Coca-Cola = ?

The most sophisticated and expensive ads don't manipulate our preferences and desires the way we think they do. We are generally skeptical about specific product claims. So advertisers respond by connecting their products with our deeper feelings and desires. And there are many ways they do this.

Consider this Coca-Cola commercial from the recent Super Bowl broadcast.

The ad reminds YHB of a classic 1971 Coca-Cola ad.

Questions...

•What feelings and attitudes does this ad appeal to?

•How does the music and the framing of the scenes evoke particular feelings and attitudes?

•What sort of person is this ad designed to appeal to?

•What does the ad say about the product?

•Certainly a lot of young men watched the Super Bowl? Were there any ads that were macho or patriotic? Describe them.

Zocalo Lecture, March 11

THE DOODLE ONLINE SIGNUP LIST FOR THIS FIELD TRIP WILL CLOSE ON FRIDAY, MARCH 8 AT NOON.

Mass Comm 101 students are invited to attend the Zocalo Lecture "Is Infotainment Good for Political Journalism" at the Museum of Contemporary Art on Monday night, March 11. A summary of the the lecture is available at this link.

NOTICE OF THIS FIELD TRIP WILL BE THROUGH CLUB MEDIANOTE AND IN-CLASS ANNOUNCEMENTS. THERE WILL BE NO PAPER FIELD TRIP FLYER. If you wish to attend, respond on Doodle by using this link: http://doodle.com/54dhrvaypkyurpk2

List your name on the Doodle form as it is written on the roll sheet. As with all MC101 field trips, it is purely optional and extra credit.

A few more tips...

•Downtown is a lousy place to drive a car. If you do decide to drive, be prepared to run into a lot of traffic (so give yourself ample travel time) and pay for parking.

•Downtown is well-served by public transit, including the Red Line Subway. Because they run underground, subway trains do not run into traffic.

•Arrive by 7:15 at the latest. Late arrivals won't get in, which also affects your extra credit.

•The event will be over between 9 and 9:30. You are expected to stay for the entire panel lecture.

•Sometimes, the audience is invited to stay after the lecture to talk with the panelists and others. It is your choice to stay for this part or to leave when the lecture ends.

•While there is no dress code for the lectures, extremely casual dress (shorts and a tank top, for example) would be inappropriate.

•If you have any questions, use the comment function on Club MediaNote.

Will We Wear iPants?

Some years back, we began to carry considerable communication technology in pockets and purses. Now, some of the world's greatest tech companies believe, we are ready to wear our communications technology. Glasses, watches, even clothes will soon be brimming with communications potential.

Google's Glass and Apple's iWatch are just the beginning. Nike's FuelBand provides an LED readout for athletic endeavors. And other companies are developing clothes with communications functions, including the ability to project a virtual keypad on a shirt sleeve.

The Los Angeles Times reports on this trend.

Questions...

•What types of information would it be nice to have with you at all times?

•Name five things that will have a direct impact over whether wearable technology succeeds or fails.

•How might ads look in this medium? Name all the ways.

•How might you use your tech clothing to show support for the Dodgers, or your opposition to a political candidate?

Transfer Student Opportunity

Kevin Meza is our Transfer Center Coordinator and an all-around swell guy. Each year he organizes a Spring Break trip to some top Northern California universities. His email announcing this year's trip is posted below...

Greetings!

I am pleased to announce that we secured funding (thank you ASGCC) and will be going on the annual Northern California College tours during spring break (April 15-17). Based upon student interest we will visit UC Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, UC Davis, and UC Santa Barbara. The trip will include admissions presentations, college tours, student panels (featuring former GCC students), and sightseeing in San Francisco.

The tour cost is $25 (includes transportation and housing). Students are responsible for their own meals. Students can either come by the Transfer Center (SR building, second floor) or download the application from our website by clicking on this link:

http://vision.glendale.edu/index.aspx?page=2109&recordid=2032&returnURL=%2findex.aspx%3fpage%3d150

The priority deadline is Tuesday, March 5th at 6:00pm.

Kevin A. Meza, PhD
Transfer Center Coordinator
Glendale Community College
1500 N. Verdugo Road
Glendale, CA 91208
(818) 240-1000 ext. 5820

MC101 SI Facebook Group

Supplemental Instruction Leader Mike Arvizu has created a Facebook group for Mass Comm 101 SI. It can be found at https://www.facebook.com/groups/mc101si.

EyePhone

Could Google's "Glass" be the next generation of smartphone? Now in the prototype stage, it is a voice-activated wearable device that does most of what an Android phone can do. Google is currently accepting applications to be one of the first 8,000 consumers to beta test Glass, which is expected to be released to the public around the end of the year.

Here is a Glass promotional video.

Questions...

•Will Glass be something a lot of people will want (like an iPhone), or will it be something that only a few people will want (like a Segway)?

•How is Glass better than a smartphone? How is it worse?

•What predictable uses of Glass does the promotional video NOT show?

•How attractive will Glass be to advertisers? Why?

•How would you use Glass?