So, about this “Implicit Contract”…?
Posted by jelisacc on February 4, 2013
Alec Austin writes of the relationship of viewers and entertainers in his “Implicit Contract” essay. While we pay money for cable and to see movies we are supposed to get our money’s worth by being entertained. Sounds simple, right? Unfortunately, the deal is not as easy as it seems. I found this article very relatable because there have been numerous times where I’ve left a theater or finished watching the premier of a new show disappointed.
According to the essay, there are multiple consequences to a broken contract: dissatisfaction, withdrawal and boycotting. The whole point of this post is that I’m curious to know out of these three consequences, which one causes the most damage to a producer/director/musician/actor, etc?
With the recent inauguration and the Superbowl I know you all are probably “Beyonce’d” out, but I think this example supports my argument that boycotting is the worst consequence of a broken contract. In 2006 Beyonce released her first single, Deja Vu, for her album BDAY. Being the celebrity that she is, people expected that the video for the single to be extravagant, creative and unique. Fans were disappointed to say the least. As of that August, over 7,000 fans had signed a petition to Columbia records insisting that the video should be reshot, if not, they’d refuse to support it. The petition stated that the video was not “Beyonce quality” because it involved poor editing and awful wardrobe choices that had nothing to do with the music video. Petitioners attempted others to sign and to refuse to watch the video to avoid disappointment. The video was never reshot and received many negative reviews and even made Yahoo’s list of “Worst Music Videos” ever. Overall, music critics agreed with fans and “Deja Vu” is still known as one of, or maybe the worst, Beyonce music video ever created. I believe that if the fans never lashed out, so many people wouldn’t of thought so negatively towards the video. They pointed out tiny details that others wouldn’t have seen, therefore causing us to notice the unnoticed.
Fans have a bigger impact than many of us think and that’s why I believe that out of the 3 consequences, boycotting makes the biggest impact on those who are responsible to entertain. What do you think?
samford said
It raises an interesting question, Jelisa. On the one hand, many would consider negative fan reaction, boycotting, etc., to be a “crisis” because it might influence other audience members to feel similarly. On the other hand, if that negativity is voiced, it does give companies a chance to enter in dialogue with their audiences, and even potentially to fix it. So you could argue it is a potentially good thing, depending on how the artist or company responds…whereas if someone gets dissatisfied and ultimately quietly tunes out, you’ve lost them due to apathy rather than anger, which actually might be harder to ever “turn around” because their passion for a particular show, artist, etc., is gone. This is a question, though, that marketers, media companies, and creators all wrestle with…they want to foster passion, but that passion and fans’ perspectives isn’t there just to serve a company’s interests.
exileontaytayst said
Your post is incredibly interesting. I think the example of the Beyonce video is a prime one when examining fan involvement and how far it can really reach. Good example!
andyarnoldpopculture said
The Beyonce video is a good example of how consumers tend to think their job in the media consumption cycle is to be entertained. They will feel ripped off or slighted if they are not entertained. How many times have you walked out of a movie theater disappointed and angry, thinking you’ve wasted your life? I believe that the implicit contract is a function of time spent on the product offered by the contract: for example, don’t we expect more from a 700-page novel than a 7-page short story? There are different lengths of contracts.