Former TCNJ professor, Daniel W. Crofts came to the college on Thursday, April 21 to speak about his newest book, Lincoln and the Politics of Slavery:The Other Thirteenth Amendment and the Struggle to Save the Union.  The talk was held in Loser Hall room 106.

Crofts used to be a history professor at The College of New Jersey, and he is also an author of history related books.

Crofts focused less on the details of the book, and focused more on how he went about editing.  While the book is focused on the real history, student panelists, who were former students of Crofts, spoke about how they helped critique the book.

The student panel consisted of seniors, Sammi Falvey, Paul Mitchell, Sarah Drozd, Steven Rodriguez, and Stephanie Pappas.  The students began by explaining how amazing Crofts was as a professor and what they took away from his classes.

Crofts feels strongly about depicting the history in the most realistic way possible.  He said, “We are admirers of Lincoln”.  He tries to avoid preaching the history that is taught in textbooks because he feels that it is not an accurate depiction.  Senior Secondary Education and History dual Major Stephanie Pappas said, “The book is the perfect combination between the familiar and unfamiliar in history”,

The unknown history is exactly what Crofts wanted people to learn, and this is what he taught his students to question.  Sarah Drozd, Senior Elementary Educaion and History Major said Crofts made them “search for a history that Americans can be proud of”.

Each of the students in Crofts Fall 2013 course, HIS 460, Reading Seminar in History (Abraham Lincoln, was asked to read the manuscript and provide feedback to Crofts on improving the book.  This process was stressful for the students, but it helped them to gain a new understanding and appreciation for history.

Crofts made a point to consider each of the students suggestions on what they wanted to see in the book.  Paul Mitchell spoke about his critique on providing more of a background for each character that is introduced in the book, no matter how prominent they were in history.

Crofts method of teaching students in this course proved to be very beneficial because the students took so much away from the experience.  The major takeaway was the importance of questioning history and creating a new outlook for the future.

Taylor Bryant is a Beauty News Editor at Refinery29.  I chose to interview her because I hope to work in the same industry as her one day.

1. How did you get started in the industry?

The History

Helene Gordon, founder of Elle magazine, married Pierre Lazareff who was a very well known journalist in France. Shortly after, Gordon decided to step away from her studies, and focused on fashion. Upon returning from a move to New York with her family that lasted a few years, she decided to pursue a career in fashion. The couple then created the first issue of Elle on October 1, 1945 and watched it sweep the nation.

The word Elle, in English translates to the word she. The slogan “Si elle lit, elle lit Elle”, translates to “If she reads, she reads Elle”. The company began to struggle until 1981 when Daniel Filipacchi and Jean-Luc Lagardere purchased the company, which then launched in the Unites States. This was an amazing business move because it boosted the label to a new level. Since then the company has grown to consist of 43 international editions in more than 60 countries. The magazine attracts an extreme amount of readers; the number is about 69 million. Despite being mostly women who read the magazine, the ages can span from 14 to 49.

What Does Elle Do? 

Elle magazine connects women on an international scale. Women purchase the magazine each day to learn the latest beauty tips and to find out how to upgrade their fashion, without breaking the bank. Each issue is filled with articles on how to get a certain look while staying on a budget. Celebrities are the powerhouse of profit. Elle uses celebrities to draw readers into purchasing magazines. Celebrities are essentially promoting everything that the magazine is trying to push onto women because it popularizes trends and people tend to hop on the bandwagon.

Not only does the magazine focus on fashion and beauty, but also many articles focus on pop-culture and the media. When stars are on the cover of Elle, they use that to promote themselves, but this also benefits Elle because they are big enough to have celebrities agree to be featured in their magazine. Love and Life, as well as horoscopes are also features inside the magazine, where readers look for advice to live a life like celebrities. I guess you could say Elle is most definitely worth the $3.99 it costs to buy a copy.

Instagram is a great way for small companies and designers to expand their brand name. A great Instagram account is very beneficial because it is an easy way to spread your content and receive much feedback from followers. Here are a few things to keep in mind when creating your own fashion Instagram account.

Follow People You Know

One of the easiest steps in creating your own fashion account on Instagram is to get your followers up. This can be done simply by following the people that you know. It could be friends, family, co-workers, really anyone. Once they start to see that you are following them, it will make them want to check out your account and see what its all about. Keeping your Instagram public will result in more followers because they can see the content that you are posting and decide immediately if they want to follow or not, as opposed to waiting for you to accept a follow request.

Reach Out to Popular Accounts

Another great way to gain followers is to reach out to more popular and well- acquainted accounts. Tagging them in your photos or captions will catch their eye and they may repost or give you a shout out. People who follow the more popular accounts will be able to gain access to finding your account, which is another great way to gain followers and put your content out there for people to see.

Hashtag, Hashtag, Hashtag!

Hashtags are essential when getting your brand and blog out there for people to see. When you hashtag something in one of your Instagram captions, it makes it much easier for people to come across your content. If they happen to be looking at a certain hashtag, and you post the same hashtag then your content will appear where they are looking.

Be as Unique as Possible

Post things that are as original and unique as possible. People want to follow accounts that stand out and offer inspiration that can be added to their day. Post pictures of great outfits, but be sure to post high quality photos so your account looks professional. Anything that can set your account apart from others will greatly benefit you and will give you results that you want to see while you continue to expand across the Instagram world.

The rise of social media has created a way for anyone involved in the fashion industry to expand their products and share their work in a very positive manner. With so many different forms of social media, this can also become a problem for designers or brands that don’t necessarily want to put their work out there for just anyone to access. Here are some ways social media has made its mark on the fashion industry.

Creates a platform for brands to share work

 When a brand comes out with a new line, they essentially want it to reach a certain audience. Before social media, brands had to come up with ways to share their work. This could’ve included magazine advertisements, billboards, commercials, etc. While all of these things are still widely used around the world, social media has become a prime platform that brands use because substantial amounts of people are on social media each day, let alone each hour. It is so easy to post a picture of new items that are being put up for sale or newly stocked in stores and online. It gets the information out there quickly for people to see it and want to buy it.

Cheaper to promote work

The cost of advertisements in newspapers, magazines, online, television, or even printed on walls or buses can really add up for a company. When brands post a picture on social media of the items they are trying to promote, it doesn’t cost them money because they have their own account. In the 2014 Statistics and Trends for Businesses on Social Media, it was found that 46% of web users look towards social media when making a purchase. Brands can really get creative with the content they post themselves to catch the eye of potential customers.

Creates a community

 There have been numerous people trying to break through the social media barrier and get their names out there. YouTube is a prime example because there are so many fashion bloggers trying to get into the fashion industry. A very popular way of doing so is to create a YouTube channel. The videos that they upload are typically to give viewers reviews on certain products or tutorials that may help viewers achieve a certain look. These YouTube users tend have a good idea about what is very popular and what is in style. By making these videos, they create a following of viewers who want to buy what they are promoting. They can also make profit from big name companies by promoting their newest or most popular products. These companies and brands receive more customers and buyers of the items that are promoted and their community of followers also grows.

Exploitation of work

Lately, many designers within Fashion week have decided to ban all forms of social media. The anticipation of the public to see the new line has fallen because by the time these items are in stores, people want something new. The items have been so overexposed to the public that sales have declined. Also, designers may not want their work to be put on social media, but without the ban they wouldn’t be able to have any control over what people who attend shows are posting.

Lack of creativity may cause loss of followers

When people are scrolling through their social media accounts, they tend to click on posts that catch their eye and really stand out to them. While social media is an easy way to promote work, it does take a lot of effort for brands to put themselves out there and get noticed. A boring post can potentially hurt the company drastically because people will scroll right past it if it doesn’t catch their eye. Brands who are very creative with the pictures they use and captions to go along with the product tend to receive more attention.