Friday, April 15, 2005
How unhip am I?
On the theme of lingo, it's not just academics who indulge in jargon, argot, lingo, slang, or what have you. We all do it in our ongoing quest -- a losing battle for most of us -- to remain plugged in to pop culture.
Think of a series of co-centric circles. At the very center are the actual creators of cultural reference points -- artists, hep cats, and whoever it is that originates slang, people who haven't been using the term "hep cat" in several generations. Then the next circle are the edgier people who breathe life into the slang by using it and while having whatever socio-cultural umph to give the slang a suitable degree of cachet. Most recently, perhaps, hard core hip hop culture (or is that already outdated?).
The next circle, moving outward, are the wannabes; then the culturally-attuned, have-some-edgy-friends-or-acquaintances. By now we've reached the cooler white people and the more obscure standup comedians.
The next circle includes borderline mainstream media -- the editors of magazines whose marketing demographic includes people who wanna read about edgy people, standup comics appearing on late night talk shows for the first time, and Jon Stewart. The next circle includes slightly offbeat mainstream media, middle aged comedians clinging to hipness (Bill Maher), and anyone else who would impress a well informed reader of the New York Times as pretty hip or plugged in.
The next circle is that part of the public that can repeat Bill Maher's joke and still get a laugh from the reasonably well informed New York Times readers, most of whom have still not yet heard the joke. The next circle includes anyone who knows what a blog is.
We've reached me, way out in the eighth circle.
By this time, however, the original edgy, dangerous slang-creator -- that stone in the water that has sent out eight ripples -- has moved on to something else -- in fact, he moved on about 2 to 5 years ago.
Bill Maher will keep working the joke for another few months; then Jay Lenno for a year or two. Then, if it's not too crude, the sitcoms. Then, Tom Delay.
***
Think of a series of co-centric circles. At the very center are the actual creators of cultural reference points -- artists, hep cats, and whoever it is that originates slang, people who haven't been using the term "hep cat" in several generations. Then the next circle are the edgier people who breathe life into the slang by using it and while having whatever socio-cultural umph to give the slang a suitable degree of cachet. Most recently, perhaps, hard core hip hop culture (or is that already outdated?).
The next circle, moving outward, are the wannabes; then the culturally-attuned, have-some-edgy-friends-or-acquaintances. By now we've reached the cooler white people and the more obscure standup comedians.
The next circle includes borderline mainstream media -- the editors of magazines whose marketing demographic includes people who wanna read about edgy people, standup comics appearing on late night talk shows for the first time, and Jon Stewart. The next circle includes slightly offbeat mainstream media, middle aged comedians clinging to hipness (Bill Maher), and anyone else who would impress a well informed reader of the New York Times as pretty hip or plugged in.
The next circle is that part of the public that can repeat Bill Maher's joke and still get a laugh from the reasonably well informed New York Times readers, most of whom have still not yet heard the joke. The next circle includes anyone who knows what a blog is.
We've reached me, way out in the eighth circle.
By this time, however, the original edgy, dangerous slang-creator -- that stone in the water that has sent out eight ripples -- has moved on to something else -- in fact, he moved on about 2 to 5 years ago.
Bill Maher will keep working the joke for another few months; then Jay Lenno for a year or two. Then, if it's not too crude, the sitcoms. Then, Tom Delay.
***
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