Reflection Paper

                 The main thing I took away from Mr. Starace’s Critical Thinking class this semester was realizing how much media impacts our daily lives. Even though I don’t watch a whole ton of TV or have a Facebook this class still made me realize that I am constantly impacted by media. Whether I am listening to my favorite band or driving past a billboard I am unconsciously absorbing the messages that these things are trying to send out to us. Now when I see a commercial or pass by a billboard I am more aware of the purpose behind that, and I know longer just see a picture or video clip, I see it for what it really is and the message it wants me to receive from it. I find myself half-mindedly watching a commercial and thinking that the company is using Simple Solutions and the Need to Aggress to make me want to buy their product instead of simply watching the commercial with no second thoughts. Due to this more in-depth look at commercials I now realize that I am not as eagerly tempted to buy certain products, which is wonderful because it keeps me from buying things I don’t need and I therefore spend less money. It is important that I am now more aware of the impact of media and smarter about what to consume because what we buy and what we consciously choose to let impact us sends out a strong message to the world about who we are a person. Therefore, it is important to have media literacy because we are more aware of what we consume and if what we are consuming is something that we really want to represent and be part of. I think a lot of the time we see a commercial, or any type of ad, and just see the surface-level message that advertisers want us to see instead of the deeper meaning that the product actually represents. Some girls see a makeup ad that their favorite celebrity is endorsing and just go to the store and buy it without second thoughts, and then realize that because they bought this makeup it doesn’t mean they’re going to look like that celebrity all of a sudden. At the same time, commercials that advertise for these hardcore sports usually include mostly men in their commercials because they want boys to receive the message that by buying their product, they will become these hardcore athletes that they see on these commercials. However, most boys come to realize that buying a fancy pair of athletic shorts isn’t going to magically turn them into these amazing athletes. So, media literacy is super important to what people consume and what they let impact them.

            One other super important thing that I have taken away from the Critical Thinking class and media blogs is that even though we can control a lot of how we let media impact us, we aren’t immune to the impact that media has on us completely. What I mean by this is that even though we can choose what we consume through purchasing products, we can’t always control how media impacts our values and mindset on certain topics. Even though many of us say that we aren’t impacted by media that much because we don’t watch TV or don’t go on the computer a lot, we still are. It could be as simple as driving by an advertisement at a bus stop for a certain type of gum. If we continually see this ad out of the corner of our eye and don’t see any other advertisements for different types of gum, we are more than likely going to buy the gum that we saw the ad for over and over again. We will buy that specific type of gum because we have been exposed to it the most and are most familiar with it. Therefore, that is why it is important to constantly be mindful about what we consume and how we allow media to influence us. Ultimately, we have to try to see through the clutter.

You're a Winner Jimmy

     So, today I did a kids triathlon to humor myself and push myself athletically. Ha.  Normally I go jogging a few times a week, but as far as being an athletic sporty person- I'm just not. So when I arrived to  the triathlon as one of the two oldest people there, not wearing a matching track suit, I knew things were going to be interesting. I started the swimming portion unaware of how many laps we were supposed to do (the kid volunteers didn't know how many laps I was supposed to do either), so I did two too many. Oops. Then it was on to the lovely biking portion where I was the only person sporting a lovely pink cruiser. No, that's right, no fancy mountain bike for me, but I was saying hello and smiling to every person I went by which has to count for something. Finally, I went on to the running portion where my legs felt like jello and six year-olds looked at me like I was some weird alien. (Or, as my step-dad later said, "You looked like Will Ferrel in, 'Elf,' running through smiling at everyone and saying hi. And, the six year-olds were like stiff New Yorkers who just thought you were a freak. "...Oh, my family). Anyway, the whole point of why I am writing about this is because the majority of people who participated in this event (6-14 year-olds) looked as if they came straight out of a sports magazine. I mean this event was laid back, but we had the Smith family standing in matching Adidas tracksuits putting a mini fanny-pack on their four year-old.(This could have easily been cute, but it was more scary). Overall, I just think it's strange how intense some of these families were, and it got me wondering if sports advertising has anything to do with it. The majority of sports ads or commercials I see all show these really intense athletes that are so determined it looks like they're crying tears of blood. Now there's nothing wrong with being really determined, but it was a little disheartening to see these little kids so stiff and uptight. Most people would probably think my point is silly, but it wouldn't hurt them to loosen up a bit and have fun...Yes this title was a "Blades of Glory" reference.

Reality Shows are Everywhere-Even on HGTV

     I don't know about other people's parents, but mine are a bit obsessed with HGTV. Now, don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with HGTV. I have to admit that I love, " House Hunters' International," and how it's about as close as I can get to traveling to Paris or the Caribbean on a Wednesday night. However, the other night my parent's were watching a show called, "Design Star," where a group of hopeful designers come and show what they got to possibly win the title of, "Design Star" and their very own show on HGTV. What I found most interesting about this was how it is a reality show. Now of course you won't find Snooki or the Real Housewives prancing around on this show, but it is a reality show nonetheless. You still will see drama, and if you are lucky, you might even witness the heated debates that endure over which shade of beige to pick for the accent walls. Intense stuff. What is so interesting about this though is how reality shows no longer only exist on MTV and VH1, they are expanding into almost all networks. If you asked me which channel I thought would never have a reality show I would say HGTV because it is aimed towards people around thirty-years old and up, and just seems to be more sophisticated. Overall, I was just surprised how wide-spread, reality shows are today.

The New Katy Perry Movie

     On TV and in movie theatres, I have begun to notice a lot of advertising for the new Katy Perry movie that reflects her rise to fame and her career as a pop music icon. The movie is called "Katy Perry: Part of Me" and it is in 3D. The trailer for this movie really caught my eye because the whole movie is basically an advertisement for Katy Perry herself, and her music. This movie is looking to attract people who already have a lovemark for Katy Perry, and therefore will want to see a movie about her life and her music. Another important thing to note about the trailer for the movie is how a lot of it revolves around how people should follow their dream, and be inspired by Katy Perry who they show following her dream. Advertisers hope that even if you aren't a big Katy Perry fan that you'll find her message of following your dream and rising up against obstacles inspiring, and therefore will want to go see the movie. The trailer also emphasizes how Katy is just a normal person who had to go on this journey to reach her goal, which advertisers want people to connect with and see that Katy went through a lot of the same obstacles that other people face. The ad also mentions how you can be anything if you be yourself, which people will also be inspired by. Overall, I found the trailer for this movie very interesting and am interested to see how well the movie does when it comes out.

Rivercats Advertisement Bonanza

     On Saturday night I attended a Rivercats baseball game where I noticed that there are advertisements literally everywhere you look. Billboards surrounded the permeters of the field and whenever someone scored a grandslam, there was a big TV screen that advertised for free grandslams at Denny's restaurant. At the foodstands there were advertisements for different brands of food, and even in the restroom stalls there were various posters advertising for everything from cars to eco-blogs. I found all the stadium interesting because it was filled with all these different advertisements that were trying to get your attention and be more eye-catching than the previous ones. Overall, I was amazed at just how many ads there were, and how I had never noticed all the ads in a stadium before.

The Latest Trend-Political Advertisement on Tote Bags

     For the past weeks, my family has been recieving about two to six ads a day involving local politicians. With each new ad, its like they're trying to outdue themselves and make something more appealing or eye-catching. Recently however, we received the most attention-grabbing political ad of all- we received a tote bag. Now it wasn't just any tote bag, it was a tote bag that had the name, "Yee" written across it in big black letters, and red accents decorated around the rest of it. Very stylish. We received this tote bag as advertisement from the Sacramento city politician Joe Yee who is running to be on City Council. What struck me most about this form of advertisement was how much money it must of cost to send these out to various Sacramento homes. What I also found interesting about giving people tote bags as a form of advertisement was how, if people actually use the tote bag, it also works as advertisement towards other people because it acts as a walking billboard basically. Overall, I think giving people a tote bag to advertise for Joe Yee is a very smart way to advertise, yet very strange as well...Above is one of the regular ads for Joe Yee.

Weird Ad in "Talladega Nights"

    As I was watching, “Talladega Nights,” on Comedy Central I was shocked when an ad for a new show came on in the middle of the movie, almost as part of the movie. It took Madison and Vine, and weird ad placing to a whole new level. In a scene where Amy Adams and Will Ferrell are at a restaurant talking, these faded white words come on screen for about ten seconds, on top of the movie, and then disappear. At first I thought the broadcasting people messed something up, but then I realized it was just a weirdly placed ad. The ad was for the new show, “Tosh 5.29,” which is airing on Comedy Central later on, but the ad did not say when, which made it even more strange and random. Overall, this ad was a perfect example of both Madison and vine, and a weirdly placed ad.