Essays Flashcards
Popular culture
Popular culture is defined as social and cultural products that are there as a form of entertainment and for use by the mass culture, and are commonly short lived and acknowledged to hold little artistic value, such as movies or pop music. Alternatively, high culture is something that is considered unique, and different to everyday life. It is usually aimed at the upper and middle class, and is commonly approved of by the intellectual elite. Furthermore it usually takes place in environments that are significant in high class culture, such as the theatre.
There are several different arguments as to how the mass media has affected popular culture, for example Marxists argue that popular culture is the bourgeoisie’s way of dumbing down the proletariat, and thus controlling them. By promoting the false ideologies that popular culture bases itself off, such as owning an iPod, the proletariat are distracted from the poor working conditions and the exploitation that they are facing. Furthermore, Marxists also argue that the working class experience “false class consciousness”, meaning that they have come to believe that the capitalist system is a fair one that can benefits everyone equally, because the lower class are also able to obtain these false needs. Therefore they fail to notice the reality of their situation, that they are being exploited by a capitalist system that only benefits and small and powerful minority. This shows that the mass media’s only purpose is to do the bidding of the bourgeoisie, by promoting false needs so the proletariat are distracted from their low position in society and the mass exploitation that they suffer from.
On the other hand, feminists argue that the traditional images of women are purposefully transmitted by the male dominated media to keep women oppressed into a small range of roles. They believe that the mass media deliberately fool women into believing in the “beauty myth”, meaning that they should conform to whatever image that males believe a “proper” woman be like, in terms of good looks, weight etc. For example Wolf (1990), says that the images of women that are used by the media present a “beauty ideal” through which they show women that they should treat their bodies as a blueprint that is in constant need for improvement. Furthermore feminists argue that women are encouraged by the media to see these achievements as central to their happiness and well being, rather than competing with men for positions of power within society. This leads to a form of false consciousness in women and it stops them from making the most of opportunities that are available to them. This suggests that the mass media is a patriarchal system that is trying to dominate and oppress women by promoting the “beauty ideal” that they should all strive, so they are not aware of the exploitation that they are under from the hands of men.
However, postmodernists argue that the distinction between high culture and popular culture has now become blurred, due to the effects of globalisation, which they argue is beneficial due to it being primarily responsible for the diffusing of different lifestyles and cultures around the world, which in turn has created global hybrid styles un fashion, music etc. They argue that due to the advancement in technologies such as social networking, any culture is now available to anyone. People no longer need to visit special places to access high culture, for example people can now download classic books for free, or purchase Arthouse films on DVD. It is debated that in the postmodernist global world pluralism and cultural diversity will eventually become the global norm. This shows that the mass media is in fact creating hybrid cultures, so it can be argued that in the near future pure popular culture may not even exist, instead it may form a hybrid with high culture, which more people will be able to relate to.
Additionally, postmodernists also argue that the global media culture has increased consumer choice. They argue that there are now hundreds of entertainment and news channels on television that allow people to witness the same events, yet from different perspectives. They argue that the competition between different media organisations will result in a higher quality of media products. Moreover, postmodernists argue that people can also choose in the way in which they want their entertainment delivered, for example people may choose whether to buy music in CD form or they can download it from iTunes. Furthermore they also argue that the global media is a positive influence because the developing world can be injected with modern ideas that begin cultural ideas that will help to develop those societies. For example the recent spread of protests in Northern Africa, and the overthrowing of the Gadafi regime in Libya, because the people wished for a democratic government, rather than a dictatorship, and it is argued whether the idea of democracy was spread to Libya via the global media (social networking, the world wide web, etc).
On the contrary, Marxists argue that it restricts choice because transnational media companies and their owners, such as Rupert Murdoch, have far too much power. Marxists such as Rosenau (1990) observed that “Coca Cola, Disney and McDonalds, from Moscow and to New York, from Tiananmen Square to Papua, it is the same culture that is present everywhere.” It is also argued that the global media and cultures “dumbing down” local cultures, and perhaps even kill off the nation state. Sociologists such as Schiller (1976) observed that Brazilian television is merely a spiced up version of Western values, norms and culture. Furthermore, cultural pessimists refer to this trend as the “Disneyfication” if culture because they claim that the supposedly global culture is one that is dominated by American values and beliefs, and that the entertainment mainly takes the form of sitcom, reality television, soap operas and celebrity gossip. Kellner (1999) claims that the global media culture is all about sameness, and the individuality of some cultures is erased in the process.
However, post modernists disagree with this approach, they claim that the global media if s benefit for both developed and undeveloped societies because it offers wide range of choices and opportunities. They also argue that smaller cultures are not swallowed up by the global media, rather they adapt to it. For example Bollywood films are produced by local film industry that is organised around both Hollywood and Indian entertainment values. This suggests that the global media culture does not change cultures for the worst, but instead they adapt to modern techniques so that they may express their values using modern technologies.
In conclusion, it is clear that the mass media does have an effect on popular cultures; however it can be argued that they are not changed for the better. Instead local cultures are engulfed by Western (American) values, and in turn, eventually forget their own.
