Secondary Sources

The primary source I chose to analyze is the "Piece of Me" music video by Britney Spears. I am using this video to show our perception of pop culture and how the media affects this.

My secondary sources include: an interview from Britney Spears about her lifestyle and how being a pop culture icon has changed her life, article from USA Today about how the media affects pop culture, a book with a section on the role of pop culture in America, and an article talking about what the public thinks of pop culture icons lifestyles.

I will use these sources to help my analysis of Britney's music and to show the affect that the media and pop culture has on our society. In her video Britney shows what she thinks about her life and the role of the media in it. The interview from Britney will help to show a different perspective on pop culture. Also the articles will back my analysis of just how big a role pop culture plays in our society today. Pop culture icons have a bigger affect on our society than many people realize, and the way the media portrays them is important to consider as well. My secondary sources will help me to do all this and go deeper into the meanings behind the video.

Primary Source Summary

     One of the primary sources I am considered is the music video for Britney Spears's song, Piece of Me. 

This video can be viewed on youtube by clicking on this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=u4FF6MpcsRw&ob=av2e. The song is about her life in the spotlight. It talks about the struggles she 

faces with the media and the pressures that come with her fame. Her lyrics reflect a very shallow side of pop culture. They talk about the media judging all of her actions and being there to report everything she does.  This song shows her take on what it is like to be a part of pop culture. I think that her video successfully portrays one way of thinking of pop culture. Images of paparazzi are shown throughout the whole video to emphasize the role the media plays in our culture. She shows the things that they are reporting and what they consider to be news. This becomes the stuff that we then read in magazines. Her video also shows a glorified vision of what being famous is like. The video shows her having a good time and partying with very attractive and glamorous people.

     When many people think of pop culture images, similar to the ones in the video, may pop into their heads. A big part of our society's image of pop culture comes from celebrities. The things that celebrities are known to do and like tend to be very popular in our culture. Many advertisements use celebrities to promote their products. This is because they know that it will catch the viewers attention. This shows how pop culture can affect many aspects of our lives, not just the obvious ones. Britney Spears has been extremely well known and popular for many years. This is why I thought it would be appropriate to analyze one of her videos while talking about pop culture in our society.