The 1990s collectively refers to the years between and including 1990 and 1999. During this time, the widespread adoption of personal computers, the Internet and the increased economic productivity led to the equity market booms around the world, and caused an influx of wealth to the United States, Europe and Asia.
This decade started with the United States invasion of Iraq, as well as the cementation of free-market capitalism in many economic systems worldwide. During this decade, racial prejudice lost moral acceptance,citation needed and the gender roles for women began to increase dramatically in many industrialized countries.
Economics
Many countries, institutions, companies, and organizations experienced the 1990s as a prosperous time. High-income countries such as the United States, Western Europe, and South Korea experienced steady economic growth for much of the decade. However, in the former Soviet Union GDP decreased as their economies restructured to produce goods they needed and some capital flight occurred.
Oil and gas were discovered in many countries in the former Soviet bloc, leading to economic growth and wider adoption of trade between nations. These trends were also fueled by inexpensive fossil energy, with low petroleum prices caused by a glut of oil. Political stability and decreased militarization due to the winding down of the Cold War led to economic development and higher standards of living for many citizens.
- Personal incomes doubled from the recession in 1990, and there was higher productivity overall. After the 1996 Welfare Reform Act there was a reduction of poverty, [1] and the Wall Street stock exchange stayed over the 10,000 mark from 1999 to 2001.
- After the 1992 booming of the US stock market, Alan Greenspan coined the phrase "irrational exuberance".
- GATT update and creation of the World Trade Organization and other global economic institutions, but opposition by anti-globalization activists showed up in nearly every GATT summit, like the demonstrations in Seattle in December 1999.
- With the creation of the E.U. there is free movement of labor between member states, such as the 1992 and 1995 free trade agreements. The EU agreed to have a single currency, and the Euro began circulation in March 1999 in 12 member states.
- The Philippines saw great economic development after The People Power revolt. The economy gains 5% from its deficit until the Asian financial crisis of 1997.
- The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which phases out trade barriers between the United States, Mexico and Canada is signed into law by U.S. President Bill Clinton.
- From 1990 until 1998 inclusive, the economy of Russia and some former USSR states was in a severe depression. Eastern European economies struggled after the fall of communism, but Poland, Hungary, Estonia and Lithuania saw healthy economic growth rates in the late 1990s.
- Except for the United Kingdom and Ireland, much of Europe had serious economic problems, such as the massive 1995 general strikes in France during its worst recession since World War II. The French economy mildly rebounds at the end of the decade.
- Democracy, economic reform and peace arrive in Latin America, while the sluggish economies of Brazil, by a new emphasis on free markets for all their citizens, and Mexico, under economist president Ernesto Zedillo elected in 1994, were their best shape by the late 1990s.
- Financial crisis hits East and Southeast Asia in 1997 and 1998 after a long period of phenomenal economic development. Japan was heavily affected, as was Indonesia when the 30-year rule of President Suharto ended in his resignation after widespread protests in May 1998. See East Asian Tigers.
World-changing events
Significant events that occurred during or after 1990 which would influence the course of history and character of the decade, include:
Significant events that marked the passing of the decade include:
Science
- Physicists develop string theory and M-theory.
- Detection of extrasolar planets orbiting stars other than the sun.
- Dolly the sheep is cloned.
- Human Genome Project begins.
- DNA identification of individuals finds wide application in criminal law.
- Hubble Space Telescope launched in 1990; revolutionizes astronomy.
- Protease inhibitors introduced allowing HAART therapy against HIV; drastically reduces AIDS mortality.
- NASA's spacecraft Pathfinder lands on Mars and deploys a small roving vehicle, Sojourner, which analyzes the planet's geology and atmosphere.
- The Hale-Bopp comet swings past the sun for the first time in 4,200 years in April 1997.
- Development of biodegradable products, replacing products made from Styrofoam; advances in methods for recycling of waste products (such as paper, glass, aluminum).
- Genetically engineered crops are developed for commercial use.
- Discovery of dark matter, dark energy, brown dwarfs, and first confirmation of black holes.
- The Galileo probe orbits Jupiter, studying the planet and its moons extensively.
- The Global Positioning System (GPS) becomes fully operational.
- Proof of Fermat's last theorem is discovered by Andrew Wiles.
- Construction starts on the International Space Station – 1996
Technology
- See also: 1990s in technology & science
Some technologies invented and improved during the 1990s:
Graphic representation of the
WWW.
Hardware
- The Pentium processor is developed by Intel.
- Explosive growth of the Internet, perhaps caused by a decrease in the cost of computers and other technology.
- Advancements in computer modems, ISDN, cable modems and DSL lead to faster connection to the Internet.
- Pagers are initially popular but ultimately are replaced by mobile phones toward the end of the decade.
- Hand-held satellite phones are introduced towards the end of the decade.
- CD burner drives are introduced.
- Digital SLRs and regular Digital cameras become commercially available.
- The DVD media format is developed and popularized along with a plethora of Flash memory card standards.
- Apple introduces the iMac computer, initiating a trend in computer design towards translucent plastics and multicolor case design, discontinuing many legacy technologies like serial ports, and beginning a resurgence in the company's fortunes that continues unabated to this day.
- IBM introduces the 1-inch wide Microdrive hard drive in 170 MB and 340 MB capacities.
- The first GSM network is launched in Finland in 1991
- The first MP3 Player, the MPMan, is released in late spring of 1998. It came with 32Mb of flash memory expandable to 64Mb.
- The introduction of affordable, smaller satellite dishes and the DVB-S standard in the mid-1990s expanded satellite television services that carried up to 500 television channels.
Software
Computer and video games
- See also: 1990s in video gaming
- 3-D graphics become the standard by end of decade. Although FPSs had long since seen the transition to full 3D, other genres begin to copy this trend by the end of the decade.
- Lara Croft became the first video game sex symbol, becoming a recognisable figure in the entertainment industry throughout the late 1990s.
- The console wars, primarily between Sega (Sega Mega Drive (marketed as the Sega Genesis in North America), introduced in 1988) and Nintendo (Super NES, introduced in 1990), sees the entrance of Sony with the PlayStation in 1994, which becomes the first successful CD-based console (as opposed to cartridges). By the end of the decade, Sega's hold on the market becomes tenuous after the end of the Saturn in 1998 and the Dreamcast in 2001.
- Mario finds a rival in Sonic the Hedgehog with the release of the original game on the Genesis in 1991.
- Arcade games rapidly decrease in popularity.
- Fighting games like Capcom's Street Fighter II, Sega's futuristic Virtua Fighter and the more violent Mortal Kombat from Acclaim prompted the video game industry to adopt a game rating system, and hundreds of knock-offs are widely popular in mid-to-late1990s.
- Sony's PlayStation becomes the top selling game console and changes the standard media storage type from cartridges to compact discs in consoles.
- Doom (1993) bursts onto the world scene and instantly popularizes the FPS genre, and even how games are played, as Doom is among the first games to feature multiplayer capabilities. It is not until Quake (1996), however, that game developers begin to take multiplayer features into serious consideration when making games. Half-Life (1998) features the next evolutionary step in the genre with continual progression of the game (no levels in the traditional sense) and an entirely in-person view, and becomes one of the most popular computer games in history.
- The real-time strategy (RTS) genre is introduced in 1992 with the release of Dune II. Warcraft: Orcs & Humans (1994) popularizes the genre, with Command & Conquer and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness in 1995 sets up the first major real-time strategy competition and popularizes multiplayer capabilities in RTS games. StarCraft in 1998 becomes the second best-selling computer game of all time. It remains among the most popular multiplayer RTS games to this day, especially in South Korea. Homeworld in 1999 becomes the first successful 3d RTS game. The rise of the RTS genre is often credited with the fall of the turn-based strategy (TBS) genre, popularized with Civilization in 1991. The Civilization franchise is the only TBS franchise that remains popular.
- Final Fantasy first debuted (in North America) in 1990 for the NES, and remains among the most popular video game franchises, with 12 new titles to date, with another in development, plus numerous spin-offs, sequels, movies and related titles. Final Fantasy VII, released in 1997, especially popularized the series.
- Zelda continues its massive popularity with a series of groundbreaking games, including The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, released in 1998, which is considered one of the best and most groundbreaking games of all time.
- Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing games (MMORPGs) see their entrance into the computer game world with Ultima Online in 1997, although they don't gain widespread popularity until EverQuest and Asheron's Call in 1999. MMORPGs go on to become among the most popular genres in the 2000s.
- Pokémon entered the world scene with the release of the original Game Boy Pokémon Red and Pokémon Green games in Japan in 1996, later changed to Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue for worldwide release in 1998. It soon becomes popular in the U.S. and is adapted into a popular children's anime series and trading card game, among other media forms. Its popularity remains well into the 2000s with several new games and spin-offs.
Culture
Cultural Trends
- Youth culture in the 1990s was characterized by environmentalism and entrepreneurship. Fashions were often individualistic, tattoos and body piercing gained popularity, and "retro" styles inspired by fashions of the 1960s and 1970s were also prevalent. Some young people became increasingly involved in outdoor activities that combined embracing athletics with the appreciation of nature.
- Jam bands grew in popularity. Along with these Jam bands came a new popularity of 1960's counter-culture.
- Following the 1980s media counter-culture lead by tabloid talk shows popularized by Oprah Winfrey in 1986, which provided high-impact media visibility for gays, bisexuals, transsexuals, and transgender people [1] the 1990s saw a further increase in gay visibility in the mainstream media. In 1990, the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from its list of diseases. US TV shows featured gay characters. Movies with gay characters saw mainstream success, and celebrities spoke openly about their sexuality. U.S. President Bill Clinton generally held a pro-gay rights viewpoint.
Toyota Camry was one of the best selling vehicles in the U.S. throughout the 90's.
- The 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' discovery of America in 1992 was popularly observed, despite controversy and protests against Columbus' expeditions victimization of Native Americans. The holiday was labeled by some as racist, in view of Native American experiences of colonialism, slavery, genocide and cultural destruction.
- Douglas Coupland publishes the novel Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture, popularizing the term Generation X as the name of the generation born in the late 1960s and early 1970s (then college-age).
- The Grunge trend explodes, with several Grunge bands gaining mainstream success, and the attendant fashion caught on widely.
- Reality television began on MTV; this would grow in importance into the 2000s.
- Blood and gore in television and video games rose dramatically, along with language and sexual content, especially during the latter half of the decade; a Parental Ratings system for television was introduced in 1997 because of related complaints.
- Video games became more advanced and popular, with several makes becoming big sellers. Simulation and God games rose in popularity in the mid-late 1990s.
- Extreme sports reached a new height in popularity, and by 1995, were given their own annual tournament on US cable network ESPN.
- Extended alcohol sales are implemented in the US to reduce alcohol abuse.
- The exploitation of the collectability of comic books results in a trend of "gimmick" packaging and storylines (most notably The Death of Superman). The comic book industry collapses as interest in print comics decreases among younger generations and casual readers. Comic books disappear as a familiar sight at the newsstands. As comics, including Japanese manga and other graphic novels become more available in bookstore chains, the role of the comic book store as a source for comics and social gathering wanes. The domination by industry giants Marvel Comics and DC Comics ends as various independents produce popular titles. The era of comic book collecting for speculative investment ends. Webcomics by amateur cartoonists become popular.
- Conversion to Block scheduling became a trendy initiative for United States schools.
- Due to the success of the Ford Explorer, Sport Utility Vehicles became very popular among families, and effectively replaced the station wagon and minivan as the stereotypical family vehicle.
- Major 1990s slang words/phrases, mostly related to hip hop culture, included "Talk to the hand."
- Dogme 95 becomes an important European artistic film movement by the end of the decade.
- Eurodance music dominates discotheques and has numerous major mainstream hits in European (and to a lesser extent, North American) music charts.
- Mainstream "Techno", as it is dubbed by the media, became hugely popular in Europe and the U.S. From the early raves of 1990 to about 1996, electronic music gradually gained widespread recognition as a new genre in its own right. This trend reached a head in the latter part of the decade as underground parties were largely replaced by massive commercially sponsored parties, and as music media such as MTV began coverage of it.
Fashion
- See also: 1990s in fashion
The 1990s in popular culture is typically referred to as the decade of "anti-fashion". In reality, anti-fashion was only one of many trends in fashion in the 1990s. The fashion of the 1990s was characterized by minimalist styles, and many overlapping, often contradictory trends. The most significant event was the rise of grunge fashion in 1992. In the late 1990s there was a move away from grunge. Retro clothing inspired by the 1960s and 1970s was popular for much of the 1990s.
Music
- Popular styles include alternative rock (Red Hot Chili Peppers, R.E.M., Sonic Youth, The Smashing Pumpkins), grunge (Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden), post-grunge (Matchbox Twenty, Soul Asylum, Collective Soul, Third Eye Blind, Everclear, Creed, Foo Fighters, Our Lady Peace, Stiltskin, Silverchair), heavy metal and alternative metal (Helmet, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, Metallica, Pantera, Tool), black metal (Dimmu Borgir, Gorgoroth), Britpop and British rock (Oasis, Blur, Supergrass, the Manic Street Preachers, the Stone Roses, Suede, Pulp, Radiohead, The Verve, Travis), pop punk (Green Day, The Offspring, Rancid, Blink-182), third wave ska (No Doubt, Sublime, Reel Big Fish, Mighty Mighty Bosstones), indie rock (Fugazi, Pavement, Neutral Milk Hotel, The Flaming Lips, Modest Mouse, Guided By Voices), jam bands (Dave Matthews Band, Phish), and nu metal (Korn, Limp Bizkit, Deftones) towards the end of the decade. Notable multi-styled singer-songwriters include Tori Amos, Alanis Morissette, Beck, Elliott Smith, Jeff Buckley, and Jewel. Radiohead's popularity exploded in 1997 with the release of OK Computer. Most notable, though, was the explosion of grunge band Nirvana into the mainstream, who found a large audience in the youths of the '90s through their apathetic attitude and their appeal to Generation X.
- Industrial music began to enter the mainstream in the form of industrial rock and the continuing development of the industrial dance music of the late 1980s. Ministry became one of the first industrial bands to gain large-scale commercial success with their 1991 single Jesus Built My Hotrod gaining massive radio and MTV airplay. The underground scene, too, was developing strongly with bands such as Chemlab and Non-Aggression Pact becoming heavily involved in what would become known as Rivethead culture.
- Hip hop music diversifies throughout the decade and experiences numerous trends, beginning with the commercial success of pop rappers MC Hammer, Tone Loc, Young MC, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, and Vanilla Ice. Other major developments include the proliferation of Alternative hip hop/jazz rap (De La Soul, Beastie Boys, Arrested Development, Digable Planets, Native Tongues, and A Tribe Called Quest) and the West Coast G-Funk/Gangsta Rap phenomena (Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Cypress Hill, Dr. Dre, NWA, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Warren G, Coolio, and Tupac Shakur), followed by the resurgence of the New York hip hop scene (The Wu Tang Clan, Boot Camp Clik, Nas, Mobb Deep, and The Notorious B.I.G.), and pop rap (Puff Daddy and Will Smith).
- Teen pop and bubblegum pop returns in the 1990s in both the UK and the USA. British artists included the Spice Girls, Take That, Five, Steps, S Club 7 and Billie. US artists included Backstreet Boys, Hanson, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.
- Artists like Madonna and Janet Jackson continue to have success with their influential Dance-pop. Michael Jackson continues making arresting music and finds international popularity growing. "Black Or White" released in 1991, becomes a huge global hit, remaining at #1 in the US charts for 7 weeks.
- American Club/Dance music is very popular from 1990 to 1996, with acts like C&C Music Factory, Ce Ce Peniston, Crystal Waters, RuPaul, Black Box, & Dee-Lite. Similarly, Eurodance gains popularity in the United States, with many Eurodance artists scoring club hits on the Rhythmic Top 40 and Billboard Hot 100 radio. These artists include Technotronic, Corona, Cappella, N-Trance, Culture Beat,Reel 2 Real, Capital Sound, Jam & Spoon, E-Type, Maxx, La Bouche, Indra, Le Click, Pharao, Real McCoy, Ice MC,Me & My, JK, 2 Unlimited, Dr. Alban, Masterboy, Basic Element, AB Logic, Fun Factory, Mr. President, Shaman and Snap.
- The music festival Lollapalooza gained popularity similar to Woodstock; a fusing of genres from alternative rock, rap, punk rock and garage bands.
- Latin music becomes popular outside a Spanish-speaking audience with crossover hits by Ricky Martin, Jennifer Lopez,and Selena, the hit dance song Macarena and others. As Hispanic culture grows in the US, other Latin music genres took root, like Tejano music in the Southwestern United States is a mixed music genre: accordion based Mexican conjunto, Texan country, and modern pop merged to produce a new sound.
- Music becomes more profane, by end of decade a Parental Advisory sticker becomes acceptable rather than controversial.
- In America, country music becomes more mainstream with popular chart topping artist such as Garth Brooks, George Strait, Shania Twain, LeAnn Rimes, Sara Evans, Faith Hill, and Tim McGraw. The genre will also build up a more extensive audience world-wide, which sees the first English 24 hour terrestrial country station open in 1994.
- Popular hard rock bands maintain a strong presence into the 1990s. Guns N' Roses, Def Leppard, Ozzy Osbourne, and Van Halen were all still quite popular through the mid-1990s. Aerosmith and Bon Jovi's popularity and success spanned the entire decade and both were extremely popular at the turn of the new millennium.
- Music resumes its political content after the hiatus of the 1980s. Starting in 1996, the Tibetan Freedom Concert draws up to 120,000 people per year to a rock festival for the benefit of the cause of the International Tibet Independence Movement. Also, socially aware metal bands such as Rage Against the Machine and System of a Down form.
- Electronic music, becomes widely recognized at rave parties in Europe/USA and, later in the decade, in popular culture. The drug methylenedioxymethamphetamine, (also called Ecstasy or MDMA) is popularized by the burgeoning rave culture. Electronic music is highly popularized in mainstream culture later in the decade by The Prodigy, among other artists of the big beat genre. Whilst genres like House, Techno and Electro continue to be popular into the 1990s, new genres such as Trance, Drum & Bass and Garage become popular too.
- Trip hop, a downtempo electronic genre created in the 1990s, becomes popular in the United Kingdom, with artists such as Massive Attack, Portishead, Tricky, Björk and Morcheeba.
- 1980s backlash. During most of the 1990s, anything "Eighties" was considered to be ultimately uncool. As a result, people start wearing straighter hair, darker clothes and acoustic music becomes popular in opposition to the bright synthpop of the 1980s. The most noticeable 80s backlash being glam rock, hair metal and glam metal's sudden loss of popularity and eventual demise.
- Contemporary Christian Music continued to increase in popularity, with artists such as DC Talk, Jars of Clay, Amy Grant and Sixpence None the Richer all releasing platinum selling albums. Songs such as Baby Baby by Amy Grant, Flood by Jars of Clay, and Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer were all Top 40 hits, including Six Pence None the Richer's cover of "There She Goes" by The La's.
- Female R&B groups achieve great success in the 1990s with groups such as Salt n Pepa, En Vogue, TLC and All Saints.
Television
- See also: List of years in television#1990s
- North America
- A new wave of sitcoms known as "sitcoms about nothing" becomes immensely popular, showing characters which are regular people and episodes that show normal life situations altered into funny situations, thus losing contact with the "breaking the 4th wall" and "fish out of water" sitcoms regularly featured in the 80s. The two biggest examples of "sitcoms about nothing" being Seinfeld and Friends.
- Home Improvement (1991–1999) is also a very popular TV show that depicted an average American family's life set in suburban Detroit.
- The Simpsons (1989 – ) becomes popular with adult audiences, eventually paving the way for many adult-oriented animated television shows throughout the next 10 years, including Beavis and Butthead, South Park, Family Guy and King of the Hill.
- Professional wrestling became popular throughout the 1990s. In the late 1990s, the Monday Night Wars was the biggest impact for professional wrestling with the World Wrestling Federation (present day World Wrestling Entertainment), World Championship Wrestling, and Extreme Championship Wrestling. By the early 2000s, the WWF came out of the wars victorious over both WCW and ECW.
- Twin Peaks (1990 – 1991), David Lynch's surrealistic crime drama set in small town America (taking inspiration from his previous work, Blue Velvet), ran on ABC for two seasons, expanding the limits for prime time subject matter and quirky characters, and pushing TV producers and directors toward adapting a more cinematic filming style for television programming—an influence still visible in the 2000s.
- 20th Century Fox and BBC collaborate to produce the 1996 television movie of the science fiction series Doctor Who, starring Paul McGann as the Doctor.
- NASCAR Racing starts to become popular on TV nationally in the mid to late 1990s. Popular NASCAR drivers during this era are the late Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, Dale Jarrett, and Bobby Labonte.
- Pro Basketball sees high US TV ratings in the 1990s with stars like Shaq, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Karl Malone, Shawn Kemp, Reggie Miller, David Robinson, Penny Hardaway, Tim Duncan, and Patrick Ewing.
- US Saturday morning children's television programming, Like Fox Kids, reaches its peak popularity in the early and mid 1990s considered by many to be a "renaissance" in American animation. Everything from Animaniacs, Garfield and Friends, Eek! The Cat, X-Men, Batman: The Animated Series, The Tick, Freakazoid, and Tiny Toons, to television adaptations of popular video game characters Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog.
- The Disney experiences an animation renaissance with the popularity of The Disney Afternoon shows in the early and-mid-1990s, such as DuckTales, Darkwing Duck, Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, TaleSpin, Gargoyles, Goof Troop, and the Mighty Ducks.
- Nickelodeon gains popularity with the Nicktoons block of shows, such as Doug, Rugrats, The Ren and Stimpy Show, Rocko's Modern Life, AAAHH!!! Real Monsters and Hey Arnold!.
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, originally from the 1980s, remain popular in the early and-mid-1990s.
- Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers gains popularity with children in the mid 1990s, leading to the entire Power Rangers series.
- Anime becomes popular in the United States in the late 1990s with shows like Sailor Moon, Samurai Pizza Cats, Pokémon, Dragonball Z, Saint Seiya, Outlaw Star, Ranma ½, Cowboy Bebop and Neon Genesis Evangelion.
- MTV moves away from music videos and into original television shows such as The Real World, which is often cited as the main inspiration for the Reality TV boom of the 2000s.
- Cartoons aimed at an adult audience become popular. Among the most successful are The Simpsons (1989 – ), The Ren and Stimpy Show (1991 – 1996), Beavis and Butt-head (1993 – 1997), Daria (1997 – 2002), South Park (1997 – ), King of the Hill (1997 – ), Family Guy (1999 – 2002, 2005 – ) and Futurama (1999-2003, 2008-).
- US Television networks increase programs aimed at twenty- and thirty-somethings. Some of the most popular are Roseanne (1988 – 1997), Seinfeld (1989 – 1998), Beverly Hills 90210 (1990 – 2000), Melrose Place (1992 – 1999), Friends (1994 – 2004), Party of Five (1994 – 2000), and Ally McBeal (1997 – 2002).
- Television shows involving human interaction with dangerous wildlife become popular. Most notably shows like The Crocodile Hunter, a popular series starring Steve Irwin, which began airing in 1996. The Crocodile Hunter, and other similar shows (many of which involved Steve Irwin) remained popular into the 2000s.
- Notable American television sitcoms aimed at the teen/preteen market include Full House (1987 – 1995), Saved by the Bell (1989 – 1993), The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990 – 1996), Family Matters (1989 – 1998), Blossom (1991 – 1995), Boy Meets World (1993 – 2000), and 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996 – 2001), Smart Guy (1997 – 1999), Sister, Sister (1994 – 1999), Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (1996 – 2003) among others. Many of these were concentrated on ABC's Friday night block TGiF.
- The sci – fi/fantasy TV genre saw three successful Star Trek spinoffs: The Next Generation (1987 – 1994), Deep Space Nine (1993 – 1999), and Voyager (1995 – 2001). It also featured other massively popular shows, such as The X-Files (1993 – 2002); Babylon 5(1993 – 1998); Stargate SG-1 (1997 – 2007); Sliders (1995 – 2000); Hercules: The Legendary Journeys (1993 – 1999); and Xena: Warrior Princess (1995 – 2001), the spinoff of Hercules that went on to drastically dwarf its predecessor in popularity, notoriety, controversy, and overall viewership. Another notable series in the fantasy genre was Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997 – 2003) which never had very high ratings but quickly received a cult following as well critical acclaim. It inspired many other series with the superhero/struggle of real life theme, such as Charmed (1998 – 2006) and Buffy's spin-off Angel (1999 – 2004).
- The Disney Channel changes from classic Disney programming to live action programming starting in the late 1990s, especially around the year 1998. No longer a pay-subscription channel in 1996, the channel expanded their young audience on basic cable. See Zoog Disney. By 1999, the "MTV-esque" Zoog Disney along with Playhouse Disney was the main focus of the Disney Channel, causing classic Disney shorts and shows such as the Nutty Professor to experience backlash.
- Cartoon Network starts showing more original programming in a form of Cartoon Cartoons that almost changed the face of the network by 1999.
- On May 22, 1992, after 30 years, Johnny Carson retired as host of the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on NBC, with Jay Leno taking over as host on May 25. The choice of Leno over Late Night host and Carson protege David Letterman is instrumental in Letterman signing a deal with CBS in January 1993. Letterman aired his final NBC show on June 25, 1993 and the Late Show with David Letterman premiered on August 30, 1993.
- The highest-rated shows on network television:
- United Kingdom
- UK television — Popular comedies include Keeping Up Appearances, Absolutely Fabulous, The Fast Show, Jeeves and Wooster, One Foot in the Grave, Only Fools and Horses, Men Behaving Badly, Red Dwarf, Spaced, Royle Family, Mr. Bean and Father Ted amongst many others. ITV has a string of successful crime dramas including Cadfael, Prime Suspect, Inspector Morse and Cracker.
- High rated programmes this decade include the launch of the National Lottery in 1994, the Panorama interview with Diana, Princess of Wales in 1995, and her funeral two years later,
- The 'docusoap' genre is popular in the late 1990s, with shows like Airport making celebrities out of the people in them.
- BSkyB obtain the rights to the English FA Premier League in 1992, producing high revenues for the league and becoming the bedrock of the subscription television service, holding a monopoly on the rights until 2007.
- British public service television channel Channel 4 is granted independence from the Independent Broadcasting Authority, and begins showing US programmes such as Friends and ER in peak viewing time.
- Channel 5 is launched in 1997 and becomes the country's fifth and final terrestrial channel.
- Satellite and cable television becomes widespread, characterised by the battle and eventual merger of British Satellite Broadcasting and Sky Television at the start of the decade, and the launch of digital television in 1998. Satellite channels rise from a handful in 1990 to almost a hundred by 1999.
- Prize limits on gameshows are lifted in 1993, leading to shows with much bigger prizes, especially the launch of Who Wants to be a Millionaire in 1998, soon launched around the world. Channel 4's TFI Friday becomes the first programme to give away a million pounds to a contestant at the end of 1999.
- Europe
In Europe, new private channels in Germany: RTL, SAT1, Pro7, VOX, VIVA, France: Canal Plus and Portugal: SIC, TVI. Eastern European television enjoys less government restrictions and carries more American programming.
Al Jazeera begins broadcasting in 1996, subsidised by a grant from the emir of Qatar and expanded their programming range across the Arabic-speaking world.
Internet
- Beginnings of MP3 music downloading; including the Napster controversy in 1999 and 2000.
- The Internet begins to affect pop culture, beginning around 1996.
- Most television stations establish an Internet presence during the later half of the decade.
- Earliest examples of Internet film.
- Bulletin Board System interest decreases heavily with introduction of the Web.
- Pornography on the Internet launches and grows rapidly (one of the few industries to experience growth during the dot.com bust of 2000)
- A concept of online social ettiquette, "Netiquette" begins to form in 1995.
- Online chat debuts in the mid 1990s, along with social networking and teen community sites such as Classmates.com and Xanga in the late 1990s.
- Popular Internet sites such as Newgrounds, Something Awful and The Best Page in the Universe began in the mid to late 90s.
International Issues
Politically, the 1990s was an era of spreading democracy. The former countries of the Warsaw Pact moved from totalitarian regimes to democratically-elected governments. The same happened in other non-communist countries, such as Taiwan, Chile, South Africa, and Indonesia. Capitalism made great changes to the economies of communist countries like China and Vietnam, and even Cuba.
The improvement in relations between the countries of NATO and the former members of the Warsaw Pact ended the Cold War both in Europe and other parts of the world. In 1993, the Prime Minister of Israel, Yitzhak Rabin, and PLO leader Yasser Arafat shook hands in agreement for peace, at the conclusion of peace talks sponsored by US president Bill Clinton. The outcome of these talks, known as the Oslo Accords, was an agreement by Israel to allow Palestinian self-government.
Conflicts like the Balkan Wars, the Rwandan genocide, the Battle of Mogadishu in Somalia and the first Gulf War, as well as the continuation of terrorism, led some to hypothesize a Clash of Civilizations, but the decade was also a time of peace in terror-ridden Northern Ireland when the IRA agreed to a truce in 1994. This marked the beginning of the end of 25 years of violence between the two sectarian groups, Protestant and Catholic, and the start of political negotiations.
In Africa
- End of apartheid in South Africa (1994) and election of ANC government of Nelson Mandela.
- In Algeria a long viloent decade in the north african country starts by the cancelation of the first ever held democratic elections by a group of high ranking army officers.
- Eritrea gains independence from Ethiopia (1993).
- Military actions in Somalia in 1993 lead to questions of the United States' role as a police officer of the world. (See also Battle of Mogadishu).
- Rwandan genocide kills one million people, in 1994.
- The Second Congo War started in 1998 in central Africa and includes 5 different cultures and 7 different nations. It goes on until 2002.
In Asia
- In Japan, after three decades of economic growth put them in second place in the world's economies, the situation worsened after 1993. The recession went on into the early 2000s, bringing an end to the seemingly unlimited prosperity that the country had hitherto enjoyed. However, the rise of free market economics in China under more socialist regulation had not slowed that country's economic prosperity in the 1990s, and its economic growth continues.
- Less affluent nations such as India, Malaysia and Vietnam also saw tremendous improvements in economic prosperity and quality of life during the 1990s. Optimism and hopes were high following the collapse of Communism, and restructuring following the end of the Cold War was beginning. However, there was also the continuation of terrorism in Third World regions that were once the "frontlines" for American and Soviet foreign politics, particularly in Asia.
- South-East Asia economic crisis starting from 1997.
- The Spratly islands issue became one of the most controversial in Southeast Asia.
- The Tibetan Freedom Concert brings 120,000 people together in the interest of increased human rights and autonomy for Tibet from China.
- Portugal hands sovereignty of Macau to the People's Republic of China on December 20, 1999.
- East Timor breaks away from Indonesian control in 1999, merely a year after the fall of Soeharto from power, ending a twenty-four year guerrilla war with more than 200,000 casualties. The UN deploys a peace keeping force, spearheaded by the Australian and New Zealand armed forces. America deploys US police officers to serve with the International Police element, to help train and equip an East Timorese police force.
- Great Britain hands sovereignty of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China on July 1, 1997.
- In May 1999, Pakistan sends troops covertly to occupy strategic peaks in Kashmir. A month later the Kargil War with India results in a political fiasco for Nawaz Sharif, followed by a military withdrawal to the Line of Control. The incident leads to a military coup in October in which the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is ousted by Army Chief Pervez Musharraf.
In Canada
In Europe
In Eastern Europe
In the United Kingdom
- The United Kingdom, after a recession in 1991 – 92 and its withdrawal from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism on Black Wednesday, experienced sustained economic growth that stretched into the new millennium.
- In the UK in 1994, Tony Blair becomes leader of the British Labour Party and begins the "New Labour" project moving the party to the centre of British politics, which in 1997 ends 18 years of government by the Conservative party in a landslide election victory.
- Peace process begins in Northern Ireland in 1995.
In Latin America
In the Middle East
In the United States
In the United States, Bill Clinton was president for much of the decade. Under Clinton, the United States was involved in few foreign wars and saw a resurgence of liberal movements. However, the end of the Cold War dramatically changed the political landscape of the world as the long-standing "Communism vs. Capitalism" conflict essentially came to an end. One result of this was the establishment of political allegiances between many developing countries, and concurrent changes within their own governments. Great strides were made towards Israeli-Palestinian peace in the early part of the decade, due to official PLO recognition of Israel in 1993. However, later in the decade, the peace process became derailed and eventually the conflict escalated once again, especially in the 2000s. Al Qaeda became visible as a terrorist threat against the U.S. after the bombing of the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.
Significant events
- The Waco massacre prompted a nationwide debate in the U.S. about the freedom of association right of the Michigan Militia, Montana Militia and other radical groups.
- The Oklahoma City Bombing, the bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, killed 168. Bombing suspect Timothy McVeigh claimed he bombed the building in retaliation for the 1993 Waco massacre.
- In France, Princess Diana dies in a car accident in 1997. Debates of accident vs. assassination rage well into the 2000s.
- The European Union forms in 1992 under the Maastricht Treaty.
- Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was elected President of South Africa in 1994, becoming the first black-President in South African history.
- The 1992 Los Angeles riots occurred, with 53 deaths and 5,500 property fires in a 100-square mile riot zone. The riots were a result of the state court acquittal of three White and one Hispanic L.A. police officers by an all-white jury in a police brutality case involving motorist Rodney King, but in 1993, all four officers were convicted in a federal civil rights case.
- The Omagh bombing in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland which kills 29 civilians and injures hundreds more.
- O.J. Simpson's trial, described in the media as the "trial of the century", but on October 3, 1995, Simpson was found "not guilty" of double-murder of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman. In the 1997 civil case, Simpson was held responsible and had to pay financial damages to the victims' families.
- The Channel Tunnel across the English Channel opens in 1994, connecting France and England. As of 2007 it is the second-longest rail tunnel in the world, but with the undersea section of 37.9 km (23.55 miles) being the longest undersea tunnel in the world.
- 1994 midterm election: The Republican Party took control of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate for the first time in 40 years. House Speaker Newt Gingrich assumes the role of antagonist to the Clinton Administration.
- US president Bill Clinton was caught in a media-frenzied sex scandal over his intern Monica Lewinsky, first announced on January 21, 1998. After the U.S. House of Representatives impeached Clinton on December 19, 1998 for perjury under oath, following an investigation by federal prosecutor Kenneth Starr, the Senate acquitted Clinton of the charges on February 12, 1999 and he finished his second term.
- The Columbine school shooting occurred on April 20, 1999, at Littleton, Colorado when two student gunmen took the Columbine high school hostage and killed 12 students, a teacher and the two committed suicide, making it the deadliest high school shooting in United States history.
- The Anita Hill vs. Clarence Thomas federal case of October 10 – October 12, 1991, involved claims by Hill that Thomas committed sexual harassment against her. Thomas was not charged, but Hill became a national celebrity and a martyr to women's rights, triggering awareness on the issue of workplace sexual harassment. Thomas went on to become an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.
- In the United Kingdom, the first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep was confirmed by the Roslin Institute, and was reported by global media on February 26, 1997. Dolly would trigger a raging controversy on cloning and bioethical concerns regarding possible human cloning continue to this day.
- Y2K spread fear throughout the United States and eventually the world in the last half of the decade particularly 1999. Many feared that it would cause the world to endwho? on new years day on January 1</
