Media isn't actually a "thing." It has the same etymological root as "medium"--the size between "small" and "large" as well as "psychic medium." Media, in other words, has no real substance of its own. It's the thing that's in between speaking and hearing; transmission and reception.
By way of articles, studies, and a couple of polls and links, this blog examines the significance of media in American culture. Post your thoughts after the jump.
This article shows the origin of the brainwashing advertisement that we all succumb to on a daily basis. It started as companies trying to rise to the top, by making consumers relate the good product to the phrases and pictures on the boxes. Now it is a brainwashing scheme that we are all pawns in. Every time we go shopping we gravitate towards brand names, why is that? Are they really any better? The answer is no, they can be the same product but we still go for the expensive brand name instead of the store brand alternative. This is partly based on how the grocery stores are set up, the expensive brand name foods are placed at an average person’s eye level so it is what they see first, while the knock off brand is either placed high or low on the shelf so they are easy to miss. The other reason is that we started off using those brands many years ago when there was only one large company to sell us different types of food, and now we know that brand name and it is all we want. If someone thinks that the brand name food is better than the Wegman’s brand food, then it is all physiological. The food is made by the same company, just packaged differently. Brand names also give an image of decent wealth, if you throw a party and use all Wegman’s brand foods then the majority of people will think that you are less fortunate, and cannot afford the name brand foods, when in reality you are just smarter than them. Same product at a lower price, what is not to like about it? If I took a package of Oreo’s and replaced all the brand name cookies with the Wegman’s brand, no one would notice a difference in taste until you told them. In conclusion branding is an evil mind game that has been played by large companies since the civil war.
I definitely thought that the way Landa described the history of the need of logos. Starting with the Civil War and moving to “packaged goods.” People not wanting to buy things that were packaged in barrels caused this change. He says, “to meet this need companies had to find ways to promote their “brand names”.” To me it sounds like he’s implying that logos and symbols were essential to the economy and were needed. Instead of being something that would sell more products, their intention was just to differentiate their product from others. Little did they know that this would turn into a marketing scheme that revolved around advertising. There is no doubt that symbols such, as the McDonalds golden arches and the Nike Swoosh are recognizable all over the world. However, what I found interesting was when Landa mentioned the post 9/11 world and saying, “provide the reassurance that business is running as usual.” To me that means that people feel comfortable knowing that they can go and get a big mac whenever they want. In other words, people use huge brand names to gauge how things are going in the world. If McDonalds is succeeding then everything must be going all right, but if McDonalds is faltering then something must not be okay with the world. This brings about an interesting way of looking at the human psyche. Do we as humans really judge how things are going by the ups and downs of major corporations? I think this problem stems from the stereotypes of the United States of America. McDonalds and Nike are two very American companies, therefore when they are doing well, America must be.
This article by Robin Landa is scary on how advertisements are taking over the world we live in. I never knew that advertisements were dated all the way back to the Civil War. From then to now, advertisements are everywhere in the world around us. In the article Landa paraphrased James B Twitchell, and he said, “The only way to avoid advertising is to close your eyes.” This is especially scary because of how true it is. If you think about it all Times Square in New York City is, is giant neon advertisement signs; that brighten up the night for everyone to see. Along with that, when watching TV there are commercials every ten minutes that advertise numerous objects for the public to buy. The prime time for TV commercials is during the Super Bowl as one third of the U.S watches it. We talked last class that a thirty second commercial during the Super Bowl was millions of dollars. This is mind blowing as who would ever have thought that someone would spend this much on such little time. Something that I completely agree with was when Landa said “People wanted brands that would make their lives easier and more pleasurable; they wanted brands that would make them more attractive and socially acceptable.” This defines the society we live in as everyone wears name brand clothing from some company. I remember doing an activity in high school where we had to count the number of non-name brand clothing items we were wearing at the moment, and almost everyone had a number of one or zero. This just goes to show that advertising works in today’s society and people want to wear those top brands like Nike and Victoria’s Secret. Another quote that I found quite disturbing was from McCluhan, “Historians and archaeologists will one day discover that the ads of our time are the richest and most faithful reflections that any society ever made of it’s entire range of activities”. This disturbs me because go a couple hundred years in the future, if people just look at the advertisements they will know so much about us; more than people realize. Advertisements describe society better than anything else does I believe. It says a lot about us as a culture. Like I said earlier, advertisements are taking over the world we live in, or more like they already have.
I found it quite interesting how far back advertisement dates, and the way that it began. Linda definitely opened my eyes to all of the things that advertising has been used for, from cohersing women to work outside the home to what type of sneaker to wear, and almost literally, everything in between. I did know that cracker barrels came about because they were filled with crackers to be sold to the public, but I wasn't aware that all things were sold in this manner at one point. I also didn't know that packaging items for troops was what ended that. It's very interesting to learn what small changes impacted the way we package, sell and advertise things today. Linda also talks about the common language of the icon, which we say before in a previous article. Showing even more how much an icon impacts us and how it is even considered it's own universal language.
This article by Robin Landa was a very interesting piece. I had never put much thought into the idea of why brands started or why they came to be. The idea that brands and advertising for said brands started why back in the Civil War for something as simple as packaged goods instead of the bulk barrels. This little change caused people to start buying food, premade clothing and shoes because they were being drawn away from the old methods due to advertising. One thing that Landa really made a point out of was a quote by James B. Twitchell that was “the only way to avoid advertising is to close your eyes”. This simple idea really opened my idea to just how powerful advertising really can be that they only real way to avoid it and not allow it to affect you is for you to not see it. Advertising has such a powerful impact that simply showing the patriotic women posters during wartimes caused women to become more involved in the work force as well as preserving food and supplies for the troops. Landa proved that advertising and brands are one of the most powerful things in a person’s life because we are so used to them being there that we are often not aware of how much we pay attention to them.
This article did an effective job at describing the messages that big marketing heads convey to us, the consumer, through bright colors and "dancing characters." These messages are seen as universal, as people of all different nationalities and languages receive the same message or lifestyle conveyed into each different logo. An important point that was brought up in this piece, that particularly stuck out in my mind, was the idea that "the ads of our time are the richest and most faithful reflections that any society has ever made of its entire range of activities." This is entirely true, as the brands of our generation directly correspond to the way we live our lives. We are the ones that ultimately select which brands are successful in the market and, in turn, select the ones that we would like to incorporate into our everyday lives. Everybody wants to be the nike or under armor super athlete, and no one really thinks twice about another option when it comes to fitness related clothing. Another interesting point that was brought up was the invention of the folding box. "Manufacturers could now inject personality into the product," this accurately describes a marketing heads intention of separating themselves from the competition by telling you their product is superior until you ultimately purchase it and live the same "life" as conveyed in the commercials.
This article is very interesting. In this article, Landa describes how logos and advertisements came into play. It is amazing to learn that advertisements started way back during the civil war. Soldiers needed packaged goods. People wanted products that guaranteed “freshness”, not just any old thing from a barrel. This idea of have having “better goods” stuck with people. Companies soon had to start advertising that their product was better than everyone else’s. Once someone bought the product and liked it they stuck to it. They assume it is better than every other similar product because only that company can make it that way. Now these brands that everyone liked have more value than others only based on the name on it. We are willing to spend more because we think the product will automatically be better because it is made by a certain company. Something that stuck out to me had to be the quote by James B Twitchell. He said, “The only way to avoid advertisements is to close your eyes.” The more I think about this the more I start to agree with this quote completely. When you look around people are wearing some company’s logos on their clothes whether it be Nike, Adidas, etc. Companies have turned their costumers into walking advertisements for their company. People don’t even know it. Branding and advertising has consumed all of us into thinking a certain product is somehow better. The only thing better about certain products in the name value or the company making the item.
After reading Speaking Brand by Robin Landa, I can say that I feel like a cog in a large, ever-turning machine of corporate advertising. Clearly I’m being used every single day by corporations and name brands, but I don’t think of it as such a negative thing. In a way, I’m using the name brands just as much as they’re using me. All I have to do is look down to see that, because I have brand name logos all over me most days. In a way, I am a walking paradox, because I choose to buy and use the brands I have, but I feel that I’m being manipulated and losing my true self to these logos. Landa says that we as consumers choose the brands we use because of the trust that their ads establish in us. I agree to a point, because I usually make my final judgments after I try a product, but that usually involves me purchasing the product. Large Corporation’s advertising campaign: 1…David: 0. Zero for me, because even though I didn’t fully trust that product at that point, I still gained enough trust from the ad to buy it and either hate it or build more trust in it. Lastly, I liked the quote Landa used by James B. Twitchell, because it seems to be very true. Everywhere we look, there is a logo or advertisement, whether is mobile or stationary, living or non-living. What almost makes that quote false though, is the fact that sometimes we even have to cover our ears to avoid advertisement too. The best audible advertisement I can think of is the McDonald’s theme, and how it’s evolved over the years from Justin Timberlake’s original recording. It’s everywhere and anywhere, leaving us vulnerable to attachment and manipulation in a sense.
This article shows the origin of the brainwashing advertisement that we all succumb to on a daily basis. It started as companies trying to rise to the top, by making consumers relate the good product to the phrases and pictures on the boxes. Now it is a brainwashing scheme that we are all pawns in. Every time we go shopping we gravitate towards brand names, why is that? Are they really any better? The answer is no, they can be the same product but we still go for the expensive brand name instead of the store brand alternative. This is partly based on how the grocery stores are set up, the expensive brand name foods are placed at an average person’s eye level so it is what they see first, while the knock off brand is either placed high or low on the shelf so they are easy to miss. The other reason is that we started off using those brands many years ago when there was only one large company to sell us different types of food, and now we know that brand name and it is all we want. If someone thinks that the brand name food is better than the Wegman’s brand food, then it is all physiological. The food is made by the same company, just packaged differently. Brand names also give an image of decent wealth, if you throw a party and use all Wegman’s brand foods then the majority of people will think that you are less fortunate, and cannot afford the name brand foods, when in reality you are just smarter than them. Same product at a lower price, what is not to like about it? If I took a package of Oreo’s and replaced all the brand name cookies with the Wegman’s brand, no one would notice a difference in taste until you told them. In conclusion branding is an evil mind game that has been played by large companies since the civil war.
ReplyDeleteI definitely thought that the way Landa described the history of the need of logos. Starting with the Civil War and moving to “packaged goods.” People not wanting to buy things that were packaged in barrels caused this change. He says, “to meet this need companies had to find ways to promote their “brand names”.” To me it sounds like he’s implying that logos and symbols were essential to the economy and were needed. Instead of being something that would sell more products, their intention was just to differentiate their product from others. Little did they know that this would turn into a marketing scheme that revolved around advertising.
ReplyDeleteThere is no doubt that symbols such, as the McDonalds golden arches and the Nike Swoosh are recognizable all over the world. However, what I found interesting was when Landa mentioned the post 9/11 world and saying, “provide the reassurance that business is running as usual.” To me that means that people feel comfortable knowing that they can go and get a big mac whenever they want. In other words, people use huge brand names to gauge how things are going in the world. If McDonalds is succeeding then everything must be going all right, but if McDonalds is faltering then something must not be okay with the world. This brings about an interesting way of looking at the human psyche. Do we as humans really judge how things are going by the ups and downs of major corporations? I think this problem stems from the stereotypes of the United States of America. McDonalds and Nike are two very American companies, therefore when they are doing well, America must be.
This article by Robin Landa is scary on how advertisements are taking over the world we live in. I never knew that advertisements were dated all the way back to the Civil War. From then to now, advertisements are everywhere in the world around us. In the article Landa paraphrased James B Twitchell, and he said, “The only way to avoid advertising is to close your eyes.” This is especially scary because of how true it is. If you think about it all Times Square in New York City is, is giant neon advertisement signs; that brighten up the night for everyone to see. Along with that, when watching TV there are commercials every ten minutes that advertise numerous objects for the public to buy. The prime time for TV commercials is during the Super Bowl as one third of the U.S watches it. We talked last class that a thirty second commercial during the Super Bowl was millions of dollars. This is mind blowing as who would ever have thought that someone would spend this much on such little time. Something that I completely agree with was when Landa said “People wanted brands that would make their lives easier and more pleasurable; they wanted brands that would make them more attractive and socially acceptable.” This defines the society we live in as everyone wears name brand clothing from some company. I remember doing an activity in high school where we had to count the number of non-name brand clothing items we were wearing at the moment, and almost everyone had a number of one or zero. This just goes to show that advertising works in today’s society and people want to wear those top brands like Nike and Victoria’s Secret. Another quote that I found quite disturbing was from McCluhan, “Historians and archaeologists will one day discover that the ads of our time are the richest and most faithful reflections that any society ever made of it’s entire range of activities”. This disturbs me because go a couple hundred years in the future, if people just look at the advertisements they will know so much about us; more than people realize. Advertisements describe society better than anything else does I believe. It says a lot about us as a culture. Like I said earlier, advertisements are taking over the world we live in, or more like they already have.
ReplyDeleteI found it quite interesting how far back advertisement dates, and the way that it began. Linda definitely opened my eyes to all of the things that advertising has been used for, from cohersing women to work outside the home to what type of sneaker to wear, and almost literally, everything in between. I did know that cracker barrels came about because they were filled with crackers to be sold to the public, but I wasn't aware that all things were sold in this manner at one point. I also didn't know that packaging items for troops was what ended that. It's very interesting to learn what small changes impacted the way we package, sell and advertise things today. Linda also talks about the common language of the icon, which we say before in a previous article. Showing even more how much an icon impacts us and how it is even considered it's own universal language.
ReplyDeleteThis article by Robin Landa was a very interesting piece. I had never put much thought into the idea of why brands started or why they came to be. The idea that brands and advertising for said brands started why back in the Civil War for something as simple as packaged goods instead of the bulk barrels. This little change caused people to start buying food, premade clothing and shoes because they were being drawn away from the old methods due to advertising. One thing that Landa really made a point out of was a quote by James B. Twitchell that was “the only way to avoid advertising is to close your eyes”. This simple idea really opened my idea to just how powerful advertising really can be that they only real way to avoid it and not allow it to affect you is for you to not see it. Advertising has such a powerful impact that simply showing the patriotic women posters during wartimes caused women to become more involved in the work force as well as preserving food and supplies for the troops. Landa proved that advertising and brands are one of the most powerful things in a person’s life because we are so used to them being there that we are often not aware of how much we pay attention to them.
ReplyDeleteThis article did an effective job at describing the messages that big marketing heads convey to us, the consumer, through bright colors and "dancing characters." These messages are seen as universal, as people of all different nationalities and languages receive the same message or lifestyle conveyed into each different logo. An important point that was brought up in this piece, that particularly stuck out in my mind, was the idea that "the ads of our time are the richest and most faithful reflections that any society has ever made of its entire range of activities." This is entirely true, as the brands of our generation directly correspond to the way we live our lives. We are the ones that ultimately select which brands are successful in the market and, in turn, select the ones that we would like to incorporate into our everyday lives. Everybody wants to be the nike or under armor super athlete, and no one really thinks twice about another option when it comes to fitness related clothing. Another interesting point that was brought up was the invention of the folding box. "Manufacturers could now inject personality into the product," this accurately describes a marketing heads intention of separating themselves from the competition by telling you their product is superior until you ultimately purchase it and live the same "life" as conveyed in the commercials.
ReplyDeleteThis article is very interesting. In this article, Landa describes how logos and advertisements came into play. It is amazing to learn that advertisements started way back during the civil war. Soldiers needed packaged goods. People wanted products that guaranteed “freshness”, not just any old thing from a barrel. This idea of have having “better goods” stuck with people. Companies soon had to start advertising that their product was better than everyone else’s. Once someone bought the product and liked it they stuck to it. They assume it is better than every other similar product because only that company can make it that way. Now these brands that everyone liked have more value than others only based on the name on it. We are willing to spend more because we think the product will automatically be better because it is made by a certain company.
ReplyDeleteSomething that stuck out to me had to be the quote by James B Twitchell. He said, “The only way to avoid advertisements is to close your eyes.” The more I think about this the more I start to agree with this quote completely. When you look around people are wearing some company’s logos on their clothes whether it be Nike, Adidas, etc. Companies have turned their costumers into walking advertisements for their company. People don’t even know it. Branding and advertising has consumed all of us into thinking a certain product is somehow better. The only thing better about certain products in the name value or the company making the item.
After reading Speaking Brand by Robin Landa, I can say that I feel like a cog in a large, ever-turning machine of corporate advertising. Clearly I’m being used every single day by corporations and name brands, but I don’t think of it as such a negative thing. In a way, I’m using the name brands just as much as they’re using me. All I have to do is look down to see that, because I have brand name logos all over me most days. In a way, I am a walking paradox, because I choose to buy and use the brands I have, but I feel that I’m being manipulated and losing my true self to these logos. Landa says that we as consumers choose the brands we use because of the trust that their ads establish in us. I agree to a point, because I usually make my final judgments after I try a product, but that usually involves me purchasing the product. Large Corporation’s advertising campaign: 1…David: 0. Zero for me, because even though I didn’t fully trust that product at that point, I still gained enough trust from the ad to buy it and either hate it or build more trust in it. Lastly, I liked the quote Landa used by James B. Twitchell, because it seems to be very true. Everywhere we look, there is a logo or advertisement, whether is mobile or stationary, living or non-living. What almost makes that quote false though, is the fact that sometimes we even have to cover our ears to avoid advertisement too. The best audible advertisement I can think of is the McDonald’s theme, and how it’s evolved over the years from Justin Timberlake’s original recording. It’s everywhere and anywhere, leaving us vulnerable to attachment and manipulation in a sense.
ReplyDelete