Facebook

I know the topic of Facebook may seem to be talked about constantly, but when I revisited the idea of Facebook in terms of what I have learned in this class, I felt like I had some unique things to say. The theory I kept coming back to was the Parasocial Relationship Theory.

Everyone in this class knows someone that has a relationship like this on Facebook. For me, I'm not going to tell you his name, but I went to high school with a guy that leaves comments on over 30 people's Facebook pages in one day and probably only receives one or two responses. I would reply, but I have no desire to open that can of worms. This bond of intimacy that he thinks he must share with several is actually a lie. Facebook promotes this idea by allowing its users full access into the lives of people who may not know everyone that frequently visits their page.
The next topic I thought applied well to Facebook is commodification. It is hard to even see what aspects of Facebook aren't an advertisement anymore. The games are sponsored by either a brand or a person with something to gain. When people think that they are only playing a game, they are actually having a product and/or brand shoved down their throat. Something as simple as trying to help your friend's farm in Facebook's Farmville has now turned into countless hidden messages and advertising. Entities such as restaurants, clothing companies, and music moguls are now using the website via techniques such as creating a page that you can become a fan of as well as the more traditional creation of a group.

Throughout the media logic, I feel as if the Youth of America doesn't really know what they're doing when they socialize on this filthy, advertiser-friendly website. Teens may not be picking up on the advertisements in Facebook, but they are picking up on the amplified themes such as what clothes to wear and not wear, what media to consume, what to eat, and what to think. I dare you to find someone on Facebook that has nothing at all in common with anyone on Facebook. It's as if Facebook has killed creativity.

What are we supposed to do after recognizing this? Are we all supposed to delete our accounts? We can't , as a society, just delete our accounts. There are many real-life opportunities that come from this website such as finding a love interest or a possible career. That is what it was meant to achieve, right? It seems to me that this website has gone "off the beaten path" in order to exploit the users that made it profitable in order to become immensely profitable. Is this entirely their fault? No, but when a kid brings a gun to school, the parent is still somewhat to blame. I blame the consumer mess found on this website on greedy advertisers, but Facebook, I've got my eyes on you.

Saved By The Rhetoric

When trying to find a topic for this blog, I had a unique idea in which I wondered "Could I apply Saved By The Bell to class material?" in which I replied, "Awwww yeaaah." The first thing I thought of was the "Cool Hunting" video we watched in class. Zack was the definition of a teenage rebel in his time with his zany pranks and dating record. It was apparent how cool he was by the technique of "breaking the fourth wall" the producers used in his scenes. Any brand would have loved to have him as their model, as he could have created a whirlpool of financial gain for any company aimed towards the show's young viewers.

Another important term from class came to my mind which probably wouldn't have been thought of otherwise, but there are also elements of Marxism in the show. The principal, Mr. Belding, towers over the students as if watching their every move, especially in the case of the school's biggest rebel, Zack Morris. Zack seemed to be every kid's idol in the way that he stood to liberate the oppressed, which in this case is the student body of Bayside. Our ideology of a principal may see this rebellion toward them as normal, but now that we are adults we can see that they are just trying to do their job not unlike the turmoil we face in the workplace ourselves.

I guess I would have to say that the biggest reason I picked Saved By The Bell is due to the way we were introduced to pop culture in this class. When we ask ourselves why we study pop culture, a good answer would be that it shapes our attitudes, beliefs, and opinions. Has Saved By The Bell not done this for you in some way or another? For me it introduced me to a role I feel I played in school at times, the role of Zack "The Prankster" Morris.