For this post, I wanted to focus on my social media usage whilst exploring its popularity through the key theory of representation as denoted within this week’s lecture. My main source of media intake in general is social media as I consume it every single day, if not arguably ever hour, meaning most of my interactions with popular culture and global sources is through the internet. Thanks to the features accessible on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, Twitter and YouTube (my personal social media preferences), I am able to interact and consume popular culture in the form of videos, photos and other post formats mainly revolving around Storey’s (2015) final explored definition for popular culture;

‘…popular culture is one informed by recent thinking around the debate on postmodernism… a culture that no longer recognizes the distinction between high and popular culture…(the postmodern blurring of the distinction between authentic’ and ‘commercial’ culture).’ (Storey 2015, p12)

While social media does simply link to Storey’s (2015) fourth definition involving folk culture or ‘a culture of the people for the people’ (p9), it’s difficult to argue that social media remains just that with business’s now dominating the digital space as the new platform of marketing. This is not to mention the explosion of meme culture that can typically take the form of a remix of traditional pop culture (perhaps high culture) references to form a new meaning. This distinct weaving of pop cultures past, present and future makes for a worthy scaffold for representation to educate those that may have no direct access to the people, cultures, languages, general ideologies and dominating issues of places in which the internet connection can reach. 

With these platforms being so easily available to a major portion of the global population, it allows for a wide range of representation to enter a weakly mediated domain. While cultural proximity does still exist in the online world, with most languages and cultures remaining with their own relating spheres due to convenience and base understanding, there is still an availability for freedom of access across the board. Barriers that keep cultures apart such as language, understanding and distance can all be removed thanks to the accessibility of the internet, allowing for representations of all culture to come together in one space that is available to all that have a connection and have discussions.

A journal by Sodhi et al. (2020) provides an interesting insight into how social media has allowed for people of colour to connect on the topic of police brutality in America on a global scale;

‘The advent of social platforms such as Facebook and Instagram have created an additional space where conversations regarding race and police brutality can now be discussed on a global level… Social media has played a huge role in helping communities of color organize across geographies and has offered many an opportunity to take action and have their voices heard and validated.’ (Sodhi et al. 2020)

This connection of representations is arguably one of the main factors of social medias continued success and popularity as it creates a safe space for these kinds of conversations to occur on a grand scale.

Reference List:

Sodhi, A, Aguilar, N, Choma, D.E, Steve, J.M, Patton & D, Crandall, M 2020, ‘Social media representations of law enforcement within four diverse Chicago neighborhoods’, Sage Journals, viewed 14 August 2020, < https://journals-sagepub-com.ezproxy.uow.edu.au/doi/10.1177/0891241620943291>

Storey, J 2015, Cultural theory and popular culture: an introduction, 7^th ed., Routledge, New York.