Fashion Magazines

Fashion magazines often portray a picture perfect scenario. For some reason they attempt to make reader’s feel as though the lives of the girls in the spread are flawless. Filled with photos of glistening teeth, long beautiful hair and precisely toned bodies, these magazines can not possibly be good for girls who don’t exactly think the best of themselves. Every magazine tries to give off the impression that they care for girls, their lives and their confidence. Unfortunately (despite the exception of a few), these companies really just do whatever they can to make money. The stories these magazines tell are far from interesting, and are never completely true. They show a day in life of a Hollywood starlet, and they are either portrayed as good or bad. In between does not exist. Almost all of the people appearing in the magazine are stereotypical attractive females. They do not need talent, just pretty shoes. Celebrities are constantly fighting for power, and mainstream magazines just add fuel to this fire. Nothing of an educational value is being brought to the reader’s attention. In fact, some magazines are owned by the same people (eg. Teen Vogue and Seventeen), so all of the information being presented has already been regurgitated from the other one. We see magazines everywhere we go. Its rare to not be surrounded by racks of them in a convenient or grocery store. Editors and publishers are profiting greatly from marketing nothing! I’ll admit, I am a fan of Seventeen (I subscribe monthly). But that is because this is one of the few magazines that actually provides the reader with something other than garbage. The interviews of celebrities usually ask questions I would actually be interested in, and the authour provides more than just fashion tips. Although most of the magazine is filled with tips on “how to look pretty!”, there are other articles like How to save money in College or How to break up with your boyfriend. I think that Seventeen is the only magazine out there that is actually by girls and for girls, and all the others should be put to shame….except maybe Nylon :)

Burger King vs McDonald's

While deciding what to do for this media blog, I remembered a commercial I saw on television last night about McDonald’s and their new eggs. I tried to search it on youtube and was unable to find it:(. Fortunately, I came across a different commercial that suits my purpose much more. This commercial consists of the mascot from Burger King breaking into McDonald’s headquarters and stealing their recipe. Following this the narrator says “It’s not original, but it’s super affordable”. How does Burger King get away with this!? They fully admit to stealing another company’s recipe, implying that they are not able to come up with their own. I just don’t understand how they think this makes them look good...why would it make consumers want to go to Burger King? The idea that comes to my mind is that if McDonald’s made the original, then theirs must be better! The only way Burger King makes themselves look good in this commercial is by saying that their ripped off product is cheaper than the other guys! But this is still just a cheap shot and was a very bad marketing plan. McDonald’s and Burger King have been competing for a number of years so I don’t see why Burger King would release this... to make themselves look bad? I just don’t understand... This piece of media is distributed to the public through the power of television and the internet, but I think if anything McDonald’s would profit more than Burger King.