1. Analyze an Ad Or Music Video

Merchants of Cool-guide

1. ANALYZE AN AD OR MUSIC VIDEO Choose a favorite ad or music video and write a brief analysis or description. Be sure to include your opinion on the video, why was this your favorite? Min. amount of words 200. Please hand in typed. Don’t forget to add the name of the artist and the title of the song, and you could add a link to the video online.

2. AUTHENTICITY Define the word “authentic” and create a visual representation of the various facets your “authentic” self. Facets of your identity might include things like cultural, religious, or racial heritage; family, neighborhood, or community; song lyrics, magazines, clothing; favorite TV shows, hobbies, or sports, etc. Make it into a collage we can hang in the classroom. This is also the topic of the oral of this week. You will be asked to explain your choices.

3. GUIDED QUESTIONS MERCHANTS OF COOL 1) Who organizes focus groups? What is their purpose? 2) How did Sprite turn their sales around through marketing? 3) What are the 5 biggest corporations that target teens? 4) Who is in control of MTV’s content? Explain. 5) What is the theory behind “cool hunting” and using it to market products? 6) What are the “weapons” being used to “colonize the Africa-like” teen market? 7) Explain the content of MTV. 8) What is the “mook”? Give examples. 9) What is the “midriff”? Give examples. 10)According to Mark Crispin Miller, Communications Professor, NYU, why do companies such as MTV study youth. Hint: It’s not to give them what they want. 11)Why are characters on television less developed nowadays? 12)Why has the topic of sex become so prevalent in television programming? 13)Some television executives in the documentary said that the programming is a “mirror of what’s happening in the real world.” Is that true? 14)Do kids who are against mainstream entertainment have a refuge? Explain. 15)What happened to “rage rock”, formerly a subculture outpost in the media frontier? 16)Why does corporate America focus so much on the teen market? 17)So is there anywhere the commercial machine won't go? 18)Is it leaving any room for kids to create a culture of their own? Do they even have anything that's theirs alone?

4. CREATE A BRANDING CAMPAIGN Pretend you are a cool hunter and you need to market a campaign for one of the literary characters we have studied in class. Who would you choose as “cool” and why? Design a marketing campaign to appeal that person. You campaign could include: a facebook page, posters, billboards, demonstrations, twitters, radio, tv commercials, you tube video’s, events etc. Choose min 3 to work on. After presenting the campaign expect to be able to answer questions, such as: what information did you need to know in order to make your campaign effective? Who is your target group? Do you use unethical or misleading techniques? This project can be made in groups of 3 people.

5. CONNECTING THE DOTS Look again at your authenticity collage. Connect the dots after seeing the documentary. What are the sources of the items you chose? Which corporate interests are you satisfying? Who profits from the logo’s you have on your collage? Who owns the label of your favorite music. Do you think you can be authentic or are you a product of corporate reflection of identity? Are you expressing or consuming?

6. ANALYZE AN AD OR MUSIC VIDEO After watching the documentary Merchants of Cool, look again at your favorite ad or music video and the analysis you’ve made. Has your opinion changed, or do you think you should alter your analysis? Maybe the questions below can help you analyze the media you see (and hear) better. You should assume that all media is a “story.” • Who is the “storyteller”? • What techniques are the “storytellers” using? • Why are they telling this particular “story” (what is their motive)? • Who is the “story” for (who is the target audience)? Why is the “story” being told to that audience? • Is the story accurate, fair, and complete? If not, what information or perspectives are absent and why were they left out? Your new analysis should be 300 words long!