American Culture, American Tastes: Social Change and the 20th Century.(Review)(Brief Article)

Kammen, Michael. American Culture, American Tastes: Social Change and the 20th Century. Knopf. Aug. 1999. c.352p. illus. index. ISBN 0-679-42740-6. $30. HIST

The prize-winning Kammen (American history, Cornell; Mystic Chords of Memory) is first among equals of academics devoted to American intellectual and cultural history. In his 15th book, he considers the rise of popular culture in the last century and how it has been created, received, and altered by consumers, producers, and opinion-makers. He rejects conservative jeremiads against popular culture--which he distinguishes from mass culture, though not …