Popular culture

Popular culture, commonly called pop culture, refers to the traditions and culture of a society. It encompasses such cultural phenomena as music, art, literature, television and movies, social media (cyberculture), fashion, and dance. These products of a society have mass appeal and are accessible to the general public. Pop culture is at the other end of the spectrum from high or high-brow culture, which is characterized by skilled creators that society deems of particular and lasting value. Pop culture is considered a lesser form of expression. It is also differentiated from other forms of culture, such as legal, political, and educational culture. Unlike these other cultural types, pop culture is extremely fluid and can change quickly.

Overview

Although pop culture includes many genres in the arts and entertainment, it also includes the everyday and the mundane—how people greet one another, the slang they use, and the food they eat are all examples of pop culture. For example, in the 1970s, a well-liked song may be referred to as groovy, far out, or out of sight, whereas in the 2020s, the response may be sick, dope, or lit.

John Storey, in his popular book Cultural Theory and Popular Culture (2018), provides six varying definitions of pop culture. First, it consists of cultural products that many people like and thus have a positive connotation. Second, pop culture can be defined as anything that is not high culture, so it is considered negatively as a “less-than” form of culture. Third, pop is characterized by commercial production for mass consumption by consumers, with little regard for aesthetic value. In this case, elites may use pop culture to oppress or control the masses. Fourth, pop culture may be equated with folk culture. That is, rather than elites controlling the formation of pop culture through mass production, people form these cultural products in an authentic manner. Fifth, it is a compromise between the elites and the masses; while the elites may mass-produce products, the general public is free to accept or reject such offerings. Finally, Storey suggests that in the postmodern world, authentic and commercial culture is melded together so that users play an interactive role in its adoption and creation. They can accept or reject what is presented and alter it to create their own content. The social media platform TikTok is a prime example.

The introduction of the World Wide Web sparked a revolution in how people consume and produce pop culture. Social media in particular helps create pop culture; it is also the catalyst for its dissemination. In 2000, about 361 million people accessed the internet; in April 2023, that number had grown to 5.8 billion, representing 64.6 percent of the world’s population. Of internet users, the vast majority—4.8 billion—used social media. The expression of pop culture grew exponentially, in line with the growth of social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok.

Trends could now spread across the globe at lightning speed, crossing cultural and international barriers. Consider the influence of K-pop (Korean pop music) on the American music scene. South Korean musician Psy’s “Gangnam Style” reached the second spot on the Billboard charts in 2012, and his dance moves were imitated across the nation. In 2020, Korean group BTS’s “Dynamite” secured the top spot on the charts.

The apparent influence of the internet on pop culture has caused Storey’s fifth definition to ring true—consumers of pop culture now play an active role in the creation of pop culture. The popularity of memes serves as an example. Memes are cultural shorthand that are spread from person to person, most commonly on social media. A meme (from the Greek mīmēma, meaning ‘an imitation’) is usually a photo, screenshot, or short video clip with added text that creates a social or political commentary or expresses an emotion.

Memes are often meant to be funny, snarky, or ironic. They may also express emotions or a political or social opinion. Users can change the message or tagline or the graphic to create their own unique messages. The first viral meme appeared in 1996. It featured an animated 3D baby dancing the cha-cha. In the 2000s, the catchphrase “Keep Calm and Carry On”—taken from a 1939 United Kingdom (UK) propaganda poster—went viral, with users adding their own flair to the saying. Some examples of users' new interpretations are “Keep Calm and Read a Book,” “Keep Calm and Meme On,” and “Keep Calm and Vote On.” By the 2020s, the internet was so packed full of memes that it had become one of the primary means of communicating.

Texting and messaging became so widespread that a new language of acronyms was developed by users. LMAO (laughing my ass off), LOL (laugh out loud), ROFL (rolling on the floor laughing), IMHO (in my humble opinion), BRB (be right back), and many others appeared on social media and in digital communications. Emojis also became part of the digitized language: smiley faces, praying hands, red hearts, and others became standard additions to express specific emotions. Also shortened in terms of pop culture in the first part of the twenty-first century are the cultural products themselves. Its definition has expanded to include singular events, such as when Will Smith walked on stage at the 2022 Oscars ceremony to slap host Chris Rock after Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife. The one-minute clip is considered a pop culture classic.

The twenty-four-hour cable news cycle came about in the early 1990s, which shifted the news from daily to hourly updates. The numbers and variety of channels also offered more exposure to pop culture products to viewers. However, the commentary on news and social trends went from hourly to real-time updates with the introduction of the internet. The result was an increase in the speed at which pop culture products were produced, consumed, and replaced. Television continues to be an important source of pop culture, but the sheer volume of cultural articulations on the internet is enormous, and it is all available all of the time.

The internet also fundamentally changed the way people consume (and produce) pop music. The introduction of music streaming services such as Spotify, iTunes, and Amazon Music provided near-instant access to an ever-expanding library of songs and podcasts. Previously, most music was consumed on the radio or by purchasing a single release or album of a particular artist. The songs playing on the radio were out of the control of the listeners. However, internet music streaming services gave listeners the ability to build their own song lists, which could then be shared with others on social media.

This high accessibility has led to a blurring of the lines between consumers of pop culture and high culture. The popularity of reality television shows such as Keeping Up with the Kardashians and The Housewives of Beverly Hills (and its many spinoffs) portrayed people of wealth engaging in bad behavior. As the 2000s progressed, consuming popular, low-brow culture became widely socially acceptable. The shift could be witnessed in, among other places, political dialogue, social media postings, comedy, and television.

In the 2020s, short-form video platforms such as TikTok became major drivers of cultural trends, often propelling unknown musicians—such as Lil Nas X with "Old Town Road," Oilivia Rodrigo with "drivers license," and PinkPantheress with "Pain" and "Just for Me"—into global visibility overnight. Algorithms increasingly shaped what users consumed, giving influencers like Charli D'Amelio, Emma Chamberlain, and MrBeast unprecedented power to shape mainstream tastes across fashion, humor, and online discourse. Livestreaming and interactive media also rose to prominence during this period, with virtual events such as Travis Scott's "Astronomical" concert and Ariana Grande's "Rift Tour" performance inside Fortnite illustrating how the boundaries between performer and audience had all but disappeared.

Further Insights

Popular culture has been around for centuries in the form of fashion and music. In the sixteenth century, William Shakespeare was likely the first superstar of pop culture. He produced music and plays that appealed to the public, and thus built a bridge between fine art and popular art. As the world expanded in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries with exploration and trade, popular traditions from various cultures were shared and adopted. During the Industrial Revolution, from the mid-eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries, many people moved to urban areas to take factory jobs. This migration to the cities created concentrated audiences that consumed more and more popular traditions.

The modern concept of pop culture came about in the 1920s. In the aftermath of World War I (1914–18), people were ready to leave the Great War behind them and enjoy life. Nightclubs, flappers, jazz music, and movies all became widely popular. The late 1920s and 1930s became the Golden Age of Radio. Many tuned into regular programming, such as shows like Amos ‘n’ Andy, Ethel and Albert, and Fibber McGee and Molly. Radio became a way to spread pop music and programming across regions and countries.

Although all things cultural were mostly put aside during World War II (1939–1945), in its aftermath, television appeared in earnest. According to statistics from Elon University, at the end of the war in 1946 roughly 8,000 Americans owned a television; by 1960, that number had skyrocketed to 45.7 million. The 1950s are widely regarded as the Golden Age of Television, during which family-friendly shows such as I Love Lucy, Leave It to Beaver, and The Honeymooners became weeknight staples for family viewing. The 1950s also ushered in the rise of rock and roll, with performers such as Elvis Presley, Sam Cooke, Chuck Berry, and Fats Domino dominating the airwaves.

The 1950s set the stage for the explosion of pop culture in the 1960s. The Beatles emerged and took the world by storm, influencing not only pop music but also fashion and hairstyles. Other bands also took the stage, including The Monkees and the Beach Boys. Popular culture in the 1960s was characterized by rebellion, freedom from norms, and drugs, sex, and rock and roll. On television, game shows such as Hollywood Squares, The Dating Game, The Newlywed Show, and Password made their debut.

In the 1970s, soap operas, such as Days of Our Lives, As the World Turns, and The Edge of Night, increased in popularity, becoming a staple of daytime television watching. In the evening, millions tuned in to watch Marcus Welby, M.D., All in the Family, and Happy Days, among others. The 1970s also saw the first series of sitcoms featuring Black Americans, including The Jeffersons and Sanford and Son. The music scene was characterized by soul, funk, and disco. The movie Saturday Night Fever, starring John Travolta, was released in 1977, and the miniseries Roots was televised in 1977.

Pop culture in the 1980s is often mocked for its fashion and heavily synthesized electronic music. However, pop music of the 1980s still has its fans, and its influences could be seen well into the twenty-first century. MTV popularized music videos, and many artists, including Cyndi Lauper, Michael Jackson, and U2, developed highly stylized videos to accompany their popular singles. Cabbage Patch Kids and Care Bears flew off the shelves of toy stores. Handheld digital games also became popular. Video game systems progressed from Atari to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). Cheers and The Cosby Show were the most popular sitcoms of the decade.

During the 1990s—the last decade before pop culture jumped onto the internet—Seattle grunge rock and hip hop permeated the music scene, which also affected how people, especially youth, approached fashion. Teens in rural America could be found wearing baggy pants and their hats on sideways; flannel shirts became very popular as followers of grunge rock pulled them off the shelves of stores. On television, Seinfeld—a show literally "about nothing"—offered a unique approach to the sitcom. The Simpsons, which had premiered in 1989, also became a pop culture phenomenon. Video game systems continued to be improved and updated.

Pop culture in the 2000s through the 2020s was shaped by rapid technological change and the rise of digital platforms. Reality television shows such as Survivor, Americna Idol, and Keeping Up with the Kardashians transformed television viewing while emerging YouTube, Facebook, and later TikTok allowed users to create and spread trends instantly. Streaming services like Netflix and Spotify revolutionized how people consumed media, giving rise to binge-watching and algorithm-driven recommendations. Global fandoms formed arond franchises such as the Marvel series, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, and K-pop groups like BTS, reflecting the increasingly international nature of pop culture.

Viewpoints

Pop culture can serve a positive role in society. Current and past pop culture phenomena can help unite society across socioeconomic and racial groups, as well as generations. Traditionally, high culture, such as the opera and ballet, was only available to the wealthy. They showed disdain for popular culture, which they considered low brow, or less important. As the development of radio, television, and the internet exponentially increased people’s access to all things cultural, the distinction between high and low culture has blurred. In addition, the majority population can be immersed in the iconic objects of subcultures—for example, the influence of hip hop on popular music. At periodic times, “retro” comes into style, where a previously popular cultural product comes back into style, as a new generation adopts the styles and music of a previous generation.

However, pop culture has been criticized from several perspectives. One of the most commonly cited complaints about pop culture is its strong tie to commercialization. Consider, for example, the Star Wars franchise. Discounting revenue from movie ticket sales, the nine-part saga earned its parent company, Disney, an estimated $5–7 billion a year in merchandising as of 2015. The Harry Potter franchise has generated at least $15 billion in merchandise revenues since its inception in 2001.

This criticism raises the question of whether popular culture adds value to society if it is superficial, consumerist, and sensationalist. Although the internet has given consumers more power to contribute to cultural creation, the value of pop culture is suspect when it functions primarily as a capitalistic endeavor controlled by elites who determine what is marketed and promoted. This critique of commercialism was first developed by Marxist intellectuals associated with the Frankfurt School at Germany’s Institute for Social Research. The lmost influential twentieth-century voice of this school of thought was Jürgen Habermas.

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