Kathleen Dixon

Is ordinary life really ordinary?

Dixon teaches courses in popular culture that are, well, pretty popular with students.  She specializes in rhetoric and cultural studies, teaching writing, literature, women studies, and feminist theory at UND.  Her courses in popular culture, she believes, help students “think through” what’s going on in their lives, and, she hopes, develop both a better understanding of both themselves and popular culture. 

Nearly everyone is a “consumer” of pop culture, Dixon says, and she believes that we need to be more conscious of what we’re consuming.  Putting that everyday experience under scrutiny can sometimes be difficult for students, but it’s worth it.  “I want students to realize that ordinary life isn’t ordinary.”

Dixon studies television talk shows in the United States, Belgium, and Bulgaria, which she says both reflect and create popular culture.  She looks at more than just content:  she studies how people speak and how they shape what is said.  And although each show is different, they all have one thing in common.  They all deal with “democratic discourse” and discuss civic matters that are important to the audience.  Take, for example, “The Oprah Winfrey Show.”  “Oprah is the most successful woman in the U.S.," Dixon says.  “She has the ability to ride global flows, and  understands both how media works and how ordinary people live.”  Dixon wants to understand just how Oprah does what she does.
 
It is, true, though, that the United States tends to export "media content" without much importation from elsewhere.  And when such importation does occur, as through the offerings on satellite dish television, the notion of "narrow-casting" prevails under the guise of individual choice.  Thus, even people in the U.S. may get programs from the Western Europe, the Middle East, and the far East, not to mention news from a variety of independent sources, probably very few watch these programs except those that are already interested.  This affects democratic discourse greatly, and in a negative fashion.  And this is part of the reason that education in popular culture is so important.

In Bulgaria, Dixon studies “Slavi’s Show,” a completely unique program which is half political satire and half interviews.  Though the creators of the show say they borrowed from "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," they have created something brand new.   Studying those shows can help you understand globalization, says Dixon.  “It isn’t just a top-down historical process.  Things are always changing.   When American media goes abroad, other countries often adapt its genres for their own uses."  "'Slavi's Show' is attempting to rebuild a sense of Bulgarian identity, often in an affirmative manner, Dixon says.   She also studies a Belgian talk show, “Jan Publiek,” which appears on public television.  Different as they are in both content and approach, all contribute to their culture.

"They’re more than just entertainment," Dixon says.  "They’re a reflection of history, globalization, and the culture itself."