The Space Between

Just as CityWalk attempts to recreate an urban feel without actually subjecting its dwellers to all the related risks of a metropolis, the ‘hidden persuaders’ in the marketing industry deceitfully expose consumers to various marketing schemes. Embedded within this “suburban strip mall…” (Lonsway), CityWalk attempts to advertise, but specifically entertain through its “…thematic cues – its experiential referents – from the city core” (Lonsway) by producing a themed destination outside the city, while at the same time reenacting it. Today, the addition of entertainment to any event or discipline “fills the eyeballs of millions seeking short-term, user-controlled, instantly-gratifying distractions (Wolf, 16, 30-48). It is quite possible that within these distractions, the notion of the anxious buyer is born. Constantly subject to many different forms of advertisement and marketing pressures, as consumers the quality of a purchase or buying experience remains the most influential aspect to shopping. As overwhelmed consumers continue to establish various interactions with advertisement via highly profiled retail venues, a whole new realm of entertainment is established. The appearance of the so-called ‘honest broker’ attempts to thrive off of a default space set between that of a marketer, and that of the consumer. However, in the midst of “earnestly trying to balance the objective qualities of money and materials against the subjective qualities of pleasure and style” (Zukin), ‘honest brokers’ in themselves seek to provide a new level of entertainment. As an extension from the idea of an ‘honest broker’, popular magazines, newspapers, and journals now hold specific sections designated to providing a consumers guide to the trendiest fashions and the best bargains. In the words of Zukin, “… a consumer guide is not just a guide to goods; it is a guide to the longing for clear, precise, and transparent standards in the public sphere” (Zukin). Even those who claim to provide ‘honest’ insight to the current market, seek to provide a level of entertainment by means of establishing a notion of what remains acceptable within the pubic sphere.