Life in the 1980s
A Decade of Indulgence
Technology and the Media
 In the 1980s, technology began transforming broadcast
news and entertainment.
 Rap music was a new sound of the 1980s.
 Heavy bass and very rhythmic sounds, rap artists did not
usually sing but rather spoke over the music and rhythmic
beats.
 Rap’s lyrics frequently focused on the African American
experience in the inner city.
 The first video arcade game was a game
called pong.
A Society Under Stress
Crime and Drugs
 Drug abuse in the 1980s made many city neighborhoods
dangerous.
 Drug users often committed crimes in order to get
money for drugs, and dealers backed by street gangs
fought to protect their territory.
 Drug use spread from cities to small towns and rural
areas.
Problems With Alcohol
 Abuse of alcohol was a serious concern, teenagers with
fake identification cards could easily buy beer and other
alcoholic beverages.

In 1984 Congress cut highway funds to any state that did
not raise the legal drinking age to 21.
A Deadly Epidemic
 AIDS weakens the immune system, lowering resistance to
illness.
 In the United States, AIDS were first noticed among
homosexual men.
 The stonewall riot marked the beginning of a gay activist
movement.
 In 1987, more than 28,000 cases if AIDS
were diagnosed in the United States,
and between 1981 and 1988, the Center
for Disease Control identified more
than 100,000 cases.
Social Activism
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Secretary of the Interior James Watt encouraged
development.
Congress, under pressure from environmental groups,
blocked many of Watt’s plans.
The environmental movement born in the 1970s
continued to grow in the 1980s.
Rocking for Good Causes
 Bruce Springsteen, a social activist, he gave concerts to
benefit food banks and the homeless.

To help starving people in Ethiopia, Irish rocker Bob
Geldof organized musicians in England to present “Band
Aid” concerts in 1984.
A New Era in Space
The Space Shuttle
 After the series of moon landings of the 1970s, the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) concentrated
on the space shuttle.
 In 1983 Sally Ride became the first American woman in space.
 Christa McAuliffe, a teacher from New Hampshire, joined six
others on the Challenger.
 The shuttle lifted off the launch
pad and the exploded, all on board
were killed.
 The worst disaster in the country’s
history of space exploration.
A Home in Space
 The space program continued to undertake shuttle flights,
some of them to carry satellites into orbit.
 Space stations- orbiting platforms where continuous
observation of the universe could take place.
 American achievements in space symbolized the
optimistic attitude of the Reagan
administration that Americans
could accomplish anything they
were determined to do.
Essay Question

Describe five new developments in media news
and entertainment that occurred in the 1980s.
Essay Question

Describe five new developments in media news
and entertainment that occurred in the 1980s.

In the 1980s, technology began transforming broadcast news
and entertainment. New technology divided the broadcast
media into smaller audience segments. Cassette tapes and the
Sony Walkman made music portable. By the end of the 1980s,
many homes also had video cassette recorders. In the 1980s,
cable and satellite television rapidly expanded. Dozens of
channels offered programs for specialized audiences. Ted Turner
Cable News Network became the first all-news television
network. In 1985 CNN introduced the first phone-in television
talk show. In 1981 MTV went on the air , mixing songs with
video images to create music videos. Home videogames
developed quickly, and video arcades became the new spot for
young people to meet in the 1980s.