Must See TV Top Three

With as many stations as there are on television, you would think there is bound to be something good to watch. And yet, despite infinite channel surfing, you can rarely find something of interest. This makes it even more difficult to say which three TV shows were the most influential or important. I would have to say that The Simpsons, the original Star Trek, and Survivor are three shows that have had a definite impact on culture or evolution of television programming. Survivor pretty much kicked off the reality show phenomenon as we know it. It began as a major hit television show in Sweden called Expedition Robinson in 1997. In 2000 it made its way to the U.S. and was a huge success. The Situation Comedy was soon replaced by the Reality Show. Soon to follow was The Bachelor, Joe Millionaire, America's Next Top Model, The Biggest Loser, The Apprentice and Big Brother. You name it, there is a show about it! It could be argued that MTV's Real World was the origin of Reality TV, but it was really survivor that changed the format and began the craze that we have today. The Real World was the first to throw strangers together and give them a confessional, but Survivor made it a competition. Reality TV today is almost always based around that competition - voting someone off, and awarding a prize to the last person standing. This is a very different concept from the original Real World which is why after vacillating over which program was more influential on Reality Television I opted for Survivor. The Simpsons is the longest running American sitcom and animated series. It is also the the first animated series to be aired in prime time other than the Flintstones. The show deals with political, religious, and other controversial issues through humor. The Simpsons have permeated pop culture and are part of people's general knowledge. Who hasn't said "D'oh" on one occasion or another (which by the way is an actual word in the Oxford English Dictionary) or told someone to eat your shorts! People love The Simpsons; there is merchandise to collect, fan clubs to join, and don't forget to try to solve the mystery of their true location. Here is an ad that uses Marge Simpson to demonstrate how well the product works, but also demonstrates how identifiable the Simpsons have become. The consumer can immediately interpret this ad because Marge has become part of people's basic understanding. The success of The Simpsons also led to the creation of other animated series such as Family Guy and South Park. The original Star Trek aired in 1966. This television show generated five related series, ten movies, as well as a legion of fans affectionately known as Trekkies. Gene Roddenberry wanted to address existing challenges on Earth, but its setting in space provided a non-confrontational situation for its viewers. Star Trek dealt with heavy issues such as warfare and discrimination. Lieutenant Uhura was an African-American woman with a respected title and role. Star Trek even had the first interracial kiss between Kirk and Uhura. They didn't stop there; there was also a Japanese American, a Scotsman, and a Vulcan. This ability to live in harmony despite obvious differences was a major statement within the show. Star Trek also played into the populations interest in space travel as the race for space with Russia coincided with the show.

Midterm Continued!

This is just a post to let people know that I am having odd issues with this blog. If you want to see my blog with a blogroll please go here! I will try to figure out what is going on. I switched my blog to blogger in beta, but it didn't change anything. It still comes up with the same tabs and expects you to edit html. Because it wasn't originally created in blogger-beta, it still runs like the old blogger.

Stern stands the test of time

Howard Stern, the Shock Jock, has revolutionized radio through his outlandish and sensational behavior. His controversial sexual and racial humor has always balanced on the edge of obscene. He pushed boundaries and tested regulations. If he could get away with it, many other stations would follow. He would constantly push the envelope and sometimes face the repercussions. And though he may have had to deal with the penalties, in return he got a fan base with unprecedented loyalty. An article published by Sirius Radio says, "he is the number one national radio host among males 18-49 years old and ranks number one in many of the 46 major markets where his show is broadcast." There are no real set guidelines from the FCC and Howard was always willing to find out how much he could get away with. When the Federal Communications Commission started to pressure Stern to tone down his act, he opted to move to Sirius Satellite Radio instead of changing his persona or selling out. Sirius is excited the Shock Jock is joining their company. They recognize his talents and the strength of his fan base. Sirius believes it would only take 1 million subscribers to pay for the deal, and with the current scope of his audience, this would only be a small percentage of his regular listeners.

Face it, today's crowd won't buy it

"A guitar beats a woman every time," and while I don't know about that, I would say it probably beats this movie! This quote couldn't better exemplify the womanizing, obnoxious, egotistical character of Larry "Lonesome" Rhodes, played by Andy Griffith. This movie gives an accurate depiction of how power granted through fame in the media can corrupt someone, but as far as entertainment value is concerned it is lackluster and repetitive. The cheesy and over-dramatized acting leaves something to be desired, while the plot is sluggish and drawn out. Lonesome Rhodes is a drunk hiding from the pressures and responsibilities of life when he is discovered by Marcia Jeffries, played by Patricia Neal. She meets Lonesome while broadcasting her radio show appropriately named "A Face in the Crowd," from the county jail. She becomes intoxicated with his rambunctious and powerful personality, and persuades him to become a regular on her radio show. His booming voice, maniacal (and annoying) laugh, and down-home honesty captivate his audience. It turns out America loves him just as much as Marcia, and as Lonesome's ratings increase, so does his ego. Through his success Marcia becomes the woman behind the force, but also becomes a woman in pain. Despite his invariable philandering, Marcia's naivete lets her trust and believe his steady stream of lies and unfulfilled promises. This becomes a prolonged theme in the movie that quickly gets tiresome. All this leads up to an anticlimactic ending salvaged only by Walter Matthau's honest and candid monologue. As the release of the 50th anniversary DVD approaches, I would strongly recommend that you spend your money elsewhere.

Oh, Cosmo

I almost hate to admit this, but like many other girls in our class, my favorite magazine is Cosmo. As a 22 year old female, it appeals to me...gossip, cute guys, oh, and sex, sex, sex. Here is the break down of Cosmo: 65% advertisements, 35% sex and 10% other. Now, once you actually break it down, it makes you question, "Why the hell am I reading this crap?" Does liking this magazine make me a shallow person with no concern for the real issues? I don't think so, well at least I hope not. People enjoy reading magazines for entertainment; it is the superfluous info that has no real world value that most people look for when they pick up a magazine. If I wanted to hear about the issues, I'd read the newspaper. I don't read this magazine for its adept writers, and skillfully composed prose. It is a fun magazine suited for its audience. A woman doesn't want to read "How to Please Her Man" or "How to Look Good Under $100" like she's reading the New Yorker. She wants it simple; this is strictly leisure reading. This isn't something she picked up for educational puposes, (well at least not in the traditional sense) so she doesn't want to have to read it like its a text book. The features are exactly what the typical reader is looking for. As for the advertisements...there are far too many, but this is a woman's magazine filled with info on makeup and designer clothing, what do you expect? And the reality of the situation is, I am not willing to pay any more than I already am. Like I said, it is fun, light reading; not something I really want to invest a lot of time or money in. So with all these advertisements, do I think they affect the content of the magazine, well that depends. I don't believe the advertisements affect whether or not articles about makeup or clothes will get published; those types of articles are the basis for the magazine. In fact, I am sure they would write about lipsticks anyway, but when it comes to the brand selections, there is no escaping the fact that Cosmo uses complementary copy. Cosmo may write about lipsticks, but the fact that Revlon placed an ad, has quite a bit to do with the reason Cosmo suggests Revlon as the lipstick of choice. At least I am aware of why they suggest Revlon or Covergirl; it isn't an unbiased, researched suggestion, more like a symbiotic relationship. People recognize most women's magazines are practically catalogs, but you have to look past that, and enjoy the magazine for what it is...entertainment. That's it...fun, easy, superficial entertainment.