Netflix

By Nicole Barth & Andrew Cliatt

In a world that’s culture is based on receiving the newest updates and having the fastest internet, it’s no wonder that one would become victim to watching countless episodes of their favorite t.v. show on Netflix. Today Netflix has almost completely taken over the Blockbuster movie rental scene and made watching movies and t.v. shows accessible by the click of a button. Netflix currently has over 50 million members spanning across 40 different countries including 36 million members just in the U.S. This entertainment service has even surpassed HBO to become America’s biggest pay-­TV service. Not only has Netflix become a household name, but it has changed the culture of our society.

Netflix has not always been a major competing entertainment service. In fact, Netflix has evolved enormously since it was first founded in 1997. Reed Hastings, the founder and CEO of Netflix, wanted to build an entertainment company that would grow rapidly, but he didn’t want to lose his passion for innovation within the company as it continued to flourish. He originally created the company to be a DVD subscription service in which people would pay a small fee to rent movies from the online Netflix store and have them delivered to their door. In 2007, however, the company introduced the ability to stream t.v. shows, documentaries, and movies from the online Netflix website. This innovation completely changed the world’s ability to access entertainment, making it more convenient than ever. Throughout the years Netflix has become an available application on XBOX, Apple products, and has branched out to many different countries located in Latin America and Europe. Overall, Hastings has created a booming entertainment business and has even been recognized for his innovative management practices and the high paying salaries and good treatment that his employees receive.

Everyone has that one t.v. show that they could spend hours and hours watching on Netflix. Whether it be Gossip Girl or Breaking Bad, the world cannot get enough of thesedramatic t.v. shows that are made available to them through a subscription to Netflix. Why is there so much hype about Netflix? Our world has become so fast paced that no one wants to wait another week to see the next episode, they want the gratification of seeing the next episode the instant the previous one is over. Netflix is a convenient and cheap way to make this happen. For instance, Netflix provides unlimited streaming of movies and t.v. shows for a low monthly cost of $8.99. On top of that, a user has access anytime, anywhere so they never have to leave the comfort of their home. Netflix feeds into to the fast paced society we live in giving consumers the desire to have a program that can provide instant gratification.

While Netflix has made accessing t.v. shows and movies more convenient, Netflix has also had some negative impacts on our society. One of the main drawbacks of consumers subscribing to this company is the side-­effect of “binge watching.” Through online streaming, consumers will watch countless t.v. episodes in a row until they have gone through one or two seasons within the span of a day. Binge watching has become extremely easy to fall victim to because after each episode the next episode is usually programmed to play in the next 30 seconds unless you exit out of the program. Before a user can close their computer screen, the next episode is already streaming and they are sucked in. Binge watching has also become something that people boast to their colleagues or friends about. Our society has given binge watching a positive connotation even though the word “binge” has a negative connotation of someone who over indulges in something. Binge watching Netflix is now a global phenomenon as it is the platform for many commercials and has even reached phone companies. T­mobile is now allowing its users to stream Netflix without using data. The name of it’s campaign is “Binge­-on.” Netflix continually promotes a binge watching culture that disconnects and distracts users from the real world.

Currently the main impact that Netflix is having on our society is the buzz that comes with the phrase “Netflix and Chill.” While this phrase used to literally just mean that you would watch a movie with your significant other and chill, now it means that you turn on a movie so that you can have sexual relations with your significant other. This promotes a hookup culture because the whole point is to pick a movie that you really don’t want to watch so that you will get bored and have an excuse for having sex. This slang was first used on a tweet that someone posted and is now heard conversations all over the world. Netflix, as a company, is not proud of the hook up culture that their company is a part of and is trying to move on from the affects that “Netflix and Chill” has made on our society.

Overall, Netflix is by far the largest online streaming service in the world. Through the convenience and instant gratification one can receive from using Netflix, this company has become extremely successful and used world wide. However, there are some negative impacts of Netflix due to the binge watching and hookup culture it has produced. Even though Netflix has produced some negative effects it has completely modernized the way that we access entertainment.

Instagram: Capture and Share the World’s “Moments”

By Allie Rahn & Taylor Hartman 

Social-networking sites have come a long way since the early 2000’s. First it was Myspace, then Facebook and Tumblr, and now Twitter, Instagram, Kik, Snapchat, etc. These websites and apps draw a lot of attention from young people as it connects them to their friends, family, and other people from all over the world. It also gives them a chance to follow their favorite celebrities, sport stars, and actors/actresses. We decided to focus on Instagram specifically for our cultural artifact.

Launched in 2010, Instagram allows its users to post pictures and share them with the world. When someone posts a picture or video, he or she is able to apply a filter and edit the characteristics of the picture or video. These features have allowed many users to alter their looks in many different ways. One way specifically, is that these features give the users opportunities to hide their insecurities. Many of these so called “flawless” photos have poured onto the site. These pictures have many young people looking at “Instagram models” for inspiration. This then leads many of the users of Instagram to define their worth based on how many likes or followers they get. People want to look as perfect as these models and strive to look like them and post pictures similar to theirs. However, it is a very different point of view for the models.

To most of these models, their candid, simple pictures are actually a job to them. The candid photos they post, aren’t actually true candid. They are staged in order to look as perfect as they can be, so in return they receive more likes and followers. They also do ads for companies such as teeth whitening products and detoxifying teas, and they receive money for their photos and videos. The recognition from these companies started from their want for follows and likes. In the video above, 19 year-old Essena O’Neill had become addicted to Instagram by trying to gain as many followers and likes as possible, and she finally realizes that she was not happy and was not being true to herself. She ended up taking off the original captions to her photos, and then she began writing the truth about the pictures. She would explain how that the pictures were not candid or she probably did not eat that day, and so on. Even a model like her was unhappy with herself. This shows exactly how there are so many stereotypes of which women need to be like. Essena spent so much of her time trying to fulfil what a beautiful women should look like, when in the end it just made her miserable.

The reason why we chose Instagram is because it has become very popular in the past few years, especially for people around our age. This topic also ties in with what we have discussed in class about how our society has this idea of what beauty is. In order to be “beautiful” you must have a certain list of characteristics. This then leads to society not thinking many people are beautiful unless they fit those characteristics. For a woman, you must be skinny, have a flawless face, hair, skin, teeth, etc. However, not everybody has all or any of these characteristics. Social media such as Instagram promotes these stereotypes of what a beautiful woman is, if you do not get a certain amount of likes then you are not beautiful. Our society and young women especially need to stop stereotyping what beauty is. They should start with Instagram. Post pictures that you feel confident and happy in because that’s what’s beautiful.

Tinder

By Michael Barber & Emily Neels

The younger generations of our society are almost exclusively dedicated to social media, and use it for every aspect of their lives. Although there are many different examples of this idea, Tinder seems to really take this concept and apply it to one of the most “sacred” parts of life: the relationship. Tinder is a dating app that is very popular among people from 18 to 30 years of age; however, it is used mostly for people to meet each other and hook up. Tinder is negatively impacting American society because it reduces the amount of social skills used in someone’s life as well as supports a sexually dishonest lifestyle.

The concept is if two people both like pictures of each other, they can message each other and then keep advancing in communication if they desire too. According to businessinsider.com, approximately 85% of Tinder’s users are between the ages of 18 and 34. This is a huge portion of the users and shows that the app is widely used by younger generations of people. This makes it easier for the younger generations to find a relationship, without real emotional connection or responsibilities, and just as easy to end it.

Tinder is negatively impacting American society because it is reducing the amount of personal connections between people as well as showing that people do not value monogamy and a long lasting relationship with one person. The way the initial contact starts is by liking only the way a person looks, and after that, you can initiate conversation. This wouldn’t seem terribly negative from just observing how it works, however, the conversation doesn’t consist of “getting to know you” questions. The topic is sex, and considering the amount of connections one person can get are limitless, it can be assumed that sex is a topic that is carried through dozens of conversations. These conversations are happening virtually rather than in person to person contact which further harms our technologically savvy generation in regards to our social skills. There are not many people in our generation that can reasonably go more than a few hours without looking at their phones. Tinder only adds to this problem as well as helps people to shy away from personal contact.

The younger American generation as a whole values having many different options and being able to access them. This is perhaps because we like the appeal of having what appears to be a temporary relationship because the idea of being able to move on to someone better at anytime appeals to the younger generation.  Also, because there is not “friend list” or anything of the like, it is rather simple for people who are in relationships to have a Tinder and have their significant other never find out.  The way the app is set up, a person can like as many people as they desire and therefore talk to and meet as many people as desired as long as they have liked your profile as well.  This contributes to the fact that people don’t want to truly just meet one person, they want the attention from as many people as possible in order to satisfy their narcissistic needs.

If the younger American generations continue to use Tinder, and the values associated with Tinder, society will continue to trend towards less successful marriages. Furthermore, the social skills that are lost from using Tinder are needed for more than just dating.  People with better developed social skills excel in many jobs and other areas of their lives as well. American society is being negatively impacted by Tinder because it neglects person to person contact in a dating format and helps to support a sexually dishonest lifestyle.

Video Games: Not Just Recreation

By Nick Haines & Trevor Poirier

In the ever-evolving society we live in, video games as a whole are becoming more and more realistic in their approaches.  More specifically, Role-Playing Games (RPG’s) are rising up to the forefront in some of the most well known video game franchises.  Why is that though?  What are Role-Playing Games and what makes them so popular in today’s society?  In order to answer these questions, we must first look at the history of RPG’s as a whole.

RPG’s originated from the rise of table-top role-playing games.  The first of these was created by Gary Gygax and is referred to today as Dungeons & Dragons.  This game involved the player creating their own imaginary character, and then sticking with that character throughout the game.  Random events shaped who that character became.  Following the table-top role-playing games came the development of the first console video role-playing game (v-RPG) called Advanced Dungeons & Dragons:  Treasure of Tarmin.  This game, which came out in 1982, involved basic 2-Dimensional graphics that allowed players to visualize their character as they advanced through the game.  Nowadays, RPG’s have expanded into vast, 3-Dimensional worlds, where the player has the freedom to do pretty much whatever they want.  Games such as Fallout and Skyrim allow players to create a whole new virtual persona in a whole new world.  The ability to customize these characters anyway the player wants gives the player a new attachment to the game that can not be created any other way.  The decisions made in the game come directly from the player, and consequently, affect the game accordingly.

Furthermore, RPG’s have now entered into a new era of gaming.  This era includes Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG’s).  This new shift in gaming now allows players to interact with other players from all over the world.  So, not only can players freely customize their players the way they want, but they also have the ability to freely interact with other people who have that same ability.

The popularity of these types of games can directly connect to our society today and our culture values as a whole.  To start, MMORPG's have completely shifted society’s perspective about “geeks.”  In the past, people who played a lot of video games were often seen as a social outcast because the person seemed to enjoy the virtual world more than the physical world.  However, as video games, specifically MMORPG’s, became more popular, the perception of players evolved.  Due to the the fact that these games now allow gamers to socialize while playing, players are seen as less “geeky,” and more “cool.”  Along with these, comes the ease in which access to these games became.  Most MMORPG’s are a download away on any computer or console, so the freedom to have the game is open.  This allows the gaming community to grow at a rapid rate, increasing its impact on society.

Another aspect of RPG’s and MMORPG’s is the fact that the player has the ability to express multiple identities, both inside and outside of the game.  In What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy, James Paul Gee talks about three separate identities involved with gaming.  The first is the virtual identity which is the in game character and the relationships formed in the game.  The second is the real-world identity which is the player who sits down and plays the game.  The third is known as the projected identity which is the essentially the connection between the player and the avatar they created.  The projected identity is the bridge between reality and virtual reality.  Oftentimes in RPG’s, players create an “ideal” character who exemplifies all the traits they admire most in a real-world identity.  This shows that players in today’s society use video games as an outlet to express who they want to be and how they want others to see them.

In conclusion, RPG’s are a major part of today’s society.  This is due in part to the rising number of players and the ease of access to play them.  In addition, RPG’s allow players to dream and go above and beyond what they can in a “real-world” scenario.

Eminem

By Mairyn Dodson & Maya Van Lysebettens

Eminem is one of the best-selling rappers of all time. His story is one of adversity and overcoming obstacles. Eminem, otherwise known as Marshall Mathers, was born in 1972 in St. Joseph, Missouri to Marshall Bruce Mathers and Deborah Nelson-Mathers. His father left when he was sixth months old, and as a result, his mother and he frequently moved in order to be able to keep up with bills. In his songs, he details a horrifying childhood, claiming his mother abused drugs and fed him paint thinner, but since then, he has apologized to his mother for his accusations. When he was 14, his mother allowed two young girls, Kim and Dawn Scott, to move into their home. Eminem soon after entered into a relationship with Kim. When he was 17 years old, he dropped out of high school after being held back three times his freshman year. He spent the next few years working as a dishwasher at a local motel to help his mother pay bills, although she still kicked him out very often. In 1995, when Eminem was 23, he and Kim had Hailie, and two years later, he and Kim tied the knot. In 1997, Eminem flew to California to compete in the 1997 Rap Olympics, placing second. Talent Scouts at the competition gave Eminem’s mixtape to Dr. Dre, and from there, his career took off. Dr. Dre received a lot of criticism for wanting to sign Eminem because he was white. Dre responded, “I don’t give a fuck if you’re purple; If you can kick it, I’m working with you.”

Eminem’s music was so popular because it gave something for everyone to relate to, even if it doesn’t directly apply to their situation. He uses powerful metaphors to relate to all walks of life. He used his difficult and obstacle-filled life to inspire those who listened to his music. He helped to usher in a new era of hip hop, one that could apply to anyone. Before Eminem, hip-hop and rap was intended primarily for African Americans. He helped to show that hardships are hardships, regardless of your skin color. It doesn’t matter who you are, you can listen to whatever you want.

His first music was under the sadistic alter ego, Slim Shady. In this album, he rapped mostly about drugs and women; as his career progressed, his music took on many serious topics, including his children, his ex-wife, his addiction, and the ongoing war in the hip hop community that resulted in the unnecessary shortening of the lives of many young rappers. In his song “Toy Soldiers”, he calls for the end of a fatal war that has caused him to watch his friends endure a lot of pain and suffering. He claims that there is no more room for hate in the hip hop community. It is a community for understanding, not for death threats.

Many are quick to point out his sometimes negative lyrics, but few point out that he has even started his own charity, called the Marshall Mathers Foundation, which strives to help disadvantaged youth in his home state of Michigan. He also voices his support for charities such as the Eight Mile Boulevard Association, as well as ninemillion.org.

Although some of the content in Eminem’s music is racy, he always points out that he is just joking about doing some of those things. He encourages others to not take the same path that he did. His songs point out flaws in today’s society and pop culture that many choose not to see. Eminem’s music serves as an inspiration to us all. Whether or not we have been through similar situations, we can all derive similarities through his extended metaphors and his humorous outlook on life. Eminem is a constant reminder that no matter where you come from, you can be as successful as you want to be.

Women in Music

By Alexsenia Ralat & Douglas Sherrill

Our culture today seems to be celebrating men in music, or men in general, who represent promiscuity, as well as legal and illegal pastimes, and the mistreatment of women. These men in music are seen as idols by many and only seem controversial to a few. Now when it comes to women in music, if they sing about the same or similar things they are immediately (most of the time) attacked by the media, and people in general.

Our example of this comes through Taylor Swift, or more specifically her music video Blank Space. The entirety of this video is a large bowl of satire, attacking the media’s representation of her in very obvious ways. For example, she has been represented for years as being a person who has way too many relationships, when in reality she has only had seven in the last nine years.

Swift and many other female artists are attacked routinely in media and television because of the way that they present themselves. Men in music represent themselves as sexual “beasts,” people who are powerful and confident. Women like Nicki Minaj, Beyoncé, and Taylor Swift are constantly bashed for showing the same characteristics. Why? The media praises men who assert themselves, what’s the difference when it comes to women exactly?

What does all of this mean, how does the media affect American Culture? As a culture we are submersed in tabloids and magazines, all the newest and hottest scandals are always just a screen away. As a culture we have grown to sexualize, manipulate, and idolize female icons who don’t “push the limit,” meaning: they don’t show their butt. These icons are expected to be feminine and pretty, the epitome of womanhood. While the men are expected to be manly and tough, beings who have sex, but aren’t expected to look sexy. There is something really wrong with these expectations and double standards. As soon as someone crosses the line, they are shot down, fed to the wolves, and beaten into submission. As a culture we attack women who assert themselves and men who show their feelings. This needs to change.

Taylor Swift and others such as Beyoncé and Nicki Minaj, are fighting the stigma that women in music are not as successful as the men. They are fighting for equality in not only the treatment, but the representation of women. They are powerful women who have not been beaten down by the media and they continue to stand by their beliefs. We need more people like them in the entertainment business, people who are not afraid to stand up for others and fight for equality.

Thinking Outside Stereotypes

By Kaytlin Jacoby & Cassidy Cowger

Our culture is experiencing a great moral shift.  Where decades ago, the American Dream was to have a family and a white picket fence, this dream doesn’t seem to fit our generation’s ideals.  Even as contraception became more readily available and people started having multiple sexual partners before settling down, they eventually did commit to one person.  Now more than ever before cheating runs rampant amongst committed partners.  Everyone knows someone who was cheated on, whether it’s a high school friend or a couple that broke up after ten years of marriage.  Older generations claim that we’re just afraid of commitment.  However, when having multiple “side chicks” is promoted by every trendy male artist, are we truly afraid of commitment, or do we just think it’s acceptable to cheat on our partners?

With so many artists following the norm, artists who don’t are bound to stand out.  Ed Sheeran has made his entire career writing and performing songs that glorify loving one woman.  He has topped the charts with “Thinking Out Loud” in 9 countries and the video is the twenty-ninth most viewed video on YouTube.  The video itself is completely G-rated, featuring nothing but Ed Sheeran dancing with Brittany Cherry.  Sheeran doesn’t need expensive sports cars and scantily clad women to make his music sell; his heartfelt lyrics are enough.  His success, especially amongst women, shows that the way women are presented by most musical artists is not the way women actually want to be treated.

Maybe Ty Dolla $ign, with lyrics such as “I never make them hoes my missus,” thinks having more than one girlfriend is the height of modern relationships, but a quick scan through the comments of his videos and Sheeran’s videos shows who has won the hearts of women.  While “Paranoid” features many enlightening comments such as, “NO more hoes comin to my crib” and “i have hella bitchies,” “Thinking Out Loud” has comments such as “Future Wedding Song” and “Makes me believe in love :) <3.”  Very few comments on Ty Dolla $ign’s song are from females and among those that are, they are overwhelmingly negative.  The relationship presented in “Paranoid” may seem appealing to young men, but “Thinking Out Loud,” and Ed Sheeran’s success in general, is a much better indicator for the ideal relationship, at least through young women’s eyes.

These songs with lyrics about lusting after multiple women are a side-effect of a flaw in the way young men are raised.  When they’re just boys, they’re told to “man up” and stop showing their emotions.  As they grow older, they sometimes lack the tools necessary to express themselves.  Because these emotionally stunted men cannot express love and still feel manly, they turn to expressing lust, which seems safer due to the way advertisers play on it.  Conversely, the success of songs such as “Thinking Out Loud” shows that women are much more interested in a sensitive man that can express his feelings than a man who can only show sexual desires.  If most women want a sentimental man and women still tend to be the primary caregivers for their children, why are young men still told it’s wrong for them to express true emotions?

By wearing his heart on his sleeve and putting his feelings on display for the whole world, Ed Sheeran has taken a small step to help change the way male emotions are viewed by society.  With lyrics such as “when my hair’s all but gone and my memory fades and the crowds don’t remember my name,” Sheeran is showing that love is more valuable than looks or fame.  Where so many other artists are concerned with Bugattis and the thrills of life, Sheeran’s lyrics show he’d leave it all for love.  He isn’t ashamed of his feelings; he is proud of them.  Instead of suppressing his strong desire to feel love, he embraces it and explicitly asks for it in his music.  Perhaps this song, and others that are similar, may inspire young men to take back their emotions and think beyond the stereotypes they’ve been forced to fit.

Our Dystopian Culture

By Mary Heyl & Colby Jones

Our artifact is The Hunger Games and the dystopian society genre in general. We chose this because this seems to be a prominent subject in the last 8 years of novel writing. Katniss is chosen to become a contender in a morbid game of smarts and chance for the pleasure of sick, futuristic sociopaths. But The Hunger Games is simply the first series published with this idea. The Maze Runner, Divergent, even The Lunar Chronicles, and many other dystopian societies have been the source of much entertainment for young adults in the past decade. And they all contain very similar plots. A chosen young adult is sent to fix, protect, or lead. So why is this very common concept so beloved by our culture?

We discovered a few different reasons. First, all of them are about future life on earth. Perhaps it is the thought of the declining world into futuristic chaos that attracts so many fans. Secondly, these different series are all definitely making comments about overpowering governments. All happening during post-apocalyptic times, the characters in the stories are constantly fighting against oppressive governments. Perhaps it is this fear, sparked by Orvil’s 1984, that is fascinating to those who like to think of the future. Or, it could be the fact that all the protagonists are young, able bodied, attractive people. The idea of the “chosen one” or somebody who has yet to discover hidden abilities. Everyone dreams of having a super power, and these books all contain characters who, in the beginning, are very normal people. But halfway through the story, they are battling monsters, politics, and social orders. This generation dreams of being like the characters in these stories. Katniss, Tris, Thomas, and Cinder have all been a kind of fantastical role model for those who read the books. And of course, it could always just be the intense action that is lurking on every page of the books and makes for great shots in the movie adaptations.

The Hunger Games was the first of these books to be made into a movie, but all the others soon followed.  While the books were popular, they are able to reach an even bigger audience.  Why is it that the movies have become such a big hit that companies are using every chance they can to market these dystopian societies? The Hunger Games is even following the trend of splitting the last movie into two parts.  This shows how execs are willing to sacrifice the integrity of a good movie to make a little more cash.  Many people would rather see a movie, than use their imagination for a book.  Yes, the main characters are attractive in the books, but they became sex symbols in the screen.  America has been and still is obsessed with a teen idol, which these provide.

Making these books into movies also speaks of the originality in Hollywood at the moment.  Most of the big hit movies in these days are adaptions of some sort.  Comic books and novels are the popular source material, as it seems maybe the days of original ideas are over.  Audiences seem to like the fact that they can go and read the book before hand. The Hunger Games being a huge example, as which was itself inspired by the likes of Tolkien’s works and Harry Potter that started this trend in the twenty first century.  Also, audiences like to see the world the hero is fighting in.  Movies give the audience the image of the teenage hero fighting to overthrow an oppressive government in a more vivid way than many could imagine.

Regardless, our society is obsessed with tales of woe from futuristic earth. This has become very prominent in the past decade and dystopian societies seem to be the topic of choice for many stories of this generation.

Facebook: Changing More Than Just Statuses

By Anna Harmon & Renee Sample

Growing up this generation, social media has always been a part of society. The Facebook logo meaning has become common knowledge. Everyone uses Facebook in different ways and for different reasons, but it is an important aspect of many individuals’ lives regardless. Facebook is one of the most popular of these social networks, growing by the second. It was invented simply for college students at Harvard University. It expanded to college students of multiple colleges, and then opened for high school students. As of today, it is available for any person over the age of thirteen, and the majority of people over that age have an account. When meeting someone new, it seems strange if they say that they do not have a Facebook. The world revolves around Facebook. It makes a positive impact any many ways, but its effects can also be damaging.

Facebook has had many positive effects on our society today. It has changed how we communicate with one another. It allows for greater communication because anyone can create a Facebook account, and it can be used anywhere there is internet access. Because of this, people are able to maintain social relationships that would not have been to keep up with before. Facebook also helps people promote their businesses and corporations to reach a larger and broader audience than they would have been able to before the introduction of Facebook. Facebook is a free site to its users because of the many businesses that invest their money into advertising on this social networking site. Advertisements of various products and businesses are publicized along the sides of each page. In a similar way, entrepreneurs can promote their own businesses. Facebook pages for any type of business has become a social norm. Many businesses post information and social media such as Facebook.  Social media also allows its users to find other like-minded people and their communities. This allows greatly changes how people interact and socialize with people they view as similar to themselves.

Despite its positive effects, the rise of Facebook and other social media has produced some negative effects. One of the most extreme of these effects is online bullying or “cyberbullying”. This aggression in online spaces has become a kind of epidemic among middle schoolers and high schoolers. It is now possible to bully others without having to see them face to face, and it has become much easier to do this because cyberbullying appears to not have any consequences. Another increasing problem among social media users is an addiction to the Internet and social media. Many Facebook users may find themselves constantly “plugged in” and feel the need to constantly know what is being posted. The lines between our online profiles and our real lives are blending more and more. It is now common to spend important, sentimental moments behind a phone camera in order to upload them to social media rather than being an active participant of the moment. This can be seen as a reflection of our society’s prioritization of their reputation on social media rather than the relationships with those around them. The prevalence of Facebook and social media can also lead to over sharing. Facebook can be damaging to one’s reputation if they post images or statuses that paint them in a negative manner. It is now possible to have a digital footprint that can be viewed by potential employers, and can be extremely hard to repair once damaged.

The popularity of Facebook and other social media reflects a massive cultural change. It shows how this generation feels the need to be connected to the world. We must know what is going on in the world. We feel the need to be involved in each other’s personal lives. The Internet is now a platform from which we live, and Facebook has forever changed how we communicate with each other.

What's This All About?

Hello and welcome to the ongoing class blog for the Fall 2015 course "Pop Culture America" at Millikin University. In this course, which fits into the larger first-year Critical Writing, Reading, and Research sequence, my students and I are exploring the semiotics of American popular culture. That is, we are examining the many aspects of our entertainment and consumer culture, and asking questions about what these might signify in terms of our larger cultural values and norms.

As part of the class, we are reading a lot of articles discussing the "deeper meanings" behind our popular culture. But we also realize that popular culture is not just the subject matter of academic literature -- rather, it is the stuff of our everyday lives. Thus, in order to enrich and expand our class discussions, I have assigned my students to look to the popular culture that surrounds them for artifacts that they feel reveal something significant about who we are as a society and what we believe. I have asked them to "curate" these artifacts of pop culture: alongside the item itself -- be it song, film, advertisement, social media, etc. -- they are to explain the larger ideas they see at work in the object, and to discuss the implications of the values and norms they feel are being reflected and reinforced, whether for better or worse. This blog continues similar ventures from 2013 and 2014.

I look forward to what is to come in the ensuing weeks and months. One of the great pleasures of teaching for me has always been how much I can also learn from my students, and I have high hopes that this project will offer me -- and all of us -- a deeper glimpse into how we relate to (and are shaped by) the ever-changing world of American popular culture.

Enjoy!