Advertising Rights

When I went to Ad Age’s homepage today and a headline caught my eye, "Pediatricians Demand Cuts in Children-Targeted Advertising." Regardless of whether you are in advertising or not, this story should concern you b/c it has to do with First Amendment Rights. Certain groups are asking that junk-food ads be banned during shows viewed mostly by children under age 8. They also requested that alcohol ads be limited to product pictures and text and erectile-dysfunction ads be limited to after 10 p.m. A request for a complete ban on tobacco ads also was under discussion. This is dangerous and imposes severe wide-reaching limits and is a threat to advertising everywhere. Advertising is certainly protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution Even though advertising or "Commercial speech" has less First Amendment protection from governmental infringement than other types of speech. The Federal Trade Commission, for example, can regulate speech that is found to be deceptive. Any individual can make a complaint against an ad. However it has to go through the proper channels. The FCC or the FTC has the authority to determine whether an advertisement is appropriate or not. Yet they use a 4 part test for assessing government restrictions on commercial speech. This was set forth in a landmark case, Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. v. Public Service Commission Of New York. This has become the standard for all commercial speech cases. Anyway, these requests are too broad. If this is aloud to happen, the pendulum for First Amendment protection will swing back to 1942. At this point in time, commercial advertisements were considered to be outside the First Amendment's protection. We have come a long way with the First Amendment. We do not want to go back now. This is just another way to open the door to more censorship, and infringement of the First Amendment, and we can not let that happen.

Opinion To JOUR163

I do not see any point in enhancing the teaching of traditional media. There is a reason that new forms of media are established; why would you try to go against new technology and dwell on the past? That is never the solution. Isn’t it JMC’s job to offer the tools student’s need to succeed in today's world? That means teaching the newest forms of media out there b/c so we can be prepared for the professional world of media and communication. If you want to learn about traditional forms of media take a history class! We are in the age of technological innovation. This is obviously an improvement from older forms of media. I think that the course should explore and expand our reach of new media. It is important for students to learn what new things are available and out there to make communication a little easier. It’s a digital world now and we should embrace it. I also think that the teachers that are leading this class should have a decision in what it is going to become; this is obviously there field and the school should acknowledge their opinion, especially since it is a new course.

"Boze Narodzenie"-Christmas

Doesn't it seem like our holidays are blending more and more these days? It is only almost the end of November and I have been hearing Christmas ads since October! My mom already did her Christmas shopping. It is all about the presents here, and sometimes it is sickening how we as Americans are so materialistic. Well I had the chance last year to experience Christmas in another country and it is much different. People weren't fighting over things in the stores and rushing around like mad to get things done. It just all seemed to slow down. People were pleasant stopping to wish each other a “Wesoly Sviont” and so on. It is all about religion and traditional over there, especially for my in-laws and I can appreciate that. I won't get into the religion bit b/c I just don't want to go there but I will describe the tradition. There wasn't that much emphasis on presents, however there was an exchange of gifts. It was short and sweet. We spent most of the holiday time going to relatives’ houses and having supper or tea and just spending some quality time together. We had 4 dinner parties before the 24th and on Christmas day we stayed home and had a nice, quiet dinner. That is what it's about for me, the family. I love the presents but being with the ones you love and all is priceless, even though I couldn't communicate very well with them because I am learning Polish but I don't think I will ever be fluent in it :( Anyway the traditions are very different over there. Polish people eat lots of food especially on the holidays. I mean like 14 different courses with side dishes, not including desserts. Traditionally you eat like 7 different types of fish dishes. At first I was kind of put off by this idea but I ate it and I ate it all-oh except for the blood soup and the gut soup. I just can't do that! You wouldn't believe the amount of food that you are supposed to eat, it's crazy. It is safe to way I practically waddled to the car I was so full. Anyway it was fun to get away from the chaos that we create during the holidays!

There Goes The Neighborhood

When we look at global issues global warming is at the top of the list and it will have devastating effects not only on the environment but on the economy, and humanity. The largest result would be the rise in sea level which could lead to water shortages, massive population displacement, decreased food production and extensive species extinction, including humans. The question is not if it happens its when is it going to happen? Scientists have found recent results from drilling and analyzing core samples from some of the world's oldest glaciers, which have convinced some scientists that we will encounter an 'ice age' in the future, as little as a decade or 2. That is scary. With this rise in sea level The melting of the polar ice caps would bring more fresh water into the Atlantic Ocean resulting in an effect on the Gulf Stream, part of The Great Conveyor Belt. This system gives the northern regions of the world a temperate climate. If this natural flow of cold and warm current is disrupted the ocean currents will shift, and the results will be disastrous. People are not paying attention to what could happen here. We have evidence of this situation as a possibility! That alone should wake people up. Recently there has been mush debate on the global warming issue. “The 1997 Kyoto Protocol, a product of an international treaty on climate change, was ratified by 165 countries between 2005 and 2006. It requires 35 industrialized countries to cut greenhouse gases emissions to 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.” Australia and the U.S., aka the world's largest greenhouse gas emitters, are the only two major industrialized countries to reject the Kyoto Protocol. “The Bush administration objected to the Kyoto Protocol because developing nations that produce significant amounts of greenhouse gases do not have to meet the same goals as developed nations.” So basically we are saying well why should we have to when they aren’t… The U.S. has also said that this emissions reduction would hurt the economy. Well that’s nice, when nature is giving us the beat down of a life time we can look back and think about our selfishness. Although many nations have agreed to decrease emissions in the past, many have failed and have actually increased them globally. It’s time to stop making empty promises and follow through with this or else.

K Fed going down

I decided to take a little break on the real issues for a bit and focus on some celebrity entertainment. Here’s a long awaited newsflash: On November 7th 2006 mommy Spears filed for divorce. I am not a die hard fan of Britney Spears but I do not like Kevin Federline so I am going to be rooting for the mommy in this one. Finally Britney has smartened up and kicked her blood thirsty boy toy to the curb. What the hell was she thinking anyway? He sucks at dancing, singing, and living! He dated actress Shar Jackson, and has 2 children with her as well. Actually he was with Britney while Shar was pregnant with his 2nd child, which is messed up! After he found out about the divorce- on his blackberry ha-ha, Federline counter-filed court papers wanting spousal support and sole custody of the couple’s two children, 1 year old Sean Preston, and infant son Jayden James. Hmm let's compare, wealthy successful all-known pop singer v deadbeat dad flop out loser. I don’t’ think so, but hey you never know, there are many injustices out there and this could be one of them. As for Federline’s “career” the tracks of his new album debuted at 151 on the Billboard 200, only selling 6,000 copies during its first week. In an MTV interview last week Federline jokingly said if his album didn’t do well on the charts “I would probably poop on myself.” Well Federloser lets see it! Good thing that Britney has that iron-clad prenup she doesn’t want to talk about, b/c Federloser is looking to score some moola, and he is going to get paid either way, just not as much as he would like! In the end there is no doubt in my mind that Federline will try to find some other meal ticket…

Bush wants SPACE

“U.S. President George W. Bush has signed an order declaring the United States’ right to deny adversaries access to space for hostile purposes.” (yeah who he deems hostile, which would be everyone standing in his way of glorious domination) “Bush also said the United States would oppose the development of treaties or other restrictions that seek to prohibit or limit U.S. access to or use of space.” First off, Bush is stating that he can limit other countries to space? That is bullshit! Second, the greedy bastard will not accept any limitations on himself! How can we make the rest of the world hate us even more? We have to go and make yet a dumb ass comment like this. This world is so messed up, everyone wants to own everything, money is the root of all evil, etc etc… I know that is the way things have been since the beginning, divide and conquer, but it sucks! What gives Bush the right to even think that he can conquer and dominate space!!! This is absurd. We don’t even know how big the universe is! How can we claim it all! This pisses me off, everyone is so greedy! He is even pressuring NASA for manned missions to Mars… I don’t have anything against the exploration of space, but to actually claim it? We are like a spec when it comes to the cosmos. Our government is very greedy, wanting to get their grimy hands on everything in existence. It’s not enough that we consume almost everything on this planet, but now we have to go and do this??? Clearly Bush refuses to acknowledge that we might not be the only ones out there! What if we aren't? If Bush thinks that we can go and claim space for ourselves, how are the life forms that are already out there going to feel? I hope they won’t take the greedy politicians as a representation of the entire human race and vaporize our asses. Anyway people all over the world are outraged at Bush’s stupid idea. Read the article.

TV Propositions' Intentions

I am so sick of the campaign commercials for the propositions. They are so repetitive and they don't even really explain what the proposition is all about. They use such heavy propaganda with the intent to encourage or discourage the audience from voting for one party, and hammer it into your head so it stays there. These proposition campaigns also use quotes out of context from the original documentation. This can change the whole meaning of the point being discussed. Political groups use this to their advantage to attack the opposing campaign, often blurring the real truth and omitting important details that can affect the voter’s opinion. It’s all about the image of the proposition, not the actual facts. Luckily when general election time comes around they send out booklets explaining every proposition in depth. Furthermore they even sum each one up in a sweet little package for the voters that don’t want to go through the entire documentation so they have no excuse to not know what they are voting for unless they are alliterate. Being alliterate means that a person only chooses to read when they have to, like for work. It is commonly known that a lot of people in the U.S. can’t read or choose not to. We rank 49th in the illiteracy rate, and that isn’t even including the people that can read yet choose not to. They make decisions solely on what they see and hear on TV, mistaking many things presented as fact when they are actually generalized, heavily diluted, or just made up. A lot of those individuals don’t even know what they are voting for b/c they don’t have all the necessary facts to make an educated decision. So when the Official Voter Information Guide is mailed to “responsible” voters, some of them take one look at the booklet and toss it in the corner where it sits there collecting dust with the rest of the books that they have neglected. Then they happily trot off to “do their part” when they have in their minds only what they saw on TV from those advertising campaigns commanded by political propaganda bullshit instead of basing their educated opinions on the real facts! While the actual illiterates can’t defend themselves from the ads, b/c they don’t have the ability to consume the facts unless someone tells them. This is the role of those campaign ads. The people that drive these proposition campaigns know a good sum of people like to take the easy way out, so they target the non-readers and TV viewers. They tell people what to think often misinforming the audience. Political propaganda plays a dirty game and can heavily influence an opinion. Just remember there are two sides to everything and always get the facts! Check out this video