RST100 1st Edition Lecture 18 Outline of Last Lecture I II III Definition of Popular Culture Characteristics of Popular Culture Pervasive Forms a Music b Movies c Printed media d Television e Theme parks Outline of Current Lecture I Pervasive Forms of Popular Culture a Printed Media b Television c Theme Parks Current Lecture Continuation of Pop Culture Lecture 18 April 2 nd Television low concentration becomes less rewarding the longer is it viewed linked to addiction Printed Media Reading is the most valued nonsocial leisure activity among adults If you like to read you will never be alone More than any other leisure activity reading is done alone How we read is changed o Nooks Download books Amazon Decline in newspaper subscriptions but increase in number of people who read electronic versions get news on phone and online o You can tell this is an issue when the newspapers become free These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute In general time spent reading risen slightly Reading connects us o New York Times Bestseller Television Hub of popular culture Still o Maybe not because cell phones and laptop Television more than any other medium has the power to reach those of different religions ethnicities ages and lifestyles So many channels out there that not everyone is watching the same show o So many choices may not be the hub anymore Communicates and validates what is popular Passive relaxing low concentration activity Less challenging less social and less active activity TV Addiction Millions hooked on TV and fit the criteria of TV addiction Heavy viewers fit several symptoms o Using TV as sedative o Indiscriminate viewing o Feeling loss of control while viewing feel like you have to keep watching it o Feeling angry with oneself for watching too much Most people are not proud that they watch to much TV o Inability to stop watching o Feeling miserable when kept from watching Differences Across Background Factors Non employed watch more TV Older people watch more TV Lower educated and income groups watch more TV Women watch more than men Most do not watch television exclusively e g texting eating studying caring for children Life satisfaction declines if TV watching reaches too high a proportion of time Total Use of Television Data Avg time spent watching TV US 5 11 hours Whites 5 02 Blacks 7 12 Hispanics 4 35 Asians 3 14 Years the average person will have spent watching TV 9 years Television viewing does differ on race Television Stats households in US that possess at least one TV 99 of TVs in the avg US household 2 24 of homes with 3 or more 65 of Americans who regularly watch television while eating dinner 67 of 4 6 year olds who would rather watch TV than spend time with their fathers 54 of Americans who say they watch too much TV 49 TV is Pleasurable Scopophilia pleasure in viewing being the onlooker to unfolding events o Pleasurable to see TV is a series of unfolding events Provide 4 types of pleasure o Knowledge o Comedy phrases that are used o Fantasy o Distraction Reality TV Why is reality TV so popular o People are obsessed with fame and fortune o Most shows have an element of competition o People are nosey and like the behind the scenes element fly on the wall view o People want to be able to talk to others about the show don t want to feel left out Which of the following statements true amusement parks decreased after the great Depression Theme Parks Roots of amusement parks go back to the Middle Ages Following the Great Depression huge drop in amusement parks o 1500 to 400 parks Needed a new concept theme parks Disney presents a moralistic and idealized version of the American Way o Incredibly popular o Sea World o Universal Studios Criticisms of Disney Very expensive Process to become a princess the way women are portrayed Overstep their entertaining role Highlight the moral and economic superiority of the American way of life o White middle class power Distort history and present American society as free of conflict o White wash American history Gender concerns women s proportion Controlling o The language o Physical appearance o How the visitor is handled Popular Culture and Entertainment We crave entertainment to have someone or something amuse us this comes primarily through media Good and Bad o Addicted to fluff expect life to be in small disconnected and amusing chunks o It is making us smarter need to remember lots of information fill in gaps and make learned guesses to understand what is going on good storytelling likable characters positive role models o We need to more critical selective in how we allow ourselves to be manipulated by the media