Blog 12

Social media and social networking have increasingly become larger and larger parts of our everyday lives and culture. When starting this assignment, the positive piece of information is that social networking sites help students do better at school. According to the National School Board Association, 59% of students with access to the internet report they use social media networking sites to discuss educational topics. In addition, 50% of students use these sites to talk about school. I find this source to be very reliable when reporting statistics regarding this issue.When looking at this in my own life, I have appreciated being able to contact fellow classmates through social media to discuss group projects or class assignments. Many of my school assignments involved using social media in positive ways to spread awareness about issues or gain technology skills. When looking at the negative aspects of social media, the one that I feel is most accurate to my life is that social media entices people to waste time. Statistics from kff.org state that 40% of 8-18 year olds spend 54 minutes a day on social media sites. I have never heard of this source, and therefore am not fully confident that it is reliable. However, this is very true in my own life. I find social media to be a good place to escape from the stress of the real world when I need a break. I enjoy going on Pinterest and Instagram. I also love reading for my own pleasure rather than reading for school, and do this quite a bit to escape the stress of school or my job.

Blog 11

Modern day celebrities are very different than average people. They are essentially created for the purpose of our own entertainment. In addition they involve many complex economic and social relationships. Celebrities have symbolic meaning in that everything that they do must be thought out and planned to perfection. The celebrity industry involves thousands of employees, billions of dollars, and thousands of firms and businesses. For example, a celebrity cannot simply make an appearance or go to a party like we can. They must first consult their various handlers and supporters to determine the type of image that they would present by making an appearance somewhere. In addition, they must weigh the pros and cons of going to an event to determine the type of press that they would receive. Politicians do this all the time-- especially when running for election or reelection. Their political values and party determine the phrases used in speeches, where they make appearance, who they speak to, and who they collect funds from. Many times, scandals arise in various forms in the political world, and we are incredibly hard on these politicians because of it. Typically a political scandal can mean the end of a career because we hold elected officials (many times viewed as celebrities) to higher standards because they are responsible for looking out for our interests.

Blog 10

Costco (http://www.costco.com) is my first example in that it draws a lot of consumers in by making them feel like insiders. Costco requires that anyone who comes into the store to shop must have membership. By doing this, it takes advantage of people's desire to be in selective groups. In addition, it uses the principle of exclusivity in that it is an incredibly large store, but those who have memberships have the ability to access the large amount of products it carries. The next example I have is the Netflix show-- House of Cards (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1856010/)-- which is a political drama that is very popular and my absolute favorite show. This show exemplifies the remarkable aspect of getting social currency. This show is not the first to be about American politics, but it is the first to really highlight the corruption and inner workings of our democracy. This show illustrates the ruthlessness that is American politics. In addition, it shows our politicians many times have their own agendas that take precedence over their actual job responsibilities. In this way, this show is remarkable because it is the first political drama of this era to really highlight these aspects of politics. My final example is the Hy-Vee Fuel Saver Card (https://www.hy-vee.com/perks/). This uses the game mechanics aspect of social currency in that it encourages consumers to buy their groceries from Hy-Vee so that they can build up points which can be used to pay for gas. Although the individual points earned may be small, the accumulation of these points becomes a game to see how many can be added up and used to save money.

Blog 9

The big mixed message is that individuals use tattoos for identity expression and formation, although they may do this while keeping the existence of their tattoos a secret from the general public. We see this message in that society is divided in its acceptance of tattoos. Some see it as a form of deviance while others see beauty and creativity. With this being said, the author states that those getting tattoos are very aware of how they are viewed in society. This focuses on the term impression management in that clients-- typically younger-- take great care to make sure that their tattoos will not be discovered by those who may not approve. This in a way defies the self expression aspect of tattoos that many are drawn to. This is shown as individuals feel are not allowed to freely display their tattoo without facing repercussions from those who do not approve or understand. In addition, the author points out that these clients feel pressured to justify why they chose to get a tattoo and what purpose it serves. In actuality, the person getting the tattoo is an individual who has the ability to make this decision about their body regardless of what others think.

Blog #8

When first looking at the Cultivation Theory itself, George Gerber stated that the more time that people spend in living in the world of tv, the more likely that are to believe in that social reality that they are viewing on the screen. Therefore, many Americans watch graphic shows that include the use of torture in them to extract specific pieces of information from the victim. On television shows, these tactics, while violent, are seemingly successful. This leads us to believe that torture can also be successful in real life as well-- 57% of Americans feel that the use of torture provided good intelligence on various security threats. However, torture usage is really not effective in real life simply because we cannot script out fugitives and prisoners to say exactly what we want them to say. Many Americans support the use of torture on suspected terrorists because they have seen shows or movies involving this and it was successful. In reality, these tactics brought little valuable information to US authorities. In addition, the use of torture in the United States has weakened our credibility in the international community. Torture is seen as medieval and beneath humanitarian standards set for the 21st century by many countries around the world.

Blog #7

The first motivation that I noticed from the reading in the video had to do with goals, rewards, and challenges. McGonigal first stated that her goal was to help the people in the audience live a little over seven minutes longer simply through her lecture. As McGonigal summarized the steps to do this, she motivated others by allowing them to unlock certain "boosts." The reading describes that the motivation and reward of goals is what allows people to be successful. It then went on to further apply this statement to the world of games. In addition, McGonigal described the feelings of self-empowerment that can be felt by playing these games. She described that playing games with avatars helps people be more courageous and confident in regard to tackling problems. The article echoes her statement with its its idea that empowerment is the ability to feel a sense of control in the world. This new found confidence that players find in avatars allows them to transfer some of this energy to situations in real life and in terms of problem solving as well. 

Blog 6

My understandings from class have led me to believe that society has deemed certain rules for how the male and female body should look. Anything that falls short of these expectations are deemed unworthy and invaluable. In addition, a tremendous amount of work is required to achieve each specific body type-- along with genetics. Each gender is very sexualized in the media as well, but the ways in which it is displayed is different. However, females are expected to be incredibly skinny and submissive, just as described in the video that we watched, Killing Us Softly. They are meant to look beautiful all of the time with little regard to personal comfort or needs. In contrast, men today are meant to look incredibly muscular. When reading The Male Body as a Fashion Accessory, it described that men must be handsome with an athletic build to show that they have the time and money to buy a gym membership and work out.

Blog 5

When looking at the concepts of CORFing and BIRGing, there are many ways in which they relate back to the video we watched previously. For example, anytime that a team won a state title or important game, their fans, parents, and community members would display BIRGing by wearing team apparel, posting pictures on social media, and by using the term "we" or "we won" when referencing the team. In addition, if a player was ever injured, CORFing was used. The player, their friends, or their family might say that the other team cheated and would try to find excuses as to why the player got hurt-- regardless if it was the fault of their team's player. The last example I have is that whenever a team would be preparing for a game, they would have their own set of "rituals" that they believed would help them be successful. This could include prayer, pregame tactics, etc. They are using BIRGing because the players and coaches all want to feel a sense of belonging, and contribute to the overall success of the team.

Blog 4

The purpose of sports is a very complex question. I enjoyed playing volleyball in school. It taught me the value of teamwork, dedication, commitment. Sports provide these qualities and many others to players. Sports are for anyone at any age or skill level. They allow individuals to either participate or watch. Although, they allow young children to start early in life and grow in their interests and abilities. There are many benefits that can come from sports. I am able to use my own personal experiences to help me identify this. I started in volleyball as a capable player, but I did not have the opportunity to play for a traveling team to give me more experience. Despite this, I worked incredibly hard to be successful. However, this is where the negative side of playing sports came in for me. Volleyball soon became about how much money your parents could spend to buy the best equipment, clothing, and trainers to make you successful. I soon felt lost in a world that I had once felt apart of. This negativity ruined my enjoyment of the game and led me to quit playing. When I look back on my school experience, not continuing in volleyball is one of my biggest regrets. I loved the sport and still do, but the standards of today's high school athletics were too much for me. I did not have the money to keep up with these standards and intensity.

Blog #3

In the video we watched in class, I made several connection with the reading that we were also assigned. The first had to do with Kelly and Deborah. Both of these women wanted to look like a princess on their wedding day. Kelly wanted to be like Princess Grace of Monaco and Deborah wanted to be like Princess Diana. They wanted to be like royalty to set them apart from the rest of the people that they were with so they could make a statement. In the reading, Queen Victoria's royal wedding was described to be extravagant and different than previous weddings. Queen Victoria set many of the standards that brides strife to fulfill today, such as wearing a white dress that was a fashion statement all its own. Her wedding dress removed practicality from the concept of choosing the perfect dress, and this trend is still followed today.

In addition to finding the perfect dress, each bride that does come in has a specific vision that they feel compelled to fulfill. This is why choosing the perfect dress is so important. A bride's dress is a statement of her style and beauty. However, their budget is not always able to fit everything that they want. This was apparent with Crystal. Crystal wanted two different dresses with styles that would please both herself and her future husband. Weddings costs in recent years have skyrocketed, for example, the average wedding in New York is $67,000. The reading discussed that in a royal wedding, money was of no issue. Princess Diana's dress was close to millions of dollars in todays money. Although, most brides do not have this kind of money to spend on one day. Crystal was forced into this realization when her $13,000 wedding dress budget was not able to cover both dresses. However, she was able to compromise by having the designer make one dress bodice with two different skirts.

Blog #2 Sexual Objectification

https://telfertimeadvertising.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/midriff.jpg

http://historynewsnetwork.org/sites/default/files/154997-ecig_custom-f5195ef495c578ad8c8850130b0d053934b80041-s6-c30.jpg

The first ad that I chose is an advertisement for vodka. It features a tall martini glass with a woman inside of it in a crouched position. She appears to be much smaller in than the actual glass-- the glass acts almost as a cage for the woman. She is dressed in a tight-fitted outfit that puts her chest, torso, and legs on display. The video that we watched featuring Caroline Heldman gave many different points to determine if an ad is sexual objectifying. This image reflects some of those points in that  presents the woman as if she is a commodity that can be bought and sold. This advertisement presents the idea that if you buy their product, you will be able to experience this woman in some way. The image also presents the woman as a stand-in for the actual alcohol in the martini glass.
My second ad is an advertisement for an electronic cigarette company. This ad only shows the woman's genital area. Again, taken from In addition, this image suggests that sexual availability is the defining characteristic of this woman. The placement of her hand in her swim suit makes this very apparent. In addition, the brand of the e-cigarette company is displayed on the front part of her swim suit bottoms. This makes that area of the woman the main feature of the ad even though it has absolutely nothing to do with the usage of e-cigarettes. This company appears to be implying that by using their products, consumers will be able to meet women like this.

Video Assignment

The first video that I chose was from CNN. This video focused on the basic information of the issue. Then it proceeded to describe the importance of Lauren finding empowerment in what she was doing,  regardless of if it was breaking cultural norms or not. However, a marriage counselor and therapist put out the idea that we should accept and be proud of this college student who is a porn star for doing what she loves. Next, I chose the video from the View. In this video, Lauren was actually a guest on the show and stated that her financial need to pay tuition played a large role on why she decided to go into the porn industry. The hosts of the talk show emphasized in asking why Lauren felt the need to do porn, and if it was the right thing to do morally. In addition, they addressed the issue of how Lauren's parents were handling this news, and if they supported her work in the porn industry. However, Lauren also vocalizes the empowerment that she felt by having the right to make decisions to her own body. It was concluded in both videos that Lauren received a large of amount of severe threats against her. Lauren spoke out against recent retaliation for her porn work. It was especially apparent while on the View that many of the hosts disagreed with her. Regardless, it was determined that the threats toward her were not necessary.