Viva a child’s memory December 7, 2008
Posted by airyrae in Blessings and Burdens.Tags: advertising to kids
add a comment
“Stopping advertising to save humanity …
is like stopping the clock to save time”
unknown
My nine-year-old niece sang me a song to day starting with the word viva. Was it the “Viva la viva loca” song? No. The Viva Las Vegas” jingle: of course not. I just had the luxury of experiencing my little, cute-as-a-button, blonde haired, blue eyed niece’s version of the “Viva Viagra” jingle during my recent visit. And let me note that my niece is very sheltered compared to the average media exposure of today’s kids. She can’t use a computer or the Internet without the aid of a grown-up. Come to think of it, the only time I’ve ever really seen her on the computer by herself was when she got a Webkinz for her birthday: But she couldn’t really navigate the Webkinz Web site by herself and needed constant help from me and her mom. Her television time is also kept to a minimum, being that her parents control when the T.V. is on and pick the programming. I’m estimating she gets 2-hours of exposure to television a day, but she’s mostly a secondary participant.
At any rate, her rendition of the “Viva Viagra” got me thinking about advertising and children. There are many critics in regards to advertising to children saying that if companies truly wanted to do the right thing in this situation they would stop marketing to children altogether. So let’s imagine that we stop advertising to children altogether. Children would still be exposed to the advertising communications that are intended for adults, like the “Viva Viagra” commercial. It’s common knowledge that children’s minds are like little sponges able to soak up all that they encounter with greater ability than adults. While they may not be able to put these encounters into context as many adults can, they experience, and recall these encounters nonetheless: Hence, my niece singing me “Viva Viagra”.
As such, we can’t stop marketing to children without stopping advertising altogether. At least most advertising experiences that target children send age-appropriate messages and attempt to send some type of positive message along with the corporate one. While I’m not an advocate for constant unregulated marketing to children; how easy we forget that several companies also sent children beneficial messages: brush your teeth, get out and exercise, etc. The way I see it, we have to take the good along with the bad when it comes to advertising to children. While there is no doubt that companies market to children, we must remember that most try to keep these messages age-appropriate, have resources for parents, attempt to protect the privacy and experiences that children have with their product or through their Web site, and donate to charitable institutions that benefit children.
I’m not going out on much of a limb here with the general observation that not all parents are good ones. If it truly does take ‘a village to raise a child’ we have to remember that corporations that advertise to children also communicate beneficial messages to children who aren’t necessarily getting them from their parents. So while kids may not really need that new sugary cereal: that sugar cereal’s Web site also reminds kids to get outside and play and gives them age-appropriate ideas on how to be physically active and eat right. You and I both, know that not all parents teach or reinforce to their kids why it is important to eat right, exercise, be polite, study hard, etc. etc. etc.
While I’ve previously discussed that some products marketed to children aren’t up-to-par, i.e. Bratz; we also need to realize that not all advertisements that target children are bad. And stopping advertising to children altogether is definitely not the answer. Stopping advertising to children means stopping all advertising in general because children would still experience advertising that wasn’t meant for them. While no one will admit to really ‘liking’ advertising, except maybe during the Super Bowl, it is an integral part of our economy, life, and the way we act as a culture: both good and bad. But I guess I’m just one of those people who think there’s more good than bad in the world: and more good than bad in terms of advertising in general and more good than bad when it comes to advertising to children.
OMG! U Speak IM? November 25, 2008
Posted by airyrae in Blessings and Burdens, e-volution.Tags: IM Speak
add a comment
“WTF”
“and you can quote me on that”
Instant messaging has become a huge activity of teenager over the past decade. As such, a whole new dialect has entailed the instant messaging craze. Shorthand like: OMG “Oh my god”, BFF “best friends forever”, and BRB “Be right back” are heavily relied upon by heavily users of instant messaging. The problem is that the IMers are growing-up, getting jobs, and using this IM speak in professional communications. I couldn’t believe my ears when I read a report about how IM speak is being used by the younger generations in business communications.
I mean really – do these people have no common sense or professionalism at all. Teachers should be nipping this bad-habit in the bud in junior high and high school. I think this post will be the only times that I will actually be able to get away with using IM speak in correspondence, and it’s simply to make a point. Do these people just not realize how unprofessional and uneducated they sound when they speak and write like this. Every company that I have ever worked for insisted that even company acronyms were not used in professional communications because they are easily lost in translation in regards to new employees, other businesses, and consumers.
How does 4649 equal “please to meet you”? Being a Gen X’er, you’d think I’d be some what up on the IM lingo. But unfortunately for me, I went to this wonderful think called school, where I was taught to speak like a human and not a moron. I guess I was wrong in assuming this whole “school thing” is available to the younger generations. Or maybe schools just added IM speak to the curriculum. And alluding to a quote from a previous post, I have the luxury or criticizing the younger generations because I have yet to raise any of them.
Well my attempts to use IM speak in this post was truly pathetic, and I’m surprisingly OK with that. On a personal level, I find this ‘speak’ to be obnoxious. However, it is also apparent that this dialect is a huge aspect of reaching the younger generations. Marketers are using this ‘speak’ in several of their new and traditional marketing efforts alike if they are targeting teenagers. As such, learning IM speak seems to be another one of those necessary evils of my career choice. So if you’re as IM speak dysfunctional as I am, read up on teen talk and the ever evolving list of digital lingo: especially if you’re a parent.
Ultimately, IM Speak has its time and place. But I think the collectively this speak should be limited to certain occassions and applications. If you’re marketing to teenagers, or teenagers are instant messaging on their personal applications – IM Away. However, the existance of this shorthand shouldn’t mean that it appears in business communications or any other type of formal correspondance. On a cultural whole, technology has enabled us to save time by revolutionizing the way we communicate through new media. Since communication is now easier and more accessable than ever we should at least have the time to speak to one another in English.
CUL8R,
Arin
e-Tox November 18, 2008
Posted by airyrae in Blessings and Burdens.Tags: Blackberry, e-tox, obama, privacy
2 comments
If traditional media ever becomes obsolete, I’ll feel sorry for our president. The media has been heavily covering the fact that Obama has to give up his Blackberry once he’s sworn into office. I don’t know about you, but I feel lost without my cell phone. Poor Barack: no cell phone, no e-mail, and possibly no laptop in the Oval Office. It is apparent that while new media benefits us in convenience it costs us in security. While I understand the importance of some presidential records being open to public inspection, I can’t imagine having to cut the e-cord. Plus its ironic that the very mediums that allowed Obama to succeed throughout his campaign; he must now abandon himself.
Still, I wonder what it would be like to be independent again. On the whole, Americans have become very co-dependent on new media devices. And we accept these devices as only good. Pay no mind to the fact that cell phones may cause cancer and can allow us to be easily located or tracked. I don’t want people to be able to locate or track me by my cell phone. However, if I was a parent I’d view the tracking features on my child’s cell phone as a safety feature.
But the implications that new media has on our individual privacy worries me. And you can’t even argue that at least new media is green; in terms of saving paper. While I do not doubt that our reliance on paper has been drastically lessened by the advent of new media: new mediums can’t truly be green until the processes used to manufacture them are green. The un-environmental practices that go into manufacturing the batteries and electronics alone to create cell phones and laptops offset any green end that these mediums result in.
While there are costs and benefits associated with any form of media; digital mediums are the first to threaten the privacy of the general public. One’s level of privacy and other’s access to our personal digital communications is rather troubling. Basically, you shouldn’t text, e-mail, or say anything over a wireless phone that you wouldn’t want headlined on tomorrow’s newspaper. I guess its fortunate for us that newspapers won’t be around much longer.
Till next time.
Arin
E-Privacy: A Series of Unfortunate Events November 17, 2008
Posted by airyrae in Blessings and Burdens.Tags: Intelius, new media, privacy, public records
2 comments
“To each, their own”
I’d just like to vent today because my family has just had the unfortunate experience of learning that those who could potentially cause us harm can easily locate us through the use of new media. My husband works in criminal justice, and his employer just sent out an officer safety bulletin stating that a sworn officer received threats to himself and his family following an arrest. The suspect had detailed information about the officer’s family, residences and phone numbers.
These criminals used the site www.intelius.com to purchase these personal records for $2.95. This Web site gathers: name, age, address history, phone numbers, birth dates, income and family information from a variety of public sources: utility bills, court records etc. The least this Web site could do is use the information they sell to do a background check on their customers, as opposed to just offering this private information up to anyone with three dollars. While I realize that this information is public and could be ultimately compiled by anyone this Web site has taken all the grunt work out of it. At least in the good old days, criminals would have to visit the correct courthouses and dig through the public records themselves. But now, thanks to new media, criminals can pay a nominal fee and get a accurate record of my family’s life in less than a minute. And just so you know I visited this Web site and was appalled by the information it contained on my family and that anyone and their brother has such easy access to it.
I appreciate the attributes of new media and public records alike. But whoever thought is was a good idea to put these two things together on the internet and sell it to the masses is a jerk face. And I’d punch them if in the nose if it wouldn’t hurt my little arthritic hands so much. The idea that some criminal could track, harass, or even hurt our family simply because my husband was doing his job is sickening. Needless to say our information will soon be removed from this Web site. Oh and don’t worry, if someone gets ahold of your social security number they can also find out the rest of your identity through this site.
Unfortunately, this Web site operates under a don’t ask/don’t tell policy where they assume their service is OK with you unless you inform them otherwise. To have your information removed from this Web site customer service at Intelius recommends that you enter your name and state into their Web site, print off the results page, and circle the names you want removed. You may then fax or mail a written request to be removed from the site to Intelius at: 500 108 Avenue NE, Suite 1600, Bellevue, WA 98004 or fax the request to (425) 974-6194. The information will supposedly be removed within one week.
