“Stuff & Fluff” Response

While Lanham expresses the materialistic nature of society that exists, much of this is just “fluff” compared to the currency that lies in information and attention today. The productivity and innovation that accompany knowledge enable the creation of new products and expression of information, thus capturing the attention of the general population. The short life span and constant replacement of material goods in today’s world increases the stories behind products and allows people to discern and give value to the data they deem important. With this come the emergence of fame, granted to individuals who receive a surplus of attention, as well as the competition or aspiration towards celebrity. 

An idea that stood out to me in this article is that of the short life span of products and constant need to replace material “stuff” with newer, shinier versions of essentially the same thing. The essence of “stuff” (or fluff) as a display of brand loyalty is something I never truly thought about, yet the consumerist culture in the United States, and globally, supports this concept, as people’s material possessions accumulate to show the places/sites they return to in addition to the ideals they support.

The concept of brand loyalty draws upon the concept of company ethics; though this is not something Lanham explores, it is an interest of mine, because often consumers are willing to overlook, or are ignorant to, the inhumane and environmentally harmful practices of a company they buy from. In an age where information is a highly valued form of currency, as Lanham argues, shouldn’t the values and tactics of a brand be known, and for the most part supported, by its consumers? While I do agree that attention and knowledge are commodities of today’s society, in certain settings, people are willing to bypass immoral company behavior for the sake of their material wants, which proves that the “fluff” of the world still holds immense power. 

Lanham’s writing grants a unique perspective in that it looks to explore economic systems and power by means of information and attention, which, at least to me, was slightly unconventional, as I, like many people, associate economics purely with monetary capital. In this regard, economics is socially constructed, at least to a degree, since the human population assigns value to certain things which in turn makes them worth more and increases demand. When information is so important, writing exponentially increases in value, as it is a form of communication and distribution of knowledge. As a mode of sharing informational capital with the general public, writing and the people behind it possess a great responsibility and degree of power, and have the potential to influence how people spend their limited attention.