The rise of the owners and the neo-accumulationist imaginary : Changing perceptions of private wealth in Finnish business media, 1981–2021

Abstract

The rise of the super-rich has been a defining characteristic of recent decades. This paper analyses the cultural underpinnings of contemporary private wealth accumulation, by exploring the changes in how Finnish business media has approached wealth accumulation at the top. Drawing from cultural political economy and Bourdieu’s theory of the social space, it examines how private wealth and wealthy owners have been represented in Finnish business media between 1981 and 2021. The paper argues that the changes in the representations demonstrate a rise of a new imaginary, in which private wealth accumulation is valued and perceived as a desirable goal both for individuals and the society. Finally, these cultural changes might pave the way for a new economic regime that could be called neo-accumulationist, meaning a regime characterized by specific advantages for those with accumulated economic assets.