Module 7 Example: Fitness Trackers

Prompt

Find and discuss examples of the Culture Industry within popular culture. Remember to discuss how the example does most, if not all of the following things:

Provides an abundance of itself in slightly different forms (standardization)

1. Continually produces new version of itself (Pseudo-individualization).
2. Distracts us from real world change. 
3. Socially cements people to their popular culture.
4. Creates a self-perpetuating reinvestment in the popular culture.

In your post, you should do the following

1. Introduce and describe the example that fits in with the Culture Industry concept. Describe what it is and how it exists. (1 paragraph)
2. Identify the aspects of its that invoke the ideas of standardization and pseudo-individualization. (1 paragraph)
3. Explain how this example’s forms of standardization and pseudo-individualization contributes to distracting us from authentically changing the world and reinforces our connection with popular culture. (1 paragraph)

Avoid the following (since they have already been mentioned within the videos:

• Cereal
• Apple iProducts
• Apps
• Video games
• Cars
• Smart phones
• TVs
• Mac vs. PC
• Disposable razors
• Coffee

Relevant Tags:  Frankfurt School, critical studies, culture industry, [your example]

Example:  Fitness Trackers

My own fitness tracker, The Basis

This week, I am talking about fitness trackers.  Many of us have seen or use these items.  They are part of what we call "wearable tech"--devices that we wear that often provide feedback about our physical states.  These products are usually somewhere between $100-200 and fit right into the culture industry.  In this case, they fit into the pop culture phenomenon known as fitness.  

Some may not think that fitness is popular culture, but if we think about it, we find it fits.  After all, fitness is considered a lifestyle choice and if modern life was properly designed to meet our needs, "fitness" wouldn't be needed because we would have it built into lives without a need of gyms, clubs, classes, etc.  Instead, many of us work in employment that gives us little to no consistent physical exercise or encourages directly or indirectly bad eating habits.  Therefore, in our "free time" for entertainment and relaxing, we must inject fitness into it.  Fitness itself is a culture industry certain with different types of gyms (pseudo-individualization: L.A. Fitness, Work-Out-World, Planet Fitness--all three almost right next to each other on Route 1 in Danvers/Peabody), distracting us often from real-world change (creating a life/work environment that perpetuates healthy lifestyle choices), and creates a self-perpetuating reinvestment in popular culture (gym memberships, the push to make work-out clothes fashionable, the insistence on the right gear). 

But for me, I find that wearable tech is my own example since it's been many years since I've gone to a gym.  I own a Basis, which is a fitness tracker.  Some of you may have a Fitbit, Jawbone, Garmin tracker, or some other example.  They all largely do similar things:  track steps, heartbeat, sleep, and other body activity.  And they all come out with new versions (pseudo-individualization--some, like Fitbit, are on their 5-6 generation and have only been around for 8 or so years).  In some ways, they distract us from real-world change in the sense that we can often use fitness trackers as a means of not having to think about or consider why our culture as a whole doesn't make the world more health/fitness focused.  For instance, we privilege the car over walking or biking.  Many towns and cities will have many miles of road with no sidewalks and certainly no bike-lanes, but endless miles of roads.  Instead of focusing our efforts on making places and spaces more walkable or healthy, we chose to spend time and money on devices to make sure we get in enough steps.  Fitness trackers also connect us further with popular culture in that they are often seen on the body and thus become points for discussion or finding others with similar devices.  Such conversations reinforce our investment (and later investment) in our devices.  

Of course, fitness trackers also have a built-in reinvestment in them for several reasons.  The first is that many of them keep all of our data that we generate.  If I've had a Fitbit for two years, then all of my data is accessible on the Fitbit website.  To move away from FitBit or give up the device means I lose access to new data or even the old data that I've generated.  The second way they self-perpetuate reinvestment is that like the iPod and iPhone, they are closed products and therefore, there is no way to replace the ever-dwindling rechargeable battery unless you replace it with another device and of course, by the time that happens, a newer and slightly more pricier version of your fitness tracker is available.  In this way, fitness trackers are a great representation of the Franklin School's critique of the culture industry.