Nike "I would run to you"

First off, this commercial is pretty long compared to what is on TV these days. I was watching American Idol the other night and this commercial came on, and its actually pretty humorous. But after watching it multiple times, it starts to get on your nerve.


1.  Who aid for this ad? Nike paid
2.  Why does the company need to do the ad? They are trying to sell shoes in a new way
3.  What group is targeted by the ad? I would think that both the athletic and out of shape groups, because the woman who obviously is in crazy good shape is wearing them and the out of shape guy who is wearing some off name shoe brand cant make it with out the nike shoes.
4. What leads you to that conclusion? I think because the two main characters in the ad are male and female, in shape and out of shape, it really makes the targeted group much larger.
8. What techniques of persuasion are used? Humor is a major one because the commercial does have its parts, also the band wagon because they make sure to include that if you DON’T have these you cant run around the world. I also felt like they used romance towards the end when she closed the shades. 
14. Is it closer to reality or fantasy? Well, depends on how you look at it. What she’s doing IS possible, but to look like her is completely fantasy. But the guy in the clip is very realistic; most people would probably get sick trying to run that far. 

Deconstruction of March

No kidding EVERY TIME these commercials come on they crack me up, does Carls Junior think that when you eat their burgers, you will REALLY look like this? There was a new one that I saw the other day and the girl was of course beautiful and extremely skinny, stuffing her face with a burger.

1. Who Paid for this ad? Carls Junior.

2. Why does the company need to do the ad? Because they are trying to promote a new burger.

3. What group is targeted by the ad? I would assume men to start with, because they know that beautiful women are eating this burger, so why not grab one myself and see if there are some more pretty women eating there. It also targets women, perhaps with lower self esteem, because there left thinking, " Wow, that could be me. If she can eat this burger, why cant I?"

6. What kind of culture does the example create? Its creating a culture that expects all women to be beautiful physically, and that we enjoy eating fast food in our swimsuits. The reality of this is though is that the majority of the people who are eating these burgers will not look as well in a swimsuit as this girl does. It also is creating a culture that enjoys fast food, they know we will eat it so now they have to sell it in any way possible.

7. What values are reinforced? My guess is that if you look beautiful and if your skinny, you too can enjoy a carls junior burger. Its reinforcing the connection of sexiness and eating their food.

8. What techniques of persuasion are used? Bandwagon for sure. If a swimsuit model is eating this, you BETTER be eating this. Also celebrities, the woman who did the ad was famous for having a body like hers. Also depending on how you look at it, humor could be a way. They know that not everyone will take this commercial seriously, so they perhaps are anticipating on people finding it funny.

9. In what ways does this depict a lifestyle that is healthy and unhealthy? Well, this does not take into consideration that this woman has most likely worked very hard to get a body like what she has, and she is most likely a very healthy person, yet she is promoting something that is so unhealthy. It does not tell you the amount of calories in the sandwich, and you might be under the impression that it is healthy especially since it has pineapple on it!

PBS Teachers

Before I start, I must say there is a lot that I didn’t know about children and media. Perhaps the reason I did so poorly on the quiz was due to the fact that I didn’t know the exact percentages, but I scored a measly 5 out of 12! I felt the quiz would be hard to score 100% on with out reading anything on the PBS website, but I still was shocked by some of the numbers. 10 hours and 45 minutes was spent on media, but what confused me was they did not specify weather or not this meant in a week or a month. I was also somewhat surprised only three minutes a day was spent reading a newspaper!

The second portion of this was looking at the What, How, Learn More, and Examples.

On the quick link “What is it?” I chose to look at the center for media literacy (http://www.medialit.org/), which has been used a few times in this class. The website is full or online resources, and their main goal is “promoting and supporting media literacy education as a framework for accessing, analyzing, evaluating, creating and participating with media content”.  My favorite part of the website was the reading room, because it provided viewers with great background articles about media literacy. There were over 350 articles that you could look at, all pertaining to Media Lit.

Next was the “How do I use it?” and I chose to look at the center for safe and responsible Internet use (http://new.csriu.org/). The had a section all on cyber bullying which is something that may not be talked about very often in the classroom but can be a huge issue. As of now under the professional development tab there is not too much, but they are working towards providing information on how to help manage Internet use as an educator. I also liked that they had a specific area for parents who are looking for information on how they can help.

Third was the “learn more” section, and I chose Edutopia (http://www.edutopia.org/media-literacy-collaboration). Unlike the other websites, this one was a specific article about students, parents, and teachers collaborating on using media appropriately and effectively. The article talked about how parents and teachers can have conversations with their students about using the media, and they gave specific examples. The actual website Edutopia seemed very interesting although it was not specific to Media Lit. I still think it had an interesting layout and message to promote.

Last was the “examples” section. I chose school tube (http://www.schooltube.com/) which is a website for k-12 that provides students and educators with a safe and free video sharing website that is appropriate. I looked around it and found a couple of interesting videos, one called States and Capitals by teaching tunes. It was an interesting hip-hop song that dealt with the states! I know that in Fairbanks You tube is blocked, but It would be interesting to see if the district allowed to use this website. It was very appropriate and did not have an area for comments like you tube.

Under the PBS resources I looked at FRONTLINE: Growing Up Online (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/teach/kidsonline/). It was giving background information on a video that you could purchase, along with discussion questions, lesson plans and other resources. I enjoyed looking at this because it was all about how to relate to a generation who has switched from reading books to using computers, and the effects that it has had on students. It was giving viewers an inside look of what is happening to our children, and the risks of being online. It gave methods on how to make sure students are safe. I connected with this website because I know that I used MSN and talked to friends online, but there were times that strangers would add me and luckily I denied their friend requests, but it is so easy for a child or teenager to click “accept friend” and have no idea who they are letting into their life.

Under PBS Integrating digital tools and Content there were a few things I would be interested in trying, and a few I don’t think I could do quite yet. First off, I am not a fan of using cell phones in class. I do understand cell phones are the big thing these days, but I am a believer that phones should only be used out side of the classroom. I would be more interested in using laptops or computers. I also would not want to have anything like Twitter, only because I feel it is not appropriate for that young of students. I would enjoy setting up a blog or personal website so that we can regulate what the students are looking at. I do like the idea of making a presentation using Prezi because I have personally used that website and it is fascinating!  I also would like to use Google Earth because if a student wants to relate to a different culture or country I think it would help to be able to locate the place from where we are now in Fairbanks. I do like many of these ideas, but it really is only good for students who are old enough to operate a computer. For adults many of these tasks would be easy, but even for a 6^th grader I feel like some of these ideas would be too large to take on.

 I had no idea that PBS had so many resources right at the click of a button! I am excited to use some of these in my future class room =)

Womens Health Magazine & food advertisment

Of course womens health magazines sell food, but what is interesting is how well they know there audience. Almost all of the ads regarding food in the magazine consist of "fat free, reduced fat, lean, healthly, ect.." At my house we subscribe to the magazine, so I was looking through the new issue and had a wide variety of ads that I could deconstruct. This is the one i chose.




This ad caught my eye because for women who are either dieting or exercising, finding dessert that is "good for you" seems too good to be true.

1. Who paid for this ad? Weight Watchers did.

2. Why does the company need to do the ad? They are showing active women that they can still eat dessert and feel good about themselves. They are marketing a product.

3. What group is targeted by the ad? Hense the fact it is in a womens health magazine, women who are active or who want to be active and get healthy.

8. What techniques of persuasion are used? Assosiation, if you are in weight watchers this is somthing you should have. I also would link it with simple solution, because woman will be expected to supress their cravings for chocolate by eating this dessert.

9. What different meanings would different people perceive? If you cantr ead it says that "they all bring something good to your table, like fiver and calcium." Although it may be "good for you" there might be people who would see this as a healthier choice than other foods. Other people might percieve it as being associated with the weight watchers group and being a member, creating an exclusive feel.

12. What is not told? I wonder if people would still eat them if they knew the actual size of the dessert or the calories that are in them. They dont tell you the nutritianal value of them.

14. Is it closer to fantisy or reality? This is a very realistic ad that is captivating for all women. The reality of it is that dessert is always around us and that to the audience this is the right choice.

Since when can kids drive, let alone afford corvettes

We chose the video Corvette fancy car because it seemed to be a some what funny commercial, yet it is very tricky.

http://medialiteracyproject.org/deconstructions/corvette-driving-fantasy

1. Who paid for the ad? We can assume Chevy paid for the ad because they show the emblem at the end of the commercial.

2. Why did the company need to do the ad? To promote the car and to increase sales. This is an expensive car and it is important that they appeal to the child in all of us.

3. What group is targeted? I would say people who have a mid life crisis, or the younger crowd. If you have a corvette you become a "member" of the fancy club.

4. What about the ad leads one to the conclusion? They are using children that are driving these cool cars, showing that its the child inside that wants to drive the car. If they had fancy mature people driving the car that would have targeted a different group of people, not so sophisticated but "wild".

7. What values are reinforced? Its a materialistic commercial, so I would say status and value are highly reinforced. Its showing that if you have the car, then you also must have money.

8. What techniques of persuasion are used? One big use is bandwagon, which is if they have it then every one is going to want the car. Association is also a technique because they see people in these cars, and instantly you want to be in the car or own one. Group dynamics are also used because you are wanting to be a part of the group. Nostalgia is also used because they are trying to provoke the viewers.

14. Is it closer to fantasy or reality? Its obvious by looking at the name and by the flying cars that this is fantasy, but its a fantasy that they want the viewers to have as their reality. By owning the car all of their dreams will be true.

Jan. 26th & 28th Media Usage

I know that technology and the media is common in my everyday life, but I didn’t quite realize how much I used and depended on in until I started writing down every time I used some form of media. I started out my day early at 4:55 to a peaceful song, "Island" by The XX. I recently learned how to use garage band to change songs into ring tones, something that has come in handy. 

My typical routine before I get out of my bed and shower consists of checking a couple of things: email, face book, blackboard, and the weather. I spent about 10 minutes catching up and mentally preparing myself for the day to come. 

Listening to music while driving has become second nature to me, but because of the cold I typically don’t leave my ipod in my car, so the radio is sufficient. While working the radio gets extremely repetitive, so Pandora is always at hand. On my iphone I am capable of listening to any station, where ever. It’s amazing how far things have come since the first radio.

Something that I also could not imagine is life with out alarm clocks. I am constantly forgetting where to be and what to do, so I set reminders on my phone. In one day my alarm went off 3 times to remind me to do something. Especially with how fast paced today’s society is, it is awful convenient to depend on a phone so much, yet it is also a little scary.

When I got off work, I drove to grab lunch at ACRC and I used there WiFi to get some work done before my class started.  Typically I would have to go home to do my homework, but now that I have an iphone I can get my work done pretty much anywhere.

The gym has become a media hotspot. On many of the work out machines they now have chargers for your ipod, and televisions. Since they have updated all the machines I have found that it makes working out for me much easier. As long as I have law and order on in the background I can work out the full hour rather then getting bored and leaving earlier then I plan. The media becomes a distraction for me and helps me become motivated in going to the gym.

I would like to say that I don’t use the media too much, but certain days that is definitely not true. When I am busy with school the only time I really use the media is for schoolwork, where as in the summer I hardly use any form of media. I find that in the morning right before I start my day and when I am about to go to bed I use my laptop the most. I have found that I use the media 90% of the time to keep up to date with the world around me, whether it is checking face book, the daily news miner, or checking my email. At the gym I use Pandora if I am not watching a TV show.

I would have to say this first week I learned a lot about how I use media, and how much I use all forms of media. Since I have gone to UAF my daily use has increased, especially because in high school you weren’t allowed to have your phones or laptops in school. I find that it is much easier to quickly check the weather or emails all with one or two clicks on my iphone.

As I wrap this up, my questions that I ask is what is next? I have found over time this generation is used to everything being so instant. Instant music, instant Google, instant messaging. Where can this lead us?