The Impact of Advertising

Killing Us Softly described a real problem, that of advertising and the unhealthy and unrealistic messages it sends. People tend to view themselves in a social context, that is, they compare themselves to others, and compare themselves to society's standards. Advertising is often the vehicle for transmitting such standards, especially standards of beauty. The average person often fills inadequate, especially for women, when they compare themselves to the models shown in ads. This leads to a great amount of insecurity, which is exactly what the advertisers want, as that insecurity drives viewers to buy the advertised products, as a way to feel better about themselves.


One ad that relates to this discussion, and one that I find amusing are the L'Oreal 'age perfect' ads featuring 64 year old Diane Keaton. While the ads don't necessarily promote unrealistic images, it does feed into an obsession with avoiding age, and how to look younger. Diane Keaton being a senior is indicative of the target market for the product. What I find amusing is this, when is it time to give up? When can people admit ageing is natural and stop trying to fight it?

Just CAN'T wait...

Impatience is becoming a growing issue in American society. We can see why it's a problem in a number of areas. For one, relationships have become greatly strained. People often rush into marriage and then become surprised that it didn't work out. This is evidenced by the very high divorce rates that we experience. You can also witness the issue of impatience on the road, full of aggressive drivers in a hurry, leading them to drive like Jason Bourne, constantly swerving in and out of lanes, cutting you off, and honking. You see impatience at the store, with people becoming extremely agitated and bugging their eyes out, even yelling, if they suspect someone might be cutting in line. People can't wait for deals, leading to mad crowds on Black Friday, crowds that undoubtedly end up killing some poor person.

I'm not sure impatience is something we can fix, but it may fix itself. If the economy takes a turn for the worse again, and people are forced to have a better work ethic, impatience may go away. I say this, because I feel that impatience is directly related to laziness. The less lazy people are, the less sense of entitlement people have, the more hard working and courteous they become, at least in my opinion.

New trend in Reality TV

After our discussion of reality TV shows, it occurred to me that most of my favorite TV shows are reality shows. This may sound bad if one envisions I'm talking about Jersey Shore or The Real World, but my favorite reality shows are following a different trend, that of actually (to some extent) portraying reality, and being more educationally based than your typical reality show. This is evidenced by the popularity of American Pickers, Pawn Stars, and Hollywood Treasures. Such shows show genuine people, and genuine historical items, and explain the significance and importance of them. I feel this is a good trend, that of the 'smart' reality shows.

Reality TV

Reality television provides people with an escape, while at the same time offering a hint of realism. It offers an escape in that the situations the people find themselves in are often unrealistic, but the people are real, and not celebrities. This lets the viewer imagine what they would do in similar situations, and perhaps relate to the people on the show. I feel that reality TV can affect people, by giving a skewed view of how one should act to become famous and successful.

Reality television is so successful because it features real people, people we can relate to, and puts them in situations that are entertaining. This allows people to become more invested in the series than they would be in a fictionalized format.

The largest archetype that I see on reality television, is that of the arrogant, self-important, individual. It seems every reality show has these sort of people. This is probably because this personality type is the least desirable for most people, yet entertaining to watch.

Religification

Perhaps the best example of religification comes in the form of sports teams. I think NFL teams are a prime example. Avid enthusiasts for a particular team, for me it's the Kansas City Chiefs, can be described as having an almost religious fervor. The games take place on Sunday, which makes it even more apt for a comparison to religion. Certain star athletes can be seen almost in idolized terms. The coaches can be seen as the religious leaders. When a team is doing bad, people are often told to "keep the faith". Another aspect that makes it similar to religion are the emotions felt during a win, which makes the fans happy, even elated. And a lose, which often equals despair. The people that oppose this "religion" are those that don't like football or sports in general, which is certainly a minority.

Music and Themes of Popular Culture

Music is a very powerful medium through which popular culture is conveyed. As such, I feel that a lot of the concepts we hold today from popular culture can be traced, to some extent, to music. I feel an excellent example of this is the concept linking violence to male masculinity. This is on display in full force in rap music. Rappers talk about violence as a way to solve conflict and get respect. By threatening violence the rappers hope to get across a 'tough guy' image, which too often is associated with being a 'man'.

Country vs. Hip Hop

Country and Hip Hop are often thought of as polar opposites. One seems at place in traditional society, and the other seeks to change and loosen society. At their heart though, both music genres have a common goal. Both seek to relate and speak to the lives of everyday people. Country songs often sing about falling in love, or the love of simplistic life and pleasures. Hip Hop relates to people as well, but often in a different way. It speaks to the struggles of growing up in an urban environment, and seeks to give a voice for those that feel left out of society. The biggest difference in the two is the tones of the two genres, in which country is more light hearted, whereas hip hop can be quite dark.