Tales from a Sober College Girl

photo from mrmcface.deviantart.com

I’m an 18 year old college freshman. I’ve been pulled out of my BFE location of a hometown, thrown into a bigger city hidden in the St. Louis metro area and everyday I am learning new things about myself, others, and things relating to my major. It sounds typical enough of a college student, but apparently I’m different than many because I don’t drink — I’m Straight Edge. I’ve been edge since I was a measly 14 years old with my insecurities on my sleeve and acne on my forehead. The acne faded, I have more confidence now than ever before… But one thing that hasn’t changed is my choice to live a straight edge lifestyle. In high school most people didn’t ask me about it too much, they accepted it, they moved on. Most of my friends throughout high school were edge or didn’t drink either. But at my college a high majority of people drink (including my friends), and as I am growing up I’m learning the bracket of non-drinkers in my age demographic is quickly dwindling. Because of this, I suppose less people on my college campus are used to meeting a girl that doesn’t drink and therefore I am now used to the common question — “Why don’t you drink/do drugs/whatever?”

I get asked this question so often and people are so startled by the answer, “no, I don’t drink ever” (this happens especially at parties), that usually their expression will warp and contort in sometimes confusion and/or disgust. I am the token sober person, and it gets lonely for obvious reasons. But as someone who tries to be outgoing and enjoys socializing I go out to parties to avoid sitting in my dorm all weekend. People assume I can’t enjoy myself at parties, but for the most part I try to. I like dancing so I dance (with the drunkest of the drunk and I still rock it!), I chat with the people who are just buzzed, sometimes there will even be more than one sober person there. But the constant heckling and pressure from people to drink or “go smoke a bowl” with them is frustrating. The way people sometimes act when they find out I don’t drink is so out of the unexpected that it makes me feel like I am defected, and it makes me sometimes feel embarrassed of my choice to live the way I do. Unlike in high school I don’t have my group of edge buddies, here in college I have myself to keep myself going strong. I do know though, that even though sometimes I may seem embarrassed, I know that this is the right choice for me. I am proud of myself. Some people do not understand why I am edge though, so this is for them.

Why am I Straight Edge?

You would think growing up my parents must have drilled in my head not to do drugs, not to drink, to be a good God lovin’ child. In all honesty they didn’t, and even my sister says it’s amazing how we grew up into fully functional people because sometimes our parents just didn’t seem to care. But I’ve always been observant and growing up I saw how drugs and alcohol affected many of the people around me. My cousin used to be beautiful, nearly model-like, and now she’s aged into a shell of who she used to be. Her brains are gone, her looks are gone due to the abuse her body took from her own hands. I was best friends with a girl who had a horrible life growing up because her mother spent all their money on drugs and alcohol, marrying men who had the same addictions as her. I didn’t have to know what edge to know that I didn’t want to waste my time on that. I didn’t want a love of getting high to surpass the love I have for my friends and family. But then people throw out the argument that you’re not automatically addicted to the drugs or the alcohol, that the people who let it ruin their life have no control. This argument is true, but that still doesn’t sway my opinions. I like to have control over my thoughts, my actions, and my life (although this is definitely not possible all the time). I want to face my conflicts with a sober mind, conquer them with a sober mind, and grow as a person because of it. Self-medicating with alcohol? Not for me. I don’t know why I grew up necessarily feeling this way but when the time came where someone offered me a drink, it was almost natural instinct to say no thank you to them. I don’t want to pollute my body any further than it already has (thank you industrial town I grew up in).

Some people don’t understand this though, there needs to be a deeper reason. When I ask a guest if they want a grape or cherry Popsicle they will say whatever flavor they’re more inclined to enjoy. I chose not to drink because it is something I am more inclined to enjoy. There isn’t entirely too much to explain other than that.

Do I ever think I will Break Edge?

As of right now I can’t see me being anything but edge. What happens if I pick up that can of PBR and channel my inner hipster/frat boy? I don’t how it’d change me, I don’t care because I know who I am right now. I take everyday one by one but I don’t see myself living any other lifestyle than the one I’m living. Plus I made this promise to myself, and if I break it will my word be valid anyone? If I can’t keep a promise to myself how can I to others? I’ve had plenty of chances to break edge, even legal chances, and yet I still have no desire to change the way I live. As I grow older like many I might not refer to myself as edge anymore, which for the most part I don’t do as much now. I just live by these straight edge principles. But one can never predict the future.

This is me right now, this is who I am — I am Chelsy and I’ve got the Edge.

further reading:
http://collegecandy.com/2010/01/30/one-month-challenge-sober
http://collegecandy.com/2010/02/05/lh-the-sober-one/

http://www.xsisterhoodx.com/straight-edge/college-vs-straight-edge.html

http://www.xsisterhoodx.com/straight-edge/open-eyes-open-heart.html
xsisterhoodx has always been one of my go-to sites when I need some inspiration, the two articles linked from the site are two which relate very closely to my own ideas and views.

This documentary by the BBC is also a very inspiring to any drug/alcohol free person.

Ad Analysis: A “Home Run of a Deal” results in a Home Run of Unintended Hilarity

Cecil Fielder: Pumpin' Iron & Eating Saturated Fats on a Bun

Living in the United States (or as I occasionally call it, living in the age of “fat assery”) it is no surprise that we as people are projected media messages from fast food restaurants–in this case McDonald’s–plenty of times a day, week, and month. Deciding to decipher a fast food commercial targeting a fast food nation, I chose a classic 1992 McDonald’s commercial starring none other than Cecil and Prince Fielder. This specific ad got my attention mainly because it was ironic how it showed a father and son bonding, and yet this is the father/son duo who grew to despise each other over time. That and it contrasted with the typical commercials you’d usually see presently for fast-food burgers, there are no provocatively dressed celebrities in this commercial. But then again, who would really want to see Cecil Fielder dressed like a Pussycat Doll?

Prince Fielder taught me that cheeseburgers will help me grow big and strong

Obviously most people desire a strong bond with their family. Especially now that advanced technology has allowed work and play to merge as one. Family dinners are now interrupted by phone calls, and quick trips to the laptop to send out another e-mail (then again this was less of an occurrence in 1992). As the saying goes, “family is where the heart is,” and McDonald’s was quick to try to capitalize on that. Add one part dad, one part son, three parts cheeseburger snippet, one part beloved American Pastime and add cheesy (no pun intended) nostalgic music to garnish and you’ve got yourself one hell of a cheeseburger hawkin’ ad. I did appreciate the fact that they did not try to replace Prince Fielder with a better looking child, such as the skinnier child that would be proposed today to avoid controversy over the ”McDonald’s makes you fat” ordeal. The ad essentially just used two average looking people, except that one of them was a famous baseball player (as the other would grow up to be). So obviously the ad was also used to associate a celebrity with a product in order for a positive endorsement. Was it just an odd coincidence that they had a close up of Cecil’s smiling face fade into an image of an oh-so-succulent, delicious and oh-so- fattening triple cheeseburger? No, no it was not. McDonald’s wanted viewers to associate that man’s face with that cheeseburger… Did they entirely succeed? Not really, I don’t think I’m going to think of Cecil Fielder when I bite into the next Mickey D’s cheeseburger I bite into. The ad does have a sort of “good aurora” to itself though. The bonding that the two share, even if over lard-filled cheeseburgers, makes me remember being a kid and having bonding moments with my very own dad. Which in turn could result in a success for the ad, as I might want to eat away all of my nostalgic feelings with a “home run of a deal.” How can one resist such a deal? Especially after the close-ups of the double cheeseburger being constructed (steaming to the high heavens so you know it’s fresh), the perfectly constructed single and triple cheeseburgers just touting how much time McDonald’s spends in making sure that your burgers are perfect every time, something everyone who has worked in fast food knows as anything but the truth.

So what is the truth then? That cheeseburgers from McDonald’s will make family bonding time just that more special? That thinking about cheeseburgers will distract famous baseball players from making contact with the ball? Or that McDonald’s crafts delicious burgers that are perfect for the diets of strong men and growing boys? Because these are all things that the commercial seems to portray. The overly used “cute” scenario, a card McDonald’s likes to often use in order to target both other children and their parents is blatantly being shown. The fact that it is actually Cecil’s own child makes the sentimental value even greater, which is why it is saddening to see this and know the present state of Cecil and Prince’s relationship. This commercial is a classic in my mind strictly because it documents a time where Cecil and Prince Fielder actually seemed to enjoy each other. That and along with its insane use of baseball puns in reference to cheeseburgers it is an epitome of 90’s marketing. Hopefully one day Cecil and Prince can settle their differences over a nice double cheeseburger meal at Mickey D’s and reminisce over all the  good times they once shared.

 

Looking Past the Excess Phalli: Using Chatroulette as a Promotional Tool

Thanks to the internet anyone can talk to complete strangers now at any given time of day. No longer do you need to go out of your house to meet new people! You can plop on the couch at 4 AM and talk with your own McDreamy from England… Or Russia, or Australia, or Japan… Or maybe he’s in Chicago, Illinois delving into a hearty helping of deep dish pizza.

With websites like Youtube and Stickam we are building communities of people who know nothing about each other. Communities based on a pixelated video feed and nothing but text and microphones to voice our opinions. So what happens when we strip away the usernames and find ourselves with nothing but our video feeds to identify ourselves? New websites have popped up lately, such as Omegle and the Omegle with audio/video feed clone Chatroulette that require no usernames, or login identification… Essentially the idea is just like having a one night stand. You meet a stranger, you have a little “fun” with them and like that you move on. Or there’s always the more PG rated sounding analogy, where it is like speed dating and if you like the person then you can give them your contact information.

One of many people begging to see womens' breasts

Like any forum where anonymity is guaranteed, people’s “wild sides” are bound to be unleashed. Sites such as 4chanhave proven this countless times.  So under a veil of anonymity many people will do what they can’t do in public otherwise. Masturbating on their cam feed, asking to see stranger’s breasts and genitalia, etc. But the wonderful thing about Chatroulette is that if you don’t feel like putting up with anyone’s shit anymore (or as a English man described it, “the cut of their jib”) you can just click the next button and along comes another stranger that you may or may not next within the first 30 seconds. Once you can look past the random pixelated penises (soon to be in HD, I’m sure), extensive amount of shirtless Brazilians, and the 16 year old boys saying “tits or gtfo” every other 5 people you come across, then the website offers a lot to it’s visitors.   I mean sure, the site sounds like a freak show, but I’ve met some nice people on there, learned about other cultures through talking to random Swedes/Russians/Brazilians/Hungarians/etc., and I even got some boy from California to write my name on his chest in Sharpie.

Like with any other social medium though, advertisers/promoters/marketers need to learn how to tap into it. I didn’t really see the promotional opportunities of the website until I randomly landed in a conversation with a stranger I eventually found out was named Ryan. So basically Ryan and I are chatting, going down the rounds of typical questions you ask a stranger (“From? Age? Name? Can you believe all the random cocks on here?!”). I tell him that I live in Missouri and bam, like that he tells me that his band is touring there over the summer. He links me to his band’s myspace, so that way I can keep up to date with their tour schedule and like that he not only has a potential new fan, but another potential body at his performance.

Sample from one of my Chats

But Ryan wasn’t the only person to try and promote something to me. I talked to an art student from Pennsylvania who linked me to his portfolio, and there was Ross, a Scottish lad who linked me to his band’s myspace after learning my musical tastes were similar the stylings his band produced. I also found myself in the midst of the action by linking people to my blog, or my twitter. When people ask what you do in your free time, it’s a very easy way to say, “I enjoy blogging, here’s my blog,” or “I’m in a band… yadda yadda yadda,” and link them to the appropriate websites. So just like that you’ve got new views to your website, and you’ve reached someone that you probably would have never reached otherwise, which is one of the many great features that social media offers: a chance to connect with a worldwide audience.

Have a website? Use tools such as ManyCam to put text over your video feed. An artist? Do your work while on your

Another sample from a Chat

cam! When you converse with someone for a little bit, they are more likely to check out your website, so also try and chat to those viewing your webcam. An aspiring porn star? Just get down with the get down on cam (you wouldn’t be the only one to bust out their goodies on chatroulette) and link to your website. The possibilities for getting your name out are endless on this website, as are the possibilities that you will run into a stranger’s gonads and strife laid out on the table. Already thanks to talking to people on chatroulette I’ve gained a few more readers along with a few more followers on twitter. Nobody said promoting a small time blog was easy but with a little TLC I’m getting there.

But I can easily say Chatroulette is one of my new addictions, learning how I can multi-task by killing my boredom and promoting myself as well in the process is one I am slowly mastering. Luckily though, thanks to being essentially raised by the internet, I have been desensitized by the grotesque and so nothing on Chatroulette website can faze me. This website is a sweet reminder though of how the simplest things can bring happiness to many as defined by this video:

P.S. I would like to wish everyone the best in the new year!

Call me, Tweet me, If you wanna reach me… But it will cost you.

It’s not surprising that Twitter is changing how people get their breaking news or even interact with one another. Because of  Twitter I can now talk to D-list celebs like Adrianne Curry about  mundane things like naming her child Jedidiah Isaiah Knight (Jed-I-Knight for short)… And it is thanks to Twitter that stories such as the recent Tiger Woods car wreck scandal are getting out to the public 45 minutes earlier from when CNN breaks the story. I’m relatively new to the realm of tweeting, this I do admit, but I have already been swept into it’s addicting nature of quick access to virtually anything. I am one of the many impatient Gen Y’ers, so it is natural that I want my information as quick as it can be at my fingertips.

So it easily caught my attention today when I read this article on ReadWriteWeb about Twitter Japan allowing users to charge for access to their tweets. The idea of having a paywall to view content is not a new idea. A lot of popular magazines, porn sites, newspapers, and published journals all charge for their internet content. Personally this move could be great for celebrities, news corporations, even popular stores if the option was brought to other markets than Japan. Finally, Ashton Kutcher can get a paying gig other than those Nikon COOLPIX commercials. Although it seems that for all the other markets Twitter would plan just to charge large companies to have accounts for commercial use on the website. Which is good for Twitter but unlike it’s Japanese counterpart doesn’t leave much of a profit for the account holder. This is a huge deal, this can change the whole way companies use Twitter. I could pay to subscribe to my favorite shop and they could tweet exclusive deals for their followers, or newsgroups could tweet out the news pre-airing it or publishing it to the general public. I don’t think social media has entirely evolved to the point where people are going to want to voluntarily pay to associate with companies yet, and vice versa, a lot of companies aren’t familiar enough with social media yet to want to pay to use sites like Facebook and Twitter.

It is a good idea to see how this idea fares over abroad in Japan. Twitter Japan already has a mobile service, something we are definitely lacking stateside, but obviously has been successful over there. For the most part Japan usually is a step ahead of the states when it comes to technology, exported goods and the bike-to-citizen ratio. So it isn’t too surprising that they would come up with the idea of how to make a profit off of Twitter. Japan is known for being one of the most expensive countries to live in though, so people over there might be more willing to pay more (if anything) for little things like a Twitter account. Side Note: Hulu goes to a subscription system in 2010, so lets see how that will be received.

Based on Microsoft recently beginning to offer Twitter and Facebook availability on the XBOX360 for a Gold Membership, it seems that a lot of people aren’t willing to pay a little more for the convenience of their favorite social networking sites as defined by this one-of-many shared opinions video I spotted on YouTube:

 

Would you ever pay to view someone’s tweets?

Or would you ever even pay for your usage of social media?

 

 

Meet Gary Vaynerchuk, he causes controversy in a GOOD way.

Vayniacs: A crazed, dedicated, wine-loving individual whose day is defined by the visual consumption of their daily fix: a webisode of The Thunder Show at winelibrarytv.com, hosted by Gary Vaynerchuk

It is not often you hear of a wine taster & reviewer having a cult-like following. What is it that makes this new-comer on the wine scene one of the most influential wine critics out there right now? Could it be his thick New Jersey accent, his love of the New York Jets, or the fact that he represents the blue collar wine drinkers? Who knows, but whatever the reason, Gary Vaynerchuk is the “wine guru of the youtube generation.”

Gary Vaynerchuk is an ex-USSR immigrant, so naturally I was not entirely surprised that a Russian was not only reviewing wine (not vodka?) but being quite blunt with it. Russians aren’t stereotypically known for conforming to the “normal” way of doing things. New Jerseyans are also kind of known for their bluntness as well (it rubs off from New York, of course). So obviously it was pretty much coded in Gary’s genes to have a bit of hustle and quirkiness towards his chosen trade.

Gary’s parents owned a liquor store (surprise? no) called Shopper’s Discount Liquor. Upon graduating from college Gary took the business over, starting by changing the name to Wine Library. Why? Because he knew that the way you project yourself to others can have an effect on your business and lets face it, Wine Library sounds a bit less sketchy than “Shopper’s Discount Liquor.” In 06 he started Wine Library TV and since then has garnered about 80,000 viewers per showing. Gary talks in a way to his audience that allows everyone to understand what he is talking about, from the novice drinker to your granddad who has been drinking wine for 50 years now.

Gary Vaynerchuk with talkshow host Jimmy Fallon

Gary Vaynerchuk has used social media to his advantage. He has written a book on the subject, and due to his success he started his own marketing agency with his younger brother — Vaynermedia. One of his clients is actually his beloved Jets, who are one of the more popular NFL teams on twitter. He has over 34,000 fans on his facebook, nearly 850,000 on his twitter (which informed me that Gary will have a book signing on Brentwood, MO 12/17), and nearly 41,000 blog posts alone by him that are documented by Google. He has been on talk shows with Jimmy Fallon, Ellen Degeneres, and Conan O’ Brien (who he made eat dirt and grass), unlike most other wine critics he has broken into the mainstream media. He is the prime example that social media CAN and WILL make a difference if used effectively for yourself and for your business.

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It is thanks to people like Gary Vaynerchuk though that websites such as Brazen Careerists have been established. He uses social media for the benefit of himself and his company. People take note of this success and want to copy it, thus why social media is so popular for young professionals. While searching Craigslist the other day for a part-time job I saw at least three companies looking for knowledgeable social media users to help them take their company to the next level on web 2.0 (and did I apply? of course!).

The whole premise of the Brazen Careerists website though is to link professionals. It is like a mix between linkedin, twitter, and facebook basically. It is a great site if you are a communications major I’d say. Anywho, while on there I spotted a blog from Rachel M. Esterliner about controversial blogging. It really got me to thinking about what is appropriate to blog. I am a freshman in college, these words on my blogs are forever going to represent me. If a potential employer was to read my blogs, would they see me as someone who isn’t politically correct enough to represent their company? Thanks to the internet everyone is now required to represent their persona professionally all the time.

I remember when I was 12 or 13 and I had my Xanga. I blogged in that thing like it was my private diary… Except it wasn’t, and at the time I suppose I didn’t realize how private the internet wasn’t. In my little teenage angst I sometimes would blog about fights I would have with my parents. One of my friend’s parents would monitor his internet usage and through his Xanga blog would read mine. Upon reading about a fight with my parents she actually called my house to talk to my parents about it. Essentially she meddled her way into something that wasn’t really her business, but I had put it out there and when you do that everyone can read on situations and make judgments on it. Essentially I invited the world to get in my business. Oh, and you better believe I made that Xanga private after that incident, Mom and Dad = not happy the neighbors knew what was going on in our household.

But on the other hand I had a Xanga account where I would post layouts, and avatar images for people to use on their Xanga profiles. Some of my images became very popular and I had a lot of traffic, which in turn gave me a respectable name to many people and eventually led to some people paying me to make them graphics. In that sense, I used the social medium to benefit myself.

It is important on social media websites to use the rule of thumb, “if you wouldn’t show your mom, then don’t post it.”
That long night with your best friend Jack Daniels and the one too many shots of tequila which ended up with you topless on a bar? Yeah, your employer probably won’t like it, so keep it off the internet. Controversy can be good for publicity but it is not always going to be good publicity and we need to remember this as bloggers and young professionals representing ourselves online.

ANALYZING A F*CKING BUD LIGHT AD: Swear Jar

It’s no surprise to myself that I am analyzing a commercial for the coveted brewskis. I grew up in the St. Louis Metropolitan area, and St. Louis has always been touted as being a “brew city.”. Alcohol-selling companies sponsor damn near EVERY sport in whatever league, no-name or big-league, they are in (ex: The Arch Rival Roller Girls are sponsored by SPARKS). Alcohol is everywhere, especially in the ads we see on TV.

This particular ad got my attention strictly because it made me laugh my rump off. Like seriously, I think it is gone due to all the calories I burned off laughing. That and I was also compelled to replay it and show some friends, which doesn’t happen much when I view advertisements. This is especially odd because I don’t drink, so why would I be promoting something of which I do not participate in?

This ad is definitely targeted to the Gen-Y drinkers. Surprisingly though it is not just aimed at the male demographic either, the women in the office are swearing up just as much as a storm as their male counterparts in hopes of that sweet alcoholic reward. Such strong profanity usually isn’t favored by most of the older folks though. It’s quirky and humorous, and lets face it – Gen Y is quirky and enjoys laughing. I actually have not had the chance to see this ad on television, considering that I watch little-to-no television a week (that and it was from ‘07). Usually though this kind of ad would be saved for prime-time viewing on big network channels. Why? Because currently, the standard is that alcohol advertisements can only be placed in media where 70% of the audience is over the legal drinking age. You know, which is probably nearly every channel now considering most of the younger generation is switching over to the internet to watch their TV. That and it would probably not be shown during the day because that is when most older people and children are watching television and this ad is definitely not good for children’s naivety.

Sarah from the Marketing Department

Gen Y has been slated to desire a sense of community (a la the 60’s suburbs), so in a way I see this commercial selling a sense of comradery throughout the office between co-workers, all united by a common love of getting buzzed. Obviously the corporate arena is a touchy subject, your boss might be a jerk, or maybe you asked Deborah out, subsequently got rejected, decided to get drunk (fifth of vodka) as a result of said rejection and defecated on her desk resulting in a harassment lawsuit and no promotion… Hell, the whole premise of Office Space pretty much was how much the cubicle life sucked. Bud Light has your back though, drink the pain of those TPS reports away? I think so.

The ad most definitely portrays the stereotype that everyone loves to drink, that a good time comes from said drinking, and that everyone not only loves to drink, but does drink (i.e.: Sober Sallies like me are non-existent after their 21st birthday). Also, I noticed that nearly every female in the video was very thin and every man was of an average size. A lot of frequent drinkers are usually overweight because of how many calories/carbohydrates are in the beer they’re drinking. So just to clarify, excessive beer consumed = lots of extra calories = fat. The ad also was deceptive in trying to lead the audience into believing that everyone enjoyed drinking Bud Light. Guess what?! There’s hundreds, thousands, of different types of beers being brewed across this small world of which we live in. Not everyone drinks alcohol, and of those who do, not everyone drinks Bud Light.

Of course though they would use the money in the swear jar to buy a case of Bud Light. Why? Because without alcohol, the coveted holiday corporate party would usually be a disaster, right? Actually, I have no idea. But here’s to you Bud Light, go f*ck yourself. I didn’t buy your beer so advertisement although funny = fail.

Citizen Journalism is Brought to You by… Jim in Accounting

Today’s media is a bit skewed as compared to decades past. Thanks to the internet people don’t have to depend on limited sources for their information, they don’t have to lock themselves up in a library to dig deeper into topics that interest them. Just go to any search engine online, type in whatever tickles your fancy, and BAM! thousands, sometimes millions, of hyperlinks ready to whisk you away to the deep depths of cyberspace. When searching for news online now it isn’t just CNN, ABC, FOX, etc. that are coming up in the results but it’s also blogs, websites, forums, just your average joe’s reporting the news. It is these kinds of your everyday people role-playing as news-reporters that has started the “new media” – Citizen Journalism.

• So what exactly is citizen journalism?

Citizen Journalism is another form of user-generated content that Gen Y has grown so fond of (see: youtube). So essentially it is the public “playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information.”  Thanks to citizen journalism people can expect to have easier access to all viewpoints of a topic, and it usually is a breath of fresh air to the heavily biased reports from large networks such as FOX. You can even see citizen journalism in your own local newspaper – just check the letters to the editor section. Many events are constantly covered via citizen journalism. The JFK assassination was mainly captured on small home-owned video camera, that’s an example of citizen journalism. Of course though with the internet now citizen journalism has become something even the most everyday lad or lass can do. Sites such as WordPress or Blogger are goldmines for those seeking citizen journalism.

• What effects has citizen journalism had on the declining newspaper industry?
  

Professional journalists have been coveted to despise “citizen journalism” like Lindsay Lohan hates the concept of sobriety. Can you blame them though? Professional journalists went off to college to study their profession and here comes untrained people who maybe have a degree in something completely unrelated to the communications field and they’re off reporting the news. I personally would feel a bit jipped. Citizen journalism has hurt newspapers, why should people pay for news when they can search online and find hundreds of articles written from those who they relate to – their peers. It is obvious that our peers have a high influence on us, just look at the term “peer pressure.” I know when I look for movie reviews I’ll check fandango or rotten tomatoes before looking at my local paper for critic reviews. Luckily though some newspapers have adapted (natural selection within the industry, no?) by incorporating citizen journalism into their daily prints. For example, the Washington Times prints a full page with news reported by average citizens.  Citizen journalism has benefited as well though, blogs linking to the larger news corporations and newspaper articles that are being written about raises web traffic for those websites which is beneficial for their advertisers. Thus citizen journalism can indeed be making more money for news corporations.

Here is some links if you are wanting to delve deeper into the oddity that is citizen journalism:

• Landmark Moments in Citizen Journalism
• Eleven Layers of Citizen Journalism

I hope you catch my drift when I introduce this man named Rift.

Past this gate of higher learning hides in a classroom - a man named Rift Fournier

Last week my COM130 class had another guest speaker – Rift Fournier (his IMDB lacks many of his credits, seeing as he yelled “Bullshit” towards the projector upon it being pulled up). He’s quite the hot commodity in the communications department at Lindenwood University where he teaches. A lot of older folks seem slowly decline into a state of technological-illiteracy, so it is nice to always see someone still “with it” after so many years.

Rift is a respected writer with an extensive career, who has written for countless shows (NYPD Blue, Matlock, Charlie’s Angels, etc.). He went off to college for pre-med, dropped out and then eventually graduated with a double major in psychology and philosophy and a minor in chemistry. Then eventually he went back to school for law and like his attempted pre-med degree, he dropped out but he did hone some refined writing skills in the process from the repeated case writings he had to do. Rift obviously has had a successful career, surprisingly in an area of study which has nothing to do with his degrees. For someone who “…Didn’t give a shit where Newfoundland was,” Rift certainly has a vast knowledge of the world around him. P.S. Rift, here’s a handy map for you next time you’re looking for Newfoundland.

This is what a typical writer might look like.

Taking a page from Rift’s psychology degree, I’m going to delve deep into his childhood (or at least touch on it into his adolescence).  Rift was named rift strictly because of the rift that his parent’s had when deciding what to name him. He loved reading as a child, something many children aren’t fond of today (unless it is the Twilight saga, barf). By first grade he had found himself routinely reading the paper everyday. It was in the paper that he had a foreshadowing into his future. He read an article talking about how writers could essentially slop around like monkeys in their bath robes all day. Honestly though, nothing sounds more appealing as a career than the aforementioned – seriously. Sadly though his writing was put to the side as he was a Midwestern boy at the core and Midwesterners love nothing more than sports, except for meat… Actually, sports and meats go hand-in-hand so Midwesterners love nothing more than a combination of the two. Rift became the head honcho of his sports teams as he was the star football player. His career was short-lived though as he was struck with polio at the tender age of seventeen and it was since then that he has been confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life (a wheelchair which he should definitely pimp out, fo’ sho). So what was an essentially benched-for-life kid to do after a tragic ending to his sports career? It was at these crossroads in Rift’s life that he was once again related to writing by his English teacher.

It is funny that someone who has a degree in psychology/philosophy/chemistry is teaching media related communications today. But it shows that your passions are what will guide you in your life, with Rift’s being his writing. Fortunately for the students studying at Lindenwood University, such as myself, Rift is more than welcoming to share what he has learned throughout life to anyone willing to listen. His witty and sometimes explicit dialect (ex: “twitter is like internet masturbation”) is a great refresher towards the conventional teaching styles many students are used to. It also makes it a joy to talk to him on a personal level as well.

By the way, kudos to you Rift Fournier for always holding onto your dreams.

Here is a video clip from the Mike Douglas Show, where Rift first started writing for television shows at.

Becoming Literate in your Media

Yes, that is a paisley print tie.

Frank W. Baker has style, he has class (no seriously, that man knows how to pick a tie), he has an Obama-ized photo as his facebook default, he has a number one ranking website on Google and what did Frank W. Baker do today? He came to St. Charles, MO to teach my tiny ass class (COM130!) about media literacy. Oh, and no I do not know what the “w” in Frank W. Baker stands for. I bet it stands for waffles, because everyone loves waffles…

So anywho, today this guy Frank comes in all decked out in his business attire. His outfit completed with this gorgeous tie with all these navy shades, white and pink polka dot-esque things. Oh, and his glasses because nothing says “take me seriously, I’m intelligent” like a good pair of glasses. Frank came in and told us about his o’ so wonderful days of being a TV weatherman and how he had to adapt to the “language of the medium.” He also told us how he actually didn’t know all of the states names and thus had to learn them. That’s a little embarrassing, but sadly most Americans probably cannot name all 50 states either.

“Ability to access, analyze, interpret and produce media messages.”

That is what media literacy is – at least as defined by Frankie B himself. To illustrate his point in our minds, he explained that media literacy was like that of a tree. He did not specify what kind of tree though, so I will imagine a nice maple tree. No, no… A pear tree. Okay, so this tree is giant with two giant branches. Basically one branch represents the creation of media and the other represents that analysis of media. The pears are like the media of which we analyze and create. Oh, and they are delicious.

Frank said that schools today are not equipping children with the tools to use media literacy and therefore kids are believing everything they see/hear in the media even if it may not be true (Hello Kelly Clarkson’s Self Magazine Cover). A lot of teachers do not understand the youth culture of today either, and therefore they cannot incorporate these media concepts into the classroom.

Frank said that students, adults, everyone needs to just flip that little switch in our brains, turn it on and start asking questions about the media of which we view. We as a society are living in a visual-based world right now, and in a digital world where it is very easy to fabricate images and media, we must question the media in which we see.

Always Question the Media of which YOU View.

Where did this come from?
What purpose does it serve?
Who is the targeted audience?
and what techniques were used to attract attention or increase the believability of the media?

Steve Miller </3's the American Media

Steve Miller is an eighteen-year-old  business major (thinking of changing) who enjoys sports like bowling and golf. Steve Miller is also one of the many international transplants attending Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri. Like Elton John and the Beatles, Steve calls England his home and once I could look past his so-suave accent I decided to try and interview Steve about what the media is like in his own culture. (Note: I have been to England before, but it’s hard to get a good impression of a whole country’s media in less than a week.)

I asked Steve what kind of limitations the government had over the media in his country. In the US the FCC regulates the kind of language and because of that certain things are banned from being aired at times. We for the most part have a free press, something that the Bill of Rights granted journalists in the US. Apparently in England, they also have a free press. As Steve had told me, “..Yes, the media can say whatever they want. That is why the government always gets so ticked at the media…” Out of stupidity more than anything I had this crazy idea that the BBC was controlled by the government (too much V for Vendetta maybe?) but he quickly informed me it wasn’t and upon further research I found out that it is funded by all the taxpayers in the UK. I asked Steve how censored television programming was as well. Apparently unlike in the US, some penis-showing is A-OK in England (just as long as it is not erect). Which I personally think is radical. If women can be marketed off as sexual objects of lust across the world, then a little sausage wagging should balance it out here and there. (side note: Steve wanted everyone to know how crazy it is that Americans are all circumsized) Of course though, Steve pointed out that most nudity is saved for after 9 or 10 P.M. when censorship is nearly ruled out on the television… Meaning that basically you can swear like a sailor and the FCC isn’t going to fine you like your name is Janet Jackson.

When it comes to obtaining news and the what-not though, Steve said most of the people he knows gets all their info from the newspapers or TV. That’s a big contrast compared to what I know everyone to use to get their information – the internet. Steve told me that he primarily only uses social media to keep in touch with his acquaintances more than anything as well. Now that Steve doesn’t have access to an international phone though, I am sure his use of social media to keep in touch will become greater. Surprisingly enough, someone as myself, who uses social media and the internet for doing nearly everything did not even interview Steve via facebook or e-mail.

At the end of our little interview Steve told me in general that the American media, especially the news, seemed to hide a lot more from the citizens or sugar-coated news stories in order not to hurt anyone’s feelings or scare anyone and that is something that he has picked up since arriving here. I didn’t entirely know how to respond to this as I have never really had a proper look at how the UK reports their news, but I suppose I will take his word for it. Then again, he is a little biased .

STEVE ENJOYS THESE ADVERTISEMENTS FROM THE UK:

(coming soon)