poptimism

English

Etymology

Blend of pop +‎ optimism.

Pronunciation

Noun

poptimism (uncountable)

  1. The belief that pop music (or pop culture in general) is worthy of professional critique and interest.
    Synonym: popism
    Antonym: rockism
    • 2022, W. David Marx, chapter 10, in Status and Culture, Viking, →ISBN:
      Rockism lost, and poptimism won. All cultural snootiness is now tedious.
    • 2025 September 28, Rachel Aroesti, “In an era of AI slop and mid TV, is it time for cultural snobbery to make a comeback?”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian‎[1], London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 18 October 2026:
      Soon poptimism—an ideology that maintained that authenticity was a pose and conventionally unserious music (and, later, film, TV and books) had inherent value—became the status quo.
    • 2026 August 15, Eugene Rabkin, “Is the luxury world stuck on repeat?”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 4:
      The end of the 20th century was a pivotal time, when the countercultural mood of the 1990s began to capitulate to poptimism—a mentality that championed mass taste while denigrating the avant-garde.
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