Don't Hate the ipod, Hate Yourself

The above title doesn't necessarily reflect the message of this entry, I just happen to like it.

I recently had the privilage of viewing the documentary entitled "The Corporation" (I'll give you three guesses to figure out what it's about). The film made a number of interesting points and presented a variety of interesting facts and opinions (And do so in such a way that you could distinguish between the two). Among them, was the idea that corporations today are no longer require to rely on physical products to be successful (parenthetical reference), all the really need to do is produce a brand, and market it in such a way that people become attached to and have a sort of weird relashonship to that brand. Great examples include McDonalds for fast food, Nike for shoes, Starbucks for "coffee", and of course, the ipod.

What is it about the ipod (and apple products in general in the Austin area) right now that has broght on such incredible dominance and popularity in the mp3 market? Is it the best player? Not necessarily? The cheapest? Hardly...what I see is just another manifestation of an old pattern...society in general has become obsessed with yet another name.

Of course, critics of people like myself who would dare attempt to vaguely question the masses' seemlingly fetishistic devotion to big name brand corporations (in this case, the ipod) will play the "you're just jealous because you can't afford one" card...mabye they're right, but then again, your economic class background and status does affect your viewpoint on a lot of things, including pop and (espeically) consumer/material culture. Since I am the caretaker of all my financial responsiblities I am unable to afford to risk the expense...but then perhaps that gives me a freedom to have a vantage point outside the realm of materialistic competition.

One thing this viewpoint, along with a pretty holistic media education, is the ability to percieve the difference between simply creating products and creating brands to be objects of devotion for millions. In the early days of the ipod, it was marketed as a device to listen to all your favorite music on a small pocket sized object. ipod commercials mainly showed sillouhetted figures dancing rhymically to a bland U2 song in front of a random monochromatic background...now, most ipod ads focus on a trendy looking head with white headphones plugged into their ears...the white headphones that became a status symbol, joining their older siblings: The swoosh and starbucks mermaid as things many people think they need to wear on or around them in order to be a part of the "in crowd"...whatever that means.

So the ipod, like a pair of Nikes in the 90's, or a starbucks container, is now marketed in a way that focuses on what the product looks like more than what the product does. Yet another hallmark of materialism that the masses can identify with because they increasingly find fewer and fewer sources of true identity in our increasingly homogeneic popular-culture.