Words uttered at a concert by singer Natalie Maines, resulted in the Dixie
Chicks' being banned from radio stations, having masses of ex-fans demolish
their CD's, and even threats to their lives. What was said to cause such a
heated reaction? "Just so you know, we're ashamed that President Bush is
from Texas." Due to this expression, the Chicks-stars of country music-
were called traitors to their Country and their country music roots. The author
uses this case to uncover the role that popular culture icons play in our selfempowerment.
That is, how do messages delivered through popular culture
constrain or enable our perceived ability to resist dominant ideals? Dr. Kristi L.
Scholten uses a narrative approach to examine: a) citizen-generated
commentary, b) popular news reports, c) the Chicks' own responses, and d)
fan's expectations for their celebrated artists. This allowed her to get a sense
for how the dominant, public narrative puts the pieces of the story together
in order to create a vision of the world and how people should behave in it.
The result is: a) the championing of an aggressive, very male patriot, b) the
connection between a rough, redneck character and Middle-American values,
and c) a 'shut up and sing' attitude which diminishes the agency of celebrityartists.
This book is directed towards Rhetorical, Narrative, Popular Culture and Art
Scholars as well as Political and Media Analysts.