Media,+Consumerism+and+Civic+Participation




 * Media, Consumerism and Civic Participation**

“There is just one more thing that you have to go out and do before the end of the year and that is to go SHOPPING!” spouts a news anchorwoman in the film “What Would Jesus Buy?”. (Van Alkemade 2007) Christmas in America and across the western world is the epitome of consumerism. In 2005 holiday sales reached $435.6 billion (Yuletide Yardstick 2006) and it is estimated that in 2009 the average American family that did not travel spent $1000 during the Christmas season and closer to $2000 if they traveled (Adams 2009). In 2008 Reuters magazine predicted that over 9,300 Britons would fall in bankruptcy as a direct result of Christmas spending and many more would face extreme hardships due to the slow economy and rising commodity prices (Hill 2008). On top of this, Christmas results in 5 million pounds of excess waste (Van Alkemade 2007). This consumerism is a threat to sustainable development in the developed world. This report will discuss the interactions between mass media, consumerism, and civic participation.

Social scientists have drawn hypothesis that the increased exposure to media has fueled a culture of individualistic consumption that is devoid of civic participation. They implore the ideas that factors such as time displacement and “mean world” perceptions will hold them back from civic activity. A research study showed a negative correlation between entertainment media and civic activity. The more that people engaged in engaged in entertainment media such as sitcoms and reality television the less they participated in civic activity. This includes everything from volunteering, voting, protesting, and making conscious consumer choices. Instead social scientists suggest that much of the entertainment media reinforce materialistic values and personal improvements as opposed to improvements to the community, which is evidenced by Americans’ prolific consumerism during the Christmas season (Keum 2004).

That being said not all forms of mass media have been shown to have this effect. News media has been shown to have a positive correlation to public participation. Although the news media can be heavily criticized for how commercialized they have become in regards to commercials, product placement, and air time dedicated to products, the news media can inspire activism by informing citizens about current issue and how they be involved in developing solutions( Keum 2004). There has also been a positive trend in the amount of new media that Americans are consuming due to the availability of news on demand via the internet. Current levels of news consumption are at similar levels to where they were in the 1990’s (Americans Spending 2010). These trends suggest a more informed citizen based which will be more willing and able to bring social consciousness, environmentalism, and community values to the market place and to consumerism because we cannot practically reject consumerism as a form of economic sustainability.

Many critics of western consumerism especially environmentalists suggest an escapist philosophy from the market wherein individuals can fully reject the ideal and concepts of a market economy. They see that the materialist and capitalist economy have driven us to a point where we are consuming for the sake of consumption with little concern for the environment, other stakeholders, and our own financial security. Arnould points out that the inherent flaw of this philosophy is that it is impossible to escape the idea of the market economy on anything more than a personal level. A new philosophy and practice of the economy “can hardly exist apart from cultural templates that authorize and guide action.” Instead Arnould suggests that changes should be made within the current system to bring about sustainable practices within a market economy even if the new economy is slower than the one most of Americans are usually experiencing (Arnould 2007).

A civilization that is as wasteful, financial complex and financially unstable as current westerns are will not be able to sustain itself in the long run. Civic participation and an informed citizenship are the solutions to the out-of-control and unsustainable consumer culture that pervades western societies. Citizens need to be informed about the current issues and ways in which they can participate in the remediation of global problems. The most prolific way for citizens to become informed is through mass media outlets. News sources need to maintain their focus on being the watch dogs and informants for the people and need to separate themselves from the corporations that profit off of the people without a social consciousness. Entertainment media needs to redirect its focus from materialistic individualism to community building and understanding. By balancing out the influences that mass media has on the citizenship a better group of active environmentally conscious citizens will be able to become leaders for a better future.

Adams, Katie. “How Much Money You’d Save By Skipping Christmas” __Forbes.com__. 7 Dec. 2009. Forbes Magazine. 1 Nov. 2010. <[]l>
 * Works Referenced**

“Americans Spending More Time Following the News.” __Pew Research Center Publications.__12 Sept. 2010. Pew Research Center. 1 Nov. 2010. <[]>

Arnould, Eric. “Should Consumer Citizens Escape the Market?” __The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science__. 2007. Consumer Culture & Civic Participation, University of Wisconsin. 1 Nov. 2010. <[]>

“Here’s a Yuletide Yardstick of the 2006 Season.” __Christmas Spirit__. 19 Dec. 2006. Wordpress.com. 1 Nov. 2010. <[]>

Hill, Jennifer. “Christmas Debt to Fuel Bankruptcies” __Reuters__. 3 Jan. 2008. Thomson Reuters. 1 Nov. 2010. <[]>

Keum, Heejo, et al. “The Citizen Consumer: Media Effects at the Intersection of Consumer and Civic Culture” //Political Communication// 2004. Taylor & Francis Inc. and Consumer Culture & Civic Participation, University of Wisconsin. 1 Nov. 2010. <[]>

Nelson, M. et al. “Downshifting Consumer = Upshifting Citizen? An Examination of a Local Freecycle Community” __The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science__. 2007. Consumer Culture & Civic Participation, University of Wisconsin. 1 Nov. 2010. <[]>

__What Would Jesus Buy?__ Dir. Van Alkemade, Rob. Prod. Spurlock, Morgan. Online Video. Warrior Poets Releasing, LLC., 2007. <[]>