Something interesting to me about popular culture is how fast it moves due to social media platforms and viral posts. There are also many more cultures for social media users to consume through their feeds than there ever have been before. In the reading by Barry Brummett, he talks about how cultures overlap and, unlike most of history, humans can connect from any distance, which has created multicultural artifacts and texts that have expanded pop culture greatly. Platforms like Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and many other social media applications that are used today are where people can find fast-paced pop culture.
Brummett states, “ Communication and transportation have become much easier and more common, especially over long distances. We are, therefore, exposed to a bewildering variety of messages and signs, often originating materially in other cultures. People of many different backgrounds live with or near each other” (Rhetoric in Popular Culture, pg. 62).
The pop culture messaging I am referring to is more so memes (jokes) clipped and shared on multiple accounts and platforms. For example, around November of 2024, a chill guy image emerged and set the trend where users posted the picture with different captions depicting explicit and uncensored statements followed by, “But I am just a chill guy,” or something similar. Another example could be Hailey Welch, who went viral for talking about sexual acts and is better known as the “hawk tuah” girl.
What interests me about pop culture regarding memes and jokes is how fast they also phase out of our culture. The chill guy meme had a good two-week run of being the most popular meme format; similarly, Hailey Welch had a more extended period of fame. This is probably because, unlike the chill guy trend, Welch is an actual person who can capitalize on the fame and start creating other forms of content, which she did. However, she has lost traction since the clip has died down.
That brings me to the question: Will there ever be a meme or joke that becomes viral, sticks around, and can maintain relevancy? Is the pace of social media what keeps people looking for new popular memes from different cultures? Or do users get tired of a trend, which leads to a new one forming?
Resources
Brummett, B. (2022). Rhetoric in popular culture. Sage Publications.
You make a great point about how quickly memes and jokes rise and fall in popularity. This rapid-fire pace of social media definitely seems to be tied to the current issue of a desperate, persistent need for dopamine, whether in the form of first attention, then relevancy in the case of Miss Welch or engagement from the audience that made her famous.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that it's not just people getting bored, but that fast pace of social media culture itself that makes it hard for anything to last long enough to become timeless. In that sense, the constant cycle of new memes is both a product and a driving force of how social media culture functions.
In today's world of fast-paced content and internet trends becoming mainstream, it doesn't surprise me that memes are constantly changing and changing. Our dopamine receptors are completely fried, and with online content going the way of daily television over the last decade (i.e., brand new all the time), memes are in constant turnover and flux.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who's been on the internet for a long time, I've seen so many memes come and go. Recently, a friend reminded me of an old meme from our high school days: the 'E meme,' which is essentially a guy's face photoshopped on top of Lord Farquadd from Shrek saying 'E' (truly innovative content, I know).
But going back even further, what surprises me most are the people who are now nostalgic about memes from the early days of the internet. Because of this, I don't think memes are designed to be, as you say, something that maintains relevancy. Rather, I think memes are a cycle, constantly pushing toward new ideas before cycling back to what's old and familiar to us, which in this case are cat videos and Chocolate Rain. Who knows, maybe someday we'll all feel nostalgic about this chill guy and he'll make a comeback of his own.
I like that you wrote about the longevity of memes and viral internet things, I considered choosing a similar topic for my post. I feel like you're bang-on with social media accelerates internet trends. Tiktok (soon to rest in peace [sad face]), I think, was HUGELY influential in affecting pop culture these last 5 years. If you are a person frequently online across various platforms, If there is something funny, it was probably on Tiktok, then posted about right away on reddit, and then made the Instagram rounds, then it surfaces on Facebook 6 weeks later. But really, the pace at which memes, trends, and virality happens is insane. You could be away from the internet for a day or two, and when you get back on, have no idea what the people are riffing on and commentating. I wonder if the tiktok shutdown will affect people who were super into online pop culture, since many users say they will not be going back to Instagram or Facebook or X (forever known as Twitter).
ReplyDeleteI think that there will always be culturally relevant memes and gifs as long as there is access to those things. I mean, it's like 85 years old and people still use the Wizard of Oz movie to comment on things: "there's no place like home," "We're not in Kansas anymore," and "Oh my!" after a list of three things... So, yes, I think there are some things that will have lasting/staying power in pop culture.