Language is Power – Bourdieu and Strategic Communications 1

Running head: BOURDIEU AND STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION

Language is Power

Bourdieu and Strategic Communication

A Continuation of the Conversation

Elizabeth Horgan

Queens University

Dr. McArthur - Strategic Communications 605

April, 2010
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Oyvind Ihlen (2009), in his writings on Bourdieu, made a case that Bourdieu’s theory and

concepts can be applied to strategic communications and public relations (PR). However, I

believe this is not a full solution to the quest for a theoretical framework for PR; rather, Bourdieu

is useful and works very well up to a point in informing strategic communications theory.

The conversation begins by taking Bourdieu and applying his sociological concepts of power

and language to strategic communications. Bourdieu adds value to understandings of how

discourse occurs and truth in the public sphere is found (Ihlen, 2009). Bourdieu, in his analyses

of society, created a number of theories, including the theory of field and of practice, and devised

vocabulary that included such terms as field, capital and habitus that are used in detailing his

ideas (Edwards, 2009). Of interest to PR is Bourdieu’s study about who gets to impose their

point of view on others. How is one voice heard, and heard over others? It is this struggle, and

how the conflict plays out, that action occurs which either keeps the status quo or transforms the

socially constructed reality (Ihlen, 2009). Agents operate in fields, gaining and maintaining

capital and using it strategically, which endows them with power (Edwards, 2009). Power

allows the agents to put pressure on others, to have their positions heard. Bourdieu’s theory can

be used to explain a significant part of communications practice. The struggle and how actors

obtain this power to influence mirrors the objectives of strategic communication today.

Bourdieu’s field theory offers a different history and view of the public sphere (Glastra &

Vedder, 2010). Bourdieu’s theory of practice deals with the antagonism between socially

constructed truths and attitudes based on objective social structures (class, race, gender), it is

actively constructed and is structured by previous events (Moore, 2004). Bourdieu’s theory
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looks at the relationship between habitus and field, the meeting of mental structures and social

structures which have the capacity to determine social action, to generate practice (Wacquant,

2006). Practice is manifest in the struggle for capital (Edwards, 2009), which affects power and

dominance. These theories tie into and address issues of power and language which can be

applied to strategic communications.

Bourdieu created terminology to inform his theories. Addressed here are habitus, field and

capital. Habitus is an internal mental structure comprised of moral and ethical codes and personal

experiences. Individual habitus influences how individuals deal with the world, how they

interact with fields, how they affect action in the public sphere. Moore (2004) likens habitus to a

jazz riff - a thematic that is improvised upon, that is a product of history, practical knowledge,

and constrained by objective structures.

The concept of field has been described by scholars in numerous ways. “Field is a social

space of relations of dominance, subordinance, or equivalence, rooted in the types and amounts

of resources that actors possess” (Ihlen, p. 62). Glastra & Vedder (2010) say it is a locus of force

and a place of endless change, and Edwards (2009) adds that fields are areas of production.

Bourdieu’s major fields consist of economic, political, educational, intellectual, cultural

(literature, science, the arts, etc.), media, and a composite field which is the over-arching field of

power. Fields are made up of struggles over positions, where if one person gets ahead, another

loses (Hesmondhalgh, 2006; Edwards, 2009).

Capital is “considered to be accumulated labor: it is not a natural given, and it demands

investment” (Ihlen, p. 66). Ihlen (2009) describes Bourdieu’s three main types of capital:
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economic, cultural, and social capital (these categories account for capital comprised more

descriptively as money, power, knowledge, educational qualifications, language abilities,

connections, social memberships). All of these forms of capital can also be viewed as symbolic

capital (prestige, honor), which Edwards (2009) describes as most important as it determines

whether an actor dominates or is dominated. Gaining and having capital endows the agent with

power.

Power is what it’s all about, the power to influence and construct reality (Edwards, 2009).

This is of significant relevance for Bourdieu’s theory as it relates to strategic communication.

There is a dialectical relationship between habitus and field where actor’s positions are played

out (Strategic Communications 605 Class discussion, 2010, Feb. 22). This push-pull struggle is

affected by capital, or power, which comes from several sources and affects the dynamics of

communication as truth is created. Gaining and having capital endows the agent with power –

power to put pressure on others, to have their positions heard (i.e., the message), to affect action

within their field. Capital, combined with habitus, in a given field coalesces and becomes power

which is then used in the struggle for dominance, for truth. Bourdieu says legitimate truth exists,

though he is not interested in what the truth is or whether it is true, rather he focuses on the

struggle, the process of building comprehension, of how something becomes truth, becomes

known. Truth is socially constructed through language, it is structured by rules (policies,

procedures, etc.), and it comes from consensus. Truth, and the power to have messages heard,

leads to knowledge creation--which occur because of power. Bourdieu is interested in how

actors get this power, in who is trying to impose their definition of reality and how they get the

platform to project their point of view. These issues apply directly to PR.
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Moore (2004) uses a sports analogy to describe Bourdieu’s theoretical concepts of practice.

Imagine a sports team and the individual players who compete in a soccer game. “When

someone is adept at playing a sport, they simultaneously do several things” (p. 321); they know

the rules of the game, they work hard at their individual skills to be able to perform, and they

understand and employ the strategy required to excel. The game consists of a field of players, all

using their individual skills, effort, and strategic force in the rule-bound game of soccer.

Individual players have different measures of power on the field, and struggle individually and

collectively as a team to score and win. The outcome of the game is not predetermined. This

can be likened to Bourdieu’s dimensions of field, capital and habitus, and illustrate how the

social universe of practice can work.

Application of Theory

Bourdieu researched and wrote extensively on the dynamics of power relations and created

investigative frameworks and concepts that were used in a variety of societal studies. Research

using Bourdieu’s theory was done in areas of: organizational analysis, utilizing field theory

(Emirbayer & Johnson, 2008); feminism, resurrecting the issue of class back into the feminist

agenda (Skeggs, 2004); commercialization of university research, looking at the effects of capital

(Cooper, 2009); international relations, analyzing the multiple faces of power (Buger, 2007); and

contemporary media, viewing media power through a lens of field theory (Hesmondhalgh,

2006). As this broad range of studies show, Bourdieu’s theory can be applied to a variety of

disciplines and situations and has been shown to be useful in informing knowledge and

understanding.
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I believe it can also be used effectively to underpin concepts of public relations and strategic

communication. Successful application of Bourdieu’s theories as they relate to PR at an

organizational level was shown in a 2006 study. Lee Edwards (2009) was a participant-observer

in a particularly rich case study of the corporate affairs (PR) department of a large UK transport

company. The initial phase of the research occurred when the PR team had access and support at

high levels of the Firm, and thus were viewed as powerful and effective. The corporate affairs

department had a recognized history of success within the company and appeared to be skillful,

effective and powerful. However, when the CEO resigned and new leadership took over, the

status and position of the department and their mission suddenly became precarious. In his

analysis, Edwards found that in times of uncertainty and change, positions and power that had

been previously cultivated required aggressive nurture. Edwards looked at how PR personnel

gain symbolic power in an organization and how the organizational environment enabled them to

retain and perpetuate that power. By initiating a broad number of actions designed to generate

and maintain crucial social capital, the PR group both retained and created new credibility and

credentials, and because of this, power and influence accrued to the team. This enabled the PR

practitioners to continue effecting strategic communications. “The analysis offers a new

understanding of how PR professionals, through their day to day practice in organizations, can

generate field specific symbolic capital that allows them to maintain their status as cultural

intermediaries and symbolic producers” (p. 23). Edwards was able to study an organization’s

strategic communications and its application at a time of crisis and significant change, and

uncovered ideas which could be constructive in developing best practices useful in the chaotic

and changing world of PR today.

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Bourdieu’s theories can also be applied to an individualized level of strategic messaging and

communications as well. Dave Carroll (2009), a musician, tells a tale of customer service gone

awry by writing and performing a music video about his experience with United Airlines

(“Story”) and placing it on YouTube. United baggage handlers mangled Dave’s baggage

(specifically, they broke his acoustic guitar) and the airline refused to make amends for the

damage and fix his guitar. After months of effort and struggle in the field of United’s customer

service department, Dave switched tactics and took his voice and fight to the people using

YouTube. Social media allowed Dave access to a different field, composed of different actors,

where the power dynamics were malleable. Dave wrote and performed 3 songs with his band

that he videoed and put onto YouTube about his experience. His message went viral (over 3

million views to-date and counting). The first music video, “United Breaks Guitars”, was clever,

catchy and well done. It was effective in getting his message out. The public began listening.

Because Carroll (2009) continued to receive no satisfaction from United, he put out a second

music video aimed at United with lyrics that included, “Come to your senses, accept the

consequences. You don’t want to pay and are dragging this out.” (Song 2). This video had a big

cast (volunteers), and the groundswell grew and the hits on YouTube increased. His third song

was wildly popular; it showed Dave’s band dressed up as mountain men and summed up this

now very public experience. The third and last song became a call to action. This song updated

the story and told interested viewers/listeners that he was no longer mad at United (because he

had finally gotten restitution), and it acknowledged the many responses he had received as a

result of his music video messaging. This video broadened the message to give listeners the

sense that this issue was not his alone, but everymans/womans. As a way to continue his
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narrative even further, Carroll (2009) expanded the story to include others by providing a venue

for the possible accretion of power within the public sphere; he created a website for others’

customer complaints, rightsideofright.com.

One of the key things I have learned from my United Breaks Guitars experience is that the

voice of one person is no longer “statistically insignificant” and that collectively we can

improve the world one experience at a time. You can blog, there’s a tab to take action (tips

and links). And oh by the way, you can buy this album “Perfect Blue”, which includes the 3

United songs. (Dave Carroll Music, home page)

This was a case of one individual, with seemingly little capital, operating in the initial field of

United Airline’s customer service department where the actor, Dave, was dominated by other

voices, yet was ultimately able to get his message heard in spite of everything stacked against

him. How? Dave was creative, he found a different way to combine habitus, capital and field

to communicate his message and gain power. By changing the field from United’s customer

service area to the media mediated venues of YouTube, Twitter and blogs, the message was

delivered to a wide audience. Dave was able to create discourse that generated a different

consensus about reality which, over time, undermined and took power from United. Why?

Because of the groundswell of support from individuals who fly, who related to the experiences

Dave endured. In the process, he garnered capital for his personal music career (and his band’s)

by gaining exposure and a breadth of narrative from a marginally related incident through the

reach and powers of social media. The media can be a powerful field, and as shown in this case,

can be effectively co-opted for messages that are deemed newsworthy, different, interesting and

which play to and use the strengths inherent in social media. Dan Greenfield (2009) blogged
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about Carroll’s viral phenomenon and said “it demonstrates the power of authenticity, creativity

and compelling content to grab attention and send PR executives reeling” (blog). Greenfield felt

that it was a great story of how a little guy took on the indifferent corporate giant, and suggested

that there were further ramifications (i.e., economic) of the story. Other elements brought

overlapping fields into play, and the power of Dave’s narrative widened its affect to other fields.

Social media provided a platform, a field, where his capital and power became significant when

his messages attracted millions of followers. Dave’s truth, his message was heard; he dominated

by finding alternate capital and power, and United ended up apologizing and making restitution.

Critical Review

Issues that undermine Bourdieu’s theories as related to strategic communication include

issues of truth, spin, time, disadvantage and media. The question, ‘what is truth?’ clearly affects

messaging. Readings in Public Relations and Social Theory (Ihlen, 2009) suggests that truth is

additionally impacted by culture (race, creed, gender, age). Platforms of power tend to confer

upon certain individuals favorable access and opportunities. Some people do not have voices

within traditional fields. Power can gravitate to special interests, with truth and the public good

lost in the struggles for dominance via power and symbolic capital. While strategic

communication is about finding the angles, crafting the message and identifying effective

delivery systems, spin (or the promotion of un-truths) can also be validated and as such goes

against the framework envisioned by Bourdieu. Un-truths can be portrayed as truth. This can

undermine the veracity of Bourdieu’s concepts.

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Timeliness is a factor as well. As shown in Dave Carroll’s example of successful

communication, timing is everything. Dave Carroll’s message resonated; his use of media,

accessing newer forms of social media, worked in his favor. Had he been the 407th person to

complain about poor customer service through a production on YouTube and Twitter, it is

questionable whether his message would have had such an impact. Being the first is

groundbreaking, and worthy of the media field’s attention. Being 407th is old “news”, and not

likely to have importance to the media field; as a result, his message might not have been heard.

Novelty counts - what was interesting and of value yesterday changes with extraordinary speed.

Whereas today the structure, the norms and characteristics of importance (such as authenticity,

uniqueness and entertainment value) are critical to media and its field today, it is unclear what

tomorrow will bring.

The affects of non-human actors impact the workings of Bourdieu’s theories and concepts of

structure, field, habitus and capital. The media is in a state of dramatic transformation and flux

both internally and externally which impacts communications in society as a whole. Changes in

the media, such as segmentation and special-interest driven reporting, are ubiquitous. Access to

field, and how capital is gained and valued in this field, varies almost daily. Messaging and

strategic communication now require nimble action and creativity in order to gain traction and be

heard. While this can be explained by Bourdieu’s concepts, the power of the media cannot.

Media power can be arbitrary, it can be manipulated, and it can be chaotic. The convergence of

media and social trends offers theoretical questions not addressed in Bourdieu’s staples of

habitus, field and capital.

Further Research
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Further research would be useful in looking at Bourdieu as his theory relates to strategic

communications, and where it ends in its ability to inform. For example, research into the

structural level of fields, how they are and how the struggle within fields works, could provide

insights that enhance PR theory. Also, study of how power affects issues of truth would be

edifying. Specifically, study of the current state of politics and communication/influence in the

United States, for example, with issues of access, power, truth and spin, could be useful to

explore using concepts from Bourdieu and beyond. With the increasing power of the media and

the changing nature of media on society, research into the power of the media and its influence

over other forms of capital would add to the overall discourse of strategic communications.

Conclusion

Bourdieu’s theory informs a significant part of strategic communications. He provides a

framework useful in analyzing discourse and persuasive dialog. Edwards (2009) showed that

constant assessment of power and influence, a view to the structures that support reputation and

that guide practice, is a necessary and valued strategy in today’s world where what you have

done yesterday is measured only in terms of what you can do tomorrow. Newer options of

accreting capital, as shown by Dave Carroll’s accessing of alternate fields and power sources

through social media, show the reflexive nature of habitus and its creative transformation

potential. While there are some issues and outliers (such a timeliness, willful spin and self-

serving definitions of truth) that add questions beyond Bordieu’s framework, a large part of his

empirical and theoretical findings hold true for theorizing about strategic communication.
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