Sports Reflection

Young men and boys from the ages of 14-25 who live in urban areas are targeted in this billboard advertisement. The billboard would be placed on the way up, along highways, to rural areas, on the way to cottages or summer houses. It would be targeted to wealthy families because of the price of the bikes and equipment.  This specific advertisement has the rider up in the air, posed as if he is flying above our heads. The advertisement has him frozen mid-air; this is to symbolize the state of nirvana that you feel from seeing that. It is the moment where life stays still; that rush you feel before remembering you have to stick that landing.

The advertising techniques used to construct this media text are scale, excitement, and the “cool factor”. Scale is shown because the biker and its rider appear bigger that everything else in the text. It is coming from a perspective as if you are looking from beneath the bike, making you feel as if you want to be the one flying in the air. The excitement of that moment of nirvana can influence anybody attracted to the physical characteristics of the billboard. If somebody has already had the experience, their past emotions may help them relate to the moment being portrayed. From a ‘negative’ perspective, if somebody has had a bad experience with motocross and dirt bikes, they may feel different emotions about the ad than those who enjoy the sport. “The Cool Factor” technique asks the question “Are YOU cool enough?” Targeting the ad to youth, it is known that many youth experience peer pressure issues, as well as self-image problems. Cool is manifested into having a powerful image. The words “Feel the Power” imply a message that when you are in power, you are on top of the world (literally in the text), and that you could have the potential cool factor everyone looks for. Being "cool" in today's society is very important to today's youth. It proves a feeling of acceptance by society and it feeds the power of control.

Key Concepts Test Rewrite

B: i) Media construct reality:  This Cadillac advertisement shows two white, good-looking males driving a Cadillac car. This shows an ideal version of the `American Dream`. The conclusions you can make from the two men driving that car promote that you need wealth, and happiness to live the good life. The man driving the car is white and attractive showing that these are factors that will help you live up to the dream. The men also look as if they are driving quickly, and are dressed for some sort of social event. They look as if they have somewhere to go; that they are not going to just sit at home, especially if they have this car. Cadillac is trying to show that with this car, you are living the good life of wealth, freedom, and happiness. The attributes of the these men (white, attractive, well-dressed, wealthy) show that if you carry these attributes, you have the potential of living that American Dream, to fulfill that wanted happiness. Overall, Cadillac is also trying to share that with this car, and the potential wealth that you carrry, you also carry the power of being somebody in society.

ii) Media contain value messages: The value messages of this advertisement shows that Cadillac can give you the good life, along with the values of carrying the American Dream. One message shows that if you own this car, you have class and wealth. You can tell by the portrayal of white, good-looking, well-dressed men that these are the attributes to live the good life. It is a dream that many people would desire to live, and Cadillac is trying to show that they can give you this dream, if you can afford it. The target audience here can vary; it may be wealthy young men who are in the pursuit of happiness, wanting to go out and met new people and women. However, the fact that their are two men may also attract the idea that these two people are going out as a couple, kind of proving that Cadillac also supports homosexuality. To women, there are ways of interpretting this advertisement differently. They may feel as if they are not as important because they are not the ones who can drive Cadillacs, or being the ones in control, as shown in the advertisement. Women may also interpret it as wanting to be the wife, girlfriend, or partner of the man in power of this car. It shows that the good life, and the American Dream have expectations, and Cadillac may be able to help you with that pursuit.

Sports Advertising

	Ad #1 Adidas Soccer	Ad #2 Bauer/Nike All Sports	Ad#3 Gymnastics
Gender	Male	Male/Female	Female
Income	High (wealthy)	Wealthy	Wealthy; expensive sport
Age	6-20; there is a range of age in the commercial, showing that anybody can play soccer	18-25; the people represented in the commercial are around this age, and fit, proposing that anybody can look like that	9-15; girls this age would be able to relate to this commercial, and the feeling of success
Education	Elementary, Secondary	University/College	Elementary, Secondary
Rural/Urban	Urban	Urban	Urban
Overall Description of target audience	The target audience would probably be males from the young age of 6 to the age of 20 because all are represented in the commercial. There are kids just playing around, and eventually it shows youth playing soccer on a field, while the famous guy is standing there, watching.	The target audience would be young adults wanting to stay fit and be active. This commercial shows the people working hard to get where they want to be.	The target audience would be girls between the ages of 9-15. They would need to have some sort of wealth to be able to participate in a sport like gymnastics. They would need the time, strength and endurance to feel successful.

	Ad #4 Equestrian Ad	Ad #5 Adidas Soccer Commercial	Ad #6 Lance Armstrong Commercial
Gender	Male and Female	Male	Male
Income	Wealthy	Middle class	Middle class
Age	16 and up (experienced riders)	17 – 30 (athletic men)	17-30 (athletic men)
Education	Highschool and further education	Highschool and further education	Highschool and further education
Rural/Urban	Rural setting because horse stables are usually always in a rural environment.	Urban setting because the stadiums are in the city.	Urban and rural because biking is popular both in the city and in the country.
Overall Description of target audience	Audience is meant for older people who are serious about equestrian and competitive riding because the advertisement is made for equestrian competition.	Audience is meant for men between the ages of 17-30 who are interested in soccer and sports. There are only men in the commercial which makes you think that the commercial is leaned more towards them.	The audience for this advertisement is men from the ages 17-30 and who are interested in biking. They used the story of Lance Armstrong to draw them in and saying that you can come over anything and achieve your goal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjL9Fm7v2B4 Adidas Soccer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkPsoS0aauw&feature=related Bauer Nike All Sports

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dgBEWZ9jvM Gymnastics

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRrsWSYcOrY&feature=fvsr (equestrian) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wD94-O9aUVw (adidas)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ph6Gd2Cg4gc&NR=1&feature=fvwp

(lance Armstrong)

Pop Culture & Society

Trends and fads mould the way society presents itself to the public. By the way they look, the way they spread like wildfire and the way they are accepted, trends and fads give society an excuse to follow in each others' footsteps. Do not get me wrong, trends and fads are a great way to be "hip" and "modern", but they also suggest that society depends on them to progress into new culture.

The popularity of  a current trend or fad suggests that society is afraid to branch off from the mainstream culture that dominates North America. The fear of not having the latest technology, or wearing something "that was so two months ago" leaves society with the impression that these popular culture factors is what gives our North American society the reputation it has today: the reputation of dominating the mainstream world. For example, trends in fashion are created by those who are watched by the world. Those people can be fashion icons - but not just that - they are leaders and celebrities as well. Military apparel is what is currently dominating the fashion world, providing a sense of durable and colour coordinated wear. It is the celebrities of Hollywood, California that set the trend for fashion. However, trends and fads are not all about fashion, they can include music and television. The show Glee is an example of a current popular show. It is a show that attracts audiences of different ages, and situations. The fact that it is so popular suggests that this is what society looks for in a television show, but also possibly in real life. The show presents many scenarios in which audiences may be able to relate, therefore signifying the hopes of the audience that what is presented on the television show is what truly happened to them, or what they wish would have happened. The way people can relate to the show is the reason why it is so popular, along with the fact the cast sings songs, which adds to the pure entertainment of shows like Glee.

In reality, trends and fads change over time. The popularity of them just comes to show that people enjoy being "in the know" of what is 'in' and 'out'. Without popular culture, the North American society may be a mess. If you think about it, without pop culture, where would stores look to when the new season arrived? And where would award show executives find candidates for their awards? To be without popular culture, communicates to the world that this is what we define our lives around. Whether it be from that song on morning radio, to that late-night talk show, and from the trends of today and the fads of tomorrow, popular culture is a part of our everyday lives, and it does not take much to change it.