Impact of Media on Marketing and Content Strategies

"India is one of the world's most important media markets." On the other hand, the concentration of media ownership suggests that only a few people own and control Indian media. Our research looks into media plurality and ownership structures. "This is a crucial endeavor to promote media ownership transparency, which is fundamental to media's reputation and relationship with audiences," said Syed Nazakat, the founder and CEO of DataLEADS. The author claims that "this endeavor will provide a useful data and resource foundation for future media research in the country."

India's media landscape is also shaped by the country's size. The Registrar of Newspapers had over 118,239 publications registered as of March 31, 2018, including over 36,000 weekly magazines, according to the latest recent data. The country has over 550 FM radio stations and over 880 satellite TV channels, according to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, with over 380 claiming to deliver "news and current events." The sheer number of news websites available in India is staggering. The country's cultural and ethnic diversity, as well as its large number of media channels, do not, however, automatically translate into a diverse supply. On the other side, the Media Ownership Monitor reveals a clear trend toward content concentration and, ultimately, control.

The media industry is vital to informing and entertaining the general public. While the media industry offers numerous national options to the public, local media outlets are more likely than national sources to present local programming that meets the needs of residents in the market. 

While many firms are scrambling to capitalize on new direct-to-consumer channels, few have altered their brand narratives or content development strategies as they migrate from paying others to broadcast their content to use it for direct consumer engagement. Despite the opportunities, few companies — and even fewer of their agencies — appear to have the content, process, and procedures in place to fully profit from direct audience delivery. While the current brand-agency paradigm has been successful in exploiting search and social algorithms to distribute "brand" materials more efficiently, the efforts that have arisen from this approach have failed to deliver on three crucial elements: engagement, efficiency, and scale.

While many firms are scrambling to capitalize on new direct-to-consumer channels, few have altered their brand narratives or content development strategies as they migrate from paying others to broadcast their content to use it for direct consumer engagement. Despite the opportunities, few companies — and even fewer of their agencies — appear to have the content, process, and procedures in place to fully profit from direct audience delivery. While the current brand-agency paradigm has been successful in exploiting search and social algorithms to distribute "brand" materials more efficiently, the efforts that have arisen from this approach have failed to deliver on three crucial elements: engagement, efficiency, and scale.

Covid-19's Impact on Stakeholders

COVID-19 has been lethal in its spread, and the federal government, as well as state governments, are working to confront this public health calamity. In times of crisis, however, it demonstrates that democratic administrations can take a hazardous totalitarian turn. In this perspective, journalism has been envisioned as a venue for objective information and critical-rational discourse, and it serves an important role in a democracy. The health of a country's journalism can thus be judged in times of crisis.

Few economic sectors appear to have done well during the Covid19 crisis. The media sector is one of them. The need for knowledge has never been higher, but the amount of time accessible has never been lower. According to Muck Rack Trends, more than 2.6 million articles about coronavirus have been written since the beginning of the year (this figure doubled over the past week). We gave a webinar at Identity earlier this week about all aspects of COVID-19 internal and external communication. We received a resoundingly positive response as well as a plethora of relevant feedback from participants all throughout the country. During that speech, the current state of the media was a key topic of discussion.

However, most media outlets' corporate dominance suggests that they have become a weapon of the state's ideological architecture. There are some factors surrounding the COVID-19 disaster, including under-resourced public health systems, pandemic policies, and a lack of preparedness and assistance for the most vulnerable. These are critical issues that must be addressed, but the mainstream media, with a few bold exceptions, appears to be abdicating its democratic responsibilities. A crucial signal is the demonization of migrant workers and minorities while failing to criticize the lack of efforts taken to help these groups deal with the situation.

With history being written right in front of our eyes, organizations must soothe their concerns about being a part of the COVID-19 story. Almost every news story for the foreseeable future will be interpreted through the lens of this life-changing event. We've never seen such a hunger for other viewpoints on this subject. Consumer, business, and trade media outlets have all inquired about how the outbreak is affecting the people and industries they cover. The immediate impact of the pandemic has transformed not only the focus of journalism but also the way newsrooms operate.

Customer behavior and, as a result, advertising are influenced by COVID-19. Budgets for advertising have shifted in response to shifts in customer behavior. Advertisers should avoid wasting money on ineffective material. When global confinement measures were imposed, out-of-home and cinema advertising, as well as print advertising, shrank dramatically. 

Meanwhile, media use at home has soared. Although television viewership has increased, digital consumption has increased even more: the usage of social media platforms and streaming services has climbed almost everywhere, and gaming has exploded. Advertisers have reacted by following their customers, indicating that digital advertising has become a primary focus. The online environment is ripe for "direct response" marketing, which pushes customers to make quick decisions. This is a tempting offer for businesses on a tight budget looking to boost sales.

Is the Media Going Increasingly Corrupt?

As we all must know by now, no media in the world operates without an agenda. the product or rather expression that is famously known as the 'fourth estate' is slowly dissolving and losing its credibility as an independent medium that voices the issues in the world. 

In India's history, the media has been seen as important, patriotic, and trustworthy in the country's socioeconomic and political milieu. However, with the rise of TRP and the bought news environment in recent years, public faith in the media has plummeted, and the Indian democracy has become the biggest casualty. The media's embrace of crony capitalism is eroding journalism's profession and ethics. The heinous practice of accepting money or favors from corporations, governments, political parties, or large organizations in exchange for reporting good news about them is becoming increasingly frequent in journalism. As a result, the truth is not revealed, causing people to suffer and, ultimately, democracy to fail. In exchange for ad space and favorable coverage disguised as "news," the media has been obtaining secret treaties involving share transfers between media corporations and non-media companies. The 'paid news syndrome' is a term used to describe this situation.

The situation is not that different in other parts of the world as well. Let's take the United States of America, for example. In a vicious spiral of mutual manipulation, mythmaking, and self-interest, the news media and the government in the US are interwoven. Crises are necessary for journalists to dramatize news, and government leaders must appear to be responding to crises. Too often, crises are cooperative fabrications rather than genuine crises. The news media and the government have become so entangled in a symbiotic web of lies that neither can tell the people what is true, and neither can govern efficiently. The government and the news media have concocted a charade that suits their own interests while deceiving the people. Officials feed the media's desire for drama by inventing crises and staging their answers, so strengthening their own prestige and influence. Journalists are obligated to report on these lies. Both parties are aware that the articles are self-serving ruses that fail to inform the public about the more complicated but dull topics of government policy and activities.

As far as citizens are concerned, media is supposed to be independent. It is supposed to be a platform or medium that conveys only the truth and nothing but the truth to the public. Unfortunately, that is not what we get to experience now. Government and business houses that are financially influential have now taken media under their wing, helping them to influence and control the information the media puts out. 

How does Marketing Research Help a Brand Manager?

 

When research is used to determine the viability of a new service or product with the help of potential customers, it is known as market research. Market research allows companies to discover target markets and get consumer feedback and other feedback about their interest in products and services. More than anything else, research will help you understand all about the upcoming trends in the market and so much more. 

Based on the case study that we had gone through in class, this particular market research for a brand showed the difference in genders when it came to buying clothes. While men or rather the male participants who were in their teenage preferred status-giving brands as they wanted to buy into a world of fame, success and money, female participants, or teenage girls were oriented towards standing out in the crowd. They did not want to gain any status from their clothes. However, they just wanted to stand out in a sea of other girls like them. They also came empowered with their strong set of values. But, they were also interested in dabbling in the expensive brands as well. What stood out the most in the research was that girls liked to mix and match their outfits, they even liked personalizing them. 

Now, with this information, sellers can strengthen their buying capacity. Once a research is conducted, a brand manager gets a pretty good idea on the type and quality of products each of their target group would want. Based on this, they can increase the sales of some particular products and even figure out where they incur their losses. While male participants would be seen shopping from expensive brands, fashion matters more to the female participants. 

As a potential brand manager for a clothing brand, I would decide to increase the number of styles that a girl can choose from. Since they like personalizing their outfit and even choosing out everything from scratch, if I have a brand that caters to this idea, I will see an increase in sales. Also, based on the age of a group of girls, I will cater to the type of models and cloth quality they would rather prefer at that age. 

If I had to take a decision as a brand for teenage boys, rather than opening it up as one store for everyone, I would open a store only for boys. Based on the research we've done, we know that boys are more interested in clothes that would increase their status in the society. They are more inclined towards clothes and brands that will help them earn their name in the society and help them maintain it. Customizing the garments for the boys will help me sell more.

How Has Symbolic Interactionism Influenced My Life?

 In simple words, the symbolic interactionism theory tells us that a human being co-habituates both in the natural and the symbolic environment. While the natural environment tells us how to behave in a certain social setting, the symbolic environment makes us who we are today. The best way to understand how symbolic interactionism works is to understand how individuals interact between after being influenced by the symbols around us. 

If somebody asks what symbolic interactionism means to me, the first time I experienced it would be in front of a public washroom. Ever since I remember, a stick figure with a dress or a symbol pertaining to the woman meant that it was the woman's washroom and the exact opposite for the men's washroom. I had been so used to this that if ever I went to a hotel or a mall where the washrooms were the slightest level of confusing, I just didn't know what to do. Little did I realize that this would just be the beginning of how symbolic interaction would play with my life. 

Then came the era of being hooked on the super-hit American sitcom, "F.R.I.E.N.D.S". What they said was funny to me. No matter how problematic the jokes were, I had begun to think that these were the jokes that were funny. It was only until later that I realized that the jokes I used to laugh to, the jokes I thought were "cool", were in fact, dangerously problematic. It took me a lot of socially constructed shows to understand that the shows I adore, did indeed have a lot of issues with them. 

Perhaps, the biggest role symbolic interaction played in my life would be the innumerable gender issues I have faced and is still facing. When a girl child is born in India, she is told to behave a certain way, talk a certain way, and even live a certain way. Thankfully, I never had to deal with this as my parents were pretty progressive that way. Neither have they ever told me to "behave like a girl" nor told me that "this is how a girl should be". But, that's not how the society works, is it? Every single chance they have got, the community around me has reminded me that I am a girl, and I can't do certain things. Knowingly or unknowingly, this has influenced me to a great extent that somewhere in my life, I still think twice when I have to do something that an Indian girl would not normally do. 

Having said all this, what I have understood is that no matter how hard you try, symbol interactionism will creep into your life and will end up playing the role of that one Indian uncle in every family who will influence you throughout your life, even if you do not want that to happen.

A Glimpse into Multicultural Advertising

We live in an advertising-driven world. Of course, this is a world that we have created. We don't enjoy paying full price for products, so we let others pay a portion of the price in exchange for passing a message on to us. So, when we open our favorite magazine, there are dazzling advertisements for clothes, shoes, vehicles, and alcohol. When we turn on the television, we are greeted by cheerful faces attempting to sell us soup, toothpaste, sweets, and politicians.

What we often don't realize is if what we're seeing is an international brand's ad, then it will have a very similar ad in different parts of the country too. While we might only be seeing a part of it in India, ads like this will be aired in all parts of the world. When the same ad is portrayed almost the same way, it becomes a sort of multicultural marketing. Multicultural marketing is crucial because it recognizes the value of your audience's uniqueness and embraces them. Multicultural marketing allows brands to directly appeal to different subgroups and persuade them to engage with the brand.

To drive the point home, the ad I have taken here is made by Coca-Cola. A very famous aerated beverage, Coca-Cola is the favorite of a lot of people. So it is no surprise that it has advertisements aired in almost all parts of the world. The advertisement we are taking into consideration is that of a teenage girl who falls for a handsome hunk who drinks the beverage in a very dreamy way. This particular advertisement was aired in many parts of the world with the tagline, "Taste the Feeling." 

In this ad, you can see how everything is the same from the dress the actors are made to wear to how the ad is structured. Although the three ads are from three different parts of the world such as Asia, Europe, and Africa, it tries to portray the same emotion. If we try to find the physical differences that can be seen in the ad, those are very minor things like the Asian girl eating a lollipop and having more Asian-oriented food preferences in the background when compared to the other two ads. 

When going into detail about the multicultural appeal these ads have, it is safe to say that it does have a strong appeal in itself. It's all about personalizing your message to the people you're marketing to in multicultural marketing. The days of a single message that worked for all demographics are long gone. To be successful with a marketing campaign these days, you must consider not only ethnicity but also trends and pop-cultural allusions. This is exactly what these advertisements have done. Based on the particular region they are marketing for, they have tailored the ad according to the area they are marketing in. 

As for the target audience or the TA of this ad, it is directed at youth from the age of 20 to early '30s. This ad showcases tones of flirtation, seduction, playfulness, cuteness, and beauty. While the heroine of the ad is a young girl who's bored sitting at the store, the hero of the ad is a handsome guy who the teenage girl instantly falls for. Meanwhile, the unintended TA of the ad would be people who are already addicted to Coca-Cola, people who have liked the ad, and young children who easily get influenced by almost anything. 

Although this gives you an idea about what multicultural advertising is and how a simple advertisement differs from region to region, This happens as consumers now, more than ever, demand authenticity and humanity from their sellers. Being genuine fosters trust, mutual goals, and a sense of security that you, as a vendor, empathise with and understand your customers. 

Letter from a Chatterbox

It was two days ago that Whatsapp, Facebook, and Instagram crashed and majority of the world spiralled into what is known as a social media blackout. Not using my phone for quite some time got me thinking, "what would life be like without social media?" I cannot even think of a life without social media. The constant catching up with friends, stalking celebrities, and sending memes. Whatever would I do in a social media blackout? When my cousin put up a status saying that the social media blackout made him realise how cool his wife was, it made me laugh. Then, it got me thinking. Has it really come to a situation where we need a legit social media blackout to force us to 'sit and talk' to each other?

That being said, my most preferred form of communication will always be talking to people when they're just an arm's distance away from me. I don't like texting people, I sure do like calling people. However, there's nothing quite like looking into the eyes of a person and talking to them about everything under the sun. I am old-school that way. I do not want to 'Whatsapp' you, neither do I want to 'DM' you. If there's something I need to tell you, I will rather do it over call or just come over to your home and talk to you. 

There's no such preferred platform as such I would choose for my preferred form of communication. As it's just talking to the people around you, you simply need to do one thing, go up to them, open your mouth, and talk. Although it now seems hard for a lot of people especially after the pandemic and all, nothing speaks comfort to me like talking to a person about anything and everything. Even though the world is changing and people prefer 'digital' than 'traditional', I will always be that one old soul who can keep all her digital 'helpers' away and talk away the night with her close ones. 

To connect with different people, both old and new, I just talk. If it's a new person who's some into my life, I strike up a conversation with them to know what they and I have in common. If it's someone who has been in my life for sometime now, then they already know by now that I talk, a lot. So social media blackout or not, it may feel a little weird without my memes, video calls, and messages, but I will always love to talk! 

'ZODIAC'- MOVIE REVIEW

A movie based on the life of the infamous 'Zodiac Killer' that shook America, Zodiac is a movie critically acclaimed by people all around the world. From the honest opinion of a movie lover, the film starts off slow and boring, but if you are a person who gets obsessed with the lives of serial killers like I do, then this movie is for you!

The movie tells the story of the real-life zodiac killer, who struck California in the late 60's and 70's, and left a huge trail of bodies all over the city. A mix of all things, the movie is a police procedural, part monster movie, and ends up making you think about another of Fincher's masterpiece, the famous movie, Seven.

Informed by history and steeped in pulp fiction, “Zodiac” stars a trio of beauties — Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr., and Mark Ruffalo — who are all at the top of their game and recorded by cinematographer Harris Savides in out-of-sight high-definition digital. Mr. Gyllenhaal, who plays real-life cartoonist turned writer Robert Graysmith, is the show's sly star, but he doesn't emerge from the shadows until the bodies and inquiries have subsided. Mr. Ruffalo struts his stuff as Dave Toschi, the San Francisco police detective who taught Steve McQueen how to wear a gun in "Bullitt" and pursued Zodiac close to the ground. Mr. Downey plays Paul Avery, a showboating newspaper reporter who chased the killer in print, while Mr. Downey plays Paul Avery, a showboating newspaper reporter who chased the killer in print.

Zodiac is the serial killer version of "All the President's Men," with Woodward and Bernstein replaced by a cop and a cartoonist, respectively. It's not only "based" on the infamous Zodiac killings in California; it seems to radiate the case's odour and provocation. The killer, who was never apprehended, left so many clues that Sherlock Holmes might have solved the case while sitting in his sitting room. Only a newspaper cartoonist with enough tenacity and perseverance could build together a convincing case against a man who was maybe guilty. 

The way "Zodiac" avoids chases, shootouts, grandstanding, and false climaxes and instead follows the plodding course of police work is what makes it authentic. In the same manner that Woodward and Bernstein knocked on a lot of doors, made a lot of phone calls, and met a lot of unusual people, the detectives and Graysmith take strange paths in their investigation. We're concerned about Graysmith's naivete and risk-taking because he's unarmed and civilian, especially during a journey to a basement that is, in its own way, one of the best moments I've ever seen along those lines.

Although the movie is all about finding the Zodiac Killer, the way it connects to everything around you is when you see the characters developing and evolving as the movie progresses. Just like in "All The President's Men", although a large chunk of the movie talks about a real-life issue, the movie also gives equal importance to the characters changing into people they weren't at the beginning of the movie. 

My List of Emotions

 Everybody goes through a surge of emotions in life. And these are the things that made me feel those emotions in the past year:

1. FEAR: I have an insane fear of frogs. Ever since I have been little, I have always been scared of frogs. This past year, it looks like my fear of frogs have only increased. When it starts to rain, I can hear the frogs croaking their heart out. This is enough for me to stay inside until I can be sure that the sound cannot be heard anymore. I plan on overcoming this fear, but I don't see it happening anytime soon. 

2. LIKE: Over the past year or so, I have developed a liking for Mcaffeine products. As I started using them, I realized the changes that were happening to my skin. It became softer and smoother than before. And unlike other brands that used to harm my skin, on the contrary, Mcaffeine caused a real change!

3. LOVE: Just like the emotion suggests, I have always been in love with my dogs and my family. And, just like everyone, in the past year, all of us were stuck at home. To say that this brought us closer together would be an understatement. Now, no matter what, it is compulsory at our home to have one meal together. 

4. HATE: The one thing that I have always hated is papayas. I don't know why, but I have never been a fan of them. In a lockdown, we had a surplus of papayas at home, and just like everyone else, I was forced to eat them. Trust me, every single time I ate it, I hated it more. I think it is safe to say papayas will forever be on my list of hatred. 

5. AGREE: I always agree to eat chicken. No matter what mood I am in, or what I am feeling, I am always agreeing to eat anything made with chicken. In the last year, my intake of this product has increased. What I once used to eat once a month has become once in two weeks now. 

6. DISAGREE: I for one, have never been a person to support the current government. Just as I understand that people have various opinions, this is mine. Although some steps taken were commendable, I am not one to support them. After the arrival of the infamous virus, I seem to have more problems with them. 

7. WANT: I have always wanted a Mac of my own. The laptop by Apple has always fascinated me and kept me wanting it. I have started working in the last year and earning money. So, I have decided to save money and buy myself a Mac!

8. WISH YOU HAVE: I wish I would have the ability to organize things properly. For some time now, I have been hooked on videos of people restocking their drawers and fridges. Although it excites me a lot, I have never been one person who has been organized. However, I feel like this video might bring about a change in me. 

9. WOULD NEVER WANT: I would never want to come second again in a competition. Ever since I have started doing my Master's, I have always been coming second in all the pitches that have been happening in college. Although coming second and not winning has taught me a lot, I would just like to come first for once. 

10. BELIEVE IN: I have always had a strong belief in God. Never have I questioned hid doings. I do think that my faith in him has helped me power through the past year. Whenever the going got tough, I always turned to him, and he showed me the way. Even though I saw more downs than ups, I am happy that he is there to support me. 

Can a Person's Personality Change?

 "Hard work beats talents every time."

No personality and behavior will ever be the same when we are comparing two people. Especially when it comes to a workplace like a stock exchange, the personality you don will play a major role in your working methods. Some people truly believe that working in a stock exchange is just like conning someone of their livelihood. However, is it true? Let's find out.

Every workplace environment is different. While some can be pretty relaxing and stress-free, others can be pressuring, and filled with stress. No matter where you work, your personality and behavior play a major role in shaping you to be the professional you are. If you have been taught about sportsmanship from your early years, the failures that you face in your workplace will not be a problem for you. Even if you do face a failure which might be the cause for a setback, you'll learn that it's just going to motivate you further. These are the people who never give up, no matter what they face in life. 

Then there are people who just want to become rich. By hook or by crook, they just want to lead a luxurious life. And to attain this, they will go to any extent possible. Such people will be cunning, sly, and master manipulators. They will have good knowledge on how to make money by duping other people. For them, friends, family, co-employees, and everyone else that crosses paths with them are just that. They don't care about their well-being or happiness. 

Like mentioned before, people have various personalities. While some people become a certain way because of their upbringing, some behaviors are definitely intrinsic to the individual themself. For eg) We can see how Leonardo Di Caprio's character Jordan Belfort in the Wolf of Wall Street becomes attracted towards prostitution and drugs after he sees his bosses indulging in such activities. He also turns towards all of this after this becomes his first interaction with the real world. However, in the Boiler Room, Giovanni Ribsi's character Seth Davis decided to stop illegal stock brokerage after he realizes the consequences his action had on one of his clients. 

These movies show us that while some behaviors belong to some people no matter the situations they face in life, there are chances for a person's personality to change after a life-altering or life-changing occurrence. While some people do not change their personality even after several reasons to change it, others make a change mostly after they face a make-or-break situation. The perfect example for this is shown in the movie 'Catch Me If You Can'. Even after several close calls with the police and the FBI, our hero Frank Abagnale, played by Leonardo Di Caprio, doesn't change his ways of conning people, saying that he is how he is because of his upbringing. Finally when he is caught, he manages to turn his life around after an officer tells him that he has the potential to live a happy and content life. All of these movies further add on to people's belief that you have the power to change your personality around, if you put your mind to it. 

 

Do Emotions Play with our Moods?

We are often unaware of how our feelings and behaviors interact, and as a result of this interaction, modifying our behaviors can significantly impact our emotions. Changes in key behaviors can also help people overcome depression, and for many young people, this is the most direct way to help them change their moods.

Wishes, dreams, plans, predictions, decisions, and memories are examples of mental processes we refer to when we say "thoughts." Thoughts often include phrases, but they may also include images, speech, or even smells. Much of the time, we aren't aware of our thoughts; they operate in the background, assisting us in making choices and performing a variety of tasks. When we try to solve a puzzle, recall a past incident, or complete a specific task, such as writing a letter to a friend or learning a foreign language, we become aware of our feelings.

We all know that emotions are different from one individual to another. While a particular situation may make you feel scared, it might make me feel angry at the same time. You never know what one might be feeling, until and unless you actually ask them about it. It is very fascinating that a situation can make you feel many things, all at the same time. In "A Beautiful Mind", you can see how Nash suffers from schizophrenia. Although the life of John has not been shown accurately, the depiction of schizophrenia is pretty accurate. In a scene you can see him lovingly talk to his wife, when in the next instant, he attacks her thinking that she is one of his imaginations. 

Two movies in completely different genres- 'Duel' and 'A Beautiful Mind'. One is a psychological thriller, while the other is the autobiography of the famous Nobel Prize winning mathematician John Nash. But do you know what binds these two movies together? Emotions. It is the various emotions and thoughts that the protagonists of the movie go through, that makes it the same.

As mentioned before, 'A Beautiful Mind' tells the story of John Nash, a world-famous mathematician who had to fight a deadly mental disease to come out victorious on the other side. A schrizophrenic person, he thinks that people are out to get him and confides in his friends. The tragic twist however is that the friends that he confides in, are all in his imagination, In this case, feelings and emotions play a nasty role in his life, messing up his personal and professional lives. It is only by the end of the movie he manages to fight his imagination and decides to live with his dastardly figments within him.

In Duel, what starts off as a small fight, ends up being costly for the hero of the movie. On a trip, when he overtakes a truck on the highway, he never realizes that this would be a life-changing situation for him. However, when he goes to other people and tries telling them that a truck is out to get him, nobody believes him, although he is not a shrizophrenic manic.

Well, that is how life is. Unless and until you are in a particular situation just like another person, no matter how hard you try, you won't be able to understand what they are feeling or what are they emoting. But, a major thing we have to understand is that the state of mind you are in right now will always end up altering the way you see your surroundings. It might be difficult to express yourself during certain times in your life. However, it is totally up to you if you want to express what you are feeling or not. After all, you are living your life. Not anyone else's. 

Here's Why F.R.I.E.N.D.S is better than HIMYM!

Both shows, of which one started a decade after its predecessor’s beginning, resulted in a fan fight between the two shows’ fans. While both the shows told similar stories albeit with some slight differences, it was easy for fans to fight for their favorite show. However, which is the best show amongst them and why is it F.R.I.E.N.D.S?

Started in 1994, F.R.I.E.N.D.S told the story of six friends who lived in New York City, juggling life, love, and work. A sitcom at its best and with 10 seasons, the show never fails to amaze its audience, even 27 years after its inception. Boasting of a stellar cast comprising of Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry, and Matt Le Blanc, the show has been around for more than 25 years now and strongly believes that it will still be there for 50 more years.

With its inception in 2005, How I Met Your Mother (HIMYM) tells the story of Ted Mosby telling his children about how they met their mother, the titular character. It spans nine seasons, where till the ninth season, Ted only talks about all the adventures he had with his four best friends, up until meeting the love of his life. This show too had a pretty good cast including Neil Patrick Harris, Cobie Smulders, Jason Segal, Alyson Hannigan, and Josh Radnor as Ted Mosby. While both the shows seem to have a different plot, it's almost the same thing. A group of friends understanding life and love through their late 20’s and 30’s.

There are several reasons one might cite when they say that they like F.R.I.E.N.D.S more than How I Met Your Mother. Some of them being, the latter is based out of the former, F.R.I.E.N.D.S has a better cast, etc. Being a hardcore F.R.I.E.N.D.S lover, I have my reasons too. But let me tell you F.R.I.E.N.D.S is better than HIMYM with some help from facts and figures.

While F.R.I.E.N.D.S lasted for 10 seasons, HIMYM only ran for nine. The former boasts of one of the highest viewership for a serious finale with 52.5 million viewers, with HIMYM having only 10.5 million people that viewed its finale. Although the difference is not much, F.R.I.E.N.D.S also has a higher IMDB rating of 8.9, when compared to HIMYM’s 8.5. Another point to be noted is that while all the cast members of F.R.I.E.N.D.S got paid an equal amount of $1 million per episode, Neil Patrick Harris was the highest-paid cast member of HIMYM.

Some other reasons I truly believe was the reason for F.R.I.E.N.D.S’ success over HIMYM is that the on/off romance between Ross and Rachel in the former was definitely supreme than the Ted and Robin romance in the latter. While both shows had a womanizer, F.R.I.E.N.D.S pulled it off better with the lovable Joey than HIMYM’s lovable yet disgusting Barney Stinson. Although I can go on and on about why F.R.I.E.N.D.S will be always better than How I Met Your Mother, I think this is enough for now.

Ethics In Competitive Business

Business ethics is a set of moral and ethical principles that govern a company's values, behaviors, and decisions and its employees' values, behaviors, and decisions. While some business ethics comes into play during minimum wage, environmental regulations, etc, other things can be considered business ethics. However, what each corporate or company considers business ethics changes according to the trends and techniques that are being followed today. 

One of the main ethics businesses usually fight with, is the fact that who are they responsible to. All companies are always concerned about profitability. Especially to satisfy their stakeholders, companies thrive to achieve increasing profits every year. However, while doing this, what most companies forget is that they undertake any methods to attain their goal. These methods can be annoying or problematic, but an unethical method is always an unethical method. 

The answer to this question is really simple. If the company CEO and the others realize who their actions will affect and the impact it can have, this, in turn, can easily help them realize the company's values and what they actually have to abide by. This will help them understand the ethics they have vowed to follow and what would be unethical for their company. 

Most of the long-lasting damage that a company incurs is due to lost trust. While you join a new company, you are always wary of your employees and the trust you have in them. However, you start trusting them after you take in the company's values and ideas. But, this trust that you have in them can be misused. For instance, if you are a hardworking person and is passionate about your job, and want to rise in ranks, your superiors can misuse the trust you have in them by asking or rather forcing you to take the fall for an issue or circumstance that might show them in a bad light. With fake promises overbearing you, you will blindly decide to take the fall for them and then be trapped in the maze of so-called 'corporate ethics'. 

The role of business is to meet human needs – not just for ethical reasons, but also for financial reasons. These business interests are intertwined to create a business model that generates income in the end. Focusing solely on revenues rather than the underlying business model can lead to short-sighted decisions that erode a company's ability to fulfill its mission. 

We also have to understand business ethics has been a part of the MBA curriculum for a really long time now. And it is not an optional subject, but a subject that is central to the course that they are learning. This course is taught to inspire students, who, after all, aspire to be tomorrow's business leaders, to think about the ethical aspects of decision-making, whether it's marketing responsibly, sales practises, supply chain management, or anything else.