Cash is the New Black.

Deciphering who we are...




In response to:


http://www.soulpancake.com/view_post/1465593/is-art-whatever-you-can-get-away-with.html

"I like money on the wall. Say you we're going to buy a $200,000 painting. I think you should take that money, tie it up, and put it on the wall. That way, when someone comes to visit you, the first thing they would see is the money on the wall" - Andy Warhol


Theorist Harold Innis pointed out that humans assign objects a perceived value that may not reflect their real value. After reading the quote by Andy Warhol and considering Innis' point, I realized that our society is completely facilitated through the idea of 'value'.

Value is attached to everything around us. Our home, our clothes, our modes of entertainment, etc. But the question is ... what is it that dictates these values? Why is it that a cotton shirt from Abercrombie and Fitch is more than three times the cost of a cotton shirt from Walmart?

The value comes from the label because it is a way in which people feel they can define themselves. Like value, people attach labels to just about everything. We label people fat, skinny, pretty, ugly, etc. In the case of clothing, sporting a label can define one's economic and social status. A few words across your chest can convey just how "cool" you really are.

The value we attach to clothing, cars, homes, etc. can be a form of non-verbal communication. Imagine putting a bunch of strangers into one room and asking them to socialize. Two girls who are seen wearing Juicy Couture are going to form a bond based on their mutual interest. Without saying a word these two girls can say "hey she's cool, she's rich, she's into fashion - i'll be her friend!" Wearing a label has become a decipherer of personal value.

Despite the lessons we learn in pre-school that "what matters is on the inside", the emphasis society has put on valuable items makes it impossible to ignore the trend. In order to impress people today, we have to dress in VALUABLE clothing, drive VALUABLE cars, decorate our house with VALUABLE paintings and instead of wearing our hearts on our sleeves, we showcase our bank accounts from head to toe.

Twitter Me This, Twitter Me That...

What's are my closest friends up to? What's new with my family? What am I doing?

Well, my older brother Rob finally got a data plan for his blackberry. My younger brother Ryan is extremely frustrated that his XBOX 360 online connection is down. My friend Carleigh has lyrics to a song stuck in her head. I am working on one of many assignments due within the next two weeks.

...I'll admit, I haven't spoken to my two brothers or my friend today. Instead of making a long-distance phone call or spending time writing an e-mail, I can take the short-cut. The click of a mouse lets me stay connected to my loved ones by checking their status updates on Facebook and/or Twitter. Twitter and Facebook have completely collapsed time and space. No one needs to be in the same place at the same time to communicate, just simply check eachother's profiles!

The status update is having a profound effect on social interactions between individuals. According to McLuhan, it isn't the content of these status updates that is important, it is the fact that it exists in our culture and that utlimately it is revolutionizing it.

In the case of Twitter and Facebook, it is possible to stay connected with friends and know what they are doing without even having to speak. We are seeing a decline in the need for the telephone, e-mail and even face-to-face communication. Who has time for small talk anymore? In a culture where time is money, people want to retrieve information quickly and efficiently, and move on with their day. Status updates are quick snipets of information that keep us connected, but still leave us time for other tasks.



The changes in modes of communication are also bringing about change in economics, as prophesized by McLuhan. Signing up for an account on Twitter or Facebook is free; no hefty phone bills and no money spent on gas for friendly visits. Our entire society has transformed into a collection of people looking for social and economic shortcuts.

People, myself included, may have lost touch with the ability to reach out to others to find out what they are doing. It seems as though the world has become a collection of birds - tweeting rather than talking.

Now I Know!

In response to:

Economist: Did you know?

__________________________________________

After watching this video I thought about my day.
This morning, I woke up and immediately hopped on to my computer. As per my usual routine, I signed myself in to MSN messenger, logged on to Skype and checked my Facebook. By the time lunch came around, I decided to send out multiple text messages to see who was available to grab a bite.
After I returned, I began using word processing programs to complete assignments and watched a few videos that are featured on my MSN messenger.

In the course of one day, I realize that the majority (if not the entirety) of my social and academic life is conducted through electronic mediums. In my life and in today’s society, it is essential to be connected through these mediums in order to stay connected to friends, family and the rest of the world.

Famous communications theorist, Marshal McLuhan argued that media has such a power and influence over people’s lives, that we should consider it the same way we consider natural resources – a necessity of life.

Within the mediums I used over the course of my day, I was able to satisfy specific social needs. I was able to connect with friends and family from home, by speaking with them through text and via webcam chat. I was able to connect to friends here at University, by texting them to meet for lunch. This technology helps me build good connections with new friends.

My Facebook allows me to feel connected to society, by seeing how others are spending their time, and they also can see how I am spending mine. Facebook also allows me to connect with people on a more personal level with wall posts.

It is also worth considering how these mediums perform dual functions. My MSN messenger acts as a communicating tool, however it also keeps me informed with updated video footage of news, gossip, etc.

This dominance of electronic media in my life makes me question how people stayed connected before the time of online chatting, video calling and text messaging. As a child of the technology age, media is a staple to my social existence.

Perez's Persuasive Perceptions

Proudly admitted, I am a celebrity gossip and entertainment industry junkie. As such, it is only natural that I am also a frequent visitor to the Perez Hilton gossip blog, where I get my daily fix of dirt on all the stars’ relationships, new projects and most entertainingly their disastrous melt downs captured by the paparazzi.

While discussing and reading about the way we as people and communicators perceive others, I reflected on how Perez Hilton’s blog has influenced my perceptions of certain celebrities. I discovered that the ways I observe and judge them are all considered “common perceptual tendencies” according to what I have learned about perception and communication this past week.

When perceiving others, it is common to judge ourselves more favourably than we do others. While scrolling through the blog entries of PerezHilton.com I found that this was a common aspect of the website. In a blog entitled “Aren’t You a Billionaire, Olsen?” Perez posted a picture Mary Kate Olsen looking “dishevelled” by the standards of “Hollywood” society. As a viewer of the website and a follower of celebrities, I would agree with the notion that Mary-Kate Olsen isn’t as (in the words of Tyra Banks) “fierce” as a celebrity of her financial and social status would be expected to be.

Picture source: http://www.perezhilton.com/

However, I then considered this blog entry from the perspective of a communications student and how I have drawn the conclusion that Mary-Kate Olsen is a dishevelled mess on the basis of one photograph. This follows the perceptual tendency of judging others more harshly than myself, because I didn’t consider the possibility of perhaps she was just having a comfortable kind of day, or that she was out the night before and wasn’t really in the mood to get dressed up early the next morning. I also didn’t consider the fact that she is not only a celebrity, but currently a university student. When I have an early morning class, I don’t feel the need to put on makeup or fix my hair because I know that once the class is over, I’m most likely going back to bed. I use this justification for myself when I look a little less than glamorous, but didn’t even consider this reasoning when looking at the picture of Mary Kate Olsen.

Perez Hilton has a powerful grasp over the opinions of a lot of people when it comes to celebrities. With an awkward photograph and the addition of some drawings in “Paint”, our views of other people can be completely altered. This can be attributed to the perceptual tendency that people are influenced by what is in their face. Without considering the possible explanations, situations or contexts, we simply draw conclusions based on a picture, a video or a quote. The blog has made use of the way people favour negative impressions and draws people in with the details of celebrities’ most embarrassing moments.

Perez Hilton delivers us celebrity “juice”...and we completely drink it up.

Perezing Myself....it's only fair

My very first blog!

...why... hello there world! happy to see you.