Blog Post #1

Hello,
my name is Christian Gomez Cortes and I’m originally from Beaverton, Oregon. I’m a freshmen at Portland State University and love playing sports such as basketball, soccer as well as enjoy listening to all different kinds of music (mainly hip-hop and rap). One of the biggest ways I say I consume pop culture is through social media. I spent most of my free time on platforms such as YouTube, Netflix, Spotify and Instagram keeping up with my favorite social media influencers and musical artists. I would say that the main reason I engage in these forms of pop culture is solely based for entertainment.

Having to deal with work and school, engaging in these types of platforms gives me a sense of balance, a time where I get to enjoy life and have fun. Advertising and marketing, in particular, influence a lot on the decisions I decide to partake in as well as the products I decide to consume. For instance, in music, I look up to several different artists who share the same values that I have. Thus, as a way to show support, I purchased concert tickets or merchandise that is being sold out to the public. In regards to clothes, that’s really how I decide whether or not to purchase a product. I follow influencers on social media such as “Asap Rocky” who I find to have similar interest to in terms of fashion. Following these artists through these types of platforms gives me more of an exposure to a product I may have more of an interest on buying. But Ultimately, I don’t really think about what I wear that much. I just buy what I like.

Based on the readings in Chapter 1 of Introducing Popular Culture and from watching The Greatest Movie Ever Sold, I can see how advertising and marketing have a strong influence on our society. This can be seen especially in technology and in clothing. As soon as a person buys a new Apple iPhone, not even a year could pass and the item can already be outdated by the new latest version. In my opinion, this has caused our country to be a world full of consumers in a never-ending cycle of trying to buy whatever is trending at the moment. Additionally, I do believe pop culture can also be a source of creating awareness and change. Many social media influencers with the mass following have preached positivity and with the help of their fan base have helped raise money for fundraisers and charities. An example of this would be Felix Kjellberg. A pop culture influencer who has reached over 81 million subscribers on youtube and has helped raise over a million dollars to charities and organizations (Lieberman, 2018, p. 7). Other social media influencers have publicly talked about their battles with mental illness, utilizing the power of social media to raise support for charities that aim squarely at their young viewership ((Lieberman, 2018, p. 10). So in all, I do believe pop culture can be a source of creating awareness and change.

Works Cited:

OBrien, S., & Szeman, I. (2017). Popular culture: A user’s guide. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell.

Spurlock, M. (Director). (2011). POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold [Motion picture on DVD]. United States: Sony Pictures Classics.