O,The Oprah Magazine:Consumer Culture and a Commodification of Class
Like Ebony and Essence magazine,O relies on elements of the familiar to construct its preferred reader.Unlike the abovementioned publications O resists the use of cultural references and historical tenets with which readers identify.Language,here,is that of the dominant culture only and,therefore,it does not act as a cultural indicator or identification vehicle.These visible absences,in accordance with the avoidance of gender,socially or economically diversecontent,work to construct not a reader consumed with ethnic or political culture or an aspect of a socio-cultural environment,but one who is financially apt to embrace consumer culture.O magazine assumes a homogenous class of product-oriented educated readers who,because they are void of financial need identify with this consumerist construction of life and lifestyle.Both the film and music industry are saturated with portrayals of abundant wealth accumulated easily,through circumstantial inheritance or as in the case of most mass-mediated portrayals of elitism,the desired socioeconomic position was acquired unrealistically.Movies such as Clueless revert back to the Mistress-Slave paradigm in which the blonde,blue-eyed wealthy young girl flaunts her wealth frivolously while her less than financially privileged black acquaintance is consumed with desire for an unattainable lifestyle that is seemingly“the only aspiration that has meaning”(Hooks,2000,p.83).The examination of O revealed an obvious assumption by the editors and publishers that Oprah Winfrey's celebrity would bridge class,race and gender;consequently,there is no conscious effort to discuss class-based information,feature economically and culturally diverse content and products or examine current political issues.Winfrey's phenomenon provides the privilege of not creating class distinctions in the publication or in the circulation information that publicly traded companies provide to current and potential stockholders.The resulting readership construction excludes several groups,most notably the group from which Winfrey originated.In a magazine that is a self-professed connection of diverse groups in a disconnected world rocked by war and racial and religious politics,the dominant message in both the content and advertising appeals to affluent white women age 30 to 60 years old.Ads for Nexium,a preion drug used to treat Acid Reflux Disease and a three-page advertising spread for Zelnorm,used exclusively to treat Irritable Bowel Syndrome(IBS)in women are featured along with a two-page layout for Effexor,Xr,a doctor-prescribed drug used to treat symptoms of depression.
Both the advertising copy and the images in the ads target women.A similar strategy is used in a three-page Botox advertising spread that pictures women dermatologists who not only have used Botox themselves but also recommend it to their patients.While Botox may be used to reduce wrinkles in both men and women,the focus of these ads is primarily on women between the ages of 30 and 60.Interestingly,this is one of the few ad layouts to target women from various ethnic backgrounds.While the vast majority of the ads use Caucasian women and men the ads for Botox include one African-American physician,one Asian doctor,along with one Caucasian male doctor and two Caucasian female physicians.
With a production mix of about a 50 percent for both advertising and editorial content,very little of the content of these ads appeal to older women,regardless of background,and only a few car advertisements might be of interest to male readers.Approximately one fourth of all of the advertisements present make-up,perfume and skin care products.They include an abundance of those most noted in the cosmetics industry-Clinique,Elizabeth Arden,Neutrogena,Dove,Jennifer Lopez,Eucerin,and Vaseline.These particular product advertisements do not target women of color,for her image is nearly absent.The pastel pink lip gloss,nail polish and blush in beauty features such as“beauty girls'toys”in the February issue complement only women with a light complexion and blond hair.The fashion layout in style pages such as“One Suit,Four Ways”(February 2004)and“Fashion:Viva Las Vegas”in the March 2004 issue seem best suited to slim,white women with blond hair.More importantly,the fashion,beauty and lifestyle editorial products are not realistically cost effective.In“Workstyle:The O Memo”(February 2004)a back-of-book fashion feature depicting appropriate career attire pictures a striped silk Michael Kors blouse valued at$750 and$980 for the coordinating pleated skirt.
