The three articles that I’ve chosen: the New Politics of Consumption, Nike, Social Responsibility and the Hidden Abode of Production, and Why Johnny Can’t Dissent all refer to the critical politics of consumption and the compulsion of Americans to over consume. In the New Politics of Consumption, Juliet Schor discusses the “competitive consumption” that Americans engage in, looking up to an aspirant class with higher economic standings and as a result, rapidly consuming products in an effort to keep up. The growing role of mass media in society has contributed heavily to this trend, with detrimental effects on low-income households, who are more likely to watch television and thus more likely to be exposed to desire to consume via television commercials. These consumption habits reproduce social and class inequality, exacerbating the already existing problem of the unequal distribution of income. In Nike, Social Responsibility and the Hidden Abode of Production is concerned with the role of the corporation in relation to the consumer, and the effect that the abode of production has on public opinion. This article analyzes Nike’s role as a socially responsible company, discussing the racism implicit in its advertising campaigns, the effect of “sneaker wars” on the inner city, and sweatshop accusations. This article expands on the role of the corporation in the idea of competitive consumption as discussed in the Schor article. Nike, in a popular ad campaign, introduced the “sneaker wars”, a competition for higher sales between Reebok and Nike. This campaign spurred a shoe-buying frenzy resulting in looting and violent crimes, especially within the inner city. In this instance, Nike actively encouraged the rapid and frenzied consumption of their product, even as it proved detrimental to their customers. In Why Johnny Can’t Dissent, Thomas Frank discusses the advertising strategies of the Information Age- sales tactics with motivations based on the ever-present need to change and dissent from what is currently popular. This need to constantly rebel results in an endless cycle of consumption, never-ending as advertisers exploit consumers desires to resist conformity. This relates to the idea of the corporation in consumption (still competitive, but in the sense that consumers want to top each other in terms of rebellion) by referring to the means by which corporations not only encourage rapid consumption, but continuously update trends in order to necessitate rapid consumption.
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