Summary: [Cross-posted from New Books in Communication] In Authentic™: The Politics of Ambivalence in a Brand Culture, Sarah Banet-Weiser scrutinizes the spread of brand culture into other spheres of social life that the market—at least in our imaginations—had left untouched: politics, religion, creativity, and the self. Banet-Weiser observes that the authenticity concept seems to carry more weight in a culture of selling: We have come to expect, and to some extent accept, that authenticity, like everything else, can be trademarked. Through rich case studies—Dove ad campaigns, Facebook self-performance, street art, green activism, and New Age spirituality among them—Authentic™ identifies the pervasive (and often troubling) ambivalence of branded living.
