Stella’s media imperialism presentation brought up an interesting conflict concerning the usage of ideological Disney Movies as media manipulation. Tomlinson in “Media Imperialism” emphasizes the manipulative role of media and the “need of the system to gain more and more markets and areas of exploitation, and to the strategies employed towards this end”(116).
This directly relates to the exploitation of Disney to reach children through a façade of innocence, which disguises the underlying message of materialism and even gender roles. Corporations like Disney are advertising images of the American Dream, which is exploited and employed toward the development of other markets. Tomlinson says that “Individual media texts are mutually reinforcing in their demonstration of the attractions of consumerism and the ‘American Way’. Their effects, though not directly quantifiable, are cumulative and ‘totalizing’ and are ‘observable as typifying a way of life’” (117).
Not only do these messages define American living, but they are globally recognized as the ideal way of living. In terms of Disney, images of family time, childhood innocence and fantasy are part of this ‘totalising’ message. This ‘system’ needs to gain more markets and we see that in such affiliations as McDonalds. Up until recently McDonald’s used Disney Character toys as a part of their Happy Meal. This ‘Happy Meal’ is not only another form of the ‘American way’ or life, but it uses the same ideologies as Disney to define its products. This is a clear example of media imperialism.
What complicates this is the American Government’s intervention in McDonald’s Happy Meal toys. With the new trend toward healthy living and fight against childhood obesity, the Government has prevented the use of toys to sell fast food to children. What is interesting is the involvement of Government to prevent the association between toys and fast food, but not the use of toys, movies, images of Disney to sell a materialistic, gender specific lifestyle.
Kait, I think you raised one important issue about the forces that propel or inhibit global flows.
ReplyDeleteIn their book "Empire", Hardt & Negri argued that national sovereignty is diminished due to the establishment of the new network of power, especially in the realm of economy. The transnational popularities of Disney's and McDonald's are excellent demonstrations of this. National government can't stop the expansion of multinational corporations to sell their products, from McDonald's fast food to Disney's embodied images and toys.
On the other hand, governments do have some sovereignties on other issues, which echos one of the critiques of Hardt & Negri's arguments. These issues include but not restricted to public health, national security, education policy, etc. In this case, government can intervene the association between toys and fast food because it promotes unhealthy children's consumer behavior and threats children's health. This is within the reach of national sovereignty even under the new network of power.
However, children might still crave for the McDonald's Happy Meal Toys and succumb to the new network of power, which renders failure of national sovereignty. But it seems that the issue of reception is not the inquiry of Kait's blog :)
Kait I really enjoyed your post. I think it is interesting how governments can justify their "intrusion" in the market depending on what the current social issues are. Since obesity is an epidemic and healthy eating is being promoted, the government does feel justified in removing toys from McDonalds in order to "reduce" the link between obseity, fast food and rewarding children. On the other hand, you are completely right that Disney's media imperialism is overlooked and they continue to associate their toys and other products with harmful socially-constructed ideals as well. It is really interesting to see how issues are addressed only when they are pressing and nationally important. I wonder how long it will take for government to intervene with Disney - or if they ever will.
ReplyDeleteI think that there was justification in putting sanctions on Happy Meal toys. Not only is there the problematic instance of "Would you like a boy or girl toy" but I remember as a child begging my parents to take me to McDonalds because I so badly desired the entire Tamagotchi set, Mini Beanie Baby Set, and "McDonald Food Set."
ReplyDeleteI think that because there is an obvious link between TOY and DISEASE (obesity) the government finds justification. What would be the grounds for intervening with Disney, promoting the stereotypes that EVERY OTHER MAJOR MEDIA OUTLET DOES?
I think that because there is no medical risk or disease very obviously associated with Disney, it makes sense to remove the desire attached to the FOOD, not the desire attached to the Princess lifestyle.
Kait, I wish your message was widely read by parents. Often even adults are easily mislead by the corporate beauty. Ugly things dressed in beautiful clothes and with makeup can easily be made to appear better and more appealing to people. The Disney, McWannaBeHealthy deal, seems to be another bringing together of the dream-like fairytale and the wonderfully healthy McDonald's food. A corporate brand can be easily engraved into a child's mind through the attribution of a pleasurable feeling to its consumption. The same is valid for adults, but children are future adults, and the earlier they are trained into seeking the things that provide "free" gifts for purchasing one product over another, the better for the corporate ideal.
ReplyDeleteBelieve it or not, the McDisneyDream is truly a dream for many children in the developing world, and the food is deemed to be something exceptionally different, overly priced and only affordable to those with a higher spending power. The illusory dream fuels another issue of cultural inadequacy and leads to an assimilation of the global cultures: a loss in the wealth of knowledge available on this planet. It provides perfect illustration of Empire's discourses imbedded into the pleasurable act of consuming a food offering toys. The saying that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, can further be extended from the meaning of man as a gendered individual to the larger definition of man as any individual within society. The way to any man's heart is through his McDreamy Happy Meal.