Between conspicuous and conscious consumption: The sustainability paradox in the intermediary promotional work of an online lifestyle site

Abstract

This article examines the representation of sustainability on the online lifestyle site Goop as a case study of how promotional media deal with environmental and social concerns. Specifically, the paper presents how promotional intermediaries address or conceal a tension between (1) the promotion of conspicuous consumption and (2) the advocacy of sustainable living. The paper contributes to cultural intermediary scholarship by showing how promotional intermediaries attempt to reconcile this tension, advocating consumerism favorable to them while still enhancing critical cultural citizenship. By presenting sustainable brands and environmental advocates, and different—at times, incommensurable—narratives on the relationship between sustainability and consumption, promotional intermediaries signal that sustainability is important while promoting actions that can be considered to contradict the idea of sustainability, such as excessive consumption. In this way they produce a safe space for brands and consumers but arrive at a sustainability paradox.