Native Advertisements

Native advertisement is when news companies agree to “sneak” advertisements into their reports disguised as actual news. This takes many forms though primarily is found in print advertisements. Below is a link to one such native advert.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/abagg/kid-rave

The audience seems to be adults, as the title grabs the attention of the viewer effectively, be it parents or children. The audience then finds that there is a company, CrizKiz, which plans fun and adventurous parties for little kids (6-12 years old). As we can see from the first few lines, it attempts to persuade the reader that this kind of party is superior to other young childrens’ parties.

The text is made of a lot of pictures attempting to show the different party style and also the reaction of the kids as better when compared to the norm. The tone is excited yet laid back. In that, the kids are very clearly having a great deal of fun and the parents in the pictures are completely okay with what is happening around them.

Like many other native advertisements, it blatantly advertises CrizKiz, but tries to conceal its own bias, which it does not do very well. It uses personal pronouns in order to appeal to a wide range of people, hence creating a bandwagon effect. The engagement comes in the title when it mentions a group of elementary school students raving like adults. It is high developed through the pictures and sentences to seem like a real news article. However, it is not diverse in structure or word choice. It uses very few literary devices, trying to seem normal and spontaneous. 

Generation like

Empowerment was a word heard often in the video Generation Like and in social media at large. But how much empowerment if any does social media provide? Firstly it is necessary to analyse where this empowerment comes from. The empowerment comes from as sense of achievement tied to the number of likes you have, erday the number of people think you are right. The thing is, the empowerment happens at the expense of others. When some people say something 1000 may like/agree, for other the number could be less then 10. It empowers at the expense of others. That said, yes it can indeed provide the kind of empowerment that having a roomful of people say you are right did in the past but on a larger scale. So the answer to the above question is sometimes.

Odd Videos

For my video, I choose to do Empty Walls by Serj Tankian. Link is displayed below for those who have not seen it as well as a transcript.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSBj4XxYd7k

"Empty Walls"

Your empty walls...
Your empty walls...
Pretentious attention
Dismissive apprehension
Don't waste your time, on coffins today
When we decline, from the confines of our mind
Don't waste your time, on coffins today

Don't you see their bodies burning?
Desolate and full of yearning
Dying of anticipation
Choking from intoxication

Don't you see their bodies burning?
Desolate and full of yearning
Dying of anticipation
Choking from intoxication

I want you
To be
Left behind those empty walls
Taunt you
To see
From behind those empty walls

Those empty walls
When we decline, from the confines of our mind
Don't waste your time, on coffins today

Don't you see their bodies burning?
Desolate and full of yearning
Dying of anticipation
Choking from intoxication

Don't you see their bodies burning?
Desolate and full of yearning
Dying of anticipation
Choking from intoxication

I want you
To be
Left behind those empty walls
Taunt you
To see
From behind those empty walls
Want you to be
Left behind those empty walls
I taunt you
To see
From behind those empty walls

From behind those empty walls
From behind those empty walls
The walls
From behind those empty walls

I loved you
Yesterday, before
You killed my family.

Don't you see their bodies burning?
Desolate and full of yearning
Dying of anticipation
Choking from intoxication

Don't you see their bodies burning?
Desolate and full of yearning
Dying of anticipation
Choking from intoxication

I want you
To be
Left behind those empty walls
Taunt you
To see
From behind those empty walls
Want you to be, left behind those empty walls
Taunt you
To see
From behind those empty walls
From behind those empty walls
From behind those fucking walls
From behind those goddamn walls
Those walls...
Those walls...

In the video, we see a large group of children playing war. Normally this is not of much note, as it is something done in ignorance of what is implied within the word and the actions behind the word. The loss, permanence, pain, change, and fear are largely unseen to children. They act as though they were shot stay down for a minute then jump right back up as if nothing had happened. This case however, shows us children playing war with full knowledge of its toll. This fact is evident in the way they play. Some are shown being executed before their implied families. Others are shown piloting the famed 9/11 plan. Still more are shown in the bouncy house, acting as though it is a prison. This is, as it is intended, appalling. The implication is one no being with the ability process emotion wants to have. It says that, those represented, are malicious killers with no regard for the sanctity of life. And all that from those who are represented as our future, the most pure form that we can be. What is the purpose behind it? It serves as a means to rebel against the increased tensions between America and Iraq/Iran. But who was marginalized (not represented) in that video? Everyone was marginalized. In the video we see kids of both genders and many different ethnicities all partaking of the violence. This is intentional. And it is one of the primary reasons it bothers us. It shows humanity as a completely evil and warmonger thing. That is what makes it an effective form of protest. 

Written Task #2 question

I chose to do the first two ads I showed, links attached
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oapOBX_qGWQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFA0xYbFY0I

The ads I choose involve quite a bit of marginalization. The ads depict those of Asian descent as having one personality. This marginalization is common to both ads.
The first ad tries to sell a cereal known as rice krinkles. Doubtless, the mascot for this cereal, the small man, was chosen because the primary ingredient is rice. Additionally the man is very impatient in regards to the education of the child. Specifically he yells when the child cannot remember the word 'krinkles'. After that, the ad proceeds to misrepresent the culture it steals from.

There are several problems with the image above. To start, the lamp depicted is the stereotypical chinese lantern. This kind of lantern, most closely resembling the sort used in temples and shrines, is one of only five kinds of chinese paper lanterns. The tree in the background is now considered Japanese not Chinese. Though the art started in China, the people of Japan were the ones to continue and refine the process known as Bonsai. Additionally, the costume the boy is wearing only represents part of the truth. It is known as Hanfu, a style of clothing popularized in the time just before the foundation of the Chinese republic. A rickshaw, mentioned throughout the commercial, is a form of sedan chair. Sedan chairs were used to move nobility from place to place so they would not need to walk.
Both ads have a similar take on language. In both cases, the narrator has trouble pronouncing "R" and "L" any differently. For that matter, he also has trouble pronouncing most of the words he says in a border line comical way. He speaks them with a very heavy accent. His word choice is poor, almost at a child's level. His grammar is just as poor. These are all stereotypes of people of asian descent. Everyone of these stereotypes reflects the thoughts of the past.

Convincing you not to smoke

In the particular ad I presented on, many different things were portrayed. There was a certain serenity provided by the lake and the act of fishing. This is to show that patience and calm are required for something as delicate as an addictive problem. The people fishing are seemingly portrayed as father and daughter due to their relative size. This promotes the ideal of family before all, since no other people are present. In the text, the word help is emphasized over the rest of the words. This is done by making it larger, bold, and red instead of black. This is done to promote the ideal of compassion. Additionally the text at the bottom says "talk to your kids, they will listen". This is to encourage parents to take a greater role in their kids' lives by assuring them that their kids will be receptive to the parents' advice on problems.It focuses particularly the problem of youths smoking.  Teens and adults alike are empowered. Additionally no one is marginalized or excluded. In order for the ad to be effective it must apply to all. In order to do so this ad must not show the faces of the people present. Thus it does not, only showing their profile partaking in a common family activity. The point of this ad is to stop teenage smoking. This is a true problem in the United States of America. That fact makes this identifiable to many adults and teens in the country where drug abuse is rampant.

Why WW2 was not Germany's fault

Many are quick to pin the blame for WW2 on Germany. People use their starting of WW1 as proof. they say that the germans were unhappy after their defeat and humiliation. But, odd as it may seem, the people to blame are the Entente of WW1.
While nearing the end of WW1, the german spirit had been broken. The people were malnourished and over worked. The autocracy fell and they needed a new government.
So the Entente established the Weimar Republic. However, the european portion of the entente, meaning France and Britain at the time, were not content with only defeating the Germans. They imposed reparations, or large fees due to the losers of a war as an apology and to pay for damages. the brand new, nearly unaided, and complete priha that was the Weimar Republic had no money. So they began to print and print in order to pay off the Entente. Unfortunately, the only real effect of all the money printing was rapid inflation. No one saw an increase in pay. So a loaf of bread costed about a wheel barrel full of marks, the form of money at the time. This increased the ill feelings in Germany. Why was no one helping? What could the people to to feed their families? There were no answers to be found in germany.
Until a man name Hitler used his rhetoric to persuade a nation. He told them that he had the solutions, that he could fix germany and feed her families. So the people did the only thing they thought they could. They followed that man i to war again. To prove german superiority (no one is superior based on race) and reclaim what had been stole from them. They wanted their old lives back, and we forced them into following one of the most evil men of all time.

ACTS analysis

The text type is rather clear. It is reflective of an event that occurred in the past specifically “…out of the year 1853”, it is written as a story in the first person, and there is dialogue for different characters. For example, the dead guy said “let me lay my head on your breast.” This is an excerpt from a memoir. It merely informs of a person, presumably a nurse’s, experience in Jamaica during the Yellow Fever Crisis. It could be interesting to people who want to know about the experiences of nurses during periods of epidemic.

The text reviews the experiences of a nurse, presumably British, in disease-stricken Jamaica. It goes specifically over her experiences with one of the patients. His name was not released; however we know he was a young surgeon. She conveys the fact that the death affects those around him or her more than it does the unfortunate person who is dying.

It seems to be melancholy about her past. For example, “Habituated as I had become with death in its most harrowing forms, I found these scenes then any I had previously borne a part in.” Also she talks about how the death of people affected other people, in the following line: “It was a terrible thing to see young people in the youth and bloom of life suddenly stricken down.”  The atmosphere is very bleak. For example, “needful; for the yellow fever never made a more determined effort to exterminate the English in Jamaica than it did in that dreadful year.” Another example is, “Death is always terrible, no-one need be ashamed to fear it.”

Rationale

I choose to do a task on the effect of technology on language; specifically I choose to use texting. So I choose several articles by one of the experts of this field, David Crystal. At least one, in this case, ur a gd mn mr gum ;-) became my primary source due to its presences in a published magazine. It had to be in such a magazine because I choose to write two letters to the editor. I choose this format because it granted me the most freedom with regard content. I felt like it would be a good idea to show varying levels of understanding on the topic, thus I choose one to be from a poorly educated mother in Ohio, worrying about the education of her sons. I also wrote a letter as an English professor who has of experience with this first hand. But in order for it to be a letter to the editor it has had to be in reference to a particular document with many opinions and ways to fix the problem. My hope was to convey a side less seen in this debate. I wanted to provide some new ways of looking at text speak. And I think  I did so rather well.

Written Task #1

To whom it may Concern,
I am very concerned about the article I just read in your magazine. My name is May Everymom I am a mother of three living in Ohio. I have heard that technology and texting have been ruining English. The kids, instead of learning the proper way of doing things, use nonsensical shortenings and lack of grammar and punctuation.  The article ur a gd mn mr gum ;-) in The Zurich Magazine states that technology and texting is a good thing of English when it is clearly not. My sons English scores tell it all. He is now entering the 10th grade and his grades in English, particularly grammar, have been very low. His teacher has told me that these weird sort of abbreviation found in texting have been in his essays. So I confiscated his phone until he improves them and it has worked very well. I have a few ideas about what you could change to resolve this blatant lack of knowledge. You should go out and actually talk to a teacher, for example. Get the opinion right from the people who have the most knowledge on the subject. Or talk to the kids. I read somewhere that kids admit that this so called 'text speak' makes it into essays and exams all the time. For that matter where does this David crystal come off acting as though he can see into the minds of our kids? He acts like this horrid lack of capability to function as the logical progression of the English language. Which makes no sense because 'text speak' constitutes a complete disregard for the rules. Another way to address this issue of misinformation is to consult another so called 'expert'. It is important to get more than one view for these things. Another point of view is lacking in your magazine. This leads to incorrect assumptions about the topic. People would see this and say "I guess it is the truth since no one argued", which is no the case. The lack of representation in your magazine is something that needs to be address. What happened to the days when you could trust what you read to give you all the information? It is important to get a good education, without one you will not make it anywhere in life. Education is all about learning the facts and rules of the past. I want a good education for my kids, the kind i never got. I hope you will take my thoughts into consideration.
Sincerely,
May Everymom


To whom it may concern,
My name is Mr. Prof, Eng Lish Prof. I am a high school language and literature teacher. While looking for some material to use for class i came across the article ur a gd mn mr gum ;-) in The Zurich Magazine. I thought it would be beneficial to you and to the general population if I informed you of some small things you overlooked. Firstly, Mr. Crystals theory is not flawless. He admits this himself. And those little abbreviations get in more often then David may believe. Last week on an exam I saw at least ten different kids use 'gonna'. 'Gonna' is not a word; however it is one of those 'text speak' abbreviations. Additionally I did some asking and the kids said that many of the abbreviations he mentioned are unused. Some of them the kids did not even understand. Those seemed to be so specific that they were put out of use long ago. This does suggest that Mr. Crystal is grasping for possible examples to prove his theories and find validity in them. That is another thing. The good professor is not exposed to the kids all the time. He finds research done rapidly. They call the kid out, ask them a few questions, and then move on. The kids are likely to lie how often things like 'gonna' happen. This occurs, not to intentionally falsify scientific experiments, but to save face. The kids do not know of the man asking them about how often they make grammar errors is not from the board of education. Also Mr. Crystals sources remain rather vague. This is not to imply that he is falsifying information, but to suggest that he should make them more public if he wishes to publish or be in interviews. Additionally such research should be conducted by the man himself in order to minimize possible errors. He should not be published or interviewed in anyway until these sorts of things have been established, nor should anyone for that matter. That is only some advice to assist the public in finding the most accurate knowledge available. Additionally it may be beneficial if you talked to people of a differing opinion. Or just people who are directly effected by the circumstance and feel strongly about it. I hope you will consider such revision and such matters in the future.
Sincerely,
Eng Lish Prof.

A letter to the Editior

http://socialjusticenonsense.wordpress.com/2012/02/16/cultural-appropriation-and-why-i-dont-give-a-fuck/
To whom it may concern,

I have a few qualms with the article known as Cultural Appropriation and why I Don't Give a F***. Firstly I would like to say, your title does not come across the way I believe you want it to. It seems that you are aware of cultural appropriation and don't care that it is an insult to a peoples why of life. The title also seems to imply you are one of those minorities that have experienced that sort of affront. In reality, the only people that can forgive and truly say with any certainty that something is no longer offensive is someone from the culture being robbed.
You also kindly provide some of the worst examples of cultural appropriation. Being the Native American Headdress, Dreadlocks, Bollywood 'Garb' etc. The true horror of these things is not even really that they belonged to someone else culture before. It is that the meaning is not cared over. Meaning that by wearing that headdress you devalue it and its original culture. In essence saying, "Not only we will discriminate against you, but we will also take the things we mock you for". Even if the reason behind doing something like this is dressing for a party, it is still offensive. It brings cultural pillars down to nothing more than a costume to be worn by someone who knows nothing of their costumes past.
While it may be true that you and your ancestors had nothing to do with the original harming of say the Native Americans, you do not know what your ancestor of later on may have done. The oppression of many did not occur all at once.
Dispute all my qualms, there is one thing you have mentioned that I have to agree with. The  use of cultural appropriation for insult is wrong.
I advice that, in future, you write about things you know more about, or at least do more research on.

Sincerely,
A concerned internet guy

Memoir of someone I am not

Disclaimer: I am not the musician in question. Though I believe I have accurately portrayed his thoughts and feelings, these sentences that fallow may not reflect his views. Nor are any of them things he actually said.


 People always ask, why become a rapper? Your a white man shooting for a black man profession. But I always tell them I just do what I enjoy doing. And then I usually ask if they think I rap poorly, not that I give a s***. they always respond with a "no no not at all", judgmental b*****ds. But I know I am a good rapper. How else could I have made it this far? 
 People are always talking about my authenticity. Like they know how it feels to experience the things I have. Like they could possibly understand the depth to which my past changed me. But there it is, isn't it? My ability to rap and my authenticity all stem from my past. The revolutionary white rapper has issues.
 Lets get it out of the way, yes, I never met my father. If I ever do it wont end well for him. And yes, my mother had me when she was only 15. A broken family is something I rap about often. It was and is a real problem, especially for me.
 My mother, due to her loneliness and her stressful life of poverty, turned to drugs and alcohol. Of course, despite the stupidity of it, and despite her distance from me, I went there for awhile to. It was a terrible idea then and it is still a terrible idea now, especially when I think of my daughter getting sucked into that sort of mess.  I rap about doing drugs a lot to.
 And as "white trash" I got picked on a lot as a kid. I did not fit in with the snobby white kids. The black kids were just as bad for awhile, before they released I was more like them then the middle class a******s.  Another thing that always bubbles to the surface from the past is the violence. I saw more than my far share of. And it changed me, made me stronger. The intense bullying made me violent, in the end.  After it changed me I began to fight back. But I still needed an outlet for all the built up pain and sorrow.
 Music ended up being that outlet. As it turned out, rapping was very good outlet. Dr. Dre took me up under his wing and that was that. I became an official rapper. Guessed who yet? But what is a name other than a title. A thing used to generalize. But either way I have three real names. One is Slim Shady, that one is a reflection of my past and personality. Eminem is the name I took when I became a rapper. My real name is Marshal Mathers III, way to nerdy sounding a name to be a rapper.
 Despite it all, I chased my dream. I did what many fail to do. I escaped the shackles of poverty, the pain of abandonment, and the vice of substance abuse thanks to my music. But these problems still exist. And until they don't, I will continue to inform the rest of the public in the only way I know how.

Dance to the Stereotypes

As odd as it may seem, you don't have to be on the butt end of a stereotype or bias to know about them, and their misleading ways. Picture now, if you will, a white guys appearance and personality. Where you able to? Of course you were. You probably envisioned a well dressed man, with his wife and two kids in front of their house playing baseball. Or a nerdy looking kid, with glasses, braces, acne, overalls, and a shirt pocket full of pens (this is the stereotype I fit into and take no offense at). Now, being the smart, people you are, you have probably realized that your image of said white guy is at least loosely based on a stereotype, plus your own personal experience of white guys. If not, then you have proven another thing about stereotypes. Which is they vary from person to person. The place where these widely known beliefs start is in people like you and I. It is likely that a thousand years ago some jerk said "All the Asians I know are good at math, must be that they all are" (no offense intended, although this guy is totally from Mississippi). And in that sentence is yet another stereotype. Another good example is the stereotype that non-native English speakers, in English schools, are stupid. This particular stereotype, unlike some, holds no water. The simple fact is, back when this stereotype started, the non native speakers were not understood by the native speakers. This resulted in the thought that the non native speakers were not intelligent, because the native speakers could not be the stupid ones. Those ignorant English speakers never stopped to consider that the non native speakers merely could not communicate in a language not their own. One wonders, why would anyone start, what is in essence, a rumor about an entire group of people? Great question, the answer is simple. We humans like to be able to put everything, from dirt to people, into neat little boxes. In other words, we like to be able to classify everything without actually trying so we can worry our pretty little heads over what is important, like which video game to play or YouTube video to watch. Granted these stereotypes, while offensive and ignorant, usually have some foundation. Does that mean it is OK to use? Only in your head where people can not see them and judge you unless you don't care if the entire community thinks your an idiot. Are stereotypes a bad thing? Again, amazing question readers. That is really up to you to decide. Their use is a shortcut to assuming personality. So if you want to use them and continue watching YouTube in your house as opposed to actually making friends and talking to people, then go ahead. Personally I believe, as I have stated, that stereotypes are ignorant and offensive. Thus I try to avoid them, even though I fit the stereotype for a nerd perfectly.

Disclaimer: Even though I am a ignorant English speaking white guy, no stereotype mentioned in this post  relates in any way to my personal thoughts or feelings.

The Meaning of Culture

As a young man who recently moved to a new country, this is probably an ideal time to explore the question of culture. Before now, the only things I considered with any real depth was YouTube, what video games I was going play, and when I could go scuba diving. With two siblings, both bent on my demise, escape is a welcome thing in any form. My move from a very outspoken society, specifically Phoenix Arizona in the USA, to a society where crime can be punished by deportation has been an interesting one. Before it was OK to express ones opinion of leaders, past or present, in any setting. Now I have to watch my mouth, which is something that I have very little practice in, to the sorrow of my family. Now though, post move, it is time to get my act together and start working. The primary goal of the getting together of my act is to pass school. In the past this has been no problem, but now it seems that school got harder while I was busy playing Skyrim. The necessity of education is present in any culture.  But back to the actual reason for being here, the nature of culture.

The real problem of defining culture is that everyone has a different definition for it. My definition of culture is different from your definition. And your definition is different from that of my parents who are presently yelling at me to finish my homework. Since this is my blog, we will have to settle for my definition. To me, culture is the set of rules, beliefs, activities, products, languages, and experiences shared by a people who choose to partake in the culture. Some of you readers are likely starring at your computer wondering why this guy decided to throw in products as a piece of culture.  No, it is not because I have to have a certain number of components of culture to get an " A". When I say products, I mean the art, music, and food particular to a people. However, products meaning things like toys, video games, and fast food also are a piece of culture. And yes, that does mean the Big Mac is just as much a piece of American culture as the eagle and the star spangled banner. The strange thing about culture is it simultaneously affects us as we affect and change it. The acceptable practices of 40 years ago are no longer acceptable in the culture except as a relic of the past. Another interesting thing about culture is the malice harbored for other cultures within a culture. In America, speaking Arabic will likely get you reported to some sort of authority. Though the authority will likely treat you fairly, the fact that you get reported in the first place proves that culture is a vain thing. It proves that within a culture everyone believes that they are right and everyone else is wrong. So they then attempt to prove to others that their culture is wrong, *cough* *cough* religion *cough* *cough*. That is not to say religion is wrong, just a little pushy. Religion, being a big part of culture, is worth looking into. In essence, religion seems to be a way to keep people on the path of the righteous, or in other words, to keep their morale compasses clean, functional, and in line with everyone else. The other major piece of culture is language. Language is the gateway to higher thought. Also language is usually very specific to a culture. As the language changes the culture tends to change as well, they are so tightly interlocked due to the requirement of higher thought for the rules of a culture to be understood.

In the end, culture is really a set of rules to dictate behavior. It is interlocked with language because language is one of the only ways to communicate these rules.

  Photo by: https://www.google.com/search?q=grand+mosque+abu+dhabi&safe=off&es_sm=122&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=S80KVOz7GZPqaPvZgrgH&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAg