Google Gets You Through LIfe

I really loved this commercial when it aired during 2010's Superbowl. It not only demonstrates the search and map features of Google, but tells a story, also. Google has become so prevalent in recent years that google is now a verb in Webster's dictionary: (Definition of GOOGLE
: to use the Google search engine to obtain information about (as a person) on the World Wide Web ).



Whoever created the idea of telling a life story through the Google search engine is genius. We all know that Google is a lifesaver in terms of finding the information you need right when you need it, but now we know that Google helps you get the girl, the job, and have the life you want :).

http://www.spike.com/video/google-how-to/3334764

Radical media Ads

Music metaphor referencing the movie: "Eyes Wide Shut." Interesting latent twist. And the McDonald's ad with the six year old boy. Actually the entire collection is worth viewing. Worth dissecting in class.

http://www.radicalmedia.com/Commercials/Tarsem#/2207

Gay Beer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLcvYPzXW3U


This link is a great example of gays portrayed in advertising (which is what my paper is about). I felt it would be a great way to notice the patterns that surface into our mainstream culture and the different stereotypical figures that always seem to come forth every few years or so (i.e. metrosexuals are cool, now they're not, etc.) I believe its a great example of how the Message System Analysis works, since it gives us several various commercials with emphasis losing the "girly man" complex for becoming a "man's man". Since its an tv ad we have about 30 seconds to take it all in and pick a few certain phrases or objects within the frame that will draw us toward certain tendencies and values that are prominent in our culture today.
Also, its really funny.

Quran Burning:

I feel The Prime Minister of Malaysia Datuk Seri Najib remarks condemning the Quran burning in Florida acceptable because respect for religious beliefs should be maintained in a developed country like America. However his statements makes me, think.He said, " I really hope that President Barack Obama and the United States Government will be able to do something to prevent this from happening". If the government and President Barack Obama take action against the Pastor in Florida then they violate his first Amendment right to freedom of Speech. I do not understand when people critize him as racist. I believe that Pastor Tery Jones has a reason for his action. He planned the tactic of burning quran on the day of Eid Mubarak celebration and September 11' to grab world attention of Muslim and non Muslim countries. In my opinion, he hopes that people from other countries will realise the real reason behind his action. One reason is the pain of September 11 second he does not want the mosque to be built near Ground zero in New York. http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?=527362

"Moderntimes"

This film is called Moderns Times and it is directed and written by Charlie Chaplin. The introduction of the film, with the image of “clock,” reflects the connection between the title of the film and the theme. I watched the first two parts of the movie. This movie was produced during the era of the 1930s which is also known as the “machine age” in the United States. Therefore, the symbol of the clock represents how ’ life was transformed in the modern world- “tied” up with worries about time and money.Machines made y workers behave like robots. . There could be no arguments with management because keeping a job and a salary were most important. In this film, hedevelops a theme that deals with factory workers, production, and the changes that machines bring.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHdmaFJ6W6M&feature=related

When your research data refutes your hypothesis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1Uk-DwUvJw

Advertising

http://youtube.com/watch?v=qzeZB6wPmHg    "Closet Raid"


What is the message  (manifest and latent) being conveyed in this commercial?

Metaphor- Symbolism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2MeLM2Sz34

Google impact on internet searches

I know I posted something last week and didn't need to post anything this week, but I thought the following article was very interesting. The article is from USA Today.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/technologylive/post/2010/09/report-private-documents-show-bp-paid-to-have-its-ads-appear-on-google-when-users-searched-for-oil-leak/1

Report: Search docs show BP spent millions on Google ads for 'oil leak'


BP appears to have contained its oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, but
now faces a different kind of embarrassing leak: Advertising Age says
that it has obtained "internal Google documents" that show the
embattled oil company spent millions this past summer to guarantee that
its ads would appear whenever Internet users searched for information
about the Gulf disaster.



BP spent $3.6 million in June, making it one of Google's top
advertisers that month, to have its ads accompany search results for
terms including "oil spill," "leak," "top kill," and "live feed," Ad
Age says. Up to then, BP had not been a major buyer of search ads.



That illustrates "how important Google has become for reputation
management, and in the battle for public opinion," the magazine says.



Ad Age says that the documents it obtained about Google offer "some
clarity to one of the most opaque areas of ad spending," even though
they do not provide information about all of Google's advertisers.



The data show that BP was Google's sixth biggest buyer of search ads in
June. The oil company trailed AT&T Mobility, the Apollo Group (which
owns the online-based University of Phoenix), Expedia, Amazon, and eBay.



Ad Age says that it verified the accuracy of its documents' information
with "multiple sources with direct knowledge" of ad spending at Google.
BP declined to comment to the magazine.



But AdAge quotes Dennis Woodside, vice president of Google Americas
Operations, saying that the search giant is "now looking into the
possibility that someone improperly disclosed confidential information
about our clients, and [we] will take all appropriate action."



Others, including the website Mashable, noticed BP's ads on Google for
searches about the oil spill but did not have data about the extent of
the company's ad buying.



By David Lieberman

Woman rights In Saudi Arabia

The link attached is a message fron the main stream media about Sadi Arabia. I will analyze the message in class from four different angles:

Who says what

to whom

in what channel

with what effect

"The Human Network"

Cisco Systems has coined itself “The Human Network” in its latest advertising campaign to promote the company’s internet video technology. The campaign/commercials depict consumers using video technology as a whole new way to connect or work, as if video technology never existed prior to their entry or as if humans have no other way to connect. The advertising plays on the emotional aspect of people of all shapes/ages/colors of life having one thing in common- belonging to “The Human Network” and always having access to loved ones, work, leisure, etc.

The advertising, while catchy and emotionally appealing, contradicts the meaning behind the campaign. Isn’t communicating online taking away from the human aspect of communication? Wouldn’t it be more human to talk to people face-to-face instead of through the internet? Will this product enable consumers to communicate better or more often? On a global span, if communication is not possible due to the receiver of your message being far away, then yes, this product is in fact worthy of the title “The Human Network” because it’s allowing individuals who would otherwise not be able to communicate, a chance to talk and see each othe…but so do other internet video technologies. Cisco is not the only product allowing consumers to communicate via video, but they have done a very good job of positioning themselves as the only choice for video communication.

http://attitude.adforum.com/top5/2010/08/31/cisco-systems-human-network-ogilvy-west/

Grassroots and the Corporate World: A Brand New Weapon

Unions and activists who wanted to change corporate policy had to do it the "old fashioned way:" lobby law makers, public pressure, and forcing boycotts.

The Securities and Exchange Commission last Wednesday handed out a "New Weapon" to fight social justice and workers rights issues: The corporate ballot box. This allows shareholders to field their own candidates for corporate boards.

Grassroots and the corporate world? Perhaps this kind of change could grow legs and create a whole new perspective in other corporations.

http://www.newsweek.com/2010/08/30/proxy-war-activists-may-try-to-fight-for-corporate-seats.html?from=rss

No Anti-Muslim Sentiment In America

http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201009010051


This is why I don't like watching the news...because what these people really do is waste my time.

In just a minute and a half, Fox is able to make me laugh and cry at the same time. I especially like how the crazy lady says that picking on Jews has been a trend since WWII. Also, if you listen closely she says that Jews have been hated on for many many years...for BANKING!!! So all Jews are bankers and thats why people hate them?! Mr. Knows Everythign O'Reilly says 6 or 7 of them when refering to the KKK, because I'm sure he probably knows them... by name at the very least. Classic stuff here.

I noticed a strong pattern too with Fox; they like to talk over each other and interrupt each other constantly! This confuses the viewer and they get lost in all the mumbo jumbo so at the end of the segment all you're left with is a headache and fragments of a sentence like, "There isn't ANY anti-muslim sentiment if you look at the stats". Oh really? What about the rallies put forth by those who oppose the building of a mosque at Ground Zero? Or in Tennessee? Or in California? Or how about the Muslim cab driver that was stabbed by some white boy in NYC? Or how about some man in Texas assaulting a Muslim man and saying, "You're not American, you're Al-Qaeda, go back to your country!"

Im glad that even though Muslims didn't know how to defend themselves they do now: "Hey, wait a minute! We do not have to put up with this anti-Muslim sentiment!" Wonderful stuff, really.

PETA new ad

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9xtAVbGP3A


The problem with this PETA ad is that it really reflects the statement by Gerbner, “The Problem is the Problem.” While PETA tries to make a joke with this new ad, there is a serious undertone that they are trying to make, which in the process loses the audience. The ad is about spaying or neutering your cat.
Unfortunately, what the objective is only a very small portion of the ad. While their previous ads have gained notoriety because of the displaying of nude celebrities, this one takes PETA to a whole new level. A level some might consider bestiality.
PETA has a problem with showing what the problem is in their ads. When you first see a “Id rather wear nothing than fur,” you just see a nude celebrity and one might really think of a dying animal from that. And some are very racy, undermining the tone. Next, we see a new campaign that is suppose to bring comedy at a shock value sense. I don’t personally think it’s a good connection for something so serious.
If PETA were smart they would stick to the data and hard facts of how many animals are killed through people's wants and how many are used for scientific data. Don't try to be comedic or devious when the issue is so serious.

Bud Light Commercial that never aired

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJJL5dxgVaM

The link above goes to a YouTube video for a Bud Light commercial that I believe was produced but never aired on American television.

If I remember correctly, the AB ads were produced by an ad agency with of course, St. Louis ties. Bud light commercials have become a part of our culture, as discussed in chapter 5 of "The Theory Toolbox."

Over the years, during the Super Bowl, some of the most eagerly awaited commercials were those featuring AB products. Characters have been introduced during Super Bowls, including Spuds McKenzie.

But these ads also begs the question posed in Chapter 5, on page 72: "...as the boundaries between various media functions-to persuade, to inform, to entertain- and various media forms are increasingly blurred or subordinated altogether to the imperatives of consumer culture."

Indeed, are these ads going to make a consumer more likely to drink Bud Light, or is it simple entertainment?