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Media's Influence On Punk Rock Culture

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Media's Influence On Punk Rock Culture
The media portrays the punk rock culture to be a group of young, rebellious individuals who express themselves through a unique type of music, attire, and escapades; however, the media does not understand why punk rockers express themselves this way. This essay will include the history of punk rock, the opposing views of this culture by the media, and why it is viewed in these ways. Punk rock groups like the Sex Pistols, Black Flag, and Green Day helped shape punk rock into what it is today. Different discourses exist between the media’s view of the culture and the culture through the eyes of punk rockers themselves. The media’s impression of punk rock culture lacks a more complete understanding of the purpose of punk rock artists and their …show more content…
According to the article “Industrial Subculture- The Mutated Child of Punk”, the media believes punk music is nothing more than “screeching vocals, distorted instruments, and the explicit use of foul language”. They do not understand why punk rock artists create the type of music they depict as “crashing, destruction, and chaos”. Punks do not want to belong to a world that is ruled by hypocrisy and insincerity, and they escape from reality through their music. The band Green Day’s song “Minority” is composed of lyrics that express this mentality. The lead singer and guitarist, Billy Joe Armstrong’s words “'Cause I wanna be the minority/ I don't need your authority/ Down with the moral majority/ 'Cause I want to be the minority”, are sincere and portray how punks do not wish to fit in to a society where they are told what to do and are not able to be individuals. Also, other lyrics in the song that demonstrate the “punk mentality” to be nonconformists include phrases such as “there of which I stand alone” and “like a sheep runs from the herd”. The article also states that the only emotion of this culture is “anger against the world”. On the other hand, punk rockers put their anger and controversial views into music instead of letting it out in a different, more violent way. The song “I’ve Had It” by Black Flag, exemplifies the band’s anger towards their life with the lyrics “I can't go to work/ The boss is a jerk/ I ain't

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