Popular Culture Today: File Sharing

Paper Summary:

The paper examines how far John Fiske's theories of popular culture as resistance still apply in the 21st century, using the contemporary example of peer-to-peer file sharing. The focus is on examining file sharing as a cultural activity which is interesting in an anthropological sense, rather than the ethics or legality of file sharing. It explains how, by resisting the power of advertisers, shops and even the music industry as a whole, individuals are reclaiming culture.

From the Paper:

"Arguably, the meanings attached to advertising are what is challenged the most by file sharing. If we think of advertising as a 'commodity', we can begin to examine how, like other commodities it can be used in different ways. In dominant culture, the only position a person viewing an advertisement can occupy is that of the consumer, and the only power granted to the consumer is the decision to buy or not buy; in other words, 'containing social diversity within the needs of capitalism.' In popular culture, advertisements can mean more; for example, people can attach their own individual meanings to a memorable slogan. Moreover, users of file sharing use advertisements to help them decide what songs and albums to search for and download. 'To attract customers is to attract tricksters' . "

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