Post 5: Compare Two Online Articles

The issue of abortion is extremely controversial and very easy to find a lot of information that supports both sides. People commonly align with two sides: pro-choice or anti-abortion.

The article on pro-choice talks about the history of abortions. It explains that the basic idea behind pro-choice is that women have the right to control what happens to their own bodies, thus giving them the right to terminate unwanted pregnancies. It talks briefly about the pro-choice movement and how the most well known pro-choice victory was Roe vs. Wade. Through the Roe vs. Wade decision the Supreme Court ended up legalizing abortion in all 50 states. I though it was interesting that this article also goes on to discuss arguments against pro-choice such as, that murder(and, some consider abortion murder) is illegal in all 50 states. I think that it was interesting that this pro-choice article was trying to lay out both sides so that you could decide for yourself.

The second article on anti-abortion is from a strict anti-abortion Organization. And had many articles about anti-abortion and why it was considered murder. Many believe that sense very quickly fetus’s develop human characteristics and begin to develop a heart and brain that they are always considered humans and not a fetus or cells. So through abortion murder is being committed and it should be illegal.

Not that I align with the pro-choice side, but I believe that the pro-choice article was more convincing because it laid out the information and arguments for both sides and then asked to you make the decision for yourself. Although the anti-abortion articles made a lot of scientific claims about fetus’s and fetus development, I found that they didn’t have much scientific evidence backing up those claims.

Peer Response: Shawn Perry's Blog

I think that Shawn Perry summed up Chapter 4 of In Defense of Food really well and was able to find the main point which was that is was necessary to change the western diet and to change what many people eat in order to lead healthier lives. Shawn was able to understand the broad, general ideas of the chapter and the more broad ideas of what Pollan wanted us to understand, but I think that Pollan was trying to get us to think more specifically too. Pollan extensively talks about the over-exaggeration of food health claims and the chemical content in food.

Shawn goes on to talk a little bit about over processed foods and I agree with his argument that processed foods are really bad for us because of all the additives and preservatives that are added in, during this he briefly touches on the idea of chemical content and over-exaggerated health food claims. I also think that Shawn missed a big point, being the use of science to back up health food claims. Pollan goes into detail to talk about how just because something is backed up scientifically does not mean that is it true and that, that food’s scientific “claim” will most likely change in the near future. I think that this was a big point Pollan was discussing and that Shawn should have mentioned that somewhere in his blog.

Shawn’s blog would have really benefitted if he had linked to an outside article that was able to support the ideas that he was presenting and to back up Michael Pollan’s ideas that he wrote about in In Defense of Food.

Demonstration Speech Self-Evaluation

Let’s start with my strong points: I believe that the informational content of my speech was good and that I was able to explain the topic in an organized way that progressed well and made more sense as my speech continued. I also think that I had really good use of visual aids and that the helmets and materials were extremely useful, effective and necessary in demonstrating my topic. If I were to give another demonstration speech I would not change my topic or make and significant changes to my visual aids. Overall I think that I did a pretty good job on my demonstration speech, but there was definitely room for improvement.

I think that I could improve a lot on my demonstration speech if I had the opportunity to do it again. If I did my speech a second time I would practice a lot more in front of an audience, I rehearsed my speech a lot but few times in front of many people and when doing it in class I found I was more nervous and flustered.

I would really want to focus more on the physical presentation and improve my eye contact and body language. While, watching the video I saw that I really was not making much eye contact with the audience and I could see that I looked nervous and almost unprepared. I would also need to work on my volume, fluctuations, tone, and pitch. I think that if I had worked more on these things my speech would have been more effective and drawn in the audience more.

The post I’m responding to is Jenny Molenda’s analysis of a celebrity endorsement. In Jenny’s post she talks about how LeBron James is a positive role model and that he is a good choice to endorse McDonald’s. Jenny talks about the new BigMac commercial where LeBron James and Larry Bird are playing each other in a basketball game for the BigMac prize. Jenny then goes on to discuss how James is a good choice to endorse McDonald’s because James and McDonald’s have the same values. At this point Jenny links to an article where Lebron James says, “We share many of the same core values, including a commitment to excellence and giving back to the community.” We, being himself and McDonald’s restaurants. Although this may be true that both James and McDonald’s share the same core values. I think that LeBron endorsing McDonald’s is a good choice on McDonald’s part because LeBron is a very famous athlete and a lot of people want to like him. But, I don’t think that LeBron endorsing McDonald’s is a good move on his part other than the fact that it is a multi-million dollar deal. Realistically for LeBron to be at peak performance and to be as great an athlete as he is, he would never be able to eat food that is served at McDonald’s because most of the food is not good for you. Jenny touches on this point that LeBron endorsing McDonald’s is inappropriate because of his job, and I completely agree with her. I think that Jenny’s post is clearly formulated and is it easily to understand her arguments and criticisms. I agree with her argument that there are both positive and negative aspects of LeBron’s endorsement deal with McDonald’s.

Sources:

*Images taken from Google Images

*Links taken from Jenny Molenda's blog post

Post 4: Analysis Of A Celebrity Endorsement

A great example of celebrity endorsements are the many products that Tiger Woods endorses, including Gatorade and Tag Heuer watches. In Tiger’s watch ads he is shown looking at the camera with a golf club, wearing a Tag Heuer watch, and the slogan, “What Are You Made Of?”, is written on all of the Tag Heuer print ads. In the Gatorade ads endorsed by Tiger, there are pictures of Tiger, and slogans such as, “It’s In Tiger. Is It In You?”. Suggesting that if you use this product it can help you perform at peak performance, like Tiger Woods. I think that Tiger Woods’ endorsement of Gatorade is appropriate because he is a extremely successful athlete, and Gatorade is specifically designed to help athletes perform their best. But, Tiger’s endorsement of watches does not seem extremely appropriate because Tiger has no real professional qualifications that would make him qualified to sell watches. But, since he is a huge celebrity Tiger would probably be able to sell many different products with the right marketing plans and ads, including Tag Heuer watches. These endorsements have been beneficial to both Tiger and the companies, because Tiger is making a lot of money off supporting and using these products. And the producers of Gatorade or Tag Heuer watches are benefitting because the public wants to use products that celebrities use, so there is an increase in sales of Gatorade and Tag Heuer watches.

The name Tiger Woods has become a brand in itself, and Tiger chooses to endorse many products. I thought Tiger’s endorsements are interesting to examine especially after his recent scandals. I listened to a radio show online that was discussing Tiger’s endorsements and why some were falling through due to his recent scandals or if the companies were choosing to stand by Tiger. I think that this radio show really relates to the idea of celebrity endorsements and the many things that can happen with them. It also shows that the celebrities actions in public can effect the success of the product being endorsed.

Sources:

Cavanaugh, M., & Crook, H. (Speakers). (2010, January 5). Tiger Woods
Controversy Affecting the Golfer's Brand Name [Audio podcast]. Retrieved
from http://www.kpbs.org/news/2010/jan/05/
tiger-woods-controversy-affecting-golfers-brand-na/

Tiger Woods Gatorade Print Ad. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://gossip.whyfame.com/
files/2009/12/tiger_gatorade.jpg

Tiger Woods Tag Heuer Print Ad. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.rvgoddess.com/
BLOG/2009/DECEMBER/Photos/TW-TagHeuer.jpg