Scrutinizing the cybersell: Teen-targeted web sites as texts

Crovitz, D. (2007). Scrutinizing the cybersell: Teen-targeted web sites as texts. English Journal, 97(1), 49-55.

Sometimes I wonder about our society. We seem to be spending a lot of time passively absorbing material on screens- whether it be TV, or increasingly, Internet sites as described in this article. Of course, much of that input in either form is infused with advertising. The world seems to be all about selling, and about defining oneself with products and brands (I’m recalling the two yuppies in the Christopher Guest movie “Best in Show” who described themselves as “J. Crew people.”). The authors of this article attempt to face these phenomena by helping teachers-in-training develop lessons for high schoolers that treat corporate web sites with products targeted toward teens as texts to be interrogated and critically examined. Several examples of such sites are given.

I’m all for this sort of critical literacy instruction. Awareness may help counter some of the messages, but they’re still extremely powerful. I wonder if any of the teachers in Crovitz’s classes encountered teen resistance to such lessons? To some teens, their products are part of their identity.