Sunday, July 20, 2014

Bones and the Social Media Connection



Bones is a crime drama/comedy television show on Fox TV. According to the web (http://www.ignitesocialmedia.com/social-media-examples/tv-shows-integrate-social-media/) they have taken the plunge into social media in a huge way.

Their Twitter handle is @BonesonFOX. If you follow them on Twitter, you can get access to special information about the characters, and actors. They give followers information on where to download songs used in the show via iTunes, and even take the time to answer followers who use the hashtag, #bones. Another great idea was to have live twitter feeds, where followers can actually ask questions via twitter to actors and the design team. They have also created an app called, Bones Companion App. This is a place for fans to get more information as they watch episodes, and it allows them to interact with one another as well. This sounds like a lot of extra work for the promotors, is it worth it?

I believe it is worth it. Studies indicate that as much as 60% of TV viewers admit to utilizing social media while watching their favorite show, and 25% will even talk about the show on their social media sites (http://core3solutions.com/web/blog/take-on-social-media-tv-engagement/). Based on these studies, and just watching my own teens using social media while doing everything, I believe utilizing social media like the show Bones is doing is going to be imperative for the future success of Television. What do you think? Would you interact with your favorite show/actors in this way?

Thanks for reading!
Sonya

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Radio and the Power of Persuasion


One of the major musical influencers of all time had to be Elvis Presley. He was scandalous for his time. One thing he did to influence our culture was to incorporate African American music with jazz. This was taboo because we hadn't yet blurred the racial lines in our country. Using the radio, his music was aired to all who were willing to listen. By listening to his songs over and over, we soon became accustomed to his lyrics and rhythms. One other cultural influence he had was with regard to sexuality and music. He moved in provocative ways and women were known to rip their shirts off at his concerts. The question is, did the music make them do it?


Another big shift in music was the introduction of Rap/Hip Hop music into our culture. Pictured above is the popular and violent Rap artist, 50 Cent.  He has been in the news for fighting and even being involved in shootings with other Rap artists. Most Rap music can be summed up by violent lyrics and movements. Rap music seems to epitomizes the African American's fight with political, social and economic oppression. Many will argue this is the reason behind the violent lyrics and dancing. But the question remains, did the music make them do it, or was it something else?

There are two ways to view the influence of this type of music on our culture over the years. Either the music is so powerful and influential that it creates a completely new type of society, or society was on the cusp of needing a change and the music properly portrayed what a specific group of people were feeling at the time of conception of said music. 

Which do you think is more accurate? 

I'll go with answer number two. While I neither favored Elvis music or Rap, it does seem more likely to me that these unique genre's of music are stemming out of emotions and feelings already present within different cultures. Instead of blaming the music for the outcomes of a few, we should be looking into the meaning and see if we need to make some kind of cultural change to solve a deeper issue being portrayed.

Until next time,
Thanks for reading,
Sonya Thompson