An agent of socialization is one which affects the individual and society as a whole. There are many agents of civilization seen today but a few are very important because of their profound impact on society. One of the most outstanding ones is the mass media. Mass media is very wide but narrowing down to television, we can attest to the fact that television has been a major form of popular culture that attracts millions of people across the globe. There are several programs that are aired on all television networks and many people choose programs depending on their likes and dislikes. There has been a recent trend of television programming that seems to have taken Americans by storm making it one of the most liked agents of socialization. This is reality television. Reality television has become very popular among very many people regardless of their age and has become a major agent of socialization.
One of the most followed reality television series in America and outside is Keeping up with the Kardashians. This is an American reality television series that has been on air since 2007. It focuses on the personal and professional lives of the Kardashian family. In Season 9 Episode 4, there intends to be a surprise engagement of Kim Kardashian to Kanye West. Kanye West wants to hold an epic surprise engagement to Kim while Kim’s mother is dogged with a lot of drama concerning Kim’s lifestyle. At the same time, Kim seems to be stepping on the toes of everyone else. It is not just her mother who feels that she cannot put up with her anymore but her sisters Khloe and Kourtney are also annoyed about everything about her. They even come up with a nick name that best describes her character and antics.
There is quite a lot to talk about the Americanization of this reality show because of its huge worldwide appreciation. It can be termed as a package that depicts what the American popular culture is made from because ideally everything about the actions and the glamorous life of the Kardashians is just overboard. Any kind of interaction with such an engagement where the girl is pampered and treated like a queen does not just happen every other day. Kanye wants to send a private jet to take the family to San Francisco. In as much as these are celebrities, this kind of lavish spending is only identifiable with the crème de la crème of the world. All the people watching the reality television get socialized into the happenings of such families. It is no wonder that every other teenage girl around would want to identify with Kim Kardashian and would want to have her fairy tale lifestyle and marriage to one of the world most celebrated musicians.
Agents of socialization just have to speak to the mind, television communicates with the mind and it is through the mind that change happens. The mind comprises of the conscious and rational process that determines all actions of human beings (Wilson 98). It is against this background that the epic engagement if Kim to Kanye may or may not make an impact in the lives of people but one thing that stands out is the way the whole family is treating the whole issue. Socialization is not any different from this. It is all about influencing the way in which things are done either directly or indirectly. Such actions are only identifiable to popular culture. There are families that do not treat such an event as an “everybody” event because of a number of reasons. By just seeing the trends today, a lot of people who watched this segment around the world may have been influenced in one way or another.
This reality television show, more so the surprise engagement may have influenced the worldwide society in a number of ways. To begin with, such a lavish spending on an engagement ring, the venue and the way it was done shows how important it is to betroth a woman. This act makes all of us think of ways of making life exciting and interesting. I believe that all single men or anyone who is courting and wants to get married, whether men or women, would wish to have an engagement as that one. This lavish kind of spending on an event such as this is what makes such events as an engagement party memorable. Many people would wish to have memorable events of all manners be it birthdays, to weddings and anniversaries. The engagement made an impact to the decisions that people will take with regard to the reality show, more so its lovers.
Social interaction entails many people being engaged in one way or another to the actions of another. When this happens, it is inevitable to assume the fact that change in attitude, behavior and character may not come up. Socialization leads to the transformation and social interaction of groups of people regardless of their location (Landis 34). Reality television such as this show has viewership from across the globe. It is not surprising that many people look up to whatever intrigues that happen in the Kardashian family unit. It does not matter where the viewer is in the world but then American popular culture exhibited in this reality show of the Kardashians can be copied and emulated by people from other parts of the world. It is believed that other countries have a tendency of copying what happens in the US and by watching there is somebody somewhere that may pick a character or habit that is seen on reality television.
Agents of socialization more so television have had a huge impact in reflecting popular culture which has gone a long way into changing lives all over the world. The values of the American culture, which happen to be dominant in this show, have been emulated by very many people who admire the Kardashian family. Popular culture has had an impact in the personalities of many. This may be scientifically proven by the mere fact that genetics plays a role in the development of personality but then instincts can lead a person to act the way they do (Ripley 161). It is against this background that it is believed that popular culture, and an engagement such as the one between Kim and Kanye, carries with it some interesting factor that has been passed from one part of the world to the rest of the world. Beliefs and values are passed from one part of the world to another by mere attraction. Instincts then get a better part of a person who then becomes devoted to a given set of popular culture.
Works cited
Landis, R. Judson. Sociology: Concepts and Characteristics Socialization and Self. Hertfordshire: Wordsworth. 2001
Ripley. Genome Chromosomes. PDF File
Wilson, E. O. Concilience: The unity of Knowledge. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 1998
