JOURNAL OF POPULAR CULTURE
Scope & Guideline
Advancing the Dialogue on Popular Narratives
Introduction
Aims and Scopes
- Interdisciplinary Analysis of Popular Culture:
The journal emphasizes the integration of various disciplines to analyze popular culture phenomena, encouraging contributions that draw from sociology, media studies, literature, and cultural theory. - Focus on Representation and Identity:
A strong emphasis is placed on issues of representation across race, gender, and sexuality, examining how popular culture reflects and shapes societal identities and power dynamics. - Cultural Critique and Historical Contextualization:
The journal frequently engages in critical examinations of historical contexts surrounding popular culture, analyzing how past events influence contemporary cultural expressions. - Exploration of New Media and Digital Cultures:
The journal includes discussions around the impact of digital media and technologies on culture, including social media, video games, and streaming services. - Engagement with Global Perspectives:
There is a consistent focus on global popular culture, exploring how cultural practices and media from different regions interact and contribute to a larger global discourse.
Trending and Emerging
- Digital Culture and Social Media Impact:
There is a notable increase in research exploring the influence of social media and digital platforms on cultural production and identity formation, reflecting the contemporary media landscape. - Intersectional Analyses of Identity:
Emerging themes increasingly emphasize intersectionality, examining how overlapping identities (race, gender, sexuality) shape experiences and representations in popular culture. - Activism and Social Justice in Media:
Papers focusing on the role of popular culture in social justice movements and activism are gaining traction, highlighting how media can influence societal change. - Transmedia Narratives and Content Creation:
The rise of transmedia storytelling is a significant trend, with scholarly work exploring how narratives extend across various media platforms and engage audiences in innovative ways. - Globalization and Cultural Exchange:
A growing interest in the globalization of popular culture is evident, with research exploring the exchange of cultural practices and the impact of globalization on local identities.
Declining or Waning
- Traditional Media Analysis:
There appears to be a decrease in papers focusing solely on traditional media formats, such as print media, as the journal shifts towards exploring digital and new media landscapes. - Nostalgia Studies:
Though nostalgia remains a relevant theme, papers explicitly centered on nostalgia-driven cultural analysis have become less frequent, possibly due to the evolving nature of cultural consumption. - Simplistic Genre Studies:
Research that simplifies genres without deeper contextual analysis is declining, as the journal increasingly favors complex, interdisciplinary approaches that challenge traditional genre boundaries. - Historical Representation without Contemporary Relevance:
Papers that focus solely on historical representations in popular culture, without connecting them to contemporary issues, are becoming less common. - Focus on Domestic US Culture:
The journal is gradually moving away from a narrow focus on domestic popular culture in the U.S., incorporating more global perspectives and intercultural analyses.
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