  watermelon since last July, let me give you a little refresher as to what they actually look like. Watermelons are large, oval shaped, and heavy, with a stripy green shell that when cut open reveals the red fruit on the inside. The advertisers were able to find a small, round watermelon that could be painted like a basketball. This watermelon, my friends, is a freak of nature. (if not a genetically enhanced freak of nature) Don't even get me started on how this man manages to catch a watermelon likes its a wiffle ball. If someone threw a watermelon at you, even if you knew it was coming, you would not be able to easily catch that thing, and if you were, you would not be as composed as this man was here. After that, he pulls a bar of soap out of the fruit. I'm just going to give this one up to really good prop design, because it just doesn't make any sense. To top it all off, the bar of soap is flipped upside down at the end. This advertisement is the perfect example of how to correctly apply Subliminal Persuasion.
     I would like to give the advertisers my own, personal congratulations for creating such a great ad. I have fallen into your trap. I will not be buying your product (only because I'm a teenage girl who doesn't wish to smell like what my man could smell like), but I will be racking up your youtube views.

Media Log Two

     It's a good thing our media logs are due on Sundays. They coincide perfectly with my pre-existing Sunday plans of sitting in my room with my laptop and a about ten different fashion magazines. Sorry to disappoint any of you readers looking for me to analyze song lyrics or something of the sort, the only think your likely to find here is my thoughts on ads in fashion magazines.

     I'd like to start this log off by defining a term. 

        Pun(n): Bad joke, usually having a double meaning, which no one finds funny. The jokester usually finds themselves knocked out on the ground or being thrown tomatoes at. (As defined by Urban Dictionary)

     Do you hear that Neutrogena? Puns aren't funny. Especially the one you used. Right, now that I got that off my chest into the actual content of this ad.

     This add uses two of Advertising's 15 Basic Appeals, the need for attention and the need for autonomy. The need for attention is obvious in that this is a beauty product used to enhance your own personal appearance and draw every one's attention on you. The need for autonomy is seen when the ad says, "Does your makeup do that?". The ad argues that their product is unique, it is the only one that can make you your most confident and beautiful self, any other product won't. If you use something else then you're missing out, and you don't want to miss out, do you? No. You want to have beautiful, confident, oil-free skin. Neutrogena uses this techniques to make you stand out by grouping you with the average makeup user. It encourages you to break the mold and be different, fulfilling our need for autonomy.

     The use of weasel words in this advertisement is another very obvious tactic used to persuade. Words like, "exclusive" "instantly" "continuously"convince the reader that this is a revolutionary product with fast working results. And let's not forget the "Rice Protein Complex". No one knows what it means, but it makes that product sound more scientific and tested. In a way, it makes the reader inferior, mentioning things that they would have no way of knowing what it means so all they can do is read the description and nod along, assuming that it must be true. The reader is more likely to believe what the ad is saying, because there is some scientific "complex" behind it. 

     This ad has combined both weasel words and Advertising's 15 Basic Appeals to create an overall successful argument. However, in my perspective, if I were the average reader (not a high school student trying to run a media blog) I wouldn't have read past the awful pun. 

Media Log One

     Internet friends, believe it or not what you see before you is in fact a real ad. I'll give you a second to let that sink in. Trust me, when I first saw it, I thought it was a joke too. Sadly, it isn't. This is an ad that has been printed in multiple issues of Teen Vogue (the one I used was the April 2013 edition), and one look at the website tells you that they mean business. Now what is it exactly about this ad makes me so entirely repulsed? It's hard to pin down one thing. (I assure you it isn't just the sheer tackiness of the shoes)
     This ad is effective in making the mindless teenage magazine browser stop and double take. The bright colors make it hard to focus on just one thing, and the confusing picture forces the onlooker to actually read the words at the bottom. But what is the ad really trying to say? The girl on the far left in the picture is covered in gold. She is not only wearing a gold shirt but is holding gold bars. Behind the models, the amps are draped with gold chains. The title of the company contains a money sign. The company is trying to argue that If you have these shoes you will not only look rich but become rich. This appeals to our need for prominence and attention. It captures our need for prominence by claiming that these shoes are a sign of wealth and there by make them admirable and respectable. The need for attention is satisfied in this add by just one look at the product they are selling. The shoes (aside from looking like a nine year old went crazy on a pair of converse with zebra duct tape) are brightly colored and add two inches of height, this would make you stand out in a crowd.
     While thinking about this claim made in the ad I found myself thinking back to last quarter's work on reasoning fallacies. Let's put this ad into a syllogism, shall we?

If I am two inches taller, then I will acquire Daddy's money.

I am two inches taller.

Therefore, I will acquire Daddy's money.

Seems like a bit of a slippery slope to me. The argument is so far fetched and unrelated that it fails to make any sense.
     Daddy'$ Money has taught me a few things about what makes an effective ad through their short comings. First, it is important to make sure that the argument you make has sense to it. Second, Do not overwhelm the onlooker. Colors may be good at catching one's attention, but in this case they seem to do more harm than good by distracting from the actual product. And lastly, make sure your product actually has a market.
     Honestly, these shoes are pretty bad, Why would you put this ad in a Teen Vogue? I'd like to think that the people reading this magazine are much like myself, fashionably aware teenage girls who are looking for the next trend, not the trend in 2010. The company fails at establishing credibility, or ethos, with the reader and therefore further collapses their argument.
    In conclusion, this ad ultimately fails at persuading the reader to buy their product because it is distracting, doesn't make sense, and doesn't know its audience. If the company continues to advertise like this, it won't be in business much longer.