A new interdisciplinary research group composed of members of the Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C²DH), the Institute for History at the University of Luxembourg and Saarland University will investigate transnational transfers of popular culture in Europe in the 1960s.

The three-year Popkult60 project between Germany and Luxembourg has received €2 million in funding from the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) and its German equivalent, the German Research Foundation (DFG).

The research team is composed of three professors from Saarland University (Prof. Dietmar Hüser, spokesman for the research unit, Prof. Clemens Zimmerman and Prof. Christoph Vatter) and three professors from the University of Luxembourg (Prof. Andreas Fickers, Prof. Sonja Kmec and Prof. Benoît Majerus). The grant will provide funding for seven PhD students, four at Saarland University and three at the University of Luxembourg.

The research unit will attempt to shed light on questions such as the true nature of the “Americanisation” of popular culture in Europe after World War II, as well as looking at the role of intra-European influences, and how “mediator” (multilingual) countries such as Belgium, Switzerland and Luxembourg fit into these cultural transfers.

Their research will involve analysing the circulation and adaptation of televised variety shows, popular music and youth media. They will also look at cultural, generational and even economic resistance that hindered or prevented the exchange or transfer of cultural formats and productions. A total of seven case studies will be analysed. The Luxembourg-based projects will focus on the history of cartoon strips, commercial radio stations (Europe 1 and Radio Luxembourg) and film fan clubs. The researchers will examine both the content and form of these different media and the producers and consumers involved.