In class we created a questionnaire about popular culture so that we
could get an understanding of what people thought it what. We asked ten people
of two different age groups, which were teenagers and adults.
How many of the following have you used in the past week?
Television - 10
Video/DVD player - 6
Music CD player or audiocassette - 4
Desktop computer - 3
Laptop - 9
Digital camera - 7
Video camera - 2
Interactive whiteboard – 2
By doing this we have found out that televisions are widely used by all
ages and so this is important for distributers because this means that
consumers could be exposed to a large amount of music videos. Laptops also
expose consumers to music videos and artists as they are able to watch and
explore new artists. This is largely due to music videos being a source of
entertainment irrelevant of the genre.
How confident are you with using the following? (1=Really confident,
5=Not confident)
Using a computer - 17
Using a digital camera - 17
Using a video camera - 17
Using photo editing software – 20
I counted all of the marks up and found that people were overall more
confident using a computer, digital camera or a video compared to using photo
editing software. It is possible that these pieces of technology are consider
more within popular culture compared to photo editing software as people are
more confident with using them and that they may form some part of our
lifestyle.
What do you think popular culture is?
•
“Something which is followed/updated and appreciated a lot”
•
“Music / lifestyle / fashion and stuff like that”
•
“Hoodies running around knifing people”
•
“Something that’s popular”
•
“The kind of music, fashion, trends and attitudes which are popular”
•
“Pop music and stuff”
•
“A reflection of the age expressed through the media”
•
“Pop”
•
“Fashion”
•
“MTV, fashion, music”
Popular culture is ideas, perspectives, behaviours, images and
experiences which come together as a whole and so a lot of these answers form
the basis of popular culture as it is what is popular at the time.
How much do you think that popular culture affects you?
•
“Not much”
•
“Very little”
•
“Not a lot”
•
“Too much”
•
“Little”
•
“Loads”
•
“Has a big part in my life, how I dress and act”
•
“Quite a lot”
•
“Not much, don’t pay much attention”
•
“Enormously – Everything surrounding us daily in the media”
The answer in the previous question demonstrates that we are affected
by popular culture “Hoodies running around knifing people” because we see
different representations in the media, especially music videos and so this
either makes us form stereotypes or influences the way we dress or portray
ourselves. Different genres of music may do this as some people may think of
youth when they hear dance music or reckless and anti-social behaviour when they
think of rock music and so the media has led us to form these stereotypes.
What do you think popular music is?
•
“Pop – Katy Perry style stuff. But whatever is most popular at the
time”
•
“Terrible music”
•
“Something I don’t like”
•
“Stuff like RnB and generally heavily synthesis stuff”
•
“Pop Music”
•
“Music in the charts”
•
“Popular music is recognised and listened to regularly”
•
“Spice Girls”
•
“Simple, irritating, repetitive”
•
“Popular music is what’s played on Kiss/MTV”
I think that the media has influenced this as songs are often replayed
and so become over-exposed and over-played as well as being quite clichéd. The
top charts also focuses more on the pop genre and so this may also a reason
behind why people think that popular music is just pop music.
Do you think that popular culture affects boys or girls more? Why?
•
“Girls, as they care about appearance more”
•
“Girls, they try to be similar to the artist if female”
•
“Both, influenced by fashion and attitudes of their idols”
“I think it affects both the
same”
•
“Both equally, they are both influenced by it
•
“Girls more”
•
“Girls, because they are more impressionable”
•
“Both because they are both heavily influenced”
•
“Both equal”
•
“Both – Boys are led by attitude, girls by fashion”
Popular culture can affect both boys and girls because the media shows
different representations and so this makes people think about how they should
behave or portray themselves. The focus has mainly been on girls but now the
focus has also been turned to the boys as the media would want to engage and
attract a wider target audience.
Do you think that the media influences popular culture? How?
•
“Yes”
•
“Yes. The media comes in different forms - we use every bit of it”
•
“Yes, broadcasting the latest fashions etc. To the world”
•
“Yes
•
“Yes - What media shows most
often becomes popular culture – X Factor”
•
“It leads it in every way – Huge influence TV and film”
•
“Yes as we dress the same as the genre of music we enjoy”
•
“Yes”
•
“Yes, because the amount of pressure the media puts on artists”
•
“No”
Creating a star image is key within the music industry as this is the
way that people see them, so if artists strive for the perfect star image then
people are going to try and mimic this and be more like their role models. It
also does it in other ways such as the more media coverage that something gets
the more likely that people are going to be interested and that it is going to
become part of popular culture and change the way it is shaped.
Do you think that music videos are important within popular culture?
Why?
•
“Yes – Star image – Band signature”
•
“A bit, not a lot of people watch them”
•
“Yes, as we learn what’s acceptable ”
•
“No”
•
“Yes, fashion and attitudes”
•
“Yes”
•
“Yes because a lot of people watch them and product placements are
becoming more popular ”
•
“Yes – For enhancing the music”
•
“To teenagers yes because music videos add a visual interest –
compliments the song”
•
“No”
Music videos are vital within the music industry as it creates a star
image of the artists and so they become well-known for their style and image.
It also changes the way that popular culture is shaped as different ideas
become into focus and so new things become popular. It also enhances the music
because there is a visual which may complement it. It is also used as a form of
entertainment because images are created for the audience’s pleasure.
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