I am honestly having too much fun doing this project. I am enjoying writing the copy and the different story lines on the website. I have been writing different parts in my classes and not paying attention to the professors. At times I have been cought laughing out load interrupting class as my class mates think I am insane.
I am struggling with getting a sound byte down or doing an interview. I originally thought about doing a fake interview with a fake Child Soldier expert but I do not think I will have time to put something like that together. I am starting to get worried about how the website, which I am building in iWeb, will look on the web. I have never done this before so I am questioning whether or not the end result will be what I expect. I have learned how to use iWeb to build a website, I still am learning different aesthetic elements of a clear and effective website. Putting links together has been a little difficult as often times links have been broken. I hope that with just a few more hours of work I will be able to set up the website to the web.
I feel I have done an effective job of dividing up my workload over the past few weeks and all that is left is for me to get a sound byte or interview and put the site on the web.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Before the project
Looking at the upcoming final project, I cant help but get a little excited. I was very satisfied with how my video, which I hope will be part of my final project, came out. I think the final multimedia project will end up to be humorous. I am not sure what I'm trying to accomplish, but I am sure I want the viewer to engage my multimedia story at the many levels.
What I am struggling with most, is trying to organize my ideas and thoughts. Sifting through my abundant random ideas, I am trying to figure out the most practical and informative avenues for telling the story of the "Child Soldiers in America." I think many of the different avenues of storytelling were shot down in my own mind because they required skills that I neither knew nor had the time to learn.
I think this project will be worth while because it will allow us to do some Twenty First Century storytelling. This also will allow us to display everything we have learned thus far in the semester. When we do projects in the class, I often feel that we are being rushed, which has more to do with the 1 hour and fifteen minute time limit than the environment. But having some time in class so we could stay on track and and exchange ideas on what we are doing right and what we are doing wrong, would be very helpful.
What I am struggling with most, is trying to organize my ideas and thoughts. Sifting through my abundant random ideas, I am trying to figure out the most practical and informative avenues for telling the story of the "Child Soldiers in America." I think many of the different avenues of storytelling were shot down in my own mind because they required skills that I neither knew nor had the time to learn.
I think this project will be worth while because it will allow us to do some Twenty First Century storytelling. This also will allow us to display everything we have learned thus far in the semester. When we do projects in the class, I often feel that we are being rushed, which has more to do with the 1 hour and fifteen minute time limit than the environment. But having some time in class so we could stay on track and and exchange ideas on what we are doing right and what we are doing wrong, would be very helpful.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Blog entry
Click here to look at the videos http://adsoftheworld.com/media/tv/walmart_silk
I just had a chance to look at Wal-Mart’s new “eco-friendly” advertising. Now when one thinks of companies leading the way to help protect the environment, any company comes to mind before Wal-Mart, even Enron comes to mind before Wal-Mart. Knowing that this is the perception of their brand, Wal-Mart is trying to change the opinion of consumers and get them to view the retail giant as “eco-friendly.” (Read this Article)
The first of the two ads I viewed argues that if all of the 200 million Wal-Mart customers (that number is extremely intimidating) changed their light bulbs to environmentally friendly florescent light bulbs, it would be like taking over 11 million cars off the road. Another touts that if the 200 million Wal-Mart customers (that is two thirds of America) bought organic coffee at Sam’s Club, it would be like stopping 130 million pounds of chemicals from going into the earth. Each of the ads is filmed in front of some type of natural background; it looks forced and corny.
Wal-Mart is trying to find a seat on the environmental bandwagon, which thankfully is a massive bandwagon that can accommodate many people/companies. Wal-Mart’s eager attempt to clean up their image will most likely fall on deaf ears. I am certain of this because even in the new ads by the company they tout the economical benefits of purchasing environmentally friendly products. Wal-Mart is arguing that “Going Green” can lead a consumer to save some green. (Or blueish violet if you have the new 5 dollar bill)
What is missing in all of the ads is honesty. Wal-Mart is not a brand that solicits goodwill from typical Americans, rather it, to many, represents everything wrong with capitalism. This may just be a Northern California boy’s opinion, but if Wal-Mart really wanted to go green, then they must sacrifice the only thing that they truly love and cherish, they need to sacrifice profits in the name of the environment. Some thing few people think they will ever do.
I just had a chance to look at Wal-Mart’s new “eco-friendly” advertising. Now when one thinks of companies leading the way to help protect the environment, any company comes to mind before Wal-Mart, even Enron comes to mind before Wal-Mart. Knowing that this is the perception of their brand, Wal-Mart is trying to change the opinion of consumers and get them to view the retail giant as “eco-friendly.” (Read this Article)
The first of the two ads I viewed argues that if all of the 200 million Wal-Mart customers (that number is extremely intimidating) changed their light bulbs to environmentally friendly florescent light bulbs, it would be like taking over 11 million cars off the road. Another touts that if the 200 million Wal-Mart customers (that is two thirds of America) bought organic coffee at Sam’s Club, it would be like stopping 130 million pounds of chemicals from going into the earth. Each of the ads is filmed in front of some type of natural background; it looks forced and corny.
Wal-Mart is trying to find a seat on the environmental bandwagon, which thankfully is a massive bandwagon that can accommodate many people/companies. Wal-Mart’s eager attempt to clean up their image will most likely fall on deaf ears. I am certain of this because even in the new ads by the company they tout the economical benefits of purchasing environmentally friendly products. Wal-Mart is arguing that “Going Green” can lead a consumer to save some green. (Or blueish violet if you have the new 5 dollar bill)
What is missing in all of the ads is honesty. Wal-Mart is not a brand that solicits goodwill from typical Americans, rather it, to many, represents everything wrong with capitalism. This may just be a Northern California boy’s opinion, but if Wal-Mart really wanted to go green, then they must sacrifice the only thing that they truly love and cherish, they need to sacrifice profits in the name of the environment. Some thing few people think they will ever do.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Child Soldier Documentary (Not Real)
This is a documentary about child soldiers in America.
I ran into a lot of problems:
First I didn't realize that iMovie cant rotate video filmed vertically to horizontally. I ended up with most of my video saved vertically. I only included some parts of what I shot and intend to re-shoot a lot of the different scenes for the final project. I also had a tough time editing out background noise in the sound. I did my best to eliminate the sound, yet I think nothing can substitute using a professional microphone.
I enjoyed doing the video because I got to do some creative writing and some voice over. This video is satire of the real issues facing the world. I tried to add some humor, yet many humorous scenes had to be taken out because of the vertical shots. If you find yourself leaning over during many parts of the video, look at the bright side, at least you get to streatch your neck.
I ran into a lot of problems:
First I didn't realize that iMovie cant rotate video filmed vertically to horizontally. I ended up with most of my video saved vertically. I only included some parts of what I shot and intend to re-shoot a lot of the different scenes for the final project. I also had a tough time editing out background noise in the sound. I did my best to eliminate the sound, yet I think nothing can substitute using a professional microphone.
I enjoyed doing the video because I got to do some creative writing and some voice over. This video is satire of the real issues facing the world. I tried to add some humor, yet many humorous scenes had to be taken out because of the vertical shots. If you find yourself leaning over during many parts of the video, look at the bright side, at least you get to streatch your neck.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Brands I respect
Over the life time of Major League Baseball, many critics have written the sport's obituary. Yet time and time again America's past time finds another lifeline. Surviving the "Blacksox Scandal," the player's strike and the steroids era, baseball today is more profitable then it ever has been.
Some things that have lead to their success:
Baseball has been transformed from an American sport to an international favorite second only to soccer. Today kids use makeshift bases and leather gloves in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Japan. This list is growing exponentially as MLB has gone "Global." This Spring Training saw the first ever professional baseball game in China.
Baseball has received hours and hours of free press from the sports scandals and the personalities of its players. Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez are loved by few and hated by a many. Players like these two have given way to a polarization of fans thus breathing life to interest and excitement.
MLB.com has become a great success. Fans flock to the site for the latest news stories, updates on games and articles about their favorite teams. MLB.com has turned into a huge success for baseball as it brings in added revenue, that is making NFL and the NBA green with envy.
What they need to do more of:
MLB needs to dive full speed into the Internet age. They made great strides with MLB.com, but what they need to do now is take advantage of blogs and branded content. Baseball has so many players in the minors and majors that it may become difficult for fans to build relationships, yet personal blogs will help build relationships between fans and lesser known players.
Fans always complain about decisions coaches or General Managers have made, why not allow fans to question the decision makers directly through Internet chats or email questions.
No matter what scandal or problems stand in the path of baseball's future, baseball will be just fine. Maybe 20 years from know baseball will replace soccer as the elite international sport.
Some things that have lead to their success:
Baseball has been transformed from an American sport to an international favorite second only to soccer. Today kids use makeshift bases and leather gloves in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Japan. This list is growing exponentially as MLB has gone "Global." This Spring Training saw the first ever professional baseball game in China.
Baseball has received hours and hours of free press from the sports scandals and the personalities of its players. Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez are loved by few and hated by a many. Players like these two have given way to a polarization of fans thus breathing life to interest and excitement.
MLB.com has become a great success. Fans flock to the site for the latest news stories, updates on games and articles about their favorite teams. MLB.com has turned into a huge success for baseball as it brings in added revenue, that is making NFL and the NBA green with envy.
What they need to do more of:
MLB needs to dive full speed into the Internet age. They made great strides with MLB.com, but what they need to do now is take advantage of blogs and branded content. Baseball has so many players in the minors and majors that it may become difficult for fans to build relationships, yet personal blogs will help build relationships between fans and lesser known players.
Fans always complain about decisions coaches or General Managers have made, why not allow fans to question the decision makers directly through Internet chats or email questions.
No matter what scandal or problems stand in the path of baseball's future, baseball will be just fine. Maybe 20 years from know baseball will replace soccer as the elite international sport.
BBC going crazy
The BBC shift in strategy was influenced by many different factors. Initially the shift was brought on by research done by Tim Davie. Davie studied about 5,000 people in panels and what he found was astounding and gave way to the shift. Davie found that nearly one quarter of 15-24 year olds don’t watch listen or read BBC at all during the week. At this present trend only 60% of people in Britain would get some form of BBC news or content each week, compared to over 81% today. This slide would invariably lead to a reduce income and reduced funds from the British government.
Fear of losing revenue and funds forced the BBC to take drastic changes in order to guarantee the survival of the media giant. If the BBC waited to change their content from being a primarily TV oriented news entity to becoming an international power house with concentration on internet content, then they would be facing near extinction in the future. The BBC chose to become a leader today as opposed to a follower five years from now.
There are many benefits to investing in online and shifting content online. Consumers today refuse to follow the rules of the media; we are entering a new era where consumers dictate what they view and when they view it. Look at the example of iTunes. Generation Y consumers said “I am not paying 15 dollars for a CD when all I like is one song.” The music industry resisted this demand, yet in the end they had no choice but to comply. What BBC is doing is mirroring the success of iTunes, except BBC isn’t waiting until consumers demand the content. By taking the initiative they will always be remembered as the first media company to do so. The young consumers will be able to choose when and where they access the content, further increasing the popularity of the BBC brand and increasing viewership of their products.
With every change there are many negative aspects. The BBC will lose a certain amount of advertising dollars as content shifts from TV to the Internet. Now this isn’t a great problem for BBC as much of its income comes from the government yet other private media outlets will struggle to follow their lead as they rely primarily on advertisers for their income. This will inevitably create a disproportionate competition between BBC and its competitors. Yet if BBC’s competitors want to be relevant, they need to worry more about content and the quality of content then on where the content is placed. Because garbage content placed on the Internet is still garbage content.
Another negative aspect of the change is the reduced staff of BBC. Reporters and journalists are being replaced with "IT" guys, thus further diluting the quality of news content and lowering the diversity of news gatherers. If BBC were to train their current “Traditional” journalist to become Internet journalist, then this would be a far better investment then simply firing experienced journalists and hiring "IT" guys.
Mohammad
Fear of losing revenue and funds forced the BBC to take drastic changes in order to guarantee the survival of the media giant. If the BBC waited to change their content from being a primarily TV oriented news entity to becoming an international power house with concentration on internet content, then they would be facing near extinction in the future. The BBC chose to become a leader today as opposed to a follower five years from now.
There are many benefits to investing in online and shifting content online. Consumers today refuse to follow the rules of the media; we are entering a new era where consumers dictate what they view and when they view it. Look at the example of iTunes. Generation Y consumers said “I am not paying 15 dollars for a CD when all I like is one song.” The music industry resisted this demand, yet in the end they had no choice but to comply. What BBC is doing is mirroring the success of iTunes, except BBC isn’t waiting until consumers demand the content. By taking the initiative they will always be remembered as the first media company to do so. The young consumers will be able to choose when and where they access the content, further increasing the popularity of the BBC brand and increasing viewership of their products.
With every change there are many negative aspects. The BBC will lose a certain amount of advertising dollars as content shifts from TV to the Internet. Now this isn’t a great problem for BBC as much of its income comes from the government yet other private media outlets will struggle to follow their lead as they rely primarily on advertisers for their income. This will inevitably create a disproportionate competition between BBC and its competitors. Yet if BBC’s competitors want to be relevant, they need to worry more about content and the quality of content then on where the content is placed. Because garbage content placed on the Internet is still garbage content.
Another negative aspect of the change is the reduced staff of BBC. Reporters and journalists are being replaced with "IT" guys, thus further diluting the quality of news content and lowering the diversity of news gatherers. If BBC were to train their current “Traditional” journalist to become Internet journalist, then this would be a far better investment then simply firing experienced journalists and hiring "IT" guys.
Mohammad
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
World is Flat
Thomas Freidman “The World is Flat”
I listened to Freidman address the crowd at MIT. Many of the points he brings up are interesting and made me think and analyze his opinions. He talked about the different Globalization periods that have occurred. He mentioned Globalization 1.0, Globalization 2.0 and Globalization 3.0. As he brings up the issue of outsourcing, something that hasn’t been mentioned much in the news lately, it brought the issue back to my mind and I started thinking about how I would find my own job in the present market. I am not sure if I agree with the comment his Indian friend makes when he says “World competition is now on a level playing field.” I rather think that business people in China and India do not have to deal with the same restrictions and expenses that American businesses have to deal with.
I found it very interesting Freidman’s views on Globalization; I think something like a global economy is way too complex to be so certain of anything. I am sure there are so many different factors that affect the global economy that trying to come up with “Ten Flatteners” of the global economy seems a little silly.
Yet I must admit the man has been successful in selling his book and his ideas, so
I am sure he has been studying the economy for a lot longer than I have.
I listened to Freidman address the crowd at MIT. Many of the points he brings up are interesting and made me think and analyze his opinions. He talked about the different Globalization periods that have occurred. He mentioned Globalization 1.0, Globalization 2.0 and Globalization 3.0. As he brings up the issue of outsourcing, something that hasn’t been mentioned much in the news lately, it brought the issue back to my mind and I started thinking about how I would find my own job in the present market. I am not sure if I agree with the comment his Indian friend makes when he says “World competition is now on a level playing field.” I rather think that business people in China and India do not have to deal with the same restrictions and expenses that American businesses have to deal with.
I found it very interesting Freidman’s views on Globalization; I think something like a global economy is way too complex to be so certain of anything. I am sure there are so many different factors that affect the global economy that trying to come up with “Ten Flatteners” of the global economy seems a little silly.
Yet I must admit the man has been successful in selling his book and his ideas, so
I am sure he has been studying the economy for a lot longer than I have.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Newspapers of the Future
I am not sure I completely agree with Ryan's foreshadowing of the future of newspapers. But the guy does sound like he knows what he is talking about. I checked out the social networking site called Twitter. I had no clue this type of service even existed. I found it when I was looking at the Yahoo live blog. I think the worst aspects of the Twitter service is it only allows messages to be sent that are 140 characters long. I feel 140 characters is way too anemic to convey any meaningfully message.
We already have to deal with smaller stories and less information, whether it be in USA Today or Headline News. As information becomes more and more compressed, the information that is absorbed by the masses will become more and more inaccurate. My father taught me a long time ago that news is like a three course meal, you don't stop half way through and make your judgment, you wait till the last bite.
The Yahoo Live blog was more frightening than enlightening. The whole time I was surfing the blog I could only imagine DateLine NBC's "To Catch a Predator." I think that blog blurs the line between networking and intrusion on privacy. It gives other users too much access into the lives of their colleagues.
We already have to deal with smaller stories and less information, whether it be in USA Today or Headline News. As information becomes more and more compressed, the information that is absorbed by the masses will become more and more inaccurate. My father taught me a long time ago that news is like a three course meal, you don't stop half way through and make your judgment, you wait till the last bite.
The Yahoo Live blog was more frightening than enlightening. The whole time I was surfing the blog I could only imagine DateLine NBC's "To Catch a Predator." I think that blog blurs the line between networking and intrusion on privacy. It gives other users too much access into the lives of their colleagues.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Blogg Following
I intend to follow the Adweek blog. It is called Adfreak. It critically analysis all advertising current events including ads, ad campaigns, new marketers, different mediums and the overall feel of the industry. The website is www.adfreak.com
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Superbowl Ads (Revised)
Watching the SuperBowl ads this year, I can't say I was very impressed. I think a combination of the poor economic conditions and the record breaking cost for a 30 second spot, gave way to sub-par ads. Here is the Good, the bad, and the unnecessary.
The Good
I liked the Audi ad that was a play on the Godfather scene where a bloody horse is found in the bed. It introduced the Audi R8 a "new" kind of luxury. This Superbowl didn't feature too many automobile ads so this one really stood out.
The Bad
I cant stand the spots for Sales Genie. I found them a little annoying, a little cheesy and whole lot racist. One ad had a sales representative who was about to be fired. Stereotypically the sales rep had a Indian accent and also stereotypically the sales rep turns out to have 7 kids. This character sounds like Apo from the Simpsons.
The Unnecessary
I honestly think the Godaddy.com ads are both demeaning towards woman and insulting to the average man. One cant argue with the results of their advertising, but I would personally rather watch a four hour special on the art of sewing than a 30 second spot by the people at Godaddy.
If you want to see them for yourself you could check it out by googling Myspace Superbowl ads
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Photoshop Lab Today
Here is the Photoshop Lab we did today.
This one I saved as a small resolution
This one I also saved with a small resolution
This one I saved at a high resolution
This one I saved as a small resolution
This one I also saved with a small resolution
This one I saved at a high resolution
Thursday, January 24, 2008
First Entry
My name is Mohammad N. I am a student of Advertising and I hope to graduate in Winter of 08. I am primarily interested in Internet advertising and Blogging.
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