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Tag Archive: tv

Danielle

I was looking up something for work at the post.com when I found this post on the Celebritology blog.

It talks about Maxim magazine’s list of “TV’s Least Appealing Ladies”.

People wonder why women everywhere (even smart, interesting, and beautiful ones like the those in Maxim’s list) struggle with self-esteem issues.

However, during a recent America’s Next Top Model marathon, one of the models, Danielle, was told by Tyra that she either had to “Close the gap, or go home” (in reference to a gap between her two front teeth). Danielle faced the dilemma of whether to just go home, or to continue in the competition. She kept saying “I love my gap, it’s me, it’s my trademark.”

But, she ended up getting the gap partially closed (not fully, it was still there), continuing in the competition.. and eventually, WINNING! (I told you it was a marathon). It just makes you smile to know that there are strong women out there who take pride in their unique beauty- even when supermodels and magazine execs tell them it’s not there.

September 21, 2006 Random Thoughts, , Read more >

Subliminal Messages, Munch, & TV

Everyone hears about subliminal messaging and how it affects you in your everyday life.. but do you really know what types of things make you think and act the way you do? Probably not. I heard on 99.5 that restaurants make plans to sell you more food by lowering the temperature (so you’ll order hot soup, hot coffee, and hot dessert) and playing classical music- to make you feel like you’re a fancy person with a lot of money to spend. The same goes for economy-priced joints, where techno or pop music gets you in the mood. Today, USA TODAY printed a Money cover story about retail and the subtleties of influencing consumers.. ranging from Sony Style’s vanilla-mandarin signature scent to Home Depot’s new floor layout. Pretty crazy. I can tell you though the the store I work at doesn’t employ any of these tactics, except perhaps the techno music.

In another vein, two of Edvard Munch’s paintings, including The Scream, were recovered by Norwegian police. The paintings were stolen at gunpoint from the museum a while back. I wonder why people steal art sometimes.. of course, for the money they can get by selling it to private collectors, but what do those collectors do? Lock the painting up in a tiny room where you can go sit and look at it? It’s not like you can go be like “What’s up Friends! Check out this new Munch painting I got off the black market!”

And since I just spent a week cutting clips for our Fall TV preview, I can recommend a few shows for those of you who enjoy television. The ones I thought were funny and/or really dramatic (!) are:

1. Twenty Good Years (NBC)- It’s about 2 older guys who decide they only have 20 years left of life and they’re gonna live it to the fullest.
2. Friday Night Lights (NBC) — I saw one clip about two dorky guys who got rejected by the coach’s daughter. She said “I don’t eat with football players.” He said, “I’m not a football player.” She said “I don’t eat with you.”
3. Ugly Betty (ABC)- Looks GREAT! It’s about a fashion-challenged girl who starts her first job as an editorial assistant, played by America Ferrera, at a fashion magazine.
4. The Shark (CBS) — A crime drama.. about lawyers.. Yes, another one. But I have to say this one looks very clever. The “Shark” is a former defense lawyer who switches to prosecution, where he aims to turn the DA’s office around…

And tonight, Vanessa comes! Whohooo!

September 1, 2006 Random Thoughts, , , Read more >

My Work at USA TODAY

At USA TODAY I have produced a number of projects, mostly photo and audio galleries and a lot of graphics (charts, maps, diagrams). Today I start my first video project, so that’s going to be fun. Here are some links to some work that I’ve done or helped with here:

MTV’s 25 Anniversary: I chose the photos and put together the slideshow for this project.


Lebanon-Israel Conflict Interactive: I helped with research for this graphic on the conflict in Israel and Lebanon.

[Israel Lebanon Conflict]
The Nation’s Obsession with Millions: I did the map and chart for this graphic about U.S. millionaires.


I worked on two pieces for a series on our National Parks in Trouble. The first one was a slideshow on the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I combined the video and audio into the slideshow.


I also produced the slideshow for another piece in the series, The Battle to Save Gettysburg.

And, on other topics: If you love The Office, check out their website, which has webisodes about the accountants, fake PSAs, and more! I also just found Brandon’s photo blog from his internship at The Charlotte Observer, and his stuff looks great. There is also a great post-Hurricane Katrina then & now done by USA TODAY.com.

August 24, 2006 Information Graphics, Maps, Photography and multimedia, Work, , , , , Read more >