Vending machines - Where Guys Can Grab Candy, Gum, Chips, and... Girls?

This week's blog post: How advertisements objectify women and how these ads affect men and women. In my search for an ad that turns a woman into an object, I went to Google images. What I found was a multitude of ads that sexualize women and emphasize mainly their legs or breasts. I was horrified at some of them. There was a Burger King commercial that really disgusted me:

Image found at http://hodgepodgepage.wordpress.com/

I'll let you react to that one, but as for the ad that I chose to analyze, here it is:

Image found at http://holisticmum.blogspot.com/2009/12/vending-women.html

This advertisement (believe it or not) is for shoes! My attention - and I'm sure yours too - was on the fair-skinned, scantily clad women in the vending machine. It was also on the man seemingly deciding on which model he wants to buy.

Men can be affected by this ad and may start to think of women as objects used only to satisfy pleasure. On the other side of the spectrum, women may begin to think that the right body type is super-skinny and the right outfits are skimpy.

If we’re looking at men, the slogan in the ad, “Live your fantasy,” implies that men will have their pick of the girls if they wear the shoes being advertised. However, what is the fantasy if it is a woman viewing the advertisement? To be passive and wait for a man to choose her and ultimately buy her from a vending machine like a commodity?

Cornel West says it best, "The reduction of individuals to objects of pleasure is especially evident in the culture industries – television, radio, video, music – in which gestures of sexual foreplay and orgiastic pleasure flood the marketplace."

Why does the media project this so much?

I should mention that this ad was displayed in India. It is showing that fair-skinned Indians are more beautiful and right. Also, I have found out that women in India lighten their skin before their wedding day in order to look as white as possible. As mentioned in class, whiteness is not natural and the mass media should not deem it natural.

Sources

http://hodgepodgepage.wordpress.com. 1 Oct. 2011. http://hodgepodgepage.wordpress.com/

http://holisticmum.blogspot.com. 30 Sept. 2011. http://holisticmum.blogspot.com/2009/12/vending-women.html

West, Cornel. Race Matters. Print.



Paula Deen- The Southern Housewife

     This week in class, we talked about "food porn" and the different personas that the Food Network portrays.  According to You Are What You Eat!?: Television Cooking Shows, Consumption, and Lifestyle Practices as Adult Learning, these shows present hosts that intentionally create a persona of the "everyperson," the common cook. "Bam! Emeril is a good-ol-boy who’ll show regular folk how to “kick it up a notch.” And Rachael Ray is the girl-next-door who’ll show working-class wives how to regularly create gourmet feasts in 30 minutes for pennies a day (404)."

Video courtesy of FoodNetworkTV on Youtube.

     The above clip is an example of a persona Food Network is depicting. They show Paula Deen baking in her home with her dogs by her side. Paula's southern accent can be warm and inviting to some. Also, her clothes are casual so the audience feels like Paula is just an everyday woman with no culinary experience.

     Even the title of her show, "Paula's Home Cooking" depicts the image of a common housewife baking for her family. In the clip, it's a rainy day which contributes to the persona of an everyday woman who has nothing better to do than bake.

     Throughout the clip, Paula Deen talks to her dogs just like any normal person might do from time to time. The atmosphere isn't cold and pristine. Instead, it is warm and inviting with pets around the cooking area.
     Every chef on Food Network has their own persona so that the consumer can identify with at least one of them. If you're a southern housewife, you can watch Paula Deen. If you're just a regular guy, you can watch Emeril Lagasse or Guy Fieri. There's a lifestyle portrayed for everyone.

Sources

FoodNetworkTV. "Paula Deen's Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies." Youtube. 2 May 2008. Web. 23
     Sept. 2011.
Wright, Robin Redmon. Jennifer A. Sandlin. You Are What You Eat!?: Television Cooking Shows, Consumption, and Lifestyle Practices as Adult Learning.

Brand Devotion - No One is Immune

     This week's blog post question to consider is: What brand have you been devoted to? I was sorry to say that only one brand popped into my mind: StarKid. Many of you are probably wondering, "What the heck is StarKid?" Well, it's a production company that got its start as a college drama club at the Univerity of Michigan. First, they posted plays about Harry Potter on Youtube called A Very Potter Musical and A Very Potter Sequel. They soon gained a large fanbase (94 million total views) and made another musical called Starship.
     Below is a song from A Very Potter Sequel.

Video courtesy of Blueluna1695

And here is a scene from Starship:

Video courtesy of StarKidPotter on Youtube.

Here is the brand's logo:

Image found at wizardinglife.com

Image found at amazonnaws.com

Image found at annarbortshirtcompany.com

     As you can see, the company makes buttons and shirts to advertise their brand. They also sell StarKid sunglasses, flip flops, tote bags, notebooks, hoodies, and water bottles. Each product features the Starkid logo in some way, shape, or form.

     My devotion to this brand has driven me to constantly check the StarKid youtube page to see if they have uploaded another show. It has also gotten me to buy various products from their online store, including: three shirts, a headband, sunglasses, and a Starship DVD.

     My family hasn't been sucked into the StarKid world just yet, but that could always change. My devotion to this brand may cause my brother to see what the shows are about. My mom has started watching the plays with me, but I think she just tolerates it.

Sources

www.annarbortshirtcompany.com/154-Team-StarKid-Logo

Blueluna1695. "Harry Freakin' Potter -lyrics(on screen)." 8 Jan. 2011. Web. 16 Sept. 2011.

StarKidPotter. "Starship Act 1 Part 4." Youtube. Youtube, 30 April 2011. Web. 16 Sept. 2011.

http://s3.amazonaws.com/admin.annarbortshirtcompany.com/retail_product_images/270/default.jpg

www.wizardinglife.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/STARKID_ALBUM_IMAGE_for_twitter.jpg

Monkey See, Monkey Do.

Before I go on to my weekly blog post, I'd like to share a video with you. I thought it was extremely relevant to what we talk about in class.

Video courtesy of MediaParadox on Youtube.

This video's underlying meaning is the fact that our culture is greatly influenced by media. So influenced, in fact, that we become addicted to it. It is not only our culture, but many others as well. Take the Island of Guadeloupe for instance. According to Cultural Identity in the Age of Ether: Black Entertainment Television and the Island of Guadeloupe, BET had caused “young people to ‘neglect their culture and their traditions.’”

Also, I'd like to point out a phrase that comes to mind when I watch this video: "Monkey see, monkey do." We tend to copy what we see on television. More and more, people are seeing fake violence and reenacting it in real life.

Finally, getting to the question for this week. The topic of this one was a media text that accurately portrays me or my community. For this task, I found several songs that depict my community, but I managed to narrow it down to two songs. One of which is:

"I Want It All" from High School Musical 3.

Courtesy of DazzledProductions on Youtube.

Despite the cheesiness of the song, it really shows how a lot of people think and what their priorities are. An American Dream that is rising in popularity is the idea of being rich and famous. This dream is what "I Want It All" is about.

Next, I found a song that not only portrays me, but everyone:

"Where Are You Now" by Honor Society

Courtesy of inalldevils on Youtube.

I think this song accurately portrays everyone. It's saying that the people in our lives - from our first love to teachers who inspired us- shape who we are. These people may not stay in our lives, but they make an impact all the same.

Sources:

DazzledProductions. "HSM 3 I want it all w/ lyrics." Youtube. Youtube, 6 Nov. 2008. Web. 10 Sept.

     2011.

Inalldevils. "Where Are You Now - Honor Society/with lyrics on screen and download link."

     Youtube. Youtube, 30 Aug. 2009. Web. 10 Sept. 2011.

MediaParadox. "The Power Media Can Have." Youtube. Youtube, 20 April 2008. Web. 9 Sept. 2011.

Seitz, David W. Cultural Identity in the Age of Ether: Black Entertainment Television and the Island

     of Guadeloupe. 2010.

Do You Know Your Celebrity Gossip?

     In class this week, we took a quick, eight question pop quiz. The first four questions had to do with the media, particularly celebrities and their lives. I failed each question because I typically don’t care which celebrity couple is breaking up or making up. The second half of the quiz involved questions about political positions.

One of these questions was: What is the name and political affiliation of Pennsylvania’s governor?

     The truth is, I couldn’t remember who our governor was. The only question I got correct was the final one: Who is PSUGA’s Chancellor? The answer was Dr. Porter. I was proud of myself for finally knowing an answer, but at the same time, I was horrified by how little I knew about the political world around me.

      The first half of the quiz showed me that I don’t get sucked into the tabloids and E! News shows. At least I can say that I’m not completely controlled by media. On the other half, I didn’t know about the people in the political world.  Because of this quiz, I was forced to ask myself, "How much do I really know?" I didn't dwell on that for too long, though.

     Next, I read the assigned reading for Friday entitled Rich Media Poor Democracy by Robert W.  McChesney. According to McChesney, if there is a rich media, there is poor democracy. Citizens haven’t been voting in elections as often as they have in the past. He goes on to say that the average American in 1998 consumed 11.8 hours of media. We are living in the “Information Era” where corporations rule over everything. Therefore, the democratic aspect of our society is a poor one

Image found at www.designdecorate.net

     The lecture on Wednesday mentioned two experts on media, Walter Lippmann and John Dewey. Walter Lippmann believed that decisions should be made only by experts (AKA: the “Elite”). On the other side of the spectrum, John Dewey believed that we can’t just trust the elite. We have to have at least one other source that we can trust.

     Personally, I agree with Dewey. You can't just listen to experts, because they're just one opinion.

Which one do you agree with?

Lippmann or Dewey?

Image found on Wikipedia.

Image found at www.believeallthings.com