Questions/commentary for the readings

In Kellner and Durham's commentary both of the historicization and of the historiographical writing on social life and cultural studies I found several things that intrigued me. First, have the authors defined globalization in an ultra-limited manner? Much of their discussion focuses on the late 20th and early 21st century's interplay with globalization. They propose that "the consumer society emerged throughout the Western world" following World War 2. However, many historians (I'll lump myself into that category since I'm writing a paper on consumer activity, though I am a couple months from the M.A. yet) would argue that consumerism has a longer history than just in the years following the downfall of Hitler, Mussolini, and Hirohito. In their definition of a "society of spectacle" consumption of images, commodities, and spectacles combine. So immediately, I thought of the use of creamware (a type of ceramic produced circa 1750-1820). In it's early days a sample was sent to Queen Charlotte, the wife of George III and after her receipt and use, it was marketed by Josiah Wedgwood as "Queen's ware." Wedgwood shipped creamware throughout England and her North American colonies where it has been recovered archaeologically from the households of elites to the quarters of enslaved laborers. Adding the Queen's "stamp of approval" created a grander spectacle than anything Wedgwood could say otherwise. The main tension I see here in regards to this post-WW2 consumer activity is in what ways did new media forms and print culture align to alter perceptions of needs? (see last week's Food Mill reading as an example)

Kahn/Kellner (brevity shall guide me here): The authors state that before the Iraq War "average citizens were unlikely to" protest against a presidential decision for war but that the Internet allowed average folks to "protest publicly." In light of the societal movements in the early to mid-20th century (i.e., women's liberation, Civil Rights, gay rights, anti-Vietnam [hello authors?!]), is it that the Internet allows for public protest or that it re-presented various movements on a global stage accessible wherever there is an ISP, Internet connectivity, and no fear of reprisal for investigating these movements?