What was the impact of hip-hop on pop culture? Who were the New Romantics? And what was Grunge all about? Reagan and Thatcher, Clinton and Blair, politics played a role in the popular culture of the era. So did technology, with video game arcades popping up anywhere teenagers might be lurking. Early home game consoles like the Atari 2600 also found their way into many homes, as did the records, cassette tapes, and compact disks of Madonna, Michael Jackson, Prince, and U2.