changing popular culture

Question 1

how did Americans feel about sport before the 1970’s?

Answer 1

• it reflected all that was good about the American way
• they believed that team games and team spirit encouraged good citezenship.
• provided a sense of community
• strengthened character.

Question 2

when did commercialisation of sport accelerate?

Answer 2

it had done since the mid-19th centruary however it accellerated in particular during the 70’s.

Question 3

what created vast sums of money for colleges, atheletes and teams?

Answer 3

1973 - spectators.

Question 4

how much did the National Football League gain from TV rights between 1970- 1982?

Answer 4

• $188 million in 1970-1973

- $646 million in 1978-1982

Question 5

why did corporate sponsorship during the 70’s (SPORT)?

Answer 5

• because of the increased coverage of sport on tv and it was a good source of advertisement.

Question 6

% of men and women watching sport?

Answer 6

• 90% of men watched sport

- 75% of women.

Question 7

what is a clear example that indicated that sport was all about money?

Answer 7

• a common trend that teams such as the Oakland Raiders ditched their supporters and home grounds and moved to another city.

Question 8

who is John Mackey?

Answer 8

`he was a footballer for the Baltimore Colts who sued the NFL in order to gain greater bargaining power of salary and movement from different clubs.
- they won their case in 1976

Question 9

why did cheating become more common?

Answer 9

• as sport began to generate more money for player people cheated in order to get richer.

Question 10

what exposed the corruption within sport during the 70’s?

Answer 10

• the rise in investigative journalism led to exposure of what seemed to be ever increasing ammount of corruption.

Question 11

what ammount of the US olympic team used steroids?

Answer 11

• 1/3 in 1968

- and 68% in 1972

Question 12

why did violence in sport increase during the 70’s?

Answer 12

• “it made good television”

Question 13

when did Rock culture develop?

Answer 13

the late 60’s

Question 14

what did rock music reject?

Answer 14

• east-listening
• pop music
• opposed mass society (even though they dominated through the 60’s and 70’s)

Question 15

although dominated during the 60’s and 70’s what other genres also became popular?

Answer 15

• rhythm and blues
• disco
• Hip Hop
• heavy metal

Question 16

when was the disco boom?

Answer 16

1974 and by 1976 there was 10,000 discotheques in the US.

Question 17

what is an example of a famous disco hit and artist?

Answer 17

• “never can say goodbye” - Gloria Gaynor (1975)
• “love to love you” - Donna summer (1976)
• “you sexy thing” - Hot chocolate (1976).

Question 18

who was the most popular heavy metal band in America?

Answer 18

• Grand Funk Railroad (1970’s)

Question 19

what gave heavy metal the “outsider” status?

Answer 19

• they were ignored by the press and media, this partly explains its success.

Question 20

why were heavy metal bands sometimes considered to be occult?

Answer 20

• bands like Alice Cooper wore makeup and dressed differently

Question 21

how did bands such as Alice Cooper challenge gender roles?

Answer 21

• they wore makeup
• spandex
• high heels
  and we ex-athletes/

Question 22

when did American punk develop?

Answer 22

during the mid 70’s

Question 23

what did punk bands aim to do? and what is an example of how they did this?

Answer 23

• aimed to shock

- the Ramones used Nazi symbols and had titles of songs such as “i dont care.”

Question 24

what did punk rockers believe?

Answer 24

that commercialisation had destroyed American ,music and the biggest and most popular bands had sold out and become corrupt.

Question 25

what messages did the Dead Kennedy’s try to put across?

Answer 25

• political
• social issues
  e. g. their song Holiday in Cambodia was critical of well-meaning middle-class students.

Question 26

what is an example of a new wave band taking punk into a more mainstream audience?

Answer 26

Blondie with their number 1 single heart of glass in 1979. v

Question 27

when did Hip Hop begin?

Answer 27

• Harlem ghetto in New York during the early 70’s

Question 28

what black urban youth culture developed during the 70’s ?

Answer 28

• DJ-ING
• graffiti
• beat boxing
• break dancing

Question 29

what did many people consider the first Hip Hop song?

Answer 29

The Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight” 1979

- which sold over 2 million copies

Question 30

why did purists criticise the group the Sugarhill Gang?

Answer 30

• they said it was pre-fabricated

- felt that Hip Hop had lost some of its really character after “Rappers Delight” as it made it mainstream in the media.

Question 31

what was the first supposed rap record to reach number 1?

Answer 31

Blondie’s “Rapture”

- purists however criticised this and said it was another example of white exploitation of traditional black music.

Question 32

who are some famous examples of “singer-songwriters” in the 70’s?

Answer 32

• Carol King

- Carly Simon

Question 33

who was Bruce Springsteen?

Answer 33

he was a singer songwriter who was from New Jersey which was a state whoch suffered from manufacturing decline and many of his songs refered to the rust belt unemployment and other aspects of working class life.

Question 34

what did film and Tv offer many Americans?

Answer 34

• escapism
• exploration of social and political tensions during the 1970’s
• reflected violence, racial conflict and political corruption.

Question 35

what famous TV show on CBS reflected social conciousness?

Answer 35

“all in the family” 1971-79
- the central character Archie Bunker as WW2 vetran who repeatedly ranted at Hippies, Black people, feminists and homosexuals.

Question 36

what was ironic about the programme “all in the family”?

Answer 36

it was attened to portray the character Archie Bunker as a bigot by liberal creators, however many veiwers actually agreed with him. and the show topped ratings in 1971-76.

Question 37

what series reflected independent-minded women?

Answer 37

maude 1972-78
and the Mary Tyler Moore show 1970-77
were both extremely popular.

Question 38

who was the Gay activist allience?

Answer 38

an organisation that put pressure on TV Networks into more sympathetic portrayals of homosexuality.
- an example of where this happened was “a question of love” 1978 which was about a lesbian mothers child custody case.

Question 39

an example of where racial tensions were explored in TV?

Answer 39

“roots” 1977 a mini series that explored the origins of America’s racial tensions and was the story of the enslavement of the main characters ancestors.

Question 40

what was meant by “blaxploitation” films?

Answer 40

1969-74 they were characterised as black heroes over coming corrupt white characters.

Question 41

what was blaxploitation movies a result of?

Answer 41

• bland black characters in mainstream movies
• black people contrinbuted to 30% of audiences in cinema
• greater black awareness generated by black power.

Question 42

why did Blaxploitation movies generate some tensions within the black community?

Answer 42

• some middle-class blacks felt that it contributed towards dramatic increase in cocaine use amongst ghetto youths (due to the gangster and violence.”

Question 43

how did films reflect current political and social issues of the 70’s?

Answer 43

• around the time of the Watergate scandal the film “conversations” 1974 explored the privacy and responsibility of a survrillance expert.
• “all the presidents men” 1976 the story of the Washington post who exposed the watergate scandal.

Question 44

what examples are there of pure escapist films?

Answer 44

• Grease 1978
• American Graffiti 1973
  which looked back at the teenage years of the 1950’s.
• Star wars 1977
  -close encounters of the third kind 1978 were futeristic.