Tagged: Raymond Williams

Political & Economic Sociology / Social Movements / Social Change / Sociology of Culture / Sociology of Media & Communication

The new "old" music industry

by bmckernan A recent article in the NY Times highlights a potential major shift currently ensuing within the music industry. As the article reports, while in the past most musicians depended on the support of a major record label if they ever hoped of gaining access to a large audience and becoming financially successful, today many artists have the potential to achieve the same goals independently courtesy of digitalization and online distribution. If this trend continues, it may be possible...

Social Movements / Social Change / Sociology of Culture / Sociology of Media & Communication

Pop Icons as a Text

by bmckernan While most of us have most likely had our fill of news stories related to the tragic death of pop icon Michael Jackson courtesy of the media’s seemingly daily obsession with the story, a recent blog post by games journalist Jeremy Parish at 1up.com provides some rather unique cultural insight into Michael Jackson reminiscent of Raymond William’s notion of a society or social group’s “structure of feeling.”

Sociology of Culture / Sociology of Media & Communication

Structure of Feeling in Beverly Hills

by bmckernan With the American fall television season upon us, a recent NY Times article examines the underlying class distinctions found in some of this season’s newest programs. After surveying the offerings, it appears that the days of the middle-class sentimentality of such programs as The Cosby Show are a thing of the past. The article suggests that rather than focusing on supposed middle-class families, television shows today are often mainly interested in the conflicts between members of the upper-class....