Facebook; Wikipedia; Last update April 20th, 2009. 

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebook>

 Fidel Sues Obama Campaign; November 5th, 2008. TMZ staff

<http://www.tmz.com/2008/11/05/obama-camp-sued-for-bad-business-with-fidel/3>

 Blog; Origins; April 22nd, 2009. 

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogs#Origins>

 Watchblog; General information; Democrats, Third Pary, and Republicans.

<www.watchblog.com>

Consistency in an act that achieves a positive outcome is always sought after. When relating consistency to United States politics, it’s almost as if an oxymoron had been used. Throughout the past couple of presidential elections we’ve come to realize a trend that’s occurring that may not necessarily prove effective; the media. Prominence amongst talk shows, internet websites, and movies is the ultimate cause of corruption amid voters, and more specifically young voters. In the past the problem with many elections is that not nearly enough young voters were active in the political process. This may be true but the way that the media influenced this sample of the population to begin to vote was through biased allegations made by all sources of media that’s directly marketed towards young adults. This would include everything from YouTube, Perez Hilton,  Facebook, movies, and even text messaging. Objective journalism has been declared dead and the 2008 election is a perfect example of this. This leaves me with an ongoing question: is progress always good?

What better way to relate to the youth than to join their social network. This is where social networking websites such as Facebook become prominent. Founded in 2004, this megasite currently has 200 million active members around the world. By the end of 2007 Facebook had an implied value of $15 billion dollars while obtaining shareholders such as Microsoft. Facebook started out as a networking tool for college students, and was only accessible by college students. Shortly after popularity of this site was rising, Facebook opened it’s doors to everyone. Completely new audiences were introduced to this page. Features included group pages, event notifications, current status updates, and pages which allow other users to see your preferences in music, style, movies, and most importantly, your political views. As a smart political move, Barack Obama ,as well as John McCain, both had an official Facebook page which allowed users to see where the candidates stand on current issues. As soon as one of your friends would join a group, or become a fan/supporter it’s automatically posted to where each one of your friends would have access to know what party you’re affiliated with. You could also donate your status to the political figure so that it’s made even more apparent who you’re voting for. As most young adults carry busy schedules, they may not have time to read the information that the candidates posted, but rather just read a sentence from your status update. Although this may not directly infer that the reader will vote for the candidate because you did, but it will clearly make their vote biased in the case that they may not have had time to research the candidates, but they remember that they’re good friend has voted for this person, therefore it must be the better choice. Readers are plentiful, but thinkers are rare.

Stereotypes are often used when developing a marketing plan. Therefore the statement that females are more likely to watch an entertainment show than they are the nightly news, is a common stereotype used. Shows such as Best Week Ever on VH1 and TMZ have taken a role as the news for celebrity-crazed audiences. One step backwards in the terms of objective journalism. Millions of people shifted their attention from who the newest prime minister is to what outfit Paris Hilton was seen wearing or how much Sarah Palin spent on her wardrobe. This craze for materialism was apparent in past years, but nowhere near as apparent as now. To those viewers that put a halt to the national news, were a little less aware of current standpoints of candidates and were once more highly influenced by what a 30 minute gossip segment has to offer. Rather than finding out the candidates proposed plans, they found out that Obama was being sued. Irrelevant information that alters the minds of many Americans has shown to be effective, yet regressive in a higher sense of political campaigning. Negative aspects of the campaign were highlighted and shown over and over again. This media is known for using excerpts of speeches which can easily manipulate any viewer into thinking which candidate is more suited.

The cinema has always played a major role in cultural boundaries all across the globe. Comparing movies from the 50’s to current can help you realize that liberal tactics have worked over the years and that more situations are accepted by a larger number of audiences. Comparing an epic movie such as Gone with the Wind, where feminism prevails, to a current movie such as Maria Full of Grace is extraordinary. Maria Full of Grace is a story in which a woman prevails, except through the act of smuggling drugs. Controversy arises and the meaning of close-minded has changed drastically within a 50 year time period. Many people seem to obtain tons of new information that before was a process only a select number of people were able to see. This transformation did not halt on the account of politics, but rather it took the issues at hand and provided alternative ideas that stunned millions across the world. The perfect example of a controversial film in the past decade is Fahrenheit 9/11 by Michael Moore. The film showcases “facts” in regards to the Bush administration while using emotional factors to lure in wide audiences. Although the film is biased on Michael Moore’s opinion, it still affected millions of people around the world, as well as thousands voters during the following election. It opened many viewers’ eyes and conspiracy theories began to develop. Opposed to 50 years ago, these theories are widely spread and the government becomes more unraveled as each day passes.

Conspiracy theories are not always recorded by the means of film. Where the internet dominates most people’s social lives, blogs become the ultimate freedom of speech. It wasn’t until 1998 that blogs obtained momentum through OpenDiary.com. In our current year blogs such as Perez Hilton and Gizmodo prevail, regardless of the content. Although blogs are not the most reliable source of information, since anyone can make a blog and anyone can write whatever they feel. It’s a mere publication of opinions. Some may be more acknowledged than others when politics are involved. Biased opinions flare when logging into watch-blog.com where you may choose the party you are affiliated with and in return have access to thousands of blogs that are biased upon your party. In past years censors on news channels as well as newspapers have made it impossible for the public to fully express their opinion on crucial subject matters. Bloggers may receive feedback from the public and ideas can be clarified about certain aspects of the political system that may have seemed unclear. 

Bloggers tend to have a specific audience they cater to.  The more specific your market segment the more effective your promotion becomes. The most prominent markets I saw were showcased through Perez Hilton and Oprah Winfrey. Perez Hilton is an openly gay blogger who has one of the most prominent gossip websites on the internet. Although most will agree that Perez has no positive influence in the community, but the gay and lesbian population still relate to him. He was one of the first people to support president Obama prominently in the media. His arguments were consistent with his human rights fight. He maintained the audience by letting them know that Obama is much more liberal when it came to gay rights and that he supported the act of the state having the choice of legalizing same sex marriage. Ellen DeGeneres was in a similar state. As an activist in the gay and lesbian community she truly had a strong opinion that millions of people respected. She was one of the first to actually invite John McCain and as she stated “talk about the elephant in the room”. She argued with him on his lack of his support towards the gay and lesbian community. He argued not everyone’s beliefs are the same, but clearly the ball was in Ellen’s court, which ultimately decided many of the fans’ views on McCain. Oprah had a similar effect, except instead of the gay and lesbian community it affected millions of housewives that watch her religiously.

As stated before, consistency is desired by many but very rarely followed thoroughly by any political party. Media has an undeniable effect on all audiences, regardless of what the actual political campaign is representing. Facebook attacked the youth by constantly posting new information and getting the audience involved in the debates. Movies attract millions of people world wide and is more of an international influence overall. Blogs relate to many people on a more personal level. They let the audiences chose what they want to read about and has a stronger influence than the media because it’s common middle class people writing these blogs in most instances. TV shows attract certain audiences and narrows the selection of the people you’d like to influence. Whether it be the gay and lesbian community, the African-American community, or even the every-day housewives. Ignorance is not an excuse when the influence of media is mentioned in the 2008 election. 

Opinion on Advertisement and Second Life; Created more than a year ago

<http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=As80jc.TnTNjWgYx_iB1bAojzKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20071031090447AA9sVOE>

Opinion on Second Life; Created more than two years ago

<http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AiLLdFgdvcFrSJa4I3DcCOgjzKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20070327131551AAsPH5r>

Is Second Life Marketing Worthwhile; Kelly Strickalnd; April 2009

<http://kellystrickland.net/?p=49>

Economic Statistics; April 10^th, 2009. SecondLife

<http://secondlife.com/statistics/economy-data.php>

CSI NY airs episode featuring Second Life; Tateru Nino; 2007

<http://www.secondlifeinsider.com/2007/10/25/csi-ny-airs-episode-featuring-second-life-impressions/>

             Attracting half a million people in a week is not just a task that New York City aspires to, but a reality in a world that is everything but real (Second Life Statistics). To most people Second Life is still undiscovered and will remain undiscovered until curiosity reaches the best of them and the widely popular interactive world becomes more apparent as news reports begin to distinguish it from the rest of the World Wide Web. You may have already spotted it on episodes of CSI or even the L Word and you may have even downloaded the game and even tested it out without realizing the potential something of this nature holds (Secondlifeinsider). The age of technology is approaching with a high momentum and everything, including the education system, is affected. Intertwining the best of both worlds has been a mission that has been attained by games such as The Sims, in which you live in an interactive world that allows you to raise a family, build a house, earn money, as well as kill a spouse by the means of adding no door in a four-walled room. The next step is taking this life online where limits are never-ending. Once momentum was caught and millions of users created Avatars, islands, businesses, etc. the possibility of it being used as an educational tool came across the mind of many. Although expressing individuality is something I strongly believe in, consequences arise when expression meets morality. Islands raging from sex paradises to pedophile havens may come to question when taking into consideration that many pre-adolescent students begin to explore Second Life. Numerous problems outnumber the potential aid Second Life may provide to high school as well as college students. The lack of hands-on experience as well as the decrease in jobs that this program may ultimately cause is just two examples that you may want to consider before implementing this program into your curriculum.

<img src=”http://www.blogcdn.com/www.secondlifeinsider.com/media/2007/10/csi-sl-partial-frame.jpg”>

              Most people spend most of their lives looking for someone to share compassion with while seniority becomes the prominent conversation in life. This is apparently not an issue when it comes to an unrealistic world. Isolation dominates all due to the lack of physical contact you can achieve through a computer. People become deprived of the best features of life. Everything from world travel to the compassion that so many people desire. This most reminds me of a quote from the movie Good Will Hunting; “So if I asked you about art, you’d probably give me the skinny… on every art book ever written. Michelangelo? You know a lot about him. Life’s work, political aspirations. Him and the pope. Sexual orientation. The whole works, right? I bet you can’t tell me what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel. You never actually stood there and looked up at that beautiful ceiling. Seeing that. If I ask you about women, you’ll probably give me a syllabus of your personal favorites. You may have even been laid a few times. But you can’t tell me what it feels like to wake up next to a woman… and feel truly happy”. If your entire world surrounds a non-fictional one, what do you have to live for? Emotional experiences may not necessarily be voided but facial expressions of a confused student would never reach a teacher. People become so self-involved that the thought of exercise never crosses their mind. With an addictive system such as Second Life, health risks would definitely be at a high peak as the transition from walking to class becomes sitting in your room.

            The biggest problem faced by prospective employees is that lack of hands-on experience in the area of work that they are applying for. Second Life offers situations where you may build a virtual business as well as fly a realistic airplane to where it’s modeled after simulators they use in aircraft training devices. Although this may be helpful for some students, it’s not anything you can apply in the work field. You setting up a virtual store is nothing compared to taking inventory, waking up early, and greeting customers face on in a business you have to start from scratch. Flying a simulation through a 13 inch screen is nothing compared to fighting the wind in an actual training session that you may face. As stated through various blogs, the momentum that Second Life is trying to pick up is deemed unsuccessful as an operational tool in marketing. One blogger compares Facebook to Second Life in the state that Facebook picked up much higher recognition in a two year period, whereas Second Life tended to drift away from users as well as business operations. An instance in which credibility arises in Second Life doesn’t seem to be apparent enough for students to use this as a form of hands-on experience.

           As internet security continues to be a major issue in schools, jobs, as well as personal computers, hackers would have a much higher effect on a large crowd all at once, instead of going by a computer to computer basis. With websites such as Second Life, Myspace and Facebook anybody can sign up regardless of the age that they specify you have to be. Teenagers with access to Second Life may find them in situations that they may not be familiar with, where they may be talking to someone who is much older and much more manipulative to the point where harm may be near. Hackers can easily manipulate themselves into any character they’d like and even if classroom settings were made private, constant interruptions, such as the ones that we’ve seen in our attempt to use Second Life, would distract students from learning. This issue continues as people begin being tired of signing in and interacting with the class to where they can just hand over the username and password to anyone else in the world and they can do any and all class work that may be assigned that day. Boundaries do not exist when the minds of the computer era begin to prosper.

           Moral issues contribute a large portion of worry on my behalf. As stated earlier, there literally are no boundaries found in Second Life. Anybody can make any location, look as they please, and interact with each other as wanted. With this said, perverted minds take over and places that promote pedophilia continue to exist. Instead of figuring out a way to rid it from society as a whole, we allow underage children to flirt with senior citizen males. If it’s prostitution you seek, there is plenty of it. Sex acts seem to be consistent in most places that I’ve managed to visit in Second Life. Drug cartels may very well be in the open, but that doesn’t stop anyone from interacting with these people who lead future generations into a negative direction. Although many people oppose to even try this interactive way of living, some end up on it out of pure curiosity.

              Promotion of Second Life as an education tool may be something professors promote, but not something that’s thought out all the way through. Instant gratification is the thought that lets your desires get the best of you regardless of the consequence in the future. Pushing students towards interactive learning is only decreasing the amount of jobs that teachers are already struggling to hold onto. Ideally you may want to use both the interactive experience as well as live lectures, but eventually even the lectures will be moved to the interactive versions and ultimately there will be a transition of less teachers, larger classes, and more work in the computer industry. Although it creates jobs, it also has the potential of eliminating thousands that are being established on a day-to-day basis.

             Curiosity killed the cat; my reasoning behind why our class was told to sign up for Second Life. Although some positive aspects were established, the negative seem to outweigh them easily. For a virtual game it’s graphics are below games similar to it, such as The Sims. Glitches continue as you wander around different locations. You can walk through walls, get killed by a random person, or even be attacked by a Transformer. It creates a barrier between interactions amongst people in the real world. People will become accustomed to using an online source in order to communicate to anyone and learning habits would eventually be altered. The lack of experience that you can attain from Second Life is the most vital aspect for my negative opinion. What you can learn in a classroom, where life size objects, plans, etc. are presented, could never be something that can be shown on a computer screen. The spread of viruses is a threat at all times. With more people signed up for Second Life, the risks heighten to where more hackers are concentrated on a game that attracts millions of students who may be ignorant of certain tricks it. I am pro-innovation and will always support new technology and new ways of teaching, but I don’t stand alone when I imply that this is an inaccurate way of learning.