An engaging, accessible history of the focus group, Featherstone's survey shows how the primary purpose of the focus group has shifted from determining what we want, to selling us things we don't. The focus group, over the course of the last century, became an increasingly vital part of the way companies and politicians sold their products and policies with few areas of life, from salad dressing to health care legislation to our favorite TV shows, left untouched by moderators questioning controlled groups about what they liked and didn't. Divining Desire is the first-ever popular survey of this topic. In a lively, sweeping survey, Liza Featherstone traces the surprising roots of the focus group in early-twentieth century European socialism, its subsequent use by the "Mad Men" of Madison Avenue, and its widespread employment today. She also explores such famous "failures" of the method as the doomed launch of the Ford Edsel, and the even more ill-fated attempt to introduce a new flavor of Coca Cola (which prompted street protests from devotees of the old formula). As elites became increasingly detached from the general public, they relied ever more on focus groups, whether to win votes or to sell products. And, in a society where many feel increasingly powerless, the focus group has at least offered the illusion that ordinary people can be heard and that their opinions count. Yet, the more they are listened to, the less power they have. That paradox is particularly stark today, when everyone can post an opinion on social media – our 24 hour "focus group"―yet only plutocrats can shape policy. In telling this story, Featherstone raises profound and fascinating questions about democracy and consumer society. Praise for Divining Desire "When did the vox populi become just another way to fatten the elite? In this vividly written history of the focus group, Liza Featherstone tells us how consumer capitalism found its pseudo-liberating groove. By pretending to listen, big business pretends to empower." ― Tom Frank , author, What's the Matter With Kansas? "With sharp analysis and on-the-ground reporting, Liza Featherstone exposes the secret life of focus groups. She shows in fascinating detail just how corporations and politicians create a false sense of populism, as they scramble to gather bits of wisdom from Everywoman―in order to better sell her a can of soup or a candidate. If you want to learn how consumerism―and the politics of consumerism--really work, Divining Desire is the book to read." ― Leslie Savan , author, The Sponsored Life: Ads, TV and American Culture . "The focus group has been a staple of the American consumer and political landscape for well more than a half-century, yet few know its history, ubiquity, and limitations. Liza Featherstone has filled in the knowledge gap with this brilliantly conceived and elegantly written book. Divining Desire is essential for anyone trying to understand how business and political elites connect with their desired audience―or fail to." ― James Ledbetter , editor of Inc. magazine, and author of One Nation under Gold: How One Precious Metal Has Dominated the American Imagination for Four Centuries "We are increasingly living in a world obsessed with soliciting and expressing opinions--whether on social media, in market surveys, or surrounding presidential elections. In her wonderful book, Liza Featherstone helps us penetrate this 'culture of consultation' - and recognize that actually we are living in a culture of cooptation where weighing in is more of an illusion than a reality, one that helps legitimize the power of elites." ― Lizabeth Cohen , author of A Consumers' Republic: The Politics of Mass Consumption in Postwar America " Divining Desire is a brilliant and insightful work of history, reportage and social criticism. In this deeply researched, slyly funny book, Featherstone takes us "behind the mirror" to show us how the economic ritual of the focus group reflects our deepest, most secret political longings: not for better consumer products, but for a deeper role in our democracy. Essential reading for anyone interested in the history of capitalism, economic life and social change." ― Kim Phillips-Fein , author of Fear City: New York's Fiscal Crisis and the Rise of Austerity Politics " Divining Desire infiltrates and skillfully analyzes one of the most under-scrutinized elements of our modern machinery of influence: the focus group. With origins in academia, this shortcut to understanding affects our views on consumer culture, class, social categories, politics, and policy. Liza Featherstone's definitive take on the subject will change the way you think about what other people (supposedly) think." ― Rob Walker , author, Buying In: The Secret Dialogue between What We Buy and Who We Are "Featherstone's uncynical history of public opinion research is a treasury of information and analysis. Where others only see spi