The Media and Political Modernity

In another article by Rob Kroes, he explains politics in an extremely modern sense, addressing the correlation between democracy and media. Kroes shows the change in politics in the 20th and 21st century and the differences in society that have occurred as well. He starts by saying, " In their critique of American culture, many culture and political conservatives in Europe may have grudgingly paid tribute to the democratic aspirations of American culture. What troubled them, however, was that culture as they observed it in America appeared as not only democratic but also as unashamedly commercial. If the American mode of cultural production and reproduction was geared to the many, it was also geared to the market" (EAS). Quite a turn has been made since the days of Tocqueville, where Europeans embraced the idea of American democracy and complimented it's new view of politics. Kroes introduces important points by showing that European thought on American politics has been degraded over the years. Through a constant obsession with materialism and commercialism, America has sacrificed the positive acknowledgment from others of a stable government. Kroes then later says, "European critics, whether on the Left or the Right of the political spectrum, chose to look at this potent brew of democratic and commercial instincts as a clear case of the commodification of culture" (EAS). As exemplified by Kroes, America has clearly tainted the political waters in order to accommodate the growing demand for a materialistic society.

Kroes, Rob. "American Culture Abroad." Encyclopedia of American Studies. Ed. Miles Orvell. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press: 2008. 24 September 2008. <http://eas-ref.press.jhu.edu/view?aid=523>.