Pink is for Girls, But not this Girl

I found “When Did Girls Start Wearing Pink” by Jeanne Maglaty to be very interesting. I knew before reading it that “blue for boys and pink for girls” was not always “a thing”. However, I did not know the specifics. It doesn't surprise me to learn that branding and stores are the ones who began it. If there is money to be made the advertising industry will be the first to do something with it.

The article reminds me of another online article I stumbled across about a mother who started her own clothing line for her daughter. Sadly I can’t remember the name of the brand or the woman’s name. Her daughter is (or was at the time of the article) in elementary school and just didn't like “girl section” clothes. Everything was pink and princesses. So her mother decided to make her own line and sell it online. It features more neutral colors of blues and greens and pictures and slogans about sports and science. This is similar to the end of the article. There are many people out there, parents and kids, who don’t really want to be type cast.

I remember when I was in first grade my favorite color used to be pink. But then one day, just on a whim, I changed my mind and made it gold. Specifically, something NOT pink. I wore nothing but jeans and t-shirts to school and only wore dresses, which I didn't mind that much, on holidays. But I knew pink was the “girly” color. I didn't want to be “girly”, or type cast, even at 7.

I can understand why parents would want their babies, who can’t talk or express themselves, to wear gender specific clothing. It makes it easier for others to look and see what gender the child is and not have to ask. But as we age and gain the ability TO talk and TO think creatively and have opinions, perhaps it would be worthwhile to have more clothing options for our children to express themselves than just the “pink and blue” sections. 

ROLLER COASTER CRASHES INTO GROUND, MANY DEATHS REPORTED. lol wut?

The other day I was perusing Facebook and something stuck out at me. It was a post that read:

"Breaking news - FOX - Roller coaster crash at major theme park. Many casualties are reported. Crash was due to car sliding off of track at second hill. At least 21 deaths were reported on impact. Passengers in first 8 cars all pronounced dead at the scene, all other riders in critical condition. Crash was caught on security camera and has been released, will not air on major news channels due to graphic content. See it here: (followed by a link)."

At first I was all like "OMG that's crazy!" but then I realized that it actually was crazy. Like, bad crazy.

Today's lecture, about social media news compared to mainstream news ties in nicely to what I now believe to have been a spam post that probably would have given my computer some nasty virus if I had clicked on it. First of all, said spammers obviously knew something about social media news. The idea of graphic content being available only through social media news is based on fact -- mainstream media has content laws and has to practice some censorship due to the audience that may be watching. High five, spammers.

In the end, I'm just glad I didn't decide to click the link. High five, me.

On the topic of social media news vs. mainstream news, I agree Jordan when he says that the best way to get news is through a combination of social media and mainstream sources. These days, on Facebook especially, users are inundated with fake news aimed solely at getting you to press that share button. However, because of corporate sponsors, mainstream news is usually either extremely embellished or watered-down to either appease viewers or to bring new viewers in. Jordan is right. High five, Jordan.

Young Teens and Video Games

I wasn't surprised to learn how many teenagers have been playing shooting video games across the nation and world over the last decade, but rather how much of a mental impact these video games have had on these kids' lives. Mostly targeted toward teenage boys, the Army Experience Center that was built to provide these kids with the opportunity to indulge in a virtual version of the games that they love to play, served as a recruitment tool as well. Army recruiters were present while kids played these games and would answer any questions that they had about the Army.

It was amazing to hear how young teens could actually be interested in joining the Army just because they were the "best" at shooting a gun and killing people on a virtual video game. However, one of the misunderstandings and impacts of the virtual citizen-soldier is that these teens think they know what war is like, but they really don't. The day-to-day struggles that actual soldiers go through during war do not even compare to a virtual video game. On the game Call of Duty, it may take a player 3 to 4 shots and only one stab of a knife to kill someone. Also, this occurs with only the tap of a button. During battle, a soldier can die from one shot and their life is over forever. I liked how recruiters were there to assist these kids by answering any questions they had, but I feel like they should have really made them understand more that the Army is not meant for everyone and that a video game does not represent reality.

Beyoncé is my best friend

Beyoncé is my best friend. She just doesn't know it...

I first realized Beyoncé Giselle Knowles (now known as Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter) was my best friend when watching MTV Girl Code. There was a segment where an actresses of the show would tell a 2-minute crazy story of what she would do if she got to hangout with a certain celebrity, the segment was called Best Friend in my Head. 

The first week of pop culture we discussed this exact situation. Para-Social Relationships or as I still like to call it "Best Friend in my Head" was an actual thing, and not something that the fine people of MTV made up.

In honor of the TV show I have planned my day with Beyoncé: We would start the day singing "I woke up like this" in honor of her newest song Flawless on our way to our breakfast of strawberry waffles and mimosas. After we eat we would go shopping for clothes and accessories to look extra fierce for a night out on the town. Then we would fly to DC, go to the White House to do zumba with Michelle Obama. During the private flight to LA she would teach me the Single Ladies dance and show me how to perfect my booty pop. We would end the night dancing till 5am at the hottest clubs then go back to her place, play with baby Blue, then all three of us would cuddle on the couch!

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles, or as her "fans" like to call her Beyoncé, is my best friend. We are both free-spirited, sassy but classy, fine-ass, women. She doesn't want to upset her other fans by our friendship so she puts her life advice in songs so I can hear it. Dance if you're a single lady, If you want to do something, you've got the green light, Boys just don't understand, and sometimes its better not to love someone to avoid being broken hearted. If you can't tell which songs these life tips come from then you should seriously re-evaluate your love for Beyoncé.

Beyoncé for some reason has a song called "Flaws and All" (Yeah right B, what flaws do you have), she is a Flawless Queen. B doesn't let anything bring her down, she has learned to love her fans as well as her haters, but if we think about it who would ever hate this woman?

The best day of my life is when I saw Beyoncé in concert this summer. No other concert before can compare and it's going to be almost impossible to beat.

BOW DOWN BITCHES!!

Reaction to the Army Experience

Tuesday's class wasn't the first exposure I'd had to the Army Experience shenanigans. I had learned about it from a different class, but Pop Culture showed more videos about it, which just enraged me more. I honestly couldn't believe that the Army Experience was a thing. A place where teenagers could go and play video games for free? Seriously. That's called enabling. Or maybe the Army is thinking this is more lifestyle marketing, but still. I don't think it's ok to be offering this kind of thing to teenagers. For starters, it gets impressionable teenagers to think that war isn't a big deal and that it's just like this super awesome video game they're playing. IT'S NOT. They have no idea the kinds of repercussions that could follow from participating in a war especially if  they're not emotionally or mentally prepared. The video games don't show and tell all of the awful PTSD that soldiers suffer from, and they don't show the injuries that soldiers come back with. For my next point, I'm going to use a line from one of my favorite movies, Wreck it Ralph. "If you die outside of your game, you don't regenerate!" Which is true! If they screw up in a game, they wait five seconds and they can use their next life until they run out, then start the game over. War is not a game, folks. You don't get a second chance. The Army Experience is being really irresponsible in my opinion. Sure, they don't talk to kids under a certain age, and only if they come to the recruiters with questions, but they are still instilling a thought in these kids' heads by connecting the Army to these first-person shooter games; they are instilling the thought that war is just like these games. It's not. I would love to hear some feedback from some of the recruits who signed up because of the Army Experience and see what they had to say about war after going through it.

Connection between War and Pop Culture!

After listening to the last two lectures in class, I have really given some thought to who is at fault for the virtual citizen-solider and the lifestyle marketing. After much consideration, I have concluded that it is both parties fault. On the one side, you have the Army who is doing what they believe is in their best interests, recruiting and training wise. They believe that if you get a child younger, he will grow up wanting to be part of that bigger picture, something bigger than himself. They would want to be part of the action he sees in Call of Duty or movies like Lone Survivor or Act of Valor. The child will feel the patriotism and live the certain lifestyle of a solider. As for training, the Army is using social media and interactive technology, such as simulations to help bridge the gap in training. There is only so many resources that the armed forces have to do training exercises, so with the interactive training, you can use this while in areas that cannot have traditional training exercises. I can see how both of these efforts are relevant and helpful to the Army and armed forces. 

On the other hand, when you think about the people who are affected by the simulations, video games, Army experience centers, commercials, movies, and everything else that are making the Army look glamorous and not as dangerous and difficult as it is in real-life, I would say that it is both the Army’s fault and the person’s fault. First off, the Army should not downplay the seriousness of enlisting just for the sake of high enrollment into the armed forces. They should be cautious when dealing with impressionable teens. When at Army Experience centers, the simulations, video games and relaxed atmosphere sends off a faulty message to the viewers, especially the younger generation using the center. They need to be more conscious of that situation. On the other side of that argument, teens and children who use the experience center, play Call of Duty or Battlefield, or watch war movies need to take it upon themselves to research the field before enlisting and acting as though because you play video games, you would be able to go overseas and protect your country like our men and women in uniform do every day. 

Overall, I blame both sides. I think that the simulations and video games are a great training tool and can help recruit but at a certain point, I believe there needs to be a level of education about what you are getting into. War is not a video game that you can just wait 10 seconds and get your life back. It is a life or death situation that we need to begin taking more seriously again as a society!

Social Media & Parasocial Relationships

Let's just say it was a rough start to the semester, that's why this blog post comes like 6 weeks late.

The longer this class evolves, the more I find myself heavily rethinking what I though I already knew. At the beginning of this class I felt that I was very different than most of the class from taking the right selfies to parasocial relationships to even my views on various class topics. Well, that's kind of true. There are definitely times in class (during unit four) when I was like, "wow, do people really do that" and "do people really go out of their way that much to be *this* person on social media?"

During that unit I really began to reevaluate my usage of social media. I looked at the number of followers I had on Twttier: 133 (at the time). That was right on par with the article "Social Networking Sites & Our Lives".

When people in class admitted to having upwards of 600 friends, I just think "How?" How can anyone have that many friends? While I am an introvert, 600 just seems physically impossible, but I also only friend people I actually know. And I used the ever popular system of unfriending about once a year.

Now that we are very much so out of unit four, I find myself being slightly more critical of what I post or how I use social media; however, my strict approach of professionaism, beneficial not superficial, yet simultaneouly me is what I'm pursuing. I see the game that 322 is trying to play. It isn't working, but maybe that's because I wasn't your average social media consumer.

The Life Experience

I have always been the person to document events, my life, and the world around me. My camera has become my most comfortable accessory that travels with me wherever I go. It started in early middle school with my best friend and our many adventures. Her dad, a professional photographer, would always let us borrow his equipment to go on photo shoots. As life progressed, so did my passion and knowledge of photography. In high school I began working for clients and making money. Now in college, I've decided to pursue full-time fashion photography.

Along with my knowledge of photography, I've steadily learned when to NOT bring my camera with me. Sure, pictures of my way of documenting experiences and remembering my favorite moments. However, being able to capture a moment digitally is different from experiencing it.

The video, I Forgot my Phone perfectly displayed the plugged in world that we live in. We become so focused on capturing the moment that we don't actually feel it. Those emotions and feelings are what help burn moments into our memories. Images are wonderful when accompanied by those feelings. I have great appreciation for photography. It's the thing that makes me feel at home. It's the area I'm excited to grow and learn in. I also have a great appreciation for life, and remembering through my eyes and not always my lens.

We've become so concerned with sharing our experiences that we forget about being in the present. We experience things for the purpose to share them vs. experiencing and sharing later. Sometimes, we just need to put that camera or phone down.

Social Media News Sharing and Old People on Facebook

One of the lines from the reading for today said that people who enjoy blogs are skeptical about them anyway, and don't go to them for hard information, just enthusiasm and energy and whatnot.
It got me thinking about my aunts and grandparents who share "news" stories on facebook without really knowing what they're posting -- whether it's false or not.
Do any of you guys have this problem? My poor, poor technologically malnourished aunt will repost "news" stories from sites like The Onion, or just blatantly wrong sources, believing them to be true. And as more people spread these images and stories, more people happily believe them. It's a problem. Or, at least if 90% of your facebook friends are older family members, it's a problem.

Some of the article discussed that people like to have various sources for their news, which is why they go on the internet. But that is a very serious concern when people don't necessarily check facts, or they read an outrageous headline (without reading the full story) and make assumptions about what happened.
And then they share, happily, without a second thought.

My grandma posted a "news" article that actually had photos taken out of context and the story was just totally made up. In the "recommended articles" section right below that, there was a news story about how the previous news story was fake, or incorrect. Why didn't grandma share that one? Huh?! Get with it, Nana.

I guess this is not super on-topic to what the actual article is about, but BLOGS ARE LIKE JAZZ, DUDE.

Do Video Games make you more violent? (Hint: The Answer is No)

Video Games are something that always have and always will be a big part of my life. They have always been there when I needed them, I play video games as a stress relief after a bad day, and they are even the cause of many of my friendships today.  And the majority of the video games that I play are pretty violent ones including; Halo, Gears of War, Dead Rising 3 and so many more. I find the notion that "Video Games make you more violent" to be just plain wrong. It's not the video games alone that would cause violent behavior but it is also a responsibility of a parent to make sure their kids understand what they are playing. Just because I play Dead Rising 3 doesn't mean that I want to take a Motorcycle Steam Roller, or a "Rollerhawg", through a pile of people and run them over. Its all a simulation.

Not Planning on building one of these anytime soon

Some of my earliest memories as a child are memories of sitting in front of a TV screen with some friends, laughing and yelling at each other because someone just won or lost at Halo. If you haven't heard of what Halo is, its a first person shooter game where you play the role of a super soldier, called a Spartan, and you have to fight the alien menace called "The Covenant."

Being a shooter, the game was rated M, for Mature, because it had blood violence, slight language and it was basically a war simulator. I remember my mother being worried when she first my brother and I playing the game. Here is an example of the gameplay that my mother was worried about.

The main thing my mom was worried about was that playing these games would make me and my brother more violent kids and that we would have problems in school. Fast forward 10 years and we are both in college, well adjusted and most importantly we haven't committed any violent acts towards others. When I am playing a video game I don't think "Wow all of this violence is pretty cool I want to try to punch someone in the face with an assault rifle." My parents made sure to teach my brother and I that there is a difference between video games and the real world. We knew even as children that video games are something that is a work of fiction and were something that not be replicated.

Don't Try This at Home Kids

When it comes to the question of "Do Video Games make you more violent?" I was always say that it is up to the parents to make sure they are teaching their children the difference between something that is in a fantasy world and real life. Thats why the new army recruitment centers with video game consoles playing video games are so worrisome, because it is trying to use video games as a way to try and replicate real life. Games like Call of Duty and Battlefield are in the business of creating the most realistic war experience they can and the army is taking advantage of that. 

Battlefield 4 is trying to look more and more realistic

There were 12 to 14 year old kids in the recruitment center that were saying "I'm the best sniper here" and "It's showing a realistic combat situation." These are children need their parents to talk to them and let them know that these video games are simulations. There is a HUGE difference between hitting a button and shooting someone in Battlefield then actually pulling a trigger and taking life right in front of you. 

But even though there are kids who's parents won't teach them what the difference is between simulation and real life, that doesn't mean that video game developers should tone down the violence. There are plenty of steps put in place to make sure that young children don't get ahold of violent video games. Like the ESRB rating system that rates every one of these violent games "M for Mature." If you can't supply an ID to prove you are over 17 then stores will not sell you the violent game. When I wanted to get ahold of a violent video game as a kid I would have to ask my parents to buy it for me. I would then have to show them a trailer of the game and the ESRB report so they can see how bad it is.

In a world where video games are becoming an increasingly larger entertainment source for young people. It is up to parents to educate themselves, at least a little bit, about video games and what violence are in the games so they can explain to their kids that the violence is simulated and not to be replicated.

Or be cool like these parents and play with your child.

BuzzFeed Quizzes

The inspiration for this blog came from our discussion about Facebook and people constantly comparing themselves to others. It's about forming personal identity and the sources that some people use to accomplish this.

Due to my dedicated study of the social media site Facebook (dedicated study...occasional addiction...who's to say?), I've noticed an increasing trend: BuzzFeed quizzes. What State Do You Actually Belong In? Which One Direction Member Should You Marry? What Hunger Games/Harry Potter/Parks and Rec/The Office/Lord of the Rings Character Are You? Just take your pick of topic that you want to know about yourself, and there's bound to be a BuzzFeed quiz for it.

My first reaction to this new Facebook epidemic was humor and excitement. I took my fair share of quizzes. Not to brag, but I'm Katniss Everdeen and Harry Potter, I would dominate the Hunger Games, I should live in Virginia apparently, and I should marry Harry Styles (I'm not even that big of a fan of One Direction...why did I take this quiz?). Those are just a few of my results; don't worry, I've taken many more quizzes. After this initial entertainment, I became annoyed at seeing these quizzes and people posting their results all over my news feed. My second level of annoyance came in the fact that I couldn't stop taking the quizzes. My addiction had grown, risen, and formed a new, interactive, result-providing platform.

Instead of ignoring the quizzes completely, I let my pop culture analysis side kick in and look at them in a different light. I realized these quizzes, while commonly used for fun and entertainment, are also providing a way for people to make comparisons and form opinions and new outlooks on themselves. It's another example of how people use outside sources, especially the Internet, to decide their identity. My concern stems from people's inability to simply be themselves, discover themselves, and create themselves. They have to see how they compare to someone else (whether that's comparing themselves to other Facebook friends' results or comparing themselves to fictional characters they may have gotten as results). At a point, I just got frustrated and thought to myself, Why do people need the Internet to tell them IF THEY'RE COOL OR NOT? (In case you wondered, I got: "straddling the line between cool and uncool." :/ Yeah, I took this quiz too...for blog analysis.)

On one hand, I think that BuzzFeed quizzes are a fun way to interact with pop culture, but I also think that, in this manner at a point, it becomes a harmful interaction. Maybe I'm overreacting on this, but I just can't write this notion off completely.

Call of Doody: Lets call it what it is

I thought today's class was interesting because, not being much of a gamer myself, I could really see how much video games impact kids/teens. I tend limit my video game use to a couple games of FIFA, Mario Kart and NFL Blitz. Honestly, I think it may be that fact that I am not very good at any other game and lack the patience to learn are the biggest reasons why I stray away from them. According to class, I am in the mere 10% of the guys within my age group that do not play first person shooter games. I was actually not very surprised because most of my friends spend hours of their day obsessing over reaching a certain number of kills or gaining experience to earn a higher rank, but I don't blame them, passes the time I suppose.

What I really took from class is how much people believe they learn from playing these games. I sear I would be rich if I had a nickel every time someone told me they were the best FIFA player ever, I would be filthy rich. The truth is games should be recreational and I just do not think something as realistic as war should be portrayed as a game. I can understand people of age enjoying the game, but unfortunately children are being exposed to the game and are becoming accustomed to the violence of war before they can really critically understand the concept of what war brings. It is a shame that children have gone from Super Mario to Super Soldiers.

Lets bring back the good ol days:
 

 

Video games used as war preparation?

Today we talked about Stahl’s article which mentions the use of video games to recruit and train people for the military. We then watched the video about the Army Experience Center. It makes me very nervous to think that young people are deciding that they know/have what it takes to go out and fight for our country, all because they can play a video game. I understand completely why the Army would use the tactic of video game simulation to attract young people, but it’s scary that people think that by playing these games they are ready for war. The Army Experience Center is a lifestyle marketing tool to create virtual citizen-soldiers (key word: VIRTUAL). This is not reality!

Just because someone can control a game controller to shoot, cover, etc., does not mean that they have the ability to actually do those things in real life when surrounded by the noises and reality of war. It creates a sense of false qualification of being a soldier. It makes me wonder what kind of new recruits the military is getting, and if these people are really suitable for war and all that comes with it? (I don’t it from video game experience) They have no reality of the situation, only a virtual world.

I kept thinking about the scene from Forrest Gump, when he is able to assemble and load the gun faster than the others. However, when he goes out and loud noises are set off and he is being yelled at, he crumbles under the pressure. I really think the same thing would happen to these young kids when they go from their video game world to the reality of the warfront. They cannot be prepared from a video game.

It also worries me that they are basing a major life decision off of a video game. People need to stop living like they are in a video game, and actually live in a real world!

Who's at fault?

We have talked a lot about the effects war has on popular culture, and video games on our citizens. I'm sure we've all seen the studies and reports on how video games are making our kids violent. We even watched the video from the Army Experience Center, which showed the kids screaming at the TVs. 

As someone who played video games, and who grew up with three brothers, video games do make us more violent. I was never to the point where I thought about doing some catastrophic, but I did get angry with my parents and brothers easier when I would lose/die in my video game. I find it funny, now, how seriously I used to take my video games, because they were supposed to be for fun. 

I would argue that the fault does not lie in the video game creators nor the children. Video game creators are getting paid to provide entertain for people. Our society has allowed them to have a job where making violent video games is OK, and if I were getting paid to make them, I wouldn't feel bad at all. I also don't think the responsibility lies in the children. They're just doing what their parents have taught them.

I think all responsibility lies within how the parents raise the child. If they raise them to realize what reality is, then no video game will alter that. I don't blame parents for providing the video games for these kids. In my personal experiences, kids who are sheltered turn out to make more mistakes, or be more socially insecure than kids who had a well-rounded childhood. Yes, that mean's watching whatever they want on TV, so they are exposed to the world. It also means playing whatever video games they want to. They will someday be exposed to all of this, so they shouldn't be sheltered from it when they are younger. 

I'd Rather Share Photos

A few weeks ago, the point was made in class that many social media users care more about documenting an experience than actually living the experience itself. (I believe this was the day we watched the “I Forgot My Phone” video.) I see myself as a “light” social media user and so it was a shock for me to realize that I have actually done this in the past.

To set the scene: It's a sunny day in London. I have just gotten off the train at Euston Station and am immersed in the towering, cultured city for the very first time. Do I head off and start touring parks? Do I sit down and enjoy a cup of tea in this foreign wonderment? No; instead, I take out my camera and begin what will be a never-ending photo session of the city. All the while I am taking these pictures, all I can think is, “This would be a great thing to show on Facebook” or “Wait until my friends back home see what I'm doing now.” By the end of my two day trip, I had taken over 500 pictures—but I cannot say that I really got to enjoy London. I was so caught up in documenting the experience to show online that I did not really live out those two days.

But my Facebook friends that saw those pictures would tell you that I had the time of my life.

In the class readings, Katie Roipie's article, in the latter part, explains how adults even show a less natural version of themselves on Facebook. She states that “Facebook is the novel we are all writing.” I believe that this idea is seen in my incessant documenting and posting of my trip's photos. Regardless of how I actually experienced the event, I wanted my Facebook friends to see my experience a certain way. And I can admit that I wanted a few of them to be jealous, especially the Facebook friends who never got to leave my small hometown: here I am in London, doing all these great things...and what have you been up to? The Facebook novel that I was writing in this instance showed myself as having grand, exciting experiences although the process of writing that “novel” made sure that wasn't necessarily so.

Commodification

In our last unit we talked about commodification. Commodification is the blending of advertisements with programming. When I would watch TV I noticed all of the different brands, but I never thought of what the companies were trying to do. I would notice the character drinking a sprite and maybe I would start wanting a sprite, but I never once thought that was the company’s intentions.They are really sneaky. Now when I watch TV I notice all of the brands and I know what the companies are trying to do. It seems like everything you watch has some type of display of different products with the brand name showing. They are all advertising to the audience and they are pretty successful. I didn’t realize how powerful just displaying a product’s name could be. The other day I was watching an interview from the Olympics on Espn and I noticed commodification. A girl was speaking, but right there on the table she was sitting at, was a bottle of Coca Cola. The bottle was full, and not opened, it was also turned just right so you could read the name. It was placed right in front of the girl for everyone to see, you couldn’t miss it. Commodification doesn’t have to be big flashy signs with a brand on it, just placing one little coke bottle on the table was enough for me to start thinking about how nice a coke might taste. I think commercials and billboards are good ways for companies to advertise, but after learning about commodification I think it’s the most powerful form of advertising. People can ignore commercials and billboards, but when people are watching a show they are paying attention to the different brands used even if it’s subconsciously. If I was a company I would try to get my products shown in as many TV shows and movies as possible.