1980s Summary

1980s: Film and Theater Special effects had begun to play a larger role in films in the 1970s, but it was in the 1980s that special effects began to be used to make a wide range of movies more excitin... Read more

Anxiety. The general anxiety the American public felt toward science and technology in the 1970s deepened during the 1980s. In the 1970s many Americans began to doubt a long-standing faith that scien... Read more

Topics in the News Cable and the Decline of the Big Three The Cable News Network Computers: Machines of the Decade The Computer Revolution Fox: The Fourth Network MTV and its Influence New Magazines ... Read more

The Reagan Revolution. With the election of former California governor Ronald Reagan to the presidency, the country was entering a decade of change that was soon to become known as the Reagan revolut... Read more

Conservatism and Luxury. The turbulent, self-expressive era of the 1960s and 1970s evolved into the 1980s — in fashion, a decade marked by traditionalism, luxury, and consumerism. Many American... Read more

Economic Malaise. Many Americans perceived the 1980s as a prosperous and pleasant decade, especially in contrast to the 1970s. As the 1980s unfolded, however, others argued that the ailments of the n... Read more