Image Gallery: Evolution of TV Television advertisements have the power to influence all viewers, from young to old. See more pictures of TV's evolution. Flying Colours Ltd/Digital Vision/Thinkstock TV ads are built on one simple idea: If you buy X, you'll get Y. But Y is rarely the product itself. Rather, it's a positive emotion, a perfect relationship, higher social status or an amazing experience. For example, if you buy Big Red gum, you'll get to "kiss a little longer." Or if you go to Toys "R" Us, you'll reconnect with your youthful self, allowing you to have even more fun with your kids: After all, you don't wanna grow up, 'cause maybe if you did, you couldn't be a Toys "R" Us kid! Leaving the jingles aside, if you had a Verizon phone, you'd be able to stay close with your family. Or if you owned a Kia car, you would immediately transform into an ultracool rodent. (Well, maybe that one's a little far-fetched!) Maybe more importantly, in terms of TV ads' impact on culture, … [Read more...] about How do TV commercials influence American culture?
Culture
How Comic-Con Came to Rule the Pop Culture World
Fans attend Comic-Con International at the San Diego Convention Center on July 24, 2014 in San Diego, California. Daniel Knighton/WireImage/Getty Images In 1970, a group of young, nerdy guys put together one of the first comic conventions in the U.S. Their goal was simply to facilitate the buying and selling of comic books, and to geek out over them with fellow fans. Little did they know that their event — San Diego Comic-Con — would one day be the best-known pop culture convention in the world. The inaugural Comic-Con — the name is short for Comic Convention — was actually two events, say Dani Fernandez and Ify Nwadiwe, co-hosts of the new podcast Nerdificent. In its inaugural episode, Nerdificent, which takes a deep dive into nerd culture, discusses the history of comic book conventions. The first Comic-Con was a "mini-con," held in San Diego in March 1970 to test the waters. The response was positive, so the organizers launched a full-blown three-day … [Read more...] about How Comic-Con Came to Rule the Pop Culture World
Can Animals Experience Culture Shock, Too?
Giant panda Mei Huan looks pretty happy lying on the ground at Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China on Nov. 16, 2016. She and her twin Mei Lun had come to the base a few weeks earlier. Wang Qin/Chengdu Economic Daily/VCG via Getty Images The giant panda species is native to China, but Mei Lun and Mei Huan must've missed the memo. The sisters, who are the first surviving twins ever born in captivity in the United States, recently set metaphorical sail back to their genetic homeland as per an agreement established between the two countries. Although their Chinese caregivers certainly know a thing or two about rearing pandas, there's been buzz about the girls suffering from so-called culture shock. Born and beloved at Zoo Atlanta, the pandas have reportedly had a difficult time adjusting to their new digs, including the language, food and general surroundings. They're even insistent upon nibbling biscuits, a Southern staple, at every meal. Some experts aren't too … [Read more...] about Can Animals Experience Culture Shock, Too?
Young Relationships Are Poisoned by Poor Parenting and Cultural Misogyny, Not Hookup Culture
American parents aren't teaching today's youth about healthy relationship strategies, so alternate forces are driving relationships. Hero Images/Getty Images Kids these days, right? Every generation of teenagers has its detractors: adults who think the new batch is doing everything wrong in school, work, relationships. Much of the time, it's a matter of adults simply forgetting what it's like to be young and inexperienced. But at this moment in U.S. history, the experience of being a teenager or a young adult is dramatically different than it's ever been — and that's due to an intersection of a number of cultural trends including parenting choices, media consumption and demographic shifts in higher education. Relax About the Hookups A new report published by Harvard University's Making Caring Common Project shares the findings of a nationwide survey, as well as individual surveys collected from 18- to 25-year-olds in demographically diverse high schools and colleges around … [Read more...] about Young Relationships Are Poisoned by Poor Parenting and Cultural Misogyny, Not Hookup Culture
In the Midst of Hookup Culture, Fewer Millennials Are Having Sex
More adults age 20-24 are "swiping left" on sexual partners today than in previous generations. Justin Lewis/Getty Images Bumble, Coffee Meets Bagel, Tinder: With all those dating apps out there and articles about hookup culture, you may think that young people are having more sex than ever. But a new study out of San Diego State University is challenging that assumption. Rather than being more promiscuous, more adults age 20-24 are "swiping left" on sexual partners today than in previous generations. Using data from the General Social Survey between 1989 and 2014, the researchers analyzed the sexual habits of American adults who were born in the 1960s-1990s, breaking the groups down into decades and accounting for age. Although there were differences based on race, college education, region of residence and gender, the study found that millennials (born 1980-94) and iGeners (born 1995-2012) are more than twice as likely as Gen Xers (born 1965-79) to have had skipped out on sex … [Read more...] about In the Midst of Hookup Culture, Fewer Millennials Are Having Sex