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In the year that George Ritzer publishes the ninth edition of The McDonaldization of Society, moving his famous theory firmly Into the Digital Age, critical educator Petar Jandrić and sociologist Sarah Hayes invited George to a dialogue on the digital transformation of McDonaldization and its critical application to Higher Education. In this article, George first traces for us the origins of his theory that has endured for four decades. A key dimension of McDonaldization is the 'iron cage' of control, via rationalization. Once contained within physical sites of bricks and mortar, now, we encounter a 'velvet cage' in sites of digital consumption, at the hands of non-human technologies, that threaten human labor and autonomy. Whilst the concept of the McUniversity is not without some critique, this interview provides compelling reasons to open new dialogue about McDonaldization in augmented settings such as Higher Education. With the rise of prosuming machines such as blockchain and bitcoin, that can both produce and consume without intervention from human 'prosumers', universities cannot afford to ignore the challenges of prosumer capitalism, which George concludes, will explode into unprecedented and unpredictable directions in the years to come. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The essay discusses capitalism and prosumption. Topics of the essay include capitalist market, social stratification and work overload for employees. Other topics such as entrepreneurs, capitalists and production in capitalist system are also discussed. Consumption in the capitalist system is also mentioned.

The essay discusses relationship between capitalism and prosumption. Topics of the essay include capitalist economic system, consumer capitalism and consumer societies. Other topics such as economic processes, social media and production in capitalism are also discussed. Capitalism in United States in mentioned.

As ballparks have grown in size to accommodate ever larger crowds, they have become increasingly rationalized or McDonaldized. However, rationalization brings with it disenchantment, that is, when they are rationalized, stadiums and other sites of consumption can lose the magical qualities that attract consumers. Recently, in an effort to attract larger crowds, ballparks have undergone a process of reenchantment whereby the magical allure of the ballpark is simulated to increase the consumer appeal of a rationalized setting. This article explores the applicability to contemporary ballparks of the various mechanisms involved in reenchantment, including such postmodern techniques as extravaganzas, simulations, implosions, and manipulations of time and space. We show that the evolution of the ballpark not only supports the reenchantment thesis, but also underscores the increasing commercialization of leisure. We also argue that the apparent de-McDonaldization that accompanies reenchantment is largely superficial and artificial; it is simulated de-McDonaldization, which remains rational at the core. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]