PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Research explores evolution of hip-hop from party music to political platform

2013-08-11
(Press-News.org) NEW YORK CITY — A new University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash College study explores the evolution of hip-hop from party music into a political platform.

Todd Callais, an assistant professor of sociology, criminology, and criminal justice at UC-Blue Ash, focused on the hip-hop industry because of its impact on society and because there is a clear timeline of its development.

"You can identify a beginning to the hip-hop culture that was fairly recent," said Callais, who will present his research at the 108th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association. "It started in the mid-1970s and the performers were primarily interested in entertaining and expressing themselves. By the early to mid-1990s performers began more consistently looking at hip-hop as a political opportunity with social movement implications."

He points to "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash as the first song by a major artist to address social issues and achieve widespread popularity. It highlights the social and economic barriers that force many African-Americans to live in poverty in the inner city and the frustration that results from these inequalities, Callais said.

Callais uses 1995 as the turning point for this shift when hip-hop truly evolved into a platform for social movement. For his research, he interviewed 25 people involved with hip-hop before 1995 and 25 who joined the industry after. These included performers, writers, producers, and critics.

"I argue that musical participation in itself can be a social movement, as opposed to the soundtrack for a movement that is already happening, like we saw in the 1960s," said Callais. "Hip-hop gives performers another way to reach and influence a larger audience. Many of the rap artists in the last 15 to 20 years identify themselves as being more overtly political in their efforts."

According to Callais, key figures in the rap industry today are leading a movement countering the mainstream rap stereotypes of violence, misogyny, and crime to help create a better image for rap music. The modern movement leaders ironically cite early hip-hop artists as their influences, even though these early artists may have lacked truly political intentions.

###

About the American Sociological Association

The American Sociological Association (http://www.asanet.org), founded in 1905, is a non-profit membership association dedicated to serving sociologists in their work, advancing sociology as a science and profession, and promoting the contributions to and use of sociology by society.

The paper, "Music and Social Movements: Historical Hip-Hop Participation Frames and Modern Rap as Social Movement Participation," will be presented on Sunday, Aug. 11, at 10:30 a.m. EDT in New York City at the American Sociological Association's 108th Annual Meeting.

To obtain a copy of the paper; for assistance reaching the study's author(s); or for more information on other ASA presentations, members of the media can contact Daniel Fowler, ASA's Media Relations and Public Affairs Officer, at (202) 527-7885 or pubinfo@asanet.org. During the Annual Meeting (Aug. 10-13), ASA's Public Information Office staff can be reached in the on-site press office, located in the Hilton New York Midtown's Clinton Room, at (212) 333-6362 or (914) 450-4557 (cell).

For more information about the study, members of the media can also contact Pete Gemmer, University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash College, at (513) 936-1632 or gemmerpa@ucmail.uc.edu.

Papers presented at the ASA Annual Meeting are typically working papers that have not yet been published in peer reviewed journals.

Contact: Daniel Fowler, (202) 527-7885, (914) 450-4557 (cell), pubinfo@asanet.org
On-site Press Office (Aug. 10-13): Hilton New York Midtown, Clinton Room, (212) 333-6362

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Research shows negative effects of half-siblings

2013-08-11
NEW YORK CITY — Adolescents who have half-siblings with a different father are more likely to have used drugs and had sex by age 15 than those who have only full siblings. That's according to new research from Karen Benjamin Guzzo, an assistant professor of sociology at Bowling Green State University, and Cassandra Dorius, an assistant professor of human development and family studies at Iowa State University. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth, they examined a phenomenon known as "multi-partnered fertility" or MPF. This happens when parents who ...

Why does the American middle class continue to struggle financially?

2013-08-11
NEW YORK CITY — Since the mid-1980s, unrestrained household spending has damaged American family finances — despite the fact that globalization and technological change have caused consumer prices to fall widely, says Queens College sociologist Joseph Nathan Cohen. In his paper, "The Myth of America's 'Culture of Consumerism': Policy May Help Drive American Household's Fraying Finances," which Cohen will present at the 108th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association, he examines the factors that keep American families from tightening their belts. A brief ...

Smart enough to know better: Intelligence is not a remedy for racism

2013-08-11
NEW YORK CITY — Smart people are just as racist as their less intelligent peers — they're just better at concealing their prejudice, according to a University of Michigan study. "High-ability whites are less likely to report prejudiced attitudes and more likely to say they support racial integration in principle," said Geoffrey Wodtke, a doctoral candidate in sociology. "But they are no more likely than lower-ability whites to support open housing laws and are less likely to support school busing and affirmative action programs." Wodtke will present his findings at ...

Study finds more tweets means more votes for political candidates

2013-08-11
NEW YORK CITY — An Indiana University study found that the percentage of votes for Republican and Democratic candidates in 2010 and 2012 races for the U.S. House of Representatives could be predicted by the percentage of tweets that mentioned those candidates — and it didn't matter whether the tweets were positive or negative. "Think of this as a measurement of buzz," said Fabio Rojas, an associate professor of sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences at IU Bloomington. "We call this the 'all publicity is good publicity' finding. Even if you don't like somebody, ...

Study examines beliefs about who should pay for dates

2013-08-11
NEW YORK CITY — Chapman University's David Frederick will present new research at the 108th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association that examines men's and women's beliefs about who should pay for dates during courtship, and how couples actually go about splitting expenses. The paper, "Who Pays for Dates? Following versus Challenging Conventional Gender Norms," contains survey data from more than 17,000 participants; a quarter of whom also provided written commentaries to explain their beliefs and actions regarding paying for dates. "The motivation for ...

Wealthier minorities more likely than white counterparts to receive subprime loans, study finds

2013-08-11
NEW YORK CITY — Wealthier minorities were more likely to receive subprime loans than were affluent whites, according to a New York University study of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data from 2006 — the peak of the previous decade's housing boom. Moreover, black and Latino applicants were more likely to be denied prime loans — even after controlling for gender and income. The study, which will be presented at the 108th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association, was conducted by Jacob Faber, a doctoral fellow at NYU's Furman Center for Real Estate and ...

Women seek alcohol treatment between an average of 4 to 5 years earlier than men

2013-08-10
Contact: Ben Lewis, Ph.D. benlewis@ufl.edu 352-294-4920 University of Florida Rosemary Fama, Ph.D. rfama@stanford.edu 650-859-5064 Stanford University School of Medicine Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research Women seek alcohol treatment between an average of 4 to 5 years earlier than men The term "telescoping" refers to a more rapid progression of alcohol-related diseases in women. A new study looks at gender differences among individuals seeking treatment for a substance use disorder. While certain aspects of the findings confirm telescoping ...

Racial differences in types of alcohol drinks consumed by adolescent girls

2013-08-10
Contact: Tammy Chung, Ph.D. chungta@upmc.edu 412-246-5147 Pittsburgh Adolescent Alcohol Research Center Mildred Maldonado Molina, Ph.D. mmmm@ufl.edu 352-294-5797 University of Florida Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research Racial differences in types of alcohol drinks consumed by adolescent girls Much more is known about racial differences in rates of alcohol use than types of alcohol consumed. A new study of racial differences in types of alcohol beverages consumed during adolescence has found that, in general, black and while girls report significantly ...

Cigarette taxation helps to reduce drinking among groups considered vulnerable

2013-08-10
Contact: Sherry McKee, Ph.D. sherry.mckee@yale.edu 203-737-3529 Yale University School of Medicine Christopher W. Kahler, Ph.D. christopher_kahler@brown.edu 401-863-6651 Brown University Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research Cigarette taxation helps to reduce drinking among groups considered vulnerable A new study has examined the effects of cigarette taxation on alcohol consumption. Results suggest that increases in cigarette taxes are associated with modest to moderate reductions in alcohol consumption among vulnerable groups. Vulnerable ...

Study paints complex health portrait of single-room occupancy hotel tenants in Downtown Eastside

2013-08-10
A new study is revealing the multiple health concerns faced by an estimated 3,000 tenants in single-room occupancy (SRO) hotels in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES). The results of the study aim to better inform the provision of health care and housing among an often-overlooked segment of the population. Due to their affordability, SROs are often the only alternative to homelessness for low-income individuals in Vancouver and other major cities. Some SROs are substandard and many tenants suffer from substance dependence, mental illness and infectious diseases. The ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Are lifetimes of big appliances really shrinking?

Pink skies

Monkeys are world’s best yodellers - new research

Key differences between visual- and memory-led Alzheimer’s discovered

% weight loss targets in obesity management – is this the wrong objective?

An app can change how you see yourself at work

NYC speed cameras take six months to change driver behavior, effects vary by neighborhood, new study reveals

New research shows that propaganda is on the rise in China

Even the richest Americans face shorter lifespans than their European counterparts, study finds

Novel genes linked to rare childhood diarrhea

New computer model reveals how Bronze Age Scandinavians could have crossed the sea

Novel point-of-care technology delivers accurate HIV results in minutes

Researchers reveal key brain differences to explain why Ritalin helps improve focus in some more than others

Study finds nearly five-fold increase in hospitalizations for common cause of stroke

Study reveals how alcohol abuse damages cognition

Medicinal cannabis is linked to long-term benefits in health-related quality of life

Microplastics detected in cat placentas and fetuses during early pregnancy

Ancient amphibians as big as alligators died in mass mortality event in Triassic Wyoming

Scientists uncover the first clear evidence of air sacs in the fossilized bones of alvarezsaurian dinosaurs: the "hollow bones" which help modern day birds to fly

Alcohol makes male flies sexy

TB patients globally often incur "catastrophic costs" of up to $11,329 USD, despite many countries offering free treatment, with predominant drivers of cost being hospitalization and loss of income

Study links teen girls’ screen time to sleep disruptions and depression

Scientists unveil starfish-inspired wearable tech for heart monitoring

Footprints reveal prehistoric Scottish lagoons were stomping grounds for giant Jurassic dinosaurs

AI effectively predicts dementia risk in American Indian/Alaska Native elders

First guideline on newborn screening for cystic fibrosis calls for changes in practice to improve outcomes

Existing international law can help secure peace and security in outer space, study shows

Pinning down the process of West Nile virus transmission

UTA-backed research tackles health challenges across ages

In pancreatic cancer, a race against time

[Press-News.org] Research explores evolution of hip-hop from party music to political platform