The Last Tribute

Michael Jackson, the icon and King of Pop music, recently passed away at the age of 50. Found at his home, unconscious after a cardiac arrest, attempts to resuscitate him failed. The news came as a shock to most people around the world, especially die-hard fans of his, because of how sudden the news came. There had been plans for him to hold 50 concerts starting from July of this year to revive his music career but unfortunately, it is impossible for the concert to ever take place now. It seems that his crazy and bizarre lifestyle through these past years have finally caught up to him. Still, despite all the bad press through the years, there is likely no one that can ever steal the title of King of Pop or deny the impact he made in the music industry.

Michael Jackson was a classic example of the impact Media Globalisation can have on the world. In a time when globalization is still not as rampant and when technology was still less developed, Michael Jackson took the world by storm with his radio friendly hits and eye-catching dance moves. He was a music and pop phenomenon. His fans were not limited to only the western society, but the whole world. Regardless of age, gender or race, he was able to capture the hearts of the world. Language had not created any barriers or communication breakdown between any of his fans. Even if they did not fully understand what he was singing, people still idolize him because of the presence and charisma he has on the stage.

However, it was also because of Media Globalisation that eventually brought down the popularity of the once popular pop icon. News of his series of eccentric behavior, starting from the alleged case of pedophilic act, spread quickly worldwide, which served to swiftly bring down his popularity. With the decline of his popularity, it did not seem to help him in the least, and only resulted in even more bizarre behavior and actions that never stopped. Gossips and bad press seemed to be the only things that were surrounding him before he passed on.

It is a pity that a once so iconic and admired figure would fall down to such a state. From his once glorious past, all he has left behind now are his family, the remaining die-hard fans and lots of debts. Media globalization had been one of the factors that had affected his career, both in positive and negative ways. It had created conveniences for many but also no longer give people the chance to err. It is neither good nor bad though as fundamentally, the life of a person is decided by the person himself. It is after all, just an influencing factor. It is the individual that make their decisions in the end.

high or low?

This Heineken television commercial a few days ago and is a strong example of an advertisement with high context. The commercial first shows a group of ladies walking to a walk-in closet filled with clothes and shoes and proceed to show them screaming and squealing excitedly to show the importance fashionable items such as this are to women. While screaming, shouts can be heard from the room near the ladies. The camera switched to the walk-in refrigerator filled with Heineken bottles with a group of men shouting and reacting in the exact same way as the ladies had when they first entered the walk-in closet. Without saying anything in words or verbally, the commercial had successfully planted the idea of how the Heineken beer is important and loved by guys, just as much as how ladies love their shoes and clothes.

I find commercials and advertisements such as this a whole lot more eye catching and memorable as compared to low context advertisements, such as the ones Dell frequently advertise on Today newspaper. In fact, most electronic goods, especially computers, follow the low context way of advertising their computes, showing only specifications and price of the advertised products with barely any form of ‘extra’ information to make it stand out. The only thing they are likely to show in such advertisement are most often just words like ‘discount’ which straights out just tells the readers what they have to offer, leaving no room for imagination like what the Heineken commercial had done.

However, I feel that there is no better or ‘right’ way for the advertisements to be shown though. What matters really is where the advertisement is shown, the products and the market they are targeting at. Although advertisements that are high in context are often more entertaining than the low context advertisements, it will likely not be well-received if it is shown in countries where the people are used to interpreting information for just what they see and read. In such cases, using a high context advertisement might most likely only cause confusion to the viewers. Low context advertisements though boring, tend to be a whole lot more informative and likely to be a better way of advertisement for non-lifestyle products, mostly electronic products, where specifications would likely take precedence over standing out from the crowd.


(Credits: YouTube and the respective uploader)

Jaguars, Cougars and Pumas. Meow~

A few weeks back, I came across an interesting article in Urban on Cougars. No, I’m not talking about the feline animal, but the term that has been coined to older females who date younger men. This scenario is unlikely to be unfamiliar with everyone, especially with the emergence of some high profile older women-younger men coupling in the entertainment industries in recent years. There was the highly-publicized and talk about romance between Nicholas Tse and Faye Wong nine years back, and more recently, the very successful relationship between Demi More and Ashton Kutcher. Be it in Asia or Hollywood though, all these romances have always raised eyebrows because of their unconventionality.

Recently, the creation of a new reality show in the US, The Cougar, which features a 40-year old mum of 4 being pursued by a group of 20 young men in their 20s, seemed to hint that Americans are fast catching on to this idea. However, this still seem to be a touchy topic when taken to the Asian context, as can be seen from the article. There were individuals, high-profile women who are dating younger men, who rejected the interview from the writer because they felt this topic was ‘too sensitive’. Even the men were uncomfortable discussing about it.

So what really is the problem with this coupling? Why are couplings with much older men and young women readily accepted by society but couplings with older women and younger men (even if the difference is only by a few years) stared and fussed at? Is this kind of relationship wrong just because the culture and value passed down from history states that the men in the relationship need to be older then the women?

These are some questions I feel society, or at least the people who still cannot accept this coupling, should ask themselves. Personally, I feel that age does not matter in a relationship because eventually, it is the emotional aspect that ends up more important than the physical and superficial factors. Seeing my parents, who is an older woman-younger man pairing, stay loving even after all these years further strengthened my views on this. It’s also because of this that I never felt there was anything wrong about such pairings and realized it is all just a matter of people’s views and opinions being influenced and imprisoned by the problem called Culture.

I strongly believe that society should try and break free from all the norms and values they are tied down by from the past and learn to accept not only for this situation, but also other controversial and unconventional subjects, to create a more accepting and open society for themselves and the future generations. If that happens, then less prejudices, which is often a common source for hatred, will exist lead to a more pleasant and harmonious society.



(Credit: The Straits Time, Urban, 29/05/09)

We Got Married!

While browsing through youtube a while back, I came across a Korean reality show called ‘We Got Married’. Basically, the show pairs two celebrities together and whether familiar or not, the paired couple would have to start their pretend married life together. Four to five couples are usually shown in one season and it is interesting to see how different the different couples react when they start this show together. Some jump straight into the act like a real married couple and live sweet, ‘fairy-tale’ like lives together, while another may quarrel over petty issues, much like some younger couples these days. One couple in particular stood out for me because of how ‘real’ their relationship evolved over the episodes.

Engagement

In the above video, it shows the engagement process between the couple. They clearly felt awkward with each other’s presence because besides not knowing each other well, there is a six-year age gap between them (the woman is older), which is not a common coupling in the more conservative Asian society. Still, they tried making small talks and conversations with each other in an attempt to get to know each other better and make the ‘marriage’ work, which is pretty much like how couples that are in the initial stages of dating are like. The couple still do not know a lot about each other and so some form of ‘wall’ or awkwardness might form, but through small talks, they would slowly get closer and more comfortable in each other’s presence.

Management

This was filmed around two months after the start of their fake marriage. To manage and maintain the marriage, the woman had flown over to Japan to find her ‘husband’ because he had to stay there for a month for work commitments. As he was with his band mates, she took the initiative to take care of them by cooking food they requested the day before, and also tried bonding with them so as to close the gap between her ‘husband’ and her. In the later part of the episode, she had even went to his workplace (the recording studio), at his invitation, to see how he is like at work. Although not much verbal interaction can be seen in this episode, because they still felt a little awkward, the underlying intentions in their actions showed how they are trying to make this relationship work.

Disengagement

Their stint in the show lasted for seven months, and the video above showed their last words to each other before they officially ‘divorce’. At the request of the woman, they gave messages, through the camera, to the future spouses of the other, and through that message, it can be seen how much they have progressed from being near strangers to someone they know like the back of their hand. Their parting was on amiable terms, with them sharing a hug even at the end, and although not said out, it can be seen that their friendship was there to stay even after the separation.


(Credits: YouTube and the respective uploaders)

Lingos: Yes or No?

Enthu. Unglam. Emo. Noob.

Do all these words sound familiar to you? If not said on a regular basis, most of you have most likely said these words at least once or twice to your peers before. And all these words, also known in the field of linguistics as ‘clipping’, are apparently creating a headache for parents of youths as they are finding it increasingly harder to communicate and understand their children. They also disapprove of the usage of such language as they feel that it is a form of slang and so, ‘improper’ English, but to the youths, this language is what sets them apart from the adult population.

So is the use of such lingos really that worrisome? It seems to be a divided opinion.

Adults like the interviewee, Serene Foo, seemed to feel so when she commented ‘It is just nonsense. It just doesn’t sound like English to me’, as do Mr Goh Eck Kheng, chairman of the Speak Good English Movement when he cautioned how slang is not acceptable in formal settings. However, the youths seemed to find no cause of worry at all, and I find myself agreeing with them. As quoted from Bealson Tan of Ngee Ann Polytechnic, ‘It is all about finding a balance.’
As much as parents still think that their children are still ignorant because of their age, I feel that because of the studying environment and general upbringing Singaporean youths these days grew up in, they have become smart enough to differentiate for themselves whether it is appropriate or inappropriate to use lingos for the different situations. Slangs might come out naturally from their mouths when they are in a casual gathering with friends but it is unlikely you will see them carry it over to more important and serious occasions like project presentations or during examinations.

Just as much as Singlish is a Singaporean lingo, this new form of word clipping is just a lingo formed by youths to feel different from the adults and in a way, to communicate quicker and more efficiently with each other. Moreover, looking on the bright side, although these words are shortened forms of proper English words, at least it is still words derived from real words. That still makes it in a way, a level higher then the regular Singaporean lingo doesn’t it?


(Credits: The Sunday Times, Lifestyle 31/05/09)

Blasphemy? Or just intelligent marketing?

Controversy have been a time and tested marketing formula for the main fact that it creates hype and leads to discussion which in turn creates and attracts lots of attention to the marketed product. It is an uncertainty whether the attention drawn would end up being positive or negative but people have also always said, ‘bad press is better than no press’. And it seemed Antonio Federici Gelato, an Italian ice cream brand, have decided to jump in on the bandwagon for this. Their latest marketing campaign saw them coming out with print ads showing a man and a woman in compromising poses, seemingly ready to kiss. And the problem? The man and woman are a priest and nun, respectively.



Searching through various websites on this print ad, I found very varying comments and thoughts from people who have seen it. The two most common comments though seemed to be between two groups. The first being those who are offended or think that this advertisement has gone overboard and those who are not bothered by the controversy and in fact liked it (mostly because of the half-naked male model). The reason for the difference in their opinions can be attributed to the difference in subjectivity in interpretation between the two groups which eventually leads them into taking a figure and ground approach in organizing their thoughts and opinions towards the print advertisement.

Although the people who had left comments on the multiple websites had not left their details such as their religion, nationality and basically any other information except for their online alias, it would still be safe to assume most of the people from the first group (the print ad haters) should be Christians. Because of their religion, they have not zoomed in on the intended implied message (that the ice cream is irresistible) but focused only on the part of the nun and priest almost kissing. The same thing had happened before back in 2006 when ‘The Da Vinci Code’ was about to show in cinemas. Based on a book that was purely fictional, the main idea of the story was in the process of how the main character, Robert Langon, solve the mysteries in the book, but because there were usage of Christianity and biblical stuffs that were not the same as the bible, the Christian community had decided to protest in anger and even thought of boycotting the movie as a sign of protest. Other people, presumably the non-Christians or not-so-devote individual, had on the other hand just read and book and watched the movie, taking in the plot as just a good plot with good climax and mystery, instead of taking it to the more extreme way that it is blasphemy. Similarly, the other group of people (lovers of the ad) could be assumed to be non-Christians with characteristics that are not as affected by religious differences. Because they are not tied down by religious subjectivity, they were able to put aside the roles of the two models but focused at their point of interest; the male model, at which we can also assume the majority of those who had commented to be females.

As for me, my first point of attention was not even on the models. I had known this is an advertisement for an ice cream company before the picture loaded so my first instinct was to actually look for the ice cream in the ad before looking at the bigger picture to search for the controversy. Even then, I was not too affected by it and ended up still focusing more on the ice cream but this might have to do with the fact that I am a big fan of ice creams in general. The guy had not appealed to me as much as to the others and personally, I thought the advertiser was clever to use such a controversy for more media attention. They might be treading on thin ice but it gives them greater media coverage too, which is basically the main point of marketing.
So what are your thoughts about this? And are there any reasons behind it? Discuss!

(Credits:
http://great-ads.blogspot.com/2009/05/antonio-federici-gelato-shocking-print.html
http://www.ireallylikefood.com/701006870/controversial-ice-cream-ad-may-be-excommunicated/?ref=xn
http://www.adrants.com/2009/05/federici-gelato-poses-fresh-temptation.php)

Girl Power

I came across an article in Digital Life a few weeks backs that caught my attention. According to the author, the factor that affects a women’s decision the most is the looks of the product, followed by the function and lastly the budget, which is also the main reason why women tend to overspend most of the time. Men on the other hand think the completely opposite of women. To them, looks are not worth much if the product’s features, performance and value-for-money are not desirable enough. Although the main highlight of the article had been about the different importance in considerations women and men before they purchase a product, it fundamentally brings back the age-long discussion of men versus women.

As much as most women would love to disagree with the article as to why they overspend, myself included, it is likely most of us are also unable to refute it. Just how many times have you overspend on items you need just because it looks cute and good even if there is a similar product that is a lot cheaper but not as attractive in its packaging? Sometimes, we even buy things we do not need on the impulse, most often clothes, just because someone might have commented that the top you tried out looks good on you. And this can be attributed to selection because of gender influence.

Women love looking good and this is also what influenced them to choose and look at things selectively. Because they want to look good, everything that accompanies them, be it gadgets, clothes or accessories must look good too. Similarly with the men, they buy things that they need and features and value are always at the top of their list because the looks of the product matter little to them. It can be bulky and boring in appearance but as long as it functions the way they need them to, they will purchase it.

However, just how true men and women are to themselves when making such decisions? Can the difference in hormones between the two genders really influence their thoughts and thinking that much? Or is this just a result of cognitive schemata at work?

Women have always been portrayed as beauty seeking, wishing to look their best at any caught moment, while guys have always been viewed as being rational and practical; caring little about aesthetics. But is the difference between the two really biological differences, or is it in fact biological “hard-wiring”. Are men and women reacting and choosing things the way they do now because they really feel that day or could it really be just an unconscious conformity to the norm that had been laid out centuries ago. Because they do not want to look weird and different from others of their gender, they end up reacting the same way and even if they do not feel the same way at first, over time, it becomes something like a habit that they do not even realize it any longer.

Personally, I feel it is really more biological “hard-wiring” then anything else. If it really is hormones at work, what is the explanation for the increasing individuals in society (metrosexuals, homosexuals, goths, etc.) who have acted differently from what is expected of them? Is there some ‘mutation’ that formed in their genes, or are they just brave individuals that have decided to stepped out because of who they believe they are. I choose to believe in the latter because I believe strongly that it is human nature to want to fit in with the majority. No one really wants to be an outcast. Just look at how people can easily be influenced by their friends to do certain things just to blend in with their clique even if they know it’s harmful (smoking, tattoos, etc.). If people would do that just to fit in with their friends, what more will they do to fit in with society.

So what do you really think is the real influence behind the differences between men and women? Is it really just gender differences that you are both with, or do people just want to look normal and fit in? Discuss!

(Credits: The Straits Time, Digital Life, 29/04/09)