Most women start planning their weddings years in advance. They search for the perfect dress, the best disc jockey and the most impressive reception hall. But none of that really matters unless you have some liposuction and breast augmentation before tying the knot, right?

Well, that’s the message “Bridalplasty,” a reality show on E!, sends to viewers. The series, which premiered last Sunday, follows brides-to-be as they compete to win plastic surgery procedures. Yeah, it’s as ridiculous as it sounds.

My roommate was flipping through the channels last Sunday night and landed on the show, and I couldn’t believe what I was watching. Twelve girls were racing to complete a puzzle to win a syringe, which was the pass to an exclusive “injectables party.” If this is how the show starts, I can’t imagine where it will end.

Of course, all the girls featured on the show rattled off a laundry list of procedures they believe they need to be the “perfect” brides. Although I’m guilty of watching the first episode out of intrigue and disbelief, it will be the first and last time I waste my time on the show. It’s easily the most repulsive and creepiest thing I’ve ever seen.

Not only does the show send the message that a woman’s worth is based only on her physical appearance, but also that it’s her duty to attain the highest level of beauty possible by any means. The featured brides-to-be are all capable of finding body imperfections that aren’t there — many of the women are in good physical shape, and only one contestant is over the age of 30. When average-looking viewers see that even these young and attractive women are capable of finding faults, how will they feel about their own bodies?

It’s sad that these women have grown up in a world where so much importance is placed on their appearance, but it’s even more disgraceful that E! has taken advantage of their low self-esteem to air this show.

But “Bridalplasty” doesn’t just do a good job at humiliating women, it also undercuts the whole tradition of marriage. The show’s website features a bride holding a disturbing bouquet of syringes. Forget marrying for love, “Bridalplasty” suggests the aisle way is reserved for only those who are made of and injected with plastic — it’s the only way you can have a dream wedding, after all. Many believe that same-sex marriage will lessen the sanctity of unity, but what message is this show sending about the tradition?

There is still hope for Americans, as only 900,000 tuned in for the first episode. I think many will be put-off after watching about two seconds of the show, and it will hopefully be pulled off air after one season. Many bizarre reality shows stick around for laughs, but this is even too sad for that.

See this column on thelantern.com

“You seriously don’t have a soul if you watch ‘Teen Mom.’”

I overheard that statement on campus during a conversation about the show. I’ve found that people either love or hate the MTV reality show, which follows the lives of four troubled teenage mothers. Everyone has an opinion about it, and I admit that I’m a fan.

“It’s not doing anything but making teen pregnancy more popular,” is something I hear every time “Teen Mom” comes up in conversation. But I just don’t get it. What is it about the show that glamorizes teen pregnancy? The countless times Amber swings at on-again, off-again fiancé Gary on national television? Is it Maci having to file for child support for her young son, Bentley? Or maybe it’s Catelynn and Tyler, who gave up their daughter so she could have the life they knew they couldn’t provide?

I cannot pick out one situation in the show that would motivate a teen to have a baby, and it doesn’t seem like a lot of teens can pick one out either. In a public opinion poll conducted by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, 79 percent of girls and 67 percent of boys said watching shows like “Teen Mom” and “16 and Pregnant” make them think about the risks of getting pregnant and ways to avoid it. In a separate study by the same group, 93 percent of the respondents agreed with the statement: “I learned that teen parenthood is harder than I imagined from these episodes.”

The show’s influence doesn’t seem to stop at the end of an episode, either. Seventy-six percent of adolescents polled said seeing sex, love and relationships in the media can be a good way to start conversation about sex with parents, and 48 percent said they actually had a conversation with their parents because of something they saw in the media. As it’s often difficult and embarrassing for children and parents to discuss anything related to sex, this study offers some promising news.

Teenagers don’t like to be preached at and most won’t listen when their parents or teachers do. “Teen Mom” excels in this area because teens are sharing life lessons with their peers through experience. It’s not an in-your-face way of teaching. It’s entertaining TV that’s capable of sending a strong message.

The Kaiser Family Foundation has paid for reproduction of the series so it can be used by organizations trying to reduce teen pregnancy. Even schools are taking notice of the show, and many are using it as a part of their sex education classes, with success.

I don’t find “Teen Mom” flawless, however. The show has turned the young moms into celebrities — just look on the cover of any gossip magazine. The mothers also get paid — MTV is a television network trying to make money, after all. It’s difficult to find official information when it comes to money, but the young women don’t seem to have access to the cash as of now. All the parents have money problems, especially Farrah, who was the victim of a scam on Craigslist and asked for more shifts at work to make up for the loss. We know the moms are being compensated for airing their lives on television, but I don’t think it makes their experiences any less real. Money or no money, Catelynn and Tyler will still have to wait until the next visiting period to see the daughter they gave up for adoption, and Amber will always have to deal with the fact that she didn’t graduate high school. Money doesn’t fix everything, and I think teens watching the show realize that.

Even though I admit MTV overplays a lot of the situations on commercials, the show is about real human life. There’s no sugarcoating — viewers see Amber yelling “Daddy’s a cheater” at her young daughter, Leah, and hitting and calling Gary names right in front of her child. In one episode, Farrah leaves her baby unattended in the hallway of her apartment complex while she works in her new home, and in another, her child suffers from a fall when Farrah leaves her unattended on a bed. I’d say these pitfalls are all better forms of birth control than the average sex education class.

You might hold a different opinion of the show, but know that it has an impact on teens. America has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the industrialized world, and any method that informs teens is welcome. I appreciate what the show is trying to do — and I’m pretty sure I still have a soul.

See this column on thelantern.com

For the past two and a half months that I’ve been here, Nashville has become my home. There are certainly things I’ll miss about my time here:

-feeling like a part of CMT

- being a mile away from a mall (a good thing for me, a bad thing from my bank account… haha)

-not having to fight for parking at my apartment

-the Nashville skyline

-lots of country music

- the YMCA, which unlike campus, isn’t packed 24/7

-Nashville nightlife

I hesitated with the Nashville nightlife thing. While I only really got to experience downtown at night during Amanda’s visit, we had a lot of fun. The atmosphere is great and there’s a lot of places to choose from. On the other hand, unlike campus, Nashville bars bring in a lot of older people. This includes my experience of being hit on by a 35-year-old who just got out of jail and Amanda being hit on by a 50-year-old who told her she should cheat on her fiance. At least in Columbus, the bar goers are pretty much all college aged.

There are also things about Nashville that I won’t particularly miss:

-the parking garage at work that has a stairwell that smells like, well, someone’s personal toilet

-Nashville downpours — Every time it has rained here, it doesn’t sprinkle. If you get caught out in the rain, you will be drenched.

-being interrupted during my lunch break to be asked to buy stolen products or to watch an “important religious video”

-people who rave about “southern hospitality” — Every one here seems to think that people from the north are just rude, and the people here are a lot friendlier. Now that I’ve lived in both places, I can’t really say that this is true. There are rude and friendly people anywhere you go, and that includes the south. My experiences with people in both the north and the south haven’t really been that different.

-Nashville drivers — Driving in any city can get hectic, I guess. But it would really help me out if you used a turn signal before you totally cut into my lane two feet in front of my bumper.

-being really far away from my best friends and family

This list doesn’t have the purpose to advertise the great things about Nashville (or to be hateful about it), but to just share about my experience here. Every place, no matter where you go, has it’s positives and negatives, including Columbus and my hometown, and those things are different for every one. I have exactly one week left here, so let’s see what I can add to this list!

Wednesday, the day of the CMT Music Awards, I volunteered to be a talent escort. I was assigned to Hank Williams Jr. for the night. I was responsible for keeping track of him – making sure he made it to rehearsals on time and was in his dressing room at the top of the show for the opening number. Basically, if he ventured anywhere besides his dressing room, I just had to know where he was so they didn’t lose him. I got to lead him around backstage, and saw many performers. It was a really cool experience; backstage at an awards show is crazy!

I looked at the photos on CMT.com the next morning, and look what I found! haha Can you spot me in this picture? I’m right behind Hank Jr.’s shoulder!

View the picture on CMT.com here.

After Hank Williams Jr. got on stage for his performance, I had to leave and get back to the CMT office to help out with the website. I helped out with making photo galleries of the show to be uploaded onto the site.

The next day, I went with an office worker to take pictures of fan fair down at the Nashville Convention Center. It’s crazy down there! A bunch of fans wait hours in line just to see their favorite singers and performers. We took some pictures, and a couple of mine ended up on CMT.com.

Jake Owen

Melissa Peterman

Mindy McCready

View this album on CMT.com here.

On Friday, I tagged along to cover Josh Turner’s fan club party. It was a fun time and I got to take some pictures for the website again!

View the Josh Turner album on CMT.com here.

So this is what I’ve been up too lately! It’s been a really fun week and I got to help out a lot at the office. Let me know what you think of the pictures!

Well, I made it to Nashville! I’m all settled into my summer apartment and I’m on day three of my internship here at CMT. It’s still all kind of wild to me; working here is pretty awesome! I even get my own cubicle, and of course, I had to take a picture of my name tag when no one was looking lol

So far I’ve been working on promos for the site that went up this morning. They are basically just links to new content on the website, or whatever we think people would be interested in seeing. I’m most excited for the CMT Music Awards coming up on June 9. I haven’t really gotten a definitive answer on what I will be doing yet, but I’m sure I’ll be happy with whatever it is. I also get to take pictures of performances during the CMA Fest, which will be created into photo galleries for the website. Leonardo would be so proud! haha Unlike class, we get to shoot in automatic, though. At least I understand how to operate a camera manually in case something doesn’t work out the way I want it to.

All in all, I’ve been having a pretty great time. I’m getting used to my surroundings and can find my way around a little better now. The CMT building is huge, though, and I can probably still manage to get lost in it.

I’m looking forward to my friends and family who have said they plan on visiting. I’m allowed to bring in people after hours to show them around the building and where I work… I will probably just get us lost! haha Anyways, be on the look out for my updates!

So, there’s one week until I move down to Nashville for the summer for my internship at CMT! I don’t know whether to feel excited or nervous – I guess it’s a mix of both. Right now I’m trying to work ahead on all of my class work, as I’m leaving school two weeks before the quarter is actually over. It stinks that Ohio State gets out so late, but I’m really lucky that my professors all agreed to let me leave early! I started making lists of things that I have to do before I leave, and it just seems to get longer and longer. I will get everything done though!

All of the interns created a group on facebook, and some of them have added me as a friend. A lot of them have already started at CMT, and I’ve been reading their statuses and looking at the pictures they post. It makes me nervous that I’m not there yet; I’m in the last group orientation because of school. Oh well, maybe since they’ve been there for a little longer they can help me know what’s going on when I get there!

I plan on updating this while I’m in Nashville, so be watching for new posts!

He’s a self-described average Joe.

“I’m still putting central air in my house. I’m a basic kind of guy,” Colt Ford said. “I’m not slicked up; I’m a fat dude from Georgia.”

Despite what he might say, Ford isn’t your typical Southern man. He’s an up-and-coming country music artist who has sold more than 163,000 CDs in the last 13 months, averages 50,000 plays per day on MySpace and has recorded songs with some big names, including Joe Nichols, Rhett Akins and DMC (of Run-DMC fame).

Ford isn’t concerned with statistics, though.

“I’ve never thought about (fame) in my life, to be honest,” Ford said. “What I want to do is make the best possible songs. Whatever fame comes from that, I’ll take whatever it is.”

With a talent for writing and a voice that Ford explains as having “limitations,” his music is spoken-word, sometimes mixed with a little hip-hop. Ford’s music isn’t something you would expect to hear in a regular country music radio line-up.

“I’m not sure what traditional country music is,” Ford said. “I wouldn’t consider Taylor Swift or Rascal Flatts traditional country either.”

Ford said that his spoken-word style is similar to Charlie Daniels in “The Devil Goes Down to Georgia,” and Toby Keith’s “I Want to Talk About Me.”
Whatever Ford’s style might be, just don’t call his music country rap.

“First of all, rap isn’t a genre, it’s a vocal style,” Ford said. “I’ve never heard people refer to Charlie Daniels as a rapper. Before people hear (my music), it makes them think about it in a negative way.”

Despite the negative connotation, Ford’s music draws in a wide range of fans. He said that kids as young as 5 or 6 come to his shows, and people as old as 75 and 80 can also be spotted in the crowd.

“Being on the stage, anytime people show up, I’m still amazed,” he said.

To show his appreciation, Ford said he treats his fans well. He said he stays after every performance to sign autographs.

“I don’t understand singers who have a big ego and won’t sign after shows,” Ford said. “I don’t care how late it is, I’ll stay.”

Ford is also very strict with his ticket prices. If he’s the only one performing, the ticket price is going to stay at $20.

“I’ve had some problems with people trying to run (the ticket price) up and it p—– me off. It’s not right; I don’t care who you are,” he said.

Low ticket prices means low stage theatrics, however. But that’s not something Ford is concerned with.

“Some singers have it all — there’s rollercoasters on the stage. When you put it all on the stage, that’s fine. But people come for the music. I’d rather plug-in and put on a kick-ass show.”

Colt Ford will be performing at 8 p.m. Friday at Screamin’ Willies.

You can read the original story at thelantern.com : Colt Ford anything but your average Joe

You could certainly say that Carrie Underwood’s stage is a reflection of her fame.

The reigning Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year made a stop at the Value City Arena Tuesday night as a part of her 45-city tour for her most recent album, “Play On.”

During the nearly two-hour long show, Underwood displayed the voice that has won her many country music awards. Her stage, which was laden with several special effects, seemed to be fighting for the crowd’s attention, however.

Complete with several display screens, fog machines and a platform that seemed to move in more directions than Willy Wonka’s elevator, the high-tech stage put on a show of its own. During Underwood’s cover of John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” a blue pick-up truck emerged and carried the singer high above the crowd.

“It’s the only way to travel, ladies and gentleman,” Underwood said, looking down into a field of flashing cameras.

Underwood contributed to the action-packed night with a total of eight wardrobe changes. In between every song, Underwood seemed to lose a piece of clothing that would change the look of her outfit. All the while, the singer ran around in heels that would cause a woman’s feet to hurt after just one glance — let alone Underwood’s zigzagging across the stage all night.

The country crooner showed the crowd that her list of talents doesn’t end with singing. During the twenty-song set list, she strummed a guitar during “Some Hearts,” and played a glittering-white piano during “Mama’s Song.”

Although the stage and props were entertaining, they were more suited for a lip-syncing pop-star singer who’s in desperate need of a crutch. For a singer that has a voice as big and impressive as Underwood’s, it’s over-the-top. She just didn’t need all the extras; her voice was enough.

Underwood, 27, shined the most when the stage settled down and the visuals relaxed. When all attention was focused on her, the crowd could appreciate the big voice this woman possesses.

All eyes were focused on Underwood when she performed “Jesus Take the Wheel” and her current single, “Temporary Home.” Perhaps the audience was in awe, because the crowd, who sang along with Underwood most of the night, fell quiet during these more personal songs. Most likely, the crowd just couldn’t produce the high notes Underwood is capable of.

The Oklahoma native brought both of her opening acts back on stage during the course of the night. Sons of Sylvia, a group that sounded closer to rock than country, came out to perform “What Can I Say,” a song the group also assisted Underwood with on the studio recording. Craig Morgan, the second opening act, came out and performed an impressive cover of Alan Jackson’s “Don’t Rock the Jukebox” with Underwood.

The most impressive duet of the night was with a singer that wasn’t even present, however. Randy Travis made a guest appearance on the display screens and a recording provided all the backing Underwood needed to make Travis’ original song, “I Told You So,” one of the best performances of the night.

You can also read and comment on this review at thelantern.com:

Carrie Underwood comes to Columbus

Vince Labbe prepares to surf the cold waters of Lake Eerie. The waves are the strongest there during the fall and winter months. Photo by Jamie Lanak.

Vince Labbe waits on the shore of Lake Eerie. Photo by Robby Staebler.

Surfing in Ohio??? I didn’t know that was possible, but as it turns out, it is. And during the winter, too!

Tom Heinrich, a 2005 graduate of Ohio State, is the writer of “Out of Place,” a documentary that features the life of surfers who call Lake Eerie home. The film has been shown at film festivals and is drawing in a lot of interest.

For the whole story, visit thelantern.com:

Documentary follows surfers in Ohio

This quarter I’m assistant arts editor for The Lantern and an undergraduate teaching assistant for Comm. 426, a multimedia journalism class. On top of being a full-time student, I should be pretty busy!

 So, good-bye Winter Quarter, and hello Spring Quarter! I hope every thing goes well!