Using Media With Mindfulness

Update Jan. 14, 2016 Fame focus...don't bite the hook! Adding this excellent post by Ryan Holiday of the NY Observer calling out the recent Rolling Stone ratings raunch along with a slough of infamous examples of "shamelessness." It has a "spot on" tenor and a downright visceral headline: "This is the Hollowed-Out World That Outrage Culture Has Created" Yes. Yes, it … [Read more...]

Sony May Singe Itself: Slimy Innuendo Ignites Backdraft

September 2, 2010 Without a doubt, guerrilla marketing campaigns can be effective disruptors as well as clever marketing and teaching tools for advertising AND media literacy. But what happens when “attention” trumps common sense and branding ethics like this Sony  ambient ad campaign? Its proliferation is akin to the “Captive” audience billboard debacle awhile back. As … [Read more...]

Gossip Girl November Sweeps Schtick Predictably Trashy

Nov. 10, 2009 No, I didn’t watch the heavily promoted Gossip Girl ‘threesome’ shock schlock last night that sent the Parents Television Council rightfully into a tizzy, but frankly I didn’t need to, as the whole ‘provocative’ ploy is summed in two words, “sweeps week.” The vapid values trotted out in the ‘skankwear’ with stilettos crowd is pretty par for the course on the … [Read more...]