It's a commonplace today that people are defined by what they choose to consume; that one asserts their personal identity by what brands they buy and what media

It's a commonplace today that people are defined by what they choose to consume; that one asserts their personal identity by what brands they buy and what media they watch. The ones who are selling membership in these "sub-cultures" therefore stand to gain from the destruction of any form of belongingness that they cannot sell as a commodity.