Shift to Swift - Media Meditation #2

Growing up my parents loved ROCK, some Hip-Hop and all other types of music... as long as it wasn't Country. Whenever I would go to my cousins' hou
se in Maryland all they would listen to was country and that's when my love for Country began. As the love affair blossomed, Carrie Underwood won American Idol therefore pushing my love to new limits. As time went on Taylor Swift became one of the top selling Country Artists of the decade and increased my love for Country even further.

source: Taylorswiftbiography.net

Although many Country music lovers would argue that both of these artists are Pop singers, one cannot deny the underlying Country roots that both ladies poses. Roots that ultimately come out when they perform.




Unlike Underwood, Swift came onto the music industry like a storm not too many years ago and was not discovered on American Idol. Both women have done extremely well in their careers, having all of their albums at least go platinum.

Unlike Swift, Underwood plays to her country roots in most of her songs with the pop being more subtle and hidden. It is this fact that makes her more popular among Country music lovers, and Swift more popular among Pop music lovers.

According to our Media and Culture textbook, Country music lovers only take up 9.2% of music lovers. Compared to the 17.6% that goes to news and talk radio that's not really that much. However, although country music is generally the most hated among the various genres in my experience, it is not the least appreciated, that spot goes to "oldies."

Whether they sing Country or Pop, these women aren't going to be going away. With some of the most diverse fan bases ever more songs and albums are sure to be in the works. Swifts new album "Speak Now" will be released on October 25th but is available for pre-order now on Amazon.com.

Gibbs is back - Media Meditation #1

They're backkkkk. NCIS and NCIS LA have returned to the television, and the fans are going crazy. Last season they left us with the terrible thought that Gibbs, arguably the main character in the show, would not be returning. However, after the premiere last week, and this weeks episode such thoughts are no longer existing and the fans are anxiously awaiting each episode.



As the season hits full swing one has to wonder how it all began. How did the craze over police shows come to be? Did it all start with Law and Order oh so many years ago? What makes them so popular now? At times, it's like police shows have replaced the classics that were once so popular. NCIS is the new I Love Lucy, which according to the text was one of the most popular shows years ago. There's an interesting analogy for you.

Source for I Love Lucy Picture - tvland.blogspot.com

Source for NCIS picture ncis.edogo.com

Source for combination: ME :)

How can anything compare to such a loved classic? This question poses yet another. Although Gibbs, Tony, Ziva, Abby, McGee, and the rest of the cast take part in undeniably one of the better shows on television, will the show ever reach the point that I Love Lucy got to, or will they simply be stuck in the shadows of shows like Jersey Shore  that are rotting the minds of today's youth?

On the other hand, NCIS:LA is causing waves as a great new show, which more in-depth characters than the original. Although nothing can compare to the original show and its fantastic cast, one has to wonder if the spin-off will continue to be popular. The new episodes that have aired so far this season continue to baffle viewers and for now, the show is safe from cancellation. 

As the seasons continue, I will continue to watch anxiously, trying to figure out the answers to the many questions that both shows pose each season.

Here I am

1. I am unfortunately from Wilmington, Delaware, which as you can see from the picture above is overpopulated and uninteresting.

2. One of my likes about media today is the advancements that have been made in film. For example, Avatar has some of the best graphics I have ever seen and truly raised the bar for science fiction movies. A dislike about media is that movies, mostly horror films are becoming increasingly predictable and each movie varies only slightly from the one before. 



 3. One experience this summer with the media that was my favorite would have to be taking my cousins to see Toy Story 3 and having there be more adults in the theater than children. While the children were laughing along so were there parents. Not to mention, many of the parents cried, which was a sight worth seeing.


4. As of now my plan for the future is to become a writer for a cooking magazine such as Food & Wine or Food Network Magazine. I love to cook and write, so that combines two of my passions.