The Impact of Social Media on Transformation of Food Culture of the Japanese Youth in the 21st Century

Social media are believed to play one of the key roles in the modern information society forming process. Social media create new life environment, new social and cultural values, a new way of life and preferences. Today, social media is known as an interactive digital means of delivering information, in which the Internet is the main communicative source. This study aims at expanding the research in the sphere of social media and its impact on the material culture and food culture in particular. Firstly, we will research the social media concept and its basic components such as Web 2.0 and User Generated Content. Secondly, we will examine some special aspects of Japanese internet, social media and social networks. Then, we will look upon the food culture as an element of material culture basing on some previous researches in the field of culture studies. Following that, in the final part of the study via the content analysis, opinion and questionary surveys we will investigate social media impact on Japanese youth food culture and its contribution to the westernization of Japanese food.