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                                                        January 21, 2001
It's a common complaint
that the world moves too
fast nowadays.

And it has become a common
complaint that this is
making it impossible to           As V. Vale puts it:
have a real
                                  "Oh, the next trend... Everything has
   subculture                     gotten so splintered and fragmented.
   mass movement                  With corporate control it doesn't seem
   underground                    like it's possible to have a trend.
   scene                          Because undergrounds are like
                                  mushrooms.  They have to develop and
No sooner does an idea            grow in darkness. And now the slightest
emerge than forces                little thing that happens, CBS is there
crank up their engines            right away, and the ad guys have their
to "co-opt" it.                   little moles in there doing their cool
                                  hunting so they can immediately design
                                  the latest clothes that will fit the
   The word is that:              look and start developing hair products
                                  or whatever.  So it doesn't really seem
      clothing designers,         possible to me, that there's ever going
      major labels,               to be a mass movement ever again
      movie makers                comparable in diversity and breadth [to
                                  punk].  I just can't see that happening
   will all rip your              again.  And it's sad."
   styles and start
   pushing toned down                      V. Vale interviewed
   mass market versions                    in "Comet", Spring 2000,
   before you barely                       Vol 1, Number 1
   get started.
                                                      Maybe Vale's
                                                      RE/Search is
                                                      now a part
Is this a problem?                                    of the
Maybe this means that                                 co-optation
"we" are winning?                                     machine?

After the revolution,                                    MEDIA_FAST
there's no more need
for the underground.

But none of "us" seriously
doubts that there's
something wrong with
the mass-market versions.               It's worth thinking about exactly
                                        *what* is wrong with it.
   Still, maybe it means
   that they're on the run?             It may be something
   Maybe the true revolution            subtle and ineffable,
   is close to being won.               like a loss of "edge".

                                           Or it *might* be something
   There's a Bruce Sterling line           more childish: a need to
   that goes something like:               feel superior to the crowd.

   "I never intended to start              The annoyance that someone
   a subculture.  My intention             else is wearing your special
   is to take over the main                perfume.
   culture.  My intention is
   to win."


                          Aside: isn't it
                          interesting that          Or for that matter:
                          Vale never did a          "Raves"-- an echo of
                          "Cyberpunk" book?         the old punk/disco wars?

What would you            SUBCULTS
do to design a                                      DISCO_SUCKS
subculture so
that it can not
be co-opted?
                           PURLOINED

  Note that the beloved superhero
  of Critical Mass, "Dildo Man"
  exists in a total media-blackout.
  They can't put you on TV if you
  go around wearing a bike helmet
  with a big white dildo glued to
  the forehead.

    Similarly, could a fad for
    "Fuck-off MTV" T-shirts         (But the competing
    keep your music scene off        channels might
    of MTV?                          snap you up...)


  It occurs to me that there is
  also a media blackout on
  certain political issues.
  Use that to effect?

     E.g.  always perform in front
     of a satiric banner insulting
     to major advertisers.


  And there's Sterling's observation
  about Burning Man: nudity is a
  youth costume which cannot be
  co-opted...


  And the bay area improv scene
  has some built in media                (More than many of
  repulsion effects built in:            the practitioners
                                         would like.)
  Slightly pudgy, graying hair,
  glasses and sometimes with
  bald spots: these guys just
  aren't "telegenic", so they
  get left alone.
                                          Hakim Bey (circa 1992) suggested
                                          something which should've been
                                          obvious: secret societies that
One of my best ideas:                     practice their art "immediately"
                                          only for each other.
    A special sigil, trademarked,
    whose use is licensed only                    He envisions some sort of
    under peculiar terms: it can't                hybrid of tong society
    appear in any mass media,                     and community center.
    any websites, magazines, books,
    or newspapers.  It's use is                      (He puts a lot of energy
    granted toward all clothing                      into denying that this is
    and jewelry manufacture                          "elitist", but that's an
    (and possibly, signage, murals,                  anarchist for you.)
    etc).

    The basic idea is that if you
    choose to wear the sigil, it's
    illegal for your image to appear            DRAG
    on television.

                              (It would require a special
                              clause about not being
                              allowed to erase or remove
                              the sigil in order to avoid
                              this restriction.  That
                              might or might not be
                              upheld in court, but I bet
                              it'd sound good enough to
                              make them think twice.)


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