Dnevni arhiv: 4. julija, 2014

»Ideja American way of life v ZDA še vedno predstavlja le eno možno pot«

Stuart Ewen, družbeni zgodovinar
intervjuval: Blaž Kosovel

 

Nekako se nam zdi, da o ZDA vemo vse, ker smo nenehno na udaru njene popularne kulture in njenih gospodarsko-političnih odločitev, ki se tičejo celega sveta. Vendar čeprav govorimo o enotni Zahodni civilizaciji, jih ne moremo enačiti z evropskimi državami ali pa celo z EU. Nastanek ZDA je namreč ravno v uporu proti evropskemu sistemu, v želji ustvariti nekaj drugačnega, kar ni povezano s tradicijo in ki bo kasneje vse bolj temeljilo na znanstvenem pristopu. Velikansko število priseljencev je zahtevalo posebne rešitve, neprimerljive z evropskimi nacionalnimi državami. Nastanek managementa, odnosov z javnostmi, oglaševanja, uporabne družbene vede – vse to so specifike ZDA, ki so šele naknadno prišle v Evropo.

“The idea of American way of life still means one particular way in the US.”

Stuart Ewen, social historian
Interview by Blaž Kosovel

 

Stuart Ewen (1945) is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Film & Media Studies at Hunter College and in the Ph.D. programs of History, Sociology and American Studies at the Graduate Center of The City University of New York (CUNY).

He is researching the history of media, consumerism, propaganda, PR and visual culture, many times leading the way in it. He is generally considered one of the originators of the field of Media Studies, and his writing continue to shape debates the field.
His book PR! – The Social History of Spin (1996) is the first book ever about the history of PR and was also the foundation for the popular four-part BBC series The Century of the Self (Adam Curtis, 2002).