Entertainment Media Archives - Page 42 of 50 - Jonathan's Blog From The Source

Bad Just Got Good

Posted on: 12/1/08 7:59 AM | by Jonathan McKee

That’s the show’s sound byte: “Bad just got good! ” The Bad Girl’s Club.

It’s hard to even imagine that TV could be any worse than Tila Tequila or sexually charged programming like the Pussy Cat Dolls’ reality show. But I think the Oxygen’s Bad Girl’s Club is pretty dang close.

(for those of you who receive this blog via email/RSS, here’s the YouTube video link)

In an article last year, Media Life Magazine calls The Bad Girls Club “the show that defines Oxygen.” It goes on…

“The Bad Girls Club,” the nasty, sex-filled reality romp that follows seven party girls living in one house, including a hustler and a stripper.

In one episode a housemates throws dishes and fruit at the wall in a rage. In another a girl tosses bleach on her roommates’ clothes after a perceived betrayal. All the while, the girls are hooking up with a long parade of men.

“Bad Girls” is raunchy and it’s ridiculous, for sure. But it’s also become the most-watched show on the cheeky women’s network.

This year it seems that Bad Girls has kept in the race as one of TV’s top draws on Tuesday night (see the table on the bottom of this Media Life article).

I guess this is what should be expected in a world where the lines between good and bad are slowly disappearing.

Sigh.

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I Want a “Virtual” Divorce

Posted on: 11/14/08 3:28 PM | by Jonathan McKee

This sounds like a Coen Brothers film (Fargo, No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading…), but no, unfortunately, the story is very real. Reuters reports:

A British woman is divorcing her husband after discovering his online alter-ego was having an affair with a virtual woman in the fantasy world of Second Life, media reported on Friday.

Amy Taylor, 28, said her three-year marriage to David Pollard, 40, came to an end when she twice walked in on him watching his online character, Dave Barmy, having sex with other virtual women.

Sigh.

Yeah, you read it correctly. And if you peeked at the entire article linked above, you’ll find that this couple met online; then the wife had suspicions about his online activity, so hired a virtual private eye, who spied on him having virtual sex with a virtual prostitute. That’s a lot of “virtual!”

Yeah. You can’t make this stuff up.

Funny enough… the story is getting a lot of press with a lot of people blogging about it. I’m in my hotel in Harrisburg, PA right now and I just saw this story running on CNN. The reporter was actually pretty sharp. After making fun of it a bit, he talked about how people should “get a life” instead of wasting so much time in virtual worlds. He went on to talk about the fact that this affair was probably a true emotional affair. I think he’s right on all accounts (they do need to get a life, and it was a real emotional affair)

Second life is a popular virtual world where kids and adults create characters called avatars and explore virtual worlds, meeting people, picking up on people, etc. Much like www.IMVU.com, the site that David and I wrote that Youth Culture Window article (The Hotest Virtual Teenage Hangout… a Little Too Hot) about a few months ago.

Hmmmmmm.

(ht to Alec in Scotland)

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Do Parents Really Know About Twilight?

Posted on: 11/10/08 8:26 AM | by Jonathan McKee

I was talking with a friend on Friday, a very conservative woman who homeschools her children. I asked her if her junior high daughter had expressed any interest in the Twilight books or upcoming movie.

She said, “What’s Twilight?”

I gave her the 5 second definition: “It’s the popular book series about a teenage girl falling in love with a vampire. The books have sold millions and it’s being released as a movie next week (with Midnight showings already sold out). Every teenage girl in the country is going crazy over it.” Even the movie’s soundtrack is hot.

She said, “I don’t think (my daughter) even knows about it. I know she hasn’t read it.”

I suggested that she ask her daughter.

She called her daughter over. “Have you heard of this Twilight?”

Her daughter paused for a second, glanced over at me, then back at her mother. “Yeah. I read a chapter over at Carly’s house.”

Trust me. Your kids have heard of Twilight, some have read Twilight, and most of them want to see the movie releasing a week from Friday. The question is… should they be reading Twilight? And is this movie okay?

Don’t get me wrong. If your daughter read a few chapters of one of these books over at her friend’s house, it’s not like she was playing Grand Theft Auto (something parents of girls usually don’t have to worry about). But I think parents should become familiar with exactly how sensual these books are. The books have been deemed “clean” by numerous moms groups because they don’t contain any sex. But is that line you want to use? (No sex… it must be fine then.)

What are the subtle messages of Twilight?

David (our ministry’s director of content development) and I spend a ton of time last week researching Twilight and looking in to all of this hype. We found that many Christians were concerned about the vampire element. Most of the world, however, thinks that this is the next best thing since Harry Potter. David and I had totally different concerns: the main character’s emotional vulnerability and the graphic sensuality.

This week, our YOUTH CULTURE WINDOW article (the article on our front page in that big magnifying glass) provides our complete take on the books and the film, addressing these issues. I’m not gonna condemn any parent who lets their daughters read the books. I just am a big advocate of them investigating a little bit about the series and having conversations with their kids about it. Parents need to be the one to make that decision. Our article will provide parents with most of the research you need (we link numerous other articles). We even touch on the differences you might find in the first book and the film. After all, Twilight has no sex. But what would you do if you found your daughter in her underwear kissing a guy in the bedroom?

Hmmmmmm.

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Trojan vs. Candies Foundation

Posted on: 11/6/08 10:34 AM | by Jonathan McKee

To condom, or not to condom… that is the question.

Last week, a new Candies Foundation PSA was released during Gossip Girl (I guess the Candies Foundation thought they might as well hit the audience most likely to be “hooking up“). Here’s that PSA:

The Candies Foundation exists to educate America’s youth about the devastating consequences of teen pregnancy. Their approach is quite the opposite of Trojan (who coincidentally, would love to sell a bunch of condoms). Hmmmmmm.

Much of the world seems to be siding with Trojan’s approach. “Have sex… just be safe.” (an easy sell, mind you) USA Today even refused to post a full page ad for the Candies Foundation’s “America, Wake-up!” PSA campaign.

Ypulse.com chimed in on the issue on 10/29/08 with guest poster Libby Issendorf. She didn’t care for Candies’ PSA.

The ad doesn’t choose sides in the abstinence vs. contraceptives debate; it just presents pregnancy as the consequence of sex. This tactic might scare teens, but the ad won’t succeed without a viable solution to this fear. Candie’s needs to advocate a method of protection instead of preaching, “If you have sex, you’ll get pregnant!”

The way Jenny McCarthy pops in and the girl’s snobby attitude toward her turn Candie’s into a nagging parent. I half-expected her to add, “And clean your room, young lady!” before the commercial ended. Couple this tone with the unresolved scare tactic, and the commercial comes across as an empty threat that makes most teens roll their eyes.

I’m equally disappointed in the website.The first things to catch my eye are images of a lovely Jamie Lynn, a poised Bristol and Levi, and four teenage girls, two with bulging pregnant bellies, on a carefree stroll. The photos glamorize teen pregnancy more than condemn it, and the entire site is boring and unattractive. I can’t interact with it beyond joining a Facebook group, and the “tips for parents” section will make teens feel as though this isn’t their space.

In contrast to this lackluster effort, I love Trojan’s Evolve campaign that encourages teens to use a condom every time. The website is incredibly attractive and easy to use. My favorite part is the “donate 1,000,000 condoms” feature. Teens can take a quiz, comment, and pass videos on to friends. Then, for every action, Trojan donates condoms to Americans at risk. So cool!

Although Libby seems knowledgeable in marketing and teenage perception, I can’t say I agree with her knowledge about the spread of STDs. Her contention that “Candie’s needs to advocate a method of protection instead of preaching, ‘If you have sex, you’ll get pregnant!‘” reveals her bias. Libby obviously sees “protection” as the only option, since we live in a world that apparently just can’t wait for sex!

I’d like to Ask Libby a few questions:

1. What does Trojan provide to protect against a broken heart, seeing that eight out of ten first time teen sexual relationship last six months or less, and most teenagers who have sex, regret it later and wish they had waited?

2. How effective is a condom against chlamydia, which is one of the leading cause of sterility in women? Where are condoms in that assault?

3. What is the leading cause of cervical cancer in women? How effective are condoms against that?

4. Who are we to believe: a foundation that seems to care about the decisions teenagers are making? Or a condom company that wants to sell more condoms?

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Sexy TV Linked to Teen Pregnancy

Posted on: 11/4/08 9:07 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Last week I was watching a fairly clean prime time show with my entire family (not a lot of prime time that my 11, 13 and 15 year old can all watch anymore). The star of the show made a quick comment to his nerd friend that was spending time on the web on comic book sites. He said, “Why can’t you just watch porn like everyone else.” A subtle comment, but packed with meaning. Anyone normal looks at porn. It’s no big deal.

The week prior we were watching a show and one of the lead girls confessed, “I haven’t been laid in six months!” Everyone else gasped! The underlying message was clear. If you haven’t slept with someone in six months, something’s wrong!

The sad fact is… these were pretty clean shows. This wasn’t Gossip Girl, Desperate Housewives, or the O.C.

T.V.’s effect on our youth is nothing new to this blog (just click on the “sexuality” category on the left hand side bar , or do a search for “TV” and see how many blogs are dedicated to the topic). It’s a fact that TV shows and movies are getting blatantly more raunchy. I just was chatting with my friend Todd, our THE SOURCE Movie Review guy, about this. He recently reviewed the popular Adam Sandler movie, You Don’t Mess with the Zohan. Todd described this PG-13 movie as a “raunch-fest.” He’s right. This movie was a PG-13 Borat. I thnk my biggest concern here is the PG-13 rating. Again… the subtle message that this content is okay for 13-year-olds. The entire film was not only loaded with over the top sexual humor… it presented abundant female roles who had no problem with these male “pigs” and their consistent crude sexual gestures. Our young girls are learning that sex is simply “no big deal.”

Yesterday I received numerous emails from people about the research just released by the Journal of Pediatrics. Numerous articles are reporting the “Teens who watch television shows that have a lot of sexual content are more likely to become pregnant- or to get someone pregnant- by the time they turn 20.”

This research is what I call “Duh.” Think about it. If our kids are coached by shows like Gossip Girl or Tila Tequila every week, they’re going to respond in the way they’ve been taught. it’s that simple.

Perhaps parents need to say, “You can’t watch this.”

Hmmmmmmm.

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Soulja Boy’s Swag is… What?

Posted on: 10/29/08 10:21 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Soulja Boy is back with a new dance. If you don’t recognize his name… your kids do. In the Fall of 2007, Soulja Boy’s song Crank That (The “Superman” song) dominated the charts, holding the #1 spot for eternity. But his song isn’t what launched Soulja Boy… it was his dance.

Kids in elementary schools across the country were learning the “Superman” dance. My own daughter came home from junior high school last year informing me that it was required learning for P.E. (nice). But then people started figuring out what this “Superman” song actually meant. (which is funny… because I guess the fact that he was calling girls “bitches” and “ho’s” wasn’t enough to upset people initially)

Now Soulja Boy is back with a new song and a new dance. This time he isn’t talking foul or objectifying women… he just kindly wants to let us know how much money he made doing it (hence the footage of him blowing his nose into hundred dollar bills, holding up wads of cash, and flaunting buckets of hundreds). Take a peek for yourself.

(Is anyone else wondering how this guy ever got popular???? Wow! Our taste in music has hit a new low! I’m not even talking about lyrics… I’m talking about “singing offkey.” Can you imagine this guy at an American Idol tryout!)

In case you missed it… here’s some of these lyrics:

i got a question why they hattin on me,
i got a question why they hattin on me
i aint did nuthin to em, but count this money
and put my team on, now my whole clic stunnin
boy wassup, yeeeea
boy wassup, yeeeea

when i was 9 years old, i put it in ma head
that ima die for this gold
(soulja boy tellem)
boy wassup, yeeeea
hopped up off tha bed
turn ma swag on
took a look in tha mirror said wassup
yeeeeea im gettin money (ooh) x2

In this MTV article (or you can watch their MTV News video) he tips his hand about his goals with this new song:

It’s just showing all my success from my first album. The first chapter of Soulja Boy in the music industry. I went platinum, 5 million ringtones. A whole lot of records I broke. It’s a lifestyle record. Speaking on my success, showing how my life changed since I became a celebrity. It’s basically saying, ‘I’m back.’

It will be interesting to see what kids think when they listen to this song and see this video? (because they ARE listening) It’s the same message they’ve been hearing recently from T.I.’s Whatever You Like. “Money brings happiness.” Maybe that’s what they want to hear.

Hmmmmmmm.

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HSM3 Hype

Posted on: 10/27/08 9:19 AM | by Jonathan McKee

Zac and Venessa are back… and tweens everywhere are screaming in delight as Mommy and Daddy drop them off at the movie theatre to see the newest addition to the High School Musical series.

I guess those tweens DO have big influence over their parents’ spending power, because HSM3 (much easier to type than High School Musical Three) broke records this weekends at the box office. At $42 million this weekend alone, HSM3 scored best-ever opening for a musical. Not bad.

I sent our movie review guru Todd Pearage to see it this last weekend to give you his 2 cents. I love his opening words in that review:

Tweeners rejoice…you have a clean, high-quality musical; unfortunately I’m not a tween.

Todd goes on to give it a good rating for kids, but a serious ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzz for adults. I love his analogy of why reviewing this film was a struggle:

Recently my 10 year old daughter challenged me to an arm wrestling match in front of some of my jr. high guys. What a dilemma – if I lose to a 10 year old girl, I’ll be made fun of without mercy, on the other hand, if I win I’m a jerk for beating my own daughter. I’m facing the same dilemma writing a review for the most popular kid’s musical in history. But I’ll try to be as honest as I can and as nice as possible.

Grab that whole review here.

Our own David R. Smith gives us a deeper glimpse at the whole High School Musical phenomenon in this week’s Youth Culture Window article.

I guess I’ll never be bummed when our tweens are excited about a G-rated movie. Whodathunkit?!!

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In the end… it will be just a theory

Posted on: 10/20/08 4:10 PM | by Jonathan McKee

I was watching M. Night Shyamalan’s newest film last night, The Happening. Although people probably won’t like it as much as his past films (Signs, The Sixth Sense, The Village, Lady in the Water)… it still was worth the rent (my movie review of it here).

A great discussion starter from this film jumped out at me that I missed the first time I watched this movie in the theatre. I can’t believe I missed it the first time. We’ll be definitely writing this one up with small group questions, etc. very soon.

Here’s the dialogue:

The Happening

20^th Century Fox Home

Start scene at Ch. 4; at 6 minutes and 43 seconds…

The Scene opens with high school teacher, Elliot Moore, leading his science class in a discussion about the disappearance of honey bees all over the United States.

Key Dialogue:

(after Mr. Moore asks several of his students about their theories, he turns his attention toward Jake, a good looking student)

Mr. Moore: Jake?

Jake: (doesn’t say a word, just stares blankly at Mr. Moore)

Mr. Moore: You don’t have an opinion?

(Jake shrugs like he doesn’t care.)

Mr. Moore: You’re not interested in what happened to the bees?

Jake: (shakes his head no)

Mr. Moore: You should be more interested in science Jake. You know why? Because your face is perfect. But the problem is, your face is perfect at 15. Now if you were interested in science you would know facts like the human nose and ears grow a fraction of an inch each year. So a perfect balance of features might not look so perfect five years from now. If might look downright wack ten years from now.

Jake: (looking distressed)

Mr. Moore: Come on Buddy. Take an interest in science. What could be a reason the bees have vanished?

Jake: (pausing for a moment in thought) An act of nature and we’ll never fully understand it.

Mr. Moore: Nice answer Jake! He’s right. Science will come up with some reason to put in the books, but in the end it will be just a theory. But we will fail to acknowledge that these are forces at work beyond our understanding. To be a good scientist you must have a respectful awe for the laws of nature.

Jake: (still thinking about his nose) How much does the human nose grow each year?

Mr. Moore: It’s miniscule, O.K. Buddy. Don’t worry about it. You’re gonna be a heartthrob your whole life. I was just messing with you.

Jake: (smiles and points at the teacher)

End Scene at Chapter 4, 8 minutes and 59 seconds

Here’s the line that jumped out at me:

Science will come up with some reason to put in the books, but in the end it will be just a theory. But we will fail to acknowledge that these are forces at work beyond our understanding.

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Britney Baring All Once Again

Posted on: 10/17/08 11:15 PM | by Jonathan McKee

Sex sells. Mariah knows it, Madonna knows it, Christina knows it… and Britney definitely knows it!

Britney knows it so well, her new song “Womanizer” just made the biggest leap in the history of Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart. It’s no coincidence that her video features her naked in a sauna throughout the video, half dressed and sensual on several other occasions… while the whole time, ironically, singing about a guy that’s a womanizer. (Which makes me wonder if I am just missing another video featuring him singing about her being skanky?)

This racy video is now the #1 downloaded video on iTunes, the #1 featured video on MTV.com’s music video pics, and available to see everywhere for free from YouTube to AOL.com videos.

Yes…Britney doesn’t actually show those crucial few inches that would declare this actual “R-rated” nudity, so it’s being played everywhere. The question I have is this: are your teenagers going to steer away from clicking on this when they stumble upon it on YouTube?

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Problems With the Word “Porno”

Posted on: 10/16/08 12:43 PM | by Jonathan McKee

People are complaining about the ads for Kevin Smith’s new film, “Zack and Miri Make a Porno.”

CNN reports that one complaint came from a man watching a baseball game with his son. “He was explaining to his son what a squeeze bunt was. Commercial break, the ad comes on, and the kid asks, ‘Dad, what does porno mean?”

Dodgers spokesman Josh Rawitch responded to complaints about ads for the film during the game. “Dodgers baseball has always been about family, and we’ve always been sensitive to the type of advertising that runs on our games.”

Commericals for the film were dropped from Fox Sports at the team’s request.

Good for them!

The film, originally rated NC-17, is rated R on appeal for strong crude sexual content including dialogue, graphic nudity and pervasive language.

That sort of sums it up.

Kevin Smith, no stranger to raunchy movies, wasn’t about to let the NC-17 rating stand. “We didn’t set out to make an NC-17 film. That’s just commercial suicide,” Smith told The Associated Press. The NC-17 rating would have prohibited anyone younger than 17 from seeing it. With an R rating, those under 17 can see it in the company of an adult.

Isn’t that nice!

The sad fact is… Kevin Smith is a really talented writer, this film is already getting a lot of hype… it’s probably going to do really well.

It’s also one of the films where people can go onto the movie’s web site: http://www.zackandmiri.com/ and view the redband trailer (the “R-rated” trailer). Sure… our kids will say, “Mom, Dad… don’t worry… that trailer didn’t have any nudity!” And they’re right. But WOW!!!

Teenage guys are definitely going to want to see the film… they traditionally respond better to movie ads than girls do, and this movie is right up their ally.

Our kids our growing up in a different world than I did.

Sigh.

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