| Personal Computers (PCs) | From 1981, IBM sold small desktop personal computers (PCs) for use in the office or at home Often were controlled by a ‘mouse’ They used word to process, manage their finances and play games | In the 1960s and 1970s, computer use was mostly confined to government agencies and big businesses | This started a computing revolution With user-friendly software, such as those provided by Microsoft, nearly ¼ of American households possessed a personal computer by the early 1990s It gave another form of entertainment, choices increased Personal computers revolutionised the way Americans produced, received, and exchanged information As companies such as Microsoft grew, more jobs were available to keep up with the demand – Microsoft’s employees rocketed from just three to almost 6,000 in this period. |
| Remote-controlled devices | Remote controls enabled viewers to ‘channel surf’ Facilitated channel hopping to avoid adverts or programmes seen as dull or boring Personalised entertainment | Manually change the channel Harder to avoid adverts | Allowed more choice (readily available) meaning exposure to different ideas, possibly outside of the status quo Avoidance of adverts meant less easily affected by consumerism TV entertainment taken more for granted and seen less as a luxury. |
| VCRs | Videocassette recorder Records, stores, and plays back television programs on a television Enables viewers to rent feature films from video stores | Invented in the 60s but only became popular in the 80s due to mass production, which made them cheap, and a supreme court ruling that recording TV shows for home use was not illegal. | By 1990 ¾ of all households owned a VCR. Increased opportunities for personalised entertainment, choices increased. People were able to watch TV shows outside of the time they were being shown, giving more flexibility to entertainment |
| Cassettes and CDs | Could provide portable music in a device. Could also use a boombox to play the music out loud. People could buy pre-recorded cassettes, or record music or speech easily onto a blank tape. | Record players Radios | Cassettes allow you to record whatever music you wanted on to it, and play it wherever you wanted using the Sony Walkman. Alternatively, cassettes are very versatile and can be used with a boombox, so can play out loud. CDs offered better sound and are easier to use and sturdier than record players. |
| Cable television | Reagan’s deregulation of television in the early 80’s encouraged a dramatic expansion in cable services and the number of available channels (the number rose from 5 or 6 to several hundred). It was also not subject to Federal Communications Commission guidelines, so more sex and violence was shown. | Five or six channels on television | By 1990, 90 % of American homes had cable services. Continued fragmentation of American society was catered to by cable television. Specialty channels targeted different groups: ESPN (1979) focussed on sport C-SPAN (1979) offered coverage of federal government activities. CNN (1980) brought 24 hour news coverage, including human interest stories such as an 18 month old stuck down a well in Texas and the Gulf War. Reverend Pat Robertson’s Family Channel reached 50 million homes, including the 700 Club. Home Shopping Network advertised consumer products Disney channel targeted Children 6-14 with cartoons and re-runs of the Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. MTV aired non-stop music from 1981 Pornography was more widely available. On screen sex and violence increased. A 1990 study said that there was a profanity once every six minutes on the over-the-air television, but every two minutes on cable television, showing its influence on the increasing changing American society. |
| MTV | Most significant cable channel of the 1980s First 24 hour music video cable channel and the most influential music outlet yet 85% of its predominantly white, suburban audience was aged 12-34 Fastest-growing cable channel ever, and the most effective way for a record to reach a national audience: it had 23 million viewers by 1982 1981-83 MTV presented 24-hour music, mostly rock Whilst it inspired the development of other music video channels, e.g. Black Entertainment Television (BET), MTV remained the giant | Radio | Influence on young people who were its audience Helped dictate what music was popular: Fastest-growing cable channel ever, and the most effective way for a record to obtain a national audience: it had 23 million viewers by 1982 Didn’t want to be too oppositional: Charged with racism and sexism: Racism: black artists were rarely shown, and one employee admitted this was to avoid alienating the small-town Midwest. However, when Michael Jackson became more popular, MTV showed his videos, e.g. Thriller (1982) Sexism: in early years in particular, MTV focussed on appealing to young white men, as a result women were objectified in videos such as Van Halen’s ‘Hot for Teacher’ (1984) Some women retaliated with feminist themes e.g. Cyndi Lauper’s Girl Just Wanna Have fun (1984) considered a feminist anthem, contributed to one of her ten MTV music video award nominations. Madonna made a lot of money objectifying herself in early videos e.g. Material Girl (1984) which excited young males and female wannabees - raising questions as to who was exploiting who Conservatives viewed MTV as a bad influence on American youth, but young Americans enjoyed the sense of empowerment that came with the oppositional stance |