I think that the Internet has made pop culture a very important part of society and a factor in the business community. There is unlimited information and viral campaigns available online and services such as YouTube can create pop culture icons out of ordinary people. Pop culture has been developed into a marketing tools utilized by many businesses.
Pop culture is relevant for my career because I am a young professional and many employers look for new ideas from their employees. By knowing what is popular and knowing how to utilize that at work, I can be an asset to my company. Marketing plans can be developed to utilize current trends and fads.
The pop culture artifact that I chose is the BlackBerry. The BlackBerry has become an essential tool for anyone in business. We all have the need to be constantly connected to email, texts and the Internet. The BlackBerry is a fashionable pop culture icon that people take pride in owning. Although some people need a BlackBerry for business reasons, others simply use it for texting, taking photos and updating their Facebook status.
Many people find that owning a BlackBerry can be addicting. They constantly have to check their emails or Facebook. It has been nicknamed "CrackBerry" by many people because of it's addicting nature. It is hard to say if the BlackBerry phenom of today will still be in the popular culture of tomorrow.
References
Burke, R.J., & Cooper, C.L. (2008). The long work hours culture : causes, consequences and choices (1st ed.). Bingley, UK : Emerald Group Pub.
Danesi, M (2008). Popular culture : Introductory perspectives. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.
Nice post Tom. I don't agree that pop culture is aimed at just the young, although I am sure a big percentage is aimed towards the young. I would agree that more today is aimed at the young then 40 years ago.
ReplyDeleteWhen you say that the internet helped turn ordinary people into pop culture, you hit the nail on the head. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read about new “youTube” hits. It is amazing what one can get away with on the internet
Good artifact choice, crackberry is classic. I myself do not own one; I have just a basic cell phone for emergencies. What I find funny is that my career is in technology, yet I try so hard to say away from the most popular forms.
I think that popular culture is not aimed at anyone age group in particular, its just that the younger generations like our children get to decide the "cool" things to say, do, wear, and go. Places and slangs that we used as young adults and teens are way off base than what is being said today, another thing is the music that kids listen to when we talk of the beastie boys our children discuss how out of the loop we are because only "old" people even know who that is.
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