SHORTY'S BLOG

(more…)

It’s the time once again that we are bombarded with political ads on our TV.

I am appalled at the way the politicians use their advertising time to try and win our vote. Rather than use the time to win over our hearts, they use the time to slander their opponents.

In a 30 second paid commercial, over half of the time is spent on trashing the candidate they are running against.  Like children on a playground each party points the finger insulting the other.

What happened to creative advertising?  When did advertising campaign ideas become so uninspiring?

Its scares me on how many bland people are out there creating these campaign ideas and the thought of the money being paid for such campaigns is disgusting.

The job of a good advertising campaign is to touch the consumer/voter.

In a 60 second ad, you have the ability to speak to the masses, inspiring them, informing them, or challenging them to think about how their life can be enhanced or changed.

There was a time when political advertising campaigns were creative and moved something in the voter.

It doesn’t matter what your political views are, take a moment to watch this 1984 political ad for Ronald Regan, you will witness a brilliant TV commercial. It takes you somewhere, makes you feel something and challenges you to think. That is what a good advertising campaign does!

After Ronald Regan himself saw this ad, a tear came to his eye and he said, “If only I were that good”.  Now that is advertising!

Ronald Regan TV ad in 1984

Winning?? I sat for 30 minutes anxiously awaiting Charlie Sheen’s solo debut on the Internet. Charlie took to the Internet for his first uncensored online Interview without the press.

My husband and I along with 125,000 others logged on to watch Charlie’s broadcast. A flood of Tweets invaded the actors Twitter account, that was graciously linked to his Ustream page bringing entertainment as we waited.  If you ever wondered why a celebrity never Tweeted you back, you would understand after witnessing the high volume and speed of Tweets that pour in!

At 9:00pm CST Charlie took to the Internet in a candid online broadcast to his fans called Sheen’s Korner.

Charlie Sheen broadcasted the live Ustream from an office desk surrounded by a team that consisted of his live in girlfriend he calls the Goddess, white Rapper Dirt Nasty, and his partner on the show Rick.

He thanked his sponsors, that’s right sponsors! He also displayed his new tattoo, across his inside wrist that read “winning”.  He then began to get everyone chanting, “winning…winning” asking people across the web to shout it out their windows. This got me excited but my excitement was replaced with boredom.

He began the show by reading stories about people “winning” across the country.

He spoke about his Charlie Sheen slogans asking people to tweet their favorites.

While entertaining to see an A list actor freely speaking in front of a camera, my hopes of Charlie Sheen becoming the first actor turned Internet superstar quickly faded. Charlie was surrounded by a team that appeared do be there for moral support more than adding quality to the show.

I was expecting to see an uncensored look into Charlie’s world. Instead I watched a team fumble their way through a meaningless show as they disappointed audiences.

While it was fascinating to watch a successful actor attempt a show outside of his comfort zone. Charlie Sheen had the opportunity to use the Internet as a platform to speak to thousands, Unfortunately he failed to hit the mark. LOSING? “PLAN BETTER!”

American Idol 2011 is underway on FOX. New judges already bring new controversy.  Auditions for tonight will take place in Austin TX and rumor is producers plan to issue an apology to the viewers before the episode begins.

The apology will address new judge Steven Tyler’s inappropriate language and behavior. Producers received complaints from viewers who claimed that Steven Tyler was using language and behavior that was inappropriate for the American Idol audience.

I went into this season of American Idol with the thought that this was probably Idol’s last year.  In my opinion the show was about to “jump the shark,” a term in television used to denote the point in a program where the show undergoes absurd changes. These changes are often the result of efforts to revive interest in a show.

I thought that was where Idol was headed but I have to admit I’ve been impressed with the new judges. They seem genuine, and appeared to receive more respect from the contestants.

I hope producers will allow to Steven Tyler to bring his rockstar charisma to the table even if he has to watch his mouth a little, but in fairness watching his mouth is a BIG job!

American Idol airs tonight on FOX 8/7c

MTV’s Jersey Shore… my guilty pleasure! Watching these 20 somethings run wild will not only shock, amuse and entertain you but it also helps us remember a little piece of our youth as we live vicariously through these crazy kids!

The entire Jersey Shore cast will shoot Season 4 in Italy! One source connected with the show says they’ve already lined up some of Vinny’s Italian relatives to host the “Jersey” crew for an authentic Italian dinner.

The cast is excited to travel and expand their image world wide, while others are not so happy. Joseph Del Raso, president of the National Italian American Foundation, said, ”We are disappointed that this irresponsible programming will be brought to Italy because it affects the image of all Americans, not only Italian-Americans,” Del Raso told FOX News.    

The fact that they are not as well known in Italy will be interesting on a social level.  It’s easy for them to get attention here in the states when they are out in the nightlife, but how will their over the top image be received by the locals?

Will the cast be able to fit in? Will they like Italian club music, how will Jersey style hold up against European fashion?  Their loud Jersey persona may or may not be tolerated! In Italy a mention of a “fist pump” may get you punched in the face.  Good for the cast, DTF can apply in any part of the world.  “Chow and arrivederci!”

UPDATE:  Jwoww and Snookie are getting their own spin off show.  The show will follow the two as they purchase property, and begin their life post Jersey Shore.

It was a heavy hitting week for television interviews.  First Kathrine Jackson appeared on Oprah along with Michael Jackson’s three children.

Katherine was very honest during the interview admitting Michael had an addiction to painkillers and plastic surgery. She also exposed to Oprah that Michael’s father Joe did in fact use harsh physical punishment on him. The biggest buzz has been the interviews with former President George W Bush.

President Bush was all over the TV this week talking about his new book Decision Point. The book, written by Bush came out in stores this week. The book is filled with explanations of his actions throughout his presidency.  While Bush admits to some wrongs he stands firm on many of the decisions made at least those that were within his control.        

In the Book Bush addresses controversial topics during his time in office including the war in Iraq, waterboarding, 911, Hurricane Katrina and the economy.

President Bush intrigued me with many of his answers. During the interviews, I was surprised to learn that our presidents have far less control on matters than we are led to believe.  They must respect the laws and follow rules and procedures. Many times the president’s vision on what needs to be done is systematically left in the hands of the functionaries. Simply put, what the president wants he doesn’t always get.

We all rush out to vote for a candidate that we feel best represents our views, when in reality our destinies are left in the hands of behind the scene phantoms we have no control over.  This just drives home the point we don’t truly exist in a democracy, rather our system epitomizes the weakness of a democratic republic.

President Bush also made many references to his disgust with Kanye West for his comments during a charity broadcast for the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Kanye West was also on the Today show where he apologized for his actions.

To watch the full interview, click here Matt Lauer interview with Bush to watch the video of Bush and Kanye on the Today show click here Bush/Kanye on the Today show

Thoughts?

It’s the time once again that we are bombarded with political ads on our TV.

I am appalled at the way the politicians use their advertising time to try and win our vote. Rather than use the time to win over our hearts, they use the time to slander their opponents.

In a 30 second paid commercial, over half of the time is spent on trashing the candidate they are running against.  Like children on a playground each party points the finger insulting the other.

What happened to creative advertising?  When did advertising campaign ideas become so uninspiring?

It scares me on how many bland people are out there creating these campaign ideas and the thought of the money being paid for such campaigns is disgusting.

The job of a good advertising campaign is to touch the consumer/voter.

In a 60 second ad, you have the ability to speak to the masses, inspiring them, informing them, or challenging them to think about how their life can be enhanced or changed.

There was a time when political advertising campaigns were creative and moved something in the voter.

It doesn’t matter what your political views are, take a moment to watch this 1984 political ad for Ronald Regan, you will witness a brilliant TV commercial. It takes you somewhere, makes you feel something and challenges you to think. That is what a good advertising campaign does!

After Ronald Regan himself saw this ad, a tear came to his eye and he said, “If only I were that good”.  Now that is advertising!

Ronald Regan TV ad in 1984

As a life long fan of Sesame Street, and parent of a 19 month old, I value its influence on our children.  Recently I became appalled at societies need to find fault in everything!  

Like many, Sesame Street was hit hard by the economy. They laid off workers of the popular children’s show airing only reruns in most of 2010.  Sesame Street started previewing its 41st season on the Web this week, releasing teaser clips featuring stars like Jude Law, Will I Am Collin Farrell and Run-DMC’s Rev. Run. One of the clips, however, got a lot more attention than the rest: a two-and-a-half minute video of pop star Katy Perry singing a version of her 2008 hit “Hot N Cold” with Elmo. Parents felt that Perry’s outfit wasn’t appropriate for a show geared toward children ages one to six.

I watched the video after reading a tweet from Katy Perry.  I was shocked at what people will make an issue of.  I’ve seen more promiscuous outfits on episodes of Hannah Montana. Click here to see for yourself.

I guess the lesson to be learned here is Boob starts with the letter “B” and its definition is as follows: Boob – An uptight parent with a superiority complex who is looking for attention. See for yourself CHECK OUT THE VIDEO by clicking here Katy Perry Sings With Elmo

It’s official, the American Idol judges have been announced and so have the changes for this next season.

This season the judges on American Idol will consist of Steven Tyler from the legendary rock band Areosmith, actress and pop star Jennifer Lopez, music man and judge from American Idol Randy Jackson.

Different judges mean different personalities. Steven said he would be tough on contestants, but encourage them not to get mad but to get better.  Jennifer said she is looking for someone who cannot only sing but has the “it” factor and Randy expressed his excitement in having successful experienced artists on the judging panel.

Producer Nigel Lythgoe says this season they will keep artists in their genre of music.  Country artist won’t be forced to sing R&B and vise versa.  Nigel also said the themes of the songs won’t be focused on genres but instead decades.

It sounds like the show maybe getting a bit of a facelift. Let’s hope it has what it takes.  Anything has to be better than last year!

Jimi Hendrix died in 1970 in a hotel room.  He drank too much and overdosed on sleeping pills. The world mourned the loss of his music that is until now.

Legacy Recordings has announced that it will release never before heard tracks. The title of the album is The West Coast Seattle Boy – The Jimi Hendrix Anthology, a five-disc CD/DVD box set of rare and unreleased music. The box set includes songs we never heard, demos, alternate versions of album songs and live performances.

Heavily influenced by the blues, Jimi Hendrix didn’t just simply create a new way of performing the blues, but expanded it. The guitar became the centerpiece in contemporary American music.

While Hendrix’s life and career was short-lived, the legacy he has passed down in American music, blues, and rock and roll, is inarguably rich and lives on.

Experience the album and take a listen in on history in the making. The box set drops November 16^th.