Internet + Future = ?

I think in the future the internet will be the center of everything. School will be online, work will be online, activities will be online- I think the internet will be very much a part of daily life. I think that people will be able to put on glasses and step into a virtual world and interact with people from around the globe. Sit next to others and talk to them in a way that seems like they are actually right next to each other- all through the internet. I also think that the internet will become voice activated in the future. All a person will have to do is say something and the internet will either look it up or go to the website for them. Overall I think the internet will become more and more simplified for people as it becomes more and more advanced. It will become easier for an average person to use while at the same time allowing that person to do more.

Mary the Martian.

Mary the martian is visiting our planet for the first time. While here she picks up the first magazine that catches her eye and delves into it to learn a bit more about our culture.
Mary picks up a copy of ESPN the magazine and after reading it she can conclude the following.
She can conclude that sports are a big deal in American culture, they would not have a magazine devoted to them if they were not. She can also assume that sports are a very profitable thing in America based on the salaries paid to the athletes. She can see the level of admiration that fans have for these athletes by reading the articles and scanning the pictures. She starts to believe that in order to live in America you have to dress nicely as the athletes do. Mary thinks that Americans must be very muscular, fit and good looking people. After all, the athletes in the magazine all have nice bodies and are quite attractive. She begins to wonder why Americans are so obsessed with alcohol, cars and electronics as those seem to be the only things advertised. Mary cannot understand why winning a game makes people so happy, but they seem to be in the magazine so there must be a reason. When Mary is done reading the magazine she decides she would rather go back home then stay on this "game" obsessed planet.

Ad Deconstruction, NHL style.

Growing up I have been an enormous sports fanatic. I love to watch any sport, but my favorites are football and hockey. The NFL (national football league) and NHL (national hockey league) are pretty creative with their ads, they are the type of ads that make me want to watch football or hockey all the time. I think about times when I'd be watching TV, not really paying attention, until one of those ads came on. During the I would get all excited and by the end I was all pumped up to watch sports. These ads often give me goosebumps as well. It's odd to me how a simple video could give me goosebumps, but it goes to show the effectiveness of their marketing. If the commercial is giving me chills then the odds are better I will remember it.

Ads are created to draw people in, to get them to buy a product or in this case watch a game. I chose this one because it brings in old NHL video and uses that as persuasion for people to watch the new generation of hockey players. It ties together the old playoff hockey excitement and invites people to partake in new playoff hockey excitement.

ASSOCIATION- It is linking together hockey and intensity. Hockey and excitement.

CELEBRITIES- It shows some of the NHL's greatest players in some of their greatest moments.

INTENSITY- It shows how one moment can change an entire game. How one shot can make you a hero. It is a fast paced, exciting commercial.

NOSTALGIA- It goes back to show a historic moment in the minds of hockey fans. They use this technique to show you, that new history will be made. It brings back images of simpler days in hockey of the way it used to be.

WARM & FUZZY- The music used is simple, yet beautiful. Put that together with the video showed and it brings simple happy feelings. It is almost euphoric in a sense, because the music is very simplistic- but it feels like so much more. Take the music out of the commercial and it loses something, but combined it does create a "Warm and Fuzzy" feeling.

Character Versus Image

In Media and Society class this week, we have been talking about image in politics. How the way a politician looks can affect the amount of votes he will receive. The first televised Presidential debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon changed the way Americans voted. J.F.K. was more appealing visually than Nixon and it is believed that is part of the reason he won.

Still hard to believe?

As an example think of Abraham Lincoln- his character shined at the times America needed it to. But the belief nowadays is that if Lincoln ran for office in this day and age, he would not be elected. Why? The answer is actually embarrassing for me as an American, but it is believed he was not good-looking enough to be elected in this day and image obsessed age.



After looking at the picture of Lincoln, what do you think? Would you vote for him based on character or not based on appearance?

Now consider the last Presidential election in America. Do you think appearance played in to Barack Obama being elected instead of John McCain?









Take into account that at the time of the election, Obama was 48 and McCain was 73.
Now I would never say the only reason Obama was elected is related to his age or his appearance- but it poses an interesting question.
Are Americans more interested in someone who looks good than someone who could effectively do the job better?

To clarify- I am not trying to start a debate over who should have won. I am just asking a question.
Does appearance mean more to Americans than character?
Does it mean that America would elect anyone who looks good over true political skills?
I sincerely hope that as life goes on, even if appearance plays a part in elections that Americans will remember good character means much more.