scottowen44

Scott Owen
Engl. Comp. 2
Drinking With Eyes
Marketing to young, beer-drinking Americans is as easy as showing a cold brew and a hot babe, but along with the obvious comes the underlying message. Coors light targets young males ages eighteen through thirty most likely, and in doing so makes assumptions about that age group’s lifestyle. In the Coors Light advertisement “Cold Truck,” visual representations are made to depict a young male who drinks Coors Light as being suave and charming while beating the heat in a stylish fashion.
In this particular commercial, Coors Light effectively depicts the heat as undesirable and shows why their product is the only way to beat the heat. The “Cold Truck” rolls down a long highway and is almost hard to see through all the heat waves coming off of the road. Once the truck reaches its destination at a very hot and miserable gas station, the truck immediately brings relief as a man standing outside stares at the truck in awe. The mountains on the truck’s side are snowy and the steam coming off of them is ice-cold creating a direst contrast to the heat stricken gas station. The young man is staring at the truck looking pathetic and miserably hot, while the truck driver himself strolls casually into the store with a smile on his face implying that Coors light brings joy and comfort to those who partake in drinking the frosty product. As the truck driver strolls inside, the whole place looks similar to a sauna and the woman behind the desk seems to be sick of the heat. However, the woman looks up and sees a man wearing a Coors Light shirt and is immediately happy because she knows that he has come to appease the situation with this extremely cold beverage. As they engage in a small conversation, they notice the man outside who was in awe attempting to lick the side of the truck, but unfortunately he has failed as his tongue sticks to the metal. This visual not only shows how frosty and cold the beverage is, but shows how young men greatly desire their product. This truck has single handedly appeased a situation in which the only cure was sub-zero temperatures, and in doing so targeted young males watching and showed how Coors Light is the way to turn a miserably hot day into a party.
In addition to beating the heat, the purpose of the “Cold Truck” ad is to portray Coors Light as being the ultimate girl magnet for any young man. The marketing strategy is to represent the truck driver, who seems like an average guy, as a suave and charming individual. As the truck driver walks into the gas station, immediately the viewer sees a very attractive young woman behind the counter who looks depressed. Her depression is short-lived as she lights up and smiles when she sees the driver wearing a Coors Light shirt. This visual representation takes a young woman who looks miserable and completely turns her persona around simply by presenting the presence of Coors Light. Young men watching the commercial gain a false sense of confidence and are slightly convinced that the only way to get the girl is to get the beverage, but the correct beverage of course. If any young man watching feels as though they are not very charming or easy to talk to when it comes to the girls they now have a cure, and that cure is an ice cold Coors Light. The visuals are based on extremes, meaning they go from extreme misery to extreme joy. This visual strategy serves as the proof that Coors Light can and will appease any social situation dealing with the opposite sex.
The commercial by Coors Light “Cold Truck” depicts a frosty beverage that will not only appease the heat, but also turn any young man into a ladies man. In visually appealing to their targeted age group and gender, Coors Light triggers a thought process that makes young males desire their product. This trigger effect begins at the eyes and works its way to the beer store; the sales are living proof of this often-overlooked phenomenon which subtly aides many American’s decisions of what to buy when presented with a plethora of options.

Scott Owen




Protest Song Rough Draft



America is a superpower country with substantial means of control and dominance, both within the country itself and outside the states. The people on top remain on top conveniently enough and the rest are living accordingly to the hierarchy of success. The form of rebuttal by the lower level citizens who generally have no control over government issues and enforcement is protest. Whether it be in the media or a march down the street the main focus is to gain attention and get others who are in relatively the same level of social class to agree and fight for change. One example of protest that may not seem so obvious is modern day rap/hip hop music enticing feelings of oppression within the community of which the rappers are derived or represent; their protest leads to a strengthened tie between those who feel they are being abused or mistreated by those on top of the hierarchy.
Rap music itself has gained much popularity throughout the years and formed itself into a multi billion dollar industry. Those who use this media effectively can target young people and old people alike and create a form of protest against their harsh living conditions and exploit the feeling that they are being oppressed and are helpless. For example, one song that may be considered a protest song would be one by an artist named lil' wayne and Birdman. the song is called "you ain't know" and it may not seem like a protest song at first, but when looking at the lyrics closly, one can take it to be a protest song against the structured and governed lifestyle. Lil wayne sings:
" So much money on my mind its all i remember,
and i just bought a gun with an extender,
yea that Bitch hold me up like suspenders."
This line may seem just kind of lyrical and catchy, but in actuality he is describing his situation as a black male trying to make money in the structured lifestyle, but having to do it in an illegal way due to the oppression he has suffered. He is now resorting to the violent way of succeeding and getting money. birdman sings in his verse:
"Know how to survive hustlin' stayin' fly
My whole hood cried when my lil' brother died
Know I had to ride never let it slide
It's just the G in me and I'ma get it til I die."
Again this may seem to just be catchy and lyrical at first, but in actuality he is portraying the hard lifestyle of a "G" or an oppressed male from a rough area. He states how he knows how to survive in the rough streets and how he has to uphold to a certain "code" in order to remain a "G" or in order to survive. with enough listeners, and support this song could create a feeling of togetherness within the "G" community and strengthen their way of life involving murder and hustling illegally for money.
The effectiveness of rap music to alert their listeners is evident in today’s community. Those who listen may or may not be in the harsh conditions described by the rapper, but even then they are effected by what is said. The message gets out to both groups, the group affected by oppression and feeling as though they are helpless and in need of change, and those who are sitting comfortably on top looking down on the ghettos and poor lands while occasionally hearing the rap song in their luxury vehicle on their way to the country club. Both groups get the message, and with enough support, what seems like a catchy tune could send this country into a whirlpool of revolt and change that could leave a permanent mark on how things are done within the U.S. to accommodate the hierarchy of social order.

One song that may be considered a protest song would be one by an artist named lil' wayne and Birdman. the song is called "you ain't know" and it may not seem like a protest song at first, but when looking at the lyrics closly, one can take it to be a protest song against the structured and governed lifestyle. Lil wayne sings " So much money on my mind its all i remember, and i just bought a gun with an extender, yea that Bitch hold me up like suspenders." this line may seem just kindof lyrical and catchy, but in actuallity he is describing his situation as a black male trying to make money in the structured lifestyle, but having to do it in an illegal way due to the opression he has suffered. He is now resorting to the violent way of succeeding and getting money. birdman sings in his verse "Know how to survive hustlin' stayin' fly
My whole hood cried when my lil' brother died
Know I had to ride never let it slide
It's just the G in me and I'ma get it til I die"
and agin this may seem to just be catchy and lyrical at first, but in actuallity he is portraying the hard lifestyle of a "G" or an oppressed male from a rough area. He states how he knows how to survive in the rough streets and how he has to uphold to a certain "code" in order to remain a "G" or in order to survive. with enough listners, and support this song could create a feeling of togetherness withing the "G" community and strengthen their way of life involving murder and hustling illegally for money.

Website Summaries


Mills, Fiona. "Rap and Young White Males: Masculinity, Masking, and Denial." Dec/2001.<http://www.americanpopularculture.com/archive/music/rap_white_men.htm>.


In this article discussing rap music and how it relates to white Americans in popular culture, Fiona Mills, a small-scale author, makes her information credible by both gathering interviews, and referring to outside sources such as Bell Hooks, and Dr. Keith Clark. Mills main focus is on the white male’s fascination with black culture and how rap music serves as a way for white males to connect with this culture in a sort of fairy tale way. This meaning the white males use the rap music as a way to escape from the white culture and rebel against the mainstream white way of life. Initially the white males use the music to establish masculinity and rebel, but as they get older, rap music becomes less and less a part of their life. The white males begin listening to rap around the ages of 12 and 13, when adolescence begins and masculinity begins to become defined. The black males interviewed however start listening to rap music at a very young age and continue to listen to it as they get older. It is not a way to escape from their culture yet a way to reflect on their culture and way of life. In conclusion rap music as related to popular culture, Fiona Mills suggests that white males use it to escape from their society, but ultimately give up the trend of listening to rap music and fall back into “the real world.”


Fitting, Miriam. "Who Takes the Rap." 31/jan/2008 <http://www.indiana.edu/~rcapub/v19n3/p8.html>.


In this article discussing rap music as a way for the underprivileged blacks and others to revolt against the mainstream and polite culture, Miriam Fitting, a prestigious student at Indiana University, uses references to Patricia Washington to strengthen her article. Patricia Washington is an Associate Professor of social work at Indiana University and has done research and published books dealing with rap music and how it effects our culture. Miriam Fitting delves in to the subject by giving examples of Patricia’s work and explaining how rap music is used to define the new generation and set it apart from past ones. In effect, violence is growing and drug abuse is getting worse and worse, but rap music is not solely to blame. Rather rap music serves as a way to identify with the violence and drug abuse, and describes the effects of each for both the victim and the doer. This article describes how rap music effects youth and adults alike, and that the trend of rap music today is more than simply promoting violence, rather it is a way to revolt and define a generation which feels oppressed and subject to the mainstream white society.

I feel as though pop culture has a grasp of the audience in a sence that the audience ultimately decides what gets played. The general like or dislike is determined by the audience, but the culture industry influences what the people ultimately believe to be "cool" or "good" because they target large groups and influence what they like. Many other people have differing views and my view now will probably change, but doing research and reading different angles is the only way to create a more stable personal view of how the media and audience are tied together. the project will help not only with sitation practice and research, but i feel it will be useful and give a new outlook on what goes on around us in america. People are influenced into liking different things by different methods, and artists fall into the culture industry and go along with the general norm and for what reason? why be commercialized and follow a pack? in doing this research these types of questions will get answered, and i think it will be pretty interesting to see what information is gathered.

http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma…

Both Adorno and Fiske  have their own views on the subject of the media vs. audience debate. Fiske suggests that the audience has control over the media and what the media portrays is governed by the people themselves. their interests and beliefs are targeted thus they control what the media ultimately conveys. Adorno however suggests that people are controlled by the media and that the media does govern their own audience through different tactics and tageting stratagies. Adorno's view is that the media controls what the people actually desire and value whereas fiske believes it to be the reverse. Both give their opinions in a valid argument form and support their claims with evidence.

 Facebook is a website in which young people communitcate and stay in touch with one another. the form of writing used to do so is very informal for the most part and reads like a verbal conversation. for example, rather than a sentance reading "hello bill, i noticed you were at the game last night, and i thought to ask you how you felt about the outcome. It was quiet a shocker," it would most likely read like a more informal conversation, "yo whatup bill, that game was nuts bro! saw you there too fool how you like it?" this genre of writing is extremely informal and laid back, the purpose is to keep in touch, not to impress or flatter with extensive grammar usage. the audience is directly decided and is within a small group of friends who are most likely very similar to the person writing the information. therefore the style of writing is very laid back and unprofessional. Terms such as "LOL" and "TTYL" are acceptable and common on facebook, wheres in a formal essay they would result in a failing grade. overall facebook is simply laid back and easy going when it comes to sentance structure and grammar.

 

Hello everybody,

My name is Scott Owen. I have completed one semester of english at Oklahoma with an A, and i hope to do well in english this semester as well. I am a finance major. I play the drums, and i listen to a lot of rap music. I like other music such as third eye blind and the fromat, but rap music is what i play most of the time. I enjoy playing basketball, working out, snowboarding, and hanging out with my pledge brothers. i crutched up a mountain after after blowing out my knee and it took forever.

Hello everybody,

My name is Scott Owen. I have completed one semester of english at Oklahoma with an A, and i hope to do well in english this semester as well. I am a finance major. I play the drums, and i listen to a lot of rap music. I like other music such as third eye blind and the fromat, but rap music is what i play most of the time. I enjoy playing basketball, working out, snowboarding, and hanging out with my pledge brothers. i crutched up a mountain after after blowing out my knee and it took forever.