Regarding media technologies, NBC’s show, Parks & Recreation
can be looked at as what McLuhan calls a cool medium. The show offers a low
intensity of information and a higher amount of audience participation.
Compared to a more in depth show like Lost or Numbers, which gives you a much
higher intensity of information.
Parks and Recreation has really utilized the digital age as
well. Through interactivity and mobility, they have established many other ways
to engage their audience. The show has their own Facebook, Instagram, Twitter,
Pinterest, Youtube and Tumblr as well as their own website. I think that these other forms of
digital media are a really important part of the show’s existence. Just their
Facebook page has over 1,000,000 likes, which shows that there is a huge amount
of people wanting to be engaged with it through Facebook. The page has new
posts every day which mainly include funny photos or telling people to watch
the show, but each of these posts racks up thousands of likes and comments. On
their Youtube page they post deleted scenes and highlights. I thought this was
also an interesting way of getting viewers engaged.
I also found their
Pinterest page to be really interesting. They include funny memes, behind the
scenes photos and different albums from big events in the show. Looking at this
page, it made me feel like I knew a lot more of the show. For example they have
a whole album of Ben and Leslie’s wedding, with many images that have never
been shown on the show. This is a great incorporation with the show and digital
media to include the audience as well.
( http://www.pinterest.com/nbcparksandrec/ )
( http://www.pinterest.com/nbcparksandrec/ )
I think that this interactivity lets people feel more like
they are a part of the show thus giving them more of a reason to watch it.
Mobility also allows for people to keep in touch with these pages on the go as
well as watch the episodes on the go. Viewers can even catch up on new episodes that they may have
missed from the website. And older episodes of Parks and Recreation can be
watched on Netflix, Amazon Instant and on other streaming websites.
Parks and Recreation has really embraced every aspect of
today’s digital world, using it much to their advantage.
( http://www.pinterest.com/nbcparksandrec/ )
As a fan of Parks and Recreation, I am glad you chose to highlight how much they rely on digital media technologies, as do most shows nowadays. I agree with your reference to Parks and Recreation as a cool medium, as defined by McLuhan because it is heavy with audience participation, and light on information. It is amazing how many social media websites this show is using to reach out to their fans! I believe that doing so has cemented Parks and Recreation's popularity. Looking at their pages on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and other social media websites, I was amazed at the amount of insight I gained regarding the cast, writers, and producers of the show. Interactivity and mobility is evident in the case of this show because both have been crucial in reaching out to their audience. Excellent post!
ReplyDeleteI think this is a strong post because you mentioned several different concepts discussed in Chapter 2 of the textbook. The examples you provided support the overall idea that Parks and Rec is a show with engages their audience very well. Overall a very good, interesting read!
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