Too Much in a Commercial?

With today's generation there seems to be two main characteristics of advertisements that guarantee to get people's attention. These two are sex, and money. Many other attributes that are used in advertisements to sell products are used, but most of the times sex or money is involved because they know that those will catch the viewers attention and they will more likely purchase the product.

Recently I ran across a commercial that I found so ridiculous and filthy that they did what they did in it.



In this commercial by Buy.com a man makes a sexual hint at a women and then, they go even farther later on by making you think for a second that they are actually having sex.
I found this commercial very ridiculous because there was no reason to bring in the sexual attribute for the commercial, especially since it was for a company that is similar to EBay in that it's a company that allows you to buy or sell over the Internet. Now I realize why they did what they did because sex sells and it gets people's attention. A great way to think about it is, if they hadn't done the commercial the way they did, then I wouldn't be here talking about it. Using sex or money in advertisements is genius because you remember those things and they stick with you. Every once in a while that commercial pops into my head and makes me laugh and every time I think about it, it makes me think of Buy.com.

Advertisers have their own code of ethics, but the thing is that, the code is bound to be broken sooner or later. With today's society progressing more and more as each year passes, consumers are going to be looking for something new and different to catch their attention. What we as the consumers and the advertisers need to realize is that were going to have to accept this change and learn how to handle it. I feel that advertisers should have the right to explore different ways of advertising their products to see if it works. The advertisers should be able to try new techniques, but at the same time, it needs to be monitored. I feel that it would be unnecessary for there to be a commercial that shows torture or something inhumane to sell a product. I also feel that sex is okay to be used in advertising, but it needs to be used in a gentle way. What I mean by this is they shouldn't show sex in a dirty, pornographic way, but if they showed it in a soft, loving, relationship way then I feel it would be okay. Now obviously I'm not saying they should be allowed to show a full on sex scene, but if they hint about it or kind of show it in a quick way, then I feel that it's just good advertising. You may agree or disagree with me on this, but something to think about is, think back and try to think of as many commercials you can that don't have sex or money in them, and then compare that number to the ones that you remember that do.

If you wish to explore this further, here some articles that discusses sex in commercials and whether it should be allowed or not.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1TOS/is_1-2_9/ai_n25009596
http://inventorspot.com/articles/seven_sexy_ads_sells_sex_7487
An also I found an article that is very interesting and quite funny.
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=9456

By: Christopher Lloyd

Gore more acceptable than Sex? What is Wrong with this Picture?

One of the most contemplated topics that I have been arguing over for a while now is how gore is ok to show on TV, but sex isn't. Recently, movies have been made that are extremely graphic and show things that are quite disturbing.

Movies such as the Saw series, the Hostel movies and others have been busting out film after film with each time showing more graphic and horrific things. I find it insane that today's society is so twisted and demented that they would actually pay money and enjoy watching someone get tortured to death. Now obviously from my standpoint you can tell that I don't like these movies, but I decided to give them a fair chance to see why they were so popular. I have watched the first Saw movie and the first Hostel movie. After watching both I felt sick and quite taken back that these movies were not only released, but major box office hits. When watching both movies my stomach turned and I felt sick when I saw a man getting his eye balls ripped out and a woman getting her face blow torched.
I don't understand how this is ok?


Going back to my argument, I can't understand how it is acceptable to show torture, gore films which don't only show something immoral, but down right demented, but sex can not be show in movies. People will sit there and watch torture with their friends or girlfriend and think nothing of it, but then if a sex scene comes on, well then all of the sudden it becomes very uncomfortable and they don't want to watch it. I just can't understand how this is possible, how sex, a natural beautiful thing cannot be shown, but graphic torture can.

Maybe you agree with me on this topic and maybe you don't. I know this world isn't perfect, I just find it very hard sometimes to understand what people are thinking when they do the things the do.

Below are listed articles that talk about torture in movies and if you weren't convinced with what I wrote you might consider checking them out.


http://nymag.com/movies/features/15622/
http://www.cbc.ca/arts/film/torture.html

How is this not ok--------------------------- And this is ok?

By: Christopher Lloyd

Dancing Making a Impact

Dancing is something that has been around for many generations. Historians can't say when or where it first originated because dance does not leave behind clearly identifiable physical artifacts or something that can be traced. Dance is used for celebrations, ceremonies, rituals, and entertainment.

Dance is used to express ones self in a way that shows, instead of tells. The truly magical thing about dancing is that it can tell so much without a single word being said. It can tell stories, moods, feelings and emotions. Dance is something that many people appreciate, but are not always will to do themselves. The classic example is school dances when you see almost all of the kids standing off to the side drinking punch or talking to each other instead of doing what they're suppose to be there for, dancing. The most common excuse for people not dancing is that because they are too cool for it, or they're embarrassed. When I first started going to dances in high school I was fairly similar to this stereotype. I was afraid to get out on the floor and dance because I didn't know if people would make fun of me or not. But, luckily enough I had my sister there with me at my first dance and she forced me out onto the floor. As soon as I got out there and started dancing I forgot about feeling dumb and instead danced my ass off all night. After that I was hooked. From then on out you could always find me on the dance floor at a dance groovin away.



Looking at the media today I found a huge simularity with it and my high school experience. Entertainment today is producing many shows and movies based around dancing, and some have become very popular. Shows such as America's Best Dance Crew, Dancing with the Stars, So You Think You Can Dance, and others. Along with movies such as Stomp the Yard, Saturday Night Fever, Footloose, Save the Last Dance, Dirty Dancing and also others. Dancing has started to become a very popular form of entertainment and the great thing about it is, by watching it, it encourages you to want to dance as well. By the enteratainment business promoting dancing through these shows and movies it's inspiring the youth and everyone else to start dancing as well. Going back to how this relates to my high school situation, the entertainment business or media would be my sister, and I would be the viewer and these shows would drag me out onto the floor, metaphorically speaking, and help me to get past my embarressment and do something I might end up liking.

These shows are growing in popularity because people are wanting to learn how to dance and it also allows you a fun way to get and stay fit. People need to start trying out new things in their lives and dancing could be one of them.

By: Christopher Lloyd

Entourage Stealing the Screen

Television shows are a dime a dozen nowadays it seems and some come and go, but others have the privilege of being able to stay on air for multiple seasons. I enjoy watching TV shows and following them as they tell a story and one show in particular that has caught my full attention is the HBO original series Entourage. Entourage has been on air for 5 seasons so far and right now they are filming the sixth. This television show is an HBO exclusive, so the drag about it is you have to have HBO to be able to watch it, but it is well worth the price.

The premise of Entourage is the lifestyle of an upcoming Hollywood actor and the hardships and journey that he goes on while experiencing the Hollywood actors life. There are five main characters in the show, the main character, who is the movie star, is Vincent Chase played by Adrian Grenier along with his friends Eric (his manager-played by Kevin Connolly), Turtle (his friend who is along for the ride-played by Jerry Ferrara), and older brother Drama (a has been actor refusing to admit that he is past his prime-played by Kevin Dillon), as well as his hot shot agent Ari played by Jeremy Piven. The show goes through the day-to-day life of these five characters and the lifestyle that they live with the roller coaster ride of an actor's life. Throughout the show the audience gets to understand what an actors life is really like behind closed doors and all of the good and bad that they face.

The show brings a new kind of premise to television that I have not personally seen yet and that is the portrayal of an actors life. I found it a very creative idea to have actors act like themselves. It brings in a whole new style of entertainment that allows you to see what an actor's lifestyle would be like.

Technology plays a pretty big role in this movie, but not in the way you would think. Instead of using the special effects type of technology, this show integrates the newest consumer technology into their show. On the show you always see Apple products being used, and Hummers and other very expensive vehicles show throughout the show. Technology plays a role in this show to have the viewers react. It shows the latest and greatest "toys" it makes the viewer want to have those possessions. Technology definitely places a sales role in this show.



This show is all about showing the Hollywood life and so naturally society in the show is shown in a very superficial, and shallow way. You always have beautiful women walking around with bad attitudes, people always just looking out for themselves and caring about money, and people screwing each other over left and right. The funny thing is that all of those attributes are what make the show entertaining and funny. By portraying the Hollywood lifestyle so well in this show, it caught viewer's attention so they could witness what it would really be like to live the lives that these people live.

By: Christopher Lloyd

What Will Last?

As the years have progressed, entertainment has been a high priority among humans. People seek it out for when they are bored, have a date, tired, or just because they want something to do. Many different forms of entertainment have been developed such as television, and in television: movies, TV shows, video games, shopping and many others. Then there has also been the Internet, newspapers, magazines, and also there is the wide variety among live entertainment like stand up comedy and other shows. All of these different types of entertainment have shown success, but the question is whether or not they will last as technology steadily becomes more advance.

I feel that it is safe to say that T.V and the Internet are two forms of entertainment that are not going anywhere. Both offer such a wide variety of attributes and expansions that they will always thrive. T.V alone is one of the biggest forms of entertainment at this time because it offers such a variety of channels that allows you to watch whatever you want with ease. The Internet is also at the top for entertainment because it as well offers so much. But, as time progresses there are things that are going to change both the T.V and Internet that could change how we view entertainment.



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From when computers and TV's were first released, it is amazing to see how much they have changed to what they are now. Not only have the sets changed, VHS's have turned into DVD's or soon Blu-ray's. Atari's have changed to Xbox 360's and Playstation 3's. Right there is an example of business not making it. VHS are basically extinct now, and the market is showing an increase in Blu-ray's popularity. As technology increase there are going to be more and more victims that will fall. Right now newspapers are on their last legs, it seems that they too will soon be extinct because people have a newer, easier and faster way to obtain their news instead of sitting down and reading the paper. It's hard to tell the future for magazines, even though they still sell and show popularity, the Internet is starting to offer that news for free and you can obtain it from you home instead of driving somewhere and paying money for it.


Victims will fall and new heroes will rise in the entertainment department and that fact is inevitable. The only question is which forms of entertainment will stay strong is this ongoing battle.

By: Christopher Lloyd