The historical period of the 1960s in America is highly characterized by various cultural activities, which later led to increased interactions among the American people. It is the period that was highly characterized by the development of pop culture, and the era was mainly referred to as the period of the Cultural Revolution. Pop culture refers to the type of cultural virtues spread by mass media in music and other artistic works, such as writings and films. The Cultural Revolution took place for a decade, and it was effective in spreading several ideas such as those of the Civil Rights movements. Activists would use various media and journalism centers to spread their ideas to the public, thus addressing large numbers within a short period. They could instigate the public to form groups that would be able to fight for the interests of many minority groups, leading to more interaction among individuals. The cultural period in America majorly started in 1964, with an episodic assassination of John Frederick Kennedy. The period is popular among many journalists. It led to intense political and cultural interactions, leading to the adoption of various cultural aspects such as dressing, the type of music adopted, and sexuality. It was thus a period when people intensified interactions leading to the adoption of various new cultures.
The year 1964 was referred to as the year when the Cultural Revolution began in America. The year marked the end of the dark ages in American culture due to various cultural advancements which were being noticed. There was hope for the end of the discriminative era, as it is the same year when democracy was to be attained by forming the Civil Rights Movement Act. The Act was signed to become a law, and its main intentions were to end discrimination based on color, race, origin, and religion. The Civil Rights Movement was the second wave of leading to equality among all races in America, after the Reconstruction Movement’s formation to protect the blacks’ grievances, majorly in the southern part of America. Pop culture effectively celebrated the Cultural Revolution as there was the production of famous movies such as “Forrest Gump, ” which was aired through television shows (Zeitz 32). The intense media activities followed the assassination of John Frederick Kennedy, thus sparking various demonstrations in America and activists who were trying to reveal the dark side of the Americans.
Since 1964, several activities took place in America, leading to creating public awareness of what was happening in America, primarily through media platforms. There were magazines published to discuss the prevailing conditions and also the cultural exposure that was taking place in America. There was also the fall of many existing taboos due to the increased interactions of different cultures. One of the most results of such interactions was the development of rich music. The presence of Britons in the land helped in the development of folk music, and it was popular music throughout the era of 1950s. The then existing Beatles inspired the development of new fold music, thus exchanging cultural ideas with the Britons.
In conclusion, the sixties in America were highly characterized by cultural exchange through music and the development of media platforms such as magazines and television programs. I agree with the key points such as the assignation of Frederick John Kennedy, the development of a new type of music, and the aspect of cultural exchange among the Americans, as explained by Joshua Zeitz.
Reference
Zeitz, Joshua. “1964-The year the sixties began.” American Heritage, vol. 57, no. 5, 2006, pp. 32-46. Web.