Week 6 Reflection, religion and consumption

by Laura Green

  

I found this week’s lecture very interesting. The mention of the readings such as the Adorno and Horkheimer chapter, pointing out things about society which are true, but that we don’t necessarily want to acknowledge, was particularly stimulating. These readings suggest that the media dictates us; our likes and dislikes are all controlled by what is presented in the media. I have, myself, often felt that this type of view was quite pessimistic about society and ignores the individuality of each person. In our society, individuality is very celebrated, so it is hard to accept that our individuality is perhaps not as unique as we may think, and that the media may have had some input.

However, I can see that in our society we use the media is a great influencing factor in creating ourselves, particularly our religious self. It is now quite common and popular for celebrities to express their religiosity publically; considering how prominent celebrities are in our culture the assumption can be made that they do inspire their fans to follow the same beliefs as them. Taylor swift, who is quite vocal about her Christian beliefs suggests, “every singer out there with songs on the radio is raising the next generation (in Ann Oldenburg, 2011).” It is also evident that religion can be used to further enhance a celebs image. In places like America, when a pop-star expresses Christian values, they become very parent friendly and so reach a wider demographic.

Although this sort of transference could be thought of as a type of manipulation, I actually think there are many positives in it. The main demographic who idolise celebrities are teenagers, and they are usually searching for themselves and for meaning to their lives. Celebrities promoting their beliefs gives their fans a chance to explore religion when they may not have done so; whether its through Taylor Swift expressing her Christian morals or Madonna publically practicing Kabbalah.

References:

Ann Oldenburg, “Taylor Swift: Every Singer is ‘raising the next generation’”, USA Today, 17/11/2011.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2011/11/taylor-swift-happy-to-be-raising-the-next-generation/1#.UWp2ob-fQlI