4/24/2015
■ Essential Question:
–What was America like the in 1980s?
■ CPWH Agenda for Unit 15.3:
–Clicker Questions
–“American Society in the 1980s”
–Today’s HW: 33.3
–End of Course Test: May 13 and 14
–Unit 15 Test: Monday, May 20
American Society in the 1980s:
The “Me Generation”
■ Society in the 1980s
was defined by the
“Me Generation”:
–The symbol of the
1980s was the
"yuppie“ (young
urban professional),
a baby boomer with
a college education,
a well-paying job &
expensive tastes
A prevalent focus The wealthiest Americans
in the 1980s
benefited from Reaganomics
was making
while the poor were hurt
money & buying
by less social programs
consumer goods
& deteriorating cities
American Society in the 1980s:
Movies, Television, and Cable
■ Popular media in the 1980s reflected
materialism & an emphasis on pop culture:
–It was the age of the blockbuster movie
(“E.T.”) & teen films (“Breakfast Club”)
–Cable television was introduced which
added new programming networks, like
MTV, CNN, ESPN, & the Weather Channel
–Popular sitcoms showed non-traditional
TV characters (Cosby Show, Rosanne);
Shows emphasized materialism (Dallas);
news shows (60 Minutes) were popular
American Society in the 1980s:
Music
■ The 1980s saw innovative changes in music
–Music became more diverse, with new
wave, heavy metal, rap, techno pop,
alternative rock, & "new" country
–MTV created pop
music megastars
like Michael Jackson,
Prince, Madonna;
Young people who
copied the hairstyles
& fashions they saw
in music videos
American Society in the 1980s:
Music
■ The 1980s saw innovative changes in music
–Heavy metal
(Metallica,
Guns N’ Roses)
& rap (NWA,
Run DMC)
reflected the
angst among
young people
& minorities
American Society in the 1980s:
Technology
■ The 1980s began the “computer age”:
–IBM created
— Computing “bulletin
the first
boards” in the 1980s
evolved into the
personal
Internet & started the
computer
beginnings of the
which was
World Wide Web
used in offices,
but later
became
popular for
home use
American Society in the 1980s:
Technology
■ The 1980s began the “computer age”:
–Arcade games, video game systems
(Atari, Commodore 64, Nintendo), &
the first cellular phones became popular
American Society in the 1980s:
Pop Culture Events
■ The 1980s were also defined by important
Cold War and cultural events (use hyperlinks)
–In 1980, Japan
–The USA boycotted the
passed the USA as
1980 Olympics & USSR
the largest car
boycotted the 1984
manufacturing
Olympics
nations
–In 1981, John Hinckley
–In 1980, the USA
shot Reagan
beat the heavily–In 1986, space shuttle
favored USSR
Challenger exploded as
hockey team in the it launched into space
“miracle on ice”
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