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Tommy, Maggie, Jill Vlog
Entourage
The show Entourage is the story of one movie star (Vince), his older brother, and 2 best friends who move out to Los Angeles to launch his movie career. The subtext of the show is that no matter how many curveballs life throws you and how heavily the deck is stacked against you, if you try hard enough and want it bad enough you can succeed. The characters each undergo their own struggles and challenges throughout each episode, but eventually, through success or failure, they come out of each situation better than they were before. The show sudbtly conveys that only those who push and fight and claw tooth and nail can really make it in Hollywood, and if you are we or you even think about giving up, you don’t have a chance.
The show is heavily advertised in print media in men’s magazines, and TV commercials during other shows on the HBO channel. The actors in the show also appear in commercials that allow them to utilize product placement.
The soundtrack for entourage is very current and updated within popular culture. Some of the newest up-n-coming artists have been featured on the show as well as some of the best artists in the game. The genres range from hip-hop to rap to R&B to sometimes even pop. Most of the songs are used during transitional scenes of to emphasize a specific moment in conversation and therefore are often in instrumental form. There is no narrator for the show, its intentional is to portray current real life Hollywood, and thus many celebrities appear on the show in cameos.
The show is considered a comedy-drama with the viewer as a constant third-person point of view. The audience expects amusing scenes with witty, intelligent conversation and dramatic events. Sex, drugs, partying, and “boys-will-be-boys” themes are prevalent throughout the show. The boys are always the focus; both girls and money are portrayed as just accessories that are always available, with the men always in control. The audience is drawn in by the hope that Vince will eventually become a superstar and the rest of his “entourage” will find fame and success as well.
Entourage utilizes the online environment by advertising on men’s websites and allowing viewers to watch full episodes online after they originally air on Sunday night. The website also features biographies on the cast and crew, additional footage and behind the scenes moments, director and actor commentaries, and photos of each of the characters.
Media Regulation
I do not think the U.S. government should be getting involved in media regulation because the very act of media regulation goes against our right to free speech. Plenty of people both good and bad have and deserve access to the Internet, and it’s impossible to determine what exactly is “hurtful” of national security interests.
The difficulty in allowing restriction of the Internet is that once an entity has the power of control, it will become increasingly difficult to manage their ability and choice to regulate beyond what is only absolutely necessary and relevant. With the greedy nature of politicians and lobbyists today, restriction would quickly become just another tool in the government’s arsenal of ways to skew our mind, perception, and vote in their favor. I think it’s a challenge to determine who and what group of individuals is given the power to execute such a strong authority.
If the government chose not to listen and began blocking material – on the positive side, our Internet would certainly become a cleaner, friendlier place with a more positive outlook on the United States. However on the negative side, the government could be hiding the truth from us, people with peaceful albeit differing viewpoints could be silenced without just cause, and the reliability of information could become questionable.
If the government took my position and maintained net neutrality, the Internet would continue to mimic the harsh but true reality that our real life looks like every day. By simply blocking Internet pages, the government wont be able to completely stop groups and persons that intend to harm the United States. But they will make a lot of people even more infuriated with the U.S. government. The Internet is a tool that is of equal importance and value to every person that chooses to utilize it, and the government should know its people would never stand for a regulated, restricted Internet space.
Media Diary
Friday:
8am: Checked weather and snow report on laptop. Called friend to go skiing
8-10am: Drove to mtns, listened to iPod in the car via internal USB cable
10:30am – 3pm: Skied with my friends, sent a few texts and calls to find friends on the mtns
3 – 5pm: Drove home listening to iPod
5pm – 6pm: Checked email, Facebooked, took a nap
6pm to 2am: Hung out with friends, drinking and listening to music with speakers plugged into laptop
Saturday:
11am: texted friends and surfed internet, facebooked
11:30am – 4pm: Cleaned house and took nap while listening to music on laptop
4pm – 7pm: Talked to friends via texts and calls to make plans for the night
7pm – 2am: Went out drinking with my friends to DU area bars
Sunday:
12pm: Woke up to a call from a friend, drove downtown for brunch
12pm – 3pm: Brunch with friends
3pm – 6pm: Hung out with friends, played Snappa
7pm: Received a call from a friend to see Black Swan
8pm – 10pm: Watched Black Swan
10 – 12am: Listened to music and hung out with friends
Overall reflection: Personal communication and entertainment are the dominant reasons for the technology in my life. My day to day shifts gears on the weekends as compared to the week. More of my internet/laptop use will pertain to school tasks whereas my cellphone and iPod are a constant source of entertainment and personal contact with friends. Regardless of where I am or what I’m doing I am ALWAYS accessible via call, text, or email to my cell phone. It’s rarely off and it never misses a charge. It’s my lifeline at all times. My laptop is far and away the most important single item in my life. One Macbook Pro runs my entire business – creative through accounting through shipping – and its hard drives hold all my music, media, data, homework, files, photos and information. It’s backed up remotely in 3 different locations to ensure no loss of data, because I Couldn’t live without it.
Inception
Inception is a mind-blowing, action-packed film that has no definite ending. It leaves the viewer to interpret the events and the concepts in his own way as it explores the capabilities of corporate espionage through the invasion of people’s dreams.
The film is an example of economic convergence because although it was written and directed by Christopher Nolan, it was produced by Legendary Pictures in conjunction with Syncopy films and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film was released on July 16th in the United States and cost $160 million to produce. It received fantastic reviews and grossed over $825 million, making it the 25th highest-grossing film of all time. Critics consider the film both smart and innovative, with exceptional performances by the cast and critically acclaimed action scenes.
The film is also an example of technological convergence as some of the most talented artists came together to create the movie. Leonardo DiCaprio starred in the film and it was his second highest-grossing film of all time after Titanic. Hans Zimmer scored the movie, and he has been composing music for nearly 3 decades for over 100 films and has received 8 awards for his work. Wally Pfister was the cinematographer on the film and has worked with Christopher Nolan before on half a dozen movies. The film utilized over 500 visual effects shots in comparison to some films, which have over 1500. Nolan aimed for a more practical approach to keep the film as real as possible.
The film is also an example of cultural convergence. In a time when technology has seemingly taken over modern society and most daily interactions, Inception brings the danger of knowledge and technology right into our own subconscious by suggesting that even our minds aren’t going to be secure from invasion for long. Corporate espionage is an undeniable aspect of every major economy because every company wants to have the competitive advantage over the next guy in line. People are willing to pay exorbitant amounts of money to keep precious information safe, but if you cant even hide your secrets in your mind… what’s next?
Media&Culture 