The Dichotomy of Mass Culture
Umberto Eco usually dismissed the term “mass culture” as too broad and vague to mean anything at all. In a series of essays published in the early 60’s and titled “Apocalittici e Integrati,” Eco recognized that the generic ambiguity of mass culture is in part responsible for the radical debate about its value and effects in society, leading to the development of two opposed mindsets: the apocalyptic and the integrated [my translation, not sure is accurate].
Probably the best way to understand each side of the debate is through their manifestation in the media. The apocalyptic approach resides in texts about mass culture, as opposed to the integrated, which emerges from the texts produced by mass culture. This dichotomy led to the series of essays on media, popular culture, and modern society that today deserve a second look in the context of a very different landscape that might have an amplifying effect on the apocalyptic and integrated.
The base of Eco’s view can’t be detached from the fact that in the 1960’s [and 70’s, 80’s, 90’s…] both sides of the equation were represented by members of an elite that controlled the means of production of mass culture, the attention of society, or both. The typical apocalyptic was embodied by professors, writers, journalists, and other intellectuals. The integrated was more involved in the process of actually creating mass culture in TV, radio, print, advertising, etc.
Both camps had in common one trait of the pre-digital era: access to filters. Prominent intellectuals could have their voice heard in certain media vehicles because their reputation ensured an audience. TV executives could essentially do whatever they wanted as long as it attracted viewers and advertisers.
What happens to apocalittici e integrati when the filters disappear?
As the line between consumers and producers blur and access to the media is not necessarily linked to influence, these two characters mutate into hyper-versions of themselves. The “culture” in mass culture seems to be reinventing itself by the “mass” which probably fuels the argument of the apocalyptic, perhaps transforming them into superapocaliptics at the same time that makes the point of view of its nemesis not only stronger but also faceless and hence harder to aim at.
Here is a link to Rocco Capozzi’s essay on Eco and Mass culture, which deals with interesting questions on a subject that seems to be more relevant today than almost five decades ago.
Unfortunately I couldn’t find the book in English, perhaps the full series of essays published in the book titled “Apocalittici e Integrati” is only available in Italian and Spanish, let us know if you find the English-language version, this is certainly a reading that is worth the effort.
