Pop culture in today’s world has become the leading example of what people regularly form their opinions on. The culture that has been created from the arts has now become a system based solely on supply and demand; where we the people are no longer just the viewing audience but the test group for future “product” development and promotion. 

Take the show American Idol for instance, operated and owned by one of the largest conglomerate companies in the world: 21st Century Fox Entertainment Group. Just as an example, consider the product being sold to us as the musicians themselves. 

American Idol and shows like X Factor and the Voice have similar strategies, by attempting to find the next the “next big thing” in a camouflaged performance format. But to me, it seems more like they’re encouraging people to audition in order to become the next big manufactured product. 

But that’s just it; researching and finding the specifics of what the people really want can ultimately determine the approach a business will take in order to sell to its particular audience. People are demanding and giving feedback without even realizing that they’re viewing habits are dictating the things that we see, like a vicious cycle. The results often reflecting what we want to see in and throughout current pop-culture. 

Granted, I really do like watching these shows on occasion, especially when it gets down to just a handful of talented musicians. But in reality, I’m also inadvertently playing a part in a basic business model set up by the network producers. 

Today’s society is all about brands. Branding an image is no different than selling a marketable product in order to increase high revenue. Conglomerates claim that in the end it’s about pleasing the general consumers taste, but I call foul. Those brand associations accompanied by the some 3,000 advertisements we see day-to-day can cause some major consumer overload of pointless, sometimes useless information.  As I create associations to the “transaction” I make daily, it almost feels like I am becoming trapped inside a bubble that just won’t pop.

After realizing that I was being manipulated by the big businesses around me, I have developed a sad outlook on pop-culture.  I guess it shouldn’t be so hard to believe that the number one goal of any business is to thrive

Knowing that pop culture has evolved by the influence of current and past business professionals is arguably one of the largest debates I see coming in future years. 

We do have the individual power to make and correct consumer related decisions, yet we choose not to because, well, we are the selfish generation. From a consumer prospective, everything shouldn’t always have to be about making the sale, especially when we choose to let the idea of branding affect us. 

For me, fighting against the consumer norms has helped me establish a higher respect for the real talent around me. However, not being aware of certain aspects related to media and pop culture in the past has created an end result of my well-established ignorance.

 Realizing that you can choose to opt out of certain information is a huge human right. So, in fact, ignorance in this case can be bliss. 

I just consider the consistent flow of information and content I see, and separate it by its mere importance. And that’s one of the many ways I protest; I am not a test subject.

Flaws and inconsistencies can be found in the shaping of pop culture surrounding us this year. 

And for that matter, most of us chose to take part in this consumer based business model because it something we’re so used to.