The X Factor: Cultural Diffusion

The new season of The X Factor has started, and with it comes talent, drama, and the U.S. version of the show. Simon Cowell, creator of the successful reality TV show, decided it was time to take The X Factor across the Atlantic, and so The X Factor (US) was born.What makes this show so successful? It has proven to have an impact on the viewers in the United Kingdom, but what makes Cowell sure it will do the same in the United States? These questions can be answered by looking at cultural diffusion, and the unwritten rules of the shows subculture.

The X Factor (UK), broadcast on ITV1, consists of four celebrity judges, and the contestants. The contestant must be at least 16 years old to audition. After the auditions, each judge is given a certain category to mentor, Girls, Boys, Over 25s, or Groups. The U.S. version of the show differs slightly form the original format, with the age of the contestants starting at 12, and the Over 25 category extended to the Over 30 category.

We can say that The X Factor is being culturally diffused, because the show is a subculture that belongs to a different society and it is being adapted by another society. By taking the show to the Unites States, Cowell is diffusing the subculture amongst another group of Westerners. How is it being diffused? It is diffused through mass media, of course. The show is broadcast to a large audience and is sending out a message to them. The message can be seen as entertainment, competition, or going after one’s dreams.

Within the subculture of The X Factor there are certain unwritten rules of the show that have remained the same in both versions of the show. This could be due to a secret formula that seems to attract audiences in the Western world. There are always those with the touching stories, and the freaks who are talentless but are put through for the sake of audiences. The contestants are all competing against each other, and so are the judges. Everyone wants to be the winner, and from what I’ve seen that is an outlook that is very popular in the Western world. I doubt North Korea would want to have its own version of the show promoting the ideology of winner takes it all.

The X Factor has disseminated its culture to the United States, and the reason why is because it has adapted to their interests. At the same time the show didn’t change drastically, this could be due to the fact that both shows are from Western countries, but nevertheless it was altered to fit into a different society.

It's Fryyy-day Fryyy-day

It's Friday, Friday. You know you love it. And apparently the world agrees. 13-year-old Rebecca Black has come out of absolutely nowhere to become the biggest YouTube sensation of the moment, demonstrating the power of social media. She's already got more hits than Lady Gaga's latest song.

I can't decide if I love this or hate it. The inane lyrics ("gotta have my bowl, gotta have cereal"), the cheesy video production values, the overuse of Auto-Tune (for "singers" who can't sing in pitch), the earnest performance, and even the way Black sings the words "Friday."

Sure, it's grating and annoying, but it's also goofy and winning. It's easy to hate and hard to hate, all at the same time. To quote Black, it's fun, fun, fun, fun. Sociologically, you can go in a million directions with this. It certainly demonstrates the democratic use of the Internet, the power of social media (the song went viral in less than a week), the sexualization of young girls, the media's ongoing fascination with youth culture, cyberbullying, the infectious thrill of corny-yet-awesome pop music, the explosion of the prosumer, and the fact that industry manufactured stars like Beyonce may not be offering what people really want. Opinions are decidedly mixed, but you have to admit, this is a darn catchy song. Play it once, you'll probably play it again -- whether you want to or not.

Like all viral videos, "Friday" immediately spawned a host of parodies, covers, tributes, and other hilarious responses. This one is particularly great.


And if you hate that, there's always the super slowed-down version that sounds like some art-rock madness cooked up by Radiohead.


Or the chipmunk, fast version. Aw yeah!

Reading books: is it still a popular cultural activity?

Considering the fact that the interests of a person may differ from another person, some people enjoy watching movies and/or listening to music regularly, while some people enjoy reading books to enjoy and fulfill their free-time.

Although reading may be considered as an old-fashioned habit to many people (especially to youth) in this century, it’s still enjoyed and practiced by other people. But how do we know that reading is still considered as a popular cultural activity when knowing that the rate of “reading a book” in the world is decreasing massively over time? Let’s elaborate this by supporting it with real-life examples.

The first shining example is Oprah’s Book Club. But first of all, let me define what a book club is in my own words. A book club is an ongoing group activity that involves individuals of similar book choices together to read certain books, discuss them, share emotions and opinions, etc. Going back to Oprah’s Book Club example, who of us would usually read anything about any product—or even buy it—just because a well-known TV personality had once recommended it? Almost every fan of this personality does so. But how did all this happen? Let’s refer to Oprah’s Book Club example again. Oprah has always been entertaining us and attracting us with the variety of topics and stories she presents in her show. She interviews celebrities, talented kids, people with emotional stories of crime or suffering, etc. She made the public more attached to these kinds of stories. The result? The more fanbase she would have. This amazing love that she gains makes it easier for her to say or promote stuff for people to attach to or to do. Furthermore, by forming her own book club and recommending books, Oprah makes more and more people open books and actually read.

The second example is the clever idea of making movie sequels based on books. How is that clever? Almost everyone has watched and loved the first Harry Potter movie before reading the book. What was J.K Rowling’s next step? Her next step was writing the next books of the sequel before making the movies based on them. As some people got attached strongly to Harry Potter stories, of course they couldn’t wait for the next movies to come out to know the rest of the story. As a result, they had only one option: to buy and read the rest of Harry Potter novels to know how the story will come to at the end.

Waste Not Want... More?

It is not surprising that I no longer have room in my closets, drawers, and other wardrobe space. I have the constant urge to shop, always desiring new, trendy “latest season’s” fashions. My room is cluttered with a superfluous collection of clothes, accessories, shoes, bags and other newly purchased items that still have their tags on. I am consistently buying new items of clothing, despite the complete and utter absence of necessity. As the photos suggest, I am indeed subject to a social order known as consumerism.



Looking at consumerism through a sociological lens, Grazian mentions that consumerism creates a cultural hegemony that is part of popular culture as a process of social control. Media and culture industries combined, foster these systematic false needs in consumers for them to want to buy new goods and in larger amounts.

While Grazian mentions the average adult in America buys 48 pieces of clothing items a year, the numbers may be even higher in this society.
Some people here go shopping every weekend, may be even everyday. Do we need to shop that often? And do we really need the items we purchase?
Why do ladies anticipate the latest fashions, trendiest looks, and ‘hot’ off the runway apparel? Who created this constant feeling of enthusiasm and rejuvenating excitement for these cultural products? Why do sales and promotions “easily represent what feels like a missed opportunity for fulfillment” and why does every purchase bring “with it a kind of relief however ephemeral”, (Grazian, p.61).



Grazian points out, it may have a lot to do with the culture industries that mass produce them, as well as the mass media in general that advertises these products.
An eye-opening project called “The Story of Stuff” offers an extensive critical study on the consumerist American society, and the effects of consumerism on the environment and its impact on society as a whole.
We’ve all heard the phrases “Must-haves” and “Must buys” and “Must” whatever it is to make us buy something. Are any of these deemed “Must purchases” really essential?
Well, even if they aren’t, we’re buying them!
According to the video below, in the U.S people are subjected to around 3,000 advertisements a day, which is compared to 50 years ago, more than people in America saw in a lifetime.





So what are the mass media and Ads really doing?
They’re basically telling us our hair’s wrong, our clothes are ugly, our skin is blotchy, our phone’s useless and our lifestyles need makeovers. They make us unsatisfied with ourselves. Then after feeling dissatisfied, we move to these products in order to fill that emptiness, that bubble of dissatisfaction that is created. This is what Grazian calls a “capitalist industry with exploitive motives”. We’re all part of one massive business. It’s all about making money ladies and gentlemen. Not satisfying real needs like creativity, happiness and freedom.
Mass media and mass marketing is the key. Generally people want to identify with a group and marketing sells lifestyle choices. They use the same tactics as religion. If you don’t do A, you won’t get B. Most people don’t have the courage to be unique. Cleverly, the people that market mass-produced “cultural products”, clothing and accessories etc. entice people by telling them if you wear this item it will set you apart and they will gain status when really the consumer pays to be a walking billboard.
It’s obvious if you look around that the clothing presents a sort of false ideal because most people wear things that aren’t necessarily flattering to their figures. You cannot look like Angelina Jolie by wearing the same clothes. Now the consumer goes a step further into body modification - and mass media then advertises plastic surgery.



So they tell you to get your plastic card, and buy more plastic stuff to set yourself apart. Stuff mass-produced, manufactured in third-world nations for a rate of a dime-a-dozen.
But the crafty schemes of culture industries, are not entirely dominating the masses. Even though my closets are crammed (maybe not to such an extreme) a light always shines when cultural innovation, and creativity, and real art does emerge despite the manipulative strategies of culture industries producing what we call “popular culture”.