Alanna Strauss
Posts by Alanna
A Lesson from Glee: Love Yourself
Glee. Glee. Glee. You’ve done it again. You’ve managed to teach me a valuable lesson while simultaneously reminding me how much I love TLC’s 90s hit “Unpretty.” After school specials must be worrying you will render them unnecessary, just like Netflix did Blockbuster. You had 90 minutes on Tuesday, and used nearly every scene and character to make teens (and 20 something’s like me) feel better about themselves.
Yes the episode meandered, oscillated between what’s right and wrong, good and bad. However, in the end it successfully delivered a powerful message on three separate issues, combined ever so poignantly with a rendition of Lady Gaga’s “Born this Way.” (Welcome back, Kurt).
Once again, I found myself wishing the Ad Council and Glee could join forces and replicate VH1’s beloved and retired “Pop Up Video,” by inserting bubbles above the characters heads with relevant websites viewers can visit to learn more about the issues. Let’s take a look at the three issues addressed last night and where these “pop up” moments could have occurred.
Filed under: Communications
Tags: bullying, changing behavior, Glee, mental illnes, self-esteem
Glee Blames It On the Alcohol – Underage Drinking Prevention on the small screen
By Alanna Strauss and Nirmal Deshpande/Ad Council
Despite their good looks and homes they could never afford in the real world, TV characters face real issues and often offer guidance and support to viewers. And I’m not just talking about Tony Soprano and Donald Draper; I’m talking about everyone from Naomi Clark on the recently revived “90210” to Jason Stackhouse on “True Blood.”
“Glee” often touches on the issues facing high school students today: bullying, insecurity, heartbreak, competition, peer pressure and as seen in last night’s episode, underage drinking. This was “Glee’s” opportunity to take advantage of their large, loyal audience and offer a voice of wisdom on what motivates teens to drink and the consequences that follow. Ultimately, the episode sent a redeeming message to teens experimenting with alcohol. Moreover, the alcohol culture portrayed in the episode highlighted several key issues to consider when communicating about underage drinking prevention.
MYTH 1: Throwing parties makes you cool. One epic party can take you from zero to hero on the high school social scale.
Glee TRUTH: Rachel wasn’t any cooler after the party. She didn’t gain new respect and is still unlucky in love.
MYTH 2: Drinking makes you more outgoing, and often more attractive to others due to liquor’s secret yet potent ingredient – “social lubrication.”
GLEE TRUTH: As Finn wisely explains to Rachel there are 4 archetypes of the drunks: 1) The weepy, hysterical drunk; 2) The Needy Drunk; 3) The Angry Drunk; 4) The Happy Drunk; and 5) The Girl Who Turns Into A Stripper Drunk. None of them looked cool – all of them made fools of themselves. We couldn’t wait for them to sober up.
MYTH 3: Beyond hangovers, potential vomiting, and the embarrassment that follows asking “what did I do last night?” there are no serious or long term consequence
Glee TRUTH: For all the lessons the episode provided, this was its weakest. The club got off pretty easy after their performance. We know the show doesn’t have the time to incorporate detention or suspension into their plotline (regionals are just weeks away after all), but we wish they could have been a little more realistic about some of the more significant consequences underage drinking.
Filed under: Communications
Like
Subscribe
Follow