Vegas on the brain (I’m going there next Thursday after class, woo hoo!)

Media representations of Las Vegas

For this assignment I chose to study depictions of Las Vegas, which is depicted in the media as a luxurious place that’s in continuous party mode. The famous sign welcomes people to “fabulous” Las Vegas, a word that has connotations of glamour and class.

I myself was susceptible to the media representation of Vegas. I went there for the first time several years ago and expected to feel like an underdressed frump everywhere I went. Given the city’s party-hard image, I expected to stay up all night and laugh at the antics of young people on bachelor/ette parties. When I arrived, though, I was somewhat let down by the reality of Vegas. People sitting in the casinos were wearing pajamas (at best), chain-smoking at the slots all day long. Many of them were old, not the young and hip people shown in the ads, TV shows, and movies. It really wasn’t that surprising, but I was a little disappointed that Vegas didn’t live up to the coolness I had in mind.

The city's brilliant advertising campaign shaped the image that everyone has of Vegas. The line "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" implies excitement--all the vices, including gambling, drinking, and casual sex--and offers the guarantee that the city will keep your secrets. It is portrayed as basically an alternate universe where everyone is single, young, wealthy, and attractive.

Vegas is full of lights and fantasy, an image mainly perpetuated by the variety of themed hotels on the strip. (The ironic thing about this city is that it tries to make you feel like you’re somewhere else entirely. Most of the themed hotels are replicas of different places—Italy, Paris, Egypt, etc. Las Vegas is supposed to be an escape, but…to somewhere that’s not even the U.S.? Strange. Well, I suppose it’s cheaper than traveling around the world). The city’s brilliant façade and clever ad campaign hide its larger problems—high unemployment and depressed housing values for residents, and gambling/alcohol addiction for some residents or visitors. The idea of staying up all night gambling may sound fun, but if you can’t afford it, it can cause huge problems. And you can’t really avoid gambling in Vegas. The airport has slot machines, so you’re inundated from the moment you arrive, and the casinos are windowless caverns that shield you from the outside world. Gambling is portrayed in the media as a glamorous and sophisticated activity (I’m thinking of movies like Casino Royale and 21), and the casinos certainly look the part, but this image ignores the risks of gambling in excess…I actually think the city ignores pretty much all reality. I will admit, though, that’s one of the reasons why I enjoy going there.

When I go there, though, I can’t turn off my brain completely. (I don’t drink that much!). I find that in Vegas, reality sometimes clashes with fantasy in uncomfortable ways. Passing the guys on the street giving out calling cards for prostitutes. Dirt and trash on the streets. People gambling money that they really can’t afford to lose. But when I’m there, it’s easy to stay in my own little world and ignore the reality around me, which is exactly what this city wants me to do.