Desperate Housewives & Semiotics

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DozfGxSOh4c&NR=1

After this weeks class reading on the concept of semiotics, and the assignment of posting an opening credit sequence for my wiki this week, I decided to continue the trend and do it for my blog. While searching for the perfect opening credit sequence for my wiki, I found many different ones that could work, particularly the original opening sequence of Desperate Housewives. Semiotics is a way to communicate meaning through signs and symbols. It is a way to get an idea out to the audience so they have some understanding of what to find meaning in. The season 1 Desperate Housewives opening sequence does just that.
When the show first aired, I'll admit, I had a hard time understanding just what exactly the opening credits meant, and how it fit the show, but as the seasons continued, and me being a religious watcher, I soon found some sort of meaning in it. The opening sequence features different famous "works of art" that come to life in order to represent each housewife on Wisteria Lane. For instance, opening the sequence we see a couple, but an apple falls on the man's head, leading us to believe that this could represent Susan in the show because her husband ended up in a coma in one of the seasons. Next we see a glimpse of a woman and children. This, to me, would have to represent Lynette, because in the show, this housewife has many children and seems as though she is just drowning, being taken over by them. Next we see a glimpse of Gabby, the materialistic housewife whom had a maid of her own. A representation of Edy comes next. Her personality was out there, always attempting to steal the men of Wisteria Lane away from their wives. Bree follows this, as we see a busy housewife doing what she does best, cooking in the kitchen. Overall, this sequence is a great representation of semiotics. Just by watching it, the audience can get some sort of insight as to what the show is all about.

Welcome Back?

With all the talk over the past months about the "Tiger Woods' Scandal," Nike, one brand who uses Woods as an endorser has decided to launch a new Nike ad, featuring Tiger Woods himself, despite the controversies going on within his personal life. Unlike Nike, other brands who feature Woods as their main endorser have dropped him. So after everything, why did such a big company like Nike decide to keep him as their leading spokesperson?

The new Nike brand commercial (shown above) launched on ESPN and the Golf Channel purposely doing so as Woods made his return debut to the golf world. The short commercial clip titled "Earl and Tiger," uses the image of Woods in gear sporting the Nike logo with a voice over of his late father, Earl. The simple, but meaningful statements that are heard within the advertisement help to tie the commercial to the recent events that had happened in Woods' life. Why did Nike decide to do this? To me, Nike truly did a great job. While I may not favor the commercial so much, the meaning is quite clear. Perhaps, everything that was exposed about Tiger lately needed to be addressed in order for him to return to golf. By creating an ad like this, consumers are able to see that the problem was addressed, but there is now a bridge to get over the gap that has been caused because of his recent infidelities. People can see this advertisement, note their was a problem, but also see that we can get passed it. Nike hoped that by keeping Woods as their leading endorser and creating something as simple, but with a truly powerful idea, the message would surely reach its audience, and also promote the Nike brand in a positive way once again.

Stereotyping in the Media

Controversy in the media is something that seems to never go away, whether it be issues relating to ethnicity, race, sex, violence, stereotypes, etc. It seems as though no matter what, someone is always going to have a conflict of interest. MTV launched it's career as a network geared towards music, but overtime has transformed into something way more than just that, adding award shows, animation, and reality television to its' list. But when MTV launched its latest reality hit The Jersey Shore this past year, controversy sparked. The show sets it's tone in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, where 8 twenty-something "Guidos" spent their summer together, showing off their tans, getting buff, using lots of hair gel, partying, and constantly causing a scene. As an audience we were able to sit back every Thursday night and watch these people form relationships and experience a summer on the boardwalk, with each episode stirring more and more drama to the pot.. LOVE IT!! But unfortunately, a stereotyping controversy sparked immediately when the cast members were labeled the hottest and tannest Guido's around by MTV.
Media stereotyping seems to be almost impossible when it comes to the entertainment business because really, it does allow audiences to have some sort of common ground of what the heck should be portrayed in a overly simplified way, and this is what the entertainment business wants, similarity and togetherness. The problem is, these stereotypes are way too simplified and leave way for prejudice talk and behavior. The term "Guido" is a stereotypical term that is usually marked offensive to some Italian Americans, often giving them the portrayal of an exaggeratedly muscular attitude, and with the Jersey Shore cast members instantly being labeled as "Guidos," the show, and almost all who watched, viewed them as just that.. tan, buff, and over the top personalities. While the show had many fans, there were also many people on the opposing side, and very displeased with the use of the derogatory term on the network, as well as the stereotyping going on. Many wanted the show removed from the air instantly. What really cracked me up was after reading several news articles online about the show, I was informed that even pizza company's, such as Domino's Pizza became offended and requested all their advertisements be removed from the network while the reality show was airing.
Despite all the "haters," the network succeeded at giving the show an entire season.. We can thank its' loyal audience for that one. Also, luckily enough for all those Mike "the Situation's" and "Snooki's" of the world that have been "created" after the airing of the show, the network seems to be hinting at a second one as well.. Not going to lie, pretty excited to see what's next!..