American popular culture has had a profound impact on societies and communities around the world. Whether it be the world of fashion, literature, or politics, aspects of American pop culture have had ...

Last year, I visited the music historian Ted Gioia to talk about the death of civilization. He welcomed me into his suburban-Texas home and showed me to a sunlit library. At the center of the room, ...

Mr. Marche is the author, most recently, of “The Next Civil War.” He wrote from Toronto, where he lives. You may not think of Chubby Checker’s “Let’s Twist Again” as an incendiary political anthem, or ...