Thursday 29 March 2012

Where dem models at?!

 M&S have launched their new summer men's swimwear campaign. The key feature the media seem to of homed in on is the not so accidental use of Oliver Cheshire, Pixie Lotts current boyfriend. This is tried and tested form within the fashion world where a celebrity style model is used to face the campaign as it gets media coverage but its all becoming very dull. 
 I long for a real model to be used and make models model again. The over use of celebrities or models with celebrity connections is tiring. Yes, it gets more media coverage as their is a recognisable face but it takes jobs away from real models and blurs the image between models and normal people if celebrities on fronting campaigns. Celebrities are more obtainable than a model to the average woman, this creates body issues. When models modeled and celebrities didn't, there wasn't as many body issues among young women and the adverts and campaigns were  beautiful.

Monday 26 March 2012

Cover up Madge

 I was always a part-time Madonna fan. I tried to fight the stereotype however some of her songs are just to darn catchy. Then she did her SuperBowl performance   and I became an addict and the woman could do mo wrong (any 53 year old that looks that good in a Givenchy mini and can put on such an amazing performance has to be admired), so it came as a surprise for me when I saw pictures of her at  Bayfront Park music festival in Miami on Saturday and was said the immortal words of 'Ohh, that girl needs to put something on'.
 She is 53 and yes she does look amazing however the original material girl and queen of reinvention needs to consider covering up just a little. Madonna knows that when she steps out in hot pants and fishnet stockings she gain media coverage and with her new album MDNA being promoted she is looking for as much attention as possible. 

 Now I am not saying she should start sporting dowdy ankle length smocks but maybe some knickers that cover her arse cheeks would be nice. Madonna has made her fame being known for her risque outfits and long may this continue, however next time a bit more cheek coverage would be nice. 












Monday 19 March 2012

Another sex tape. Really?

 Its been reported today that sex tape involving Tulisa Contostavlos and an ex-boyfriend has been leaked onto the internet. The tape has now been removed from its original source website after Tulisa's lawyers delivered pappzd.com with a handwritten crease notice. However the video is still view-able on other internet sites. 
 The question now is, was this 'leaked' as a publicity stunt to boost Tulisa's public profile and make her front page news ahead of the impending X Factor judges line up? Or was it a genuine leak by a bitter ex? The sex tape leak has been used by countless celebrities to raise their profile and was even the making of reality TV star Kim Kardashian. Tulisa is now front page news on online tabloid sites such as The Sun and Daily Mail and is also headline on Digital spy along with several Twitter trends about her.  
 For me this was all a little to fortunately timed as a stunt to raise her public profile and create controversy around her with her X Factor contract still in the balance. It was also reported her lawyers had stopped the video within minutes of the leak, which is remarkably quick. There was reports last year of a man wanting £500,000 for his sex tape with the star, however that didn't ever make major press and was quickly forgotten. 
 Personally this tried and tested method to boost a public profile is far too extreme for someone who is a performer/talent show judge and if this was a PR stunt then it was a very ill-thought out and poorly planned idea. Her is praying for Tulisa's reputation that is wasn't a stunt and she can recover as she made an excellent X Factor judge last year.  
TulisaSexTape

Saturday 17 March 2012

KONY disaster.

 The KONY 2012 video was released via YouTube to make Joesph Kony famous worldwide and rise the  international profile of the destruction and murderous behaviour his organisation delivers in central Africa.
 While the viral video has achieved media international media coverage and people from every corner of the globe have seen the video, the media attention that has been thrown on to Jason Russell is having an adverse effect. Jason Russell was never expecting 80million people to view the video in the first week, or for it to be the top worldwide trend on Twitter, all this coverage is great for hi cause, but it has made him instantly famous as well. The media hype surrounding him has driven him a little wild and he was arrest yesterday in L.A, drunken in his underwear performing a sex act in public. Here is where all the coverage is great for the cause but Russell has to be careful that his behaviour doesn't get more absurd and take focus away from his cause.
 The news of his 'breakdown' is already worldwide and he will do well to come away from this with his cause still intact.
http://gawker.com/5894093/here-is-the-kony-2012-masturbation-meltdown-video

KONY overload

 When Jason Russell created the KONY 2012 video he intended it to go viral and spread the message that Kony must be stopped. The KONY 2012 video currently has 80,803,268 YouTube views with 1,351,866 likes and 109,924 dislikes. 
 Here is were social media as a communications channel is so effective as it has enabled him to gain vast amounts of media coverage, spread his message to the world and gain support and knowledge from a previously unaware public.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc

Tuesday 13 March 2012

Ben and Jerry's for gay marriage

 Today, 13th March, world famous ice cream makers Ben and Jerry's have made a bold PR move and backed gay marriage. They have changed the name of their world wide ice cream Oh! My! Apple Pie! to Apple-y Ever After. This is a strong PR statement and one that has gained them international media coverage. Its a considered a bold move as its a traditional American company and gay marriage can rock the boat and splits public opinion. The PR stunt here has been backed up via social media. They have joined forces on Facebook with the  gay rights charity Stonewall, inviting people to join their group and support gay marriage. Twitter was also used and support can be shown with the hash-tag #Appleyeverafter. 
 Supporting gay marriage is risky strategy for a company to take as people have such varying views on the subject. By changing the name and artwork on the tubs its sold in, they have created media attention. The social media aspect goes people a chance to show support and spread the message about equal marriage rights for everyone. 
http://www.stylist.co.uk/life/ben-and-jerrys-back-gay-marriage 

Tuesday 6 March 2012

Prince Harry and Puma

 Prince Harry has been pictured today at an official engagement in Jamaica wearing head-to-toe Puma. This is perfect product placement and has given Puma a huge boost in press coverage and media interest. With the move to online and social forms of media, traditional media coverage is becoming less influential to brands. However with Prince Harry wearing the Puma brand, there will be national and international media coverage for the brand and it will make headline TV news slots and front page of the mornings newspapers. The engagement has already scored a banner slot on the DailyMails website and is on TheSun online as well. Here is an example of how traditional media coverage is still just as important in today's society.