Cultural Mediations of Brands

Conclusion to Part 1

The semblance of democracy, sharing, and audience have become arguments of authority in the context described. Like the mediatizations carried out on these sites, in media productions around brands, some professionals develop this theme:

The world of the media is a theatre of influence, where the brand must establish its authority and impose itself as a referent on its editorial territory. The challenge is then to be taken up by relays (free or paid) that propagate its content, media whose influence exceeds that of the brand. In the competitive media market, the brand must therefore be part of audience flows, win the favor of the public and influencers, and win the support of each target community. (Bô and Somarriba 2014)

Under the guise of transparency, it is a remedy, a remediation (the “theater”) evoked by Bô and Somarriba, professionals specialized in brand content, that exists here.

This statement by professionals testifies to a particular conception of the media as pretexts, semiotic and social forms dedicated to a very particular competition. This competition focuses on the ability to put into circulation and leave a mark in terms of audience and influence. Brand managers base their media productions on these arguments, with audience figures becoming plebiscites for supposed media quality. These considerations are part of the life of the media, but they are, in the analyzed context, points of view that are hypertrophied to the detriment of other ...