Weekly Analysis 2

Facebook has transcended beyond cultural barriers, whether it be religion, race, or age. It is a tool that is geared towards…well everyone. It is used by family, friends, business associates, and now even famous religious figures.

It was reported in the Wall Street Journal (May 2009), that Pope Benedict XVI has created a Facebook account. The church understands the cultural impact that Facebook has amassed within the recent years. It is business as usual for the church when they decided to utilize this mass media tool as a means of spreading their word. The networking site is free and accessible to anyone with an internet connection, email address, and a desire to connect with anyone and everyone.

Celebrities, television shows, and even businesses have recognized the benefits of creating an account on Facebook. I know several people that work in the Human Resource departments of several large Columbus corporations. They have told me that some businesses are using Facebook in a different manner. They are using it to get to know an employee or potential employee by looking at how they represent themselves in public. Would you keep your page exactly as is if the Pope was a friend of yours on Facebook? If your profile is public, keep that in mind.

reference

Pope Gets Facebook Account. (2009, May 23). Wall Street Journal - Eastern Edition, Retrieved August 29, 2009, from Academic Search Complete database.

Icon Analysis 2-2

It was actually hard to pick three icons that are significant to me. I think that maybe I have become so accustomed to the exposure of popular culture in my everyday life that I don't really dwell on any few in particular. I tend to focus not so much on celebrities and such, but friends and family that have a direct affect on my life. Although, for this assignment I have chosen celebrities since it would be easier for the class to identify with them. I have chosen Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, and Susan G. Komen.

Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres are both successful female talk show hosts. They are somewhat in competition with each other as far as time slots for television listings. Although Oprah and Ellen have a different layout on their talk shows from one another, they most likely share the same target audience. Susan G. Komen is an activist that decided to make her mission to help fight breast cancer her profession as well. Susan G. Komen lost a sister to breast cancer, and has been rallying in her fight to make people more aware of the disease ever since.

I chose these women as my icon representatives because but they are always willing to assist others, but at the same time are following their own dreams. Both Oprah and Ellen appeal to me as everyday average people. They both have been able to balance their real life with their celebrity life. Oprah has overcome diversity growing up, achieving many goals to become one of the most successful business women in America. Ellen DeGeneres has also overcome diversity, being open about her sexuality to the public has only enhanced her image in the eyes of many. I appreciate her courage and determination for remaining true to herself. Susan G. Komen has enhanced the lives of many people in spite of her personal loss. I like that she has remained a positive force in assisting so many individuals in their fight with breast cancer; so much so that her name has become synonymous with her cause.

http://www.ellen.warnerbros.com/

http://www.oprah.com/

http://www.komen.org/

Weekly Analysis

Twitter is one of the many social networking sites that allow people to keep abreast of everything they didn't need to know. Now don't get me wrong, there can be substantial information posted on Twitter. It is a quick way to update the world on a matter by supplying your brief thoughts, allowing people to view and comment on them. Recently a poll was conducted on Twitter in regards to the reaction of the public towards the Swine Flu (Cole, 2009).

Swine Flu, also known as the H1N1 virus, has potential to cause great risk to many people. It's an issue that has been popular in the media through the urging of the government and health officials, in order to make people aware of its potential harm. The Twitter poll found that people may have been bombarded with too much false information in the beginning of the outbreak. There is a warning that Swine Flu could come back with a vengeance this fall, but since the public thought health officials overreacted before they may not take heed to the warning (Cole, 2009).

With the overflow of media via technology available to us at any given point, we as Americans can be on top of breaking news at a breakneck speed. Have we become insensitive to the content of the stories we are hearing because of the repetitive nature at which we are exposed to them? By the time one finishes their morning coffee; they could have seen a story about the Swine Flu in the daily newspaper, as a message on their smart phone, through an email on the computer, and as a lead story on the news channel. Hopefully, officials will effectively communicate with the public the importance of preventative measures that need to be taken for the Swine Flu before the masses have turned a blind eye.

References

Cole, R., (May 24, 2009) Twitter trackers follow public reaction to swine flu; Los Angeles

Times. Retrieved August 22, 2009.

The journal article I selected for assignment 1-3

References
Cusic, D., & Faulk, G. (2009, June). Popular culture and the economy. Journal of Popular Culture, 42(3), 458-479. Retrieved August 23, 2009, using Academic Search Complete