Neoliberalism

Neoliberalism

• “Neoliberalism contains a discursively embedded ideal subject.”
• “Given corporate deregulation and de-emphasis on government-provided social services, neoliberal citizens should be self-sufficient and responsible.”
• Due to rapid pace of technology with global labor, one must be flexible and learn quickly
• “An effective neoliberal subject attends to fashions, is focused on self-improvement, and purchases goods and services to achieve ‘self-realization’.”
• Entrepreneur
• Ideal subject appears in many places
• Appears in:

• Makeover shows (What Not To Wear): “Contrasts undesirable ‘before’ with consumer friendly ‘after’”.
• Reality TV: “Presents individuals as products and normalizes corporate and government surveillance.”
• Web 2.0 Technologies: “Idealize and reward a particular persona: Highly visible, entrepreneurial, and self-configured to be watched and consumed by others.”

• Combination of all of these technologies make it possible for the neoliberal subject to be through individual self-regulation rather than through top-down governance

Ferris and Vaynerchuck

• Ferriss and Vaynerchuck “strongly advocate independence from corporate structures by encouraging people to start their own businesses” (181)
• “Vaynerchuck and Ferriss are successful for two reasons. First, they uphold the values of tech community by emphasizing passion, business success, self improvement, and meritocracy. They do not criticize or interrogate anything that the tech community like blogs, YouTube, online advertising, and so forth. Overall, both men emphasize Web 2.0’s revolutionary impact on business, employment, the self and even the body. This reinforces the Web 2.0 scene’s sense of itself as uniquely special, smart, and socially revolutionary.” (182)
• “Both Crush It! and The 4-Hour Work Week are instruction manuals for surviving without an economic safety net.” (181)