a-bird-hit-my-window

[a-bird-hit-my-window]

Portfolio Entry 5

1. The launch of the Nike Tattoo Tech Tights offended people from various

geographic regions. Explain why they experienced similar reactions.

According to the text “The people of Fiji, Samoa, and New Zealand were all affected by the release of the Nike Product. The Nike Tattoo Tech Tights were black with white lines that created the image of tattoos, resembling the tattoos of the indigenous people of Fiji, Samoa, and New Zealand”. These tattoos are some of the most sacred rights of passage for polynesians and it was ignorantly and deliberately made as a form of profit from a massive company such as Nike. The reason why it is so unbelievably insensitive and why they all experienced similar reactions is because this is something that men work years for and it is an incredible achievement for any male to get the pe’a, and for it all to be turned into an $80 pair of womens leggings is insane. Not only did Nike just blatantly culturally appropriate, but they didn’t even use it to make clothing for the right gender.

6. How can Nike improve their product-vetting process to reveal the potential for errors caused by cultural insensitivity? (List changes in how they perceive both cultures and internal process.)

They should actually hire polynesian workers in the creative process and actually listen to their opinions. They should also stop seeing tradition as trendy, there is an incredible difference between appreciation vs. appropriation, especially when it comes to the case of profiting off of said appropriation. They should also have connected with the local sporting businesses on the islands in order to do a collaborative line of clothing to celebrate polynesian culture. A collaborative line with companies such as Eveni Carruthers would benefit both brands significantly due to the inclusion of polynesian input and benefit. That being said, I think that Eveni is an incredible example of what it is to be proud to present a culture while modernizing it a bit. Something which brands like Nike and Adidas have missed the ball on several times.

7. Should a company the size of Nike be concerned with being culturally sensitive even if the negative implications don’t affect their bottom line? Why/why not?

The negative implications will affect them eventually if they continue to mess up even more. For example in the article it showed the powerful shareholders that they offended. It does not mention if they stopped having shares in the article. Also, it is kind of common sense to not appropriate something so sacred? Nike lost a lot of potential buyers from people in these countries, which is completely deserved due to the fact that they didn’t think to not disrespect an entire culture.

[a-bird-hit-my-window]

Portfolio Entry 4

Johnny Depp was one of the most admired actors whose remarkable characters and charming nature were deeply embedded in the hearts of numerous fans. Admired by the fans and respected in the film industry, the actress Amber Heard, was becoming known for her movie roles. It looked as though they were the most glamorous couple in Hollywood.

Their bitter affair later exploded when Heard alleged that Depp had assaulted her. These alleged actions became public knowledge via court cases and news articles which drastically changed the general impression of both persons. Depp’s reputation as an adored actor has suffered serious harm with allegations brought upon him.

The aftermath was a lot worse for Depp as he lost some major film jobs, damage to his reputation and still pursuing cases in court aimed at clearing him and getting his jobs back. Her words were questioned, yet some people supported her claims. They resorted to legal action and issued public apologies and appeared on radio stations.

The two parties used the same steps, like public relation strategies, legal team and media engagement in order to influence the public. It also stressed on the magnified pressure facing famous people, as well as how one is forced to deal with private issues in public. The various ways Depp’s PR team worked goes as follows:

Denial and Legal Action: Nevertheless, Johnny Depp and his group vehemently refuted allegations of domestic violence against Depp. They then moved to the courts and filed a suit of defamation against Heard in which they intend to settle the matter using the principle of law.

Countering Allegations: Depp’s team aimed at debunking any allegations against him, narrating his side of events and presenting proof that would prove Depp innocent. Among others, they possessed witness’s statement, audio recording and rebuttal evidence to Heard’s arguments.

Media Interviews and Statements: His camp participated in public relations by having Depp release some statements or having him/his representatives go for media interviews that were meant to be cleared of the allegations levied on the actor. Such opportunities could have been used to tell people why Heard claims were not true and let them hear their opinion.

Support from Colleagues and Fans: Some of his fellow actors and a few of his fans were in support of Depp. His supporters gave him a louder voice in contrast to the negative feedback that was arising as a result of the allegations.

Highlighting Contradictions: The defense lawyers for Depp tried to find inconsistencies and contradictions in Heard’s testimony so that they could prove it cannot be relied upon.

Damage Control and Image Management: The media chose to emphasize and bring attention to his professional accomplishments, mention the charity company he started and make sure that at any given occasion he appears as a decent person. However, the dispute worsened, and it continued to affect Depp’s reputation in the film industry. Following different malicious accusations, his public relation’s team developed many schemes of proving his innocence. However, the court procedure and subsequent tabloid coverage showed up all the problems that are inherent in tackling the mega crisis that was this case.

[a-bird-hit-my-window]

It is amazing that some ads do not have catchy slogans or images but become memorable because of their repetitiveness. For example, one of my favorites is the Empire flooring and carpeting advertisement from the early 2000s with a jingle that goes “800-588-2300 Empire today”. Now, while those may not be the hardest of bars, it is still a jingle that stayed in my head since a young age

Repeating oneself can be effectively used while promoting products or services. The frequent exposure of a certain slogan or jingle increases its chances for permanence in our minds. Repetition in this format reinforces mentally, thus an easy memory recollection. 

Indeed, the fact that even after years you still can recall one of those numbers shows the efficiency of such ads. It is possible that the jingle itself may not have been the best one ever composed or produced, but you will find that every time you switched on your television it had become part of your mind’s unconscious archive.

This emphasizes that continuity and frequency play a significant role in advertising. In most cases brands try to make an ever-present image in people’s mind by creating memorable component of advertising, for instance jingle, slogan or brand sign. By pure use of repetitions, Empire Today has managed to embed their contact details into your memories.

Another way that advertisements end up being memorable is if there is music that is familiar and commercially popular. For example, there was a theory about the song “The Middle” By Zedd, Maren Morris, and Grey, having a certain noise that made listening to it somewhat addictive. So, when a tequila brand and a popular water park got the rights to use the song in their advertisements, they saw an increase in ad revenue from popular streaming services such as youtube, spotify, and TV. This increase was because people were actually paying attention to the ad and visiting the website instead of skipping it.  This is because popular songs featured in ads tend to make people notice. When people recognize a familiar song, they can stop for a while and listen, even those who usually skip or ignore ads. Higher engagement can result in greater ad revenues as the majority of people will prefer watching entire ads, visiting a site, or taking any other preferred actions.

[a-bird-hit-my-window]

Portfolio 2

Throughout my day I use several applications and social media outlets such as tiktok, instagram, spotify, and youtube. I start my day by listening to music and checking my notifications to see if I have to respond to anyone. Usually I do but I end up responding to them later, mostly after I get ready. Lately I have been staying away from my Instagram feed because I use social media to escape the realities of life and its issues. However, lately, my instagram feed has been filled with the Israel versus Palestine war. This makes me feel depressed, so, I usually end up going through my for you/explore page which are purely algorithmic. This means that I’m reducing my feed to selective exposure whether I know it or not. My algorithm consists of really dumb memes, dogs, and a lot of alternative clothing. While it is perfect for me, it is definitely not some people's cup of tea. Which in all fairness, is why it is considered as “my algorithm” and my “for you” page. Sometimes if I feel politically inclined, I will seek sources that are more supportive of my views rather than the opposing views. While this might be counter-productive, it gives me more information to strengthen my views and to learn more about the topic. I also think I do this because I know that when I read opposing sources, I end up getting frustrated and angry due to the language that some sources use that appear either defensive/negative towards my opinion. This also relates to the gratification theory because it makes me feel better about my views when I know that others agree with it and actively brings me more information to grow that opinion. While it may not directly be what the gratification theory means, it still kinda relates to it in a way. In any case, I still have some active role that I play in the gratification theory. For example, social media makes me feel distracted for a while due to the fast pace and less brain power used to exercise my mind. Tiktok has perfected this theory by making users addicted to the low attention span and quick paced algorithmic patterns that gives the brain so much in such a short span of time. This is both a dangerous and fascinating new development towards technology and the studies on addiction. Although, it does suck that we as a generation are addicted to a goofy concept such as tiktok.

[a-bird-hit-my-window]

First post?

These are my initial notes from class and direct copy pastes from the textbook:

Maxim of the cooperative principle - which says that speakers should be as informative as is required, that they should give neither  too little information nor too much. 

Maxim of quality - speakers are expected to be sincere, to be saying  something that they believe corresponds to reality. They  are assumed not to say anything that they believe to be  false or anything for which they lack evidence. 

Maxim of relation - speakers are assumed to be saying something that is relevant to what has been said before.  

Maxim of manner – we should be brief and orderly and avoid obscurity and ambiguity. 

Flouting – when speaker doesn't follow a certain maxim to inspire the listener  

Flouting quality = banter, over-exaggerating, irony  

My take on these qualities:

Maxim of manner makes me think of an essay that you have to cut down because you went over the word count.

Maxim of quality makes me think about a TED talk because of the factual nature of it.

Maxim of the cooperative principle reminds me of a scientific process because there's some extra information but it's only meant to be there to keep you on track with the lab.

Maxim of relation reminds me of just a general conversation or a high school presentation because there is a lot of fluff but there's a general idea of a topic.

Flouting reminds me of cotton candy because it's just fluff to a conversation, which is not totally awful but, it is just an add on.

[a-bird-hit-my-window]

This is my first post for my communications class