Sunday, November 18, 2012

Athletic Scandals

  It seems like if play professional sports, as long as you’re not sleeping with your coach or someone famous, no one really cares about you sex life. Of course unless you are breaking the law, by being a peeping tom or rapist, you’re in the clear. There have been some weirdoes that have gone that route but not many or at least not many that get caught.

It is kind of sad when the biggest sport scandal of our time is Tiger Woods and his affair. It is shocking for a Golf player, but hardly for the sports industry. The unexpected is what gets noticed because people are shocked when they see this kind of behavior from such a role model. It seems as long as athletes are scoring points we don't care how much they are scoring under the sheets. It is not like other athletes don't do it or get caught. As a society we really don't care about it and turn a blind eye when it is an athlete. I believe that questions are what drives a scandal. 

Look at Michael Phelps and all the scandals surrounding him. There were two that stuck out in my mind, a three some with some strippers and his, still not forgotten, pot scandal. The stripper scandal didn't go that far because we as a society expect that from a young, successful, single male. On the other hand a pot head winning 8 gold medals in the Olympics is unheard of. It is lucky if a pot head gets off his couch let alone win any gold medals for anything. If it was a performance enhancing drug I’d understand peoples skepticism but even I question how he did it and think he deserved all his metals, plus one for pulling it off. It makes me wonder if he didn’t smoke how much better he would have done If not smoking. His cardio would be insane.



Tuesday, November 13, 2012

YouTube killed the video star

YouTube killed the video star... Probably not, but it might be helping the CD industry along the way to its grave. Unfortunately, I believe if you are anyone trying to do anything to promote yourself YouTube is your friend. As a consumer I don’t quite understand this phenomenon but I think that it’s because I’m getting old. From a Mass communications standpoint, YouTube is THE BEST CREATION EVER!  You can make your own short video to advertise yourself on YouTube for FREE and who doesn’t love free, I DO.

There have been a lot of sensations that have come from YouTube. Some artists have been able to sign with record labels like Justin Bieber and others, who are self produced of which my favorite is a beat boxer called DubFx. Justin Bieber has created so many hit singles I feel he does not have to worry about money in this age of the internet and pirating. He is reaching the top 10 charts on single download format like ITunes, which is becoming a hard thing to do. In addition to being able to sell singles, I feel that most artists are making more money selling concert tickets. That is definitely something this teen age sensation can do with the fan club he has going. But there are people not as fortunate, like DubFx, who find themselves asking for donations to make it to the U.S.A in order to book shows. Both are talented artists with a definite passion for music. With YouTube Bieber found Stardom. Hopefully DubFx will make over to the U.S.A. and to Baltimore. But both would have not made it as far or as FAST without YouTube and all for FREE!!
Now someone can advertise before a short video instead of having to wait for commercial breaks to post their ads. Most people just TiVo and fast forward through commercials anyway but with YouTube you can’t view the video until the commercial is over. Since this service is FREE to BOTH USER and VIEWER someone has to be paid somehow.