Merchants+of+Cool



[|Merchants of Cool - PBS] - see the whole show there (or if you were away, follow along [|chapter by chapter] to match up with the questions)

We will begin to think about and discuss issues of representation, authenticity, niche marketing and the economics of the media through viewing 'The Merchants of Cool', a PBS show about marketing to teenagers.

Opening question: What's cool?

We are going to watch a program about 'cool hunting' - the process of conducting marketing research into the teenage market, thought to be worth $105 billion + $48 billion in parental influence (ten years ago!). What's cool right now? If you wanted to sell a product to teens, how would you do it? Who are the trendsetters in our school?

Section one: see it on the [|video portal] __**As you watch section one:**__ Note down interesting facts and statistics. Explain what a trendsetter is and why cool hunters find them and photograph them. What is the paradox of cool hunting? What is anti-marketing marketing? What is under the radar marketing? Who are the five media conglomerates in the US? ESSENTIAL QUESTION: Do you create your culture or is it SOLD to you? __**As you watch section three:**__ ESSENTIAL QUESTION: Is there a problem in having so much media owned by so few companies? If so, what?
 * __As you watch section two:__**

Resource (list of companies owned by the five big conglomerates): http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/teach/cool/teach2.html

What is the first rule of marketing to teens? What's an ethnography study? What's a 'mook', and does he appeal to you? Is he real, or a media constructed stereotype?

__**As you watch section four:**__ What's a 'midriff' and does she appeal to you? Is she real, or a media constructed stereotype? How do the mook and the midriff stereotypes relate to the corporate interests of the media that perpetuate them?

__**As you watch section 5:**__ What does the story of the WB network show us about the influence of advertising on tv programming? What is the giant feedback loop? Do you agree that "No teenager is going to be satisfied with a PG-13 rated horror film. They want to see blood and guts. That's what they want to do." What about "Sex is a part of teen's lives, so it better be in their media too."

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: Do you think that teens have become 'wilder' as they copy the debauchery they see in the media?

__**As you watch section 6:**__ What is rebellious about independently produced media? Do you agree that teens need to create an authentic culture outside of the media mainstream? Does it need to be crude and violent? Is it true that marketers understand you better than other adults?

//**Key vocabulary from the film:**// Focus groups - demographically diverse group of people assembled to participate in a guided discussion about a particular product before it is launched, or to provide ongoing feedback on a political campaign, television series, etc. Demographic - a particular sector of a population : the drink is popular with a young demographic. Paradox - a statement or proposition that, despite sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self-contradictory Icon - a person or thing regarded as a representative symbol of something : this iron-jawed icon of American manhood. Trendsetter/ early adapter - someone who sets trends rather than following them Anti-marketing marketing - ironic marketing that plays on flattering its audience awareness of marketing strategies Conglomerate - a large corporation formed by the merging of separate and diverse firms : a media conglomerate. Under the radar marketing - "stealth" marketing such as hiring teens to talk up bands in online chatrooms

[|Interview with a media critic](might especially be helpful for your final project)