New Kid In Town

Saw the beginning of a story on 60 Minutes tonight on the rise of the "Echo Boomers." This is the new "hot" name, apparently, for what was formerly known as Generation Y or the Millennials (born from the early '80s to early '90s). The message: These kids are young, tech-savvy and affluent ... and marketers have decided they are the Next Big Thing.

I wonder why my generation never received such a fawning lapping to lead off a 60 Minutes broadcast. I wonder why they have been cast as the second coming of Boomers by the Boomer reporter and Boomer producers and Boomer news division bosses. I wonder why I haven't yet seen the reams of literature expounding on that generation's bleak future or the other cynical observations that befell the Xers.

Narratives are fluid in today's media climate, but being there first and getting out your message remain important. Because once you've established a paradigm it's hard to remake it, I'd have to say the kids are doing alright in their embryonic image campaign. Maybe the so-called Echo Boomers used their tech-savvy affluence to hire their own PR firm.