Popular Culture Will Never Be the Same [Continued]

Even for those who do not own or operate computers, TV and print ads, businesses, even friends and neighbors implore us to surf the web, use e-mail, buy products, track services, download music, read news, etc. on-line via the Internet. It's inescapable, really. However, in spite of all of the articles, books and news reports espousing the latest and greatest of the World Wide Web, it seems surprising that one aspect in particular, upon which the Internet is exerting a tremendous amount of influence, is being relatively ignored-Popular Culture.

Beyond using the web as a means to communicate one's interests or fascination with a particular topic or artifact, what is emerging is a new form of popular culture altogether, which I will refer to as "iStuff," that is specific to the medium of the Internet. Often referred to on-line as "Useless Web Pages", examples of iStuff with which you may be familiar are the Hampster Dance, Mahir Cagri's "I Kiss You" page, Mr. T Ate My Balls, Catscan.com, and the Dancing Baby, to name but a few.

Dependent on the Internet's unique ability to store and distribute information without regard for space or time, to present a multitude of ideas and media (text, sound, image, and animation) juxtaposed in a non-linear fashion, and to enable audiences to take on an interactive role, iStuff is a relatively new phenomenon that is rapidly making its way into mainstream culture.

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