Standardisation/The Culture Industry

The culture industry is a theory by two theorists Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer from the from the chapter, 'The Culture Industry:Enlightenment as Mass Deception' from the book, 'Dialectic of Enlightenment'.The term "Culture Industry" is intended to refer to the commercial marketing of culture, the branch of industry that deals specifically with the production of culture that is in contrast to "authentic culture".

They argued that all products produced by the culture industry exhibited standardised features.Also Adorno and Horkheimer, proposed that popular culture is referable to the production of standardised cultural goods such as:music videos,films,magazines and radio. In addition they both believe that the culture industry allows people to become 'masses' and be easily manipulated by capitalist cooperations and authoritarian governments. Furthermore, there is nothing spontaneous about the process of cultural production: it has become a routine operation that can be carried out,'in an office by the application of specific formulae'. 

Horkheimer and Adorno contend that 'industrially produced culture robs people of their imagination and takes over their thinking for them'. The Culture Industry delivers the "goods" so that the people then only have left over the task of the consuming them. Through mass production, everything becomes homogenised.

Back to Basics : Music Video

Purpose of a music(music promo)?

• tell a visual story
• promote an artist/representation ( brand,genre/artist/record label)
• highlight issues,cultural 
• makes music famous
• to indirectly make money through record labels
• create a buzz
• create a recognisable image that will appeal to the target audience
• marketing tool
• more interest in album