More and more, we see our news providers giving us news that would never have been published in previous years. It’s normal now, to see articles that used to be the subject of conversation in gossip columns and magazines.
Over the past twenty years, popular culture has infiltrated the news media, and has become an everyday part of what is now considered ‘news’.
First, let’s define pop culture. It is the full spectrum of mass popular ideas, trends, attitudes and opinions, on ANY topic. Popular culture presupposes consensus based on the opinions of informal and informal groups. Now, in the 21st century, as we all use the internet every day, this mainstream consensus can be developed and influenced with just one Tweet.
Today, celebrity gossip, entertainment news, and even odd news articles are everyday occurrences. And this news is created and shared by ordinary people, and then picked up by news providers. Is that news?
Yes! Anything that shares information and interesting events, that shows humanity as it is today, and that provides perspective on current issues, is news. Popular culture is still often considered trivial, unimportant and not newsworthy. However, the world’s most popular news provider provides readers with a balance between traditional news and popular culture.
Today, leading online news providers will post a healthy mix of breaking news, politics, sports, and business, right alongside entertainment, gossip and queer news. This variety attracts a wider audience and opens up the types of articles we read.
In a world that can easily be filled with dry, sad, and serious news articles, it’s good to see unusual, funny, or inspiring articles share the same page space, and receive a high level of attention from readers.
Most of us access news online every day, and as a result, we have an excellent choice of newswire services that provide us with daily news on all types of subjects. We can now choose exactly what we read, and we can send the latest news directly to our mobile devices within seconds of being posted online.
Popular culture is just a reflection of people’s opinions, interests, likes and dislikes. It gives us another point of view to see world events, and people’s actions. Social media and the internet have had a huge influence on the increasing prevalence of popular culture news items, and this trend is unlikely to end.
Next time you log on to your favorite news site to keep up with the news, consider the articles you choose to read. Do you only access traditional news, or are you just as interested in popular culture news? For most people, they will read a mixture of the two, and enjoy funny and interesting articles far more than sad news.
