CONSUMERISM AND CONTEMPORARY MEDIA

Consumerism and Contemporary Media

Consumerism and Contemporary Media

Introduction

When, as a philosopher, you concern yourself with issues of media theory, you are often confronted with the rhetorical question as to what largely philosophy has to do with media. That logical, ethical, aesthetic, and epistemological issues, or questions concerning the philosophy of science and of language, are genuine philosophical questions which seems self-evident to us today.

The neologisms 'philosophical media theory' or 'media philosophy', however, irritating and unaccustomed they sound, to some they may even appear to be a contradiction in terms.

In the following considerations I would like to demonstrate that in the conditions of the transformation of media, which is currently taking place, it is important and meaningful to construe the question of impact on consumer and consumerism on contemporary media.

What is Consumerism?

Consumerism is a trend, an attitude and a choice. According to Business Dictionary, consumerism can be defined on three branches.

The first branch can be seen as a trend, defined as Organized-efforts by individuals, groups, and governments to help protect consumers from policies and practices that infringe consumer rights to fair business practices. The trend aspect of the consumerism it's linked directly with the encouraging of the consumption, of creating a safe consumption environment and a regulated competition practices and policies. Once the focus changed from the product to the customer, than to selling and to customer relationship, the customer response time became shorter and shorter, and the consumption continued to grow proportionally with the actions taken by the marketers. So, the consumerism attitude is in direct correlation with the marketing activism, creating customers whom are willing to buy, to have more, to consume more.

The second branch of the consumerism is the attitude branch, defined as the doctrine that ever-increasing consumption of goods and services forms the basis of a sound economy. Once the trend is created, once the consumer, the customer feels safe and important, once the marketing activities are a continuous factor, the consumer attitude continues to be maintained and entertained by the marketers and governments. As long as the marketer and the company continues to take action for captivating and maintaining the customers` attention, the customer will happily come into play, continuing to consume as long as the company continues to produce and to market it's products, and as long as the company will continue to promote its products.

The customer attitude facilitate the company's progress trough purchases' made again and again, and the company will facilitate the diversity trough research and development trough coming with new and improved products on the market. So the consumerism is not an attitude taken only by individuals making purchases', but by individuals making purchases' in collaboration with companies with desire and possibility to develop, to grow and to offer appropriate marketed new products.

The third branch it's the choice to consume, defined as continual expansion of one's wants and needs for goods and services. In other words it's the process of satisfying unlimited ...