Analyzing Mass Media and Popular Culture

Hi, everyone.

Um This is my presentation on analyzing mass media and popular culture.

So I chose Vogue magazine

for this presentation

because I think it's had arguably the most um influence on our society.

And I think it um made the most sense to be

able to talk about it and connect it to sociology.

So Vogue is arguably one of the most popular fashion

and lifestyle magazines in today's history.

Um The cover features famous actors, singers and models from all over the world.

The magazine focuses on social etiquette, beauty and composure.

Vogue is constantly setting trends with every luxury brand. They feature

every red carpet and every social event that occurs.

We can see the components of culture and how it's

influenced our society by giving a social meaning to clothing,

art and even sports

with magazines like Vogue, Cosmopolitan Allure and all the other uh fashion

magazines that exist.

It has created an even bigger need

to have a higher socio-economic status.

As social media,

television and magazines have become more prevalent

in our society where luxurious trips,

expensive items and one of a kind experiences have become the norm.

It is clear that you need vast amounts of

money to be able to afford the type of lifestyle

that

um are promoted in magazines you see on TV,

are all over social media.

Um So magazines often discuss celebrity gossip, fashion trends TV,

and film interests as well.

The thing about magazines

is they often promote higher end fashion trends,

luxury brands and things most people cannot afford.

It creates a narrative that we must strive to be

able to live like celebrities we see on the cover.

Vogue

is notoriously known

for

very specific

um in promoting culture, beauty, high end lifestyle couture, fashion and runway.

Many of these things listed are only accessible to the upper class society

which according to the real world is approximately only 1% of Americans.

Vogue has had a tremendous social impact on trends and

has set the standard for fashion all over the globe.

Um

OK.

Uh Vogue.

So this is like a brief history on Vogue

and who Anna Wintour is and how she's impacted.

So Vogue was originally founded in 1892 by a man named Arthur Baldwin Tenor.

It was not his own magazine at first,

but it was a column for New York City, social elite,

which was a newspaper that

was, you know, kind of one of those you drink with your morning coffee.

It featured local news, lifestyle music

and even places.

So in 1909, a man by the name of Con

uh Conde

mchose

Nast

uh I probably mispronounced that.

Um, but he was the founder of Conde Nast publications.

He purchased Vogue

and changed the focus to be a women's fashion magazine,

um, that was centered around beauty, composure and etiquette.

So he completely changed this from just a column on a Sunday newspaper

to be its own magazine, uh focused and directed towards women.

So on the left, I don't know if you can see my mouse or my

point or whatever.

Um

This is Baldwin.

On the left is Arthur Baldwin Tenor

and then on the right, right here, this is Conde

Montrose Nest.

So I also want to talk about Anna Wintour and her

um contribution to Vogue and how she's significantly changed it.

So, Anna Wintour, prior to

uh working for Vogue, she was a British editor who worked in England,

uh who worked on first newspapers.

Then she worked her way to the fashion world

and then she ended up getting a job at Vogue, worked her way up and then became

the chief of American Vogue and Specific American Vogue

um in 1988 which I think is around 36 years now.

Um

And she drastically changed the direction of Vogue

um

by adding its what are called spinoffs like Teen Vogue, which is focused for

um younger uh celebrities. Um you know, usually under the age of 20

she has contributed to the growth of the Met Gala,

which is a fundraising event held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art

in New York.

Uh

Wint

is responsible for helping grow many fashion brands like

Dior, Alexander mcqueen and Marc Jacobs. So through her time at Vogue,

um

she's really promoted the growth and made these brands more luxurious by

um you know,

having models wear them on the cover or writing articles

about them to be featured in the magazines and which

um has really grown their persona of these luxury brands and

made them more desirable.

So, uh with Vogue magazine,

I want to first touch on

um

the racial impact it had by making Beverly Johnson

the first black woman on the cover of Vogue.

So she made history as the first black woman on the cover of Vogue

after almost 80 years of Vogue existing of only being white women.

Um she originally did not expect to be on

the cover as this shoot was with multiple other women

and she figured she was just going to be inside the book as

um she normally was. Um

And at this time, this caused a lot of microaggressions towards her,

which according to reward is defined as everyday uses of subtle

and subtle,

verbal and nonverbal communications that convey denigrating or

dismissive messages to members of certain social groups.

And all this was directed towards Johnson.

She didn't listen to all the racism she faced and she continued

to appear on more covers in the future as you can see.

Um Right, here and right here.

So this top right image was her first faux cover which she appeared in,

in 1974 which is 50 years ago.

So I want to talk about Richard Gere,

um which he changed the norms for um

women's magazines

um as the first man on the cover of Vogue.

So in November of 1992 Richard Gere appeared

on the cover of Vogue alongside Cindy Crawford,

which at that time they were a couple and they were very famous.

So in the early nineties, they were the couple to be

um everyone is infatuated with them.

Um There was so much media coverage on them.

They were together for a long time and it, it, it was just so much attention on them

because Cindy Crawford is a very famous model and

he was a very famous actress at that time.

And so there's just so much attention on them.

So alongside with that cover being extremely popular,

it also made Richard Gere the first man to appear on the cover of Vogue.

So this photo shoot was also extremely popular due to how um it was captured.

So this uh photo shoot featured um Cindy Crawford and Richard Gere.

Um having a very like intimate shoot

um on the beach,

I had a horse and they had super intimate moments and it was very popular.

It took 28 years after this. So 2020

for a man to be on the cover of Vogue by himself.

But this is a huge step for breaking gender norms.

Um

This um made

the female dominated space.

Um

almost the opposite of the patriarchy

where a man came into a female dominated space

and slowly broke the gender binary.

Um

And today, now there

are plenty of men that have been on the cover of Vogue

and this was just um

one step in the many that were taken.

So as I mentioned, Harry Styles was the first man

to be on the cover of Vogue by himself.

But as he was the first man to be by himself, he also broke um the status quo

as

you can see on these images this entire shoot.

Um He wore a dress so that broke the status quo first of all. And

um

he

uh has always been known to be a symbol of not conforming to

males, beauty standard or gender binary.

Um He's always been very openly wearing feminine style clothing

and even makeup sometimes for his shows because he would always wear like

bedazzled suits or glittery suits or full of color that were typically not

um common for men to wear.

Um

This was an attempt of trying to break away from society, stereotypes against men.

Um Breaking gender binary.

He is a very unique example of

how intersectionality plays out in defined gender norms

um

and allowing a freedom of expression.

So this is a type of message that Vogue was trying to portray in their photo shoot

as Harry Styles was already a feminist icon.

Um He already broke um

a lot of norms as um Tyler, the creator as well.

I'm not sure if you're familiar with him,

but he's a rapper like RB and B singer.

Uh He also wears very colorful clothing, very feminist. He, he's worn skirts

and he doesn't get as much media attention as Harry Styles does,

but they both have changed

um

the men's fashion

trends.

So as I mentioned earlier,

Anna Wintour is very influential when it comes to the fashion world

and she has had such a significant impact and how um

fashion trends have played out.

So Zana Winter,

as I mentioned is the editor of Vogue has also been a chair of the Met Gala since 1995

and she's been on and off, either the chair or the co-chair,

um which is almost 30 years, next year will be 30 years. So 29 years,

um

every year she has picked the theme of the Met Gala

along with um

other people.

She has to prove everyone on the guest list

and has not even not allowed certain people to come.

So she, she goes through everyone, make sure she proves everyone.

Um she pre-approved everyone's outfit for the Met Gala

um to make sure they're on theme.

So she makes sure everyone is looking good.

Um And she's even banned foods from me

Gala

So this last year, she banned three foods onion, garlic and chives.

And she's this how these things have just proven how influential you have to be

in a big social event like this to be able to

uh change all these rules and all these different things.

Um

So all this is making it very exclusive and luxurious to

be able to attend one of these events or several.

Um There's also been so many celebrities,

um a list celebrities that you think have attended the Met Gala, but they haven't.

Um

so many, I believe Adele has never attended the Met Gala

and she's super popular with her music.

Um

I can't really think of anyone else but I there's plenty, I know there's plenty.

Um

So the Met Gala is also used as a social networking event for a list celebrities

as these are like the the most famous people um are there to,

you know, you know, connect with other people

and you know, when these celebrities influencers, you know, when they collab

it um

you know, creates like more media attention towards them

and it expands their wealth in a sense.

Um It is very clear that the Met Gala is

only an event accessible to those of the upper class,

which according to reward, again, it's only 1% of Americans, not even

1% of Americans are allowed to go to this Met Gala

um

with needing to fit all these requirements that are only

available to those who make a lot of money.

And it's so clear how she just hand picks

everyone that is able to attend to this luxurious event.

And this is also very good for Vogue.

Um Because now Vogue has so much to write on so much to cover

and it's a very smart marketing move on her part as well.

So final comments,

um after this entire presentation,

we have seen the cultural impact that Vogue Magazine

has had in our society as a whole.

Um It's constantly set various trends that have shaped the fashion industry.

Anna Wintour has held a tremendous,

a tremendous responsibility to the growth in

cultural diversity of Vogue magazine has.

Analyzing Mass Media and Popular Culture

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