Culture Clash or Celebration: How Modern Media Is Reworking Traditions for Gen Z
Tradition has always been a bedrock—holidays, rituals, family dinners, prom, cuisine passed down generation to generation. But for Gen Z, tradition isn’t a fixed script. It’s being reimagined. Through memes, VR, reboots, and branding revivals, media is remixing the old with the new. And in the process, Gen Z is asking: which parts are worth keeping, which are worth tweaking, and how do we make tradition inclusive, relevant, and exciting?
The Trend: Nostalgia + Reinvention
You’ve probably noticed the surge in retro fashion, 90s flavors, and old branding getting modern touches. Companies are leaning into Newtro (a mix of “new + retro”) and bringing back past aesthetics with updated designs, packaging, and messaging that feels “vintage” but still fresh. South Korea popularized Newtro in fashion, design, even snack foods, and that style has spread globally. It’s not just about looking back—it’s about re-interpreting the past in ways that align with Gen Z’s values. (Wikipedia)
Food brands in the UK are doing this too—think Walkers, Nik Naks, Bacardi Breezer, and Cadbury redoing classic packaging or flavors as limited editions to tap into both nostalgic millennials and young people discovering them for the first time. The emotional pull of something familiar mixed with novelty is strong. (The Guardian)
Values Behind Reinvention
Gen Z cares about authenticity, representation, and social issues, so the traditions they embrace are often ones that can be adapted to reflect those values. Media researchers note that Gen Z doesn’t always see traditional media channels as enough—they want stories, platforms, and cultural moments that reflect their identity and their moral priorities. (PMC)
For example:
- Community rituals like prom still matter, but they’re now reimagined for social media: the outfits, the makeup, the “promposals” are big moments online. Prom isn’t just a dance—it’s an event, content, identity. (Teen Vogue)
- Cuisine traditions: Jewish kosher foods or other ethnic traditional foods are being repackaged or reformulated to be more plant-based, sustainable, or visually appealing to younger consumers. The flavors stay rooted, but how they’re presented or marketed is changed to meet Gen Z’s standards. (Food & Wine)
Where Media Is Doing the Reworking
Here are some concrete ways media + culture are reworking tradition for Gen Z:
- Internet Aesthetics & Memes
Visual styles (like indie sleaze, dark academia, cottagecore) mix old cultural symbols with digital art, filters, vintage fonts, and DIY creativity. Internet aesthetics show how Gen Z can take something nostalgic and make it entirely new. (Wikipedia) - Immersive & Digital Storytelling
Projects that revive oral traditions or folklore through virtual reality or generative AI let Gen Z not only consume tradition—they participate in it. One study used VR + interactive storytelling to bring back oral tales (like “Anansi the Spider”) in ways that let users shape the narrative, not just watch it. That reclaims tradition in ways media didn’t before. (arXiv) - Brand Revivals & Retro Reboots
Old brands, old flavors, old fonts are coming back. But they’re not resurrected unchanged—they’re updated for sustainability, aesthetics, and relevance. That resurgence of retro branding works because it connects emotionally with older generations and visually intrigues younger ones who didn’t live the original era. (The Guardian)
Risks & Tensions
While reworking tradition can feel celebratory, it comes with tensions:
- Sometimes tradition is appropriated poorly—using cultural symbols without respect, or simplifying them for aesthetics.
- Over-nostalgia can feel like escapism rather than real progress, especially if real issues (e.g. equity, diversity, health) are ignored.
- If media merely repackages old content without genuine creative new contributions, it can feel hollow or unoriginal.
Why It Matters
For Gen Z, reworked tradition is a way to have roots and wings—to honor what came before without being stuck in it. It helps them feel connected—to family, to culture—while also asserting their own identity, style, and values.
Media that understands this can build deeper engagement, trust, and loyalty. Brands or cultural works that misread this risk being seen as out-of-touch or exploitative.
Tradition isn’t going anywhere—but it’s transforming. Gen Z isn’t rejecting the old; they’re remixing it. They want stories, media, brands that let tradition breathe anew, reflect today, and include everyone. When done well, reworking tradition becomes not culture clash, but celebration.
