Social and cultural change Flashcards
What did the increasing availability of TV mean?
It started to create a uniformity of culture and ended the isolation of distant communities
By 1971 what percent of the population had a TV in their home?
91%
How did radio survive cultural modernisation?
Cheap portable transistors and car radios. These together with long life batteries meant the radio could be listened to in the privacy of the bedroom so teenagers no longer had to listen to what their parents wanted to hear. From 1964 pirate stations began to appear with celebrities quickly rising like Tony Blackburn
How was the Sun modernised?
It was launched in 1964 and replaced the serious working class newspaper ‘The daily herald’. In 1969 it was bought by Australian tycoon Rupert Murdoch who associated it with the permissive attitudes of the age
What was leisure in the 60s?
Leisure time expanded as fewer people were expected to work Saturday mornings and weekends could be designated to Leisure time. Home remained central to leisure, with TV playing a key role. DIY, gardening, knitting, cookery and needlework were all still popular.
What percent of journeys were by car in 1974?
Car ownership rocketed with 77% of journeys being by car.
What did increasing car ownership mean?
It was due to technological improvements which made cars more affordable. Cars allowed for travel to alternative shopping centres and leisure facilities
What happened to travel for holidays?
By 1971 there were 7 million holidays abroad but they were still mostly reserved for the middle classes. Package holidays were still a new concept but grew to 8.4% in 1971
Were the 1960s a time of great development in terms of science and technology?
Yes, in 1961 the first person went to space. The labour government made scientific development a key aim. Despite financial restraints, development continued, the anglo french partnership continued to develop the concorde
How was censorship reduced?
In 1968 a bill to abolish theatre censorship was introduced by backbencher George Strauss. With Roy Jenkins’ support and the testimony of the actor Laurence Olivier it was passed into law. This meant nudity was permitted on stage.
Was censorship reduced in film?
Films remained subject to strict categorisation by the British Board of Film Censors but there was a gradual broadening in the 60s of what was deemed acceptable, with explicit violence and sex becoming more acceptable.
What started second wave feminisim?
It started in the US after the feminine mystique was published by Betty Friedan in 1963, arguing women were unfulfilled with their restricted lives. It then spread to Britain
In 1970 what percent of women accounted for managerial posts in the UK?
5%
Why couldn’t many mothers work?
Working mothers were often portrayed by the media as selfish and unatural. Childminders were rare in the 1960s and private nurseries were only available for the wealthy
What were the consequences of changing attitudes and the NHS (Family Planning act) of 1967?
The number of illegitimate births rose to 8.2% in 1970
What book encouraged the feminist movement?
The female eunuch by Germaine Greer in 1970
What demands were put forward at the first National Women’s liberation conference in Oxford in 1970?
Equal pay
Free contraception and abortion on request
Equal educational and job opportunities
Free 24 hour childcare
What progress was made on women’s rights?
The 1970 matrimonial property act which established the work of a wife should be taken into account in divorce settlements
The 1970 equal pay act which established the principle of equal pay for equal work- however it did not come into force for another 5 years
The feminist movement didn’t make much headway until the 1970s, the 60s were a period of evolution not revolution. Inequalities, discrimination and stereotypes were still pervasive
What was the permissive society?
It was a time of sexual liberation, in public and private morals. Critics used the term negatively to describe declining moral standards. It was also seen in the spread of drug culture, with cocaine and heroine addiction becoming ten times more prevalent.
Why did the Catholic church oppose the contraceptive pill?
They argued it was contrary to gods law and therefore sinful. Not everyone agreed though with Catholic MP Norman St John-Stevas writing a critical essay titled ‘The pope, the pill and the people’ in 1968
What spread permissive ideas?
The media, ‘teen magazines’, uncensored novels, the radio and TV
What was the health crisis by the end of the decade?
Rates of sexually transmitted infections were on the rise, especially among the young
Who was Whitehouse?
A moral campaigner who began a crusade against the ‘tide of immorality and indecency’. In particular her crusade was directed at Director general of the BBC, Sir Hugh Greene. She launched a clean up TV campaign in 1964 and in 1965 founded the National viewers’ and listeners’ association, which soon had 100,000 members
What did the Wootton report of 1968 suggest?
Legalising soft drugs like cannabis, it was rejected by Callaghan who wanted ‘to call a halt to the rising tide of permisiveness’. In 1970 the maximum sentence for supplying drugs was actually increased to 14 years imprisonment
