The Future of the Internet: My Thoughts

I think that there will be a lot more devices that have internet capability in 2020. I also think that people will have their computers built into the wall, to save space. Maybe they will even be flat screens that are almost like a picture frame so you can just hang it on a wall and then take it with you when you will be on the go. I think that the CyberScalpel is so cool, and hope that there will be more good uses of technology such as that. I would like to see computers that aren't so prone to viruses, or even make them virtually impossible!

The Gossip on Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl has a 4.5 star rating on tvguide.com. Why are the ratings for this show so high? You can state your opinion, but mine is that because the lives of the characters are glamorized.

The show's main characters are 4 white, heterosexual females and 3, white heterosexual males. Their ages are all late teens, early adult. The only people that are possibly over the age of 40 would be the parents and the only slightly heavier person I have seen on the show is Dorota. The others all seem to have the perfect body.

The leading roles in this show are the women. They also outnumber the men so I think that gives them a sense of power. The women characters dress in a preppy New York style but can also wear some sexy, revealing things at times. I think that the women characters are portrayed as strong and confident women, but they can also be catty, rude and arrogant. They are no women minorities and none are homosexual.

The intended audience of this show would be teenagers. I think that mostly teenagers watch this show because this show is all about gossip and that's what teenagers like to hear, see and watch.

I think that this show portrays women in a good way. I don't think that all women are like the women on the show, but it's TV. Of course they are going to spice it up a little bit. I like how the girls in the show are shown as confident and seem to be able to handle anything. Overall, I think that this show get's an A- on the portrayal of women.

Deconstruction

I love to run and stay active. I can't help but become inspired after watching a Nike commercial. That could be partly why I love their products so much, but I also know that they have good quality products that are worth buying. I chose this Michael Jordan Nike ad because I found it to be very inspiring and also showed a different side of Jordan. A backstage, humble version. I also liked this Nike ad, and all other Nike ads too, because I feel like they don't try as hard in their commercials to persuade you to just buy their product. They usually just persuade you to be active and of course, "just do it!" 

CELEBRITIES: This ad used a famous athlete, Michael Jordan. 

EXPERTS: A lot of people would probably consider Michael Jordan an expert. If he is an expert and he's wearing Nike, then we should all be wearing Nike! 

BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE: I think that this commercial could have implied that by wearing Nike, you could become as great as Michael Jordan.

The Super Bowl and Unhealthy Advertisements

The Super Bowl allows unhealthy advertisements because they are not concerned about the health of the viewers. They are more concerned about making money and getting people to watch the game. I think that it's sad but I suppose that's just business. I also don't think that it should be up to the Super Bowl to keep us healthy but rather our own choices. It will always be hard to do the right and healthy thing no matter what and I don't think that not having alcohol and fast food commercials would make too much of a difference.

Your Vote Counts!!

Okay, I must admit that I am not a politics person. My heart doesn't start racing while watching a political debate and to be honest, I didn't even watch any speeches from the infamous Obama vs. McCain election. But despite all of this I am still very glad that Amee Wittbrodt made learning about elections part of a Media & Society class assignment. I now realize that it is important for us as U.S. citizens to vote for who we want in office.  It really does make me angry when someone complains about who won an election and then when I ask them if they voted they reply with a hesitant "No..". You need to let your opinion be known and voice be heard. Although your vote may not make a huge impact, it does make a difference. 
So thank you, Amy, for making me think about things that I would normally ignore. Based on the information I learned in class if I were old enough to have voted in the '08 election, I would have voted for John McCain. He was a good man, not just a popular celebrity.

Have Good Morals Taken a Backseat to Image?!?

Think back to the last political campaign or speech you seen on TV. Were you more intrigued by the persons values or their poise, voice, etc.? I'm sure that you would like to say that values is what matters the most and that's what you paid attention to, but if you were to really think about it a lot of you may have been more focused on the person's disposition. 

We know that morals are significantly more important than a persons appearance. But what do people pay the most attention to when deciding who they want to vote for? That is a question that is not as easily answered. I hope that the next time you are privileged to vote for a leader(of any kind) you will really listen to what that person is saying and watch what that person is doing before making a final judgement.

We're All Pirates

In the time that it takes you to sing your favorite song, you probably could have downloaded the entire album. How? Filesharing sites and programs such as mp3Raid and Limewire are scattered all across the internet and are very popular in the online world. But before you get excited and start typing "free music" into Google, you should know that these sites are illegal and downloading from them is punishable by crime.
The RIAA is responsible for superintending all of the record labels, administering guidelines, and also busting anybody committing the act of piracy. Piracy is just a fancy word that means stealing a copyrighted product. They charged Jammie Thomas from Minnesota a fee of nearly 10 THOUSAND dollars per song. I find it ironic that one of those songs was "Bills, Bills, Bills" by Destiny's Child.
If I were a member of Destiny's Child(or any band), I wouldn't want anybody downloading my songs illegally. Most musicians make a living off of record sales and if record sales continue going down, music could become only a hobby. Another negative outcome of illegal filesharing is that fewer new artists are being signed due to financial issues at record companies. I don't know about you, but I want to make sure that our musicians are being paid well and also that new artists are attaining their dream of getting signed by a record company.


So really, the choice is up to you. Would you rather pay a dollar now, or ten thousand later?