DOVE FOR MEN!

My favorite part of the Superbowl (sorry guys) was indeed being the designated quesadilla maker, the end, and what comes between…COMMERCIALS! I genuinely enjoyed seeing these ads that cost millions of dollars to put on the air, for what they believed to be the most ideal time to reach a broad audience. The Dove for Men commercial portrayed the life of a man beginning from conception to finally finding a proper body wash. Not only was it humorous and grasped my attention, it utilized music to create a simple jingle that incorporated fast lyrics that portrayed their so-called amazing product. The protagonist of the commercial was a slightly better than average looking man, who everyone could relate to. His lifestyle, simple, a wife, kids, yet hectic due to his manly duties. They used their product as the solution for all in his life.

The Big Beer Ad

The best beer ad to date represents the consumers in a very honest fashion. Not only do they reflect warriors on the search for a good brew, but the company strategically states that this is a big ad, created solely to sell beer. Carlton Draught utilizes plain, average looking men to sell the beer, because they share many familiarities with the consumers. The company hired a major company to create the biggest company ever to profit, and it was a huge success.

Law and Order: SVU

The other day I was watching Law and Order with my boyfriend. A quick synopsis of the plot goes as follows: A court case hearing about a young, HIV-infected, man who is on trial for multiple accounts of attempted murder due to his sexual encounters with women. When one of the victims is on the stand one of the attorneys cross-examines her suggesting she knew of the dangers of unprotected sex. This attorney used advertisements that were placed in the victims surrounds, such as bus stops, bus, billboards around her apartment, etc. I found it interesting that this attorney used these advertisements as evidence, which implies that it is expected of everyday citizens to absorb the information the media sends us.

Campaigns against sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV are generally created for a younger audience because people in their teens and twenties are more likely to contract a disease, because they are not educated about STDs properly and maintain an invincible persona. Around the West Hollywood area, the ads depict men, because advertisers know that there are many gay men in that area. This goes back to the initial HIV stereotypes, which implied that only gay men get this disease, this is a notion that has been proven wrong since.

These campaign ads impact many people on a daily basis, and provide a reminder to keep safe, especially in this day and age. They continue to impact people of every age, sex, gender. Sometimes it just takes a visual message to change a persons life for good!

GOOD YEAR BLIMP

Around 5:45 pm I looked up to the sky noticing the lights turned on at the softball field. Drifting East of me I noticed a Good Year Blimp. I find it quite interesting that major corporations do not need to state what they produce in order to get their messages out to consumers. This blue and yellow blimp often floats about our Los Angeles sky and everyone recognizes it, and it’s message which is “purchase Good Year Tires.”

I questioned the blimps purpose for a split second, wondering why it would be out around the time it gets dark, because it is more difficult to see. In retrospect, It could be because the target audience gets off work around that time. The individuals who have a need for tires are those who are of driving age and have some funds.

Photoshop=False Advertising?

In today’s day and age, many individuals scour magazines and compare themselves to these flawless images in front of them. Little do they know that nearly every single photo has been retouched using photoshop and every inch of these models and celebrities has been reviewed time and time again. The fact of the matter is that photographers no longer need to take remarkable photographs to get a remarkable end result, all they need to do is rely on their Photoshop software to paint over the skin, slim down the waist, elongate the legs, fix the hair, erase a tattoo, etc. The images we are confronted with on a daily basis are no longer real, but this negatively impacts peoples’ body images.

Advertising for men depict busty, slender, tan, beautiful women, that are used to send the message “purchase this product, and I will be yours.” Unfortunately, the same image is used for women, however the message in female advertising is “purchase this product, and you will be me.” This creates an illusion in the minds of women that they are insufficient and need to constantly improve their looks in order to compete with what they see in magazines. The majority of people do not know how photoshop is used and to what extent it changes a raw image, thus people hold themselves to unattainable standards. Little do they know that without retouching, these depicted individuals are not flawless, and are truly everyday individuals. Because of photoshop, advertising today is false advertising.

The following images show celebrities and models with apparent retouching:

Direct TV Coffee Please

I have come to the utter realization that living in Los Angeles specifically allows all forms of media to advertise in my direction 24/7 via every outlet. To be fair, I thought that having a cup of hot chocolate at a local café was exempt from this strange clause in LA 101, however, I was wrong. On a cloudy Monday afternoon I headed down to the Novel Café on Lincoln Ave. and ordered a much craved cup of hot cocoa, although I was displeased to discover that this “café” would serve Nesquik, I was even more shocked when I saw the sleeve of the cup was indeed an advertisement… for Direct TV. I know that the advertising industry does not regard any aspect of human life as sacred in this day and age, but is it necessary to invade our hot beverages?

Considering that the typical coffee drinker is above 20 years of age and has access to a bank account, these are the individuals who Direct TV needs to target. By depicting a multitude of television networks that their consumers have the ability to view with their service, they effectively grasp the attention of their intended audience. Considering the fact that the company (probably) provides free coffee sleeves, this is a cheap and effective way to reach consumers. It is a win-win situation for the cafés that receive the sleeves, because they do not need to purchase more paper products, thus saving money.

Don’t Shop, Adopt!

The thought of abandoned animals is absolutely terrible, but because there are so many of them, millions are euthanized each and every year. If more people considered adopting an adorable mutt or kitten from the pound, shelter, or their choice of rescue organization, there would be less homeless animals in this world. Puppy mills are amongst the most devastating trades that damage an animal’s chance at being adopted. Due to greedy people who constantly breed animals in oftentimes unsanitary conditions to rake in some dough, many individuals who are looking for an adorable family friend head straight to the pet store. These individuals pay upward of one thousand dollars for puppy that may be inbreeded or bred in unethical conditions.

Many stray animals are turned into the shelter on any given day. Whether they are found running around the streets, rummaging through trash trying to find some scraps for dinner, or had a great older companion who passed away, these animals are bound to be loyal pets and deserve a second chance!

Instead of paying hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars, the adopter will pay less than $100, which covers spaying/neutering, microchipping, licensing, and the medical expenses that may have accrued during the animals stay. Individuals may state that one does not know what type of health issues or behavioral traits will come with a pet adopted from a shelter, however from personal experience, I would have to say that these beautiful creatures are grateful for having a home and show their gratitude on a daily basis. I adopted a kitten a couple months back, let’s just say he was my Thanksgiving present to myself. This kitten is so appreciative and loving and has developed quite a begging habit (he generally just thrusts his head into bowls of cereal when you are not looking).  I do not know what happened before I came into his life, except for the fact that he was fostered by a volunteer, and sick early on in his life. Not only was he underweight, but he had mange. By the time I adopted him, these conditions had already been treated and I was the new mother of a healthy kitten, and he brings me immense happiness.

Fortunately there is a campaign that targets animal lovers spreading the message that adoption is the best option for those ready to invite an animal into their family. For those who have not gotten the message by now: DON’T SHOP, ADOPT!!

Bally’s Advertisement Fitness

During an intense gym session, one may be intrigued by the many media outlets used to prolong exercise by getting people to forget that they are… well exercising. An instant snapshot of the gym may depict three televisions in front of a row of ellipticals, stationary bikes, treadmills, stairclimbers, amongst many other machines ready to whip the member into shape. Interestingly enough if someone heads to the weight room, they would witness nearly three-quarters of the people avoiding exercise at any cost, therefore sitting and watching television. (Question: Can you still consider these people couch potatoes?)

One of the televisions will constantly be playing Bally’s TV, which is supposed to give nutritional and exercise tips, however the reoccurring theme seems to be advertisements. I know that Bally’s has not been doing that great, financially speaking, in recent years, but I find it odd that they are using themselves as a media outlet, especially considering many utilize the gym as their own oasis from their busy lives.

Advertisers may target gym members because they believe that these people have the finances to purchase excess material items. Since the majority of gym members are over 18, these individuals are also more likely to be employed. Considering many ads seem to be for music, books, and other entertainment, they also may be targeting a younger audience.

LA ROUCHE=EVIL

*To begin I would like to state that I do not agree with La Rouche’s campaigns or perspectives. Also, I am by no means an expert and do not know this organization particularly well.

La Rouche is an extreme rightest organization whose main campaign of the moment is fighting Obama’s healthcare plan. They use strong images to depict their dissatisfaction with President Obama and compare him to Hitler, who unified Germany during the 20th century only to use the Jews as the scapegoat for their financial despair. They go on to state that universal healthcare will victimize the elderly. The image below depicts La Rouche’s socalled “creative” techniques.

Although La Rouche’s images grasp the attention of those who pass by their booths and website, they evoke negative feelings about our nation and could be considered as anti-patriotic. If one looks at the website, he or she will notice that the primary font used on the homepage is red, which portrays their conservative beliefs. Although they list their “democrats for congress” on the homepage, the organization is known be conservative, extreme, and irrational. Most organizations have an About section on their website, a feature that www.LaRouchePAC.com lacks.

From my personal experience as a canvasser, I have encountered La Rouche on numerous occasions. Their drastic measures for conveying their message and fundraising (such as calling individuals who disagree with their campaigns Nazis) have made life significantly more difficult for other organizations. Once again, I do not know everything about this organization, but I encourage the reader to conduct their own research.

Got Milk?

Every celebrity from Ronald McDonald to Kate Moss to Steven Tyler to the cast of SCRUBS seem to have sported a milk mustache for their own “Got Milk?” campaign. With crafty phrases such as “Bone Chilla”, “Holy Molar”, “Sippin’ Pretty”, “Shut Eye Battle City”, “Gladiator Formulator”, “Zen Again”, and for environmental folks, “The Crafty Coral”, the California Milk Processor Board has created an effective way to promote milk as a healthy beverage. The CMPB gets their message across to a large audience due to the many concepts and forms of media they utilize.

The famous milk mustache that is the focus of each advertisement poster gives the consumer the notion that milk is a key component of each spokesperson’s everyday diet (which may or may not be true). This provokes the consumer to purchase milk, which benefits the milk industry. Before continuing, it is necessary to draw attention to the fact that in 1993 the CMPB was created to promote milk consumption through an intense marketing campaign. Eleven processors give 3 cents of every gallon sold to the campaign. If you think about it, the consumers are actually paying for the advertisement, now that is smart marketing!

The key trait that a “Got Milk?” spokesperson will have is a celebrity status, whether they are actors, singers, or athletes. This allows the CMPB to direct the message to every individual from children to centarians (people over 100), great concept, but considering that this benefits a specific industry people must remain skeptical to their message. The research conducted may be biased and wont depict both sides of the story, thus further research is necessary.

Many individuals, myself included, have opposing views of dairy consumption and believe that ads such as the “Got Milk?” campaign are false advertising. The primary reason many people become vegan is health related. A vegan is an individual who does not consume any meat (including fowl and fish) or dairy. I will leave the reader with two concepts:

1) Humans are the only species that consumes milk after breast-feeding.

2) Humans are also the only species that consumes another species milk.

Create your own opinion, do some research, do not take anything at face value.