The Culture Wars

Bill Clinton had an agenda going into his presidency where he wanted to send the nation into a new direction. He said, "I present to you our comprehensive plan to set our nation on that new course." His plan had four fundamental components to it. The point of the components was to help the economy out of a deficit. He ends his agenda by saying that if the nation was to work hard and work together, they can lift America's fortunes once again. In his first year, Clinton had success; however, he also had some setbacks. Since Clinton had a "mixed record," Republicans decided to take advantage along with Newt Gingrich, Speaker of the House, and create a "Contract with America." This was a legislative agenda for the House Republicans. Along with this contract came eight major reforms. The purpose of these reforms was aimed to restore the faith and trust of the American people in their government. The contract also brought ten bills. Pat Buchanan was a conservative journalist who ran for the Republican nomination in 1992. Buchanan states "There is a religious war going on in this country. It is a culture war, as critical to the kind of nation we shall be as the Cold War itself." He is talking about the difference in the cultural beliefs and values. The culture war polarized US politics in the 1990s because of some big problems such as the "race riots." One of the most well-known riots were the LA Riots. Korean businesses were pushing out black businesses and this caused an uproar between the two. Another one of the most well-known problems was the Rodney King incident. Video cameras was a big contribution in polarizing the culture war. Rodney king was beaten nearly to death by a group of cops and it was all recorded. After people saw this, they started distrusting the police more and more. Another contribution was the 24/7 news outlets that were reporting on any news happening around the culture wars. These were some of the things How did things such as video cameras and live news help reveal the culture wars going on at the time? Also, what do you think was the biggest contribution in showing what the culture war was like?

Comments

  1. Chase PraterApril 25, 2023 at 12:25 PM

    Both "Pat Buchanan on the Culture War" and "The Republican Contract with America (1994)" suggest that video cameras and live news played a significant role in revealing the culture wars of the time. Pat Buchanan emphasizes the power of the media to define the terms of the conflict, control the narrative, and shape public opinion. The Contract with America, on the other hand, acknowledges that the media has an important role in shaping public opinion and political discourse. Regarding the biggest contribution in showing what the culture war was like, neither provides a definitive answer. However, Buchanan's analysis of the media's power to control the narrative and define the terms of the conflict suggests that the media played a crucial role in shaping public perception and intensifying the culture wars. The Contract with America, meanwhile, proposes a set of policy proposals that reflect the values and concerns of the Republican Party at the time.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Isaiah LovinsApril 26, 2023 at 1:58 PM

    Video cameras and 24 hour live news both were critical in the reveal of the culture wars. Firstly, there was real time communication across the entire nation, making news and other events obtainable to see, even if you didn't live in that area. This allowed people to see the awful things that were happening around this time. For example the Rodney King incident was a widely known incident that was now available to see no matter where you were. This dismissed the idea to ignore the problems that society was facing at the time. The ability to record and playback video allowed for a new way of protection and action. If someone was a victim of police brutality and it was available to be seen by the public, this sparked the interest to change what was going on around you. Overall not one specific thing was the biggest contributor to the culture wars. Instead, there were a combination of multiple things that happened over a period of time that caused the American people to want to retaliate and change.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Josh F.April 26, 2023 at 9:17 PM

    Video Cameras and 24/7 news played a huge role in Clinton's presidential term. Clinton received direct benefits from the news coverage. During his term, certain conservatives were desperate to find any possible reason to impeach the then president. Eventually, it was revealed that Clinton was having an affair with a white house intern, Monica Lewinsky. Clinton's biggest problem was not the affair but the fact that he had lied about even knowing Monica Lewinsky. With sex being such a popular part of culture at the time the reports of Clinton's affair were not detrimental to him. Americans saw so much about the affair thanks to 24/7 news, Clinton's reputation was not even tarnished. Polls of the time showed supporters of Clinton were unfazed by the news of an affair. Culturally sex was very popular in pop culture and fairly widely accepted. Clinton received the benefit of the culture partly due to the constant coverage by 24/7 news stations.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Emily MyersApril 26, 2023 at 9:45 PM

    One the biggest contributions in showing what the Culture Wars was like in 1980s was the significant growth of live news, video cameras, movies, and television shows. “The militarism and patriotism of Reagan’s presidency pervaded movies like Top Gun and the Rambo series, starring Sylvester Stallone as a Vietnam War veteran haunted by his country’s failure to pursue victory in Southeast Asia. In contrast, director Oliver Stone offered searing condemnations of the war in Platoon and Born on the Fourth of July. Television shows like Dynasty and Dallas celebrated wealth and glamour, reflecting the pride in conspicuous consumption that emanated from the White House and corporate boardrooms during the decade. At the same time, films like Wall Street and novels like Bret Easton Ellis’s Less Than Zero skewered the excesses of the rich.” (The American Yawp). Through the use of these significant developments, Americans citizens grew a great understanding of the reality of the Culture Wars.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Luke RymerApril 26, 2023 at 9:49 PM

    Video cameras and 24/7 news programs were huge to the culture wars in America. One major event in the culture war of the 90s was the LA race riots. A major contributing factor to these riots is because of the video camera. Had George Holliday not recorded that video of the brutal beating of Rodney King, the LA race riots might have never happened. Also, with 24 hour news, news channels are able to talk about a lot of news and bring things to light that could further the culture war. Popular media and news show a great deal of what the culture war actually was like.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Alexis OliverApril 28, 2023 at 5:50 AM

    The growth of video cameras, live news broadcastings, movies and TV were huge during Clintons term and the culture wars in America. During Clintons presidency certain people were determined to dig up information to get him impeached, once rumors started flying around about him having a affair the people against him wanted to use that to get him impeached but sex was so popular at the time that people were not very upset or shocked by this news.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Reagan's Diplomacy

Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, is often regarded as a significant change in the realm of diplomacy. He is known for his confrontational and uncompromising stance towards the Soviet Union, which many believe led to the eventual collapse of the Soviet Empire. His strategic approach, popularly known as the "Reagan Doctrine," was based on the idea of outspending and outmaneuvering the Soviet Union to force them into submission. Reagan's diplomacy was marked by several key initiatives, such as the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), also known as "Star Wars," which aimed to develop a missile defense system to protect the United States from nuclear attack. He also provide d significant financial and military support to anti-communist forces in countries such as Afghanistan, Nicaragua, and Angola, to roll back Soviet influence. Critics of Reagan's diplomacy argue that his policies were reckless and dangerous, and that they could have eas...
Read more

Second Wave of Feminism

     The second wave of feminism was mainly about women's reproductive rights. This movement was started in the 1960's and after the John F. Kennedy's commission. The movement focused on several issues such as gender inequality, reproductive rights, sexism and workplace discrimination. At the time, women were to become housewives and act all the parts to being a more feminine. Betty Friedan wrote a book called The Feminine Mystique which gave others a more perspective view of how women felt about how they are supposed to act and like. Women were often told that they must clean the house, always make their husbands happy, care for the children herself, and if they had a job, they didn't receive the same respect as men did nor the right pay. Women felt unhappy because of how empty they felt doing the things that they did not enjoy. This led to what the doctor called "the housewifes's syndrome" where mainly housewives felt a sort of emptiness inside and not s...
Read more

1968

  Most people living during this time period expected conformity and feared anything that went against their perception of normality. During the late 1960s, many groups challenged these perceptions. Many like the Hippies, women, and anti-war protesters were the ones under the most scrutiny. With the Hippies, they threw out many norms and expectations that most middle-class Americans held so close. In a time where most individuals were on the straight and narrow, Hippies were notorious for their drug intake and their go with the flow attitudes. Most individuals during this time were working trying to make ends meet. They had to work so hard to pay off their homes, get their kids through school, and be able to retire. Hippies on the other hand were not working to the degree that their parents were. During this time, women were making a larger uproar than before. Women in the 60s were expected to be perfect little housewives. They were expected to cook, clean, take care of the kids,...
Read more