Reflection

After completing the media blogs for this class, I have realized that media is more prevalent in our lives than I even knew. Advertisers use a large variety of different strategies to make people buy their product or even the lifestyle that they are trying to sell. Although I don't consider myself to be very affected by the marketing universe, associations that I make with products and lovemarks such as Nike attracts me to the product more than I realize. The consumerism that marketing always will promote can be dangerous, as it leads people to buy things that they don't need, or that aren't as good as they thought they would be.

However, not all media is "dangerous to the human race." Songs and movies that we see every day, although advertising can be seen in them, are very good entertainment and have a place in the world. Also, things such as video games are extremely fun and aren't necessarily dangerous. The main focus of new media is to make progress so that the perfect experience for people. Although money is behind this, media is not a bad thing. The main issue with media is that it can be used to deceive consumers, not to help them, and is misused by some advertisers and media giants.

Can't Hold Us with a Deeper Meaning

The song "Can't Hold Us" was made by the emerging rap artists Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, who grew in fame after releasing "Thrift Shop" which went viral on Youtube as well as being played all over the radio. This song is different, however, in that it is a  bit less materialistic, and more based on ideals. Instead of talking about all the things he found at a thrift store, the artist focuses on deeper subjects.

Throughout the song Macklemore talks about giving back to the people and spreading the song all around the world. The song has a theme of unity all through the song, showing people of all races holding the flag which says "The Heist" on it, which is the name of the album. The song shows Macklemore in the north with sled dogs, but immediately the scene changes to a man on a camel in the desert, and then back to the city, then a beach, and so on until the flag is shot into the sky on a firework and Macklemore skydives down onto a building with the flag and hoists it up for all to see. The music video is very random in that respect, as the route of the flag makes no real sense. The song speaks of people coming together and I enjoy listening to it, even though I don't normally like rap songs.

Miss Representation in Games

The free-roaming open world video-game, Saints Row 3, is entirely ridiculous on so many levels. However fun it may be to blow things up, go on free-for-alls through the streets in pimped out cars hitting prostitutes, or shoot up night clubs and annihilate enemy gangs, this game misrepresents women in so many ways. 

In no way does this game ever depict a modest woman with a successful, normal job walking around. Pretty much every woman in the gang is a hooker or a gang leader wearing no clothes, and there are missions in the game where the point is to transport prostitutes around the city. This game objectifies women so far to the point of having a "sex appeal" option in the character selection to maximize, for lack of a better word, sex appeal.

Although killing women with cars and guns is encouraged in games such as Saints Row 3, the same happens to men in the game, albeit less frequently. Clubs in the game do have male prostitutes along with females and they are killed on a mass scale, as the women are. Despite this, there are men in the game that just walk around the city wearing professional clothing. For women, the only time you will find someone dressed modestly or professionally is they are a cranky old woman who attacks your character with their cane.

Im done with or

I find this commercial hilarious, as its main driving force is the wit and humor technique. Although I am not a personal fan of Coke Zero or Diet Coke and I find the "no calories" ploy to be a scam, it does make the product look good. Also the advertisement does show some of the avante garde technique as it is trying to get people to stop taking or and making new things, like new movie genres and groundbreaking sodas with the same great taste but no calories. The guy in the advertisement who decides he has had enough with having to choose one or the other also happens to be Ken Jeong, a comedian well known for being in the extremely popular movie series, The Hangover. Using this testimonial in the commercial will make the product seem more attractive because a really funny comedian is endorsing the product.

Also, this commercial is dependent on music for making some of its point. The song "war," which Ken Jeong sings at the end, is not only wit and humor, but also a clever way to say that this new coke product gets rid of needing to choose, getting rid or "or," which is a very decisive way to sell a product.

Beyond Dreams

This song, "Beyond," is part of the Random Access Memories, the album released on May 21, 2013 by Daft Punk, the French electronic music duo. This album is new in many ways, as the songs in the album are different from Daft Punk's normal style.

This song is extremely creative, as all the songs in the new album are, and unique from all the rest. Using instrumentals with electric violins and dramatic rising music and then transitioning into the synth vocals is a unique way of presenting a song. Also the violin in the background throughout makes the atmosphere of the song very calm. Daft Punk did a very good job of making the song upbeat but dramatic. The synth voices and electronic music are a very common element for Daft Punk and they are not overused unlike some other electronic songs.

Having already listened to this song and every other song in the album many times, I can say that the song is not only good, but also catchy and something that can be listened to over and over again (I also think Daft Punk's helmets are awesome).

Who's that Lady?

This commercial is extremely dependent on the wit and humor of the viewers who watch the commercial. It does not matter much if the viewer did not grow up with the song that plays in the background. However, the commercial is clearly targeting middle-aged people who grew up hearing that song. It also uses the wit and humor appeal by animating the fake flamingo and the broom, making them seem like they are in love by playing the music in the background.

Another element of this commercial is the use of magic ingredients to advertise the product. The advertiser says that electrostatic fibers will pick up the rest of the items on the ground. They don't explain how "electrostatic fibers" even work, but since the name sounds cool, it must work.

This commercial capitalizes on the stereotype of the stay-at-home mom who cleans the house and is so tired from cleaning the house that they need an amazing new product that will make their job easier. Also, it replaces your old broom and does it all with one sweep with the help of the "electrostatic fibers."

Acura is Superhero Worthy

In the 2012 action flick, The Avengers, there is only one type of real life car in the whole movie. Acura. Whenever a cool car is shown and the logo is seen on the front of the car, it's an Acura. Product placement is something that many advertisers take part in to try to sell products through movies and shows.


Putting Acura's coolest models in The Avengers subliminally places an image into a viewer's head. Connecting the Acura with iconic Marvel super heroes makes the car seem so much more appealing, since Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) drives one in the movie. The company is attempting to get viewers to see the Acura logo as many times as possible as they watch the Avengers so they will make sure to think about Acura when looking for a new car.

The Avengers are so cool, and the movie was watched so much, Acura got a lot of product placement into one movie to maximize the advertising that they get. Movie theatres and dvds don't have commercials so the next best thing is to put the commercial in the movie.