To receive full credit, these blog assignments must be posted by SUNDAY night, February 14th at midnight (Happy Valentine's Day!) If you post late, please email me your post directly at sdebross@uvm.edu as soon as you are able, and I'll give you partial credit.
Please post your reflections to the course blog and copy to your personal blog.
1. Ad Nauseam: Parts 3 & 4
1. Ad Nauseam: Parts 3 & 4
In what specific ways can you connect the reading to what we have read, screened, and/or discussed in this course? What observations do you make between these sections of Ad Nauseam and PBS's The Persuaders film or Cascio's Get Smarter article? Be clear and specific in your examples. Select at least one idea or concept from each section of the reading.
2. Is Google Making Us Smarter?
Please read Jamais Cascio's summer 2009 "Get Smarter" article in The Atlantic, and then answer the following questions:
a. IYOW, identify the thesis of Cascio's article, in one sentence.
b. Describe TWO observations Cascio makes about Web 2.0 with which you agree, and TWO observations Cascio makes about Web 2.0 with which you disagree. Be clear and specific.
Please read Jamais Cascio's summer 2009 "Get Smarter" article in The Atlantic, and then answer the following questions:
a. IYOW, identify the thesis of Cascio's article, in one sentence.
b. Describe TWO observations Cascio makes about Web 2.0 with which you agree, and TWO observations Cascio makes about Web 2.0 with which you disagree. Be clear and specific.
3. The Persuaders
Please watch the PBS Frontline documentary The Persuaders, and list FIVE of the most important things you learned about THE PERSUASION INDUSTRY. Be specific and personal, and be prepared to share these in class.
4. Other stuff:
a. "Follow" our course blog and replace your grey silhouette stalker image with a decent picture!
b. Copy the image of your environmental art project to your personal blog and add a few descriptive sentences about your artistic decisions and intent.
1. a) I really enjoyed reading the section “I’m dreaming of a White National Cheese Day”, and I found myself just laughing at it all. I have never been a fan of “hallmark” holidays and I always find it so frustrating and unnecessary when I have to celebrate one of these holidays. Every mother’s day, my mom says the same exact thing, “For one day a year, can you please just do whatever I ask?” but then she says that on her birthday and on Christmas as well, so I always find it hard to celebrate her holiday for her, because in reality, it’s all just made up. I hate all of the consuming around each holiday, how they make candies for each one, decorations, cards, and the list goes on…..and sadly, we all buy into it. I also really like the part about how the readers are so “connected” to the magazines and how they need to feel like they fit that certain image that each magazine holds. With the magazines I read, you wouldn’t really be able to tell what kind of person I am, when I do get magazines, I read 2 snowboarding magazines, cosmopolitan, fitness, and people….all which are extremely different. But I feel like to a certain extent we all fall into a category of some of these certain magazines, and sadly we are wiling to listen to what they have to say about how we should be.
ReplyDelete2. a) With how advanced our society is today, we are able to solve any problems on our own with the help of technology and medicines.
b) I agree with the idea that we adapt our thinking and expectations to digital systems, and even though they are becoming more complex to help us, they will eventually adapt to us. This idea is scary, but very true because we are so reliant on technology, and we all have made changes in our lives to fit better with these systems. I also agree with the idea of us not being able to pay attention, and how we have become accustomed to interruption, so we are finding it harder to focus. Sadly this is so true, and with the help of technology and the Internet, it only makes it harder to stay focused on certain things. I disagree with one of main points of this piece, “increasing complexity and range of media we engage with have, over the past century, made us smarter, rather than dumber”, I simply feel that media and technology has made us dumber, and we are not learning half as much as we would if we weren’t so reliant on these medias. I also disagree with “The future is already here, it’s just unevenly distributed.” I sadly feel that we have a long way to go before people are completely satisfied with technology and the media.
3.
1. The idea of emotional bonds- how they are filling the spaces that we are “missing” and by buying certain things, it will help fill these gaps.
2. Product placement- ads are now parts of programs because before they were only seen in commercials, but with systems such as TIVO, people are fast-forwarding through the commercials and not paying attention to those ads.
3. The idea of an identity while creating ads. The whole song/delta process surprised me, and it made me laugh how they created this woman with a name, family, and identity in order to help decide how to advertise for this new idea.
4. The idea of cult branding was completely new to me, and I was surprised by the whole concept and how people are so devoted to certain brands and products.
5. At the end, they mentioned that there may no longer feel like there is persuasion, that we are in control and can control what we want to listen to, and that we are the persuaders.
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ReplyDeleteAd Nauseum
ReplyDeleteThe section “How Do Kids Read Commericials” was particularly disturbing. Just like “Consuming Kids”, it shows how consumption is ingrained into us as soon as we're born. What’s most bothersome to me is the blindness of people to their manipulation; they think they are making personal statements by buying something, but really they’re just playing into the hands of the advertisers. As it says “…kids unwittingly reciting slogans, believing advertising claims, and misunderstanding commercial motives”. They are doing just what “The Persuaders” want them to do, consuming on impulse, without questioning the motives of sellers. As illustrated in “Consuming Kids”, it shows the needs for regulation on advertising to kids, especially at school!
“Shopping Spies” shows the creepy advertising research that is required for people to get “inside our heads”. It reminds me of “The Persuaders” when the researcher asks the man if he feels lonely when eating white bread. Everything about it just seems wrong. It’s an invasion of privacy and just the definition of creepy, yet that is what the ad industry feeds on. If this work was for something like solving social problems, it would be one thing, but it’s just to figure out the “code” that will lead to ultimate consumption. Not only is it disgusting how marketing tries to get into our minds, its terrifying how its invisibly weaving its way into our lives. Restaurants avoiding selling water, pharmaceutical reps manipulating physicians, and movies that are essentially commercials; we seem to be headed toward total envelopment by advertising.
Get Smarter
“Get Smarter” shows that the adaptation required to modern evolving technology will make us more intelligent, using it to solve the increasingly complex problems that we face.
I agree that younger generations are much more adapted to technological change. Younger kids can figure out Facebook without effort, while older users struggle to comprehend how to use it correctly. This, however, is specifically related to technological change, and other change, such as sudden loss of this advanced technology, would be devastating to younger generations.
I also agree that technology has in some ways allowed us to become “wicked smart”, with access to data, simulation capabilities, and pattern-matching abilities. This external smarts is inarguably helpful in understanding and solving complex problems.
I disagree with his enthusiasm for increasing intellgence artificially. This seems unnecessary since I believe the current intellectual capabilities of human are far from fully utilized. He should look towards improvements in public education for solving our future problems.
I disagree with his idea that change happens slowly, rather it seems changes are coming increasingly quickly, with skeptics raising concerns over the unforeseen impacts. Texting, Facebook, Twitter, iphones, ipods, etc., all of these are extremely new phenomenons. How will the affect learning in school? Obesity? The environment?
The Persuaders
1.Ads are working to find a deep connection with viewers, so it no longer even feels like persuasion.
2.Marketers work to build cultures and experiences around their products.
3.People are unconsciously persuaded to manufacture needs for products and then try to justify these wants.
4.Entertainment and advertising are becoming indistguishable.
5.Politicians can now use narrow-casting to target very specific demographics with what appeals to those voters.
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ReplyDelete#1
ReplyDeleteThe identification of oneself with a particular brand or product. This is a theme that keeps appearing throughout our examination of the media. In "Ad Nauseum," the chapter which covers magazines and who their readers are provides insight into the inner marketing machine. Jane magazine claims that their readers are, "20-something front row influencers." Where do they come up with this stuff? I read Jane magazine when I was an uncomfortable adolescent. At 20-something I would never think of picking up such teenie bopper tripe. But these advertisers believe what they say is true. That their customers can be summed up in a quick blurb.
One of the biggest culprits of this belief is Song airlines whom, in"The Persuaders," claimed that their employees lived, breathed, and slept Song. How does a person live, breath, and sleep a product? I totally understand if a person who is mentally unstable, like the gentleman who loved Ariel the animated mermaid, identifies with a product but everyday people? I would hope that most of us are better than that.
It is Possible that this association between humans and a product or brand comes from the ever emerging realism of advertising. In the Chapter entitled "How Do Kids Read Commercials," the author asked a bunch of teenage students what they thought about some of the commercials they watch, and many of them had a hard time differentiating fact from fiction. I remember even being fooled into thinking that some commercials were really public service announcements. It's an effective marketing approach and it catches many people off guard. We witnessed this in class with that cell phone ad. It looked so much like something official, but in the end was just some brilliant marketers work.
#2
a) Human's evolutionary success maybe found in the technologies we develop.
b) The two examples where I agree with Cascio are when he says that technologies are advancing at a rate that could allow for artificial intelligence in the not too distant future. He call this "You+," which is both creepy and fascinating. Also I find that I can quasi agree with Cascio's assumption that our "technologically induced ADD" maybe just our brains beginning to evolve into something with more load bearing capacity. We do have a lot of information coming our way and I do feel that my mental space is growing thin.
Where I find fault in Cascio's piece is when he claims that when our technology speeds up and advances so will we. What about those people who weren't born with a computer in their hands? I still can't efficiently use EXCEL, or god forbid, Skype. I think people who are freshman in college now could easily adapt to large technology shifts, but those who are a decade or two older maybe lost. Cascio then goes on later to talk about mentally enhancing drugs like Adderall, and Ritalin stating that some people may not see the use of these drugs as cheating. I have a real problem when people are abusing performance enhancing drugs, which Adderall and Ritalin are, in school. In my eyes this is equivalent to a competitive athlete on steroids and is most certainly cheating.
#3
a) The concept that we become immune to the influence of advertisement. Like a cockroach? I think one woman said.
b) It was interesting to learn the approach that Andy Spade made when tackling the marketing for "Song." The whole what a product means rather than what it does.
3) The connection between cult behavior and product loyalty.
4) I didn't realize that so much human research is done to promote one product.
5) Advertisers and marketers believe that brands can define a person. Or that a person can identify themselves with a brand.
1) The section entitled ‘my very special trip to the Nike store’ instantly made me think of the PBS video and the company Song. It is incredibly sad that companies are branding people as the kind of people who should represent their store. Companies are not marketing to everyone but only a select few. In the book, Nike was giving away their products to celebrities. In the video, Song entitled the all being representation of their company by the name of a woman. Companies should not be marketing major products to one particular class or gender of people when the products are consumed by people over both genders and all economic statuses. Another part that I also connected to the PBS video was the part from the section on “community.” There is a quote from Seinfeld about how people feel judged by the “community” and how most people have “no idea” that they are living in this community. It is a humorous quote but it really connected to the politics section of the video. The majority of people have no idea about the, on average, 70 demographics that they are fit into for political purposes. It is sad how people are split up into these “communities” for politics, advertising and other big business purposes.
ReplyDelete2) Thesis: People can use technology to overcome problems; this is a process of modern day evolution.
2a) I agree with the whole argument that we have been getting smarter to coincide with our evolutionary needs. We are simply responding and surviving. This is true. Technology is helping us to excel evolutionary needs.
I also agree with the fact that having detailed video games and a wide range of media may actually be making us smarter and not really giving us ADD. I see it like this: humans remember about 20% of what they learn every time they learn it. Therefore the more we are introduced to the more we will know. Perhaps all this chaos is just making humans know more things at any given time, hence, smarter.
I do not agree with the argument on drugs. Caffeine and Nicotine are not basic cognitive-enhancement drugs. They throw off the balance of your sympathetic and parasympathetic systems. Caffeine gives you a high and crash - it is not helping you cognitively. Consistent use of nicotine puts you at a higher risk for just about everything. These drugs are not part of our evolutionary needs.
I agree with the fact that our technology can let us assemble with a few clicks, this is a fact. However, I do not see this as a good thing. There is more value in face to face communication than online get together. There is also something wonderful about no one being able to reach you at any given time. Too much communication can be stressful; I do not really believe it can make us smarter.
3)
a. Politicians can market certain views to any person in any demographic they choose. All they need is a paper full of names classified into various categories of values.
b. Companies now think that products represent emotions. Now when we see ads we are seeing emotions and being directed to associate them with brands and products.
c. The values we have are deeply psychological and can be tapped into for the purpose of giving us a brand that will speak to needs we do not even know we have.
d. Are we really voting for who we want? Maybe not. All it took was one focus group to figure out what words should be used to get both sides of a party to like the candidate.
e. Businesses do not want us to be able to access a place where there are no advertisements. Once you’re in, you’re in.
1. The section of Ad Nauseam, "On Advertising", was much like the documentary The Persuaders. Advertising can be broken down into its own parts. There is so much social science behind it. Advertising becomes very emotional as a way to draw us in, making us feel like we are part of the advertisment. As it is a part of our life. I also thought it was crazy how they anaylyzed kids responses to advertising in Ad Nauseam, almost to justify the the film we watched on children advertising a couple weeks ago. Most kids don't even know what product the ad is trying to sell, but they view it in a positive light. Meanwhile, the product is being planted deep within the brain. They may not be able to tell you why the product is being advertised the way it is, but they can tell you about the product by the way it is being portrayed on tv, no matter how incorrect this reality may be.
ReplyDelete2a. Throughout history, the human brain has become increasing smarter due to increasing technology.
2b. I definetly agree with the fact that we are only beginning to explore our technology. Everything is so new and there is so much more to come which i view as both scary and exciting. I also agree with how it has changed our thinking. As quoted in the article, "Our cognitive thinking and process of understanding complex subjects is directly related to technology." Things have changed dramatically already throughout my own life with the direct impact of the internet and cell phones.
Stephen Johnson argued in the article, "...the increasing complexity and range of media we engage with have over the past century, made us smarterm rather than dumber, by providing a form of cognitive calathetics." I completely disagree with this in the fact that I feel as though humankind, atleast in the developed world, has become so attached to technology that we no longer know what to do without it. We seem to freak out when we can't find the answer with the click of the mouse. Everything has to be handed to us and because of that I think technology has dumbed us down.
I also disgree with the fact that he states that we will one day have a greater appreciation for the consequences of our technology. While, I and many of my peers at the UVM see the oncoming consequences of technology, I really don't think that the majority of the U.S. will admit this. Much of our waste is shipped over sees and as part of our culture/polical system, we have a hard time admitting when we are wrong.
3.
1) The more messages advertisers create, the more they have to keep on creating to continue reaching the general public. Trying to break through the clutter only creates more clutter.
2)Advertisers goal is to shape the brand, giving it life, substance and texture
3)Advertising is more for the guys creating it than the guys purchasing it.
4)Advertising has changed from being in commercials to being strategically placed in TV shows and movies.
5)There is a continuous goal of forming a realationship with the consumer and the product.
1. Idiocracy, the movie about the year 2505 that would not be released sounds very scary, yet it seems it could be a reality. After watching “Consuming Kids” and “The ad and the Ego” in class it seems our culture is heading down the road of ultra-consumerism. A consumer society where we do not have to think or act because corporations would do all that for us. This sounds familiar right? The ‘FEED’, telling us what to do and branding us since childhood. It is not surprising to me that economic growth, at least in our GDP model can be misleading to people’s livelihood. The quotes of businessman wanting people to get sick to sell their product is surprising though. I never thought of the effect law and courtrooms in television and movies has on the actual judicial process. My father is a lawyer and he never mentions the media’s influence in the courtroom, and he never is interested in Court TV, CSI or NYPD Blue. These shows seems to have quite an effect, especially if clothing and a lawyer’s summation have to follow the pattern set by these influences.
ReplyDeleteThe trip to the Nike store by David Cross was a very funny piece to read and a welcome break from the depressing sections on consumerism and kids. This section made me think of elementary school and how the Nike logo had a huge influence whether kids were drawing it on the chalkboard or whether every article of clothing on some kids had the famous insignia. Cross does well to look through the brand and the Hollywood lifestyle and add a little humor. I was glad to have used the Dasani water bottle for my environmental art project after reading the section on Coca-Cola and water. Now I can add something else Coke has done to tap water. It disgusts me that they would encourage restaurants to offer their product before water. Clean drinking is only available to parts of the world, and it is the basis for all life, I would say their product is nowhere near the importance water deserves. I thought it was fitting that magazines cannot put Coke ads next to anything worth reading (real news, important issues etc) as if the material brings down their advertisement.
2. Humans are evolving thought the use of improved technologies in computer programs, the internet, and artificial intelligence.
I would agree with Cascio in that technology is improving at an astounding rate, and being able to keep up is imperative in humans quest for knowledge. I liked the comparison to the 2025 brain to the 2026 brain; one would be significantly better and advantageous than the other. Similarly I also would agree that this search for new technologies will create a more competitive environment among different countries. New tools such as google will be desired and these new technologies will give certain cultures an upper-hand in anything (world economy, intelligence, education).
I would disagree with the advantages of social networks such as Twitter. On this I would have to lean more towards the “Google making us stupid”article and say that having our brains gaze through a sea of information and recognize only certain things is killing our mind. I would also disagree with the idea of these social programs becoming serious tools or data-sets for future scientific use As of right now people just write what kind of sandwich they are eating, or quote the latest Shaq joke.
3. Boardroom Meetings- all of these minds sitting down brainstorming how to sell their product
Frank Luntz- brings the importance of word choice and its influence
Branding- creating not just a brand, but an idea, an adjective, people can be song?
Narrowcasting- getting the public’s opinion in an easy effective manner
Human Desire- it is a science, people want certain things; driving Hummers in the city?
1.
ReplyDeleteThe section relating to LA Law personally intrigued me because of a certain case and how it was presented to the jury. A movie of the defendant getting beaten by police was allowed to be shown as evidence, but it had been edited and slowed down to make it seem less violent than it actually was. Something can be edited beyond original recognition these days and it made me think of the Dove evolution PSA. If everything on TV is edited to control how we think, we lose our personality and creativity.
Another topic in the next chapter that got me thinking was the magazine demographic studies. As it turns out, many magazines have devoted readers, and through these readers and their interests, the magazines gain valuable information on who else they can target. For instance, GQ readers are trendsetting men; they are hip, affluent, and above all influential. Maxim readers are men who aren't interested in fashion, they're interested in clothes. "He's a man who has arrived, but is still going places". If magazines can make these bold statements about their readers, can't advertising companies target certain audiences in the same way?
2.
The thesis of the article is that even though our brains are developing at a rate faster than ever before, today's technology is making thinking for yourself a thing of the past.
When Cascio writes about the frightening thought of what life in 2030 will be like, it was as if he had read my mind. If we think of this time incrementally however, it doesn't seem too surprising what new things we will come up with. Take modern discoveries for example. As they are unveiled each year, they are regarded as breakthrough technology, but we become so used to new things that they almost become obsolete in the next year or two. I also agree that as more digital technology we rely on becomes faster and smarter, we do as well. Our brains are adapting to new technologies and this is also true the other way around.
Something I don't agree with in Cascio's article is the use of cognitive-enhancing drugs, and how he says that if you aren't using them, you will fall behind other's intelligence. I believe these drugs are only for people who can't focus their minds in the first place, and in no way is it "cheating".
3.
-Marketing companies have thousands of resources and ways to collect demographic information to better target consumers.
-Corporations are now regarding their products as cultures, specifically Song Airlines' take on providing a brand new experience in flight.
-Product loyalty can be researched and paired up with reasons why people join cults and other organizations.
-Ads can't just be 30 second clips anymore between shows, they have to now be incorporated into the actual shows, to the point where we wouldn't even think twice about their advertising.
-Researchers can now define words such as luxury, and make people think that this is what they need in their life.
1.
ReplyDeleteThe chapter about Channel One hits home for me simply because I saw that program every morning my sixth grade year. It may've been a long time ago but i remember it distinctly as the first tv I saw in a classroom. Looking at the reading it really worries me that not even the student teachers can differentiate betweene an ad and a public service announcement. The Persuaders frontline special talks about this kind of advertising as selling not just a product but an idea, a philosophy. Imprinting young kids with a brand philosophy is pretty scary too, considering how effective those ads are.
Secondly, in part 4, Coca-Cola's efforts to get more "stomach share" is pretty frigtening, again it's like in the persuaders, amoungst all the clutter companies need to use new methods to reach people. The phasing out of water is particularly upsetting considering how harmful that much soda can be in place of simple water.
2.
Cascio's main thesis is, the constantly-changing nature of technology and the subtly accumulating nature of the changes will mean that over time our intelligence will increase in ways that seem frightening now but at the time they occur will seem inevitable and beneficial.
I really thought his comment about the travel agent industry was interesting. I hadn't thought about how you don't see or hear about them anymore. I really hope that the loss of pattern-matching jobs doesn't result in a loss of that ability in people at large.
I also like Cascio's description of PDA's as an example of augmented itelligence in our everyday lives, and his explanation of writing as an augemented intelligence expansion of our memory.
I disagree with Cascio's opinions about the widening gap of rich and poor extending to technology. I think the speed of it's development puts it in a different boat that just monetary distribution.
Secondly, although I think he has good points regarding A.I., I think Cascio is underestimating our ability to regulate and control such a rapidly developing technology. I hope that the prevasiveness of the "robot threat" will prevent a terminator-like event. But in the same way that A.I. is possible I think a singularity event could grow out of our control.
3.
-Frontline highlighted the shift from "head" to "heart" advertising. It was a change that while I've been marginally present and aware of, I didn't notice.
-We've lost the tangible differences between different brands of products, it's about selling a lifestyle now. Like a Mac, "not just a computer, a lifestyle" I've heard.
-I'd never been aware of how obvious the advertising of Fed Ex is in Castaway, it's scary how well it's integrated, I never noticed.
-Even Bob Dylan is a sellout! I'd had no idea.
-Lastly, I've looked at old political ads and it's startling, it isn't about the politican's stands on the issues, or the facts. Narrowcasting is a dangerous technique, it's basically advertising segregation.
Ad Nauseam (Parts 3&4):
ReplyDeleteThe chapter “How do kids read commercials?” reminded me of The Persuader when they described the marketing tactics of cults and applying their methods to brands, by portraying a meaningful belonging and connection with others like a corporate family. Supporting old time values of community that schools and churches were once central for in a community. The fact that commercials on channel one costs twice as much as on prime time network news shows how easily influenced children’s minds are, and these cult tactics are much too powerful to not work on them. They are so effective that kids are just as interested in the commercials as they are the actual programming. It reminded me of consuming kids too, especially the part where a 9th grader “enlisted the help of his grandmother” to buy a $160 pair of Jordans that he “saw in a commercial”.
The list of holidays in the “I’m dreaming of a white national cheese day” was preposterous, and made valentine’s day seem all that much less meaningful to me. It’s pathetic how all these corporate stores are with the constant “seasonal decorations” because there is never a time without them. Another thing I found to be over the top was the interview with Richard Sherwin who described the behavior of court jurors as emulating that of televised court cases. This made me incredibly more partial to alternative dispute resolution.
Get Smarter:
Thesis: Augmented awareness will prevail in gradual increments and constant connectivity will be attained in approximately 50 years through drugs and technology, which will expand cultural divides and be prone to disaster from system failure.
Agree:
1. I share the same uncertainty that Cascio has for the stability of the technology companies that are already so flawed. I would never trust an economically run company to control my brain in any way, it’s outrageous.
2. I also really agree with the author’s point that divergent paths exacerbate cultural divides, and would add that there are not enough resources and money to service A.I. or any technology for that matter to every individual on the planet, therefore it would be considered an elite privilege, and cause further economic divides.
Disagree:
1. I don’t think there’s “no going back” from these pressure induced crutches that we are becoming more and more reliant on, because I think in the end it just makes everyone more fucked up, so it won’t succeed.
2. I also don’t agree with the idea that A.I. will result in more intense and intricate arguments or educational gains, because it relies heavily on information that is spat out repeatedly, and without question therefore it could end an argument quickly. Also since we are so heavily reliant on it, I don’t think future progression will have to do with retaining knowledge on our own, so it will eventually dumb everything down.
The Persuaders:
1. Products as “social lubricants”, the more you have and promote these material items through online social networking, the more popular you are.
2. Pseudo spiritual marketing has become inversely effective, first marketing products through spiritual standpoints, and more recently developing ritualistic relationships between consumers and brand names.
3. It doesn’t matter what you want to express to others, you have to listen to their desires, in order to tell them what they want to hear.
4. Resulting from #3, Acxiom political campaigning, demographic tribes, economic placement.
5. The secret to all persuasion is to get the persuaded to become persuaders themselves.
1.
ReplyDeleteOne of the quotes from the shopping spies chapter says that the more often a marketing technique is used to attract a consumer the less likely it would be effective in attracting the consumer later on. The same marketing ploys that keep on being in thrown at us often make us want to ignore them more. If you think about it no one wants to answer surveys or telemarketing phone calls no of days.
When I watched the super bowl it was as if the ads really didn't provide me with any sort of meaning behind them. As if they were all blurred together.
In the article, "Get Smarter" by Cascio, he talks about how performance enhancing drugs like Ritalin and adderall are bad. I they are not. The advertisers of the drug make it seem that it is the end all cure for poor grades in school. Anyone can get a prescription of the stuff and I feel like it cheats out people who do not any type of learning disability.
2.
a) As human technologies progress the advancement of medicines and technologies seem only second nature.
b) In the article it describes some of advancements in technology actually help our evolutionary needs as a species. Such as video games and even bicycles to some degree are helping to advance the knowledge of our species.
Take for example video games. With the new technology that is currently out it is improving hand eye coordination and correct motor function similar to those found in everyday events ie the nintendo wii.
The things I do not agree with is the fact of trying to create artificial intelligence and the fact that modern media is making us smarter. The whole point to AI is to make human lives easier. Why not advance the capacity for human knowledge before leading into computer advancements. It might help to stimulate the influence of human evolution.
I think media is making us pretty much on the dumber side. When I watch ads I don't wanna know how a product would make me feel. I want to know its capabilities and the capacity at which it can do it.
3
a)Ads are trying to reach people on a more emotional level then they have been in the past.
b) There is a lot of deep thought into the ads. They have even worked themselves into product placement on television.
C) Products are given emotions and feelings. They are humanizing products to gain brand loyalty.
D) It kinda creeped me out how the guru compared pasteurized cheese in a bag to a dead body. How the fringe was like a morgue.
E) How brands can define a person? How song airlines based their making strategy off of middle class moms with families and gave her a name "Carrie." After the movie I learned that the marketing strategy didn't work well.
1. I found the section on Shopping for Cancer to be extremely interesting and scary. I found it disturbing to discover that the company that makes a pesticide that causes breast cancer also makes the drug to cure it. It is a crazy business scheme that keeps the business afloat, but in a scary way. It reminds me of how in the Get Smarter article they talk about how prescription drugs are taken for ADD and I can almost imagine these companies just constantly giving these drugs out instead of maybe making a lifestyle change. These companies do not want to eliminate business so people who are diagnosed with ADD but are really not will continue taking them because now they are smarter and can concentrate better. During the PBS movie it mentions the idea of reptilian actions, and I feel as though one of these it to be rich. If we weren’t acting on just personal power and wealth the pesticide/drug company would stop making the pesticides and do what is right, but like the consumer buying on reptilian actions we also act on what is told to us. It also mentions emotional branding, and commercials do a good job of showing stardom and wealth and why should we give this up? Even if it is wrong? In my mind I say we should, but wealth and greed is addicting and raises status, so maybe that is why the pesticide is still being made.
ReplyDeleteI also found the article I’m Dreaming of a White Nation Cheesecake very interesting because on these special holidays I do feel obligated to consume the product. I feel as though I should eat a cheesecake on that day. Someone told me of national burger day, and I went and ate a burger. Like said in the article, we lose focus and mostly skim information and act more on quick decisions, I believe that I do that. Do I need to eat a burger on national burger day? No way! But do I want one now that I know it is? Yes! So, that impacts my decision. This relates to the product placement that was mentioned in the film. If we place holidays like this in calendars, it becomes a part of the culture and turns into a subconscious decisions. If I see someone enjoying a coke in a movie, I do believe a coke would be refreshing. It is scary to think that little meaningless things placed in the calendar can make a difference. Because, in the end, who really cares if a day is national burger day or not?
2. a) Due to the invention of different technologies we have become smarter and these technologies will develop into new technologies which will make us even smarter, while at the same time solving our problems.
b) I agree that the web makes it harder for us to focus and concentrate on long and less exciting tasks.
I agree that in many ways it does help us solve many of our problems much faster than before because of an easier access of knowledge, like the internet itself.
I do not agree that we would be better off as computer chips. I believe we also need the ability to think clearly and that CREATIVITY can not be made by a computer. A computer can not create a piece of art, musically, visually, or written.
I do not agree that technology will solve every problem. We cannot rely on it to solve every health problem like ADD, as well as a food crisis. When it comes down to it we just need to buckle down and do work instead of letting it do work for us.
3. –Create a culture that your product becomes a part of. Force it into the lifestyle so that it just seems as a normality and not something that is an extra or a luxury. During my Mom’s day it would be a luxury to get a Coke, today people have Coke all the time so it isn’t anything special.
ReplyDelete-Product placement. Since commercials are being skipped and fast forwarded through we must now incorporate ads into movies and tv shows.
-Reptilian actions. What drives our impulses to buy? Use our natural human instincts to make us buy products over actual thought process.
-Once a culture becomes so involved in commercials and media, that becomes the culture. That is why people always walk around with iPods in so that they feel connected.
-Advertise to direct concepts and differently to different groups. Such as the Kerry campaign.
Ad Nauseam:
ReplyDeleteIn section 3, there is a chapter which discussed non-physical communities. The word community is widely used to describe groups of people with similar affiliations that may live on opposite sides of the planet, and have never met one another! These sort of virtual communities are similar to the groups or cults associated with brands that were discussed in the film, The Persuaders. People will feel as though they belong to something, like a community or group, just because they have a certain value, take a particular stance on an issue, or buy certain brands.
On page 197, in section 4, there is a list of made up holidays. One that was particularly interesting: February is National Boost your Self-Esteem Month. WHAT?? Yes, having a healthy dose of self-confidence is great, but it has become a holiday that we can consume! This sort of reminds me of the part in the film, The Persuaders, when it said that advertisers appeal to consumer’s emotions, even those that are subconscious. Whether or not this monthly holiday is a marketing scheme, I don’t know. It certainly does pull at people’s heart strings, and make them feel, ironically enough, like their self-esteem needs improvement.
Get Smarter:
ReplyDeleteThesis- Humanity can solve global issues by utilizing technologies to boost our intelligence.
Disagree:
“Intelligence augmentation decreases the need for specialization and increases participatory complexity.” Technology increases our access to information, but it doesn’t make us any smarter or better at our jobs. If anything, more access to information and growth of technology will lead to jobs that are more specialized and exclusive. There are far more people than there ever have been, far more industries, and much more information to be had. This makes for a competitive job market, where it may be difficult for individuals to find a niche, especially if they are underprivileged in terms of access to internet.
“Strengthening our fluid intelligence is the only viable approach to navigating the age of constant connectivity.” This is a weak way of viewing advancements in technology, and society in general. I assume that by ‘strengthening our fluid intelligence’, we become better at surfing the web and absorbing only what we think to be important. I can’t imagine that to be a helpful skill at all. There is no need for a person to be constantly connected, or even to be good at internet navigation. This argument assumes that everyone wants to “keep up with society”, for lack of a better term.
Agree:
“These tools enable our brains to do things that would once have been almost unimaginable: …real-time data from satellites, global environmental databases, and high-resolution models allow geophysicists to recognize the subtle signs of long-term changes to the planet.” I would have to agree that, in terms of the environmental movement, technology can be helpful in gathering lots of information and analyzing it on a large, comparative scale.
“Yet in one sense, the age of the cyborg and the super-genius has already arrived. It just involves external information and communication devices instead of implants and genetic modification.” Unfortunately, this is true. Although people don’t seem to be getting that much smarter, many of us have gadgets in our pockets all day that can tell us basically anything we need to know. For example, I don’t need to know the bus schedule, because I can just text “Blirpit UVM” to service number that will text me back within seconds with the wait times for on and off-campus busses. Some of my friends have cell phones that can access the internet, and so they can look up anything, at any time. They can even go to UVM’s webpage and see what is for dinner, anywhere on campus!
The Persuaders Film:
ReplyDelete1)In the early 1990s, a new approach to advertising ensued. In order to “Brand” consumers, advertisers would appeal to the emotional desires of the viewer. It has gotten so far the people’s spiritual and aesthetic values are associated with certain products.
2)Advertisers have studied cults in order to better understand the physiology behind human desire to belong to a certain brand. Turns out, the two are quite related. In fact, people join cults for the same reasons they are loyal to certain brands: they want to feel like they belong to something, and have meaning in their lives.
3)With programs like Tivo, people can skip commercials, and thus aren’t taking in as many ads. As a result, advertisers have incorporated their messages directly into television shows.
4)Consumers buy things for unconscious reasons. They go into a store, potentially not having any specific needs, and end up buying things that they think they ‘need’. They make up reasons to justify purchases that seem to make sense.
5)Every word has an imprinted message that is different for each individual. When we see ads, we think of other things that are associated with the words, images, smells, or textures.
Ad Nauseam:Parts 3 and 4
ReplyDeleteWhat struck me as quite interesting was a the chapter in section 3 titled Shopping for Cancer. Part of this chapter talked about the flu season and what the book referred to as the flu economy. It blows my mind that the CEO of Walgreens told some of the people attending a meeting that if they were sick, they should go to highly populated areas to spread their germs. What is this world coming to where companies go out and infect the masses to make a profit? I understand the economics behind it all and if no one is sick chances are, people aren't buying cold medicines, but honestly where is the moral compass? Its bad enough that other forms of advertising work to create conflict in people so they will go out and buy products, but actually trying to spread sickness to force people to purchase products, thats a new all-time low.
In Part 4, I found the Shopping Spies chapter to be kind of creepy. It reminded me of the film Consuming Kids where children were studied in every aspect of their lives to the point where it was just inappropriate, so that advertising agencies could better target the children. You don't grow out of this stage apparently because researchers are now targeting adults in grocery stores. This is just plain creepy. Companies are now essentially stalking their target audiences. It also reminded me of in the Persuaders film where the man was being asked about how he felt when he was eating the bread. Granted, he was fully aware he was being studied, but the questions the researcher was asking just made no sense. "Do you feel lonely while eating white bread?" And this whole stalking method of research just makes no sense either. Let people do their grocery shopping in peace. Nobody wants a researcher trying to get inside their head without their permission as they casually stroll through the grocery store. It's just weird and unnecessary.
Is Google Making Us Smarter:
ReplyDelete1. Thesis: Increasing technology will only serve to continue to augment our intelligence and make us smarter as humans, just as it has done throughout history.
2. Agree:
I agree that humans, evolutionarily speaking, have coped by becoming smarter. Our brains have "...changed to meet the challenge..." If there was an obstacle, our brains changed to overcome it, and as a result we have such things as written and spoken language, foresight, long-term planning, the telephone, and the automoblile. All of which have helped our species come to be what we know it is today.
I also agree that the "...age of the cyborg and the suoer-genius has already arrived." Everyone has all types of gadgets that they just take for granted. Were someone from 150 years ago to see the technology that we have now, they would be blown away. We have instant access to all kinds of information with just the touch of a button.
Disagree:
I disagree with the fact idea that we have been augmenting our intelligence for years and it hasn't proved to be a hazard so now shouldn't be any different. I believe that everything has a breaking point, and just because something hasn't caused problems in the past, doesn't mean it wont in the future. I think this rapid advance in external intelligences is not good for the human brain. I think it is making us dumber and not smarter. Everything in moderation;but we are not handling media and technology in moderation in the least sense of the word, and I do believe this will have adverse affects.
I also disagree that these reliances on certain drugs helps to increase our intelligence as well. I don't believe it does. I personally think that intelligence is something that comes from within the mind and cannot be falsely mimicked by way of a particular drug. This sort of drug-induced intelligence is not the kind of thing our brains need to cope with and change according to new challenges that arise. We cannot rely on a substance or technology to to our evolutionary adjusting for us.
The Persuaders:
ReplyDelete1. "What advertising has always wanted to do is not simply to suffuse the atmosphere but to become the atmosphere and wants us not to be able to find a way outside the world that it creates for us." Essentially, advertisement agencies are trying to pin us, the consumers, into a world where we cannot escape their ads.
2. Brands started to try to forge an emotional bond with the consumer america, a concept known as emotional branding. With emotional branding, "...brands become more than just a mark of quality , they become an invitation to a longed for lifestyle, a ready made identity." It plays on something beyond human logic and reason.
3. There are agencies who go through every script and look for places where they can insert different products into programs.
4. People are watching fewer adds by either ignoring them or Tivo-ing them out, so advertisers are trying to place advertisements in places where people can't ignore them, such as in the shows themselves. And here we have what is known as product placement, although advertising agencies prefer to call it the "...seam-less integration of merchandise and narrative." But really its all the same.
5. There are certain codes that correspond with products and ideas that help to advertise it to the masses. Focus groups are done to find out how people react to certain words or codes.(Reptilian actions)