Standing in Line

Culture sometimes is defined by what you see at the local market.

I went to the store the other day and saw some magazines in a rack.

It is not surprising how we are sometimes force fed information.  We can be made to believe we are overweight, under qualified, and not worthy.  We aren’t the only ones under the scrutiny of the public eye.

Let’s look at some examples, shall we?

As we can see, this grouping of magazines is considered to be the obvious choice in terms of being scrutinized.  What’s interesting is that the general public feeds off this information.

Why do we really care about Casey confessing?  or about Anna Nicole and Howard?  or the those thin women that have diet issues?  Why are we shown on a regular basis these items while we stand in line just wanting to buy groceries?

It’s magazines like this that not only gives us what we see, but gives us what they want us to see.  Somehow, they are convincing us of what we want to hear.

Let’s look at a not so subtle take in this area:

What?!  Consumer Reports? How is that pervading my mind with others thoughts?  Aren’t they looking and observing “facts” to report back to the consumer?

The short answer is yes, they are.  However, there is a theme here.

Money….after all, we are in the marketplace, remember?

Everything bought, sold, information shared – it’s all about the dollar signs.

There’s much to be learned from how these publications communicate, and what they are actually saying to the general public.

Next time you’re standing in line at the market, just remember one important fact: information is for sale, just like the toilet paper in your shopping cart…both can serve similar purposes.