Merchant's of Cool DQ's

1.Give two reasons why corporate America has targeted teenagers.
They are the ones who have the money to spend

2.Why does Robert McChesney call teenagers “Africa”?
We have all the weapons(advertising,clothes,shoes,cd's)

3.What does Bob Bibb emphasize about teens and their parents?
Teens push their parents to give them money


4.How does Sharon Lee define “guilt money”?
Is when parents can't spend time with the kids and the feel sorry, so they just give them money to buy things

5.To what extent is a typical American teenager exposed to advertisements? Give examples.
10million by the age of 18. 3thousand a day.

6.What does “cool hunting” mean? Why is it important for corporate America?
Cool hunting is when somebody goes out and find the trends that the kids a wearing. So they can take the pictures of them and then let the others name brand people get them and let the trend out.

7.How do cool hunters work? What techniques do they use?
Surveys and ask questions

8.According to Douglas Rushkoff, “the paradox of “cool hunting” is that it kills what it finds.” Why?
Trends have already changed.

9.Marketers know that kids do not like them. What strategy do they use to approach kids?
Throw parties, use famous people

10.What is the reason for Sprite’s success with teenagers?
They became one with music

11.What does “under-the-radar” marketing mean?
They pay kids to comment on things. They market to them without them knowing.

12.Discuss the following statements: “Youth culture is not something that is just being sold to us. It is something that comes from us. It is an act of expression, not just an act of consumption.”
They look at what we do and put it on tv

13.Who are defined as the true merchants of cool?
Teens

14.According to Robert McChesney, what weapons do the merchants of cool use?
They have all the technology

15.What does Robert McChesney draw our attention to about MTV?
The whole thing is advetising

16.What conclusion did MTV draw when their ratings slipped?
They tried to create the interest.

17.What is special about MTV’s TRL show?
Its what teens want to see

18.MTV market researchers are involved in an “ethnography study”. What is it? What is the use of it?
When they go interview what the demographic like at their house and see what they like

19.What does MTV research indicate about teenagers as a result of their ethnographic study?
It's the study of what they sell.

20.Comment on the following quote by Douglas Rushkoff : “They [MTV market researchers] don’t call it “human” research or “people” research, they call it “market” research.”
They don't want nothing left out so you have to do "RR"

21.According to Mark Crispin Miller, why is the MTV machine not interested in listening to the young?
People watching don't care about the kid's life. They want to see the interesting part like Buffy and John doing it.

22.Why do commercial culture providers like MTV not represent characters in depth for their audiences?
It's not intersting.

23.What does “professional wrestling” mean to today’s teenagers?
Wrestling is all about pop.

24.Why is Mark Crispin Miller quite concerned about gigantic transnational corporations and their TV shows?
How the people react towards it.

25.What does “midriff” mean? Who is the midriff archetype? How might a midriff affect girls?
Girls just want to have sex

26.What does the image of Britney Spears signify?
She lead the way of promoting that girls just want to be treated like objects.

27.What might a mook and a midriff have in common?
They are archetypes

28.How is “family” represented in the TV series “7th Heaven”? What formula is used in this program?
Clean,cut,and wholesome

29.How are TV series such as “Beverly Hills 90210” and “Dawson’s Creek” kept “cool”?
It's going to show kids having sex young

30.How do the makers of teen TV defend their programs?
Trash sells, they exploit you

31.Does the media really reflect the world of teens? How realistic is teen TV?
It's their mirror

32.What is a “feedback loop”?
Ongoing process of your desires

33.What could be the reason for the popularity of rage rock in the States? What do rage rock fans protest against?
Represent teen rage

34.How did a group like Limp Bizkitt become superstars? As a rage rock band, how authentic would you accept them?
They let the teens get their anger out in their songs. I wouldn't

35.Discuss the following: Who creates youth cultures: the youth themselves or corporate America?
Youth themselves