Marketing and teen America

On Tuesday, our class watched a PBS documentary called ‘The Merchants of Cool,” which discussed the relationship between targeted marketing, today’s youth, and the media. Teens today are the largest group of consumers in America. According to the documentary, teens spent $100 billion last year and persuaded their parents to spend another $50 billion. The ability to make large amounts of money is the incentive behind the relentless targeted marketing of teens. The video also asks if it is ethical for companies to go so far as to create popular culture to sell, rather than sell what the youth actually wants.


One thing that I found interesting was when the video described “resistance to the commercial machine.” Both the Insane Clown Posse and Eminem, says Frontline, have lyrics that promote violence, profanity, and rebellion against culture, yet they became a part of popular culture themselves. Teens have accepted these types of music, and other big names have seen good business because of it.


It may be a bit of a stretch, but when I saw this segment I was instantly reminded of the UFC. Because of its excessive violence, in many ways mma was considered taboo. The resistance to the machine and violence has made the UFC both become part of popular culture and appeal to teens. As a result, it has become a mode for the targeted marketing of teens. I can’t remember watching a single fight night without aggressive teen marketing, whether it was WoW, PS3, or their own video games. I enjoy both watching UFC and playing video games, but I find it interesting that video games are aggressively marketed in the context of violence.

UFC / Assassin's Creed II Spot - National Commercial from Chris Fitts on Vimeo.