On Thursday the Motion Picture Association of America stated that portrayals of smoking would be considered alongside sex and violence in assessing the suitability of movies for young viewers. Films that appear to glamorize smoking will risk a more restrictive rating. Do you think movies that contain smoking deserve a more restrictive rating?
I found this ad posted in a friend’s room. I think the style is clearly an imitation of the old calvin klein ads from the 90’s. While satirizing the heroin chic style, the ad (for a clothing company) is also embracing the style. These types of ads seem to be problematic considering the sexual aspects [...]
ABC is considering changing the way they advertise, so as to engage viewers in the commercial breaks. They are proposing ways to integrate the ads into the show and other ways to encourage viewer interest in ads. Though they did not release any specific examples, this NY Times article explains some of the background and [...]
I recently learned an interesting fact about this classic cartoon: the names “Tom” and “Jerry” originated during the WW2 era. The Englishmen were commonly refered to as “Tommies” while the Germans were called “Jerries”. Though I do not know the origins of these terms, it is interesting that the two cartoon characters should have the [...]
This ad is a parody of the recent Mac advertisments depicting a hip young man (representing a Mac) and a stodgy middle aged man (representing a PC). This ad, however, presents an African American man representing the new black mac laptop. Perhaps this parody is a reaction to the total absence of non-politically correct humor [...]
I really like this advertisement because it advertises the product without actually picturing it in the ad. By simply creating a scene in which the product would be used, they evoke interest and curiosity in the viewer. I think it would be interesing to see more ads like this; I wonder what sorts of other [...]
I just read a NY Times review of the theatrical adaptation of the blockbuster movie “Legally Blonde”. The stage version is in musical format and has met with mild success (at least thus far). According to the review, the musical is almost overly sugary-sweet, and lacks the wit of the movie. Reading this article made [...]
Here is a series of print ads by Vaio that use nature as a backdrop for their latest laptop. By replacing the normal office environment (where the product is likely to be used) with stunning pictures of nature, they are implicity associating their product with a romanticized notion of escape and beauty. I think there [...]
Hey class-
Just wanted to share a website that I find really interesting. Boingboing.net is a site where people post really quirky things they find in the news or odd discoveries or inventions they’ve stumbled across. This site is a veritable treasure trove of fascinating (but mostly useless) pieces of information. Their news bits also often [...]
I just read that eleven 7-11 stores are going to be refurbished as Kwik-E-Marts to coincide with the Simpsons movie. This was apparently announced in March ‘07, and is confirmed on wikipedia, though I’m still not sure how reliable this news is. Customers will also be able to buy products inspired by the show, including [...]