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The
second thing concerns marketing research. I only wrote one chapter and
I feel like a whole encyclopedia can be written about marketing discourse,
and sort of how its constructed and its meaning, its
political significance for U.S. Latinos in this country and U.S. populations
at large because increasingly we are rendered into consumer markets and
considered more or less important in terms of our marketability.
And
theres an incredible industry that we know so little about because
its profitability is predicated on its ability to maintain secret knowledges.
And this seeming knowlege of -- we really can give you the insight behind
-- this kind of anthropological energy.
The
promise that one -- they compete on the basis of who gets closer to that
consumer and through what techniques they can achieve that. So, theres
a budding industry out there of research that as an anthropologist and
having been offered by the way jobs of doing this research because as
anthropologist I could sense that sort of interest -- anthropological
interest on adopting research anthropologist or thinking of the consumer
in some ways that is fascinating and again when browsing through the literature
I didnt see enough information on that. And I wish I had three or
four -- you know -- an army of little research teams instead of being
one person -- and thats why teaching is so exciting for all of us
because were always thinking about so much of what can be done in
that area.
And last point concerns audiences and consumers, again, just browse through
it. Just one chapter but that was one of the most rewarding experiences
of writing the book, was actually getting together those focus groups
and talking to Latinos and just talking about how jmuch people reveal
about themselves, about their subjectivities through the medium. So in
that chapter the conversations are not only about tv programs but the
people are talking about themselves and I thought that was interesting.
And again we especailly ih cultural studies we spend a lot of time talking
about interpretations and textual analyses and this and that but its
very important to really get to that other end and follow the circle of
production -- production, xxx, consumption. And theres a lot that
we learn in doing that. So I guess, Ill end here.
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