Mass comm and Pop Culture
With this week’s focus being on pop culture and the rise of mass media, it was fun to take a trip down memory lane to see when technologies that are part of our everyday lives made their entrance into the world. In Baratti’s article, he goes on to describe the many memorable technological moments that have occurred over the past few decades. The ones that stood out to me most were the creation of YouTube in 2005, Iphones in 2007 and Beats by Dre in 2008. The reasons these technologies in particular stood out to me were because I can distinctly remember when each of these new products became common in society. It’s been interesting to see how the ways in which we use these products, amongst many others, has grown and changed as more technologies have emerged. I know that I for one have a new appreciation for YouTube that I didn’t have when it first emerged. Now I use it to find workouts, how to replace my car’s headlight bulbs, and watching trailers for some of my favorite movies.
Reading Schmitz’s article was interesting because it gave a background on the ways in which mass comm emerged and adapted as time went on. When looking at everything from Jenny Lind, to the Beatles, and now the ways in which we view hit tv shows, it’s amazing just how far mass media has come. This has been in part due to some very creative marketing strategies along the way, some of which have included crowdsourcing as of late. My favorite example that was provided was the concept of selling photography for everyday people as opposed to selling the camera itself. Sometimes the product isn’t the hard part of the sell, but rather convincing the public that it is a worthwhile item that they can envision themselves using.
Schmitz, Andy. Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction into Mass Communication. Washington, D.C: Saylor Academy, 2012. https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_understanding-media-and-culture-an-introduction-to-mass-communication/s04-06-mass-media-and-popular-culture.html
Baratti, Alex. “The 25 Most Memorable Tech Moments in Pop Culture History.” Complex, May 10 2013. Accessed March 20, 2019. https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/05/the-25-most-tech-memorable-moments-in-pop-culture-history/
