The iPod - A Cultural Icon

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#1

I have

to do a talk on a cultural icon and decided to do mine on the iPod.

I’ve got some ideas in my head on why

it is a cultural icon but would love your help too.

So, what I want to know is why you think is or isn’t

a cultural icon and what culture the ipod represents.

The second part is a tough one because it’s not a

country, nor an age group, nor a group of people because really anyone can have and use an iPod and anyone does

have an iPod and they do use them with ease.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. :slight_smile:

#2

It’s an interesting idea. I think the word ‘iPod’

has become synonymous with ‘MP3 player’. My mother, for example, knows what an iPod is but doesn’t understand

what an MP3 is; because iPods are advertised and mentioned in movies and TV shows, she understands the concept of

that particular brand rather than the actual product itself.
Good luck with your talk, it sounds fun!

#3

bawpcwpn- Hmm, that’s an interesting idea! It definitely is a

cultural icon in many ways- I guess the key thing that first comes into my mind is freedom. Because the iPod’s

so portable, we’ve all now got the freedom to listen to whatever music we want to listen to, wherever we go.

Such a service wasn’t really available before the iPod. Good luck with your talk! :smiley:

#4

Well,

the word “iPod” is a household name, for sure. It is known by the majority of the population and I’m

guessing that MANY people own one of their own. So yes, I think it is a cultural icon.

I have an iPod

video, myself, and it’s just as essential as my wallet or my glasses. I use it everyday for a variety fo things,

not just music. I think it;s a great tool, overall…Now if I could just get my hands on an iPhone. :stuck_out_tongue:

#5

It’s not just iPod… iANYTHING (iTunes, iPhone, etc.) are a long trendline… and updates

continue to improve and impress the customers (iPod mini, iShuffle, iPod Nano, etc…).

The interesting

part it that it is FAST technology… always evolving. I received an iPod mini from my sister for Christmas maybe

three/four years ago… when it was new… and I still use it, even though when I’m on the subway I see every

other music lover holding an iPod nano. The company will continue to meet the customer’s demands, no matter how

fast it needs to dish out its products… making them better, nicer appearance-wise, and easier to use.

#6

[size=92]I can’t go to school or draw WITHOUT my iPod. -huggles it- I’m listening to To The Moon

And Back on it right now.[/size]

#7

I’m gonna keep this kinda short because the last time I

made a comment on this type of thread I ended up writing the kid’s entire report for him!

I think one

aspect is the melting pot of culture that it allows us. No longer are we limited to a single CD that is bound by

one common group, genre, style, them, etc but instead we expand across the gap and take in a little bit of

everything and carry it with us - breaking the stereotype so to speak.

You could also call it a symbol of

expanded acceptance as we collect songs we might not have otherwise even accepted as legitimate music in the

past. And it’s not even that it was bad before but just that we hadn’t been exposed to it at all and now we

have as much access to indy songs as we do the mainstream top 40.

And last, it also represents a

globalization. Much like in the statement above it’s not just music we have equal access to now - there is also

information in the form of 1000s of FREE podcasts that have all sorts of information both mainstream and skewed

and it’s all available. If there’s one thing I know about the iPod and what it has made possible for me that

couldn’t be done before is the fact that my voice has now been heard on 6 continents and in over 40 countries.

I’m proud of that and awe inspired by it.

And yes that was short for me. =P