Although Cultural Studies began at the CCCS in England, its influence on writers, researchers, and theorists in the United States has been profound. The theory has attracted the attention of critical theorists in particular because it is founded on the principles of criticism. Its Marxist influence has also drawn scholars from philosophy, economics, and social psychology, and its emphasis on underrepresented groups in society has enticed writers in sociology and women’s studies to take notice (Long, 1989). For additional criticism, we discuss three criteria for evaluating a theory that were outlined in Chapter 3: utility, heurism, and logical consistency.

Utility

Cultural Studies “makes up a vehicle that can alter our self-image” (Carey, 1989, p. 94). Therefore, it’s possible to translate some of the theory into daily life, making it useful to some extent. Its utility can also be found in its dedication to studying the cultural struggles of the underprivileged. According to Hall (1997), these populations have remained subordinate for too long. By concentrating on these marginalized social groups, a number of subfields have emerged; namely, ethnic studies and gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender studies (Surber, 1998). Hall’s theory has been called “empirically elegant” (Carey, 1989, p. 31), and its usefulness beyond the written page has been widely articulated.

Heurism

Many of the principles and features of Cultural Studies have been investigated. Ideology has been examined (Lewis & Morgan, 2001; Soar, 2000), and the concept of hegemony has been applied to episodes of the long-running situation comedy The Mary Tyler Moore Show (Dow, 1990). Research by Janice Radway (1984, 1986) focused on romance novels and the women who read them. She discovered that many women read these books silently to protest male domination in society. Lawrence Grossberg (1986) and Linda Steiner (1988) found oppositional coding with audiences in their research. Grossberg noted that punk music was an oppositional response to rock and roll music because rock and roll allowed for “new possibilities” (1986, p. 57). Steiner looked at a decade of the “No Comment” section of Ms. magazine, which is partly devoted to overt and covert male domination in society. Steiner claimed that the manner in which women read these sections is tantamount to oppositional decoding; they read the comments in a way that suits their own interests and not the superiority of males. Finally, in a unique study examining emotions within a Cultural Studies framework, Jennifer Harding and E. Deirdre Pribram (2004) found that emotions are part of both individual personal experience and a broader application to power relations. The authors posit that emotions can be understood by looking at specific structures of emotions and particular emotional examples.

Logical Consistency

Despite some glowing endorsements, the logical consistency of the theory has been challenged. This criticism relates to the audience. Even though some audiences resist the role of dupe, are they able to become interpretive and active resisters? In other words, to what extent can audiences be counter-hegemonic? Mike Budd, Robert Entman, and Clay Steinman (1990) suggest that some cultural and critical theorists overestimate the ability of oppressed and marginalized populations to escape their culture. For evidence of this thinking, reexamine our opening story of the Petrillos and assess the extent to which you believe they can “escape” their circumstances. Budd and colleagues believe that these communities frequently lack the skills, insights, and networks to be so political in their resistance. This dialogue is not likely to go away because “debates over the audience were once, and continue to be, a major field of contestation in cultural studies” (Kellner & Hammer, 2004, p. 79).

Cultural Studies remains one of the few theoretical traditions that has attracted the attention of scholars from a variety of disciplines outside communication. Researchers interested in understanding the thinking, experiences, and activities of historically oppressed populations usually endorse Cultural Studies. Although some critics have faulted the theory for a number of reasons, Stuart Hall is credited with criticizing the elite and with drawing attention to oppressed voices in society. Hall’s commitment to understanding the everyday acts and commonly accepted events is admirable.