I've learned that pop culture is necessary part in our daily lives through the text and lecture. This is also a reason why we study pop culture. That means people can meet pop culture every day and everywhere. We don't have to find it in some secret island. You can find pop culture on TV, Twitter, and waling on the street. Your friends and family are talking about it. However, you don't have time to think like 'why do I have to know this?' at that moment. Because you are already exposed to pop culture. Are there any way people can avoid it? I feel often only two options are given to me. Do I like it? Or do I dislike it?
I've learned that pop culture makes connection between people through TED Talk videos, and that pop culture is considered inferior through the YouTube video. Pop culture is like small talk. It's not something we have to do, but it's good. People can have small talk with friends and even their boss or teacher. While having small talk, people don't talk about anything that could cause argument like religion and politics. They talk about weather, TV shows, sports, and so on. Someone who is really good at small talk could be popular because this person makes other people feel good. Also, people don't need to remember what they talk about because that is not important. The important thing is that small talk makes people relax and have fun. In contrast, there are some people who don't like small talk. They might want to talk more seriously about books or movies that they saw. They might think talking about celebrities is waste of time. Some of them might have guilty pleasures such as hiding and watching Housewives.
Among people who consider pop culture to be inferior, some night think the masses (general public) are manipulated by capitalists and they are stupid. However, through lectures and discussions, I've learned that pop culture is something that common people prefer and value. Many people choose one thing and that can become a part of pop culture. Thus, common people are not manipulated by someone. People have a choice, but the category of choice that we can find easily will be within certain limits. Then I wonder, who makes this category of choice?
My Aha moment was...
While I was preparing a team project for 80s pop culture, I was surprised that my team member had no idea about the 80s. Of course, she had not lived that decade, but I had. Some things like movies and TV shows were obviously pop culture to me from the 80s, but my team member had no clue about them. I realized that pop culture is not fixed in time at that moment like the Walkman which was popular in the 80s but became subculture now.
Bumper Sticker
- Pop is Never Bored
- You're So Pop! (=You're so entertain/talented.)
I didn't know that
I've never heard the word "fad" before. I found lots of fads from the 40s to the 2010s through a crazy fad website and sharing with classmates in class. I have always tried to find some meaning and reason in the class, but I could enjoy this time without thinking. Of course, there might be background and story behind those fads, but my first thought was that it was fun in itself. From toys to just short silly words, I felt people always wanted to find something fun in their life. People seen to keep inventing something new against boring life.
Walkman made by Japanese company, Sony. It is portable cassette player, and release 1979. This caught on globally from early 80s. By 1989 over 100 million Walkmans had been sold worldwide. Personal Computers developed quickly and became popular. I will show you Apple Macintosh Advertising video. It shows the era of groups is gone and the era of individuals is coming. So, we can imagine that computers and music became personalized in the 80s. 
