The Food Gurus: Blog # 4

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Everyday Problem.

11/20/12
Nicole Amaral
100257087

Media is a big part of our everyday lives, whether we realize that or we don’t, and the consumption of media is also a big part. As the textbook mentions “Media consumption is an integral part of our everyday lives.” This statement is true, it is a part of all our lives, but more so likely to young children and teenagers. The media is constantly putting images into our brains without us even knowing. Food comes into play with media consumption on a regular basic daily. Some of the examples of this might be watching television in the morning and seeing a breakfast commercial or walking down to the cafeteria or stores in the mall for lunch and seeing various pictorial advertisements. We are being bombarded with subtle messages that we cannot even being to understand.

Credit: Ron McArthur

While there are young girls around world being bombarded with pictures of models and celebrities showing them the “true” beauty in being skinny? There are also counter advertisements showing us pictures of fast food restaurants, hamburgers and greasy food which tend to influence the young children in America. This in turn could lead to obesity.

Credit: [x]

Another big example of media consumption for children and teenagers are the television shows and movies they watch. According to the International Journal of Obesity, one third of G-rated movies, more than half of PG-rated movies and almost three quarters of PG-13-rated movies and television shows have had brand appearances. This would definitely include clothing, electronics and most importantly food. In the journal it also states that, “six companies accounted for almost half of all brand placements [in movies rated G, PG or PG-13] – Pepsi-Co, Coca-Cola, Nestle USA, McDonald’s, Dr. Pepper/Snapple Group and Burger King. These by my knowledge are all junk food and fast food.

Sure once in a while giving your children fast food or junk food is okay, and its normal. But if media consumption like this keeps on happening and we keep on ignoring it, child obesity in America and other parts of the world would not be a problem. But because children do not tend to think about what they want to put into their bodies and eat whatever they feel like, obesity is a main concern for the new generation. As I have mention in the beginning, media consumption is a humongous part of our daily lives, it’s everywhere we go, all around us, yet it is so subtle that we hardly realize we have been absorbing all these messages.

Picture Perfect

11/20/12
Zephyrin Tsoi
100231347

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From the right, you see the crispy and crunchy nachos. From the left, you see the cheddar cheese, the guacamole and the jalapenos. From the bird’s view, you see it all; except for the way the cheese melts on the side and the little bits and pieces hiding at the bottom. But really, which side is the perfect side of the plate of nachos?

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In this generation, you don’t see the flashing lighters at concerts anymore or disposable cameras in the hands of little children. Now, you see the flash from iphones, htcs, samsungs, and all different kinds of technology. Since these devices were introduced, there are those functions that we once could not use right away, like capture a moment right in the palms of our hands without regretting that we forgot our digital camera laying at home. More importantly, in these days, there’s been something lurking in our social media that’s tempting everyone to start foodtography.

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This has become a great hit among students, teachers, parents, and children and mostly in the Asian countries. This is only because Asia spends so much time creating the perfect picture of food that it has become a moment to commemorate. With the social media we currently use, like facebook, flick, tumblr, instagram, foursquare and a lot more, it’s easy to take a picture and post it. Whether it’s to show what you’re currently munching on or to show where you are having lunch or breakfast, it’s a way to share and remember the places that you’ve been. “Researchers have recently completed a research study on the psychology of food” says Weiss. Weiss defined the psychology of food as a way to document and commemorate our everyday lives. As if every plate of food we devourer is a statement or page of our own personal book. Right before you stab your fork into that plate of nachos and destroy that perfect image that was once beautiful when it arrived at your table, you have the chance to capture it and put it into your own personal book.

The best part is, food looks good and it makes us feel good. If we ever have a bad day, you can still find a beautiful bowl of ramen or a green tea cheesecake. Even if everything isn’t going the way it should be, food can always go the way you want it to. It can still promise you that even when the day’s dark and nightfall is coming, something good will happen as long as you want it to. Something perfect can be a part of that day and every other day.