Commercial Mania

Introducing something that I know we all deal with quite frequently on a daily basis 

Commercials! 

They are pretty convincing sometimes aren't they? 

They are good at what they do. 

From the catchy jingle, to the aesthetically pleasing visuals, the comedy... it all catches our attention! 

And that's exactly what they want to happen.  

Have you ever thought of people outside your knowledge of existence being able to control you?

How about people you don't know, who don't know you, persuading you to do something you wouldn't have otherwise thought of.  

Well folks, welcome to the world of advertising.  

And since my husband is in the Advertising program here, he's already in your heads.  

Alright so enough of the creepy eerie stuff.  

But really think about those questions for a minute or two, because essentially that's exactly what advertising firms are doing.  

They evaluate what the public wants to see and how they think and create commercials in order to get inside our head and manipulate our desires to get us to buy or participate in the merchandise being sold.  

We sometimes don't consider ourselves real active on the commercial viewing but if I were to show you the following picture: 

I would bet that over half of you would know what commercial this picture is from and recall what it is advertising.  

How about this one: 

Most of you may be able to recall the sounds during the commercial, this particular character's name, or even some of the information given in each commercial.  

What about this next one: 

You are hopefully laughing because these commercials are my all time favorite ads, but you may also in your head be hearing the distinct voice of the man on the right.  

Crazy right?  

These were all put into our heads by people we don't even know.  Kind of creepy if you think about it.  

These particular ads hold our interest and whether we are partakers of the merchandise or not, we are familiar with it, we recognize it when we see it, we know the jingle and we have developed all these positive connotations relating to these advertisements.  

It is really impressive actually how unknowingly influenced we are by things we assume we don't pay attention to.  

I also find it interesting how the opposite can come into play as well.  

If I find the song in a commercial annoying, or the graphics dumb, or even don't like the color combination agencies chose to display their advertisement, my mind will unconsciously tune out the commercial all together.  

That may just be my strong opinions talking but see if you recall the following pictures from commercials as well as you did the previous ones: 

The first one I have probably seen a thousand times from watching the morning news with my family and for some reason this always comes on.  I couldn't even tell you the name of the company, all I know is they are selling carpets of sorts.  

The second picture is the obnoxious, "go to the general and save some time" song that is also always on news channels as a commercial in the morning.  The only thing I know about this commercial is it is selling some sort of car something or other... 

I have seen both of these a countless amount of times and I'm not even sure what exactly they are selling, purely because (in my opinion) it is poor advertising and it doesn't appeal to my interests in any way.  

Try and think of commercials you have seen a hundred times or so, that you really don't like, and if you can recall what it is selling.  

Even if I was aware of what these two ads were selling, neither of them sparked any sort of interest in me to want to investigate and potentially become a customer.  

The power of advertising is so real.  

Commercials and ads have the power to manipulate people's desires, and thoughts and ultimately persuade them for or against whatever is being sold.  

They are a very strong form of communication within the media and it is interesting to see how they affect us and stick with us, even though we attempt to disregard them most of the time.  

Just some simply abstract thoughts for this week's post.  Hope you enjoy.  

That's all :) 

E.J. Hunt 

Insta-brilliance

Alright so, although there are many questionable sides to social media and our generation is quickly becoming known for being dependent on Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and what not,

There are some pretty cool things that you can find and follow.  

Zach King, for example, is a highly impressive video editor and has become quite Insta-famous for his video clips on Youtube and Instagram.  

They are INSANE.  If you don't follow him, I would highly recommend it! 

There are some interesting things that can pop up on your Instagram or Facebook accounts, so It's always nice to counteract those things with something lighthearted and fun like Zach King.  

It's like a magic show every video... 

My husband is going into advertising, so he is very familiar with video editing and what not and even he gets tripped up every now and again.  It has become a very fun thing for us to watch and try to figure out how he makes the impoosible possible. 

Granted there is a lot you can do with video editing so i'm sure some of you are like "whoopie.." 

Trust me.  It's impressive.  

There are also several art Instagram pages that have crazy artwork from very talented artists.  

All in all, among all the 'one up' posts about marriage, travel, and babies and what not, there really is a fun side to social media to take advantage of! 

Seriously, Check out Zach King.  

That is all.  :) 

E.J.Hunt

Let It Go

Alright alright so I know what you're thinking from the title

tribute to Frozen

Nah.  Not today.  

As cute as that movie is and all, I'm actually talking about the book Let it Go written by Christopher Williams.  For those of you who don't know the story or the book, it is about a man from Utah who tragically lost his pregnant wife, son and daughter in a car accident when they were suddenly hit by a drunk driver.  

Christopher is an LDS member and writes about his experience and points of view of what happened to him and how he was able to forgive the drunk driver so quickly after killing his family. 

If you haven't read it I strongly encourage you to. 

It will make you reevaluate methods of forgiving people and reasons for forgiving people.  

There are just a few points I would like to make regarding books vs any other kind of media.  

With TV and video games, and computer, it is easy for people to have a 'dead mind' while viewing those types of media.  It is easy for our eyes to be watching something and our brain to kind of be in a tuned out mode.  

I definitely am guilty of watching TV purely for that 'brain dead' experience and to just turn my brain off and relax. 

However when reading books, your brain has less of an option to be in that inactive mode. 

Granted with some college books I feel like all I am doing is looking at a mass of words and my brain isn't absorbing one spec of what I am reading, 

However with good books about true stories, reading takes you into a whole other world.  

It pushes your imagination and thinking processes to go somewhere else and to paint an entire picture or an entire world of what is going on.  

I definitely get lost in books that I enjoy.  I get so caught up in the story so much that it sometimes effects my moods for the rest of the day.  

which can be either good or bad. 

But there is something about this book.  

It is heart-wrenching to say the least, but instead of making me horribly sad, it is a book that gives an incredible amount of hope.  

Chris Williams is a very strong man and the ability he had to forgive the drunk boy so quickly still astounds me.  However, his words and the reasons he gives for being able to have such a positive perspective on this horrible tragedy make you really evaluate and rethink grudges you hold and reasons you have had for not forgiving someone.  

Everything else in the world that you have gotten upset over seems so silly and irrelevant when someone has gone through all that he has, and still had the ability to go about his life and be strong for his oldest son (who was not in the car) and one other son who was the only other survivor.  

I know this is kind of a deep post but this book literally changed the way I think about my perspectives.  

Chris has such an incredibly way of writing and thinking.  I think he has given a few talks to youth groups and if i'm right I think there is even a movie coming out about this whole story, however, because of the 'inactive brain' syndrome that we often get, I would encourage anyone who reads this to get the book! 

It will not disappoint! 

That's all for now!

E.J. Hunt

The Bachelor

Alright folks, it's the post you've all been waiting for 

well, the people who read my previous blog at least have been waiting for it... 

or maybe there has already been a post about it from someone else.  Oh well... here is another one

It's a little long but bare with me because I think it's a good read :) (no bias)

I find the concept of 'reality TV' quite hilarious... 

We all know darn well that everything about the Bachelor (as fantastic as it may seem) is so far from reality. 

The dates

Personalities in front of the camera 

The producers messing with this that and the other thing.  

Don't get me wrong, it makes for some serious entertainment, and hey i'm sure it increases the ratings.

But let's think about it real quick. 

The dates are so far from reality and completely over the top extravagant.  They look AMAZING to say the least.  

But no one in the real world is going to go fly on a private jet to a private beach and then take a yacht ride to swim with dolphins on a first date. 

Granted that may have exaggerated just a tad.  But that's the thing.  I'm HARDLY exaggerating.  

All this does to women all across the country is daydream and think "well I want all that".  

For single women, this makes their expectations go way way up which means... Sorry men!  Tough luck! Unless you can drop a solid $10,000 on a first date, forget it.  

That's just unfair, and IT'S NOT REAL.

For the women on the show, it gives them this fake sense of reality.  They get caught up in this fantasized world and are thinking this is how it should be all the time.  

The one women that ends up "winning" or getting engaged by the end of the show is going to have to face real world which, sorry honey, is going to be a bit of a downer compared to the life they've been living the past few months.  

There have been a few success stories that came out of the Bachelor or the Bachelorette, but I can honestly say I don't think it worked out because both men and women got caught up in this dream world paid for by ABC Family and the Producers and what not, and once they have to get back into their normal lives and are surviving again paying taxes and dealing with real world situations, they realize the person they met and fell in love with, isn't the same person in the real world. 

which brings me to my second point,

Think about how you act when you are in front of a camera...

You may try and put on a show and be funnier or more charming than you normally are

Or if you're like me you all of a sudden develop a filter and try the new concept of thinking before you speak

You all of a sudden become very aware of what you are saying and doing because you essentially have tons of people stalking you with huge equipment and no matter how hard you try to ignore it 

you know they are there and watching and documenting your every move... 

This alone creates a whole new identity for each person.  None of the women or men on the show are who they are in real life, on the show simply because you can't be yoruself while being watched by that many people or when you are in a mansion with that many people of the same gender fighting for the attention of one other person... 

The last point I would like to introduce, is the producers.  

They're great aren't they? 

They make sure there is drama Drama DRAMA 

and we (the strange and drama hungry people we are) LOVE to watch it. 

It's wonderful isn't it? Why be involved in it when you can just watch it on TV?

All the more reason that what you are watching on The Bachelor is NOT REAL.  We have no idea what the producers have control over and what is scripted and what or who was put on the show for the sole purpose of increasing the ratings.  

We have no idea.. 

So, all in all, if you have friends, roommates, wives, husbands, daughters, whatever watching this show, try to knock common, real world sense into them and make sure they know how unrealistic everything about this show is.  

Don't stop watching it by any means! But understand reality from fantasy and unrealistic expectations.  

I think it is important for us to protect our loved ones and not let them get caught up in this fantasy world.  All we can control is our end. 

unfortunately all the girls on it this season are going to have to fend for themselves because we all know they are going to get caught up in la la Benny Boy land and all will be lost when they return to reality.  

So let's increase the common sense in the world and at least be aware ourselves of how Unrealistic Reality TV is 

(as oxymoronic as that sounds) 

In conclusion, I am obsessed with the Bachelor.  My husband and I are faithful watchers and love to predict who will win and who are our favorites and who are absolutely out of their mind crazy, but we have recently been talking about how funny the concepts are and how nothing in it is real life.  

So, there are my two bits on The Bachelor.  It is still my favorite show.  I am still obsessed with every ounce of drama.  I still pick my favorite and get caught up in the 'love story' and hope with every proposal at the end that it will be one that works out.  Hey, I'm still even 100% on board with the couples that end up together until the day they break up or even when they get married.  I love love and I love with it actually works out :) 

But , you really can't expect too much.  

There you have it :) 

Thanks for Reading! 

E.J. Hunt 

Friday Night Lights

Alright, so here goes nothing. 

Not quite sure what exactly should be entailed in these media critiques,

But we are all experimenting right? 

So as of late, my husband and I have been watching Friday Night Lights and pretty much ONLY watching Friday Night Lights.  

He likes the football aspect, 

And I like the drama aspect (naturally). 

Prior to discussing media in the first class lecture, I was definitely the "tuned out" TV watcher.

  

My primary purpose for watching TV was to turn my brain off and unwind from a stressful day. 

Well Not anymore! 

I have since been trying to find potential 'hidden meanings' behind things and subliminal messages behind the things I watch.  

Having a husband studying Advertising, this has been fun for the both of us to do as we are both now very active TV watchers.  

Anywho... Let's get to the real reason for this post.  

Friday Night Lights

Alright so there's love, drama, and football.  Every couple's dream right? 

There's a little bit for everyone! 

Well I have been noticing something.  

All the drama with the men are typically revolved around theft, lying, cheating, and ultimately resulting in issues with the law.  

On the other hand, all the drama seen in the women's lives are all related to their love interests, getting cheated on, cheating themselves, or getting pregnant. 

I mean come on, 3 women in 4 seasons getting pregnant and not one of them intended to... 

This had me thinking of the male and female stereotypes that used to float around during the time this series was especially popular and still being filmed and it pretty much follows those stereotypes perfectly.  

Men always going to prison for this, that and the other thing, fathers leaving their families at home for various reasons, and women are having babies left and right whether intentional or not, with their husbands, or the 'one night stand'.  

I then began thinking of how drastically the stereotypes have changed now. I feel overall, the stereotypes have dissipated quite a bit and there is now more of an equality in men and women.  

Not only in the workforce and entitlement, but also for blame.  Men aren't always seen as the 'bad guy' who leaves their family, but now in TV shows, there are more issues with the law and women at fault and taking the blame for things.  Women are becoming 'equal' in a lot of ways.  

I then also began thinking of my future family and how these stereotypes might even change more in the future, and how they might change.  

Interesting to think about.  

Despite the repetitive methods of drama seen in this series, I don't necessarily consider it bad content to watch, seeing as it is clearly part of history's view on men and women.  

Granted, I am not so sure I would want my future daughters or sons watching it too frequently and thinking that all of the sex and violence and law breaking is 'okay' and how the characters in the series turned out fine.  

So, as a first-timer on analyzing media and how it relates to me, those are my thoughts and feelings.  

Stay tuned for a deep analytical view of the most dramatic series on TV The Bachelor coming later this week ;) 

That's all for now! 

-E.J. Hunt