Clutter

I found the video on advertising very interesting. The clutter from advertisement has polluted all media. No matter what we do, we cannot avoid it. Some advertisement is obvious like giant billboards while some advertisement is subtle yet it still affects our subconscious. Giant companies put so much thought into how they can get into our heads and control our thought process when we make purchases. 

Something I found interesting about the Persuaders was how big industries try to acquire "devotion beyond reason." Companies actually feel that they can provide a sense of community for people or even help understand the meaning of the world. This is ridiculous because people don't find the meaning of life through buying merchandise from a popular brand or traveling with Song Airline. People find meaning in life through experience or learning from mistakes. 

I think it's sad how people feel the need to identify with certain brands. We live in a society where brands can define a person. Associating with popular brands is part of the problem. We feel like brands express who we are when really they confine us. When we identity with a popular product or company, we all become the same. Instead of trying to figure out who we are, we ignore our individuality by becoming like everyone else.

Spoiler Alert!

On April 27, the new Avengers movie came out. I just saw the movie a yesterday and the most shocking ending. Unfortunately, I already knew how it would end because I previously saw a spoiler on someone's Snapchat story. One of my friends actually filmed the entire ending of the movie and posted it (which is illegal anyway). I was so annoyed because I did not get to experience the ending while in the movie theatre. 

Whenever I want to watch a new movie or tv show, I always have to be careful to avoid spoilers in social media. It is so easy to have the entire movie ruined by some post or story and even though it's illegal, people film movies on their phones and post it about it on social media. It's almost impossible to watch something without it being spoiled. 

I should not be this invested in a movie in the first place. It's not real and it the film does not affect me. It's a little alarming how so many people including myself, get so invested in a movie. I should not be angry that the ending of the Avengers was spoiled but it still bothers me. Marvel is just one example of how people can get obsessed with something that ultimately does not matter.

This specific situation was especially maddening because I was really looking forward to watching the movie and the ending was so unexpected. If I look at this objectively, I know it's not a huge deal however it's still frustrating.

Verne Troyer

On April 21, Verne Troyer died from suicide. When I first read about his death on the official site for People, I read about how loved Verne was and how he would be missed. The article starts out by briefly informing the reader on how he died then it switches to a more positive tone. Verne's accomplishments were mentioned along with a statement from his family. The article mainly focuses on Verne's greatest qualities and why he was so loved. 

When I read the article from Fox News on Verne's death, only facts about his death were mentioned. the article did not talk about Verne as a person but more as an object. There was not mention of his character or accomplishments. If I had only read the article by Fox New, I would not know that Verne was good at making people smile and despite his many challenges in life, he managed to create many opportunities for himself which led to his success. The article merely states facts such as the amount of alcohol in his system and the 911 call that authorities received from Verne that night. Fox News discussed Verne in a very impersonal way by completely glossing over his life and accomplishments.

These two articles are similar in that they present some similar information but they are also extremely different based on the way they talk about Verne Troyer. The article from People talks about Verne with passion and sadness while the article from Fox News only mentions facts about Verne's death which could be seen as disrespectful to Verne's colorful life. I think It's really interesting how two articles on the same topic can be so different based on how the information is presented.

Articles:http://people.com/movies/verne-troyers-death-possible-suicide-very-high-level-of-alcohol-in-his-system-says-coroner/
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2018/04/23/verne-troyer-reportedly-had-3-times-legal-limit-alcohol-in-his-system-at-time-his-death.html

Work by Rhianna

A few days ago, I was eating lunch with one of my friends and we started talking about the song "Work" by Rhianna. When she mentioned the song, the first thing that popped into my head was the catchy lyrics that everyone knows. She started ranting about how awful the song was and when I asked her why she was so angry, she told me to look up the lyrics. 

Later that day, when I came home, I remembered what my friend told me and I researched the song. Once I looked up the lyrics, I understood why she was so upset. In the lyrics, Rhianna mentions how she was really hurt by someone however; the lyrics go on to say that Rhianna still wanted to be in a relationship with that person.

There are so many problems in the logic behind the song. Why would someone want to go back into a relationship where they were constantly hurt. It points to signs of emotional manipulation and other problems within relationships. That whole situation is extremely unhealthy however this popular song was advertising it. 

What bothers me is that I unknowingly would listen to a song that was advertising unhealthy relationships because I was so caught up in the catchy part of the song. And even when the song was stuck in my head I still never really listened to what was actually being said. This is just one example of how media advertises things that are unethical without anyone realizing. The unethical message is hidden behind something that is popular or attention-grabbing. We unknowingly fall into this trap and allow the media to profit from our mistakes. 

My Relationship with Media

Social media affects me more than I would like to admit. Without even noticing, I check my phone constantly to see if I received a new snap chat or iMessage. I go on Instagram and like meaningless posts for sometimes up to an hour without realizing how much of my time was wasted. When I go on Instagram, I know, deep down that I probably won't do anything productive for the next hour yet I ignore the thought because it is the easy thing to do. I also waste much of my time on snap chat, sending or opening streaks. Recently, I lost many of my streaks on accident and even though streaks are pointless, I still felt guilty that I lost so many. It's crazy how something so pointless has so much control over my actions and how I feel.

Social media is also one of the main factors of my lack of sleep. I usually use social media as an excuse to procrastinate on my homework which means I start much later than I should. I also check my social media before I go to sleep which is not wise because I often get distracted and once I actually go to sleep, social media is still on my mind.

Social media isn't all bad. It allows me to stay in contact with one of my best friends who lives in Australia. I also see what she's up to on her story and occasionally I get to call her. I also have stayed in contact with a few people from my middle school through social media which is nice because I remain friends with more people.

Overall, social media is really great but also counterproductive and causes a vast amount of unnecessary anxiety. I already have enough on my plate and social media almost feels like a chore. If I stopped using social media or if I even reduced the time I spend on it by half, I think I would become much more productive.