Following the Al-Assad regime protests, the Canadian government is advocating the evacuation of their 5000 (give or take a couple hundred) citizens in Syria. Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird announced that the government is not supplying plane or boat boarding passes, contrary to what they have done in Lebanon and Lybia. Furthermore, the HMCS Vancouver warship is presently safeguarding the Mediterranean. Lastly,the UN will not be hosting an intervention despite the fact that approximately 5000 Canadians have perished during the revolts.
Source used.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
A Man Who Had No Eyes - Summary
Our story begins with Mr. Parsons, a talented man struggling with a physical impairment. He was walking to his business meeting when a blind beggar interrupted him. One thing leads to another and the blind man started narrating the incident which lead to his handicap; a chemical fire. He slightly twisted the story for sympathy. Parsons noticed his lie for he was also involved in the same incident and carried the same burden as the beggar; they were both blind. As you can see, A Man Who Had No Eyes is a story depicting that succeeding in life is a matter of having a strong will, persevering and the way that you approach situations ( or disabilities).
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Product Placement
Most of the time, producers are paid to discretely place products inside their show to subliminally advertise said product. For instance, JLow promoting FIAT cars and hockey players wearing the logo of their sponsors. In this blog, I will be analysing Sony's use of product placement. The most apparent would be their use of product placement in the movie Casino Royale.
The above clip is composed of several scenes of the movie Casino Royale. Sony is promoting the use of their CD players, Ericsson cellphones, televisions, etc... As many people know, Sony is a worldwide entertainment company, and they have recently started to include their banners in several movies and games that they are making, such as The Roommate, The Priest, Battle: Los Angeles and many more. This advises the population that Sony produced the CGI and effects in those films. Furthermore, this enforces the idea that Sony develops advanced effects, and might make someone more inclined to try their products. For example, if I know that Sony was behind the 3D effects in Avatar, I would be motivated to watch other films by Sony.
I think that Sony is slowly achieving their goal. Little do we know, more and more of the special effects in movies are made by Sony. Their ways are effective because millions of people watch blockbuster films such as Avatar (achieved 1 billion dollars by 17 days) and several more millions are vulnerable to product placement in their other services, such as the PlayStation Network (PSN) and Blu-ray CD players.
In conclusion, product placement is everywhere we look; films, video games, TV... We can attribute the record-breaking sales of Sony's products to the quality of their work but also to product placement, the latter spreading word of their services.
The above clip is composed of several scenes of the movie Casino Royale. Sony is promoting the use of their CD players, Ericsson cellphones, televisions, etc... As many people know, Sony is a worldwide entertainment company, and they have recently started to include their banners in several movies and games that they are making, such as The Roommate, The Priest, Battle: Los Angeles and many more. This advises the population that Sony produced the CGI and effects in those films. Furthermore, this enforces the idea that Sony develops advanced effects, and might make someone more inclined to try their products. For example, if I know that Sony was behind the 3D effects in Avatar, I would be motivated to watch other films by Sony.
I think that Sony is slowly achieving their goal. Little do we know, more and more of the special effects in movies are made by Sony. Their ways are effective because millions of people watch blockbuster films such as Avatar (achieved 1 billion dollars by 17 days) and several more millions are vulnerable to product placement in their other services, such as the PlayStation Network (PSN) and Blu-ray CD players.
In conclusion, product placement is everywhere we look; films, video games, TV... We can attribute the record-breaking sales of Sony's products to the quality of their work but also to product placement, the latter spreading word of their services.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
A Closer Look on Advertisements
Realise the potential
Advertisements are all around us; on television, in journals, on the Internet...
This blog, I'll examine those promotions, more precisely this one.
In this ad, American Express is advertising their credit card services. They are showing us that by using their card, we can accumulate points. With those points, you can spent it otherwise useless or luxurious items. For instance, after eating at a restaurant and paying with my American Express card, I've accumulated enough points to buy a new game. Neat! As a result, this type of service would be useful when you don't want to misuse your money, yet still be able to afford modern-day conveniences.
Judging by the choice of pictures, (pasta, iPod) this ad is being targeted at highschool and college students. This is justifiable by the actuality that college students and older often have to pay for their classes and appartement rent while still wanting to stay on track with the current music, game and fashion paradigm.
In my opinion, this ad is a fair representation of the proposed product. Albeit being a bit implicit (you
can't turn your food into an iPod), the confusion is cleared once you read the writing in the bottom-right corner. If I showed this ad to someone who had never seen it before, he would be able to establish a few key points: (1) American Express is promoting the use of their (2) credit card, which now features a system of (3) reward points.
The risks associated with using this card may not be known by simply viewing this advertisement. By doing some research, loyalty programs often:
- Charge an annual fee;
- Have a higher interest rate;
- Encourage you to spend more in order to earn rewards;
- You will receive many flyers in the mail to incite you to spend money;
The list is long, and if you're not careful, can lead to devastating conclusions.
Personally, I would not use a credit card without informing myself; make sure there are no strings attached. Despite the tempting reward system, similar can be achieved by spending money cautiously and avoiding hidden fees and higher interest rates associated with this American Express card. Unless reward miles can be earned (to buy plane tickets), no item is expensive enough to compensate for the use of a credit card. As a student, it is important to prepare myself for my future and avoid the risk of having debt following be around as an adult.
To sum up, it is a good idea to research your product before buying it (or applying for it, in this case). In addition, remember to look for a better alternative if possible.
Advertisements are all around us; on television, in journals, on the Internet...
This blog, I'll examine those promotions, more precisely this one.
In this ad, American Express is advertising their credit card services. They are showing us that by using their card, we can accumulate points. With those points, you can spent it otherwise useless or luxurious items. For instance, after eating at a restaurant and paying with my American Express card, I've accumulated enough points to buy a new game. Neat! As a result, this type of service would be useful when you don't want to misuse your money, yet still be able to afford modern-day conveniences.
Judging by the choice of pictures, (pasta, iPod) this ad is being targeted at highschool and college students. This is justifiable by the actuality that college students and older often have to pay for their classes and appartement rent while still wanting to stay on track with the current music, game and fashion paradigm.
In my opinion, this ad is a fair representation of the proposed product. Albeit being a bit implicit (you
can't turn your food into an iPod), the confusion is cleared once you read the writing in the bottom-right corner. If I showed this ad to someone who had never seen it before, he would be able to establish a few key points: (1) American Express is promoting the use of their (2) credit card, which now features a system of (3) reward points.
The risks associated with using this card may not be known by simply viewing this advertisement. By doing some research, loyalty programs often:
- Charge an annual fee;
- Have a higher interest rate;
- Encourage you to spend more in order to earn rewards;
- You will receive many flyers in the mail to incite you to spend money;
The list is long, and if you're not careful, can lead to devastating conclusions.
Personally, I would not use a credit card without informing myself; make sure there are no strings attached. Despite the tempting reward system, similar can be achieved by spending money cautiously and avoiding hidden fees and higher interest rates associated with this American Express card. Unless reward miles can be earned (to buy plane tickets), no item is expensive enough to compensate for the use of a credit card. As a student, it is important to prepare myself for my future and avoid the risk of having debt following be around as an adult.
To sum up, it is a good idea to research your product before buying it (or applying for it, in this case). In addition, remember to look for a better alternative if possible.
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