Assignment 2-2 ICONS

Michael Jackson
I chose Michael Jackson because of millions of fans/ he has. Though his boyishly shy ways, Michael Jackson is believed to have shared his life as an open book. By many he is believed to have been a misunderstood humanitarian. Michael has been a part of popular culture since he and his brothers wowed followers from the age of 6. Generations among generations have grown up listening to his music and grown up with him. His fans believe he is the best performer of all time. Even those that don’t consider themselves a fan must admit his musical influence is heard in places least suspected. Artists from Kanye West and Jay Z to Jennifer Lopez continue to give his music life through their use of samples of his music. Artists like Usher, Chris Brown and Justin Timberlake all have been influenced by MJ and have dance styles reminiscent of his. Many continue to morn his untimely death because there will never be another performer that can fill his shoes.

Princess Diana
Princess Diana was chosen because of her style and grace. Dying an untimely death, to many people Princess Diana was the quintessential lady. Although she was not a performer she was adored by many citizens of Britain and the rest of the world. She was poised, beautiful, polite, elegant and classy. Though Princess Diana died more than 10 years ago, the world still mourns

The Obama Family
For many African Americans the Obama family represents the hope for black families. Although the Cosby show was an All-American show that appealed to people of many ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, some considered the Cosby show to be unrealistic. They believed a show that portrayed a functional family whose father was a doctor, mother was a lawyer and kids are normal kids was unrealistic and sold African American families a lie. Unlike the Cosby’s the Obama family is real. The Obama family represents success in the black family. Though both parents are successful in their own right, the true success of the Obama family comes from their ability to put family first. The love Michelle and Barack seem to share is an example to African Americans of the strength and possibilities that come from a strong family. Though they are both in high profile positions, their ability to make time to enjoy the little things with their daughters model the importance of the role parents have in rearing their children. Personally, I don’t think their family is important because he has become president. I believe the Obama family is an important icon because the hope for success they inspire to the African American community. I don’t have to look far to see that the breakdown in the African American family has become an epidemic that has affected the community. The Obama’s are a real life representation of what a black family should be.

Assignment 1-4

I chose to review Facebook for my weekly analysis. I heard about Facebook about three or four years ago. I created my first profile at that time and only used it about 3 times over the course of about 3 years. I didn’t see the point at the time and because it was a new format, not many people were on it then. At first it was only know by a few but now my family and friends, old and young are choosing to use Facebook as a tool to keep in touch with one another instead of email or Myspace. From my understanding it was a networking tool designed to help college students network and connect with one another. Now Facebook is used by the masses. I use it to invite family to events and let them know what is going on in my life. My children use it, so I have made them friends. As a parenting tool this helps me keep up to date on what their friends are doing and allows me to have discussions about issues at the right time. Some of their friends have requested me so it allows me to keep with the old adage “it takes a village to raise a child” and be parents’ eyes and ears about concerns.
Through the different networks on Facebook, I have connected with elementary school friends I have not seen or heard from in years. Through the site I am able to visit with friends, and view their families, see their children and get an idea of there interests. In a small way, it’s a prolonged class reunion without the plane tickets.

As it states in the introduction of module 1 on the course web site, culture is a way of life and popular culture is the study of one component (Franklin, 2009). The class offers a lot to think about. Popular culture is just that; it is our own personal beliefs, traditions and choices. Popular culture can be influenced by such overlooked items as economics, exposure and education (Franklin, 2009). We only know what we know. Our upbringing, experiences and values encourage us to take an interest in certain things. These influences have an impact on things such as if we watch movies and the types of movies, and if we read and the types of books we read. Popular culture influences everything we do. This is evident with the youth of today. To see examples of this all you have to do is watch a commercial during your favorite TV show. Because we live in a technological age, we are able to obtain information at incredible speeds. This assumed need for speed has made cellular phone companies market to the perceived need and create multimedia packages targeting this speed. From cell phones to smaller laptops, companies are marketing to the youth with cuter, faster, smaller phones and notebooks. Exploring the subject of popular culture encourages us to explore items like these and other items that drive people in our society to make the choices we make.
In a business environment it’s important to have an understanding of popular culture for many reasons. Work environments can be made up of persons from all ages, races, cultural and educational backgrounds. Many companies pride themselves on being culturally diverse and with that diversity come understanding. To understand popular culture puts me at an advantage in business. Because my degree will be in organizational leadership, understanding the trends that are popular to the employees of my company will help me to motivate my workforce and take my company to the next level. As my artifact I chose is the Blackberry telephone. I chose it because most people, myself included, feel like they must be connected to the world at all times. The blackberry provides access to the outside world at all times. It provides almost instant access to email, facebook, MySpace among other applications. Purchased because I was looking to replace my phone & mp3 player, once I was told I could link my email accounts I was sold. Referred to by many as a crackberry, I believe the blackberry epitomizes the need of popular culture to be connected.