1. Ch. 4 Key Issue 3 Why is popular culture widely distributed?
Examine question: Social websites like MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are changing the way that popular and folk cultures are diffused. Give and support an argument for how the Internet might aid the preservation, or even the expansion, of some folk cultural elements.

2. Popular Housing Styles
Newer housing in the U.S. has been built to reflect rapidly changing concerns over suitable house forms.
Modern house styles:
s: minimal traditional- one story, dominant front gable, few decorative details. Small and modest designed for WWII veterans and families.
1950s-1960s: ranch house- one story, long side parallel to the street, takes a larger property= encouraged urban sprawl
1950s-1970s: split-level house: lower level= garage, family room, middle-level= kitchen, dining rooms, upper= bedrooms
1950s-1970s: contemporary style: flat, low pitched roofs

3. U.S. House Types,
Fig. 4-11: Several variations of the “modern style” were dominant from the 1940s into the 1970s. Since then, “neo-eclectic” styles have become the dominant type of house construction in the U.S.

4. Neo-Electic House Styles since 1960
Mansard: shingle covered second story walls
Neo-Tudor style: dominant, steep-pitched front facing gables
Neo-French: dormer windows, rounded tops, high-hipped roofs
Neo-colonial: adaptation to English colonial houses

5. U.S. House Types by Region
Fig : Small towns in different regions of the eastern U.S. have different combinations of five main house types.

6. Rapid Diffusion of Clothing Styles
Clothing reflects income, social forms and job characteristics
More Developed Countries-
clothing reflects jobs rather than environment
Higher income allows fashion to change frequently
Improved communications permit rapid diffusion of clothing styles
Globalization has increased awareness of the variety of folk costumes around the world, increased travel, diffusion of television

7. Jeans
Important symbol of diffusion- prized possession of young people around the world
Jeans vary in style globally, scarcity of jeans in various countries- i.e. Soviet Union- government controlled industries

8. Popular Food Customs Alcohol and fresh produce-
Americans choose partic
ular drinks or snacks based on what is produced, grown or imported locally
Cultural backgrounds affect- religious reasons (i.e. Baptists, Mormons don’t drink alcohol)
Consumption of alcohol and snack foods depend on 2 factors-
High income
National advertising

9. Wine
The spatial distribution of wine production demonstrates that the environment plays a role in the distribution of popular and folk customs.
Locations of vineyards- soil, climate, physical characteristics
Year of the harvest indicates finer wines

10. Alcohol Preferences in the U.S.
Fig. 4-12: Per capita consumption of Canadian whiskey (left) and tequila (right) show different source areas and histories of diffusion.

11. Role of Television in Diffusing Popular Culture
Most popular leisure activity in more developed countries
Most important mechanism by which knowledge of popular culture is rapidly diffused across Earth.
U.S. public saw t.v. in the 1930s, rapidly expanding after WWII.
Ownership of t.v.’s in LDCs dropped between 1970 and 2000.

12. Government Control of Television
U.S.- t.v. stations are owned by private corporations, licensed from the gov’t. Channels make a profit by selling air time for advertisements. Some are local gov’t owned or non-profit.
Nearly all developed countries- broadcasting is provided entirely by a public corporation or public-private partnership. (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation- CBC, British Broadcasting Corporation- BBC)
Direct management of TV through a gov’t agency is common of LDCs- China and India.

13. Diffusion of TV
Fig. 4-14: Television has diffused widely since the 1950s, but some areas still have low numbers of TVs per population.

14. Reduced Government Control
Many governments viewed TV as an important tool for fostering cultural integration. TV could show the exploits of the leaders or their accomplishments of the political system.
Due to changing technology, has made TV a force for political change rather than stability. Satellite dishes allow people to choose from a wide variety of stations.
Some Asian governments have tried to prevent consumers from purchasing satellite dishes.
Satellite dishes represent only one assault on government control of the flow of information.