The Day Music Died

3 Threatened American Institutions

1.) One of the institutions which Keen believes to be declining is texts. There were several examples of these throughout the article. The amount of newspapers being purchased today is declining. The New York Times for example currently has 2.7 paid subscribers, but the online version has over 40 million. Since the internet is a fast way to read the news, more and more people are choosing it to quickly get information. Many magazines are also facing this same dilemma because many of the articles found in magazines can be found on the internet with the click of a button and no money. With so many facts available online people find less reason to actually purchase books. There are websites such as sparknotes, which summarize the facts in a quick and easy way for the reader. I do think this is a reasonable thing to be worried about, especially if you have a job as a journalist, author, or working for a company that produces such media sources. Jobs are being lost because there is no longer such a high need for employees to write about certain things. With money declining in these field there, therefore is not enough money to pay employees to work.

2.) Another institution that is in danger is the music industry. This is easy to understand simply by the number of downloads people make daily. Internet sources such as limewire and napster allow music to be downloaded for free. Why would people want to buy CD’s when they know they can simply get them for free? Many people believe that since so many people are doing it that there is little to no chance they will be caught. Since so much music is downloaded the artists, and stores that depend on CD sales are losing large amounts of money. The radio which used to be very popular is also losing it steam. Over the past 18 years, the amount of time listeners between the ages of 18 and 24 had dropped 21 percent. Instead of listening to the radio and waiting for your favorite song to come on through commercials, people now simply listen to the music they want by downloading it. Again, I agree that is a problem, but it’s not something that is a problem for everyone, many people think this is good because it saves them money. This is a negative thing for those who are losing money because of the downloads. Radio stations could be forced out of business, and recording artists, managers, and producers are suffering from a loss of sales.

3.) A third institution that is in danger is the movie industry. In 2005, this industry lost $6.1 billion in global wholesale revenues. There are several causes for this problem. It’s not uncommon to find bootlegged copies of DVDs in large cities, or find websites online that show movies that are still in theater; these two account for $4.7 billion of losses. Movie theaters are losing business due to these breakthroughs. Admissions are now the lowest it’s been since 1997. People don’t want to pay $10 at a theater when they can see it for free online. The number of people who download movies online is currently 660,000, but it is estimated at by 2010 the number could grow to 50 million. The sale of DVDs has also plummeted, due to these new forms of entertainment. This is a problem for those whose jobs depend on sales of this type. An example of Disney can be used. Between the years 2003 and 2005, Disney lost so much money that they had to eliminate 650 jobs, which also forces the amount of films produced to decrease. I think people who are not directly affected by the negative aspects of this, think there is nothing wrong with it. But with the other two institutions, those whose jobs are in jeopardy will suffer, and will find these as negative.

The quote “sheep are devouring men” means that the internet is taking over many of Americans institutions. The internet is a fast, easy, and basically a free way to get information. Books, movie theaters, and music are all examples of these institutions that suffer. Because the internet is so easy to use, people opt to use it over things like books. An example from the reading explains that The New York Times had to lay off 200 people in 2005. Less people are buying newspapers because articles are available online, so there is not enough money or need for a large amount of employees.

Growing Up Online

Unfortunately, watching the documentary Growing Up Online, I wasn’t shocked by what I saw. The Internet has such a huge influence on kids and teens today, and many feel as it was clearly shown on the documentary feel, that they couldn’t live without it.

The Internet can be a very useful device whether it used to school, work, or simply enjoyment. Sadly though, many people find ways to use it in a negative way. It’s so sad that people feel they can’t connect with people in their lives and have to depend on the Internet to solve their problems. Why there are sites dedicated to suicide, anorexia, and other destructive behaviors is baffling. Time should be devoted to productive positive things, not negative and cult like activities.

As far as myspace and facebook go, I think many people like it because it allows them to put on an act and be whoever they want for a given period of time, at allows them to escape from reality When people meet one another via myspace, they can do and say whatever they please. In many cases they don’t personally know whom they are messaging, so they will rarely suffer reproductions from what they say.

I have never used the Internet as much as the people in the film did, and I’m hoping they selected a few of the extremes. Some of those addicted to the Internet were in middle school, and they were talking about the different kinds of pictures they take of themselves and posted, it reminded me a little bit of some of the young girls show in the “Merchants of Cool” documentary. The Internet is making people grow up too fast, and in a negative way.

I think it’s ok for young children to be monitored while they use the Internet. If they don’t know what they are doing, they can easily click on the wrong thing and see things they shouldn’t. I also think its ok for older kids to be monitored while using the Internet, but in moderation. The mom in this film however, was way over the top. Her children were in the late years of high school, and entering college. It’s not the moms business to know every little thing they are doing, down to who they talk to on facebook. Today, I know of a lot of parents that have facebooks so they can check up on their kids, I think this is a bit intrusive because they are now seeing their children how their friends see them, and many times seeing a lot of things that kids don’t want to share with their parents.

I liked this documentary, it showed the truth about the Internet and what it’s doing to today’s youth. Sadly, people are becoming way too dependent of  the Internet in a negative, counterproductive way.

The Persuaders

1.) Techniques in advertising have, and are going very far try to promote company’s products. With new technology there are even more ways for advertisers to get their points across. Companies want their audiences to constantly be thinking about them; the consumer doesn’t even always know they are being targeted to. Movies, and television shows constantly have their characters using or being around popular products, this makes the viewer think the particular item is cool, and feel like they need it. One example I think of is Apple. The popular Apple icon is seen on computers characters use, phones, and of course ipods. I think advertisers will continue to go further. Another thing they do, is make the consumer think that if they own a particular item they will then have aptitude in whatever the product advertises. Nike is an example in this, the ad in the film has a number of people working out in their clothes and looking as though they are succeeding. This is an extremely smart tactic they use, because everyone want a simple way to be the “best’” in a particular area.

2.) Americans all want to feel excepted and a sense of closeness with the products they use, advertisers know and build off of this. Products succeed when they make consumers feel a form of comfort and emotional stability. The film tells how Starbucks prides them on being all about community and a place to escape. Cheerios was also used in expressing this feeling of closeness, when a Grandmother got to spend time with her grandson on his first Christmas. Another thing Americans want is it be accepted. Although untrue, many people feel they will be accepted based on the material items they possess, advertisers use this, and only fuel to this misconception.

3.) A common element that marketers and advertisers use is to connect with the consumer on an emotional level. Chinet paper plates demonstrate this well in the film. The words; traditions, friends, and confidence all appear on plates on the commercial for the disposable plate ware. They want people to feel that by using their products they can have feeling, and memories. This is common among advertisers because they know this is something that consumer want in their lives. Audiences have to form self-awareness and be able to block out some of these messages that advertisers are sending. We have to teach ourselves to see what the actual product is selling, not the sometimes false emotions the advertisers are able to display.

Merchants of Cool

I think the video we watched in class was very interesting. I liked it because it was focused on people just a few years younger than many of us in college. It's easy to see why marketers focus so much this age range. It is the biggest out there, and their interests are always changing so rapidly. In many cases however, I do think the marketing tactics have gone too far.

When the interviewer and the camera crew went to the talent auditions and met with the thirteen year old girl, I was shocked. She was not like any thirteen year old girl I have ever met. She looked and acted years older than she actually was. She was trying to be sexual in her dance moves, and appear to be much older. She was doing this because she thinks it is whats "cool". She along with many other girls her age see people like Brittney Spears flaunting their bodies on screen, and think they should too. Marketing focuses too heavily on body image and looking perfect. Viewers are very impressionable, and from the video you can see their techniques are working.

Another thing that I thought was a bit intrusive, was when the camera crew went inside the house of a teenage boy, and started asking him questions about his personal life, and going through his clothes. I think that when someone in put on that spot like that, alone, in front of a camera they are going have a hard time being completely honest about their likes and dislikes. I'm sure he felt pressure so say what he though was "cool" by the media standards and by his peers because he knew that this was going to be broadcast.

However, one technique that I thought was good, was when the interviewer asked a group of boys questions about what celebrities and products they thought were "in". Since this was in a group setting I don't think they felt as much pressure. I think the study would have been more beneficial if it had been with a larger sample size, so that a variety of people could have given their input.

Marketers do whatever they need to get their jobs done, whether moral or not. In many cases they have gone too far, and these have negative effects on teens.

How Do Media Professionsals "Know" Their Audiences?

When professionals want to know how they are being perceived they go about it in several ways. One way is the product research method. They work backwards to see how internal and external forces had an impact on their content. This form of research is based on participant observation, case studies, and thorough tests. A great amount of fieldwork is done to find out what day to day factors have on the media they are producing. They depend on other media professionals to work with them in this process. In some cases these media professionals are observed by researchers; once they have been observed the two can work together to determine how they are being viewed. Many professionals already know somewhat of what they are looking for from former jobs they have had as interns, or junior reporters.

The political approach is one that focuses on economic and political power. An example of this, is how much power media conglomerates have over a production, and aiming their media towards them.

The critical theory is also a method commonly used. This is based on professionals engaging in production that they know supports of the popular groups. By doing this they know they will have a large audience in favor of their new media.

The liberal pluralist perspective is also used, it differs from the critical and political approaches. This recognizes how complex organizations are and how creative professionals have to be in order to do their jobs. This approach believes that these media professionals should not give in to the ruling class, or dominant group. They should create a media that they want to.

Bitmap vs. Vector Quiz

Money is Debt

The movie "Money is Debt" demonstrated the current economic crisis in a way that was clear and easy to understand. I like the fact that it is described through animations and graphics; this made it easier to pay attention to, and it was visually pleasing. I like the fact that Paul Grignon, the creator, is not someone you hear about on a daily basis, yet he made this very enlightening movie.

These issues are generally not taught in school, and if they are they're not discussed in detail. The reason for this is because those few powerful people in charge of the money system don't want people to know the truth behind where the money in our economy is actually coming from. Money is continuously being made, but there is nothing, such as gold to account for it. As more and more money is being circulated the farther we are going into debt. Some people want our money system to go back to gold; it's hard to imagine making that kind of change at this point in time.

Another part of the movie that I found interesting was when it said that without debt there would be no money. This was a hard concept to grasp at first, and crazy to think about. It's scary to think about the amount of debt the country is in and how long it will take for us to recover. The amount of debt should be a fear to Americans.

I would recommend this movie to anyone who wants a better understanding of how money is distributed and circulated. It discusses these issues in a way that is easy to follow. These topics should be taught in school, so that future generations will know the state of the economy and how we got there.