Question 2a - “Outline Adorno and Horkheimer's culture industry argument. Did their argument adequately describe the social impact of mass media?” Adorno and Horkheimer's culture industry argument is based on mass media and mass consumption. As the exchange value of objects increases, consumers become obsessed with conforming to the ideal image and judging others whether they fit this mold. Impressions are made from material possessions rather than personality traits. As capitalism takes control over people's minds, the culture industry turns into a commodity to be mass-produced and sold to the masses. These causes can lead to many socio-psychological effects on society. People become internalized and are unable to form judgments on their own because the mass media imposes opinions on them by not giving the consumer time to reflect before reacting to the information. The formation of mass media leads to consumers being manipulated and deceived by the media as information is standardized and a false sense of individualism is created. The first part of Adorno and Horkheimer's argument concerns the use and exchange value of objects. As society becomes more and more absorbed into the capitalist side of the cultural industry, use value is taken above the exchange value of people. People may remain isolated within society and unable to make successful decisions on their own. Through the standardization of production, distribution and sales, salespeople are treated like a commodity. People begin to lose the aesthetic appeal of cultural events and become consumed with whether their participation in an event gives them status. Adorno and Horkheimer successfully show what would happen to society if the culture industry took over the mass media