#NationalBestFriendDay: Social Media Campaign to Recognize Best Friends (because the whole world needs to know, not just them)

Well dear readers, on this, my last blog post for my class, I must admit, I'm kinda going to miss it. It's been fun ranting and raving my thoughts on here for you to see, and I'll actually be a bit sad once it's over. However, it's not quite over yet; I do have one more....

So, this morning as I logged into Facebook, I noticed its top trend was actually a hashtag, which kind of threw me off. Facebook does use hashtags, but not nearly as much as Twitter, who invented the concept and has pretty much cornered the market on it. That's why it is slightly unusual to see one of Facebook's top trends as a hashtag event, rather than a more "newsly" (is that a word?) event, such as something political or controversial. Upon further investigation into the subject (and by that I mean clicking on the trend link to get a description) I was able to figure out why Facebook was so eagerly utilizing the hashtag on this of all days. Both Facebook and Twitter are taking part in this #NationalBestFriendDay trend, self-identifying it as a "social media campaign" which basically means they're taking the lead on this, and both promoting and expanding member usage throughout the day; even those who are once-a-weekers when it comes to Facebook are taking to their pages to show some love for their BFFs, because they're terrified of being left out of the trend (after all, it is only a one day thing)

 On Facebook...


 and Twitter.


Amazing how crazy one little trend can make us, isn't it? I logged into my Facebook at 11 am, and already hundreds of thousands of people had posted about their best friends with the hashtag. Not only that, but several of my own friends had flooded my news feed with pictures of them and their besties, along with several large paragraphs going on to explain why exactly the love them. And I guess I shouldn't make fun - I fully intend to do the same thing when I've finished this post, but it's just the concept of how quickly a trend can spead. It's like wildfire.

And to make it easier for us (in case we're unable to post paragraphs upon paragraphs about our besties) other sites are making it easier for us. In an article titled "20 Best Friend Day Quotes to Share on Social Media and Text", the iDigitalTimes literally outlines a handful of quotes you can text to your best friend, or post alongside any embarrassing pictures you might put up on social media with them from years ago. It's crazy; now if you can't think of anything to say, the internet will find a way to say it for you. And despite that some people just don't have a way with words, they all still want to take part in this, because it is a trend that will be over and gone before they know it - and god forbid they be one of the only people that didn't do it, especially when their best friend did it for them. That can definitely cause some tension, and the claws will come out...

Meowww,
  - Robyn

P.S. Here is that picture of me and my best friend, as promised, despite not having a giant paragraph next to it -- no words are needed for this guy. The best snuggle buddy ever :) Miss you Lambeau!

The 90's Kids Last Hope: Joseph Gordon-Levitt

If you're around the same age as me, you'll more than likely remember the 90's, or at least a piece of them. And as a kid during the 90's, you'll also more than likely remember the only people of the 90's who mattered to us. 

Sure, this guys's face came up a lot in the media...

.... and it wasn't just cause he was "one hecukuva President", but because of relations he had with Monica Lewinsky (one of the Top 10 Mistresses according to TIME magazine) while he was President.

But we were kids! We had no idea why the media was talking about them so much, or why the hell her blue dress was so important...

The people who were important to us were these guys!!

               

                     

WARNING. Images beyond this point may destroy your childhood. Proceed with caution.

Annnnd yet, despite such promising careers in the 90's.... here's where they are now;

             

                                                                             

That hits me, right in the childhood. So not okay. 

All of the sudden, even this guy doesn't look so bad...

.... and he lied to the entire nation about an extramarital affair.

So what hope do we still even have for our beloved 90s stars? Oh sure, some are getting treatment, and some never even got into alcohol or drugs, but sort of just, faded out, in terms of their career.

BUT, in an effort to redeem the memories of my childhood, I'd like to direct our thoughts to this guy...

One can argue his "downhill" phase was during the 90s based on that hair alone - but even then Joseph Gordon-Levitt was cracking us up on 3rd Rock From the Sun as the sarcastically lovable Tommy Solomon.

And since then? I'd say he's doing okay. He was nominated for 3 SAG awards by the time he was 18, and nominated for two Golden Globes by the time he turned 30; he portrayed the future Robin; played Abraham Lincoln's oldest son; wrote/starred in/directed his own film; founded his own production company (which won an Emmy award last year); and has had a successful relationship with a woman for two years before deciding to put a ring on it in a private ceremony in 2014. My favorite part of all of that? The absence of the words "drugs", "prison", "plastic surgery", "arrested", "alcohol" or any other words of the like that would be all too common on the wikipedia pages of the other four former child stars I mentioned. I will confess, however, that JGL did decide to drop out of school (Columbia University) to focus on his acting and directing careers. Although, I for one certainly can't tell him he made a bad decision....

And don't even get me started on his character in Treasure Planet. Animated or not, he was cuuute *swoon*

Have mercyyyy;

   - Robyn

Political Activism... Does that mean I have to be active?

So here's my biggest pondering as of late; today's society, thanks to the wonders that are smartphones, tablets, and social media, has a lack of desire by all young people to go outside (unless it's "out" to a bar or a club). We are couch potatoes now more than ever - especially with the allure of Netflix, Facebook and Candy Crush constantly calling our names... We don't even stand a chance.

So in a society where young people are more concerned with what's "trending" than with what's "news" how are we to not only keep up to date with, but even interested in, politics? We hardly give them a second thought, unless a politician does something overtly stupid; as in the recent case of Presidential candidate Rick Santorum (ironically enough a devout Catholic) and what he said to Pope Francis...

Yup.
He didn't even know that the reigning authority of his own church - the world leader of the largest Christian church on the planet - had a background in science, despite it being public knowledge.
And this is the guy who wants to run our nation....

I can't make this shit up, folks.

  
Or perhaps it crosses our news feed if a politician shows their support or detest of a celebrity who's currently trending among young people for something scandalous (such as Mike Huckabee with the Josh Duggar scandal or Lindsey Graham's supportive words for Caitlyn Jenner). But even then, do we have any idea about these political figures outside of these news stories? I myself admit that I have heard political figures either back or attack a celebrity's actions (sometimes stupid, sometimes not), and it's changed my view of that politician and whether or not I would ever vote for them -- and I did so without even knowing anything about that politician's core beliefs, but rather focused solely on what they said or did about the celebrity's scandal.

I know I can't be the only one that's done this. Nowadays. "activism" is anything but, at least for most of our generation. The only way in which I have to be active about my feelings towards a politician for how they've reacted to a scandal is simply not vote for them, or go about posting hateful or slanderous things about them on the internet - perhaps even in some extreme cases, beginning an online petition to get them removed from office (I've never gotten as extreme as either of the last two things, but I've seen it all too many times). All of these things enable us to speak our mind or fight for change from the comfort of our own couch. It shouldn't even be called activism anymore, really, when the only "active" part is our fingers getting the exercise of furiously posting their newfound disapproval for the politician in question. To this day (apart from the one time I did withdraw my support from a politician I hadn't really supported in the first place) I don't really engage in political activism, although perhaps I should. Activism is something that is meant to be done for the greater good, not simply to cause harm, or discredit someone over the internet. In fact, the above meme of Rick Santorum and my beloved Francis is the first inkling of political favoritism (or rather, de-favoritism) that I've shown in a really long time, perhaps even since that first incident I had, of refusing to vote for the man I already had no intention of voting for.

And you know the most ironic thing of all? I keep referring to him as "that politician" or "that man" because I cannot for the life of me remember who it was, or what it was they did that made me dislike them so strongly. And that's the culture that we live in today; we have become invested in a media circus -- we get our tickets to see the show, but instead of paying with money, we pay with our interest. We live in a world full of scandals where we milk each one for all that they're worth, and once we've done all we can with it - once that act of the show has ended - we move onto the next act of the show. And the next one, and the next one, and the next one...


... and the show goes on;
  - Robyn

Convergence, Part 2 - Attack of the Pack

Hello, dear readers. Some of you may recall my earlier post about convergence, and what it means in today's society. Today's post is somewhat of a sequel to that piece, but instead of defining what convergence is, this time I've actually got an example of it, and a current one at that. 

Now, what brought this to mind for me were all the ads playing for Pitch Perfect 2 lately, and the fact that in some of them, I saw none other than Clay Matthews (and upon further investigation, four other Packers players and Aaron Rodgers' little brother). I recalled seeing something trending in my Facebook news feed a few months earlier about this happening (because I'm a fan of the Packers on Facebook and we all know from my last post how Facebook loves to personalize our feeds) but it was quickly forgotten amidst all the other not-even-remotely-important-but-still-completely-engrossing occurrences in my Facebook world.

Now that my mind has returned to the subject, I once again find myself connecting it to convergence. Ever since I've learned about it, I honestly believe my mind has begun looking for it absolutely everywhere. However, in the case of the Packers meeting the Barden Bellas, it's legitimate. The concept of two different types of media -- one a film, the other a televised sport -- coming together to form something that otherwise wouldn't have come about had they not meshed; or rather, had they not {wait for ittt} converged! See, the concept is everywhere! Check it out for yourself in a piece of the "Pitch Perfect Packers" example:

Now, let's be honest -- would this have ever even been considered as an idea twenty years ago? How about ten? The media is constantly changing, always trying to up its game, despite the fact that they pretty much rule over everything; media no longer has any real competition in terms of how people spend their time. And it seems that it'll be that way for awhile, especially if media keeps allowing people to come up with ideas like this.

And fun fact: Did you know the combination of the film and the team started, of all places, on Twitter? Yup. By way of a series of exchanges between the producers and the team an agreement was reached, and what we are left with is the finished product. The movie thus far has gotten mixed reviews, but more have praised the movie than condemned it. And let's not forget -- it debuted #1 at the box office on opening weekend, beating the second place film by almost $30,000,000... that's a lottt of zeros folks. Clearly, convergence pays, as it keeps growing more and more popular.

Needless to say, I for one am beyond excited to see the movie, regardless of the mixed reviews. I thoroughly enjoyed the first one, and not only does this one have most of the original cast, but it now has the Green Bay FREAKIN Packers too. You know who's going into that movie with a bucket of popcorn bigger than her head and a drink the size of a big gulp?

Singing (and signing) off for now,

 - Robyn

P.S. Another fun fact: football season's only 90 days away :)

The Trend of Trending

Nowadays the most important part of social media is making sure you're a part of social media. Adults, young adults in particular, are obsessed with keeping up with the latest news and trends that circulate throughout social media. If it's new and everyone else is doing it, you can bet your ass they will be too.

There are two common types of trends nowadays:

- Long term, or more permanent

AND

- Short term, or more temporary

Long term social media are things like websites and apps for your smartphone or tablet, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and others of the like -- essentially they're those things that take up the biggest part of our time whenever we're on our phones.

These four (and many others) are the outlets through which we are able to view and take part in the shorter term trends, which often have a very short life expectancy, as opposed to the longer term trends.

These are things like the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge;

Or the Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge (which, if you didn't know, is a horrible idea - basically turns you into a character from Monsters Inc);

Or the debate over the color of one simple dress (and for the record, neuroscientists discovered the answer: it's blue).

  

The interesting thing is that the longer term trends seem to be focused more on us - on Facebook and Twitter it's all about updating our status, and Instagram and Snapchat are about sharing pictures of what we are doing.



The shorter term trends, however, seem to be about others, and how we can take part in them; the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, the Kylie JennerLip Challenge, and the "is it blue or is it gold?" debate over the dress -- all are trends that stemmed from other people, that we then ingrained ourselves into. And, once we have exhausted the trend and it no longer benefits or focuses on us, we move on to the next one just as quickly as we'd jumped onto the bandwagon with the previous ones.

No wonder the older generation is always wagging their fingers at us...

Tsk tsk tsk...

  - Robyn