Honor Roll

Honor Roll

Secret Lullaby Factory

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  • bethany
    February 22, 2013 at 1:15 pm

    Yeah… about that ad campaign. It does make the assumption that all of its listeners are of the same stage and walk of life, so I can see why it annoys and offends some. I have enough people in my family urging me to procreate when I’m not ready; I don’t want to hear it from my favorite radio station, too. I would think that WBEZ has a better grasp of their listenership than that.

    • Making it Lovely
      February 22, 2013 at 3:32 pm

      I don’t think the assumption is that the listeners are all at the same stage, but rather they’re trying to appeal to a portion of their readers. Public radio audiences are diverse, and many are much older than the demographic these ads are targeting.

  • Kate
    February 22, 2013 at 1:42 pm

    I was distracted from reading the story about the ad campaign when I noticed this line at the end of the story: (And only true haters, and Richard Marx, can hate Rick Kogan.) I was surprised that the link took me to yet another online Richard Marx rant. Am I the only one a little bit amused by his angry online persona?

    • Making it Lovely
      February 22, 2013 at 3:33 pm

      I know! Chicago is really hating on Richard Marx lately. (And he is, bizarrely, a good target.)

  • Eugenia
    February 22, 2013 at 2:04 pm

    As a demographic, public radio listeners have higher education levels and incomes than most Americans. Statistically speaking, the greater your socioeconomic status, the fewer children you have. An ad encouraging educated high-earners–described here as “interesting”–to have more children flatters the advantaged while setting them apart from the uninteresting(read: poor and/or uneducated). Heteronormative? Sure. Eugenicist? Not exactly. Smug? Absolutely.

    • Making it Lovely
      February 22, 2013 at 3:26 pm

      But are the ads themselves smug, or the reactions to it? The ad reflects the current marketing tactic of appealing to a demographic (“interesting” people, e.g. educated, culturally curious), while not selling anything outright. I tend to like that, especially when it’s done in an irreverent way. It’s a joke, but one that also builds brand awareness and recognition for WBEZ.

  • Jeanette
    February 22, 2013 at 2:51 pm

    I did a shout-out about Making it Lovely on my blog today! Keep up the great posts :)
    http://simplychicforcheap.wordpress.com/2013/02/22/friday-favorites-blogs/

  • Wendy @ New Moms Talk
    February 22, 2013 at 3:02 pm

    Thank you for sharing the secret lullaby factory. My husband has written a series of lullabies inspired by our daughter in addition to the other children’s books he’s published.

    Our little girl is in love with her Daddy’s nightly reading of poetry and singing lullabies to her as she swings or hangs out in his arms. I’m in love with watching them enjoy each other and their special time.

  • Miss B.
    February 22, 2013 at 3:06 pm

    Nicole the lullaby factory is so magical! It seems like something out of a Roald Dahl story!

  • Chris
    February 22, 2013 at 3:13 pm

    The campaign is light-hearted and funny, that’s all. I am married and unable to have children. I feel sorry for those who get offended and hurt every time they hear “make a baby” just because they won’t/can’t/aren’t ready to themselves. Life must be pretty sad all the time for them, and there’s no reason it should be. Should everyone else be expected to stop pro-creating just because I and others can’t? Or be banned from mentioning it or making jokes about it? Silliness.

    • Making it Lovely
      February 22, 2013 at 3:37 pm

      A lot of my friends were offended as women, seeing the campaign as telling them what they should be doing with their wombs. Men can “make a baby” too, and there are options for non-traditional couples or single people if you want to extrapolate, but that’s beside the point. It’s not meant to be taken so seriously.

      • Amelia
        February 22, 2013 at 4:17 pm

        I hear what you’re saying, and I can hear the lighthearted, irreverent intention of the ads. But I can also hear the ads as exclusionary and smug. The cute underlying idea just wasn’t executed well enough to eliminate that way of hearing them, which is just as valid as the fun way that you hear them. And I think that responding to people who bring up those issues the old “oh, lighten up, it’s just a joke” is an unfortunate dismissal of real concerns, whether or not one shares those concerns. It’s what bullies say when people complain about their behavior.

        Those ads are speaking to the wealthy (“interesting”), heterosexual portion of the WBEZ listener base. And what the people who are objecting are pointing out is that WBEZ, which presents itself as progressive and forward thinking, is paying attention to (or privileging) the same exact people who always receive privilege; they’re marginalizing the same exact people who always get marginalized. So this self-proclaimed progressive group is doing exactly the same thing that the rest of society does. And that’s icky, and lazy thinking, especially from a group of folks that really ought to know better.

  • Kathryn
    February 22, 2013 at 4:08 pm

    “It was worth it.

    It wasn’t worth it.

    It’s always worth it.

    It never is.” Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

  • Catherine
    February 22, 2013 at 4:31 pm

    Oh, that post by Girl’s Gone Child is so true. I think all moms struggle with guilt, whether we work outside or inside the home, and we all definitely work. I’m a loyal supporter of my local public radio station, but I often change the station during pledge week because it’s so boring. At least people are talking about WBEZ, which makes it brilliant. And those tiny mice in matchboxes are so adorable. I want one for myself!

  • Kelly
    February 22, 2013 at 8:07 pm

    I think the WBEZ ads are funny. We do need more people in the world that care about the current state of affairs. Did you catch the Harper High School episodes on This American Life this & last week – that is important stuff!

    • Making it Lovely
      February 26, 2013 at 10:39 pm

      I did hear the Harper episodes. Hearing the people from other high schools at the end, about how Harper isn’t as isolated an experience as we would hope, made me tear up.

  • Amanda
    February 23, 2013 at 9:51 am

    Thanks for another great Honor Roll. That Girl’s Gone Child link has really stuck with me. I’m in the middle of deciding whether to hire help or stop working altogether and the guilt I feel is so overwhelming sometimes I feel like I’ll be sick. Guilt over not contributing to our income, guilt over not being the one who lays him down to nap (because I always have and it’s my job, right??), guilt over not fulfilling my own dreams… guilt upon guilt.

    • Making it Lovely
      February 26, 2013 at 10:40 pm

      I know. I’ve felt my fair share of guilt as well over these things.

  • deneise bucko
    February 23, 2013 at 11:56 pm

    Nicole- I signed up for the photography class you took on Manual photography. I got the on line class site off your blog. I want to order the workbook but for the life of my I can’t remember the site. I have researched my email but can’t find it. I thought it was click it up a notch but no… can you help me ? Also, I have been studying the back autofocus button, I don’t get it do you? do you press the back button then click to take shot? Anyway thought you might be a faster learner…

    I have been taking pictures of weddings, engagement shoots…but only by winging it and little by little teaching myself. Can’t wait to take the manual course on line….Thank you for suggesting it on your blog!!!

  • deneise bucko
    February 24, 2013 at 12:15 am

    Nicole,

    One more question on the back autofocus. On your canon do you do anything different on settings ? Because your not half click then to focus, you are just clicking. Ugh!!!

    • Making it Lovely
      February 26, 2013 at 10:44 pm

      You do have to change the settings. On my Canon 7D, it’s under the “C.FnIV:Operation/Others” menu.

  • Kate S
    February 25, 2013 at 6:56 pm

    I think the ad campaign thing is pretty inoffensive and a pretty lame attempt at humor as well.

  • Karen
    February 25, 2013 at 8:24 pm

    Thanks for the links! I think the ad campagin is hilarious. I laughed out loud, anyway. As for “interesting people making interesting people” – that crosses all socio-economic boundaries. Who says you have to be rich or well educated to be interesting. The commenters on the site seemed to be bothered by the “interesting” comment. I’m with you. Funny.

  • GirlsGoneChild
    February 26, 2013 at 3:51 pm

    Thank you so much for linking to my post, sister friend. You’re wonderful.

  • Betsy
    March 6, 2013 at 9:00 am

    Really? People are taking that radio campaign seriously? Folks need to lighten up.

  • Kate
    March 16, 2013 at 11:44 pm

    The ad campaign is funny, not offensive.

    I’m a librarian, and I refer to the kids who come to the library as “little taxpayers” or “future taxpayers” all the time. For me, it’s a lighthearted way to remind the older and more crotchety staff that those little people keep us all in a job, since they represent 60% of the people who come to the library. So we better be nice to them–support for the library in the coming years depends on it.