There was one issue from class which touched a personal nerve for me, and I think is very much worth thinking about. It's the issue of music popularity as intertwined with social influence. In case you missed it, Salganik's finding was that in worlds without social influence, top choices varied across members, but there were still a few that fared well overall (ostensibly the better songs). In the worlds with social influence, the top songs were basically unpredictable. To me, the corollary is almost chilling: your friend's opinion is much more important than the merit of the music.
This is also why you should never, ever talk to me about music: I am not afraid to let you know that you have bad taste. I have a music degree, I am snobby about it, and my opinion is, in most cases, going to be more informed than yours. However, this gets me into trouble, because the purpose of music, throughout the history of mankind, has been largely social: no one sings along to Miley Cyrus because the music itself is so stimulating, it's just that Miley's been foisted on us with chilling effectiveness, and so by default it's what we all know and can collectively rally around. And no one likes the guy in the back of the room that points this out while everyone else is trying to do karaoke.
But here's a positive view: now that you're aware of this, you are empowered to choose only good music. Pop music is a modern-day Soma, unnoticed but caustic. It's an area where I believe marketing really is doing cultural damage, and the only way out is to pay attention to the music you purchase, the radio stations you choose, and the shows you attend.
Before I read this post, I actually had wanted to talk to you about music. Now I wont. If people have the ability to choose music (but most people do not know what it is), how do they choose? Isn't music a personal choice?
ReplyDeleteThat being said, to keep in line with the class, can social media stop a bad trend from happening? Just as a viral ad can tell a company what is wrong with their product, can social media educate people on music? For that matter, what about literature? Art?
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ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment Chris, but ironically you know this means that you're now talking to me about music whether you like it or not :)
ReplyDeleteOf course music is a personal choice, and that's everyone's immediate defense. But that's not the point I'm making. Take Miley Cyrus vs. Colbie Caillat: both attract enough demographic crossover to make the comparison valid, and both are artists I don't personally care for. However, Colbie Caillat's music is qualifiably better in just about every way (I can prove it, but please don't ask me to - that's where the degree comes in). I'm not a big Colbie Caillat fan, but I can respect that she's a good musician and her songs are thoughtful and she has a terrific voice. My issue is that Miley is so much more popular than Colbie, and I believe the influence of marketers through social media is part of the reason.
However, my opinion is that social media can indeed stop a bad trend from happening, and in fact I think social media is developing overall into a positive, democratizing force in music and the arts in general. But I'll let other people weigh in on that one. Or maybe I'll blog about it.