Variety

Very few websites are taken seriously when it comes to entertainment gossip. Variety, however, is different. As one of the long-running Hollywood trades, Variety is constantly a legitimate source for the latest in film and entertainment news. Their scoops and reviews are as trustworthy as anyone's. If you see something in the tabloids that you question is legit or not, turn to Variety to see if it's accurate.

Variety

iPods!

Everywhere you go, somebody has an iPod. They're commonplace. They're cool to have and they're easy to use. Instead of listening to CD's, you can listen to your iPod.
Now you can even customize your iPod. Various websites, such as iFrogz, allows you to build your own custom cases and such.
The iPod isn't just a white, square-lookin' music playback device. You can add your own artistic touch to it.

infomercial
Billy Mays is the man that became famous selling Oxyclean, he now sells the handy switch, he is a billionaire though. I don't think he has really done anything himself but he makes it work. He peddles garbage, he is like the P.T. Barnum of the twenty-first century, because he "never underestimates the stupidity of the American people." He should seminars on bullshitting, and how to turn that into profit, he could probably make another million selling tickets to that.

The best video game ever

http://us.playstation.com/granturismo/

I see posts about video games but their are none cooler or with better graphics then the Gran Turismo series. The new version of this game almost looks like real life and from the demo I have played is the closest thing to a real life simulation in the video game industry.

Music in Video Gaming: Great Achievement or Greatest Achievement?

In my very first blog post, I presented gamer comics to you fine people, showing why they were super awesome (in scientific terms.) Then in my second blog post, I presented more comics, but in a more parody milieu.

And now we go once more into the breach. The gaming breach. And don't think for a second I'm not proud of sneaking a Shakespeare reference into a blog post about video games.

OC Remix. The OC Remix is mercifully unrelated to the prime time soap opera of similar name. Instead, it's a community dedicated to remixing music from various video games and presenting them in new and interesting ways. Some of them are serious adaptations of themes from games (such as this version of the iconic Gerudo Valley theme from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time) while some are more parody (such as this version of the Chocobo Theme from the Final Fantasy series.) They're not all great, they're not all even good. Some of them are just plain bizarre. But it's an interesting take on part of what makes video games as popular as they are.

ZREO. ZREO has largely the same idea as OC Remix, except that it focuses specifically on Zelda. The Zelda series has always had extremely memorable music, from the very beginning on the eight-bit system. Anyone who's ever played will know that the theme is so recognizable that once learned, it's never forgotten. Yes, I can name that tune in three notes. (Video games, Shakespeare, and old game shows are the pop culture reference hat trick.)

ZREO is beautiful and OC Remix is creative beyond measure. That's all you need to know.

Peter, Please!

This website was given to me by one of the fourth graders at the school in which I work. Although that may be a combination of both bad and good, the truth is that almost every other fourth grader joined in the conversation about how many times they have fooled their friends using this website. www.peteranswers.com. On this site, you ask an imaginary tarot reader to answer your questions. I realize that this may be beyond our age group, but the conversation turned into all of the kids telling me how they have had a myspace since 2nd grade, while some of the first graders explained their time spent on you tube. Is this a scary realization to anyone else? I mean, I have seen many a you tube video, and in all honesty, is that what we want our first graders "accidentally" clicking on while browsing the internet? Come on people, parental controls, please!

Cell Phones and Kids

Cell phones in today’s society are a must have, it seems like if you don’t have one or one of the newer style phones you are just out of the loop. I remember I had to wait until I was sixteen years old to get a cell phone, and I felt like I was the last person to get one. Now, I see all these really young kids with them, my little cousin who is in the fifth grade got a cell phone for her birthday this month and said that she was one of the last kids in her grade to get a phone. I mean personally I think it’s crazy the way that this young of a person has to have a phone, maybe in emergency, but it just feels like kids are starting things at such a younger age now. There are also so many different styles of phones now with internet on them and everything, it’s like all you need is your phone anymore. We’ve come a long way since the day of the bag phones, but the most interesting is that these kids have to have cell phones to fit in with our pop culture.

Dudeism

Jefferey "The Dude" Lebowski is the main character in the Coen Brothers' 1998 film, "The Big Lebowski". This charcter has spawned a religion, Dudeism, based on The Dude's lifestyle. Followers are expected to adhere to a strict regimen of White Russians and Creedence 
Clearwater Revival tapes. If you are a fan of the movie, 
it is an entertaining read, so check it out!

sudoku

Sudoku is a Japanese game that has recently taken America by storm. Although this game comes in a variety of formats, the most common consists of a huge square made up of 81 small boxes that are partitioned into 3x3 boxes containing nine small boxes in each. The goal of the puzzle is to fill each individual box with a number from 1-9 so that each number is not repeated straight across, down, or in each partitioned box of nine smaller squares. The game is simple but addicting. I am evidence of this because I do Sudoku constantly. I fill the squares in while watching television, while in lecture or while I'm just bored and have nothing else to do. In addition, the prevelence of Sudoku in our culture only exacerbates my situation. Sudoku is everywhere; there are sudoku websites online, sudoku is found in our own college newspaper (U Weekly and The Lantern), Mac's even come equipped with Sudoku as one of their games. Sudoku serves as the crossword puzzle of our generation and the puzzle we can't seem to quit. With this said, I'd like to apologize for posting this link that will inevitably aid in procrastination and break even the most diligent student's resolve to study: online sudoku

Toothpaste for Dinner

Here is today's drawing from Toothpaste for Dinner. Toothpaste for Dinner is a site with a collection of comics drawn by a man named Drew who is located out of Columbus, Ohio. Everyday since 2002 Drew has uploaded a different drawing everyday. His cartoons are characterized by the black and white simplicity and also by it's off beat humor. Here's the link:

http://www.toothpastefordinner.com/

Guitar Hero

Easily the most popular rhythm-based video game of all-time, the Guitar Hero craze has swept the United States. Chances are that you have played this game, and if you haven't, you've at least seen it in action. If you're one of the six people in the country that don't know what I'm talking about, here's the premise:

1. Take one plastic guitar with five "fret" buttons.
2. Pick a song to play, which range from tracks by the Rolling Stones to songs by Disturbed.
3. Play the notes by matching up the on-screen buttons with the buttons on the guitar and strumming in time with the song
4. Congrats, you're a Guitar Hero in training.

Why has Guitar Hero been so popular since its release? I attribute it to how easy and fun it is to pick up and play, no matter what your skill level. A great selection of songs spanning three Guitar Hero games (with one 80's rock expansion) also helps keep newer and older fans coming back. With the release of "Guitar Hero: Aerosmith" later this summer, don't expect the Guitar Hero fad to go away any time soon. Now if you'll excuse me, I hear Metallica's "One" calling my name...

007

One of my favorite books/movies is From Russia With Love, which is part of the James Bond franchise. What started out as a series of spy novels has turned into one of the longest running movie franchises ever, and it continues to grow with the release of the next film this November. The reach of this character has by far surpassed the expectations of its creator, Ian Fleming. Fleming died shortly before the release of the third movie, Goldfinger, which has become one of the most popular films in the series. The James Bond series has branched off into video games, spin-off novels, and it has even been spoofed with the Austin Powers movies. There are fan groups all over the world. One of the websites that you can go to is http://www.mi6.co.uk/mi6.php3
At this site, there are a bunch of updates every week that have to do with everything Bond, from the release of the next film's title, to cast autograph sessions, and when you can see a movie on TV in different countries. Even if you have never seen a 007 movie, or read one of the books, you know the basics about them: girls, guns, gadgets, and a maniac trying to take over the world.

American Idol

I was actually really surprised to see that no one has posted about American Idol yet. You've at least heard of the show or listened the the music of the winners on the radio. The point is that you know of it whether or not you watch it. But in case you've been living under a rock for the last six years, American Idol is a reality television show where the contestants from all over the country participate in a singing competition. In the initial stages, three judges--Randy, Paula and Simon-- select a group of 24 people out of thousands of auditions. Those 24 are then able to perform live on television. The best part of the entire show is that America votes for the winner. American Idol has made Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood household names. Even nonwinners, like Chris Daughtry, have benefited from being on the show. This season's contestants are proving to be the most promising yet. As for me... I'm rooting for the guy with dreads :)

Stuff White People Like

Stuff White People Like is a blog that pokes fun at "white culture" by listing things that, according the website, all white people love. This list includes: Expensive Sandwiches, Knowing What’s Best for Poor People, Kitchen Gadgets, and many others. This list is by no means representative of 
all white people, but rather stereotypical 20-30 year olds. This blog has many pop culture references and is 
amusing to read, as you many see many things that are 
applicable to you or your friends.

Juggalo Culture

Juggalos are the fans of the music group Insane Clown Posse (ICP). They  believe in "The Dark Carnival",  a philosophy outlined by six Insane Clown Posse albums. They are also devout drinkers of the bargain brand pop, Faygo. For some reason, these fans are insanely devoted. Many have one or more tattoos showing their commitment 
to the band. They even  have their own version of Myspace, Myjuggalospace. To me, this whole things seems 
ridiculous. It seems crazy for these people to have such a high level 
of devotion to clown-themed music that most would agree is not that great. Insane Clown Posse has been declared "the worst band ever" 
by various publications, and their music has been described as a
combination of the "worst aspects of goth, punk, gangsta rap, rave,
nu-metal, and real metal". Even though I may not understand juggalos,
their devotion is a sight to behold as they post pictures of themselves in clown face paint on the internet.

pirated entertainment

With the advancements in technology and mass distribution, "bootleg" copies have become common in culture. The two most common forms that I have found are in music and movies/television. To create bootleg movies, many people go to the theater with a handheld camera, tape the whole movie and then post it online or make copies of the tape and sell them illegally. In most cases, the bootleg copy of a lower quality and grainy or hard to hear. In addition, many music pirating sites have been a controversial part of society for years. Limewire and napster are two such websites. Recently, the government is attempting to reduce pirated culture by threatening its existence with legal consequences. One way that they do this is by going into university servers and looking and individual student's activity on this shared network. I'm not sure on the details, but I believe if you share your music, they can see this and sue you based on how many songs they have. Although unsure of the details, I am positive that this exists because my friend, a former student at OU is currently undergoing legal ramifications for her songs. Although the government is punishing these acts, I'm sure that pirated entertainment will not cease to exist, however, will people's fear of legal ramifications result in its becoming less mainstream?

The Education Arcade

In class we touched bases on the game Revolution. I tried to download the game after having to create a username, password and the rest of that jazz but I still could not play it. From looking at the game the graphics are indeed nice and it does somewhat have a goal to educate others about history and does a good job of giving players a chance to show their smarts by competing with others but perhaps this is a little too much. Those of the African American Community may become offended when they see that this 'game' actually has slaves in it. Games are a part of pop culture but offending others is not. African Americans have suffered enough when slavery actually occured and to add this to a computer game may give others the wrong idea. What would whites think if it was the other way around? Since most of the modules are posted by annonymous and not someone with at least a screen name it makes the game questionable.

here is the link just in case
http://www.educationarcade.org/revolution

The LEGO Community

A while ago I went to google to look something up and I noticed the word google was pictured differently than usual. It was spelled out using Lego bricks in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first lego brick. It reminded me of how much I used to love playing with Legos when I was younger. I decided to search for Lego on google instead of whatever it was I originally was going to search for and found some interesting sites. There is a vast community online created by fans of the toy. One of the sites I found, lugnet.com, is a site that has forums to discuss legos and report news items. another site, brickshelf.com, is a site where fans can upload pictures of creations they've made with their own bricks. I spent some time looking through some of these and they range from models that look like something I would have made when I was 6 or 7 to models that I had to look at closely to see if it was actually made out of legos. I also found some sites that incorporated legos into gaming. I thought these were kind of interesting. I also found that there are conventions held all over the place where people come together to create large scale models such as cities or castle villages. Here's a video of the set up of one of these conventions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pVJqHqyIWo&mode=related&search=
After looking at all of these sites, it kind of made me want to dig out my legos and start building something.

Now children can get their "creep" on!

webkinz! the new plush animal craze (there is a new one every year or two) is here and they are taking their product further than any stuffed animal has been. webkinz are stuffed animals that you can purchase at various retailers, and they come with a number tag around their neck. the owner can, then, go to www.webkinz.com and register the doll, give it a cute name, customize a room for it, feed it, play with it, etc. the creepy part is that kids can invite other kids into their room to play together. as if we haven't been warned enough to keep children from the internet. neither here nor there, these webkinz are taking over! from a pop culture aspect, webkinz are just the latest popular plush collectible, similar to trolls/beanie babies/bratz/etc. Webkinz havea one up on the previous products though, the interaction. which i think will make it the most widespread, and popular fluff-movement ever.

Ugg Boots

I'm sure most of you have seen these boots before. Ugg boots have become very trendy on college campuses, and on OSU's campus as well. It seems like one out of every five girls walking around campus wears a pair. Ugg brand orginated out of Austrailia and became extremely popular in the US a few years ago. The site that I got this picture from also sells this type of boot. They were sold out for the season, however they cost $150. A little too pricey for me.

eco-friendly websites

For some reason it never works when I try to post the links.
Here they are again...hopefully it works this time!

http://www.thegreenloop.com/aboutus.asp
http://environment.about.com/od/earthtalkcolumns/a/ecofashion.htm

Eco-fashion: Trendy and Eco-Friendly

This post is in connection to our class discussion about how certain political causes seem to move in and out of fashion. One such cause that is very in mode right now is that of saving the planet. Everywhere you go you see signs telling to you "go green" or "protect the environment". While it can be frustrating that some people inevitably only care about these causes because they are cool, at least the cause is getting some attention/support from its trendiness. It is probably better to have support for the sake of coolness than to not have support at all. I found a couple of websites that explain what exactly eco-fashion is and why it has suddenly become so popular. The general idea behind it is that the clothes are made from organic materials, using minimal energy and recycling materials throughout the process. Also, they often try to engage in fair trade policies with the countries where the products are made, which is more of a human rights issue than an earth issue, but this just shows how many of these causes are interconnected. One quote that I liked from one of the websites, greenloop.com, is "if you are going to be a walking billboard, be a billboard for a cause". I think that pretty much sums up the trend of eco-fashion. The other website is an article which goes into how this affecting the world of high-fashion, with top designers beginning to utilize eco-friendly materials at Fashion Week in New York in 2005. So, from the third-world factories where fabric is created to the haute-couture designers of Fashion Week, eco-fashion is truly making a statement in popular culture right now. Here are the websites:
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Achewood

I think Achewood (www.achewood.com) is a great example of people using new media and mediums to spread good work in the digital age, and the power the internet has over pop culture. Achewood was recently listed as the #1 graphic novel of 2007 by time magazine. I think that an almost entirely black and white webcomic about a collection of stuffed animals, robots, and cats being tauted as the greatest graphic novel written in an entire year shows in itself the pop culture capital it has accrued. A viable self-sustaining entity, it is a rarity in the webcomic market in that Chris Onstad, who writes Achewood, doesn't need to work. Also a rarity in the webcomic world is the lack of the gag-a-day style in lieu of larger, character driven stories over many months or even years. And perhaps the most peculiar is Onstad's use of in-character blogs, cookbooks, merchandise, etc.- taking other pop culture objects and using them to further instill his object into popular culture. All in all, it is a very unique piece of literature.

Comics On the Web Are Not Always Webcomics

Those of you on this thing we call Internet (or, alternatively, interwebs, intarnuts, netterzone, world net webterverse, those there internets, or information superhighway) may be aware of the backlash against certain newspaper comics.

Those of you who are not clearly do not frequent the same segments of the interwebnuts superwebway as I do.

At any rate, two of the main offenders are Garfield and Marmaduke. Garfield is decried as clichéd, predictable, simplistic, repetitive, and clichéd. (You see what I did there?) Marmaduke, however, is clearly written by a person who is insane. One upon a time, this would have ended with someone making a website about how much they don't like one or the other, then host it on Geocities and stop thinking about it after about a month.

But this is the internet. And bad pop culture has nowhere to run.

First, there is Garfield Minus Garfield. It presents the very same strips seen in newspapers worldwide, with the simple modification that Garfield is removed from them. Once that is done, we're reminded that we're dealing with a comic about a man whose sole point of contact is his cat. In the words of the summary of the webpage itself: "Who would have guessed that when you remove Garfield from the Garfield comic strips, the result is an even better comic about schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and the empty desperation of modern life? Friends, meet Jon Arbuckle. Let’s laugh and learn with him on a journey deep into the tortured mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness in a quiet American suburb."

And for Marmaduke lovers, don't think you're getting off easily either. Marmaduke Explained should not be as funny as it is, since it's basically a summation of a comic, and then goes on to explain why things are not funny therein. This particular comic highlights the hilarity as the author of the blog goes insane.

Oregon Trail

After someone mentioned Oregon Trail in class the other day it made me miss the days of playing Oregon Trail in elementary school. So I went online and found a copy of it and started to play. It was everything that I remembered, my roommate got dystentry and another one drowned. This game was wildly popular when it was released and someone has gone through the trouble to create an Apple II emulator. That is a piece of software that allows you to play games from other systems. That in it self is impressive, however remember that the Apple II came out in 1987. It was a bit difficult to find a copy of Oregon Trail, especially because I have a Mac Laptop, however once I downloaded it I found that you have the ability to change the screen so it can look like the original Apple II. You can have the green screen with the scan line across as well as have full color with no scan lines. A quick search through Facebook shows hundreds of groups dedicated to this game. This just goes to show that because doesn't have great graphics (by today's standards) doesn't mean that it can't stand the test of time and be popular more than 20 years later.

Greys Anatomy

Grey's anatomy is a show on ABC that has people raving, but mostly women. Grey's anatomy is a T.V. drama based on the professional and personal lives of five surgical interns and their supervisors. To me the show is just another drama that is a spin off of something like E.R. but to some people it is life. A lot of people make sure they have plenty of time on Thursday nights to watch "Grey's Anatomy." In my dorm they even designated Thursday nights to the show by having anyone that wanted to watch it, watch it in the main lobby. Even before I came to Ohio State every girl in my high school would converse about the previous episode etc. If it was not for every girl ranting and raving about the show around me I wouldn't even know what it was, which shows how much the show is talked about. As I have said before, to some people Grey's anatomy is just a show, but to others it is a weekly ritual.

Little Debbie

Since 1960 Little Debbie snacks have made thier mark in pop culture. Beginning with the original Oatmeal Cream Pies in cartons for less than 50 cents, the company has developed a much larger variety including zebra cakes, brownies, and honey buns sold in various units- single, double, and even jumbo. These treats are not fads, in fact versus discontinuing, the prices and sizes will only increase. There are even seasonal cakes for holidays that seemingly have varied. To help with the company's revenue Little Debbie has teamed up with Team Ford racing which helps advertise the cakes and the racing (obvioiusly).



www.littledebbie.com

Clumsy or just plain stupid?

www.clumsycrooks.com

This website was the host of a funny video sent to me by a coworker. The video showed a man taking a sobriety test and keeling over on to the pavement while trying to lay down tape for his "straight line." After laughing hysterically, we all started to browse the site together at work, amusing ourselves for over an hour.

The site gives news stories from all over about real crimes (or attempted crimes) committed by extremely dumb crooks. In the spirit of youtube, there are plenty of videos to watch and laugh at for long periods of time, but these are all real life videos..making one question the people of our society. 

What I think makes this site an aspect of popular culture is the fact that so many people love to laugh at the stupidity of people on cop shows, and this website provides just that, in much larger doses. It is sometimes unbelievable to even imagine that people would do some of these things. Enjoy!

p.s. there is an abundance of racy ads on the side of this site, so be aware of that before you log on.

Reddit?

My friend has a strict routine when he gets on the computer. Email, Facebook, Perez, Digg, AbsolutePunk (BARF), PitchforkMedia (BARF!) and Reddit, Repeat if necessary. It’s a vicious cycle which he spends hours on daily… I guess it doesn’t really stop me from being friends with him, but he did ask me not to use his name because he didn’t want people to think he is “a pompous asshole.” Well, maybe too late? When I decided to check out one of these sites in his routine, I went to Reddit.com and found that it’s just a site that posts entries for “what’s new and hot online,” so you could find anything from true and disturbing stories to funny and absurd stories. I clicked around for a few minutes, and the posts that I read were mostly just true stories that I wouldn’t have gotten anywhere else in the news because they seemed so ridiculous. Many had credible sources, though, but some of them I’m still doubting a little bit.
This is popular culture because it addresses what is popular/what stories are popular online at that given point in time. Viewers vote on what they think is popular or not and they are ranked from there, with the most popular stories displayed first. You get the latest ranking up to the minute that they are posted, so it’s pretty interesting to read some of the top stories and see what is going on.

www.Reddit.com

Socially Relevant Art

Another one of my really talented friends has inspired me to post. He goes to art school and has painted societal commentary in bright, colorful, creative ways. I think it’s brilliant and that is his passion.

What has gotten him national attention is a thing he did for fun that he sent to a group of us for Halloween. He spliced the Mary Poppins into a horror movie trailer. “Scary Mary" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T5_0AGdFic, became a youtube hit, Disney responded on a blog, it was on Best Week Ever and on Christmas Eve I open a US Today to read about the “creator”. If you Google, “Scary Mary” you will find a million sights signing the clip's and the artists praises. My hope is one day his more meaningful work is as highly praised and widely accepted.

What Would Tyler Durden Do?

I have never been shy about my love for satire. In news, entertainment, the whole nine… it’s just too funny to ignore, really. My friend kept sending me these funny posts from this site last year called, “WWTDD?” The site is based on entertainment news, but it is supposed to be written from the perspective of Tyler Durden, the leading character in the book/movie, “Fight Club”… i.e. “What Would Tyler Durden Do?” As its main premise, the creators selectively find news about celebrities and create posts with funny titles, sarcastic content and a bit of a sinister attitude. There are different categories for the posts so that you can choose which celebrity you want to read all the stories about, but it’s different from Perez because it is really taking more time to poke fun at celebrities than to glorify them.
I think this site counts as popular culture because it really illustrates our obsession with celebrities, or rather our obsession with their mistakes. When good ol’ Britney Spears went ballistic on the paparazzi last year with the umbrella and bald head, this site was one of the first to post the video and was relentless on the troubled soul we once knew as a pop star. By using Tyler Durden as a cover, the creators can use a “shield” and say what everyone might be thinking but may not necessarily be saying. While Perez blogs about celebrities because he wants to be a part of that world, this site pokes fun at them and poses a reality-check for some people that celebrities aren’t as awesome as they might think they are.
I think the site is really funny, though I don’t frequent it, but it is good for a quick laugh if you’re tired of hearing about celebrities you don’t care about in the REAL news anyway… So, you know, check it out.

http://wwtdd.com/

Slutty Schoolgirl

After being invited to a "slutty-schoolgirl"/"high school jock" party, I was struck by how mainstream the slutty-schoolgirl image has become in our society. Many party themes/costumes, television situation/plot, or fantasies revolve around this image, and many stigmas are strongly associated with this image (such as knee socks, plaid skirts, ponytails, etc). As a graduate of an all-girls catholic high school, I am no stranger to this stigma and have been asked more than once about what went on between my uniform clad classmates when we were in school, and my consistent lack of an exciting answer disappointed all who asked. No matter how many people contest this image, it continues to run rampant in our society. This stigma along with many others such as the "naughty nurse" or "sexy secretary" is based less in fact than it is in culture's desire to constantly see women as sexual beings, even when studious or professional. The formation and continuation of these images result from the popular, unyielding obsession with sex...well, that or a love of alliteration.

celebrity obsession- tmz.com & perezhilton.com

Celebrities have always had a huge spotlight on them but the quickness with which news of celebrity scandals move has increased with the advent of the internet and websites like tmz.com and perezhilton.com. Perez Hilton, for example, makes his entire career out of discussing the lives of celebrities on his blog. The blog is updated constantly so people can have the most up-to-the-minute coverage of every detail of celebrities' lives. The fact that a celebrity can be at a club at 11:50 and a picture of them at the club can appear on the internet by 11:51 through the use of cellphone cameras and wireless internet, means that the average person has constant access to the world of the rich and famous. In a way, I think this also makes people feel like they are above celebrities somehow, because they feel omnipotent. Also, as evidenced with the popularity of reality TV, voyeurism sells and celebrity voyeurism sells even better. Also, while celebrities' careers usually depend on the fact that people want to know about them, this has come back to bite some celebrities, like Britney Spears and Lindsey Lohan. These two are constantly being stalked by paparazzi and I can see how that would make you crazy, but at the same time, as a famous figure, you have to take the good fame with the bad fame. Personally, I am getting tired of hearing about these two and many of the other 'celebutantes', but at the same time, I was shocked when I heard that Britney Spears' little sister was pregnant- even though teens get pregnant every day. People feel like they know celebrities personally, so they feel like they are allowed to make judgments on them...but very few people have even met many of the celebrities that they are so quick to criticize. I don't really see any end coming to this celebrity obsession, because as access to their lives becomes easier and easier, people want to know more and more. Here are the websites:

1. www.tmz.com
2. www.perezhilton.com

Speaking of Edutainment...

I ran across this in Wired magazine's blog. It's a listing of new games from the Independent Games Festival - both Fez and Crayon Physics Deluxe seem to either be educational (in a roundabout way) or have educational potential. Perhaps if kids were playing these, they would do better on spatial relations portions of standardized tests....
http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/news/2008/02/indie_games_2008#

Crayon Physics Deluxe also seems like a particularly wily solution to a (possible) lack of graphics design skill...

Oops! I'm in Rehab Again.

As I'm sure that everyone has heard Britney Spears has definitely hit rock bottom. Britney went from being on top of the world to having nothing at all. Britney has been a star since the age of 16, and that's not counting her early days on the Mickey Mouse Club. Having started in Hollywood at such a young age, Britney has never really had a normal life. She has been pushed since she was a young girl and was never given a chance to grow up. Britney didn't have the normal life that most American children grow up to and this has severely stunted her. This has become apparent in the most recent decisions that she has made with her life. Britney, having many personal problems, took a razor to herself and shaved her head bald. This was the first major step that Britney took in a long spiral downward. Other strange things that Britney has done include going out partying and abandoning her children all nights of the week. This hit an all time point of strangeness when Britney was photographed wearing no underwear. Britney's condition has gotten so bad that she has been in and out of rehab and her children have been taken away from her and full time custody has been awarded to her no good ex-husband Kevin Federline. Unfortunately Britney has lost everything that she has, including her sanity. I think that even though it seems that stars have everything, they are really missing out on life. They can not do the simple things like going to the grocery or going out to see a movie. This is their true downfall and as apparent in Britney, growing up with a normal, boring life, may actually be the best thing that could happen to you.

Its Always Sunny In Philadelphia and television community

http://www.buddytv.com/tvshow/page/its-always-sunny-in-philadelphia

It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia is a show on FX with Mac, Charlie, Dennis and Dee(brother and sister), and their father Frank who is played by Danny Devito. It deals with common controversial subjects in the most politically incorrect way and creates a hiarious show to watch. It is extreme and pushes just about every boundary possible. The characters are selfish and immature and so utterly clueless but at the same time bringing up matters of pop culture through the acts of their own stupidity. The link I included was a community of fans who contribute to a site with episode informaton, blogs, pictures, articles, and so on. I am requesting a reply to anyone who reads this blog hoping for some additional insight. I would like to focus on the community of another television show and why these fansites are not in the same realm as the communities of war craft and everquest. Why is it not as cool to be apart of a television show you click with simialr to a video game. I am focusing on this and the community of television shows for my final project and would love some different opinions from people who all have different interests and hobbies. Thank you.

The Hype On Tanning

Over the years it is an increasing trend to be tan year-round. We see more and more tanning salons opening up every year, but at the same time see more cases of skin cancers are showing up too. To a lot of people and even to me, I will admit, tanning can be relaxing and make people feel better about themselves. Some people tan before going on vacations, others tan before weddings, or dances, whether it’s to relax, look and feel better, or to prepare for an event, it’s still causing early aging in our skin and skin cancer. There is even a television show out on E! Network called Sunset Tan which is based around a tanning salon and the drama that surrounds it, but nonetheless based off of tanning and they whole hype around it, it has even had two season of the show. I actually used to work at a tanning salon and was surprised to see how much money and time people were willing to spend on being tan, there are some that would come in almost of everyday of the week even in the summer to get this tan and would do this year-round. In magazines and on television they portray everyone being tan too, some celebrities we see embrace the pale and natural color of their skin, but it seems as though a lot are somewhat tan. For more information about the Sunset Tan show you can go to http://www.eonline.com/on/shows/sunsettan/index.jsp?sid=nav-shows or there is even an article that I came across from July of 1988 by the New York Times entitled For Sun Lovers, Tan Is Worth the Risk http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=940DE6DA133BF937A15754C0A96E948260.

LOL Cats

Okay, I hate cats. I mean, I really hate them. I have five dogs… they say that you’re either a dog person or a cat person, so I guess that makes me a dog person. On top of that, if a cat has even brushed up against someone’s coat and I happen to stand next to them, I will instantly break out into a rash and start wheezing like someone who has been smoking for 40 years. I hate them, and yet sometimes when I see the pictures people put up from LOL Cats, I find some of them pretty cute.
LOL Cats, for those of you who haven’t been faced with it yet, is a site that is dedicated to pictures people can post of their cats after adding “funny” text to the photos, depending on what the cat is doing in the picture. They are shor phrases that are full of grammatical errors and they are supposed to act as what the cat may be thinking… and they’re just goofy, mostly. Possibly the most famous LOL Cats was the “I can has cheezburger” photo, which filled office spaces sometime last year and supposedly got the whole trend started. The site has a voting system so that you can vote for the “cutest” or “funniest” distorted cat photo, then allows viewers to login and write comments… just in case you find one that really touches your soul.
There are several sites that use the LOL Cat theme and each is a bit different, but all revolve around relatively the same idea: cat pictures with funny captions are cute. I’m not really sure what it is that has brought people to this, but I guess there is something for everyone out there. It is popular culture because it was just like a fad after the “I can has cheezburger” photo came up and the sites began, so people (maybe people with extended amounts of free time, but still people) created a little community or culture for this trend that amused them. Even with my disgust for cats, I still found my bored and freshman self looking at the site a few times last school year, so I feel like it was significant enough in terms of popular culture because the posts even caused ME to crack a smile once or twice… well, I still hate cats.

http://lolcats.com/
http://icanhascheezburger.com/

The Moment of Truth

The Moment of Truth: the only gameshow where if you lose, you leave with less than you arrived with.
The gameshow appears on FOX, contestants on a previous occasion are asked I think 50 questions hooked up to a polygraph. When they appear on the show 21 questions are asked and as the stakes are raised the questions get more difficult. If at anytime the polygraph detects a lie the game is over and you leave with nothing. The show is difficult to watch as people share their deepest secrets, socially undesirable beliefs, and damaging behaviors for a chance at half a million dollars.
Last night's episode featured a woman who truthfully answered 'yes' to the questions "Do you believe you were in love with an exboyfriend on your wedding day?" and "Do you think your exboyfriend is the one you should be married to?" and "Since you've been married have you had sexual relations with anyone other than your husband". These questions got her to the $100,000 mark. After she answered these devastating questions and the lie detector determined these answers "TRUE" the audience clapped. Her parents looked ashamed, her husband looked depressed, and the audience clapped. She ultimately left with nothing after answering yes to "Do you think you are a good person" and it was determined to be FALSE.
This show is difficult to watch and the host makes a point to say how uncomfortable he is and wishes the contestant would stop. However, the audience never seems uncomfortable clapping when a contestant answers a question truthfully no matter what the content. While entertaining, this show is basically ruining lives and sometimes for no money at all. Most contestants from Deal or No Deal leave with more money and only play a game of chance. I dont think the stakes are high enough to tell the nation, your employer and any future employers, and your family all the things you should probably keep to yourself. I can't understand why people would go on this show! Afterwards, the audience can be entertained by another person willing to ruin their life on television, but meanwhile past contestants face horrible embarassment, accusations of racial prejudice, trouble at work, and divorce among other things.

Vera Bradley

When I was in High School it was popular to have Vera Bradley bags to carry from class to class. I have a few Vera Bradley bags but I am not obsessed with them at all. When I got to school I noticed a huge amount of Vera bags being carried around. It would be uncommon if there was not a girl in class with a Vera bag. I went home and almost bought a Vera bag simply for the fact that everyone has one. I feel like once something popular gets started, it catches like wildfire and everyone has to have it.

The “Reality” on Dating Shows

There has been an ongoing craze on the whole reality television dating show thing. We have seen so many of these shows, with most of the relationships not working out, from major networks with shows like The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, to VH1 that has shows such as The Flavor of Love, Rock of Love, and I Love New York, then we can’t forget about some of MTV’s contributions of Tila Tequila and That’s Amore. I think these shows are very unrealistic, but at times entertaining, while still disturbing, especially in the case of the ones from MTV and VH1, where there are pretty extreme and ridiculous contests or games for the contestants to compete for a date in. I’d say it is especially strange since a lot of these shows are back for more seasons like Flavor Flav is on his third season on of Flavor of Love. Then not only was I Love New York on for two seasons, but New York, who was looking for love in all these male contestants, was previously on the show Flavor of Love. I really don’t think these type of shows will stop being aired for a while, because there are always people who will watch them strictly to be entertained and then again who will want to go on the show solely to be on television. To see some of these shows or for more information go to www.vh1.com or www.mtv.com

America's Next Top "Model"

This television show has become increasingly popular in America. This is one show that has produced over 9 cycles of a panelist eliminating participants every week in search of finding the Next Top Model. The definition of a model has actually fluxuated througout the series. Usually when one thinks of the term 'model', it is some type of admirative figure whether it be a person or an art project. Now when the term is mentioned, it is immediately associated with a tall very thin woman wearing the best and most expensive items. Although the show itself tries to break that stereotype by actually placing expectations on them to be articulate, poise, and full of personality, those who have not caught a glimpse of the many cycles may assume that these 'models' are just faces of what society finds beautiful.information can be found atwww.vh1.comandwww.mtv.com

North Face

As I walk around the Ohio State University all I see are people with north face jackets and sweaters on. North Face is a brand of clothing that came about in 1966 by two hiking enthusiasts who wanted to sell things such as outerwear and skiwear, with the addition of tents, sleeping bags, etc. The brand has now expanded and sells items such as sporting clothes. I first heard of the product my junior year of high school when a friend purchased their jacket. I asked him what was so great about it, seeing as the price was so expensive, and he said it was very warm. Now two years later everyone I talk to either has a North Face Jacket or some sort of product by them, especially since it is winter. All my friends asked for them over Christmas and they are all I see as I walk through the oval. It caught my attention over the fall because I saw about 80% of females walking to class with them on and thought "Why does everyone have a North Face coat, etc." I tried my room mates jacket on recently just to see how warm they actually were and now I can see what the craze is about. I do not want to pay excessive amounts of money for one, but I can now see why they are so popular.

Kenny Vs Spenny

Kenny vs Spenny is a Canadian comedy reality tv show. Each episode is a competition between best friends Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice. Spenny is neurotic and paranoid with values who always tries to play fair and by the rules. Kenny is narcasisstic, hilarious and will win by any means necessary, he cheats in almost every competition. The loser must perform a humiliation, chosen by and for the entertainment of the winner. The show is hilarious and edgy. Many of the competitions are extremely obscene and I can't imagine a lot of it airing on American television. Here is a full epsiode list http://www.tv.com/kenny-vs.-spenny/show/21583/episode.html . It is very popular in Canada and other versions of the show exist internationally.
Recently, various episodes from all four of the show's seasons were featured on Comedy Central. The show's fourth season was executively produced by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the creators of South Park. With the creators of South Park supporting the show, I think it is going to get popular in America. That is if Spenny can handle anymore abuse!

Clip from Who Can Commit the Most Crime


Clip from Who Can Wear a Dead Octopus on their Head the Longest? Kenny cheats by secretly dosing Spenny with lsd.

Snoops go to Snopes

You know those pesky emails warning of credit card scams or viruses on your computer? Ever wonder how true any of it is? Or those rumors about Disney movies with sexual images in them? If you've ever wondered how true (or not true) anything is, chances are snopes.com has the answer. The website is geared for those leery of what they've heard and who are searching for the truth. This website has it all. While it can be used for useful purposes such as checking whether or not that new virus you heard about really will wipe out your hard drive, it also has vast amounts of useful (and even more useless) information. Did you know that the image of a naked woman can actually be seen in Disney's The Rescuers? Or that Idaho legislature actually passed a resolution praising the creators of Napoleon Dynamite? All true. And all found on Snopes.com. The Website has everything from movies to urban legends. It encompasses all kinds of popular culture. In addition, some of the things that you learn are hilarious. It's a ton of fun to spend an hour or two just looking around and finding random things out. It's a great way to pass the time. Plus they're great conversation starters!

Snopes.com

Gamer Comics

Webcomics are all over the internet, if you're the kind of person inclined to search for them. Which I am, so it's just as well that I'm the one presenting this information. However, since we're on about gaming culture lately, webcomics that are part of the gaming culture might help some of us gain a perspective.

First and foremost, there is Penny Arcade. It's one of the most popular webcomics on the net, if it's not the most popular. It's not really for the layman: one of the more recent comics relies heavily on understanding the concept of Super Smash Bros. (specifically that a number of mostly Nintendo-based video game characters are selectable in a fighting game) and that, for some gamers, Pikachu is a vile choice, akin to picking Satan the Deceiver over Jesus, who is the Christ. It's worth noting that Penny Arcade features graphic violence, cursing, and blasphemy: Jesus is a recurring character.

PvP Online is also a gamer comic, but far more accessible to someone unfamiliar with gaming. It might be more appropriately called a geek comic. While Penny Arcade has the occasional comic book reference or even linguistic joke in favor of its gaming reference of the day, PvP might well go for months without even referencing video games. Penny Arcade is more of a gag-a-day strip, while PvP relies heavily on continuity. It's often called (and calls itself) a sitcom. Its humor is also far more family-friendly; characters swear, but not in the excess that Penny Arcade's Gabe and Tycho do.

Ctrl-Alt-Del is somewhat of a medium between PvP and Penny Arcade. There are the regular gaming references, but there are also regular storylines. There's continuity, but it doesn't rely on it. And of all the comics it's the most accessible for either gamer or layman: PvP's character-driven narrative is difficult for someone to just jump into, Penny Arcade's frequent reliance on the minutiae of games can be distracting for someone who's never played them.

8-Bit Theatre is a gaming comic in a different fashion: it's a retelling of the very first Final Fantasy game in comic format. A sprite comic, it uses the actual images from the game in its presentation. If tragedy is getting a papercut and comedy is falling into an open manhole to die, 8-Bit Theatre is burning down a senior citizen's center and dancing in the ashes. Literally. This is something that happens. And it's hilarious.

VG Cats is a webcomic about cats who play video games, watch anime, and enjoy running jokes. Trying to summarize something like that is a bit like trying to summarize the original Mario game. "Well, you're a plumber, and you save a bunch of mushroom men from fire-spitting turtle monsters, and you also eat mushrooms, and you jump on them sometimes. If you're lucky, you get a flower, and it gives you fire powers too, but if you're unlucky you get the giant turtle monster throwing hammers. Oh, and a magic star makes you into a flashing god for about ten seconds."

Enjoy.

Oprah

Whether you love or hate Oprah, it's impossible to deny her impact on pop culture. Her opinion can influence your next pair of shoes or your next book to read. In her famous yearly show, "Oprah's Favorite Things", she selects many products to promote and give away to her audience. This year, some items included a refrigerator, Ugg Boots, iPods, and many other expensive things. Her promotion of these items usually lead to highly boosted sales. One year Oprah featured Graeter's Ice Cream. Now, the Black Raspberry Chip Ice Cream is common in most households in America.
Oprah's influence is now reaching a new height. She is now campaigning for Barack Obama for president. I understand most Americans do not focus on politics, but I don't think that taking an opinion from a woman who promotes shoes and ice cream is a good idea. I think Oprah does a lot of great things (the school in South Africa, the many charities she works with, the promotion of women's rights), but her campaigning is crossing a line. Why can't Americans think for themselves? Do the research on some candidates and think! I enjoy Oprah's show, but I do not want to see her pushing her political ideology on her many viewers.

Check out Oprah.com for anything you've ever wanted to know about Oprah and the things she likes.

Scrubs

The popular TV show Scrubs is now in it's seventh and final season on NBC. The show is about several doctors and their hilarious struggles to deal with life in the hospital where they work. Within the past two years Scrubs has been syndicated on several channels such as TBS, Comedy Central, WGN and UPN. The show has also had six of its seasons put on DVD. It seems like at every big Halloween party you attend there will be half a dozen people each dressed as a different character from the show.

Brent Black

mp3

In the years since Napster was created about a decade ago the mp3 has gradually become the medium of choice for music listeners. In that decade we've seen the advent of mp3 players that started at a 32 megabyte capacity to a staggering 160 gigabyte capacity (the new iPod Movie). Several mp3 players also play videos so that the user can have their favorite movies at their fingertips. There are now more successful mp3 players than just the iPod. The Zune has managed to gain a foothold in the mp3 market as well.

http://www.apple.com/itunes/
http://www.zune.net/en-US/


(I can't believe no one has posted about this, but I hope it receives a lot of comments.)

Brent Black

Call of Duty 4

As we are talking about video games in class recently, I would like to talk about a game called Call of Duty 4. It is a war type game and can be played online as a multiplayer type game in which most people choose to play. People like the online play because they can play with people from across the country in a fictional war game. As I was home over Christmas break all of my friends that had a x-box 360 were playing this game. Before I heard about it I really was not that big of a gamer and didn't really care for it too much. All of my friends told me how fun it was and I ended up playing it with them, and I instantly fell in love. When I came back to Ohio State for my second quarter I realized everyone in my dorm was playing it too, not only that but I saw it a lot in magazines as well. As I also saw in commercials, the game was also awarded game of the year. It is a lot of fun and I had to purchase it since my roomate has a xbox 360. It has been taking the gaming world by storm and is a really fun game to play. I must warn people, it can be very addicting because it is so fun.

Political campaigns

I'm beginning to notice that no matter how much I try to avoid it, news about the presidential election follows me wherever I go. It's to the point now where my roommates and friends actually watch at least portions of the debates when they're on TV. I think this is fueled by everyone wanting to know who will win between Hilary Clinton and Barrack Obama. It's also become an almost nightly topic on the popular Comedy Central shows The Daily Show and Colbert Report. Whether we like it or not it seems that until the November election we're going to be subjected to hearing about the campaign.

Brent Black

I first noticed an episode of this show, about a group of twenty-somethings trying to figure out what to do with their lives, on YouTube. I thought it was interesting so I tried to look up more episodes, which led me to the "Quarterlife" website, which is an entire online community similar to MySpace, where users can friend one another and post pictures and artwork and videos for other users to see. The intriguing thing about the site is that the characters from the fictional show, also titled Quarterlife, have their own blogs on the site, which are very in depth with new posts or videos added at least several times a week, corresponding to what is happening on the show. People comment on these blogs as if the characters were real people, offering them encouragement and advice. Maybe this is common for fan sites, but I have never seen anything quite like it before. Also, I read that the show was just picked up by NBC, so it will be interesting to see if it succeeds and how the website might affect the success and vice versa. Here's the address:

www.quarterlife.com

http://www.popculturemadness.com/

Pop culture madness is actually a site that lists the latest pop culture news. Something that caught my eye was the news spot about Lindsey Lohan recreating Marilyn Monroe's famous last shoot. Marilyn was one of the greatest pop culture icons of all time. She has had tons of staying power....Lindsey Lohan on the other hand falls short! I can't imagine Lindsey even being comparable to Marilyn. I would definitely say Marilyn Monroe surpassed pop culture and is part of true art. Lindsey Lohan is just another trend.

Quarterlife

I first noticed an episode of this show, about a group of twenty-somethings trying to figure out what to do with their lives, on YouTube. I thought it was interesting so I tried to look up more episodes, which led me to the "Quarterlife" website, which is an entire online community similar to MySpace, where users can friend one another and post pictures and artwork and videos for other users to see. The intriguing thing about the site is that the characters from the fictional show, also titled Quarterlife, have their own blogs on the site, which are very in depth with new posts or videos added at least several times a week, corresponding to what is happening on the show. People comment on these blogs as if the characters were real people, offering them encouragement and advice. Maybe this is common for fan sites, but I have never seen anything quite like it before. Also, I read that the show was just picked up by NBC, so it will be interesting to see if it succeeds and how the website might affect the success and vice versa. Here's the address:

<>

Crochet Art

I’m not sure if you remember, but the first class I referenced a friend, whose talent and passion for crochet have gotten him a scholarship to pursue his master’s degree in art at UCSD. I asked him to send pictures of from his first art show out there and I was pretty impressed. His work is not your grandma’s crochet mittens. Check it out and please let me know what you think!!! (click on pics to see the larger view)

either the most racist or the most anti racist site ever...

www.blackpeopleloveus.com

this was a web site that caused quite a stir a few years ago. There were tons of letters sent to the creators of the site commenting on the hilarity or absurdity of the content. This site may offend some, it kind of offended me at first, but i guess it's just poking fun at stereotypes. and stereotypes are what fuels a lot of pop culture so take a look!

The Onion

The Onion is a magazine and website that makes parodies of current and old new stories. It takes a serious story such as Hurricane Katrina and changes the facts to make the story funny. While many take offense, many more enjoy the content. The website now features video parodies of stories as well.

www.theonion.com

Despite controversy, the Onion is popular and part of our culture. The Onion.com is visited by 3.6 million every month and the company has revenues of upwards of 7 million per year. The Onion is popular culture because its stories are based on popular culture.

Digg.com

Digg.com is a website that allows people to ‘digg’ a news article if they find it interesting. The more people who ‘digg’ an article, the more prominently featured the article on digg’s homepage. This process allows the best articles to be shown to the masses because they are chosen by the masses. In my opinion this is better than traditional news sources because it is more democratic and less prone to slants.

Admittedly digging is prone to rigging – certain companies or entities unfairly ‘digg’ their own articles so that their articles are placed prominently. Despite that though, in my opinion, I think Digg.com is still better than traditional news sources in terms of democracy because for every slant in one side, there will be a slant in the other side as well.

Digg.com is very popular and is part of our popular culture. Millions of people visit it every month and according to some, it’s worth over 60 million dollars after only being in business for a couple of years. Digg.com is pop culture because its content is pop culture and is chosen by popular demand.

www.digg.com

Star Trek episodes (on the web)

After seeing Plato’s Children in class, I searched for Star Trek episodes online. I used to watch Star Trek until I realized that some of the characters and episodes were based on historical events, entities, or figures. There are definite parallels between Romulans and Romans, Bajorans and Jewish people, Federation and America, and between the Enterprise and an aircraft carrier, etc. I thought the writers could have been more original (don’t take me wrong, Star Trek was definitely original). Anyway after seeing that episode in class, I wanted to watch more and I found a great place to watch them for free.

http://tv.msn.com/tv/series/star-trek

The website, like all Microsoft products, has some kinks to work out. (It’s not version 3.1 yet!) My chief complaint is that some episodes won’t play. But regardless, it’s a free place to watch Star Trek.

Star Trek is popular because many people watch it and are devoted to it. There are a lot of Trekkies out there. Watching tv shows online is now popular as well with all the content offered on the web and the popularity of Youtube. Star Trek has always been popular culture because of its nature – it’s a television show aimed for the masses. Although it really didn’t succeed the first time around (The original Star Trek was canceled), like James Kirk, it rolled with the punches and persevered.

The Minisode Network

If you have a desire to see an episode of Who's the Boss?, but only have five minutes to spare then The Minisode Network is your solution. While the show selection may be a bit slim right now, it proves to be ideal for a small break and a good laugh. Charlie's Angels, Fantasy Island, and Starsky and Hutch are just some examples of what The Minisode Network has to offer. I just enjoyed a five minute Married With Children. You can also suggest your favorite show and you might be able to see a brief version of it someday. Either way check it out...it won't take up too much of your time.

http://www.myspace.com/minisodenetwork

www.linkedin.com

Linked in is actually a little on-line community that is more professional than your my space page or facebook. It is a really great site for graduating seniors looking for jobs. It gives you the opportunity to search for jobs and also have your profile searched by companies! Basically it is your professional network!

Jellyfish.com

Jellyfish.com is an internet game show where you are able to purchase products from various stores. The idea of this "game" is that there is a set number of products, usually one, and it starts at full price. The price decreases every second until someone either purchases the product or it hits $0. Recently this site was purchased by Microsoft. I stumbled upon this site about a year ago and use it frequently. There is something called a "guru guess" where you guess the percentage that the item will be discounted. If you win this you have the opportunity to win prizes such as apparel or cash. This site has grown and changed even since I started using it. It bridges the gap between retail stores and online sales, and it makes it fun. It makes buying fun and while you're there you can chat with everyone else watching the show. This site has become a popular culture phenomenon and continues to grow.

www.jellyfish.com

Product Red

We were talking about Product Red in class today and I work at Hallmark which is the newest member of Product Red. So here'sa couple of links if you want to check it out:


http://www.joinred.com/

http://www.hallmark.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/article%7C10001%7C10051%7C/HallmarkSite/HallmarkRED/HallmarkRED_TOP

Meebo.com

I don't know about you guys, but I know I've found myself killing time in a lab before class or just completely bored at work. Then I happened to find a site that solved my problems!

Meebo is a website for instant messaging from anywhere. You can be at home, on campus, or at work. All you have to do is login in to meebo.com absolutely free with no downloads or installs and begin chatting. It even automatically imports your buddy list. Which is great!

This website has easy navigation and lots of additional information. There are job postings for the company, blogs you can subscribe to, other products they offer such as meebo me, go meebo, meebo map, and meebo repeater.

The Art of Procrastination: Online Cartoons

I'm sure that everyone has encountered various online cartoons either through that friend who is constantly finding random forms of entertainment or just stumbling across them when procrasting. I was first introduced to Salad Fingers my freshman year and have been oddly obsessed with the cartoon ever since. It creeps me out but I eagerly await the next episode. I think that online cartoons becoming more and more popular because of their acessibilty and a good idea when looking to waste 5-10 minutes. Below I posted the link to Salad Fingers and another website to find that perfect cartoon for you to waste 5-10 minutes of your time.

http://www.fat-pie.com/salad.htm
http://www.newgrounds.com/

Shock Culture

There seems to be a new wave sweeping across the internet. This is the idea of Shock Culture, where it seems that we are trying to show people the most disgusting things that we can imagine or catch on videotape. This may have started on TV, starting with reality bloopers, moved to Jackass and now has Youtube and Youtube spreads the word on other videos or pictures across the internet. What I am referring to is reactions to certain films that I am sure others have come across. These websites are so disgusting that I will not post the address or what the name of the reaction videos are. All I am wondering is what is the deal with this new Shock Culture. I do not like it; however, it is like a train wreck, I keep on looking.

Addicting.... to say the least

Online gaming is without a doubt popular in our society. While teens are most often found gaming until the wee hours of the morning, people of older and younger ages are also falling into the madness. I've never considered myself a "gamer" but found a website that I've totally become addicted to. The website is called Addictinggames.com and it's just that...addicting. It contains games of all sorts: puzzle games, board games, sports games, action games and the list keeps going. Each week new games are posted to the site, helping to keep it fresh and new. I think it's such a popular website because ANYONE can become addicted to these games. My personal favorite is a daily jigsaw puzzle that contains a new picture each day. Every day I do the puzzle and compete with others to see who can get the best time. While it hardly constitues an online community, it certainly is fun to browse around on for hours at a time. For anyone who is bored a looking for something to do, it's really fun to check out. Take it from one "non-gamer" to another, it's easy to become addicted!!

DUMB OR DEEP

You can find the article Dumb or Deep on azcentral.com It is a good article, mentioning the Simpsons and proves to be very helpful in addition to our own class discussions. I was constantly remembering this article during th discussion but was not quite sure what I wanted to say about it so I found it easier to write on the blog. The article shows the "actual brilliance" behind the hilarious stupidity in our television shows like THe SImpsons. It says the jokes create a lighter way to force us to focus on issues in society by forcing ourselves to understand the humor. It uses "clowns" to get at larger truths about society. It is about understanding the humor and digging into the underlying context that the writer is putting in a more humerous light. The point is the writers are not trying to look immature and ignorant, they have a purpose and have succeeded as writers for a reason. It will change with society, but the main point is in the end the decisions are still forced to give us an identity in our own culture and society.

Pandora!

My roommate recently introduced me to this website and I am absolutely addicted. For those of us college students living in fear lately that Ohio State will strike a deal and give away our names for pirating music off of sites like limewire and torrentspy, there is still hope for obtaining new music without having to pay. Pandora.com is a unique site that allows every individual to obtain music to their own personal liking. Essentially, one enters their favorite artist/band, then the website seeks out similar artists for that person to listen to through free internet radio. Everyone who logs on has the opportunity to create a personalized profile, while a blogging community also exists through the website. This site is great when you want a mix of similar music but don't feel like making that mix on itunes or searching through your library of 10,000 songs to do so. Now you don't have to waste any time at all. . .just log on and enjoy!

http://pandora.com/

style.com

Style.com has everything in fashion. It features top tens best dressed of the week, videos of fashion shows, topics from magazines such as vogue, and so much more. It relates to pop culture by stressing how much what we wear actually means and represents. Half of the things found on the website's ten best dressed we would never be found wearing, but in Hollywood, and on the runway, they are the best! Check it out and see what you think. The site contains all kinds of stuff that would appeal to many!

Texas Hold 'Em

A few of the poker sites that didn't copy were www.toptexasholdem.com/, www.pokerstars.com/poker/games/texas-holdem/, and www.internettexasholdem.com/.

Texas Hold 'Em

Texas Hold 'Em has definately become very popular in the last couple of years. A couple of years ago, one could never find a game of poker on TV, but now it seems like its always on at least one channel. People that play Texas Hold 'Em have definately created a community, where it's very easy to play Hold 'Em all day every day. There's movies about Hold 'Em (Rounders), television shows (Late Night Poker and World Series of Poker), and books that instruct people on how to play the game. Online Hold 'Em has also become very popular. Online poker is probably so appealing because it allows people to make money from home and also provides endless entertainment. A few sites for online Hold 'Em are: <www.pacificpoker.com/>, >, and . Texas Hold 'Em constitutes popular culture because it has exploded in popularity over the last couple years and is popular amongst a wide variety of people.

Energy Drinks

Over the last couple years, it seems that energy drinks with ridiculous amounts of sugar have become increasingly popular. It started out with the little 8 oz. cans of Red Bull with about 27 grams of sugar and it seems like the cans have just been getting bigger and bigger with more and more sugar. I was watching the Winter X Games recently and, in the span of ten minutes, saw several athletes "conveniently" tipping back some Red Bull, Monster, and Rockstar energy drinks in front of the camera. I guess these companies are trying to portray themselves as extreme and market their product to people who live on the edge. If energy drinks continue to come in bigger cans with more sugar, I'm pretty sure we might actually be drinking rawberry and shockolate at some point (refer to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrPIRYhdnqs). I just hope it never comes to that. Energy drinks seem to be growing in popularity with young people who are either don't like coffee or just want to look cool and spend $2 on a drink. http://www.screamingenergy.com/ shows many different energy drinks and reviews. If one were to just look at the pictures of the energy drinks, it would be pretty easy to see the companies are trying to target young people and have an extreme edge.

Everything You Could Possibly Want...and MORE!

I thought this site was interesting because it literally has the most ridiculous things for sale. The scary part being that I'm sure they do a great business selling latex squrriels, bacon mints, and orange lollipops that look like Abe Lincoln. So go browse and purchase wisely!

http://www.mcphee.com/

Is Sci-Fi the Last Literary Genre?

According to Wired magazine, it's possible:

http://www.wired.com/techbiz/people/magazine/16-02/st_thompson

Celebrity Obsession

Lately I have been hearing more and more people talk about Perez Hilton's web-site. I had never looked at it before so I decided that I should probably check it out. What I found was, to me, sort of sad. On the page are articles about celebrities with their pictures included. Although I will admit I love to read the dirt on celebs, I feel that this page takes it too far. The pictures of the celebs have been written on with words such as "Pills," "Flying High," and "I love Swag." I can see how some people would find this funny, but I actually find it pretty sad. I don't mind that Perez is writing articles about these celebrities, because honestly, who doesn't like to read about their latest messups? But I think actually calling these celebrities names and making fun of them goes a bit too far. I know that celebrities put themselves in these situations by being famous, but is it really fair to make fun of all of their life decisions? Poor Britney Spears. The paparazzi and chasers have basically driven her to maddness, and I think that web-sites and articles like Perez Hilton are definitely behind it. I can't blame people for wanting to read the behind the scenes stories on these celebrities, but sometimes I feel like people care more about the mistakes of the news than the mistakes our government makes. Just a thought.

celebrity rehab

Reality TV became popular in the last decade or so. The first reality TV show I remember watching was The Real World. That was a semi-harmless show about strangers living together in a foreign city. Today, we have shows like Celebrity Rehab on VH1. I am not sure why it has become so popular, but watching people make complete fools of themselves on TV seems to be a popular thing among people. I'm sure others would argue that there is a lesson to be learned in a show like this, but I disagree. I actually think it is ridiculous for people to watch "celebrities" get over their addictions on TV. Shows like Laguna Beach and the Real Housewives of Orange County could give people unrealistic expectations on life. Hopefully the people watching know better than to believe what they see on TV. I think these shows are popular because it gives a normal person insight into the prestigious lives of the rich and famous.
However, I think there is some good reality TV. Most shows on the Food Network and Top Chef show people with genuine talent. People on shows like Top Chef have experienced life in that profession and showcase their talents on TV. Extreme Home Makeover also seems to be popular. Although it is usually quite sappy, houses are made for a family and not really for fame.
Below is a link to the Celebrity Rehab page at VH1 and Bravo's Top Chef.
http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/celebrity_rehab_with_dr_drew/series.jhtml?source=globalnav
http://www.bravotv.com/blog/thedish/2008/01/top_chef_returns.php

Hello Kitty Hell

Hello Kitty has an endless supply of merch. Here's a new freaky item Hello Kitty contact lenses http://www.kittyhell.com/2007/12/26/hello-kitty-contacts/

Kittyhell.com features a lot of weird Hello Kitty items. The front page shows a pink Hello Kitty rifle, among other funny items.

SuperHeroHype.com

SuperHeroHype.com

Superhero Hype, or commonly referred to as "SHH" by fans, is a website that has branched off of ComingSoon.net that devotes itself to news on superhero films.

Not only does SHH provide a website for news but it also has a message boards for fans of various superheroes to discuss their favorite protagonists. Their forums contain various sub-boards for specific heroes like Batman, Superman, and Spiderman, but also other franchises like Transformers.

SHH derives most of its popularity because it serves as a hub for all superhero and comic book fans to unite and discuss their respective heroes. For example, when the trailer for the new Batman film, The Dark Knight, was released, the forums almost crashed due to the volume of people browsing and posting.

Since both comic books/superheroes and film make up the entertainment facet of pop culture, SHH is a fine example of where pop culture is on display. Whenever new trailers, production stills, posters, or other news is released about the major superhero franchises, SuperHeroHype is the place to be to watch fans discuss it.

North Face Site

For those of you that want to see what The North Face has to offer (I'm sure you all already have), you can go to
http://thenorthface.com/

North Face and College Students

Before I came to college, I had only occasionally seen young people, or anyone for that matter, wear "The North Face" brand clothes. For those of you who don't know, The North Face makes clothing and supplies for hiking, camping, and extreme climates. Lately, I have noticed that The North Face brand clothes have spiked in popularity among college students. The fleece jackets seem to be the most popular item that The North Face offers, but anything North Face seems good enough for most.

I think The North Face is popular because they offer comfortable clothes that can be worn in almost any situation. Whether your trying to look classy and go out to a nice restaurant or just want to be comfortable when you study at the library, North Face is very appropriate and effective in either situation. The thing that caught my attention regarding The North Face is how popular it is with college students. Although I'm sure North Face is popular among other groups of people, I think the crowd that has taken it in the most is college students. Considering fleece jackets exactly like North Face have been around for who knows how long, I just find it weird that, what seems like, 90% of college students choose to buy a black North Face jacket.

This brand of clothing seems to constitute popular culture because it seems to be the most widely accepted type of outerwear among college students. It also seems to make a statement that the wearer is "classy, but comfortable" at the same time; I'm not too sure about that, but that's just the vibe that I get.

gamertagpics.com

I got a subscription to Xbox Live recently, I have never been part of a gaming community prior to this. I didn't realize how much of a community it really is. I think for many it is more statisfying than myspace or facebook because you can interact via headset and webcam easily on Xbox. A friend of mine told me she has XBLBFs (xbox live best friends) and was even asked to be someones XBL girlfriend.

Simply by being a girl, with a gamertag that has my name in it, I get countless messages from people I have never met or played with. One of the messages I got was from someone suggesting I join gamertagpics.com.

Gamertagpics.com is a site where you can join with your xbox live gamertag. I believe you have to post a picture of yourself in order to be a member of the site. Here, members and guests can search the gamertag of someone they played games online with. Just like any other online community, you can comment on people's message boards and enter all sorts of information about yourself. On your profile you can choose to answer xbox live specific questions, for example:

How did you come up with your Gamertag?
How many hours a day do you play Video Games?
Have you met anyone off of Xbox Live? Would You? If yes, then Who, how'd it go?

You can also let people know your favorite game, your online status, and when was the last time you were "last seen" on xbox.

It is an extension of an already massive online community.

It's A WoW World

For those of you who don't know, WoW is World of Warcraft, and online game that over 9 million people from all over the world subscribe to. This was a well know game among "nerds" for quite some time now, but with the recent South Park episode, and commercials featuring Mr. T and William Shatner, the WoW epidemic is bigger than ever. Being an avid player myself, I can tell you the game is addicting and really sort of a lifestyle. You speak a different language (bop=bind on equip, dps=damage per second, and, of course, LEROY JENKINS!) and places like Undercity and Hellfire Penninsula become a second home. You become a guild member, which you accept as your second family, and learn to rely on and support them. As sad as this may sound, I know more than one relationship that has been started on this game, and have met some very good friends on there. Though some people say sitting on the computer all day will create an isolated, non-productive member of society, we learn leadership skills, communication techniques, and how to multi-task (try fighting a raid boss, arguing with a guild leader, and keeping your minion alive all at the same time!). But in all seriousness, this game is a pop culture phenomenon in so many ways, it practicatically creates its own universe, and there is something to be said for that.