Advertising

It is true that consumers are becoming less and less in control of their privacy. Cookies, and other new technological advances, are monitoring what one does; even collecting information about people without their knowledge if they do not know about cookies (Greengard). Being born into a society that has already been placing cookies into electronics makes them unaware because it has become so common for everyone else. By advertising agency’s using cookies, the agency’s can learn what websites or televisions channels and times would be best to broadcast their advertisements.

 Advertising industries using things like cookies can monitor what time people are home, where their favorite stores are, and even favorite internet sights, to find out what the best time would be or place to sponsor their advertisements. By using cookies, advertising agencies are technically taking polls from people without their knowledge. When finished, the agencies know what internet sights a person has been on and what television channels they have watched and at what times. This gives agencies the advantage to post similar advertisements on internet sights they have views, or broadcast commercials on channels and times pertaining connections. Deciding how commercials to make the commercials, comes from the idea of status quo.

 Advertisements do contain this idea of a status quo. The status quo has mainly interpreted women as people that are suppose to take care of the house and the family, while the men watch sports, perform daring tasks, and do laborious work. This gives advertisements an idea on how to make their commercials appeal to whatever age group, race, or sex they choose. By using cookies, this status quo is kept updated, following what men and women buy, along with following what times they come home and what is being watched.

 Advertising is becoming both harmful and positive; however, the positive is greater than the negative. Invading a person’s right to privacy by using cookies, especially since many do not know about them, has become the negative side. The positive side, however, is that advertising company’s are able to advertise products that are more likely to interest the person instead of making them watch advertisements containing information having nothing to do with what they like.

Cover-up

Makeup advertisements, especially for cover-up, have strongly persuaded me for essentially all of my teenage to adult life. Growing up, acne and rosacea have been a major self-consciousness that causes me to feel unattractive. This is mainly due to the way society has perceived the way beautiful women are suppose to look. Models and actresses are never shown with blemishes, creating this myth that in order for me to have a chance of being admired like these women, I would need clear looking skin. Model’s, along with actresses, are even consistently used in these advertisements, bringing the myth’s connection of these women’s beauty to the makeup they illustrate.  

In this advertisement, Jessica Alba, an actress, is modeling this new cover-up for Revlon; a cover-up that changes from white to the color of ones skin so there is a perfect, flawless match. What this advertisement is intending to sell me is, “in order for one to have flawless looking skin with a cover-up that matched my skin tone; one would need to buy this cover-up.” However, there is additionally a deeper impression that is being created, which is, “in order to be beautiful and happy like Jessica Alba; one would merely need to wear this makeup.” My first response to seeing this advertisement is that I needed to have this cover-up because finding a cover-up that actually matched my skin tone was extremely hard. In actuality, I truly did not need this makeup. Makeup is actually one of the causes of my problem with acne, so why would I want to buy what is causing my dilemma? This, along with other advertising tactics used in our culture, is used to show society only what the beginning product can cause, but not the after affect.

Honors Homework

            Before taking this honors class, the term popular culture was rarely brought up in my life, nonetheless me having to try explaining what popular culture is. With popular culture constantly changing, it is hard to keep track of what is popular. Susan Smulyan commented on how most people are born into a life where their outlook on popular culture forms from what the mass-mediated entertainment is. What Smulyan is saying is that people are born into a popular culture which they gain a part of forever.

            After taking this class, thinking of popular culture is hard to stop. Everyday, I wake up in the morning and put a cell phone in my hand, turn on the television, and put on designer clothing. Before this class, I would have said popular culture is what possessions everyone wants to have; but now, I see popular culture is what shows a majority of unity between the people in our nation, majority being the key word because there are some that do not like certain popularities.