Reflection Media

I have never notice before how much media I have consumed in the past. But now that I think of it, I do consume a lot of media. I don't watch television that much but I receive media in different ways. For example, commercials on television, the movie theaters, the billboards, ads, and magazines are forms of media. Media has impact my life, especially my surroundings. I notice that the people around are so influence bu the media in the way they act and dress. Sometimes I think to myself how has media gone so far by doing this to people just to sell their products

All of the media has made me think more. Especially after taking Critical Thinking Class it has open my mind. Now that I see commercials I am aware of the the techniques and needs that they use. It reminds me that before  I had the class, I was able to watch commercials without criticizing the techniques. I wasn't aware the ways that marketers approached to us. Now I can't see even one commercial without saying the technique or the need they used. Thank you Mr. Starace! Ahaha. But I think that is good that I stop and think about what I'm watching and what they attend to do. 

In my opinion I think that it is important to be aware of the media. When people are aware then they will think twice of their actions. It has really open my mind to think in different ways. By kjeeping this blog i have notice that I have been getting better in detecting what techniques they used. also now i could apply it to the videos we say in Critical Thinking like, Missrespresentation, Merchants of Cool, and The Persuaders. Thank you Mr. Starace for teaching us about medias. 

Pepsi - Beyonce

Pepsi is always having different celebrities promoting their soda. For example Sofia Vegara, Nicki Minaj, Jeff Gordon, Brittney Spears, and many more have been the spokesperson for the Pepsi's commercial. But in this commercial it's Beyonce! Beyonce is admired by so many people. It is also said that she was included in Times magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2013.

Beyonce is in this commercial. She starts out dancing, like if she was practicing really. Later she gets a Pepsi to hydrate herself. After she has that refreshing drink, she sees her past dances. Beyonce starts to relive her moments. Finally at the end all the mirrors crash and she is drinking her Pepsi and walks away smiling.

 As mention before Beyonce was included in the most influential people in the world. The sad part from that is that she is the role model of many young girls and ladies. Young females look up to her. But what is Beyonce teaching them? How to dress in little clothing? Or too express themselves to dance in a sexual way. In this video, Beyonce is dress in  very short shorts. Also her top is very revealing. In Miss Representation they talked about how young females feel pressure on their physical appearance. They are pressure because of the media. Beyonce is self objectifying herself by dressing herself that way. Young females that are reading this don't feel pressure. You don't have to look like this to be seen pretty. Everyone is pretty in their own way.

An advertising techniques that is used in this video is the association technique. The association technique is the use of celebrities, which in this case is Beyonce. This also connects to testimonial technique because it is showing that Pepsi is always there to refresh her whenever she is tired from a workout.

An advertising basic appeal that is shown here is the physiological needs. Why? Because when Beyonce  goes to go get a Pepsi, the Pepsi was in the the ice chest. What make it a physiological need is when she opens the can it makes the noise.

Don't Fight. Switch.

Everyone wants to capture the best moment with their phones. Well, in this commercial their dislapyed it very well, On one side they have all the Samsung Galaxy S4 and on the other side they have the iPhones.

Chip Ahoy!

Chocolate chip cookies! They are so good! I think that one of my favorite cookies are chocolate chip cookies. Chips Ahoy could bring you an adventure, well base off this print ad. The three boys are having the best time of their youth.

Not only does this cookie has 60 calories, but beside the all that sugar its whole grains. The marketers want to emphasize that their cookies are healthy because their cookies are made of whole grains. The words "whole grains"

Pure Hershey's Pure Happiness

Mmmm Chocolate! I mean who doesn’t love chocolate!?!  Hershey’s Choclate bar is the most famous recognize chocolate bar here in the United States. Oh yeah. The commercial is so cute. It’s an animation about a women’s happiness. Everything is made of chocolate!

This commercial use gestalt because of the music, cameras angles, and color. The music emphasizes a more up beat rhythm that conveys happiness, having a good time. The camera angles for this commercial are shown to refer back to the milk chocolate could transfer to a women diving to a chocolate water then later sharing special moment with her love one.  Especially the color, brown, which is to represent the chocolate. 

An advertising technique is physiology needs. It is a physiological need because it shows the chocolate in many different shape, for example when a drop of chocolate splashes in the chocolate water. Also this commercial contains the need for affiliation because it shows it you eat chocolate then you will be happy sharing your happiness with someone you love. 

Finally the techniques that they use frequently is repetition. The lady kept on saying, “Pure….pure….pure.” This commercial wants to connect with the consumer by becoming a love mark. If you eat Hershey then you will be always happy, is what I think that they want us to make us think. 

Vitamin Water

The first thing that I think of Vitamin water is their many different kind of flavors they have. So many pretty colors to choose from. [:  Others might think that that Vitamin Water is healthy because it has nutrients and vitamins. Since its called “Vitamin Water” it must be healthy. Well not really.

In this ad above it says, “It doesn't have to be this complicated,” and shows a glass filled with different kind of pills. It is using the simple solutions technique because this ad shows that instead of taking all those pills you could just drink vitamin water and its an easy way to be healthy.

There’s a caption on the left corner of this ad. It’s kind of hard to read it but it says this, “Luckily, you have an easier way to get the job done. Each vitaminwater is specially formulated with ingredients you need to both energize and balance your day.” This sentence is an example of weasel words technique. Why? Because they use the words: luckily, easier, balance, energize, formulated. The words make the product sound like its an healthy drink that we need to consume. But in reality it’s not that healthy. It may have a little of bit vitamins in it. However, vitamin water contains 32g of sugar, almost like Coca Cola which contain 39g. It has only seven grams of difference. So would vitamin water be consider as a soft drink? It does contain almost the amount of sugar as a soda, so is it?

Pepsi - The New Skinny Can

“The new skinny can,” is what the ad says. It’s another of Pepsi ads with Sofia Vergara! But this not an ordinary diet Pepsi, it’s the new skinny can! What!    Crazy, right?    Not really -_-   It’s the same old diet Pepsi, but in a different can.

The marketers use an advertising technique, which is reification. Reification is when a word is more powerful than objective reality. For example, the words “new” and “skinny”, are reification. In all the ads, the marketers have “new” in a different color, which makes it to pop out to get people to think, “ It says new, it must be good.” The word “skinny” describes the can not only that but also it makes people think that its for being more skinny or staying skinny or even feeling skinny.

Sofia Vergara! She always looking good, she is slim, pretty, and perfect. What every women wishes to be. This ad is a form of need to achieve because Sofia Vergara is an important person that some women try to be like her. Since she is drinking a diet Pepsi, it makes people want to drink it too because she is a role model to other people. If she drinks diet Pepsi and she is still slim then I won’t gain pounds if I drink diet Pepsi. Noooo, it’s wrong. It will still affect your health in some other way.

But after all, Sofia Vergara and her Pepsi commercials come out good. However, think twice if you drink, eat, shop for certain brands. Is it  because is taste good or it looks good on you, then go ahead. OR is it because a famous person or the majority does it, you also do the same things.

It's Not Complicated - What's better faster or slower?

“It’s not complicated,” the catch phrase to many of these 30 seconds commercials of AT&T. It’s a short clip on innocent children saying their opinion on what’s better. But at the same time promoting the iPhone 5 on AT&T.  Who doesn't love these commercials? They have little kids and their funny sense of humor on it. They are so adorable.

The form of persuasion for this video is pathos. It is pathos because it appeals to the emotions and sympathetic imagination. The marketers use children in this commercial so we would be able to relate to this. They use children instead of adults because children bring more attention to us with their creative minds they have. For example the man ask the children, what is better faster or slower? All the children respond faster, of course because that’s what they think at the age. AT&T is competing with other phone companies on who is faster and better, so they have the children to say it. Why children? Because they are cute, sweet and honest about things. Which makes us to easy to connect with them. A value assumption is that faster is better, but the reality assumptions is that faster is not always better.

In class we watch The Persuaders, which mentioned different ways marketers try to advertise their products. One way was to show images or videos that people want to see. They don’t show the product until the end because they want you to feel an emotion towards the images. Which is similar to this commercial because they don’t mention the product until the very end. In my opinion I think that AT&T is a super brand, as they say in The Persuaders,  because they usually try to gain a spiritual control like it help family be connected. But in this video it makes itself look like a lower brand because usually lower brands say words like is brighter, faster, better. For example, the end it says, “ Faster is better,”

At the end of this video we will always remember that faster is better because of the children. Their sense of humor will reminds of the AT&T commercials. “Tape a cheetah to her back,” says the kid in the gray.  [:

Abercombie's shirtless ads

I thought that Abercombie & Fitch was a store that sells clothes, but this ad has shirtless people. What, I don’t get it. Well most of there ads that they have include shirtless men or a little of clothing that is worn. But is it necessary to have this picture. Most of Abercombie’s pictures end up as a design for their bags.

How does this picture attract consumers?  Well, first of all the brand, “Abercombie & Fitch” is a reification itself. When that name is heard or seen in ads, commercials, on clothing; people think of it as this brand is so amazing that all the clothes are made from good material. This reminds me of a fallacy, which is ad populum. Why? Because since a lot people wear this brand then this brand is cool to wear. No! that does not make this brand “cool”

The image above follows a basic appeal for advertising. Which is need for sex, because it shows a picture of guy and lady shirtless and right on top of each other. I think next time they should have people wearing their close to promote their clothes that they are selling, instead of them having no clothes. At first I thought it was a store of intimate clothes, since most of the guys are shirtless. But if they want the consumers to have  the right impression then they should think what image to have on their bags.

Boston Marathon Bombing

These couple of weeks the news channels has been filled with reports on the tragic event that happen, the Boston Marathon bombing. There has been so many news reports on it. Some talk about the victims who died, others talk about the bombers, and others talk about what are they going to do next. This is a series topic that no one should joke around with, but others treat it like if it was a movie, making a movie trailer of it. Well that is what it seems to me in this video clip.

The beginning of the clip starts off with the bomb. Which makes the viewer want to watch the news report more especially after it says a “saying its absolutely chaotic.” Also they show the runners running around for protection, the firefighters helping the people, people screaming. All of these images are overwhelming. Other news media are showing the injured people missing body parts. What! Oh, its ok to show to millions of people that but not the war. In my opinion its ok to show a couple to let the public know what’s happening. Although I think that it shouldn't be over use like replaying it every time like this one
 -->   http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50144895n

Back to the video clip above. The video makes it seem like this event was part of a movie by saying this, “Seven will break into programs to bring you the latest pictures. See it first on an extended seven news.” The “latest picture” this what all news report are trying to do, to get all the pictures they could. Is this a competition between news channels, who gets the most recent coverage on it?

The Boston Marathon Bombing has impacted a lot of people, and apparently the new media too. Trying to see who could get the latest news. The media are trying if they could get videos on the bombing. To have pictures on who were responsible. Its ok to have all of these, but not to over use them. In my opinion it seems that they are just replaying it over and over just get more viewers, but is this helping? I know that this is a tragic event that people should be alert of but I hope the media does it better job on showing their reports on it.

More Flexibly With Nike Shoes. What!

Oh how people love Nike! Nike shoes, Nike shorts, Nike everything is what I see commonly students wear at school. I myself own Nike products. Nike is always coming up with new shoes that are light and flexible. Now they made Nike Free TR Breathe Shoe! What is Nike Free TR Breathe Shoe? Let me explain that they are the most flexible shoes that will move at any motion that feet are doing. Well, accordingly to the video it is. Not only the shoes are flexible but also Gabby Douglas, a gold medalists at the Summer Olympics of 2012, shows off her gymnastics' abilities. The caption that Nike has for the video is “When things don’t go according to plan gymnast Gabby Douglas gets flexible in the Nike Free TR Breathe Shoe”

The Nike company are trying to persuade consumers to buy this shoes. How? By saying that they are so flexible that the shoes even flex as the same capability as Gabby Douglas. Gabby Douglas is displayed in this video to make people think that if she wears them then they truly flexible. Also by the quote they use, they are saying that when plans go wrong Douglas rely on the shoes to make things better. The Nike video uses a basic appeal that advertisement use and that is the need to achieve. Need to achieve ads usually have a sports figure, which in this case is Gabby Douglas, who is projecting the product,  the Nike shoes.

At the end of the video they put “Nike Free”. They use that quote as to resemble two things, the quote is an ambiguity. First, that the shoes are also useful in many ways. For, example, to open doors like how Douglas did it herself. Second that they are “free” which means the shoes are flexible to move anywhere they want. The shoes are not stiff where the foot has to one place all the time. Also the word “Nike” is reification because just the word itself symbolizes a brand that is very popular so it must be a good brand.

At the end of the video it says, “Ultimate Flexibility”. Nike reinforces the idea of flexibility of the shoes by saying it directly and at the end.  By now people are thinking, “Wow, those shoes are so flexible, they must be very nice to wear. I have to buy them because Gabby has them.” If she has them so what. You don’t need to buy them because she has them, it won’t the person more flexible than they are. “But they are really nice! I love the color!” is what people say when they buy something.

Overall, Nike always try to have athletics wear their products, so that consumers look up to them and buy Nike products to feel they could also achieve like the sport figures. Having the shoes won’t make a difference of increasing  one’s flexibility, shown in the video. Next time, who will they use to make their products be desirable to consumers?