“Reality” TV is the New Sitcom: A Study on the Evolution of Cultural Capital in Media and the Implications for Marketing Strategy
Open Access
Author:
Ferrari, Celine
Area of Honors:
Marketing
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Jennifer Chang Coupland, Thesis Supervisor Jennifer Chang Coupland, Thesis Honors Advisor Johanna Slot, Faculty Reader
Keywords:
cultural capital media television fashion marketing consumer behavior
Abstract:
Cultural capital is a noneconomic asset people can cultivate through their consumption of products, media, art, and knowledge. Those with high cultural capital have rare and refined traits while those low in cultural capital common and local tastes. Pierre Bourdieu and Douglas B. Holt first developed this concept and its specific dimensions to fit the world of the mid to late 20th century, a world that looks much different than the one we move through today. Changing social norms and the introduction of internet culture and online shopping has affected traditional consumption and possibly the way we define this consumption. This analysis aims to challenge the original theory and dimensions of cultural capital by uncovering how its manifestation has changed overtime in media, in a comparison between TV series aired during the 90’s and representative of Generation X and TV series aired in the past few years representing Generation Z.
