They’re Back

$25,000 sunglasses, money, fashion and couture; materialistic objects that define The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. In todays society, vanity is greater than virtue. People live by the motto “the more you have, the more you are worth”. Aired in October 14, 2010 with 2.8 million total viewers among females in the age of eighteen to 49 in prime time (Gorman). The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills is a reality show that focuses on the lifestyle of five “wealthy” women and how they interact with each other and society. In this new season, Carlton Gebbia and Joyce Giraud became the replacement of Taylor Armstrong and Adrienne Maloof.

As I now began to see the new season, I did not even think about why they had replaced the old cast of the housewives. It was after the show was over that I realized, Glamour and fashion are priorities for The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Bravo media,one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience, has dominated and taken over Monday night by having the highest records of people watching the show; drew a season-to-date high with 1.15 million adults from 18-49.

The drama that is created in this show has caused massive controversy between Twitter users and the cast. Viewers constantly tweet what they think about the drama and who they side with. The cast is bombarded with strong hard comments that criticize them. Instead of letting the tweets not get to them, the stars of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills tweet what they think and talk about each other outside of the show.

Demonstrating their gender roles as high end society forces them to live up to certain standards, which end up damaging not only themselves but others. Maintaining the lifestyle that The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills have can be comfortable and luxurious at times but, it can lead to overspending and in extreme cases death due to the pressures of keep up with the lifestyle in which they live. Rusell Armostrong, Taylor Armstrong’s husband, committed suicide at the end of the past season due to the pressure he was under of maintaining their lifestyle and showing off their luxuries. Russell Armstrong was more than $1.5 million in debt and spending wildly before his apparent suicide; he was living month to month to support Taylor’s expenses and for her to be able to stay on the show. Although Armstrong made enough money to support his family, he overspent and fell into debt by trying to keep up with the other housewives. The current obsession with money has a negative impact on society just how it had a detrimental impact on Rusell Armstrong and his family.

Realizing that one of the reasons that they took Taylor out of the show was because she could not keep up with the “lifestyle” Bravo expected, made me realize how people lack morality and the understanding of the actual value of money. If people from a different country watch this show, they could consider Americans to be shallow and selfish. People are straying away from the important things in life such as family and happiness and are replacing these values with greed. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills is an example of what society has come to; a place where money is king and if one does not have it, one is worth less than those that do.

References 

• Bravo. (28, January 2014). Bravo media’s “the real housewives of beverly hills” draw season to date highs in adults 18-49. Retrieved from http://www.thefutoncritic.com/ratings/2014/01/28/bravo-medias-the-real-housewives-of-beverly-hills-and-vanderpump-rules-both-draw-season-to-date-highs-in-adults-18-49-362112/20140128bravo01/
• Huffpost celebrity. (30, January 2014). Brandi glanville says she and ex eddie cibrian were ‘ghetto rich’. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/30/brandi-glanville-eddie-cibrian-ghetto-rich_n_4694734.html
• Moylan, B. (28, January 20114). The real housewives of beverly hills recap. Retrieved from http://www.vulture.com/2014/01/real-housewives-of-beverly-hills-recap-season-4-episode-13.html

Picture

      –     I Watch Anything On TV. (n.d.). The real housewives of beverly  hills, season premiere at 9pm on    bravo. Retrieved from http://iwatchanythingontv.wordpress.com/

Facebook is Trending

As Twitter continues to grow and gain new users, Facebook feels as if it is being left behind. In order for them to keep up with the competition, Facebook will launch “Trending” on their site. Facebook has recently decided to add a new feature to their site  called “Trending” which mostly aims at trying to get more users involved in real-time information and events that are trending on the web; just like Twitters trending topics. This new feature on Facebook main focus, is to allow public conversations to happen between many people on important or popular topics that may be surfacing the web. Facebook wants to expand the way users interact and allow them to have conversations with other people rather than just their friends. Facebook users will be able to see what other people think about a certain topic or their reaction to important events happening in the world.

This new feature of “Trending” will show Facebook users what the most important  and popular topics are on social networking sites as soon as they log into their profile. Users will also be given the opportunity to personalize the list of information they get based on their topics of interest. Users newsfeed will have the topics that the users carefully selected to be of their interest and will appear of the right of the users page. Also, some of the topics will be highlighted which means that they are the most popular topics on the site for that particularly day. During Facebook’s announcement of this new addition to their site, they carefully explained how “Trending” works; “a response to the volume of public conversations about real-time events on the social network.”

Recently, Facebook signed a partnership with NBC sports to cover the Olympics. NBC’s Olympics’ Facebook page will have content regarding the event. It will share the most important information, videos, photos, and polls. Also, Facebook users will be given the opportunity to their own questions to Sarah Hughes, an Olympic god medalist.  Although Facebook is creating this new “trend”to increase its new users and be more attracting for the younger audiences, current Facebook members are not using the site as much as they did before. With all the new apps created such as Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat, users do not need to log into their Facebook pages to see what their friends are doing. This new idea hopefully revives Facebook and it will be interesting to see if Facebook users begin to use Facebook for “Trending” topics rather than Twitter.

Video: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000236502

References 

• • Boorstin, J. (2014, January 17). Facebook launches ‘trending’ to drive   event chat. Retrieved from http://www.cnbc.com/id/101345446
  • Leo. (2014, January 16). Like twitter: Facebook launches new ‘trending’ feature . Retrieved from http://atlantablackstar.com/2014/01/16/like-twitter-facebook-launches-new-trending-feature/
  • Martin, S. (2014, January 16). Facebook launches trending to highlight popular items. Retrieved from http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/01/16/facebook-launches-trending-to-highlight-popular-items/4516147/
  • Prigg, M. (2014, January 17). Facebook takes on twitter: New trending section launched in battle of the social networks read more. Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2541581/Facebook-gets-trend-Launches-topics-section-compete-Twitter.html

  
  

Ever Wonder Why Watches are Set to 10:10 in Ads??

What was one point in history the only way you could tell time and use for a purpose, now the watch has become more of a fashion accessory than anything else. After the invention of cell phones that have a clock available with the touch of a button, people have lost interest in buying a watch for the purpose of actually telling time.

Personally, I am one of those people who have watches for the sole purpose of wearing it as an accessory. Even if my phone is dead, I will still forget that I have a watch right on my wrist with the exact time on it. However, if you are looking at an actual watch, some of you may have noticed that almost of all of the old school analog wristwatches are ALWAYS photographed and pictured in advertisements with the time of 10:10.

Does this time have a special meaning or history? Nope! This is done purely for aesthetics. For what reason, you ask? Well, the manufacturer’s logo is typically right under the 12 o’clock position (e.g. Michael Kors, Fossil, DKNY, Gucci, etc.).

Strategically setting the watch hands to freeze at the 10 and 2 points makes sure that the hand will not be in the way of the logo. Furthermore, those exact locations even out the logo proportionally and focus the buyer’s eyes right in the center toward the actual logo.

I have heard rumors that the watch is set to 10:10 because that is the time that President Lincoln was shot and killed, however it is an old trick that is done all for advertising!

It’s really interesting that this tactic has been used since watches first came out on the market and is still a valid tactic to this day.

Although all watches for the most part look the same except for color, material and price, the manufacturers of these watches need to show off what makes the watch unique, which is the brand and logo. Placing this at the center of the watch makes it easier for people to zoom in on who is selling the watch and because of this, it sticks in people’s minds and they remember that the logo was the center image of the entire ad.

Did any of you ever notice this? Do you think it’s an effective and smart idea? Have you ever wondered why it was always set at 10:10? Do any of you use watches to actually read time, or is it more of a fashion statement like it is for me?

PEPSI AD FAIL

 

 

Before reading what the blog post wrote about this ad, I saw it and was really confused and shocked that Pepsi would place this ad so largely for the public to see. The photo was publicized on Monday and is an Ad for Pepsi’s partnership with the popular clothing company from Japan, Bathing Ape. The line is called AAPE, but as seen on the ad it reads as “rape.”

When asked the Huffington Post reached out to Pepsi to ask about their interesting font choice, the spokesperson verified that the advertisement ran in Hong Kong. He wrote, “we regret any misunderstanding caused by the font used and we apologize to anyone who was offended. We will not use this design in the future.”

Although the banner was only placed in Japan, it still portrays Pepsi in a very negative light, because people traveling can understand English and misinterpret the four-letter word. I am familiar with the Bathing Ape brand and have always respected the quality and detail to their products. Whether it was Pepsi or Bathing Ape’s idea for the font style, I think that it was extremely poor taste in whoever decided that the font was the best option.

This is a great example of how bad the outcomes can be if you are careless with advertising. Anything as simple as font choice can change a good ad into a horrible misinterpretation. I think that other than the font, the ad is a great image: it has a simple color combination and clearly shows the icon for Pepsi, as well as the monkey icon for Bathing Ape. Also, the can is clearly portrayed in the image with the design of the iconic AAPE pattern. However, no one will remember these little details when they pass by, because they will all be too distracted with the big and bold word that looks like “rape.” Since the ad is running in Japan and everyone in the country is familiar with the brand Bathing Ape, maybe they will be able to decipher the true meaning of the word. However, I know that many Americans have never heard of the brand. Because of this, they will see what word they do know that pops up into their head, which is rape.

Not only does this make Pepsi look bad, it also gives people a bad first impression of the Japanese clothing brand. A Bathing Ape has always been a trendsetter in the hottest and best quality fashion, but when people see that they are a part of this horrible advertisement, they might be forever traumatized and never shop there again.

A Bold, Brave and Black Ad

Many people do not know, but Dunkin’ Donuts is a worldwide company and has many locations all around the globe. The “DD” in Thailand has recently had a 50% increase in sales and many say that it is because of a very popular, yet very controversial ad that was just released in the country.

The advertisement pictures a beautiful, smiling young lady, whose skin was painted charcoal black, wearing a bright pink lipstick and holding the company’s new “charcoal donut.” Obviously, this sparked some anger in people, but none of these offended people are Thai…they are American! The CEO Nadim Salhani says, “So what? It’s just paranoid American thinking.”

His daughter is the one who is the model for the ad. The CEO told the Associated Press that he did not understand why he is not allowed to use the color black to promote the new product, because if the donut was white and he painted someone’s face white, would it still be considered racist? He thinks not.

The American Dunkin’ Donuts posted an apology on its website and promised to take down the advertisement because of it’s “bizarre and racist sensitivity.” The Human Rights Watch even complained about the ad and could not believe how offensive and crazy the campaign was.

I have attached both the magazine/Facebook advertisement for the “charcoal donut,” as well as the commercial for it (sorry it’s all in Thai I could not find English subtitles). Personally, I do not think it is offensive and I believe that it is important to understand the global context of the situation, because even if Americans are offended, the ad is not running in the States. If it was broadcasted in America, people would obviously react in a negative way, but it is on the other side of the planet, so the people of America and every other country need to be more understanding and open-minded about global mindsets in marketing.

The Thai Dunkin’ did not create the advertisement with the intentions of offending people or being racist. They wanted an ad that would be appealing to the eye and of course a pretty girl with bright lips but a pitch-black face would make consumers curious.

I like the concept of the commercial, I think it makes people interested to know more about the donut and makes them want to go out and purchase one. I don’t think that it is insensitive in any way; it simply appears to be a creative marketing tactic.

Sorry America, I’m going to have to side with the Thai people on this one. Stop taking things so seriously!!!!!!!!! Take a chill pill, people!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQMKqeHgEEs