The Politics of Consumption and the Consumption of Politics: How Authoritarian Regimes Shape Public Opinion by Using Consumer Marketing Tools

Nicholas O’Shaughnessy

This Speaker’s Box looks at how authoritarian and populist regimes have made use of consumerism, focusing on Nazi Germany and the People’s Republic of China.

The Politics of Consumption and the Consumption of Politics: How Authoritarian Regimes Shape Public Opinion by Using Consumer Marketing Tools

Nicholas O'Shaughnessy

Queen Mary, University of London

Editor’s Note:

This Speaker’s Box looks at the relationship between populist/authoritarian governments and consumerism. The underlying phenomenon is relevant to our era, which has been termed the “engineering of consent” (Bernays, 1955). This is the notion

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