ABSTRACT
The television program thirtysomething was developed to target baby boomers, demographically defined as those people born in the immediate post-World War II period between 1945 and 1955. One of the most intriguing aspects of thirtysomething was its appeal as community. Lifestyle marketing is not about designing advertising campaigns that provide information about the benefits of using any particular product. Most of the intimate conversations that dominate thirtysomething emerge from a very limited set of motivations defined strictly in terms of private desires and familial relationships. Thirtysomething was admittedly a soap opera, but it expanded the definition of that format. Traditional melodrama is characterized by heightened emphasis on the emotional impact of events on characters’ lives. Thirtysomething chose the path of conformity and unconsciousness, simply voiding the social world. Therapy’s refusal to acknowledge the detrimental effects of social problems causes the internalized individual to become politically passive. As the rupture from the political world becomes more complete, the spiritual quest implodes.
