Greetings Readers!
Dove's Real Beauty Campaign - Let's start off with the most controversial campaign happening right now. Dove's new "Real Beauty Campaign" has come up with another video, to follow their incredible Dove Evolution video. The concept? Many women meeting other women. They then describe themselves to a sketch artist. The other women they meet with then describe them to the sketch artist. Both sketches are shown to the person. They are much different. What's the problem? Firstly, it features primarily white, attractive women. The real "take away" from this video is that women SHOULD care whether a stranger thinks she is beautiful or not. And finally, it defines beauty as thin and young.
What's the other problem? It has just become the most watched internet commercial of all time. Unilever, which owns Dove, also owns Slimfast and Axe. Axe known for is incredibly sexist marketing campaigns.
So, what happened? Lots and lots of backlash! Lots! For every glowing and positive comment for the video on youtube, there is an equally negative and thought provoking comment.
Fitch The Homeless - An incredibly controversial campaign that is currently happening right now. CEO Mike Jefferies of Abercromie and Fitch made some comments essentially stating that he only wants thin, cool and beautiful people shopping at his stores. The response was "Fitch the Homeless" - a video where Greg Karber hands out of a bunch of Abercrombie clothing to homeless people. Appears good in nature, right? Sadly, his video makes the point that homeless people are "not cool" or "beautiful" - the antithesis of Abercrombie culture.
The response? Mixed. People are in support of #fitchthehomeless (twitter rally), and literally going to donate all of their Abercrombie clothing to homeless people - while some criticize it through various platforms including blogs and counter videos.
BIC Pen for Women - A pen created just for women, and it's "the only choice"! This sleek pen, bedazzled with jewels, comes in bright colours - specifically pink and purple. Frankly, it's condescending and relies on outdated concepts of what it is to be "a girl".
The response? Comedian Ellen's famous parody, with over 2 million views ignites the flame. Thousands reply with comments on amazon.com (where you can buy the product) which include "Someone has answered my gentle prayers and FINALLY designed a pen that I can use all month long! I use it when I'm swimming, riding a horse, walking on the beach and doing yoga... Since I've begun using these pens, men have found me more attractive and approachable. It has given me soft skin and manageable hair and it has really given me the self-esteem I needed to start a book club and flirt with the bag-boy at my local market... Those smart men in marketing have come up with a pen that my lady parts can really identify with." "I see this comes in a sleek design. But as a "full-figured" woman, do these pens come in "curvy and carefree?" and finally, my favourite "I can't find a switch to turn it on, and it didn't come with batteries. This is not the "for her" product I was expecting. At all." Bad news - it's still on shelves. For now.
Hero T-Shirts - Essentially stating that young girls need a hero, and young men should be a hero. They also imply heteronormativity by implying that only women "kiss heroes".
So why were these ideas great? Or at least initially considered great? Well, they were all extremely creative in their own way. They used their digital literacy skills to communicate a their message. The use of twitter, youtube, and facebook (to name a few) allowed for mass communication (millions and millions of people) with very little cost. Finally, each attempted to spread a message of social responsibility by taking (primarily first world) resources and using them for "good" - solely because they could. Each of these videos showed engagement in the cause, a sense of ethics (not fully thought through) and an entrepreneurial spirit.
Love Letter - A young woman dealing depression, writes through it. She begins to write love letters to strangers. Then strangers start requesting her to write letters. It continues...
Project Unbreakable - A blog created in 2011, Grace Brown works with survivors of sexual assault. She photographs them holding a poster with a quote from their attacker. Over 400 people have participated (and over 1000 people have submitted a request). Liberation. Awareness. Good idea.
Goldie Box - Semi controversial, but I will stick up for it. Debbie Sterling was taught that "engineering" was for boys. She learned later on that only 11% of engineers are women, and girls start to lose interest in science as young as age 8! She started a KickStarter campaign for GoldieBlox - to inspire girls to develop an early interest and skill in engineering.
Post Secret - An ongoing community art project, where in which people mail a anonymous homemade postcard with their biggest, deepest, darkest secrets. Check out this inspiring TED Talk by Frank Warren, the founder of Post Secret. He also mentions someone who started I found your Camera, which is equally as awesome!
Ball Pit Love - Sit in a ball pit and meet a stranger.
Clouds - The most viral video going on RIGHT NOW. Zach Sobiech learned he was dying of bone cancer. All he wanted to do was write songs and record them, as a way to say goodbye to the world. He passed away on May 20th 2013. Here are his Zach's final words. You might ask why I included this? Well, Zach was a student who initiated every single aspect of a 21st Century Learner. It's not how he died that made him famous, it's how he chose to live.
Ever had a great idea? Like, a really really really great idea? How about a good idea, with good intentions... but something just... didn't sit right? It didn't end well? Well, good or bad... many ideas come to life! By the magic of marketing, and media, some ideas become an overnight sensation. As technology continues to aid globalization, the online world has become increasingly diligent about these "good ideas" and shedding some light on them after their initial praise.
Here are some recent and quite well known videos and ideas, that received some controversy. Even with the "bad" some "good" did follow.
Dove's Real Beauty Campaign - Let's start off with the most controversial campaign happening right now. Dove's new "Real Beauty Campaign" has come up with another video, to follow their incredible Dove Evolution video. The concept? Many women meeting other women. They then describe themselves to a sketch artist. The other women they meet with then describe them to the sketch artist. Both sketches are shown to the person. They are much different. What's the problem? Firstly, it features primarily white, attractive women. The real "take away" from this video is that women SHOULD care whether a stranger thinks she is beautiful or not. And finally, it defines beauty as thin and young.
What's the other problem? It has just become the most watched internet commercial of all time. Unilever, which owns Dove, also owns Slimfast and Axe. Axe known for is incredibly sexist marketing campaigns.
So, what happened? Lots and lots of backlash! Lots! For every glowing and positive comment for the video on youtube, there is an equally negative and thought provoking comment.
Fitch The Homeless - An incredibly controversial campaign that is currently happening right now. CEO Mike Jefferies of Abercromie and Fitch made some comments essentially stating that he only wants thin, cool and beautiful people shopping at his stores. The response was "Fitch the Homeless" - a video where Greg Karber hands out of a bunch of Abercrombie clothing to homeless people. Appears good in nature, right? Sadly, his video makes the point that homeless people are "not cool" or "beautiful" - the antithesis of Abercrombie culture.
The response? Mixed. People are in support of #fitchthehomeless (twitter rally), and literally going to donate all of their Abercrombie clothing to homeless people - while some criticize it through various platforms including blogs and counter videos.
BIC Pen for Women - A pen created just for women, and it's "the only choice"! This sleek pen, bedazzled with jewels, comes in bright colours - specifically pink and purple. Frankly, it's condescending and relies on outdated concepts of what it is to be "a girl".
Hero T-Shirts - Essentially stating that young girls need a hero, and young men should be a hero. They also imply heteronormativity by implying that only women "kiss heroes".
The good news? A huge petition and twitter rally, which resulted in the Disney Store removing ONE of the shirts ("I need a hero"). This is a big step, as it shows us that Disney IS listening. When we come together, with a great idea, we have the power to make changes!
As mentioned before in previous posts, this blog has focused on the concept of the 21st Century Learner, as stated by the Alberta Government.
So why were these ideas great? Or at least initially considered great? Well, they were all extremely creative in their own way. They used their digital literacy skills to communicate a their message. The use of twitter, youtube, and facebook (to name a few) allowed for mass communication (millions and millions of people) with very little cost. Finally, each attempted to spread a message of social responsibility by taking (primarily first world) resources and using them for "good" - solely because they could. Each of these videos showed engagement in the cause, a sense of ethics (not fully thought through) and an entrepreneurial spirit.
This is the wheel that I've been living by for the last 6 weeks. That I've been thinking about every day! I quite like it. This post is really meant to encompass ALL aspects of this concept. An IDEA navigates through all competencies of a 21st Century Learner. All students have IDEAS. What's the big picture - An idea needs to be ethical, and thought provoking while ultimately promoting the ideas of entrepreneurialship. When working through an idea, no matter how big or small, each one of the competencies will come into play at some point or another. Is it possible for students to come up with incredibly creative, collaborative, socially responsibly and critically thought out messages and communicate that with the outside world? Can they be ethical citizens, engaged thinkers while still having an entrepreneurial spirit? The answer is yes! Check out these incredible ideas...with incredible results! (Feel free to show these to your students).
Love Letter - A young woman dealing depression, writes through it. She begins to write love letters to strangers. Then strangers start requesting her to write letters. It continues...
Project Unbreakable - A blog created in 2011, Grace Brown works with survivors of sexual assault. She photographs them holding a poster with a quote from their attacker. Over 400 people have participated (and over 1000 people have submitted a request). Liberation. Awareness. Good idea.
Goldie Box - Semi controversial, but I will stick up for it. Debbie Sterling was taught that "engineering" was for boys. She learned later on that only 11% of engineers are women, and girls start to lose interest in science as young as age 8! She started a KickStarter campaign for GoldieBlox - to inspire girls to develop an early interest and skill in engineering.
Post Secret - An ongoing community art project, where in which people mail a anonymous homemade postcard with their biggest, deepest, darkest secrets. Check out this inspiring TED Talk by Frank Warren, the founder of Post Secret. He also mentions someone who started I found your Camera, which is equally as awesome!
Clouds - The most viral video going on RIGHT NOW. Zach Sobiech learned he was dying of bone cancer. All he wanted to do was write songs and record them, as a way to say goodbye to the world. He passed away on May 20th 2013. Here are his Zach's final words. You might ask why I included this? Well, Zach was a student who initiated every single aspect of a 21st Century Learner. It's not how he died that made him famous, it's how he chose to live.
Do your students have great ideas? How do you channel them?
Well, send them to any of these following websites for a start!
Do SOMETHING!
Do SOMETHING!
TEACHERS! Students will have always have ideas. How they work through these ideas is guided (facilitated or activated) by YOU. You must be able to also be a 21st Century Learner and teacher in order to move this philosophy through your students. I'm sure teachers have shown Fitch The Homeless or Dove's Real Beauty Campaign videos in classrooms.
What do you have to say? Ever had any great ideas that weren't so great? How do you encourage students to become critical thinkers? Can you show any of these videos in your classroom to begin a dialogue about what media is really trying to tell us? Would you catch the problematic nature of the ideas? The hardest part of this wheel, is truly putting these competencies into action. The other thing (as mentioned in previous posts) is how do we evaluate these competencies? Do you have any other resources for students? All dialogue is welcomed!
Much love,
The Artist, The Educator and The Activist
References
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/11/sexist-avengers-t-shirts-_n_3063942.html
Hi Rox,
ReplyDeleteYou absolutely amaze me. You have an amazing way of taking it all in and presenting a compelling world vision. I often think that I am too focused on what is up close and in my range of sight. So how effective or affective is your blog? The affect it created with me, led me to sign my very first on-line petition. The conversation will definitely be going back to school with me. I will likely start with colleagues, as my teaching assignment has me simply trying to tie up loose ends. But next year . . . my brain is busy. I have already made plans to meet with a colleague to plan for leadership and citizenship projects for our grade 8s. The effect of your blog, is to make me question my own motives and to look for little ways to start building a more socially responsible and responsive climate in my Arts classes.
Thank you
Judy
Rox -
ReplyDeleteI hear you. Media has a huge impact on the way our society constructs their identities and their ideas, which is problematic. However, I feel that if we look so far into everything that every media company does... we'll get no where, and fast. Instead of continuously critiquing the media and everything that it does wrong (and it does so much wrong...) we should begin to create critical, global thinkers in our classrooms that will be able to breakdown these advertisements and begin to understand the product for what it's worth, rather than the message it indadvertedly conveys. It starts at school - we must teach our students to be critical about what they are seeing in the media, and hopefully the future will be less bias as our students become the advertisers themselves, see what I mean? It's a big circle that will come back to point A eventually, but hopefully, point A will have a new message by the time it comes back around.
Carla
Again a powerful blog Rox. It is a great example of how to make the new story happen. We need to act on what we believe is important. You have a very strong sense of social justice and what it looks like in action. You have provided lots of great examples that are very inspiring (especially the video of Zach). I hope that you have lots of visitors, or at least after this class you keep on blogging and that your blog gets lots of traction. And yes, the 21st Century skills should permeate everything we do in school. It is a very different way to think about teaching/learning. Big Ideas transcend the "facts" and are timeless and transdisciplinary - social justice being a particularly useful concept for the 21st Century.
ReplyDeletehttp://millionartistmarc.blogspot.com
ReplyDelete