Blog 4: Chapter 4: Corporate Beer-And-Circus

Why do students pick a large university? Is it for the education they will receive or is it simply for the athletic sports? Attending the University of Arkansas is not about the education that one can receive it is all about being the biggest Razorback fan that you can be and partying as hard as you can. In the state of Arkansas, students grow up being Razorback fans and they wait for the day that they can go to the University of Arkansas so that they can “call the hogs” a custom enjoyed by Razorback fans. Students can be quoted as saying, “My family loves the Razorbacks passionately” and “I am a true Razorback fan!” (Sperber 45). The students who attend the University of Arkansas are overwhelmed with their surroundings. Newspaper, television, radio stations and advertisements that surround the campus are all an additional influence on the college students at UA. “In this decade, national brewers greatly increased their advertising in the campus newspaper, the Arkansas Traveler, and in the local/regional paper, the Northwest Arkansas Times, as did local beer distributors and liquor stores” (Sperber 46). During this time period major brewing companies had one of the largest marketing strategies. They had several marketing gimmicks such as below cost specials, free merchandise; anything to keep the booze revenue up. This sent a clear message to the students of the University of Arkansas. Today, the media still spends mega bucks enticing college students to large extravagant stadiums along with the encouragement of submissive alcohol consumption.