Critical Theory and Popular Culture
Initial discussion postings should be a minimum of 250 words.
Responses to each question should draw on key concepts you have learned during the week’s reading, and to a lesser extent, your personal experience and opinions. You are welcome to incorporate relevant supplemental material (i.e. a news item, website, youtube video, etc.)
NOTE: Anytime you use someone else’s ideas (i.e. a definition from the text or paraphrasing), you MUST use APA style citations.
See Appendix A in the syllabus for the grading scale.
QUESTION:
What are some of the main claims of critical theorists about popular culture and the media? How does critical theory explain racial and ethnic stereotyping? How/why is stereotyping harmful? Please provide specific examples of racial/ ethnic stereotyping. Post one item of relevant supplemental material.
The Week 3 Forum meets the following course objectives:
· Describe examples of the different types of norms operative in popular culture, and how these are related to the process of social control.
· Identify the research methods used to create knowledge about popular culture.
· Apply key cultural theories and analytical dimensions for examining popular culture.
· Illustrate diversity in popular culture and concepts of multiculturalism, ethnocentrism, and cultural relativism with reference to key stratifying factors such as gender, race, ethnicity, class, age, region and sexuality.
· Analyze culture within individual, social, historical, political, economic, and global contexts.