![]() ![]() In these cases, Gen Z felt their identity explorations and expressions were criticized by Boomers. These posts suggest Boomers blame depression or anxiety on stereotypical causes such as "spending too much time on the phone" or "not drinking enough water."Ībout 10% of our sample demonstrated issues around gender and sexuality norms. Gen Z TikTokers also expressed frustration towards the dismissive attitude that Boomers adopted towards their mental health. These posts detailed how Gen Z are often criticized by Boomers for their lifestyle and appearance choices, such as unconventional career pathways and wearing ripped jeans. "Craft activism" featured users displaying the creative processes and production of "OK Boomer"-themed objects and art, such as drawings, embroidery, and 3D printing.Īround 40% of the posts we examined focused on young people's lifestyles and well-being. This a compare-and-contrast style allows for juxtaposition (to oppose the original statement) or collaboration (to add to the original statement). "Reacts via duets" made use of TikTok's "duet" function for users to record their own original video clip alongside an original. "Lip-sync activism" involved using lip-syncing to overlay one's facial expressions and gestures over a soundtrack, either in agreement with or to challenge the lyrics and moral tone of a song. In our study, we found three meme forms were especially popular: Young people use youthful parlance and lingo, pop cultural references and emojis to shape their collective political culture. On TikTok, political expression can take the form of viral dances and audio memes. ‘React via duet’: duet to who had challenged Gen Z to not use technologies. This is also reminiscent of when Boomers themselves encountered their own intergenerational politics in the countercultures of the 1960s and 1970s. This is the tendency for people from a particular age cohort to form a shared political consciousness and behaviors, usually in opposition to the political attitudes of other groups. The "OK Boomer" meme and others like it allow young people to partake in a form of " intergenerational politics". On TikTok, young people construct and communicate their "everyday politics" by displaying their personal identities in highly personable ways, to demonstrate solidarity with or challenge beliefs and principles in society. Unlike "big P" politics-the work of governments, parliaments and politicians-" everyday politics" are political interests, pursuits and discussions framed through personal experiences. In our recent study on forms of online activism and advocacy on TikTok, we looked at 1,755 "OK Boomer" posts from 20 and found young people used the meme to engage in "everyday politics." But it has evolved into an all-purpose retort to older generations-but especially Boomers-when they dispense viewpoints perceived as presumptive, condescending or politically incorrect.įrom 'big P' politics to 'everyday politics' and 'intergenerational politics' In essence, the "OK Boomer" meme emerged as a shorthand for Gen Z to push back against accusations of being a "fragile" generation unable to deal with hardship. In the two-minute sound clip distilled an already-popular sentiment into a two-word phrase, accusing "Boomers" (those born during the 1946–64 postwar baby boom) of being condescending, being racist and supporting Donald Trump, who was then US president. The song was widely adopted in meme creations by his Gen Z peers, who call themselves " Zoomers" (the Gen Z cohort born in 1997-2012). The viral growth of the "OK Boomer" meme on social media can be traced to Gen Z musician remix OK Boomer, which he uploaded to TikTok in October 2019. The simple two-word phrase is used to express personal politics and at the same time consolidate an awareness of intergenerational politics, in which Gen Z are coming to see themselves as a cohort with shared interests. "OK Boomer" began as a meme in TikTok videos, but our research shows the catchphrase has become much more. ![]()
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