Thursday, April 2, 2015

Creators and consumers, Round 2


Popular culture has often been made by people who differ (in terms of race, class, ethnicity, sexual orientation) from most of those who consume it.  Can popular culture create meaningful ties or understandings between performers/creators and audiences/consumers, or does it further alienate them from each other?  

13 comments:

  1. After having a chance to examine and discuss popular culture closer to the current decade, my basic conception of the relationship between producers and consumers is still the same for the most part, though I plan to discuss different aspects of the relationship this time around. In general, producers seem to prefer to stick to the values that tradition dictates people wants to see, such as in the case of An Officer and a Gentleman. Despite what was happening in music, with musicians like Prince and Madonna frequently defying gender roles, producers – who are usually organizations rather than independent artists who have the freedom to express themselves – want to appeal to the biggest audience they can, even if it means alienating other potential consumers in the process. In the case of An Officer and a Gentleman, women are clearly thrown under the bus in the name of male victory, a plot that a male-dominated culture would probably buy into faster than a female-dominated one. The romance in the film may be attractive to some women willing to watch the movie, but the love is centered primarily on sex scenes and the man’s sexual triumph. Furthermore, even the “strong-willed” woman who trains alongside men is proven to be weak, dependent, and pivotal to the main male character’s story rather than her own, which may make the movie even harder to swallow for women tired of their position in society. Producers, also primarily white, heterosexual men, knew that his plot was not going to resonate with everyone, but chose to publish it with full faith that men similar to them and plenty of women (who have been statistically proven to be willing to watch movies about men, while men will not watch “chick flicks”) would still buy into it. Here it becomes clear that producers, as creators of mass-consumed media, can create ties with parts of their audiences while isolating others.
    The flip side to producer/consumer relationships often happens when a producer is a minority that appeals to other minorities rather than the majority. A good example here would be Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, who helped develop a genre that was widely dedicated to the working class of the cities and sometimes to black people (who had been basically forced to live in cities) more so than white people: hip-hop. In this kind of situation, the producer, in this case the group, alienates the upper-class by focusing on issues related directly to a life in the lower-class parts of New York, which someone who has never lived there or even seen the area would be able to relate to. Minorities can thus use producing media that appeals to other minorities as a direct connection on the basis of similar struggle, with the side effect of alienating the majority, or more positively, giving the majority a perspective that would otherwise be inaccessible to them.

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  2. Based on the information we have collected related to music in the past week, popular culture in this sense can both connect and alienate with the people who consume it. In agreement with Ronnie, producers want to connect with the biggest audience which also causes some audiences to alienate from them. In society today, artists, producers, actresses, etc., do not always agree with the message that they are putting across. The main goal is to do whatever sells the most. Whether someone feels connected or alienated from the message depends on a lot of factors. For example, not all African Americans feel they can connect with rap, RnB, and hip hop, even though these genres are dominated by black Americans. Even though, some may feel very connected with the message the artist is putting across. In music, an individual can also like an artist but not like all their music, or like a song, but not like the artist. In the end, I feel that the person as an individual can determine whether they want to connect with the artist, actress, producer etc., or alienate from them.

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  3. Music genres is a good example of how the ties between of a creator and consumer can be strengthened, but also can alienate others. Looking at hip-hop and the song we heard in class, "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, the lyrics painted a very graphic and dangerous picture of NYC. Many hip-hop artists used their surroundings and everyday life as an influence for their songs. The first people to become interested in hip-hop were people who could relate to the lyrics, but as hip-hop began to spread across the country, even people who did not relate to those rough living situations still liked the music. This is an example of how the consumers of hip-hop did differ from the creator and but they were still able to create ties between the creators and the audience. Another example is disco music. Disco music promoted the freedom of expression and acceptance. Homosexuals were a large audience of disco music. Disco music was a way for people to come together and celebrate being themselves, creating strong ties between the audience. Although both of these genres create ties between the creators and the audience, it also alienated people who did not agree with these new genres and their ideas.

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  4. In reading Fast Food Nation, it is evident that there is a clear divide between creators and consumers. If one where to consider fast food as a means of popular culture, rather than just something that grew in popularity because of popular culture, we can use its rise to observe this divide. Throughout the twentieth century, fast food took over the nation, and created many jobs for those in lower classes. However, the difference in franchisor, franchise, and worker pays where clearly distinguishable. Those who created the industry exploited not only the workers, but those who consumed the food, in a multitude of ways. From marketing tactics to flavoring strategies, the deception centered around the industry created a great gap between those who produced and those who consumed. While, the light of this exploitation was not unveiled until later in time, we can look back on the middle to late end of the century to see how the industry as a whole utilized their consumers for the worst.

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  5. I think the questions that we have to ask when debating whether pop culture can alienate or create ties are ones of intent, economic gains and representation. As Samantha says above, Fast Food Nation is a great example of culture alienating its consumers. The intent in the creation of these fast food chains is to bring profit to those at the top, while the everyday workers (representing the common man, those who are alienated) are paid little and do not reap the profits. Fast food is also an example of how the consumers can also act as the creators (in a very literal way). This is an idea of economic opportunity, the common event where people do things they would rather not because there are very few other options (immigrant labor, etc.). In terms of representation, those who were making the most profit off fast food were a few white men, while the work was being done by minority groups. On the other hand, Grandmaster Flash, also discussed above, brought communities together because he operated in a different way. The intent was to create art about a certain lifestyle (this is as general as I could word it, who knows what GMF intent was, maybe it wasn't to raise awareness). While economically the single's success benefited the artist, this was not at the expense of and due to the widespread exploitation of workers. And the song represented the people who created it, a group that was being ignored by the majority of the country.

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  6. In answering the question about whether creators create meaningful ties with their consumers or further create gap, I cannot help but think the later is true. In looking at the rise of music videos and MTV, as we did in class, technological developments created an actual divide between those creating the art and those consuming the art. Whereas in years past, one had to go to a live performance to view an artist, now with the click of the remote you could watch the same performance. Granted, this made the form of culture more accessible for those who previously could not afford a concert, however, I find that this further created a divide. Music was no longer a relationship between the artist and the ears of the listener. It was now something that an artist could produce once, and distribute to a mass of people.
    On the contrary, the music of the time was integrating people who did not typically coexist with one another, and I believe that this should be highlighted. Disco was the first genre on music to bring together people of different races, sexes, and sexualities all on the same dance floor. Further, the rise of Hip Hop, brought together people who wanted to make a change and raise awareness on a particular idea- often the struggles people faced where they lived.
    I believe these two contradicting aspects of music further prove that popular culture from any time period cannot be classified in one particular way. While some aspects of music were alienating, other aspects during the same era were uniting. Certain performers and producers will always love those who consumer their product or art and will continue to create meaningful ties. Others, who may be in it for the wrong reason, will continue to distance themselves from their consumers.

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  7. I believe that popular culture can create meaningful ties between creators and consumers, but it can also alienate them from each other. There will always be a majority and minority when it comes to the way popular culture sells itself to society. Many times, creators aim to make a profit by trying to connect more with a larger audience, which in turn alienates the minority. However, it is up to individuals what they feel connected to or alienated from. As more musical genres have made their way into popular culture, especially today with hip hop and rap, more and more people have chosen to connect to them, even if they are not part of the stereotypical group of people that typically listens to that type of music. The Grandmaster Flash is an example of how a minority made a song appealing for the majority of black Americans who were connected to it. However, this majority can also be perceived as a minority within society since the other majority would be upper class white people.

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  8. As my previous post covered, producers and consumers have a frequently turbulent relationship – one that is impossible to perfect because of the nature of dissimilarity in human beings. Even if a company goes out of its way to hire a diverse group of employees with varying backgrounds, sexualities, genders, races, and cultures, there is no way to appeal to every single audience member, especially just on the basis of a common characteristic. In reference to my previous examples, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five may have appealed to some black people and some people from similar economic situations, but they could not have possibly appealed to everyone in said categories because people simply have different likes in the way of music, themes, group aesthetic, etc. and even people in the same situation have differing perspectives. This is not to say that producers should just give up on trying to expand their employee/audience base, but that trying to appeal to every person in a select region is futile. Additionally, producers too frequently value profit over improving their role in society because only money keeps a company afloat; unfortunately, it is this obsession with making money that keeps producers and consumers from making more meaningful ties. When statistics show that women are willing to watch movies about men but men will not watch women-centered movies, producers take note and continue catering to the male audience, knowing that women will come with it.

    After a little scrutiny of the subject, it seems to me that the producer/consumer relationship is doomed to remain stagnant if producers do not make the necessary changes to reconnect with their audience. As producers stay white, male, and heterosexual, consumers have been forced to take media outtake into their own hands, as some indie filmmakers, musicians, artists, and writers have chosen to do so in defiance of the homogenous culture-creators that have been media’ authority for too long. While independent producers are excellent because of their direct ties to the consumers they cater to, they also rarely see much success outside of a small circle of followers – meaning that the problem of producers alienating their consumers is one that has to be treated as a large scale problem that requires immediate help from the general population to start demanding better ties between the two communities. Media must be revolutionized to be made by the people, for the people and not by the producers, for the white/male heterosexuals.

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  9. I agree with what a lot of people are saying, that for the most part the creators and consumers of popular culture are very far apart as far as who they are, etc. But I also agree with others in that it is hard to categorize popular culture as a whole, when there are so many different kinds of pop culture that exist. What comes to mind for me is the art of dance. We have looked at it a few times this semester, and I wonder how that fits into our opinions on the creators and consumers of this art form. It seems that for the Charleston and break dancing, the producers of these dances were just messing around with their bodies, trying to contort them or express themselves in different ways. So I wonder who the consumers of this type of popular culture are? Are they the dancers themselves, or maybe the people watching them? It is rare to hear of a show that is performing these style of dances that would require people to come pay to watch them, at least at the time they were created. Like for a ballet, the consumers would be the upper/middle class who could afford to pay for a ticket to see the ballet. However, both the Charleston and break dancing were more "street" style of dances, created and performed more casually in clubs and dance halls. So I wonder where this type of popular culture fits into everyone else's examples, such as fast food or television or hip hop music. Are the creators and consumers that far apart in dance?

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  10. As one can see from all of the posts above, whether the consumer identify with or alienate themselves from the popular culture that is being produced, depends on a multitude of factors. With this being said, some consumers may find themselves strongly connecting to a background of a singer/song writer/ group, or the song itself, an actor or the movie they are in, or even what a restaurant provides to its consumers. In the contrary one can also be driven away based on this. I feel that the example that is easiest to evaluate is music. There are many components that go into producing a song, which gives the producer many aspects to connect the audience or in cases chances to veer away from an audience they do not want to attract. The beat and tempo of a song is usually one of the first things that attracts or alienates an audience. Certain genres of songs usually have their own type of beat and tempo. The second thing is the lyrcis, one may like the beat, but disagree with or not be able to connect the the message that is being put across. The third thing among many others is the artist/producer as a whole. The beat may be good, and the lyrics may be meaningful, but they may not like the artist because of certain issues. This is just one of many examples that one can see how consumers may alienate or connect with a producer even if they are a different race, class, or sexual orientation.

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  11. Everyone above me has really covered the many dimensions of the consumer/creator relationship. I agree with the idea that these relationships are intensely complicated, and deconstructing a piece of pop culture like Dajunonna did can help us dissect and discover how consumers interact with pop culture. I stand by my original questions of economic motivation and representation,and I think these two aspects can be part of a larger picture that shows us trends within pop culture (the the relationship between consumers and creators and how they view each other) and on a smaller level, allowing us to see the political and cultural aspects of piece of media.

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  12. I agree with many of the points that were mentioned above. Music is a easily transmittable form of popular culture and because of this, music genres were able to spread across the country. Hip-hop started in New York, but was able to reach across the country. Hip-hop was created by people in rough living conditions and people who could relate to these conditions were fans of this music, but people who could not relate were also fans. This was a way that hip-hip created ties between the creator and consumer. This new sound of music was appealing to all people and regardless of the relation to the subject matter, people were still drawn together by listening to this music. Hip-hop opened up the rough living conditions of NYC to the rest of the world and people were able to more understand their lifestyle.

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  13. Consumers may feel connected to or alienated from certain aspects of something in popular culture. However, it varies along with the trends that popular culture exhibits. I agree with the comments above, especially about hip hop. It came a long way from its rough origins in New York and it has become one of the most popular genres of music today. The beat or lyrics of music can have a factor in who they appeal to, not just race, class, or sexual orientation. I'm not sure whether hip hop made people understand the lifestyle of those who were related to the music, but I do think that it made people appreciate where hip hop came from and gave a little more insight into political and cultural issues rooted in black communities in New York.

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