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  • New Season, New Drama

    For 7.8 million people, winter wasn’t too cold and lonely.  Their break was filled with anticipation and whispers about Juan Pablo Galavis, the new bachelor on ABC’s hit show The Bachelor.  As the first Latino to be featured on the show, his good looks and Spanish accent had women across the country swooning.  Now, almost three weeks later, Juan Pablo is still causing a stir – but for very different reasons.

    In an interview this past week, Juan Pablo gave a very controversial answer to whether he thought The Bachelor should make a gay or bisexual version of the show.

    “I respect [gay people], but I don’t think it is a good example for kids to watch that,” he said.  “There’s this thing about gay people — it seems to be, I don’t know if I’m mistaken or not — I have a lot of friends like that, but they’re more pervert in a sense.”

    Bachelor Nation recoiled at Galavis’ less-than-sexy response.  Some Juan Pablo fans rushed to his defense, but members of the gay community were more outspoken.  One Facebook user accused Galavis of knowing exactly what he was saying, as “pervertido” is the Spanish word for pervert.

    Even Bachelor producers felt the need to do some public relations acrobatics.  Producers tried to shift any blame away from the show and entirely onto Galavis, saying “Juan Pablo’s comments were careless, thoughtless and insensitive, and in no way reflect the views of the network, the show’s producers or studio.”

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    Juan Pablo later apologized through Facebook. He insisted that throughout the interview, he had nothing but respect for gay people and their families.  He did not mean to use the word pervert, but misspoke because of his limited English vocabulary.  He claimed to have only meant that gay people are more affectionate and intense, which might not be viewed positively by some of the TV audience.

    Juan Pablo probably meant to use apologia, a rhetoric in communication that is used in defense for one’s actions or opinions.  However, to many members of the gay community, it was perceived as a non-apology apology – something quite the opposite.  A term that first appeared in the ’70s, a non-apology is when you apologize – but only if you have to.  Many celebrities or companies involved in a scandal will attempt to enact crisis communication by “apologizing” for offending anyone, rather than for their actions.   To the public eye, Juan Pablo’s apology had non-apologetic written all over it.  Pulling the “I-don’t-speak-English-so-good” card as one CNN reporter so delicately put it, is one such red flag.

    Was Juan Pablo sincere in his apology? Or was he just trying to cover up some ill-used “palabras”?

    – Christine Schulze

  • “How REAL Will American Idol Get This Season?”

    It’s that time of year again! All our favorite shows are returning, after a seemingly long-awaited hiatus. The longest running singing competition, American Idol, has returned for its thirteenth season. But this season, Idol has been forced to change things up. The show is taking on a fresh, new approach to increase the amount of viewers by revamping their marketing schemes.

    In previous seasons, the show directed promotions towards the judges, featured cities, and upcoming drama. The initial aspirations of the show to seek out raw talent has slipped within the past seasons and in return, turned away viewers. At the shows peak, American Idol attracted 30.4 million viewers in season eight. Since then, viewer ratings have only decreased and reached an all time low with 14.3 million viewers for season twelve. As a result, Fox has decided to rebrand the show by bringing in a new team of producers, less drama-filled judges, and a more heartwarming advertising campaign.

    Within the past seasons, focuses of promoting the show featured drama among the judging panel rather than the actual talent of the contestants. Producers recently have realized the show has drifted away from the heart and original purpose of the show–discovering real people with real talent around the country. In an effort to rebrand their image, season thirteen marketers began focusing on the background stories of the contestants in hopes to return Idol to its initial purpose.
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    American Idol

    One component of the new advertising campaign features eight contestants in their hometowns sharing their personal motivations as to why they sing. Producers felt this new type of advertisement would help viewers identify with the stories and be able to relate to the contestants. Viewers are invited to participate in the hopeful journey of the “average Joe’s” transformation into a superstar.

    American Idol’s new video promotion of the upcoming season also focuses on introducing new contestants and excluding any drama or glamour of the judges (hallelujah). In addition to highlighting real contestants, marketers have incorporated social media by producing a new tag line for the show, #ThisIsReal, to encourage audience conversations on Twitter. Producers hope that the incorporation of social media marketing will increase the show’s ratings and reputation. The advertising of real people and their real aspirations are designed to appeal to a variety of audiences on social media platforms, especially the younger demographics.

    By incorporating a variety of platforms such as television, print and social media, American Idol hopes to attract a wide array of audiences through this new and improved IMC campaign. Do you think this new campaign will be effective in increasing and engaging audiences? Or will American Idol continue its downward spiral?

    -Briana McWhirter, Emily Foulke, Hannah Turner

  • Archer Season 5 Promos: Too Revealing?

    Just when we think that all venues of promoting and advertising have been explored, something nude… I mean new catches our attention. Recently, FX’s adult animated series Archer promoted its 5th season, which premiered January 13th,  in a surprising way. The Archer team posted nude photos of it’s animated cast to Reddit, an online “anything goes” forum where the photos were quickly viewed by thousands of members.

    For those who may be unfamiliar with Reddit, it is a user-generated social news and entertainment website. Users can post anything they desire and rate other posts as well. The audience of the medium is predominately young males, which is also Archer’s target audience. I am certain that this is no accident. Reddit users were immediately able to recognize their favorite animated characters in these staged Reddit posts acting as actual Reddit users. The Archer photos were actually paid for advertisements placed on the sides of the gone wild forum, blending in with the rest of the posts.

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    The medium that the Archer team used to send out their humorous promotions was absolutely perfect for their purposes. All over the web people are taking the time to post and comment on how Archer  has made a brilliant PR move and their inventive way of reaching their target demographic. The story of Archer’s recent brilliance relates to the theory of Media Ecology proposed by Marshall McLuhan in 1964. The theory can be best summarized in McLuhan’s words, “The medium is the message.”

    Although the content of a message is important, it could not exist without the medium in which it is delivered. The same story could be told through many different mediums, ultimately making them different stories. The Archer team chose to use the internet and more specifically, Reddit, as the  medium to promote their show. This story would not have been the same on a television commercial or a print advertisement in a news paper. The medium in which it was sent gave it identity and meaning.

    When people are posting about these advertisements, they are not commenting on the nude photos or the plugs for the new season. They are posting about the fact that they were posted on Reddit waiting for their target audience to discover it. The medium was the message, and it was successfully recognized and received.

    – Rachel Gracy

  • Ethics in Advertising

    On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, people are confronted with the enormity of the Doctors actions. The “I have a dream speech” is remembered as one of the most powerful speeches to encapsulate the civil rights movement. On August 28, 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. spoke to millions of Americans on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. MLK spoke to the millions that marched about struggle and perseverance, about the importance of faith and non-violence. King’s speech resonated with the millions that attended and will be remembered for many years to come. “I have a dream” is in part so powerful because of how emotional it is. MLK spoke from his heart and from his personal experience. Emotion, however, is understood to be a powerful component to public speaking and persuasion in general. It is for this reason that marketing and advertising works to illicit an emotional response in the viewer. Now this doesn’t mean that the “I have a dream speech” is at risk of getting hijacked for marketing gains or that we can expect to see it in advertisements. We must however take time to acknowledge the ethical aspect of emotional ads.

    12 years a slave

    Here we have a movie ad for the critically acclaimed film 12 Years a Slave. The movie takes place in pre-Civil War United States, and focuses on a free African American man who is abducted and sold into slavery. The hardships he endures are demoralizing, taking the film into deep emotional waters. On top of the piece’s obvious ties to the subject and content of King’s widely celebrated speech, the ad for the film took things a step further with implementing bits and pieces of the actual audio into the movie preview.  But doesn’t this raise the question of ethics in these ads? Is it moral to use something as real and as powerful as King’s speech to pull at the heart strings and promote one’s product or service?  With so many variables, the answer’s complexity leaves room for argument on both sides!

    Pathos is a rhetorical appeal and universal form of persuasion that successfully gains the audience’s attention by appealing to the emotions. How many times are we motivated to support something simply because we find it to be “pathetic”? Organizations such as UNICEF, ASPCA, and the Humane Society seek donations by sharing shockingly emotional campaigns. Although we are free to advertise ourselves, our beliefs, and our ideas as we please, the thought of having to guilt someone into believing us appears unethical. As mentioned, 12 Years a Slave uses excerpts of “I Have a Dream” to capture viewer’s attention and obtain financial gain. The film industry is not a charity, non-profit organization, or public relations event… so does it seem to be deliberately toying with our feelings to gain another purchased ticket. Some might argue that with freedom of speech, these persuasive methods are ethical and simply a method to gain our attention, particularly if they are used for the non-profit organizations who seek to benefit society. What do you think? Is it ethical to buy our emotions for financial gain? Is it even ethical to buy our support for others in financial gain?

    -Jami Taylor, Ty Thomas, Austin Johnson

  • UNCW Was Juuust What I Needed

    Sometimes things just don’t work out the way you planned them to. Five years ago, in 2008, I started my college career as a freshman at UNC Greensboro. At the time, I was a major of Vocal Performance and just knew that I was going to be a singer. Unfortunately for me, things didn’t happen quite the way I had hoped. After a while I changed majors to Communication Studies on a whim, and started to care less and less about school. I was honestly lost and didn’t have any focus or direction in life. My grades were spiraling downward and my parents were paying out the nose for an education that I cared nothing about. Flash forward three years when I’m forced to pack up my Greensboro life and move back home, to Wilmington. After a year at Cape Fear Community College, I managed to boost my GPA enough to be accepted at UNC Wilmington (phew!).

    Even though Greensboro didn’t exactly work out, I had a great time. I lived in the dorms as a freshman, was involved in a cappella on-campus, and had a ton of friends. Shifting from knowing everyone in Greensboro to knowing nobody at UNCW was difficult. I quickly decided that, in order to make something out of my life, I needed to buckle down and focus on graduating. Because of this, I credit UNCG as my “college experience” and UNCW as my “school”.

    For me, the fall semester of 2012 proved to be a lot of work. I decided to take COM 105 and 200 at the same, and was told that I only had one chance to make the required B or better. Thank goodness I had Dr. Olsen and Dr. Weber on my side to make my transfer as easy as possible. Even though he’s our Department Chair and has so much on his plate, Dr. Olsen was always willing to help me out and occasionally talk me off a cliff. I found myself going to Dr. Weber’s office at least once a week, just to chat about and listen to show tunes. The man sure knows his Broadway musicals. These two professors were my “welcome wagon” into the major, for which I’m eternally grateful.

    Probably my most educational experience at the Dub was landing an internship with UNCW Presents. I had asked Shane Fernando with Arts and Programs if there were any opportunities to help out, and he informed me about an internship opportunity that was available with his department. Even though I knew nothing about arts management I knew that I loved the arts and couldn’t imagine a life without it, so I started as an intern in the spring. Since then, I have been lucky enough to work with a Grammy nominated organist, one of the original Supremes, and a New York based Broadway choreographer and dance troupe (posing with me, below).

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    Working with UNCW Presents for two semesters has taught me more than I could have planned for. I now have published several press releases, can organize a talent’s schedule, and have professional email writing down to a science. I’ve networked with many people of power and have been given so many opportunities that I now have goosebumps just thinking about it.

    Because of UNCW, I have morphed from having no goals whatsoever to getting my life back on track. I’ve learned how to develop a full IMC plan (thanks Dr. Persuit!), can use InDesign like a champ (Desktop Publishing is a worthwhile struggle), and have a better understanding of what direction I want to take. Post-graduation, this guy is moving to the Big Apple to pursue a career in Arts Administration! Thinking back, I don’t think that I would be as together as I am if I had stayed in Greensboro. Transferring to UNCW gave me just the kick in the pants that I needed. I am now confident that I can be a successful and functioning human being and look forward to the next, extremely exciting, phase of my life.

    –Dylan Fowler

  • The Tassle’s Worth the Hassle

    As of late, I have been so consumed with final papers, projects, preparing for final exams and getting everything in order to graduate that I pretty much haven’t had any time to breathe. These assignments combined with forethoughts of graduation and what will become of my life in the days, months and years following graduation have been drastically weighing down on me, and quite honestly stressing me out. These past few weeks I have been keeping a running countdown until graduation day. I am currently 8 days and 12 hours away from putting my time as an undergrad in the rearview mirror. I am constantly reminding myself that this is my final semester and to “finish up strong”. This has proven to be my motivation over the duration of the semester. Perhaps this briefly illustrates how anxious I am to make the next-step transitions in my life or how ready I am to be done with school forever.

    Nonetheless, in my time spent cursing assignments and longing to graduate this semester I neglected to appreciate what the University of North Carolina Wilmington has done for me. It wasn’t until earlier this week that I had the time to clear and categorize all of my thoughts and emotions. It was in this instance that I had the opportunity to reflect and reminisce on my past four and a half years here at UNCW. After navigating through such significant memories I immediately kicked myself for being so quick to want to forget about them all. In my time here, I have established numerous relationships, friendships and have truly learned a great deal of information…and also forgot a lot. Whoops.

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    After bouncing around a few different majors my Freshman and Sophomore years I found the perfect fit when my advisor recommended that The Department of Communication Studies may be an appropriate pathway for me. I was hooked from the first day of COM 105 when Dr. Weber announced that a “Communication Studies major is fit/qualified for nearly any profession he/she desires”. This notion reassured me that a field in marketing wasn’t entirely out of the question seeing how I initially did not meet the GPA requirements for the Cameron School of Business.

    I am grateful for all of the COM faculty here at UNCW. They have helped make my college experience informative and memorable while keeping things fun. Dr. Olsen’s COM 200 course taught me quantitative research methods which are essential skills to master as a marketing specialist and an effective communicator. Dr. Persuit’s Integrated Marketing Communication courses not only increased my awareness of the prevalence of brands in the world around us but also ensured me that a field in marketing is appropriate for me. The decision to take COM 400 (the Capstone Course) with professor Trimble, proved to be the most beneficial in helping me prepare for my professional track after college. Professor Trimble helped me get out of my comfort zone when it came to interviewing and in regards to the job application process. With these professors, and all other professors efforts I consider myself a truly well-rounded communication specialist. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without them!

    The communication studies department not only provided me with a “home away from home” in Wilmington but also furnished me with the knowledge that will allow me to excel in any of my next step endeavors. For that I am extremely grateful and excited to spread my wings, take flight and soar like a seahawk!

    -Parker Farfour

  • I Believe I Can Fly

    It’s hard to believe that a week and a half from today, I will be in my cap and gown, and the life I know as a student will be over. I will be graduating from the University of North Carolina Wilmington as a Communication Major, focusing in Advertising and Public Relations! It has taken me 5 ½ years, 4 schools, and 3 different majors to get to where I am now (let’s just say I like to experience new things…often). Wilmington, UNCW, and the Communication Studies department specifically has been the perfect fit for me and I finally feel at home, a place to stay. Although I no longer feel that I have the mental or financial capacity to stay a student, UNCW will always feel like home to me and Wilmington is where I hope to start my career!

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    So at the moment, in between juggling my final projects for the six courses I am taking, I am also applying to jobs in Wilmington within the marketing field. I have always said that I would move away from Wilmington for the perfect job, but they would have to pay me enough so that I could travel back whenever I want! I hope to work for a marketing agency or firm, but an in-house position at a company is something I will consider as well. Unlike many other Seahawk peers I do feel ready to enter the “real world” and soar!

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    Being a student in the Department of Communication Studies of UNCW is where I have grown and continue to grow into the young professional that I aspire to become. When I transferred to UNCW, I had most of my general courses out of the way so I jumped right into the steps to become a COM major! This included taking Introduction to Communication (COM 150) with Dr. Weber and Research Methods (COM 200) with Dr. Olsen at the same time, which didn’t intimidate me at all. It only confirmed I was in the right department with the right professors. What makes the Communication Department at UNCW so successful is the professors. Through my Public Relation courses with Professor Chin, I have learned how to keep pushing harder to get the results I want under strict deadlines. Through my Capstone course with Professor Trimble, I can professionally present myself to (and impress) employers with an outstanding resume, cover letter, portfolio and interview skills.

    The most influential professor that has made a huge impact on my life here is Dr. Persuit. From the moment I stepped in my transfer orientation, she caught my interest with this concept called IMC (Integrated Marketing Communication… duh), I took her class and I am hooked! Through the multiple courses I have taken with her she has not only taught me great insights on the many aspects of marketing but also on life in general. Ultimately she has inspired my creative passion for marketing! One quote from Dr. Persuit that I will never forget is “IMC’s goal isn’t to change attitude, it is to change behavior”; I have not only incorporated this within my marketing classes but throughout my life.

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    So my experience at UNCW has been a little bit different than most. I didn’t enter as a freshman so I don’t have crazy dorm memories nor did I make my best friends here at UNCW. The experience UNCW did give me was a chance to expand my knowledge and practice what I would like to do with my life; and that is something that no one can ever take away from me! So thank you to everyone who helped me along the way here at UNCW, whether you are have been my professor, classmate, or just the barista at Port City Java in Randall, I appreciate it. I will always be a Seahawk at heart, I’m just spreading my wings and ready to fly!

    -Kelsey Raskob