Media Revelation #10 (The Testimonial)

My last media revelation comes from page 104 where Hilliard describes the testimonial. He states how celebrities are a common choice for testimonials because they trigger the emotional appeals of prestige, power, and good taste. He also states how often times testimonial only works if the audience truly believes that the celebrity really believes what he or she is advocating in the ad. I found this funny because I notice ads all the time that feature celebrity testimonials, but are designed solely to be humorous and the celebrity never really pitches the product or service to the audience what so ever. A good example of this that I found was a Geico commercial featuring LIttle Richard.

Media Revelation #9 (Appeals of Media)

My next revelation comes form page 81 and 82 where Hilliard describes the various types of appeals used in most forms of media. He touches on three types being the ethical, logical, and emotional appeals. The first thing I could think of when reading this section was the K-fee commercial we watched in class on youtube. I was unsure which of these appeals a commercial like that would fall into although if I were to guess I would say emotional appeal due to the fact that the point behind it is to scare the hell out of the audience or viewer. When I searched for the video on youtube I was surprised to see that K-fee has multiple commercials based on this theme, this tells me that this technique must be working for them to keep using it in that way.

Media Revelation #8 (The PSA)

My next media revelation from class comes from page 76 and 77 where Hilliard covers public service announcements and their relevance to the media world. This topic interested me because I have always wondered what purpose PSAs served and who organized them. Hilliard describes some characteristics of PSAs, saying that they are often persuasive like commercials, providing information while also motivating the audience to take action in some way. When I was looking through this section I was reminded of when I was in middle school and my friends and I found some, what we found to be hilarious at the time, dubbed over old G.I. Joe PSAs that we would watch repeatedly and laugh at again and again. It was somewhat nostalgic finding one to embed into this post.

Media Revelation #7 (Racial and Ethnic Stereotyping)

My next major media revelation from the semester comes from page 436 in HIlliards book where he covers racial and ethnic stereotyping. This topic has always stood out to me because I feel like I've seen so many ads that have some sort of racial or ethnic stereotyping in them. I found it especially interesting that Hilliard claims that this is usually not due to conscious racism but because of insensitivity. While reading over this section of the book the first thing that came into my mind was the skit by Dave Chapelle where he talks about the old Sunny Delight commercials and the ethnic stereotyping involved. I thought it would only be proper to include this skit to show the skit I am referencing.

Media Revelation #6 (The Sitcom)

My next main media revelation of this class is discussed by Hilliard on Page 434 in the section titled, "The Sitcom." This section was a topic of interest for me because I have always enjoyed sitcoms more than most other shows on TV. I particularly agreed with the part where Hilliard says that good sitcoms are like good plays, I have always felt like sitcoms are a lot like plays in a way and found it funny to see that Hilliard backed up my thought with evidence. Hilliard also defines sitcoms with his claim that good comedy had always been born out of contemplating the seriousness of life, and the first thing I thought of when I read this was Seinfeld. I feel that this show really defined how a sitcom should be, and filled all the criteria mentioned by Hilliard in this section of the book.

Media Revelation #5 (Speeches)

My next media revelation from this semester is discussed on page 292 in Hilliards book in the section titled, speeches. This topic is of even greater relevance to me due to the fact that I took a public speaking class this semester as well. One particular aspect of public speaking that Hilliard covers in this section is how to properly introduce a public speaker. This was a topic we covered thoroughly in our class because as our professor put it, "a very small percentage of people know how to give a good introduction any more." I was not surprised to find that Hilliard explains in this section of the book that one of the most important aspects of giving a good introduction to a public speaker is to build the credibility of that speaker, especially if they are not a well known figure of society. I found it interesting however that it is considered improper to give a lengthier introduction than. "ladies and gentlemen, the President of The United States of America," when introducing the president at an event, and thought it would only be proper for me to embed Obama's victory speech to show how public speaking is done well.

Media Revelation #4 (Documentaries)

The next major revelation I had during this course on media was the intense power and influence of documentaries. On page 229 in his book, Hilliard defines the documentary as the highest form of television and radio next to the drama. He also defines it as a combination of news, special events, features, music, and drama and because of this elaborate combination is often referred to by many broadcast personnel as the single highest form. Documentaries have always interested me and I always get excited when I find one on TV. I enjoy the fact that they inform the viewer while at the same time entertaining and putting forth a particular point of view. In this way one could say that the documentary is designed to trigger all three sections of our brain, by appealing to emotion, entertainment, information, fear, and persuasion all at once.