1、Issue#008Fall 2023Middle ClassThe AmericanChapter 3The ShrinkingClass“The most perfect political community is one in which the middle class is in control and outnumbers both of the other classes.”-AristotleBackgroundPreviously on The American Middle Class.The middle class makes up half of the Americ

2、an population,but we understand surprisingly little about them.In order to solve this problem,Starcom embarked on a 1500-person survey,an interview series and extensive secondary research to get a thorough picture of the lives of average Americans.The result is this series of five chapters on the Am

3、erican middle class.In the first and second installments of this series,we explored:3The ShrinkingClass4The Real MiddleClass5BrandOutlook2Elements of the MythWhat we mean when we say the middle class is“shrinking,”and the impact this has on daily livesToday on The American Middle Class.The middle cl

4、ass myth has never been extremely realistic,but it feels like these days its completely out of touch with daily lives.There was near consensus in our survey that the middle class is shrinking,but people had all sorts of thoughts on what that actually means,let alone what impact that has on the count

5、ry and their lives.In this chapter,we explore what the phrase“shrinking middle class”means,why this is happening and what the effects are of this societal change.1Defining theMiddle ClassTakeawayMedia and marketers have had a leading role in shaping not just who we think the middle class is,but what

6、 we think they stand forOverviewThe many ways,both economic and cultural,we define the middle class,and a historical look at where weve landedTHE SHRINKING CLASS|3THE AMERICAN MIDDLE CLASSTakeawayDespite looking more and more out of touch,brands continue to reinforce these images and values of the A