The Pro-Pop Ideology, from Ashlee to Addison
The defenses of pop singer Ashlee Simpson after her 2004 lip-syncing scandal set in motion the 21st century’s core
GenAI is Our Polyester
The best way to understand generative AI art and aesthetics is to consider how previous "synthetics" lost value
The Missing Piece in Conversations about “Cultural Decline”
Critics in the 21st century embraced mass culture in a belief that it would liberate audiences — but it's
The 21st Century and Empty Popularity
Reality TV, data-based editorial decisions, social media, and the principled rejection of exclusionary taste have spawned “popular” things that may
Earnestness versus Cynicism: Fashion, then Politics
Today the earnest progressive lyrics of 10,000 Maniacs feel extremely dated, which may help us understand why "resistance&
The Age of the Double Sell-Out
In the last three decades, youth culture has moved from a deep suspicion of commerce to a passionate defense of
On Writing a History of the 21st Century
My new book, Blank Space, is a cultural history of the last 25 years, scheduled for publication in November 2025.
On Sale: Shōwa Guide Tokyo
A tour through Japan’s mid-century restaurants, kissaten, bars, and hotels that managed to survive earthquakes, firebombs, and urban redevelopment
Why It's Hard to Argue about “Cultural Stasis”
Without agreeing on what "culture" is, it's really difficult to understand whether we're at
Forget Gladwell
Society should withhold all esteem and attention to a nonfiction author whose entire oeuvre spitballs explanatory social theory under the
