Written by: Olivia Austria-Kemble
September 29th marked the first presidential debate of 2020. Insults flew, ill-mannered interruptions ensued, and the moderator lost control as President Donald Trump and, former VP, Joe Biden screamed at each other for two hours on live television. What is interesting about this insult battle masquerading as a debate is that more than 73 million people tuned in to watch it (Stelter, 2020). That’s higher than almost every presidential debate in the history of the United States. Theoretically, high viewership of a presidential debate should correlate with a nation highly invested in politics. Political debates are traditionally meant to inform and create a civil discourse exchange between the candidates and amongst the populace. But, in this case, the goal was to “win” and the outcome was entertainment. On September 29th, viewers weren’t tuning into a debate, they were tuning into a B-list soap opera that stars two white men way past their prime. Our country has become so focused on media that it has made its way into the political realm. Obviously, the State’s priorities weren’t always to serve the media, it’s a recent phenomenon that coincides with our society’s changing definition of power.
To better analyze the idea of power, let’s take a look at Bourdieu’s theory of capital (contrary to what you’re thinking, this won’t turn into an article about capitalism). Bourdieu theorizes that capital extends past the economic realm and into the lives of every civilian. There are certain aspects of life that can symbolize wealth through means other than liquidated cash. These categories are cultural capital and social capital. Without diving too deep into philosophical ideas; I will pick out the relevant points of Bourdieu’s theory by focusing on specific points within the cultural capital and social capital phenomenon.1
Cultural capital is comprised of 3 categories: Embodied State; “long-lasting dispositions of the mind and body,” Objectified State; physical assets (cars, clothes, real estate, etc.), and finally the topic relevant to today’s issue, Institutionalized State. Institutionalized state refers to the academic qualifications one has. (Bourdieu, 1986). A woman with a PhD neurology has more institutional capital than a student just entering med-school because, she has that shiny PhD framed on her wall—an academic qualification that symbolizes her knowledge of the field.
Traditionally, those who we consider “professionals” are rich with institutional capital. This idea is extended into the political world, as government positions are usually reserved for those who had the proper qualifications—years of experience and academic qualifications in the fields of political science, rhetoric, international relations, or public administration, etc. However; the current presidency challenges the tradition of reserving politics for the highly qualified and experienced. President Trump went to Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and obtained a bachelor’s degree in economics (which can merit a career in politics). However post-graduation, Trump entered the field of real estate and never dabbled in politics till 2016 when he decided to run for president. So, this begs the inquiry of how Donald J. Trump entered the 2016 presidential race and eventually claimed his seat as our nation’s leader without the institutionalized capital to support him.
Let’s return to Bourdieu’s capital theory, this time exploring social capital. Social capital is a measurement of one’s recognition within society, it’s “derived primarily from one’s social
position and status” and “is linked to social connections that a person can utilise for advancement” (Claridge, 2015). According to this theory, we accept the idea that people in the upper-class have more power; this seems obvious, as we all know people with money behind their surname hold immense amounts of power in the United States. But, with Bourdieu’s theory, we also assume that being well-known and creating/maintaining rapport with other powerful people will also prove beneficial to one’s own social capital. This assumption is strikingly relevant to modern society, as popularity provides merit in itself. The power of popularity proves itself when considering celebrities and the weight they pull within the population they are celebrated. Let’s consider the classic worldwide icon, Beyoncé Knowles. She boasts over 155 million followers on Instagram which gives her voice an immense reach that normal people don’t have—this unique power is what social capital refers to. One of the ways Beyoncé puts her power to use is by encouraging her followers to be politically active. She did so during her acceptance of the Humanitarian Award at the 2020 BET awards; she dedicates her award to her “brothers and sisters” fighting for change [in reference to those fighting for justice in the BLM movement] and continues on to say, “Now we have one more thing we need to do to walk in our true power, and that is to vote” (as cited by Beaumont-Thomas, 2020). As Mrs. Knowles demonstrates, celebrities have a platform for their voices to be heard. They have the power to spread ideas and encourage decisions amongst our society because they have the social capital that deems them worthy to do so.
More recently, celebrities have been taking advantage of their social capital; TikTok stars, Instagrammers, Youtubers, and other reality-style entertainment stars are finding themselves to be holders of immense amounts of power with which they are pursuing business ventures in result. Kylie Jenner allocated her power to launch a makeup line, Jay-Z used his capital assets to make Rock-A-Fella empire, Instagram and sports star Bradley Simmonds utilized his existing followers to start a health and fitness brand. But, the most interesting of all—real estate mogul and former television personality, Donald J. Trump, used his social capital to become President of the United States.
This article isn’t meant to critique nor correct our country’s bureaucracy, but rather point out the trends that are manifesting within the political realm. Institutional capital no longer has the power it once did within the political specter. Governmental prospects are no longer comprised of an elite group of scholars. Social capital is sufficing as a qualification for future politicians which opens the door for people of all professional backgrounds. As seen with President Trump; even a reality television star has the power to enter politics, given that they have enough social capital to do so.
Notes:
1. You can read more about Bordieu’s Capital Theory here: https://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/fr/bourdieu-forms-capital.htm
Works Cited
Beaumont-Thomas, B. (2020, June 29). Beyoncé urges voters to 'dismantle a racist and unequal system' in the US. Retrieved October 07, 2020, from https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/jun/29/beyonce-urges-black-community-to-vote-like-our-life-depends-on-it-in-bet-awards-speech
Bourdieu, P. (n.d.). The Forms of Capital. Retrieved October 07, 2020, from https://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/fr/bourdieu-forms-capital.htm
Claridge, T. (2020, July 18). Bourdieu on social capital – theory of capital. Retrieved October 07, 2020, from https://www.socialcapitalresearch.com/bourdieu-on-social-capital-theory-of-capital/
Stelter, B. (2020, September 30). Trump-Biden clash was watched by at least 73 million viewers. Retrieved October 07, 2020, from https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/30/media/first-presidential-debate-tv-ratings/index.html