It's hard to believe that the end of the Millennium decade is here. Then again, I'm sure people were saying the same thing ten years earlier about the 90's. Looking back from 2000 to today, you realize that there was a lot of things that happened during those ten years and it's amazing how quick our lives have changed since 1999. There were a lot of things that happened in the past ten years and that's why I've decided to make a list of the 10 Greatest Cultural Impacts of the Last 10 Years. Since it's New Year's Eve, I find it appropriate to do a countdown for this occasion.
Choosing the 10 greatest cultural impacts of this decade is not an easy task and that's why we have to give honorable mentions.
First like any decade, we have seen amazing contributions from music and movies. In music, hip-hop has become an even bigger conglomerate than it was in the 90s. Other music genres that have grown the past decade is a new wave of metal music and screamo. The pop/punk and emo music had also become quite huge during the Millenium. Artists who have had a fair amount of success in the last decade include Green Day, Coldplay, Fallout Boy, Rhianna, Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga, Avenged Sevenfold,The White Stripes, Beyonce, Christina Aguilera, Eminem, Jay-Z, Kanye West, NAS, Kelly Clarkson, Taylor Swift, Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance, Jet, The Killers, etc. There was also a resurgence of classic rock artists such as The Beatles, Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones, and Led Zeppelin.
At the movies, we saw the technological advanced of sound and picture quality with the introduction to IMAX, motion capture and CGI animation that at one time was deemed impossible. A lot of documentaries found their way to the big screen, such as An Inconvenient Truth and Super Size Me. Art-house films and indie flicks are nothing new,but we certainly would remember "Pulp Fiction", "Mulhooland Drive" and "Being John Malkovich" when we lined up to see Requiem for a Dream, Donnie Darko and My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Of course there were the epic franchises and comic book/ novel adaptations that dominated this decade. The Lord of The Rings, Spiderman, Harry Potter, Pirates of The Carribean, 300, Watchmen, Sin City were among the highest grossing films of the decade. The Batman, Star Trek, and Star Wars reboots also did well. In fact, our of the top 20 highest grossing films worldwide for this decade, Finding Nemo (15) was the only which was not adapted from a work or a ride.
Another honorable mention is the new subculture that were formed over the past decade. The most famous is probably the emo movement. Others include the revival of the hipster movement, which is heavily associated with Williamsburg and vampire/zombie subcultures.
It's worth mentioning the fashion styles that grew and faded over the last decade. Many of these styles were popularized due to celebs or tv shows. Vintage T-shirt featuring classic rock bands, movie quotes or funny images, Uggz, Von Dutch hats, plastic jewelry, skinny jeans, Boho-girl style, vintage sunglasses, Wings and fauxhawks, crocs and polo shirts were among the hottest trends of the millenium.
Finally, we have primetime and premium television that gave television new life and preserved whatever reality tv hasn't destroyed. From great dramas like House, Prison Break, Lost, Grey's Anatomy, Alias, Cold Case, Damages, Mad Men and 24 to brilliant comedies such as The Office, 30 Rock, Community, Desperate Housewives, and Two and A Half Men. There was also HBO and Showtime who knew where to draw the line on reality and entertainment. HBO provided us with great shows like Entourage, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Six Feet Under, In Treatment, True Blood, The Wire and the fabulous miniseries Band of Brothers, Recount, and John Adams. Showtime has entertained us with The Tudors, Dexter, Weeds, Californication, The L Word, Queer as Folk, Diary of A Call Girl, United States of Tara, and Penn and Teller:Bullshit!
That in itself is a lot of stuff to happen over the last decade, but let's see what makes my top ten list.
Without further ado here is The 10 Greatest Cultural Impacts of The Last Ten Years.
10. Death of Michael Jackson - At first, I wasn't sure if this would make my list. However, that's like forgetting to mention the deaths of Elvis, Lennon and Princess Diana in their respective decades. The truth is that Michael Jackson has touched the lives of so many Americans. (And no not in the sick Freudian way that you're thinking.) Thriller is one of the highest selling records of all time and despite his frequent change in appearance, he has one of the most recognizable names in American history. The video for the Thriller has been selected to be preserved in the National Film Registry. You don't have to like Michael Jackson. I couldn't care less about his personal life. However, the large crowds of mourners that gathered to mourn his death proves that they didn't care either. So for becoming the Elvis of our generation and leaving behind good beats for people to dance, Michael Jackson's death ranks number 10.
9. Going Green/ Hybrid and Electric cars - Environmentalism is nothing new. Many people were preaching us to save the environment. The only difference is now they have actors, musicians, and Al Gore telling us what to do. Ironically, this all started because of a little documentary called "An Inconvenient Truth." The movie got Al Gore an Oscar and a Nobel Peace Prize. After the documentary was released, more people seemed to be concerned with preserving the environment. People were starting to buy these weird looking cars called Hybrids. Hybrids are exactly what they sound like. They run on gas and electric. I know there must have been some nerd out there who said, "Yes, we're one step closer to making a DeLorean Time Machine." In New York City, the Mayor liked this concept of "Going Green" and started up this campaign. He plans to plant 1 million trees by 2017. I always wondered where they keep getting these trees from. In addition, on the subways, buses and billboards, you see signs that tell you to recycle. I have nothing wrong with helping out the environment, the problem is when people use the environment as a way to make a profit. However, the majority doesn't see it that way, so I guess we'll make signs and by our Chevy Volts and Ford Fusion. So because Al Gore has gotten people hyped up about alternative fuel and being eco-friendly, the Green Movement is number 9 on my list.
8. Reality Television - Back in the 1990s if someone said that they were watching reality tv, you probably thought they were either watching cops or The Real World. In fact, MTV's The Real World was probably the first true reality show in America. Now when people say they're watching reality tv, you probably assume they're watching one that takes place on an island or the one with the English Nanny. Back in 2000, CBS premiered it's first season of Survivor and it got a huge amount of viewership. TV producers who were watching this must have thought, "Wow I can't believe so many people would tune in to watch other people make idiots out of themselves. That gives me an idea. I can exploits average American families and make a crapload of money." Thanks to this brainstorm, we now have wife swap, trading spaces, nanny diaries and other family oriented reality shows. In another room, people sat around a table and thought how can we get people to make complete asses of ourselves on live television. I got it, we'll have a talent show. Thanks to Simon Fuller, we have American Idol, America's Got Talent, two shows about dancing, and Hell's Kitchen. Reality telvision has also gone as far as ridiculing the lives of celebs mainly D list actors, who don't have much going on for them in the first place. MTV and VH1, which only reserve an hour for music, air nonstop reality shows that features mediocre bands. So for TV producers letting us realize that our lives could be much worse, reality tv is number 8 on my countdown.
7. Text Messaging/iPhone - Towards the end of the 90s, the internet and cell phones were becoming quite popular. While this was a time when it was unheard of for an eight year old to carry around a cell, pretty much every adult had a cell by 1999. If people told in 1999 that they have a all in one cell phone and computer, you might ask them, how do you fit that in your pocket. In 2009, people will say to you "Your phone doesn't have texting, did you buy it from Alexander Graham Bell?" Text messaging is huge today and everyone from kids to parents to even grandparents text each other. People text so much that they should sell cortisone shots with phones just in case you feel the early stages of carpal tunnel. The concept of having the internet on your phone is really cool and it makes things so accessible. Who needs calculators when you have your apple iPhone? So for being able to send messages when we don't have a computer nearby and for creating phones that pretty much have it all text messaging and 21st century cell phones are number 7 on my list.
6. 2008 Economic Crisis - I had a tough time choosing 5 and 6 on my list and it's a very close call. The past year has been a tough one for all of us as we had to deal with the biggest economic crisis since the Great Depression. People are exclaiming it's worse than the Depression, but I'm not ready to accept that claim. The fault of the economic crisis was the loose grip we had on business regulation and we let some banks take advantage of people. The results were ugly and unfortunately companies went under or bellied up, automakers suffered financial problems and there were plenty of people who lost their jobs. Now that it's been over a year, things are trying to make a turn around for the better, but it's still going to take some time. The 2008 economic crisis falls at number 6 on my countdown.
5. War in Iraq/Afghanistan - America is a country that always loves a good war. We had a war to be free from England, we got ourselves involved in two world wars that we planned to stay out of and when there was no one to fight, we fought against each other. So it's no surprise that after September 11th attacks, we knew war would be imminent. I don't think any of us predicted that we would be fighting two wars though. I don't think there's a logical explanation as to why we would stop a search for a criminal to pursue another person, who we assume has weapons of mass destruction. If we've learned anything from our government, it's that they don't know how to torture their victims. If you capture a person that has knowledge of possible whereabouts of weapons of mass destruction, why would you kill him before he ever fessed up. Also people won't be able to talk if their head is being held under water. It's not like i have sympathy for these terrorists, but if you want answers then you have to do it right. The question remains is that were these necessary wars and unfortunately this will be something that will have to be looked at repeatedly over time. I don't know if it's a repeat of Vietnam, but there are certainly similarities between them. So for all the brave soldiers, who have spent the past decade fighting and protecting us, number 5 belongs to you.
4. George Bush and the Bush Administration - Number 4 goes to people partially responsible for 5 and 6. We can't look back at the cultural impact of the millennium and forget about good old Dubya. From his decreasing popularity to his abusive Vice President to the fingerpointing of Hurricane Katrina, George Bush received a lot of scrutiny from the American people, fellow politicians, and the media. A lot of things were said about the former President and the members of his cabinet. Some of them were dead on while others were over-exaggerated. People have stated that he was the worst President, but when you put him up against Andrew Johnson, who like Cheney tried to have control over everything, and Richard Nixon, who basically tried to cover up an extortion plot, the real problem with Bush was that he wasn't fit for the job. George Bush needed to have a personality like Franklin Roosevelt especially when it came down to what we had to deal with during his term. We needed a person who was going to keep our heads up, while seeking out a probable solution and President Bush failed do that. It became difficult to take them seriously and that's why we have to look back and laugh at the stupid things the Bush Administration did. George Bush came into office with the intent of building legacy. I'm sure he's not thrilled with the way everything turned out, but his legacy is definitely one for the ages and that's why he lands at number 4 on my countdown.
3. The Black President - Back in the 1980s, when a raunchy, foul-mouthed Eddie Murphy was still touring the stand-up circuit, he laughed about the idea of having a black president. Sixteen years later, President Obama sits behind that desk in the Oval Office. Sure people will claim that it was narrowed down to that decision, but it still is an important milestone in American history. Whether Obama turns our country around or brings it down further into chaos, he fulfilled the dream that Martin Luther King shared to a crowd in Washington D.C. four decades and for becoming the first African American president, he's number 3 on my countdown.
2. September 11th 2001 - I find it very hard to believe that this year will be the 9th anniversary of September 11th. Now that all those smoke is gone and we're rebuilding what terrorists tried to destroy, the spirit that was present on that day still hasn't quite left. Here's an interesting fact. Before and after the Twin Towers collapsed, the weather was reported as clear and sunny. The only time clouds appeared were between the hours of 9-3. Just think that if 9/11 never took place it might have been literally
a perfect day. The September 11th terrorist attacks not only affected New Yorkers, it affected the whole country. It changed the way people thought about security and reminded us that not everyone is a fan of America. I had a chance to visit Ground Zero back in November and it's amazing to see how far they've come in repairing that part of the city back to normal. One of the pivotal moments of the contemporary world and an event, which will leave it's mark for starting off the 21st century, the September 11th terrorist attacks and impact lands at number 2 on the countdown.
1. Social networking/Expansion of New Media - Some people might ask how does social networking and new media leave a bigger impact on our culture than 9/11? Well for one, you're taking the time to read my blog and afterward there's a chance that you'll go on Facebook, Twitter, and/or MySpace. In the 90s, we were introduced to the internet and the cell phone. In the Millennium, we were reintroduced to the internet again. Only this time, it became a place where you could read your news without buying a newspaper, communicate with friends, including ones you haven't seen since elementary school, and meet people, who like the same weird stuff as you. Social networking itself was a brilliant idea and I don't believe the creators of MySpace knew the impact that it would have on American culture. People enjoyed having their own website where they could "express" themselves. "MySpace music and film" became a way for up and coming artists to be seen. When Facebook launched in 2006, it tried not to conform to the policies that MySpace implemented. Unfortunately, that didn't work out too well for them. Facebook did become one of the most popular websites in America and it's at the top of the social networking empire. Among other great sites that came out of the social networking and new media are Twitter, YouTube, Hulu, and Wikipedia. Although social networking and new media is great, it's become a threat to other media sources. Although many newspapers have been closing circulation due to the financial crisis, newspapers are losing business because people are going online for the same news that's found in the paper. The Times is supposed to close circulation within the next two years. As you can see, our lives have been changed so much due to social networking and new media. We often joke about people trying to live without technology, but sadly I don't think most of us would be able to function without it. So because we've become a technology dependent nation, social networking and new media is the biggest American cultural impact of the last 10 years.
This has been Ian K. Feldman speaking words of wisdom.
