The most curious question posed by Merchants of Cool was whether or not these companies are following what teens like, or whether teens are following what the companies are saying is cool at that specific moment. Interestingly enough, there was a movie called Josie and the Pussycats (that I am slightly ashamed to admit I own) that came out in 2001 that tackled a similar question while ironically using mass amounts of corporate sponsorship. In the movie, teens are subconsciously being brainwashed through underlaying tracks in “cool” music to keep them buying the latest cool thing on the market (i.e. - Red Bull, Big Mac’s, specific fashion trends). Unlike Feed and Merchants of Cool, Josie and the Pussycats wraps up nicely and the bad/"bad" guys are vanquished.
The whole idea that huge corporations hold sway over our likes and dislikes is nothing new to me. Nonetheless, the bombardment of “cool” that all three sources confront is quite disturbing and makes me wonder how much of what I’ve done and bought throughout my teenage and young adult years is indirectly because of mass media despite my unwillingness to conform to passing fads.
Lesson? (
Oh, I'm so funny...
I have also seen Josie and the Pussycats. I would basically say that it is everything Merchants of Cool talks about but taken to an extreme. Although I don't always notice all of the ads that I am being bombarded with everyday, I have never listened to a popular song and felt the sudden urge to eat a big mac or buy new shoes. Thank goodness.
ReplyDeleteI almost mentioned Josie as well! It's definitely extreme, but the film incorporates so many true things about marketing to teens today. I mean, true, I have also never listened to a song and suddenly needed a new pair of shoes. But the advertisements are there, no matter how subtle.
ReplyDeleteThe other thing about Josie is the way the marketers are portrayed: villains. I'm pretty sure the teens of today are, unfortunately, kissing the ground that the marketing teams walk on, because they are perpetuating systems of "cool" and giving teens an identity.
Which is sad.
I agree that one of the ways we learn about identity is through images of people (characters?) who we want to emulate. "People like me" wear... buy... sound like... etc.
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