Summary:   "The amount of time young people spend consuming media has ballooned with around-the-clock access and mobile devices that function practically as appendages, according to a new report." (Chicago Tribune) This article summarizes a report showing "young people are marinating in media for what amounts to 10 hours, 45 minutes a day--an increase of almost 2 1/4 hours since 2004."
Subjects:  Mass media, Mass media and youth, Parents, Attitudes, Popular culture, Technology, Television and youth, Youth, Conduct of life, Youth, Statistics, Online social networks, Technology, Statistics, Mass media, Statistics

Summary:   "Mr. Lanier, a musician and avant-garde computer scientist--he popularized the term "virtual reality"--wonders if the Web's structure and ideology are fostering nasty group dynamics and mediocre collaborations." (International Herald Tribune) This article "argues that the mantras of 'open culture' and 'information wants to be free' have produced a destructive new social contract."
Subjects:  Popular culture, Technology, Technology, Social aspects, Internet, Social aspects, Piracy (Copyright), Web 2.0, Online social networks

Summary:   "A new study has found that five times as many high school and college students are dealing with anxiety and other mental health issues as youth of the same age who were studied in the Great Depression era. The findings, culled from responses to a popular psychological questionnaire used as far back as 1938, confirm what counselors on campuses nationwide have long suspected as more students struggle with the stresses of school and life in general. 'It's another piece of the puzzle—that yes, this does seem to be a problem, that there are more young people who report anxiety and depression,' says Jean Twenge, a San Diego State University psychology professor and the study's lead author. 'The next question is: What do we do about it?' Though the study, released Monday [Jan. 11, 2009], does not provide a definitive correlation, Twenge and mental health professionals speculate that a popular culture increasingly focused on the external—from wealth to looks and status—has contributed to the uptick in mental health issues." (Daily Register) This article considers possible reasons for the increase in mental health issues among young people.
Subjects:  High school students, Mental health, Popular culture, Teenagers, Mental health, Mental health surveys, Youth, Mental health, College students, Mental health, Mental health, Statistics

Summary:   "Game consoles were criticized last week for damaging children's ability to communicate. Author Tom Chatfield argues here that they are crucial in learning about the difficulties, judgments and obligations that we all face in the 21st century." (The Observer) This article argues video games "offer not a sullen and silent unreality, but a realm that's thick with difficulties, obligations, judgments and allegiances."
Subjects:  Computer games, Popular culture, Technology, Video games and children, Video games, Social aspects

Summary:   "Schuler's query is just the latest example of how modern technology and an information-saturated culture are testing centuries-old notions of how juries and judges mete out justice." (Washington Post) This article explores "concern[s] about how technology and culture are affecting jurors and a defendant's right to a fair trial."
Subjects:  Conduct of court proceedings, Fair trial, Jurors, Popular culture, Technology, Technology and law, Web 2.0, Online social networks

Summary:   "They were once stages of ultimate desire, where a beauty would be crowned the fairest of them all by respected judges, not simply by a mirror on the wall. As the world moves towards the second decade of the 21st century, it seems people care much less about beauty pageants, be they local, national, global or universal." (Bangkok Post) This article discusses the "political, cultural, social, and economic contexts that affect the management and organisation of a beauty pageant, as well as its popularity and decline."
Subjects:  Beauty contests, Beauty, Personal, Popular culture, Thailand, Beauty contestants, Miss Universe Pageant, Body image, Global impact

Summary:  From television shows to new board games, few other nations have had such distinct cultural impacts as "Americana" has. Fashion, media, toys, films, music and sports are only a few of the sub-genres which collectively have shaped "pop culture." The ensuing timeline demonstrates just how much has truly been impacted by American popular culture and society leading up to today. This timeline is a list of events and milestones that captures the spirit of each decade.
Subjects:  Popular culture, Popular music, Radio broadcasting, Signs and symbols, Sports, Technology, Television, Television programs, Video games, Americana, Caricatures and cartoons, Fads, Fashion, Motion pictures and history, Popular culture, American influences, Popular culture, Study and teaching, History in music

Summary:   "We are the center of our own universe now, and the world revolves around us. Time magazine even said so a couple of years ago when it made "You" its "Person of the Year." It's no coincidence that the cover featured a giant computer. Never has a narcissist had a better friend." (Wall Street Journal) This article argues technology has replaced "in-person communication" and created an "ego-inflat[ed]" society.
Subjects:  Interpersonal communication, Interpersonal relations, Popular culture, Social interaction, Technology, Technology, Social aspects, Narcissism, Internet, Social aspects, Web 2.0

Summary:   "The problem of online hostility, in short, shows no sign of abating on its own. Establishing cybercivility will take a concerted effort." (Wall Street Journal) This article argues communication online "ranges from the carelessly rude to the intentionally abusive."
Subjects:  Communication and technology, Harassment, Popular culture, Technology, Technology, Social aspects, Internet, Social aspects, Cyberbullying, Web 2.0, Online social networks

Summary:   "While the world 'behind the Internet' can seem hard to understand especially when our reasons for going online are merely to greet others, seek information or conduct a transaction--it is important we know the ways in which we are vulnerable to 'intruders.'" (Hispanic Outlook) This article explores the privacy and security risks of using online social networks.
Subjects:  Internet crimes, Internet, Personal information, Popular culture, Privacy, Technology, Technology, Risk assessment, Spyware, Facebook (Web site), Web 2.0, Online social networks

Summary:   "A world of couch potatoes in front of digital sets will have its downsides....But it could also be a world more equal for women, healthier, better governed, more united in response to global tragedy, and more likely to vote for local versions of American Idol than shoot at people." (Foreign Policy) This article explores the beneficial role television plays throughout the world.
Subjects:  Mass media, Mass media and culture, Popular culture, Technology, Technology, Social aspects, Television, Television, Forecasting, Mass media, Social aspects, Mass media, Global impact, Technology, Global impact

Summary:   "The Web has become the hottest place to build a church. A growing number of congregations are creating Internet offshoots that go far beyond streaming weekly services." (Washington Post) This article describes the growing number of online church communities worldwide.
Subjects:  Internet, Religious use, Popular culture, Technology, Technology, Religious aspects, Popular culture, Religious aspects, Worship programs, Computers, Religious use, Web 2.0

Summary:   "This town's top celebrities have long had more than their fair share of plastic parts. Hollywood's newest movie stars are no exception....Toys now are receiving the same A-list treatment that any bankable movie star here has come to expect. That includes top billing and contracts with special perks. They even have their own talent agents....The star turn for toys is part of a mania that has swept Hollywood in recent months. Action figures such as G.I. Joe and Transformers ruled the box office this summer. Meanwhile, real-life stars who were once golden, such as Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler, failed to draw crowds." (Wall Street Journal) This article examines Hollywood film producers' "craze for toy-driven feature films."
Subjects:  Mass media, Motion picture industry, Motion pictures, Popular culture

Summary:   "To his critics, [Harvey] Levin and TMZ represent the public face of a modern media obsessed with celebrities and their meaningless antics. The methods TMZ employs illustrate an era where nothing is private any more and anything can be caught on video by someone with a cellphone. To his defenders, he is a wildly successful journalist--responsible for scores of scoops--who is following in a long tradition of gossip journalism that harks back to the 1920s and 1930s." (The Observer) This article analyzes how Harvey Levin and TMZ have taken advantage of technology to change the way news is gathered and delivered. In addition, the article notes that TMZ has been the "beneficiary of a cultural shift. The definition of celebrity has changed. No longer are celebrities confined to the wealthy and talented stars of film and television. The explosion of reality TV has made countless people fodder for TMZ's relentless gossip machine."
Subjects:  Mass media, Popular culture, Mass media and technology, Online journalism

Summary:   "Google's latest product combines communication, collaboration and media-sharing into one insanely useful app. Is this the new email?" (Time) This article describes Google Wave and its potential to change the communication industry.
Subjects:  Communication and technology, Digital communications, Electronic mail messages, Electronic mail systems, Popular culture, Technology, Technology, Social aspects, Google Inc., Web 2.0

Summary:   "The fashion industry just finished its twice-yearly round of runway shows and like clockwork the voices of discontent rise up to complain about the excessiveness of the clothes, the high prices and, most vociferously, the skinny models. The industry has been unveiling its wares in the same manner for decades and each time, it opens itself up for attack by a culture that has turned bitterly--and in some cases, irrationally--against it." (Washington Post) In this article, the author opines on the fashion industry's use of thin models.
Subjects:  Body image, Models (Persons), Obesity, Popular culture, Fashion, Fashion designers, Fashion shows

Summary:   "Barth wants everyone who still thinks of tattoos as primarily the domain of subcultures like bikers, sailors and gothed-out punk rockers to know that things have changed a lot--even becoming a luxury item." (Los Angeles Times) This article describes the evolution of tattoos, increasingly becoming "mainstream...art."
Subjects:  Popular culture, Tattooing, Art and society, Body art, Tattoo artists, Tattooing, Social aspects

Summary:   "Americans clearly don't see the sport the same way others do. But recent months have brought growing evidence that America's parochial attitude toward soccer is quickly fading." (Wall Street Journal) This article explore's America's growing interest in soccer and predicts "the long-hyped, always just-around-the-corner U.S. soccer boom may finally be close to arriving."
Subjects:  Americans, Attitudes, Major League Soccer Inc., Popular culture, Sports, Sports spectators, Sports, Forecasting, Soccer fans, Soccer teams, Soccer, U.S., Sports, Global impact

Summary:   "The relative decline of the book is part of a broader shift toward short and to the point. Small cultural bits--written words, music, video--have never been easier to record, store, organize, and search, and thus they are a growing part of our enjoyment and education." (Wilson Quarterly) This article argues, "The mass migration of intellectual activity from print to the Web has brought one important development: We have begun paying more attention to information."
Subjects:  Books, Books and reading, Information society, Popular culture, Technology, Technology, Social aspects, Literature and society, Literature and technology, Internet, Social aspects, Web 2.0

Summary:   "Warner Brothers knew it had a potential problem with Orphan several weeks ago [July, 2009] when Facebook entered the debate over its new horror thriller. A mother of two adopted children had been horrified that promotional trailers for the movie were accompanied by a voice-over that ominously stated: 'It must be difficult to love an adopted child as much as your own.' So Bethann Buddenbaum and a friend decided to do something about it. They launched a Facebook group calling on filmgoers to boycott the film." (Gazette (Montreal, Canada)) This article discusses the film, Orphan and the controversy surrounding the movie's subject matter and violence.
Subjects:  Adoption, Boycotts, Motion pictures, Popular culture, Motion pictures, Social aspects, Facebook (Web site)

Summary:   "Facebook activism, the trendy process by which we do good by clicking often, was in its full glory last week [June, 2009] after the death of Iranian student Neda Agha Soltan, killed by gunfire in the streets of Tehran...[b]ut whether our virtual virtuousness will result in real-world action is unpredictable, and has as much to do with human nature as it does with amassing enough numbers. This is the problem with activism born of social networking sites." (Washington Post) The author discusses 'click-through activism' and questions if joining these groups are really a way to help change the world or "are they accessories--a piece of virtual flair that members could collect to show off their cultural sensitivity, their political awareness?"
Subjects:  Internet, Iran, Popular culture, Social action, Social networks, Hactivism, Facebook (Web site), Web 2.0

Summary:   "On a magical night in 1983, Michael Jackson struck a pose on stage, clasping the black fedora on his head with his white sequined glove. His black jacket and silver vest glittered as white socks showed under his high-water black pants. Then he erupted into a flurry of fluid dance moves in a performance of Billie Jean that would catapult the former child singing sensation into full-blown superstardom. Probably no celebrity has been as revered and reviled over the past 40 years as Jackson, 50, who died Thursday [June 25, 2009] in Los Angeles, according to the Associated Press. The troubled, reclusive star was rushed to UCLA [University of California, Los Angeles] Medical Center by paramedics responding to a call from his home at about 12:30 p.m. The cause of Jackson's death was not immediately announced, nor were circumstances surrounding it." (USA Today) This article discusses the untimely death of the "King of Pop" Michael Jackson, remembering the musical icon's legendary career and controversial life.
Subjects:  Celebrities, Popular culture, Sound recordings, African American singers, Jackson, Michael (1958-2009)

Summary:   "The overall cost of litigation in the United States has now reached the vertiginous level of 2 percent of the nation's gross domestic product, around $300 billion. That is more than the legal bills of all other nations combined. An intellectual revolution that began in the 1940s and 1950s has bequeathed to us our present-day legal system-hyperactive, expansionist, and ruinously expensive. It transformed courts into arenas for social change, and then filtered down to the more homely precincts in which civil actions are argued...[t]he romanticized, glamorized depiction of law in the popular culture has acted as a bulwark against change- and has helped nudge jurors and judges toward creative legal theories and colossally large awards. And when it comes to popular culture and the law, there is no more influential figure than John Grisham, the Mississippi attorney who almost singlehandedly created the pop literary genre known as the 'legal thriller.'" (Commentary) The author explains how the pop novelist, John Grisham has impacted the American legal system.
Subjects:  Courts, Law, Lawyers, Popular culture, Grisham, John, Lawyers in literature, Popular culture, American influences, Law in motion pictures

Summary:   "Abu Essam's footsteps echo loudly as he walks through the narrow alleys of Damascus' [Syria] old city. Around him in 1930s Syria, tall stone buildings block the scorching sun. Cautiously, he walks on. Around the next corner he could find the key to the gate to free prisoners captured by Syria's colonial ruler, France. Or he could face a shot from a French soldier's rifle. As he turns the corner, a shot rings out--but it is the soldier who is dead. This is not Syria of 75 years ago, however. It is a rolling, 3-D video game on Wael El-Zanaty's cell phone, and his thumb is a blur of motion as he navigates the alleys and fires at soldiers." (The Seattle Times) This article discusses how "the Arab world's private sector is leading a push to provide Muslim and Arab youth with homegrown heroes, something sorely needed as a bulwark against the trend toward radical Islam throughout the Middle East."
Subjects:  Muslims, Attitudes, Popular culture, Comic books, strips, etc., Political aspects, Comic books, strips, etc., Religious aspects, Arabs, Attitudes, Video games, Social aspects