Parasocial relationships, Amplification, and Media Logic

Many thoughts and ideas have come to my mind the past few lectures about how these topics have shown up in my daily life.
Parasocial Relationships:
An example of a Parasocial relationship that instantly came to mind was Facebook "stalking." I swear that my mom is the queen of Facebook stalking; keeping up on what everyone is doing and what is going on in their lives. The problem is, that because my mom is a school teacher in my hometown district, she is friends with people her age and my age that she knows from school. Every time that I go home on a weekend, I get to hear about what people are doing, thoughts on new relationships, breakups, or other dramas. No matter how many times I tell her to quit trying to stay up on all the drama and gossip, she can't resist. It's interesting to me how someone you never expect to keep tabs on your personal current events, may very well be doing just that. Makes me wonder who is creeping on my Facebook page to constantly see what is happening in my life, without my knowledge. Social media has provided great ease of access for people to form these Parasocial relationships, something that I'm confident is happening too often than I would care to think about.

Amplification:
 Amplification is widely used on television. I have often been a fan of reality shows: especially The Apprentice and The Biggest Loser. It's all about the ratings the show gets and how many people tune in! Networks and producers of these shows really milk the suspense factor. They often use intense music to strengthen the mood. One of my biggest peeves is when they are about to reveal something very important and they cut to a commercial break. For example, The Biggest Loser ends every episode with a weigh-in and someone being kicked off. During the weigh-in, often times it comes down to the last person to be weighed as to who is eligible to be going home. They always show the numbers on the scale bouncing around, up and down, and then they will show a horrified look from one of the contestants, then it's straight to a commercial break. They really manipulate what and when they show you, so that you will be glued to the show and wait for it to return. Drama and suspense are huge amplifying tools on tv.

Media Logic:
My thought on media logic is that we really are oblivious most of the time. Internet ads pop up all the time, and we all know that they are based off of our popular searches, etc. Usually I just exit out of them and don't pay any attention. But I have found myself later thinking about the product and maybe even searching on Ebay or adding it to my grocery list. On tv, there are food commercials. I will often see a commercial and immediately that food is what I crave for the next few days. Or if I see a food that looks very disgusting to me, then I automatically disregard it. All of this is done almost instantly and unconsciously. Finally, in regards to the Cultivation Theory: I thought of how lately there has been all this attention, especially tv shows, about zombies taking over the world. Most people think this is ridiculous, but after so much exposure people find themselves thinking about it rationally. And from this comes shows like Doomsday Preppers, people who are seriously afraid of a zombie apocalypse or other crazy disaster. It goes to show that over time, we become engrossed and may not even realize the hold that media creates on us.