Selfies seem to have become the most popular form of photography. When I first heard about the selfie stick, I had to snicker a little. It was one of the moments where you think "Why would someone invent that?". It's 2015 and the best we can offer is a stick that assists in taking selfies? Where are the flying cars?
However, I must say that after seeing it's use, I can see the appeal. Why wouldn't we want a stick to extend our selfies? Selfie sticks are incredibly useful for group photos. Now, somebody doesn't have to be left out of the picture because there isn't enough space. Nobody's body parts have to get cut off simply because their arms aren't long enough.
The selfie stick may sound ridiculous and completely unnecessary, but in reality, it is a quite useful invention. What's even more ridiculous is how big of a deal people are making it. Businesses who are calling it a "safety hazard". I honestly cannot think of how taking a selfie using a stick could pose as a safety concern. The video was completely over exaggerated, and I think the banning of selfie stick is unnecessary.
Technology in the world of AI is advancing rapidly. People nowadays have become exceedingly dependent on their phones and laptops, and have become distracted from the real world. They avoid spending time with their friends and family, or replace the excitement of seeing someone you love with sending them a text. Some prefer to update their twitter and instagram feed rather than spend time outside. So many people even lose sleep due to them staying up texting and tweeting, and for what reason?
If this is a current problem, and technology continues to develop at this ridiculous pace, soon, technology is going to begin replacing human activities. People have already lessened their communication with one another or replaced it digital communication. If this continues, how often will people plan to go outside with their friends and family and enjoy a nice day? I am already concerned, and feel as if half the time I spend with people, they go on their phones and zone out.
Many of these new advances are extremely unnecessary. For instance, google glasses for one, are basically smartphones you can wear. I feel they are ultimately just a waste of time and money, considering that they have the exact same purpose as a phone. I have always anticipated the day I can finally learn to drive, but I'd never thought that by the time I do, people will have created self-driving vehicles. This is yet another unnecessary use of technology that is going to result in people hastily becoming more and more lazy.
Did you know we are exposed to about 500 advertisements on a daily basis? What's even more surprising is that we actually retain about 75 of them.
It's no unperceived fact to anyone that commercials ultimately convey and put out tons of implicit messages to us viewers and being bombarded with so many, these messages sometimes stick. Because that's their job, right?
On the contrary....
In the 2015 Chevy Colorado commercial, the question being brought to light is if the opinions of people about a guy be changed based on whether or not he drives a truck.
The commercial then goes to to say that they polled "real people" (as opposed to fake ones) to form focus groups and determine whether or not the statement above can be proved to be true.
Twelve interviewed groups almost unanimously agreed that men with trucks put off a sexier, more rugged and tougher look than the man with a regular, small car. But it didn't stop there. Oh, no. The commercial started to dig deeper than that, bringing up questions like "What kind of pet would these men have?" and "who would you rather have your daughter marry?" The end result was that the man with truck was not only cooler and sexier but also more dependable, more resourceful, and living a better life. One man claimed that he'd definitely want his daughter to marry the man with the truck because she'd be safe and protected.
Gender norms are more than obvious here, plainly stating that men with trucks are much cooler than men with regular cars, and that if you want to be a "real man" (whatever that means), you must drive a truck. As if masculinity is associated with the vehicle that you drive.
Freeman, a commercial marketer, stated that "Advertising doesn't just sell things, it articulates values and build meaning, sometimes through constructing stereotypes that simplify a complex trait such as gender." That does make sense. I guess any advertisement has to have a certain group they target their merchandise to in order to sell whatever it is. But I find that sometimes it goes a little too far. Then again, perhaps that can also be advertisers plan, to make it controversial so people talk about it.
In conclusion,
Do I find this commercial stereotypical? Yes
However, I wouldn't exactly say that it went too far or was particularly offensive. Maybe it's because I'm a girl and it's refreshing to finallysee a commercial that doesn't stereotype girls. I'm not sure, but whatever the case:
"To the men who don't drive a truck — don't worry. Your girlfriends/wives aren't going to leave you just because you don't drive a truck."
"If your kid’s acting out, barber Russell Fredrick and his team at A-1 Kutz, a barbershop in suburban Atlanta, are happy to help with a creative kind of discipline."
A suburban Atlanta barbershop has been recently brought about in the social media world. Three days a week, Russell Frederick and his team of barbers offer what is called the "Benjamin Button Special" to parents who would like to try a new form of discipline with misbehaving kids. The cut involves shaving off the child's hair at the top, making it resemble the hairline of a balding old man.
Frederick claims that he used this technique on his own son, Rushawn, and he immediately experienced "dramatically skyrocketing" grades. Many other parents have also shown support towards this disciplinary technique. The claim is that, previously, parents could spank their kids or use some sort of physical punishment in order to get them to behave. Nowadays, that is considered illegal, for good reason. But this leaves parents feeling helpless and at a loss of what to do when their children are continuously acting out.
Personally, I understand where Frederick and his supporters are coming from but it doesn't change the fact that this isn't punishment. This is ultimately a way of shaming children which is a form of emotional abuse.
Although, this method may work on select kids, it definitely won't work on all. In fact, it can discourage kids. By giving kids an embarrassing haircut, it can pinpoint them as a target for bullying in school. So instead of motivating them to improve their grades, it can actually do the opposite. It may dishearten them from going to school as a whole due to the tormenting or teasing that they may face there. It can make them feel self-conscious and insecure which can cause a lot of emotional issues.
I also find that this is a way of lazy parenting. It seems as if the only parents who would be up for it are ones who have messed up so badly that they don't know what to do with their children, and are desperate for a quick "fix". Unless the message you are trying to send to your kids is that they are an embarrassment, something to be ridiculed and a source of entertainment to their parents, there is no need for this.
All in all, it's safe to say that I'm against shaming in all forms, and this is definitely shaming. Quite possibly even the worst kid, since it's done by the kid's parents who are supposed to do the exact opposite.
Jimmy Fallon's "Mean Tweets" bit has always been entertaining to me. However, when you take a closer look at what is being said and think about it, the things that people post are ridiculously offensive and unnecessary. Celebrities deal with these things being said to them on a daily basis, and it is incredibly rude and unneeded. Following this, the video on Breakfast Television on the day of the snow storm showed many students posting mean tweets about schools/school boards because of their decision to keep school open. After students were caught for this, they continued to bully the reporter who was reporting the story. At this point, it is safe to say that it has been taken too far. I feel that people who post mean tweets on twitter do so because they are too afraid to be saying these things in person. Most of these people who are tweeting these things use it to express their anger, since it is easy to do. People post tweets behind a screen because they clearly cannot say these things in person. I don't understand why people would post such offensive tweets about people, since it does not benefit them in any way. Twitter was definitely not intended for people to bully each other, and people on twitter are misusing a great way of communicating with people and taking it too far. I don't think there is anything we can really do about this. We cannot change the way people think, and even if Twitter was checked/governed, people would find other ways of bullying people behind a screen. If it becomes too much for someone to handle, they can block or report the account. However, we should definitely be paying attention and making sure that in the future, people know that this is a serious issue and it is unnecessary to be putting someone down behind a screen. I'm hoping that at some point, people will finally learn to stop treating others in such terrible ways.
Got a minute? That's all it takes to get a snap shot of how beauty has changed over history.
Whether it’s the kind of gum we buy, or the shampoo that we use; we all have a preference. As we grow older, our preferences can change just as our environment does. The environment we live in can have a huge impact on our ideas and assumptions based on society and its preferences.
One topic that always seems to be a hot subject to talk about is what the “ideal” woman is supposed to look like. Young women today grow up in a society where flat stomachs, sun-kissed skin, and curves are considered desirable. Girls read magazines and see advertisements that sell this idea that in order to be desirable, you have to alter your physical appearance to be visually appealing to others. One of the most disappointing factors in this current situation is the fact that women of all ages buy into what society is selling them.
BuzzFeed, an American news media site, posted a video recently on the evolution of women’s ideal body image throughout history. The video goes through different eras such as Ancient Egypt (c. 1292 – 1069 B.C.),Italian Renaissance (c. 1400 – 1700) and many others for the purpose of showing more than one desired body type. Different societies from different eras had a much wider (literally) variety of what an “ideal” woman looked like.Some of these “ideal” body types included curvy waists, pale skin, and boyish figures – none of these attributes even close to what is considered socially acceptable today.
This video just goes to show that it's impossible to fully fit the mold of the "ideal woman" because it is constantly in flux and ever-changing. And quite frankly, we shouldn't be trying to fit this ideal anyway. Body image should never be a trend and it's extremely disappointing that it has become one.
Everyone should find beauty in their own bodies, their own image, and their own flaws instead of comparing themselves to society's trends or ideals. As corny as it is, beauty really is in the eyes of the beholder and this video proves this to be true based on the various desired body types shown.
