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THE MAKING OF A NATION - The 1970's & 1980's
By Jeri Watson
Broadcast: December 26, 2002
VOICE ONE:
This is Rich Kleinfeldt.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Ray Freeman with THE MAKING OF A NATION, a V-O-A Special English program about the
history of the United States. Today, we tell the story about some social and cultural issues of Nineteen-Seventies
and Nineteen-Eighties.
VOICE ONE:
An economics professor from the United States was teaching in Britain in the early Nineteen-Eighties. One of his
students asked this question: "What is most important to Americans these days?" He said: "Earning money.
"
Clearly, his answer was far too simple. Still, many observers would agree that great numbers of Americans in the
Nineteen-Eighties were concerned with money. These people wanted the good life that they believed money
could buy.
VOICE TWO:
In some ways, the Nineteen-Eighties were the opposite of the Nineteen-Sixties.
The Nineteen-Sixties were years of protest and reform. Young Americans demonstrated against the Vietnam
War. African Americans demonstrated for civil rights. Women demonstrated for equal treatment. For many,
society's hero was the person who helped others.
For many in the Nineteen-Eighties, society's hero was the person who helped himself. Success seemed to be
measured only by how much money a person made.
VOICE ONE:
The period of change came during the Nineteen-Seventies. For a while, these years remained tied to the social
experiments and struggles of the Nineteen-Sixties. Then they showed signs of what American would be like in
the Nineteen-Eighties. There were a number of reasons for the change.
One reason was that the United States ended its military involvement in Vietnam. Another was that the civil
rights movement and women's movements reached many of their goals. A third reason was the economy. During
the Nineteen-Seventies, the United States suffered an economic recession. Interest rates and inflation were high.
There was a shortage of imported oil.
VOICE TWO:
As the Nineteen-Seventies moved toward the Nineteen-Eighties,Americans became tired of social struggle. They
became tired of losing money. They had been working together for common interests. Now, many wanted to
spend more time on their own personal interests.
This change appeared in many parts of American society. It affected popular culture, education, and politics.
VOICE ONE:
For example, one of the most popular television programs of that time was about serious social issues. It was
called "All in the Family". It was about a factory worker who hates black people and opposes equal rights for
women. His family slowly helps him to accept and value different kinds of people.
Other television programs, however, were beginning to present an escape from serious issues. These included
"Happy Days" and "Three's Company."
Music showed the change, too. In the Nineteen-Sixties, folk music was very popular. Many folk songs were
about social problems. In the Nineteen-Seventies, groups played hard rock and punk music, instead.
VOICE TWO:
Self-help books were another sign that Americans were becoming more concerned about their own lives. These
books described ways to make people happier with themselves. One of the most popular was called I'm Okay,
You're Okay. It was published in Nineteen-Sixty-Nine. It led the way for many similar books throughout the
Nineteen-Seventies.
VOICE ONE:
The Nineteen-Seventies also saw a change in education. In the Nineteen-Sixties, many young people expressed
little interest in continuing their education after four years of study in college. They were busy working for social
reforms. Many believed that more education only created unequal classes of people.
By the middle Nineteen-Seventies, however, more young people decided it was acceptable to make a lot of
money. Higher education was a way to get the skills to do this. Law schools and medical schools soon had long
lists of students waiting to get in.
VOICE TWO:
Politically, the United States went through several changes during the Nineteen-Seventies. Theere
were liberal Democratic administrations for most of the Nineteen-Sixties. Then a conservative
Republican, Richard Nixon, was elected. During his second term, President Nixon was forced to
resign because of the Watergate case.
Vice President Gerald Ford became president after Nixon's resignation. About two years later, he was defeated by
Democrat Jimmy Carter. The election showed that Americans were angry with the Republican Party because of
the Watergate case. But they soon became unhappy with President Carter, too. They blamed him for failing to
improve the economy. He lost his campaign for re-election to conservative Republican Ronald Reagan.
VOICE ONE:
The Nineteen-Eighties were called the Reagan years, because he was president for eight of them. During his first
term, the recession ended. Inflation was controlled. He reduced taxes. Americans felt hopeful that they could
make money again.
Observers created several expressions to describe some groups of people at that time. One expression was "the
'me' generation". This described Americans who were only concerned about themselves. Another expression was
"yuppie". It meant "young urban professional". Both these groups seemed as if they lived just to make and spend
money, money, and more money.
Entertainment in the Nineteen-Eighties showed the interest society placed on financial success. The characters in
a number of television programs, for example, lived in costly homes, wore costly clothes, and drove costly
automobiles. They were not at all like average Americans. They lived lives that required huge amounts of money.
Two of these television programs became extremely popular in the United States and in other countries. They
were called "Dallas" and "Dynasty".
VOICE TWO:
At the movie theater, a very popular film was called "Wall Street". It was about a
young, wealthy, dishonest -- powerful -- man who traded on the New York Stock
Exchange. Power was a popular program idea in action films, too. The most
successful action films were about a man called "Rambo". Rambo was impossibly
heroic. Naturally, he always won. The films showed good winning over evil. But
Rambo rejected established rules and was extremely violent.
Another form of entertainment became popular in the Nineteen-Eighties. It was the
television talk show. People appeared on these shows mostly to talk about
themselves: their politics, their families, their sexual relations. They talked in public about things that were once
considered private.
Much of the popular music of the time also showed this new openness. Heavy metal rock groups sang about sex
and drugs. And then there was the new form of music called "rap". In this form,words are spoken, not sung, over
a heavy beat. Many Americans found all these kinds of music to be too shocking, too violent,too lawless, and too
damaging to the human spirit.
VOICE ONE:
People may have talked and sung openly about sex and drugs in the Nineteen-Eighties.
But as the years went by, many became increasingly careful about their own activities.
This was because sex and drugs became deadly. A new disease appeared at that time. It
was called AIDS, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. The disease spread in several
ways. One was through sexual relations. Another was through sharing the needles used to take illegal drugs.
VOICE TWO:
A big change in American life during the Nineteen-Eighties came as a result of the computer. Computers were
invented forty years earlier. They were large machines and were used only at universities, big companies, and in
the military.
By the Nineteen-Eighties, computers had become much smaller.Anyone could learn how to use them, even
children. Millions of Americans soon had a 'personal' computer in their home. They could use it to read
newspaper stories, buy things, do schoolwork, and play games.
Such technological improvement -- and a bright economy -- filled Americans of the early and middle Nineteen-
Eighties with hope. Many felt there were almost no limits on the good life they could lead.
VOICE ONE:
This program of THE MAKING OF A NATION was written by Jeri Watson and produced by Paul Thompson.
This is Rich Kleinfeldt.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Ray Freeman. Join us again next week for another V-O-A Special English program about the history
of the United States.
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