Media and Consumer Culture, Fall 2011 (Reading List)

Michael Mario Albrecht

Media and Consumer Culture

Fall 2011, University of New Hampshire

Andrejevic, Mark.  “Surveillance in the Digital Enclosure.”  The Communication Review 10 (2007): 295-317. 

Benjamin, Walter.  “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.”  Marxists.org.  Acessed 30 Aug 2011.  http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/benjamin.htm

Foucault, Michel.  Discipline and Punish:  The Birth of the Prison.  Trans. Alan Sheridan.  New York:  Vintage Books, 1977.

Fuchs, Christian.  “Web 2.0, Prosumption, and Surveillance.”  Surveillance and Society 8.3 (2011): 288-309.

Giroux, Henry A.  “Private Satisfactions and Public Disorders: Fight Club, Patriarchy, and the Politics of Masculine Violence.”  JAC 21.1 (2001):  1-31.

Gladwell, Malcolm.  “The Coolhunt.”  The Consumer Society Reader.  Eds. Juliet B. Schor and Doublas B. Holt.  New York:  The New Press, 2000.

Haiven, Max.  “Privatized Resistance:  AdBusters and the Culture of Neoliberalism.”  The Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies 29 (2007): 85-110. 

Hausbeck, Kathryn and Barbra G. Brents.  “McDonaldization of the Sex Industries?:  The Business of Sex.”  McDonaldization:  The Reader, 3^rd ed.  Ed. George Ritzer. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press 2010.

Jurgenson, Nathan.  “The De-McDonaldization of the Internet.”  McDonaldization:  The Reader, 3^rd ed.  Ed. George Ritzer. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press 2010.

Lasn, Kalle.  Culture Jam:  How to Reverse American's Suicidal Consumer Binge -- And Why We Must.  New York:  Harper Paperbacks, 2000.

Lears, Jackson.  Fables of Abundance:  A Cultural History of Advertising in America.  New York:  Basic Books, 1994.

Lyon, David.  Surveillance Society:  Monitoring Everyday Life.  Philadelphia:  Open University Press, 2001.

Marx, Karl.  “The Fetishism of Commodities and the Secrets Thereof.”  Marxists.org.  Accessed 30 Aug 2011.  http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/ch01.htm#S4.

McAllister, Matthew P.  “Consumer Culture and New Media: Commodity Fetishism in the Digital Era.” Media Perspectives for the 21^st Century.  Ed. Stylianos Papathanassopoulos.  New York:  Routledge, 2011. 

Meyrowitz, Joshua.  “We Liked to Watch:  Television as Progenitor of the Surveillance Society.”  The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 625.1 (32-48).

Monaghan, Lee F.  “McDonaldizing Men’s Bodies?:  Slimming, Associated (Ir)Rationalities and Resistances.”  Body and Society 13.2 (2007): 67-93.

Ritzer, George.  The McDonaldization of Society 6.  Thousand Oaks, CA:  Pine Forge Press, 2011. 

Ritzer, George and Nathan Jurgenson.  “Production, Consumption, Prosumption:  The Nature of Capitalism in the Age of the Digital ‘Prosumer.’” Journal of Consumer Culture 10.1 (2010): 13-36.

Sandlin, “‘Mixing Pop (Culture) and Politics’:  Cultural Resistance, Culture Jamming, and Anti-Consumption Activism as Critical Public Pedagogy.”  Curriculum Inquiry 38.3 (2008): 323-350.

Schor, Juliet.  “The New Politics of Consumptions:  Why Americans Want So Much More than They Need.”  Boston Review.  Summer, 1999:  1-26.

Schwartz, Barry.  “The Tyranny of Choice.”  Scientific American.  April 2004:  71-75.

Taylor, Betsy and Dave Tilford.  “Why Consumption Matters.”  The Consumer Society Reader.  Eds. Juliet B. Schor and Doublas B. Holt.  New York:  The New Press, 2000.

Waetjen, Jarrod and Timothy A. Gibson.  “Harry Potter and the Commodity Fetish:  Activating Consumer Readings in the Journey from Text to Commercial Intertext.”  Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies 4.1 (2007):  3-26.

Waldman, Steven.  “The Tyranny of Choice.”  The New Republic.  27 January, 1992:  22-25.

Williamson, Judith.  Decoding Advertisements:  Ideas in Progress.  London:  Marion Boyars Publishers, 1994.

Willis, Susan.  A Primer for Daily Life.  New York:  Routledge, 1991. 

January Media Journal

Happy Endings [Season1]. Creator David Caspe. Fan Fare Productions, 2011.

Cooley, Mike. The Fool on Every Corner. Cooley Records, 2012.

The Untold History of the United States. Prod. Oliver Stone. Ixtlan Productions, 2012.

Not Fade Away. Dir. David Chase. Chase Films, 2012.

American: The Bill Hicks Story. Dirs. Matt Harlock & Paul Thomas. American the Movie, 2009.

Banyan. Live at Perkins Palace. Sanctuary Records, 2004.

Fleetwood Mac. Behind the Mask. Warner Brothers, 1990.

The Real Cancun. Dir. Rick de Oliveira. Bunim-Murray Productions, 2003.

Brinsley Schwartz. Surrender to the Rhythm. EMI, 2000.

Girls [Season 2]. Creator Lena Dunham. Apatow Productions, 2013.

Anthony Jeselnik: Caligula. Comedy Central, 2013.

Slobberbone. Barrel Chested. Doolittle Records, 1997.

Californication [Season 6]. Creator Tom Kapinos. Aggressive Mediocrity, 2013.

Bernie. Dir. Richard Linklater. Castle Rock Entertainment, 2011.

Murray, Susan and Laurie Ouellette, eds. Reality TV: Remaking Television Culture, 2^nd ed. New York: New York University Press, 2009.

Gournelos, Ted and Viveca Greene, eds. A Decade of Dark Humor: How Comedy, Irony, and Satire Shaped Post-9/11 America. Oxford, MS: University of Mississippi Press, 2011.

Material Issue. Freak City Soundtrack. Polygram Records, 1994.

The Ten. Dir. David Wain. City Lights Pictures, 2007.

1600 Penn [Season 1]. Creators Jason Winer, Josh Gad, and Jon Lovett. 20^th Century Fox Television, 2012.

Ouellette, Laurie and James Hay. Better Living Through Reality TV. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, 2008

Drivin’ N’ Cryin’. Wrapped in Sky. Geffen Records, 1997.

Utopia. Anthology: 1974-1985. Rhino Records, 1989.

Primitive Radio Gods. Rocket. Sony, 1996.

Bob Mould. Rykodisc, 1996.

Joe Jack Talcum. Home Recordings: 1984-1997. Valiant Death, 2005.

Tegan & Sara. The Con. Sire, 2007.

Dirty Bomb. King of the Hill. CD Baby, 2011.

December Media Journal

Herman Jolly—Bunker Life, Fortune Records, 2007.

The Flaming Lips—“She Don’t Use Jelly” [Maxi-Single], (Warner Bros., 1993)

Eddie Vedder at Ruth Eckerd Hall (Clearwater, FL)

Camper van Beethoven—Telephone Free Landslide Victory (I.R.S. Records, 1985)

The Call—Reconciled (Elektra, 1986)

Southern Culture on the Skids at Skipper’s Smokehouse (Tampa, FL)

Queen—News of the World (Hollywood Records, 1991/1977)

Dokken—Tooth and Nail (Electra, 1984)

Kix—Blow My Fuse (Atlantic, 1988)

Kings X—Out of Silent Planet (Megaforce, 1990/1988)

Various Artists—If I were a Carpenter (A&M, 1994)

Grateful Dead—In The Dark (Arista, 1987)

Julia Hatfield Three—Become What You Are (WEA, 1993)

Tegan and Sara—Sainthood (Sire, 2009)

Various Artists—Just Tell Me That You Want Me: Tribute to Fleetwood Mac (Hear Music, 2012)

Golden Smog—Red Headed Step Child [Maxi-Single] (Rykodisc, 1996)

Sexy Baby. Dir. Jill Bauer and Ronna Gradus. Two to Tango Productions, 2012.

Les Miserables. Dir. Tom Hooper. Working Title Films, 2012.

The Central Park Five. Dirs. Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, David McMahon. Florentine Films, 2012.

Portlandia (Season 1)

The Descendants. Dir. Alexander Payne. Fox Searchlight Films, 2011.

Django Unchained. Dir. Quentin Tarantino. The Weinstein Company, 2012.

Heckler. Dir. Michael Addis. Jizzy Entertainment, 2007.

Various Artists—I’m Not There Soundtrack. (Columbia, 2007).

Cashback. Dir. Sean Ellis. (Left Turn Films, 2006).

An Open Letter to a New Yankee Fan

A friend of mine has a child who's really into baseball (he's about 5). She's not really into sports (though she graciously went to a PSU/USC football game with me in 1993). In any case, that's neither here nor there. The kid has recently decided that his favorite team is the Yankees, so I thought that I'd offer a primer to life as a Yankees fan.

• Now that you've picked your team, you can't change your mind. You have the same team for your entire life (unless they leave town or something). This is good news for you, having picked a team that has won twenty-seven World Championships, including one in your lifetime (2009). Had I the foresight to pick a team when I was five, I would not have picked the Chicago Cubs. They haven't won the series since they went back-to-back in 1907-08. They haven't even been to a World Series since they lost to the Tigers in 1945, two months after Tojo surrendered to end World War II. I would never encourage a small child to root for the Cubs, but I use them to demonstrate that allegiance to a team is paramount. I've been a Cubs fan since they made the playoffs in 1984, when I was seven-years-old, and came one game away from going to the World Series. They've still never made it to the Series, but I'm still a Cubs fan.

• The Yankees come with a built-in rival, which provides a very convenient narrative for watching baseball. You're going to find that most things in the world are complicated, and that it's often wrought with confusion and contradictions. This is simultaneously what makes the world awesome, as well as frustrating. The good news is that baseball provides one area of life in which things are simple. As a Yankees fan, you hold as self-evident that the Yankees are good and the Boston Red Sox are bad. It's beautiful simplicity in a complicated world. The rivalry goes back to the beginning of the 20th century, but took on a life of its own after the Red Sox traded Babe Ruth (arguably the greatest player in the history of the game) to the Yankees in 1914. The Yankees proceeded to dominate baseball and won 26 world titles between the trade and 2003. The Red Sox sadly did not win any titles over that same span, and the drought was titled "The Curse of the Bambino" (Babe Ruth's nickname). The Red Sox finally won in 2004 and 2007, but the rivalry lives on.

• Because the Yankees have been so successful, fans of other teams are often resentful of the team. The team has been called "The Evil Empire" (an allusion to Reagan's characterization of the Soviets in the 1980s). As a Yankee fan, you'll have to endure this, but you can rest assured that your team is the most successful baseball team of all time and the most famous (non-soccer) team in the world. When the "haters" try to get you down, you can take comfort in the unparallelled success and history of the team. Learn about the storied history of your team: Babe Ruth's home run records (and the famous called home run against my beloved Cubs in the 1932 series); Lou Gehrig's consecutive games streak, and Gary Cooper's iconic portrayal of him; Joe DiMaggio's hits streak and his marriage to Marilyn Monroe. The tragic tale of DiMaggio's jealousy, Micky Mantle's knees, and The Mick's unfulfilled potential; Roger Maris's 61 home runs in 1961, and the decade when a bunch of cheaters sullied that record. Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series; Reggie Jackson's three home runs in three pitches in the1977 series; The tragic story of Thurman Munson, who true Yankee's fan still know as "The Captain." There are many others, but you should learn to know the players, know the culture, learn their numbers, their stats, Defend yourself from the doubters who might assume that you are a fair-weather fan by showing that you are a true historian of the game. 

•  Remember that baseball is fun, but it brings inevitable heartache. However, it's a great way to understand the highs and the lows of life. The promise of baseball is a yearly rebirth. Every October, all teams but one end their season in disappointment;but, no matter how bad "last year" was, hope springs eternal when pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in February and the season starts anew in April. The Cubs had a particularly atrocious season last year, but I'm already thinking about seeing them in the Spring. There's not a lot in life that you can take for granted, but I have no doubt that when the season starts in April, the Cubs will be tied with everyone else, and so will the Yankees.

November Media Journal

God Bless America. Dir. Bobcat Goldthwait. Darko Entertainment, 2011.

Daniel Johnston—1990 (High Wire Records, 2008).

Donald Fagen—Sunken Condos (Reprise, 2012).

Grindstaff, Laura. The Money Shot: Trash, Class, and the Making of TV Talk Shows. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2002.

And the Band Played On. Dir. Robert Spottiswoode. HBO Productions, 1993.

Loose Fur—Loose Fur (Drag City, 2003).

Mansome. Dir. Morgan Spurlock. Electus, 2012.

Beasts of the Southern Wild. Dir. Benh Zeitlin. Fox Searchlight, 2012.

Skocpol, Theda and Vanessa Williamson. The Tea Party and the Remaking of Republican Conservatism. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.

Various Artists—Hope: War Child. Wea International, 2003.

Van Zoonen, Liesbet. Entertaining the Citizen: When Politics and Popular Culture Converge. Lanham, MD: Roman & Littlefield, 2005.

Female Trouble. Dir. John Waters. Dreamland, 1974.

Goats. Dir. Christopher Neil. Eva Daniels Productions, 2012.

Lincoln. Dir. Steven Spielberg. DreamWorks Pictures, 2012.

The Girl. Dir. Julian Jarrold. British Broadcasting Corporation, 2012.

30 Rock (Season 7)

Butter. Dir. Jim Field Smith. Michael De Luca Productions, 2011.

Daniel Tosh: Completely Seriousy. Dir. Manny Rodriguez. Levity Entertainment Group, 2007.

Various Artists—Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan. Amnesty International, 2012.

Japandroids at Crowbar (Tampa, FL)

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – Live From Alabama (Lightning Rod Records)