"The Persuaders"

• What in "The Persuaders" surprised you (or not)? Name one new thing you learned about marketing or politics from watching the film. Name one new thing you learned about yourself from watching the film, or one thing that the film reiterated about yourself.
  

I was not surprised by many of the ideas that were discussed in “The Persuaders.” I feel that I am quite aware of the role that advertising plays in our lives each and every day. I understand that in America we are constantly bombarded by advertising. I thought that it was interesting how the film considered America as a dumping ground for advertising. The film acknowledged that over the last twenty years, America has become so cluttered with ads that advertising is utterly inescapable. By taking a look at New York’s Times Square, for example, one can see how much has changed over the last two decades in regards to advertising. Flashing lights, gigantic billboards, and television screens flank the sides of each and every building.


Furthermore, the film described the way that Americans have become immune to advertising. This concept is one that I have never really stopped to think about. Advertising has become such a normal part of our lives that in order for something to stand out anymore it has to be a new and unique concept. For this reason, advertising is now popping up in the most peculiar places. For example, as mentioned in the film, one might find an ad in a place as unusual as the last hole of a mini-golf course. While watching “The Persuaders,” I learned how much time and money is put into creating and executing new advertising concepts. I found the use of focus groups to be a very effective advertising tool. Furthermore, it was amazing to hear that some businesses are willing to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend the day with a marketing research guru to unlock a so called advertising code.

While watching “The Persuaders,” I found that I learned something about myself. I realized that perhaps advertising is not the line of work that I am interested in. Over the summer, I decided that I wanted to minor in advertising, but after watching “The Persuaders,” I found myself questioning the ethical aspects of advertising. I have always been aware that I business will do whatever it takes to sell an American on its product, but, truthfully, I don’t know how I feel about the lack of reality and actual connectivity that surrounds advertising. In particular, I found the development of the advertising campaign for Song, a new airline, to be quite thought provoking. As I watched fashion designer, Spade, collaborate with Song’s advertising team, I was surprised by the inspiration, a book called Lovers, that he wanted to use as a springboard for the airline’s first television commercial. While Spade took a very unique approach, his method was to attract consumers not by mentioning the airline’s advantageous features, but, rather, he wanted to create an emotional reaction, one which I found very abstract and disconnected from the actual product being sold.

• "The Persuaders" begins by questioning the increase in the amount of advertising we typically encounter in our daily lives. How would you assess the amount of advertising you see? Too much? Too little? Just right? In your view, what difference does it make to know that people today see much more advertising in their daily lives than people 20 or 30 years ago?
  

I feel that the amount of advertising that an American encounters on a daily basis is absolutely mind boggling. Advertising is everywhere, and, unfortunately, it has created an America that is possessed by materialism and overindulgence. I believe that the exponential growth of advertising over the past twenty years has been detrimental to our culture. In “The Persuaders,” it was even mentioned that advertising is in many ways depleting the very existence of the American culture. This concept suggests that the amount of advertising found in America, whether on the Internet, on TV, in print, or even along the side of the highway, has surpassed justifiable limits. However, because America thrives on it competitive capitalistic economy, the growth of advertising is not unexpected. As mentioned in the film, once a business starts to advertise, it can’t stop. In order to be successful, businesses must spend thousands, if not millions, of dollars each year on advertising endeavors. When a company lacks a strong advertising campaign, it will have difficulty keeping up in the American economic market.

Twenty or thirty years ago, America was a different place. One could not imagine the appearance of Times Square today, twenty years ago. It is amazing to think of how far advertising has advanced in only the past two decades. There are so many new mediums for advertising to take advantage of. One cannot go on a webpage without seeing a flashing picture of an iPod or the picture of a supposed weight loss patient. Magazines are filled with manipulated images promoting designer clothing and prescription medications. The advancement of computer technology, for example the progression of editing programs like Photoshop, has revolutionized the advertising industry. Furthermore, the utilization of Internet video clips by companies like American Express and BMW was unheard of twenty years ago. One could not imagine the possibilities of the Internet even ten years ago. In addition, over the last twenty years, Americans have surely become even more self-possessed. The growth of advertising is a contributing factor to so many American’s self-centeredness. Advertising’s advancement has created a society obsessed with name brands and the idea of making a good impression by one’s ability to buy, buy, buy.

"Myth of the Photographic Truth"

Photographers have the ability to alter the true meaning or context of a situation by playing with the framing of the subject they are photographing. The photographer has the creative license to include and omit what he feels is essential to the success of his photograph. In this particular case, if the photographer chose only to include the little girl in his original photograph, the viewer would be left with the question, "Why does this young girl show so much anguish in her face?" The viewer would be left to make assumptions and hypothesises. The viewer might assume that the girl is physically hurting, or, maybe, she is being punished.

The intended format of the photograph allows the viewer to further his assumptions. The viewer is able to understand the little girl's anguish more fully. Although it is still necessary to make assumptions, these assumptions are made with a bit of evidence. The viewer can now see that the girl is distressed because she has seen death. Perhaps her brother or her father has died before her eyes. Although these assumptions are more convincing, the viewer still lacks the ability to truly know the context of the situation. We can never truly know what took place when the photograph was taken. Only those who were eyewitnesses to the event are truly knowledgable of the situation.

Although photography is a revolutionary force in that it allows someone to capture a specific moment in history, the truth behind photographs is more often than not based on the perceptions and assumptions of the viewer.

Photoshop's Content and Message

Photoshop is computer program utilized by professionals and amateurs alike. Its content includes an array of digital enhancement tools, including tools for cropping, resizing, recoloring, and reconfiguring. These tools are used to edit personal photos, images found on the Internet, and they can even be used to develop an image from scratch. Once an image is loaded onto Photoshop, its pixels become part of the program's content. One can perform a variety of tasks by taking advantage of an image's unique pixel makeup. Pixels can be manipulated using the program's many tools. The magic wand tool, lasso tool, and feathering tool are a few among many of these tools.

In relation to Mcluhan's concept of "The Medium is the Message," Photoshop has had many effects on our society as a whole. Photoshop isn't just a computer program, it is a major force in the media world. Photoshop has revolutionized advertising. You can't find a magazine cover photo that hasn't been retouched. This has resulted in a society that is obsessed with the idea of perfection, a quality that, in reality, is unattainable. Magazine readers are constantly bombarded by images of beautiful women and handsome men. Products are ideolized to the extreme. In many ways, society has been brainwashed by the digitally enhanced images found in magazines, on billboards, and on television.

Photoshop and similar photo editing programs allow photos to be manipulated indefinitely. For this reason, a photograph is no longer viable evidence in court cases. Computer technology has come so far that what is really real in a photograph can easily come into question.

In addition, Photoshop is utilized as a creative outlet for artistic and computer savvy individuals. In this way, Photoshop and other digital media programs have affected the artistic world tremendously. Many would rather use the computer for artistic purposes than sit down with a pencil and sketchbook or take photos using a manual camera.

Ultimately, Photoshop was affected our society in a variety of ways. As new editions of the program become available, the possibilities will be endless.

Revised Photoshop Assignment

Questions and Revisions

I found the first Photoshop assignment to be quite a challenge. While I understood the assignment and had a vision in mind, the tools and procedures where confusing and frustrating. I was happy with my final product, but I wasn't completely satisfied. I wish that I knew how to use the magic wand tool. I thought that I'd have the ability to select an image free of a white background using the tool, but, ultimately, the only thing I got was a weird shape with some dotted lines floating around it. I guess that the problem was that I didn't understand the idea of selecting the inverse. My plan was to actually collage photographic images one on top of the other, overlapping, but I wasn't able to succeed in this venture. In addition, I also didn't understand why I couldn't just click on an image and adjust its size or change its hue or color. I also would have liked to create a more interesting background, perhaps using an interesting pattern or image found on the internet.

Facebook's Content and Many Messages

Facebook is a popular social networking website that has had an immense impact worldwide. It is one of the hottest mediums to date, attracting the attention of millions of individuals. Facebook enables its users to post videos, photos, and messages to share with their friends easily online. In addition, Facebook supports a variety of applications including Farmville, an addicting online game, and Picnik, a user-friendly photo editor. Furthermore, it allows its users to join a variety of common interest groups, whether one in support of an underground band or a specific food group. According to McLuhan, it is not these contents (videos, words, games, photos, etc.) that are of utmost importance; rather, Facebook’s message is what matters.

Facebook has had both positive and negative effects on our world. In a positive light, it allows its users to stay in contact with friends and acquaintances with the click of a button. One can easily say hello to an old friend from college by sending an inbox message or writing a wall post. This ease of communication has allowed friendships to thrive, whether across the globe or next door. However, Facebook has also become an obsession for many. Time seems to waste away when one is on Facebook. Rather than focusing on a homework assignment or filing papers at work, Facebook users set their status, tag photo albums, and creep on their friends’ profiles. This obsession has led to problems in the workplace and the classroom. Furthermore, rather than engage in physical activity or take the time to cook up a healthy meal, Facebookers are glued to their computer screens. Facebook has also raised concern in the area of security and privacy protection. While there are multiple security features available to limit the accessibility of one’s profile, there are always loopholes. Situations continue to arise in which an individual says he is who he is not, occasionally resulting in hurt feelings and even criminal offenses.

Modern Mediums

facebook

Apple iPhone



skype