The purpose of this project is to explore the nature of popularity by examining a transnational flow of pop culture–a situation that requires the negotiation of different values, assumptions and tastes. What makes a popular artifact from one culture “cross over” to other cultures? What makes the artifact popular in the first place? Why are people drawn to artifacts from certain countries? Why do people seek alternatives from other cultures? What ideological, social, cultural, political, economic, and/or historical factors affect the popularity of an artifact in different countries? What makes one artifact internationally appealing while other artifacts from the same country do not gain the same kind of popularity? How does the success of one artifact open the door for other artifacts from the same country?
Write a feature magazine article that analyzes a transnational cultural artifact: a song, music video, user-created video, movie, blog, book, fashion style, celebrity, etc. In preparation for this project, explore the criteria that help explain what makes a cultural artifact popular in one context and consider how the same criteria may or may not apply to another context. Then, identify a pop culture artifact. It may be something that has crossed over the national boundary or one that you think has the potential of becoming a transnational phenomenon. Alternatively, you can choose an artifact that has no hope of becoming accepted beyond its original cultural context. Once you have identified your artifact, explore the literature to find out what has been said about the artifact and its reception–both within its original cultural context and in other countries. The literature may include various media, including newspaper and magazine articles as well as blogs, parodies, comments on interactive websites. You may even find articles about the artifact in academic journals. Then, using the sources you have identified as well as your own analysis of the artifact, write an article that describes the artifact and explains why it has become the international success that it has, why it has the potential for such success, or why it has no hope of becoming one. You may also consider how the artifact has been and can be adapted to audiences in different locale. Based on your analysis, also consider its implications for transnational pop culture as a whole, for other pop culture artifacts from similar cultural contexts, or for the future of the artifact that you have examined.