Weekly Analysis 5-1

"By his own admission, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner has bedded over 2,000. But the

84-year-old sex icon is more than a mere Lothario. The just-released documentary "Hugh

Hefner: Playboy, Activist and Rebel" portrays Hefner not as a soft-core pornographer,

but as an outspoken proponent of the First Amendment", (Osterhout, 2010). I am all for

the freedoms that come with the First Amendment, but the very thought of what this old

man stands for, makes me want to puke. I mean to start off, is it not a crime to cohabit or

in simple, practice polygamy in the majority of the states in America? The fact that this

guy can take barely legal girls, and shower them with gifts in order for him to find a way

to get them into his bed, should make any law abiding citizen want to see him behind

bars. Surely, there has to be a law he is breaking by lining up these innocent young

women at his playboy mansion. Last time I checked, it was illegal to practice polygamy,

even in the state of Wyoming. The latest victims were eighteen year old twins Kristina

and Karissa Shannon. While a lot of men find nothing wrong with what Mr. Hefner is

doing, and are more happy with the sexual content and nature of the products and magazines he markets,I, for one, find it disgusting that an 84 year old man who is old enough to have

great-grand-children that age can practice open sexual abuse right in our eyes ,and we, the

public simply turn blind eye to it. Matter of fact we pay for it by buying the Playboy

magazines. To make matters worse, I have seen pictures of celebrities, taken at his

mansion, and nobody stops to question the morality of Mr. Hefner's actions. My question

is, if our society can criticize the sexual content in today's hip hop music, why then is

there a double standard when it comes to Mr. Hefner's conduct? What really erks me is

the fact Mr. Hefner never has any long term relationships with these innocent girls,

instead he rotates them like tyres on a car and then dumps them in the street. While some

of these girls, are not that innocent, and engage in a relationship with him in order to gain

fame, that still does not give him the right to use and abuse them the way he does. Two

Hugh Hefner seen in the picture above, with now ex-girlfriends, 19 year-olds, Kristina and Karissa Shannon, isn't opposed to brunettes, but says he is currently enjoying his 'blond period.'


wrongs do not make a right. At the same time I want to know where the parents of these

girls are. What are we teaching our kids, when we let them engage in a short sexual

relationship with an 84 year old man, simply because he is rich.

.

References

(Osterhout, J. E. 2010) Being Hugh Hefner: The Playboy founder dishes on his love for

blonds, Viagra and morality.DAil. Retrieved from:

http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2010/08/01/2010-08-

01_being_hugh_hefner_the_playboy_founder_dishes_on_his_love_for_blonds_viagra_an

d_m.html#ixzz0zjvbFUy0

1-3 Journal Article Analysis

           

The article I chose focused on the topic of Mythologies of Gender and Nation : Reading Wonder Woman’s Body by Mitra C. Emad. I chose the article because it described the positive influence of women’s comic books on American culture. This influence the book says, “dates as far back as the second World War”. The article focuses on how books can promote the status of women in today’s society as they continue to struggle for equality both in the workplace and at home. The moral of the story is that women can empower themselves, changing from weak girls to economically and sexually independent women. To support this notion (Emad, 2006) states, “In developing a Barthesian approach to this comic book character, I argue that Wonder Woman’s body as a cultural artifact represents specific gendered nationalisms with meanings that delineate an uneasy, often oppositional, blending of the separate spheres of femininity and nation. In each historical instance, however, Wonder Woman’s body is both an icon of the traditionally masculine, public Reading Wonder Woman’s Body 955 realm of nationhood as well as the traditionally feminine, private realm of female sexuality. As such, her body serves as a site for constantly oppositional encounters between gender and nation, private and public, and bondage and power”. The article also compares the way comic books depicted the role of women in America in the period during second World War and the year 2001.

References

Emad M. (2006) The Journal of Popular Culture, Reading Wonder Woman’s Body: Mythologies of Gender and Nation, Vol. 39, No. 6

Weekly Analysis 4

“When most people hear the term '3D,' they don't think of stereoscopes or View-Masters. Instead, flimsy plastic glasses with red and blue lenses usually come to mind. These glasses, when used with special photographs called anaglyph images, create the illusion of depth”, Kevin (2010).




The evolution of HD picture television and movie has changed the way we view motion pictures. HD DVD players and recorders have greatly increased competition among DVD makers especially with the arrival of Blu-ray disc technology, which set the battle for next-generation of the video market. The move would make Blu-ray, backed by Sony Corporation, which also makes Panasonic brand products, and five major Hollywood movie studios, the winner in the battle over high-definition DVD formatting that began several years ago. Recently 3-D movies took over the market making yet another positive change to the already competitive HD market. I have not had the chance to view a movie in HD in the movie theater, but from what I have heard, it is quite an experience. With way technology is moving, I wonder if it is almost advisable for people to wait to buy #-D TVs until they come up with a 4-D picture type.

Weekly Analysis 3

It has become clear to everyone that internet sites like facebook, myspace and craigslist are now being used to advertise sex services. When I first started looking for stuff to buy and sell on craigslist my intention was to sell my old textbooks which were gathering dust in my closet. However, a few months ago since this issue of adult services came up, I have completely stopped using the site. The other reason why I stopped using craigslist was, lack of security. While I must admit I have made a few bucks through the sell of my old textbooks, I have also noticed that it is easy for people to hack into your account and use it to sell illegal stuff. The last time I advertised my books on it, I started receiving weird emails from girls, who were claiming to be from Russia and were interested in dating me. I subsequently emailed the administrators of the site and never got any replies. These people were emailing me daily, attachments of very revealing pictures. While this may not be the norm or intention of the creators of this site, craigslist has a section for adult services, which raises questions on how safe the site is, to say, underage users. I am all for freedom of press and expression but I think some of these sites need to be monitored and fined for promoting prostitution.

References:



Read More http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/09/censored-craigslist-adult-services-blocked-in-u-s/#ixzz0yftVlx9x

Weekly Analysis 2

I decided to focus my weekly analysis on the issue of texting while driving. If you drive down many highways, you will see signs that discourage people from texting while driving. Some states have gone as far as passing laws against the use of cell phones on the road period. However, that is not to say people will actually abide by those rules. There have been times, when I have seen people, texting, talking on the cell phone while putting on makeup and driving. I have also seen people, staring down at their cell phone keyboards and their hands in most cases are not even close to the steering wheel. And then there are the “crazy ones”, who like to "sext" and drive. “Sexting” is a new teen word for sending revealing pictures to your significant other. I keep trying to imagine how they do it. But, how do you text in a moving car? I guess they guide the steering wheel with their knees, while holding the blackberry, droid or smart-phone in their hands. The driver's eyes must flit back and forth between the road and the cell phone's screen. I really don’t have problem with this, as long as these maniacs are posing danger only to themselves, but that is not usually the case. (Van Osdol, 2007), states that, “A recent insurance survey found that teens say texting is their #1 distraction on the roadways. Another recent study found that over one-third of all young drivers send text messages while driving, with one-fifth of all drivers texting at the wheel of their cars”. There have been too many innocent lives lost on our highways due to this silly habit of texting while driving. I believe that the human mind is most effective when it is focused on one task, not two and let alone three or four at the same time. I also feel that driving, is a very difficult task to undertake. It doesn’t matter how good you are at driving, even Nascar drivers, can attest to the fact that, it is safer to focus on the road than juggle between driving and texting. The main issue is that, when driving you have to look ahead, behind and sideways because while you may be a safe driver, the person in front of you, behind you, or on your side, may not necessarily be as vigilant. Defensive driving taught me to always assume, and anticipate the other driver’s actions. Now, how can you possibly watch all four sides of your car, text and drive at the same time? It is just not realistic, and I feel that, all states will at some point be forced to enact laws to outlaw texting while driving.




References:

Van Osdol, P., (2007): "Team 4: Driving, Texting Just Don't Mix Well." WTAE Channel 4 Action News. May 2, 2007.

Weekly Analysis 2

The first icon contemporary icon I chose is Who Wants to Be a Millionare, television game show, which offers large cash prizes for correctly answering a series of consecutive multiple-choice questions of increasing difficulty. The program originated in the United Kingdom, where it was hosted by Chris Tarrant. I chose this game because when this game show started airing on the ABC network in the US, it became an instant hit television series.

The other contemporary icon I chose is the animated series, Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, which was created, produced, and hosted in live action bookends by comedian Bill Cosby, who also lent his voice to a number of characters, including the titular one. The show, based on Bill Cosby's remembrances of his childhood gang, focused on the lovable, oversized Albert, with his signature rumbling exclamation "Hey hey hey!", and his friends. This show although old is still very popular especially among people who grew up in the 70s -80s. It was also popular because it primarily spoke to African-American youth in low-income families, a segment of the population previously ignored by Saturday morning programming. However, the show had an impact on children across the United States, regardless of race. Even my young self, growing up in a relatively poor to middle-income family in Zimbabwe, remember the show as always having an educational lesson emphasized by Cosby's live-action cameos. Cosby's Kids had an upbeat attitude and were eager to learn, in spite of their apparent poverty. This I believe, is what made the show popular world-wide especially in poor communities, because the kids in those areas could relate to the struggles, Fat Albert and his friends were going through.

The last contemporary icon I chose is Care Bears which are a set of fictional characters created by American Greetings in 1981 for use on greeting cards. The cartoon characters became so popular that they appeared in their own television series from 1985 to 1988, in addition to three feature films. Each Care Bear comes in a different color and has a specialized sign on its belly that represents its duty and personality. The Care Bears are now part and parcel of American Pop culture and people buy them as Christmas gifts or to show loved ones that you care. They can also be seen in hospital beds, especially the ones which specialize in taking care of children because they are so huggable.

Artifact

Pop culture to me is the identity that goes along with being up to date with current styles and trends. Popular culture encompasses morals, beliefs, opinions, thoughts, and other influences. It is essentially a term that is used to describe the popular trends of a given society. Since popular culture is also the study of celebrities, trends, and subjects that are popular with the people of that nation or common interest, it is relevant to understand it especially in a business environment, because most marketing strategies rely on current and future popular consumer shopping trends.


A good example of a pop culture artifact is a television. Since it first became commercially available from the late 1940s, the television set has become a common household communications device in living rooms, bedrooms and offices, particularly in the first world, as a source of entertainment and news. I chose this artifact because I believe that I, like most Americans have some form of addiction to watching TV. It is amazing to imagine how much time we all spend watching TV.