The Source vs U.S. Weekly - Case Study Example

The Source vs U.S. Weekly The Source and U.S. Weekly are two major selling magazines in the U.S. They both have their respective markets. Both magazines target a market base of age groups 18-34, but The Source basically targets black males, while U.S. Weekly focuses more on white females. The magazine has become the most respected name in hip-hop journalism. The articles focus on up and coming rap artists, and the covers tend to have the most popular hip-hop celebrities. U.S. Weekly is a celebrity based magazine, but the majority of its advertisements and articles are directed towards women. The magazine was founded in 1977. Acquired by Werner Media in 1986, it currently has a circulation of 1.7 million, and a web site that has approximately 2 million unique hits a month. Upon first glance of U.S. Weekly, the reader is bombarded with images of fashion, stereotypical beauty, and often current scandals in the entertainment world. Glamorous ideals promoting the everyday lives of the wealthy, and advertisements centered on makeup, lingerie, acne medication, and ads for television shows that are marketed to woman as well, make up the majority of the sponsors. On the cover of issue 629 March 5, 2007, there were three main pictures on the front cover. One was of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie walking their newly born and adopted children in dual strollers through the streets; below this was a picture of a very glamorous and happy looking newly coupled Kate Moss and Owen Wilson, both with bright blond hair, shiny white teeth and blues eyes. Next to these two small photos, was a huge leading photograph of Britney Spears with a partly shaved head and a lead title statement saying, Help Me. This cover page gives perfect insight into the magazines ideology, in that it shows what ideals the editors promote as well as what goes against their values. By U.S. Weekly degrading Britney Spears for shaving her head, as apposed to putting it in a positive light, or doing any genuine investigative/informative journalism on her motives, the magazine takes a definite stance. Using Spear’s image in this way is a combination of exploitative scandal, and the magazines way of taking a finite stance against her fashion decision, but it takes it even further. The fact that she cuts her hair is not treated as just a fashion mistake, but as a sign that she needs psychological analyses. Her personal and family life is put in question and she is virtually crucified by the magazine for simply cutting her hair. Of course, the hair she cut was the key representation of the American dream. Britney Spears first came on to the American scene as a catholic school girl, her evermore seductive and promiscuous persona has been likened to that of Madonna and Marilyn Monroe. These are icons who have had the power to dictate fashion and influence young women all over the world. One would think that they have the power to make whatever fashion decisions they decide, U.S. Weekly proves that they operate within misogynistic and stereotypical expectations that can be tested, but never abruptly crossed. When Britney Spears cut her hair she crossed this line, and U.S. Weekly signified their publication as a defender of this status quo. U.S. Weekly revolves around a foundation that is based on wealth. Britney Spears is heckled and exploited by the magazine due to her fame and wealth. If one were to flip through it they would find article titles like: Star’s Valentines day dates, Hot Hollywood Pics, and of course Inside Britney’s Breakdown. These articles are intertwined with polls done to estimate which photos of actresses men and women consider to be most attractive. These photos are used to promote excessively expensive clothing lines and glamorous lifestyles beyond the means of the reader, but the majority of these views promote capitalism. This is the main trait U.S. Weekly has in common with The Source. Though they may both cater to different demographics and emphasis differing cultural ideals, ultimately the magazines are tools of capitalism. The Source is a full-color magazine that covers hip-hop music, politics and culture. It was initially founded as a newsletter in 1988 by Harvard college students David Mays and Jon Shecter. The magazine is currently owned by Black Enterprise Incorporated, and the current president is Jeremy Miller. If one were to open an issue of The Source, they would find many hip-hop critiques debating the best rap albums of the year, along with advertisements for expensive automobiles, Jewelry, and many pictures objectifying women. Proof that the magazine’s first goal is to promote capitalism can be seen in the fact that the magazines five mike rating, which once was viewed as the most prestigious ranking in hip hop is now under heavy scrutiny for its preference of commercial artists. This is a controversy that was so influential, it resulted in the resignation of The Source’s creators Shector and Mays as execs of the publication. enough to cause the In one particular article titled the Deal Makers, successful CEO Steve Stoute is idolized and highly acclaimed for his deal making abilities. This article along with advertisements for hip-hop albums, where the artists are depicted wearing millions of dollars in Jewelry, and sitting in expensive cars, are prime examples of the ideals the magazine attempts to promote. This is very similar to the imagery U.S. Weekly uses, except black males are seen in this magazine enjoying wealthy lifestyles as apposed to white females. The magazine does have an advantage over U.S. Weekly in that it has been declared as the source for insightful articles on Hip-hop music. But, this is also a title that has found itself contested due to allegations that the magazine practices favoritism in the rating of its artists (Wikipedia). Both of these publications take positions on sociological and political conflicts. Currently there is a political debate in America over whether the government should have control over how small designers make the sizes in their clothing lines. Motivating models and celebrities to fit evermore into a size 0, U.S. Weekly is very apparently serving as an outlet for these designers to sell their clothing. The multiple red carpet pictures serve as one of the ultimate complications to this debate, by it influencing the mindset of young girls. It is said that in America today even six year old girls are beginning to develop eating disorders. U.S. Weekly has established itself as one of the main causes of this problem. The Source also takes an influential stance pertaining to American ideology. There has been an ever existing stigma in American society pertaining to blacks that has been existent in the country since the dawn of colonization. This conflict has resulted in a market that perceives black entertainers in a certain way. Blacks willing to sell out their personal values and adopt the ideology of Hollywood can achieve riches and success at the detriment of their own culture’s perception in the media. This conflict can be seen played out in The Source through the advertisements, and money worshiping ideals promoted in the articles. Blacks with platinum chains, diamond grillz in their ouths, sitting in flashy cars and surrounded by promiscuous women can be seen on every page. As previously shown with the Stoute example, core aspect of society most respectfully admires by the magazine is the ability to make money. This is an achievement that is glorified no matter the tactics used to attain it. This adoration of a certain ideal can be compared to U.S. Weekly, and its promotion of Hollywood beauty. Media forms, like U.S. Weekly and The Source that abuse the easily swayed public are more prevalent than one would think. They use specific attention drawing elements to play on the values of the public, while at the same time shaping them. This idea of shaping public perception is inherent in many theories. This is not a new characteristic of the media, in fact it is a tradition, one which Pierre Bourdieu has made a career of theorizing. Pierre Bourdieu is a highly acclaimed French sociologist. Born on August 1, of 1930, he recently passed away on January 23, 2002. His views embody the disciplines of many tenets including: philosophy, literary theory, sociology, and anthropology. He is the protagonist of the world of sociological studies, and he opposed and debunked some of the most prevalent antagonisms in the genre. His most popular work is Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgment of Taste. In the 1967 study, he interprets how members of the upper class define taste as an aesthetic. He finds that the public has no genuine representation in democratic societies, and this is partly due to the common belief in what is known as Rational Choice Theory. Rational Choice Theory is the theory that assume human beings naturally choose a given path dependant on whether it is the best means to achieve their goals. It is a belief in methodological individualism; this meaning it adopts the belief that social situations, and group behavior is solely the result of individual action. Within this theory, corporations and national governments are viewed as individual operators as well. The problem that arises with this theory are the certain assumptions. This theory assumes human beings are aware of certain information, of which they aren’t always aware, and it assumes that individuals consistently make mental calculations to determine their next decision. Bourdieu is historically known for his opposition to this theory, based on the fact that he feels human beings operate more based on how they feel toward a given situation or at a given time. In his book, Outline Theory of Practice, Bourdieu analyzes human nature. He points out the human tendency to conform. Doing one’s duty as a man means conforming to the social order, and this is a fundamentally a question of respecting rhythms, keeping pace, not falling out of line. ‘Don’t we all eat the same wheat cake? Don’t we all get up at the same time? These various ways of reasserting solidarity contain an implicit definition of the fundamental virtue of conformity. (Bourdieu, 1977) He later goes on to show that conformities only other opposition is eccentricity, which becomes natural for those intrigued by it irregularity. …the opposite of which is the desire to stand apart from others. Working while the others are resting, staying in the house while the others are working in the fields, traveling on deserted roads, wandering round the streets of the village while the others are asleep or at the market – these are all suspicious forms of behavior. The eccentric who does everything differently... (Bourdieu, 1977) Bourdieu believes that society cannot just be analyzed in terms of economic classes and ideologies, but that individual education and culture must be applied as well. Bourdieu does not separate people based on class and then analyze them, but groups everyone into what he calls a field/ social arena. This contradicts classic Marxism. In this field people compete and struggle to attain their desires. It is a system of social positions organized by terms of power relationships. This idea of terms of power is most easily defined as the differential between a judge and a lawyer. Within this field the social agents fight over monetary gain, or whatever holds symbolic significance. In all of Bourdieu’s beliefs, his most popular is his assertion that the public does not exist (1984). This concept is addressed in his book, Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste, in that he feels there is a different of class taste between the ruling class and popular culture. But, within this conflict, there is no public, only a media mediating between the two and a culture to which they often cater to do so. Jon Simons addresses this concept in his essay, Governing the Public: Technologies of Mediation and Popular Culture, when he says, …technologies constitute the people as a mediated public. The public is only amenable to representation in the form of an electorate which is an effect of technical organization that can mediate between people at a distance from each other. The key point of this analysis is that the public does not exist prior to or outside of its constitution. (Simons, 2002) His essay evaluates the importance of media technologies within a democracy. Bourdieu feels that in this field of power struggle, the ruling class uses their cultural capital to assert their distinction (1984). This is seen in the way politicians might only use terms or syntax understandable to the elite of society. This separation between popular culture and the elite culture of a society makes it virtually impossible for government officials to ever get the unanimous appeal for which they often aspire. Most political elites view popular cultures’ apathy towards politics with great disdain. Even still, they relentlessly attempt to relate to popular culture voters, whom they know will support them. In John Fiske’s critique on television, Television Culture he analyzes the nature of what makes popular television. He concludes that the shows that succeed in gaining popularity tend to have many symbols and plot lines containing multiple meanings. He also states that remain within a duality of containment and resistance (1987). This idea basically revolves around the fact that television producers, who are viewed as the upper class and political elite, are expected to produce material that correspond with popular culture. This material that the elite minority culture produces for the popular culture contradicts elitist ideals but allows the status quo to remain intact. This means the political elite can only remain the elite so long as they humor the beliefs and ideals of their less powerful but more dominant counterparts. The rules Fiske establishes for television shows can very easily be applied to the media. They present the media as a tool being used to prey on the wants and needs of different cultures. Another media technology that isn’t always addressed is the literary outlets in societies. This is undoubtedly the reason that Pierre Bourdieu is an acclaimed literary theorist as well, addressing such theorist as reader response theory. Reader response theory augments the importance of the role of the reader in interpreting texts. It disagrees that there is a solitary, fixed meaning integral to every literary work. This theory embraces that an individual creates his or her own meaning through a "transaction" with the text based on personal associations. Because all readers bring their own emotions, concerns, life experiences, and knowledge to their reading, each interpretation is subjective and unique. It is common that many people trace the foundation of reader-response theory to scholar Louise Rosenblatts influential 1938 work Literature as Exploration. She believed, close readings of literature should practice impassiveness in the study of texts and should reject all forms of personal interpretation by the reader. The text is an independent entity that could be objectively analyzed using unambiguous methodological criteria (Rosenblatts, 1938). Her work has been the topic of study for many professors and theorists who specialize in this form of analysis. The majority of these reader response theorists influenced by Rosenblatt, are broken down into three groups: those who focus on the individual reader experience, those who conduct psychological experiments on a specific group of readers, and those who assume all readers respond the same. The main conflict within this theory is between those who believe the individual is key to interpretation and those who believe he is irrelevant. This gives rise to different forms of reader-response criticisms and different methods in which they are used. Most people who object to reader response theory feel it argues that the text is irrelevant. U.S. Weekly and The Source are proving that this is an argument that may be more correct than one might want to believe. In sum, both The Source, and U.S. Weekly can be viewed as key examples of the media exploiting the public. These publications use stereotypical prejudices to form the image of a public opinion that is very similar to that of Pierre Bourdieu. The use of imagery to relay ideological messages to the reader in both U.S. Weekly and The Source have virtually eliminated the need for articles. This only gives the magazine’s editors even more right to require their writers to produce articles that frame the image of public perception compatible with the beliefs of the Magazine execs, and it further enforces the views of Bourdieu and Friske. It these publications are prime examples of the loss of genuine journalism in American society. Work Cited Bourdieu, Pierre. (1984) Distinction, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Fiske, John (1987) Television Culture, London: Methuen. Simons, Jon (2000) Ideology, Imagology, and Critical Thought: The Impoverishment of Politics, Journal of Political Ideology, 5(1), 81± 103 Rosenblatt, Louise M. (1938). Literature as exploration, (4th edition). New York: Modern Language Association Press. Read More