A living popular artifact that represents the American Culture is the TV. The TV represents to the American Culture more than just entertainment. It represents social-economic status, freedom, and companionship.
If we visit every single American house, there is a very high possibility that we will find a TV set in the living room. We as Americans are addicted to our TV’s. We want our entertainment, and we want it now, on-demand, and 24 hours a day, with enough programming to keep us in the couch for years. Not only do we enjoy our TV, but also enjoy showing it to our friends and family.
TV’s are the new symbol of social-economic status. The bigger the better, and the more expensive, the more satisfaction we feel. We enjoy inviting friends over to watch sports, just to show-off our new toy. Some people have referred to the TV’s of the 21st century as the rat-race syndrome. We are always looking for a better, bigger and more expensive model than our neighbor. The more expensive the better, since spending a lot of money on a TV, shows our economic power. The ability to show our purchasing power to others, somehow make us feel good about ourselves. We enjoy showing our superiority to others and what better way than by purchasing the highest priced TV.
Americans love their freedom, and what a better way to show our freedom than by purchasing one TV set for every single family member. One TV is not enough. After all, we have the economic power to do it. America is an individualistic society; we must provide our children with their own TV. We want them to explore the same feelings and emotions that we enjoy when we are in front of our TV. We want them to interact and receive “Mass Culture” information the same way we do, in front of our TV. As of result, children have learned that entertainment and information is obtained from the TV and not by establishing relationships with parents. This is the American culture that our children have learned.
In difficult times, we turn into our TV for emotional support, for companionship. We love our TV because they provide us with much need it relief when we need it. If we feel depress, we just turn-on our best friend and we can instantly feel better. Dr. Phil is there for our emotional support. If we have a question, we can find the answer just by flipping channel.
In the book Common Culture, “Mass Culture” is defined as “the information we receive through print and electronic media”, and what better artifact to receive our information than our beloved TV set.
Apple FanaticsApple Inc., one of the most successful companies in the world, announced its most recent quarterly report, and the financial numbers are extraordinary. The quarter ending March 27, 2010, one week before its latest product launch, the iPad, Apple earned $3.1 billion dollars. This is Apple’s “best non-holiday quarter ever”, according to the Wall Street Journal. Not bad for a company that once was in the red and was virtually bankrupt. There are many factors that can be attributed to Apple’s success; however, there is a key characteristic that makes this company distinct: Apple’s products let the world know that its users are creative and unique. These products are exclusive and used only by those who can afford to be different.
Apple’s followers have grown around the concept of being different and creative. This concept was originated in great part thanks to Final Cut – Apple’s software used by the film industry to create and edit films. The film industry is generally associated with creativity, affluence, style, glamour and coolness. Owning an Apple product materializes this association, creating a desirable image that many people envision and dream of. Apple was able to understand this much wanted “value” that its users wanted, and has enabled an entire subculture to emerge around its products.
The Mac product line is one of the most symbolic aircrafts of this subculture. With its cool design features, ease of use, and durable hardware, it is appealing to those who want to show off affluence and creativity. Mac is a symbol of status and prestige for those who can afford to pay the premium price of belonging to an elite group of few. The price tag of a Mac comes with a membership of belonging to one of the most popular subcultures created by an industry in our current society. Owning a Mac is equivalent to owning a BMW. Not for everyone, but for those who are special. Affluence is valued in our dominant culture; it is equivalent to respect and power. People want to be respected and powerful.
According to Kalle Lasn, author of Culture Jam, “the most powerful narcotic in the world is the promise of belonging”. Mac users want the world to know that they “fit in”. They want to be perceived as proud members of this subculture. And there is no better way of doing that than taking their Mac to the local Starbucks, so everyone can see that they own one, that they belong to the respected club. Even when Apple users can’t show off their Macs, they will make sure to let you know that they belong to the elite group in other ways, for instance, by putting an Apple sticker in the rear windows or bumper of their cars, or by using a t-shirt with an Apple logo on it.
People like and enjoy Macs because they are perceived as easier and simple to use than PCs are. There is no need for complex programs, antivirus, special configurations. Everything is easily accessible with a single click and most things work in a plug & play fashion. Macs are also more commonly linked to personal, fun activities, while PCs are often related to business, science and engineering, i.e. work. PCs are difficult and complex for users to understand. As our society, people want things the easier way. If we want to get married, there is no problem. We can do it very easily in Las Vegas, 24 x 7, 365 days. If the marriage becomes too challenging, people can recur to a quick and easy divorce.
Apple has created more than products and services, but a way of life. Users don’t just like Apple products; they love and need Apple to operate and function. In order to listen to music, they need an iPod; if they want to make a call, they need an iPhone; want to read a book, they need an iPad; want to write a document, they need an iMac. Some people have come to consider Macs as an extension of themselves. There are over 50,000 available applications, known as “iApps”, varying from allowing a man to track a women’s menstrual period to learning how to become a parent. Apple wants to make sure that there is an iApps and device for all users’ needs. It is a way for Apple to control and influence their life and make sure that they consume its products; something that Apple’s subculture enjoy doing, and if it is an exclusive and high regarded product, like a Mac, even better.
Because Apple has been very successful at product placement and marketing across genres in both films and TV, Apple keeps fueling the desire to belong and be different. All market segments get the message, “a magical and revolutionary product”. Apple creates an imaginary world that appeals to people’s emotions and instill a desire to buy this idea of being “magical and revolutionary”. Life in the Big Apple is synonymous with Apple products. Seeing Carrie Bradshaw, from Sex in the City, without a Mac is like not remembering her name anymore. People want to be connected with that life of style and glamour, a “magical” life.
Apple fanatics, or Macheads, go the extra mile to acquire Apple products, sometimes waiting in line for several days and nights, camping outside an Apple Store to be the first one to purchase the latest and greatest toy. Many of them purchase those products before their release date without even physically looking at the device. They have no worries, since they believe and trust that Apple’s CEO, Steve Jobs, will deliver something exclusive, unique and “magical”, only for those who can afford to become members.
In the earlier years of Apple Inc., many followers saw its core product – the Macintosh or Mac – as an alternative to the dominance of the PC/Windows world. They saw Apple as a “Social Revolution”, as a way to take the computer away from business applications and bring it to something more personal and intimate. It was a way for followers to manifest and express their uniqueness. Users bonded together as a community because there weren’t many of them. They met physically every month to discuss hardware and software topics, and to socialize and support each other.
Although Apple Inc. has become a very successful company, there is less of a “community” today than in the early days. According to the early adopters, those who are ironically attributed in great extent to the survival and growth of the company, Apple has become much more of a “brand”. In fact, many of these early users are having a difficult time adapting to the various changes that the company is going thru, as it moves into mass media. Innovations, historical events, and individual choices can cause subcultures to emerge and change and there is no difference with Apple’s. Time will continue shaping Apple’s subculture and only time will tell whether Apple continues to be a successful company.
