1. Soc. 118 Media, Culture & Society
Chapter 3
Monsters, Inc.:
A Critical Approach to Popular Culture

2. Chapter 3: Overview The Foundations of a Critical Approach
What is Ideology?
Theoretical Roots
Cultural Hegemony
Advertising and Consumer Culture
Video: Consuming Images
The Power of Cultural Industries
Trends in Media Ownership
Video: AOL-Time Warner Merger
Reproducing Social Inequalities
Exploitation of workers
Reinforcing stereotypes
When Popular Culture Attacks
Video: Merchants of Cool
Current Themes in Cultural Hegemony

3. What is Ideology? Belief system World view or values
Explains and justifies social arrangements
Often religious, moral, or political
World view or values
Basic ways of defining the world
Distorts and misrepresents
Examine underlying messages
Whose interests are served?
What values are reflected?
Broader system of meaning
Patterns of messages
Content is part of something larger
Example:
The American Dream

4. Theoretical Roots of Ideology
Cultural Hegemony (Gramsci)
“Cultural leadership”
Power thru persuasion
Popular Culture as Social Control
Works on level of common sense
Not critically evaluated
Ideology must be reinforced
Contradicts real life
The Power of Propaganda
Example: “War of the Worlds”
Conflict Theory (Marxism)
Power relations
Social stratification  social inequality
Domination exploitation
Ruling class imposes own ideology
“The ruling ideas are … the ideas of the ruling class”
Represents their interests
Pretends to be universal
Masses have “false consciousness”
If they accept ruling ideas
Critics, protests, activists 4

5. Advertising and Consumer Culture
History of consumerism
U.S. capitalists in 1900s
Mass production
How to make business profitable?
Advertising used to shape consciousness
Creating buyers (and selling products)
Stimulating new needs and habits
Aimed at immigrants and urbanites
Concept of the “good life”
Buying as “great equalizer”
Culture of consumerism
Normalizes upper-middle class values
Wealth, status
Consumption = citizenship
A virtue and freedom
Ads tell us what to dream
Lifestyle thru purchases
Not all can afford
Video: Consuming Images

6. The Power of Culture Industries: Trends in Media Ownership
Media is key segment of U.S. economy
Move from manufacturing to service economy
Media also major export
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Early limits on monopolies
Protect the “public interest”
1996 Telecommunications Act
Easing restrictions or deregulation
Increased # of outlets a single company can own
Concentration
Fewer companies own media
Parent companies with subsidiaries
Vast portfolios
Range of formats
Conglomeration
Media companies part of larger corporations
May have diverse businesses
Example:
Video clip: AOL Time/Warner Merger (2000)

8. The Power of Culture Industries
Video Clip:
AOL Time/Warner
Merger

9. Gerald Levine—CEO Time/Warner CNN interview January 2, 2000
“Global media will be and is fast becoming the predominant business of the 21st century. So predominant, in fact, that the media business is now more important than government. It’s more important than education institutions and non-profit organizations. We’re going to need to have these corporations redefined as instruments of public service, and that may be a more efficient way to deal with society’s problems than bureaucratic governments.”

10. The Power of Culture Industries: Top 7 Media Companies
1. Sony Corporation
Hardware and software, content
2. Time Warner
3. Walt Disney Company
Theme parks, sports teams
4. Viacom
MTV
5. CBS Corporation
6. General Electric
Not just lightbulbs, appliances
7. News Corporation
Rupert Murdoch

12. The Power of Culture Industries: Top 10 Websites
1. Google
2. Yahoo
3. Facebook
4. YouTube
5. MySpace
6. Microsoft Windows Live
7. MSN
8. Wikipedia
9. ebay
10. Craigslist

13. When Popular Culture Attacks
Primary motive of popular culture and media:
For-profit businesses
Economic domination
Information, creativity, pleasure are secondary
Targeting youth
New consumers
Cool hunters
Research next trends for mass consumption
Video: Merchants of Cool

14. Current Themes in Cultural Hegemony
Last season's fashions are so last season
Planned obsolescence
Shopping completes us
Accumulation of goods
We can all live like celebrities
Keep up with the Joneses
Our self-worth is determined by our looks
Cultural norms of sexual attractiveness
Diamonds are forever
Best advertising slogan
Brands matter
Branding and status symbols