The Sign of the Burger: McDonald's and the Culture of Power

The Sign of the Burger: McDonald's and the Culture of Power. Joe L. Kincheloe. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press. 2002. 232 pages. $18.95.

Following Ritzer's blockbuster analysis of McDonald's in The McDonaldization of Society (1993) and, more recently, Schlosser's bestseller, Fast Food Nation (2001), it is not surprising that a slew of recent studies spotlight the American fast food industry. McDonald's share value may have cooled down lately, but in academic circles, it is still red-hot. And why not? After all, along with Coke and Disney, it is one of America's most prodigious exports of, well, "Americanism" and, as such, has been academically linked to the forces of globalization, rationalization, modernism, postmodernism, postindustrialization, and Western imperialism.

If anything, McDonald's has proven to be resilient. In spite of being ridiculed, boycotted, and even sued over its insatiable business practices and obesity-inducing products, its golden arches continue to pop up in cities, towns, and hamlets all over the world. Its burgers and fries are endlessly beamed, via television commercials, to hundreds of millions of current and future consumers. Its theme song, "You Deserve a Break Today," is more instantaneously and universally recognizable than most national anthems. In short, McDonald's global pervasiveness and ubiquity render it a significant subject for academic inquiry.

Against this backdrop, Kincheloe serves up The Sign of the Burger, an in-depth look at the corporate practices and excesses of McDonald's....