Puns, put-downs and fresh coinages from the white-hot furnace of e-culture

Of course, all agencies with the resources for it conduct deep-think consumer/culture research. C-K's Cultural Dictionary is actually a collection of leftover coolness from research for its white paper titled "Shifting Times: What Brands Need to Know to Navigate Today's Economy." In the paper, C-K identifies "societal trends" such as "sin vs. salvation spending," which is the conflict between fiscally responsible and hopeful (luxury) spending. Coinages such as "econnoisseur" and "enoughism" -- beautifully self-evident in meaning -- help put words to consumers' downsized materialism.

The dictionary is organized around rubrics including politics, ethics, the economy, the environment and technology. The entries came from lots of sources, from focus groups to "words overheard on a train," Bogue says. The book begins with the most seismic new brand in modern times, the Obama event, which is part and parcel of what C-K identifies as "renewed citizenry." It's interesting that Barack Obama's name has spun off new coinages like sparks from a grinding wheel: "Bamelot," "Barackintosh," "Barackstar," "Obamalicious" and other forms of Obamamatopoeia.

The dictionary's chapter on ethics reflects, the agency suggests, the deep disillusionment in once-blue-chip institutions, and so, "Goldman Sacked," which refers to someone being canned from the investment banking business. "Madoffing" means scamming someone. To be "Spitzer'd" is to be caught doing a hypocritical act (by the FBI, maybe?). It's worth noting that the disgraced and hapless executive is quickly becoming a stock character in advertising.

On the other hand, a search for new heroes is embodied in the phrase "Land it like Sully," a reference to the hero of US Airways Flight 1549, Chesley Sullenberger.

The economy chapter offers poignant neologisms such as "precession," the good times before the current downturn, and "returnment," which refers to going back to work after retirement.

In the environment chapter, there's evidence of rising cynicism about "green" poseurs: e.g. "ecosexuals" ("individuals who select their partner based on their shared environmental concerns") and "scuppie" ("an urban professional who is socially conscious"). If I were an ad copywriter, I might look for ways to turn that cynicism into an advantage.