Longevity and Popular Culture: How to Grow Old Without Disappearing

Longevity is not only about living more years, but also about continuing to be present in the stories we tell. In the media, in music, in film, or on social networks, old age often appears as a secondary role, reduced to stereotypes or erased from the narrative. Rethinking how popular culture represents longevity is key so that aging does not mean disappearing.

The Image of Old Age in the Media

News programs talk about old age almost always in terms of dependency, loneliness, or social costs. Advertising rarely shows older people, except to sell medications, insurance, or pension plans. In this way, a limited and partial image is offered, one that does not reflect the diversity of life paths, interests, and contributions of older people.

The contrast is clear: while news about longevity as a demographic challenge multiplies, faces of older people almost never appear in areas of innovation, culture, or politics. Thus, old age is presented less as a vital stage and more as a problem to be managed. This perspective conditions not only social perception, but also the self-esteem of those who feel absent from the media mirror.

Music and Film: Between Myth and Oblivion

In popular music, old age is rarely sung about without resorting to nostalgia. Youth is celebrated as the engine of desire and creativity; old age appears as memory or loss. However, musicians in their seventies and eighties continue to fill stadiums, showing that artistic creation does not fade with age. Bob Dylan, Caetano Veloso, or JoanManuel Serrat are examples of a generation that continues to dialogue with intergenerational audiences.

Film swings between two extremes: the caricature of the “grumpy old man” and the dramatic story that presents old age as an inevitable epilogue. But we also find works that break the mold: films that portray older characters as protagonists of desire, adventure, or transformation. From Amour by Michael Haneke to Nomadland by Chloé Zhao, cinema has shown that old age can be a stage of emotional depth, rebellion, and search for meaning. These images are valuable because they expand the imaginable and legitimize new narratives about the passage of time.

Social Networks: New Arenas, Old Prejudices

Social networks have opened an unexpected space for older people to build communities and show their voice. Influencers in their 70s, 80s, or 90s gather millions of followers on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube, breaking down prejudices about the digital world as a territory exclusive to youth. Fashion, food, or activism accounts run by older adults showcase a creative and connected longevity.

However, alongside these positive stories persist ageist comments: jokes that ridicule, stereotypes that infantilize, or prejudices that question their right to occupy space in youthful environments. Digital culture thus reflects the same ambivalence as society: openness and resistance at the same time.

What Is Said, What Is Silenced

We talk about old age when it becomes news because of dependency or fragility. We remain silent, however, about the talent, creativity, or humor that also accompany long life. What is not named does not exist in the collective imagination. And what is not represented is hardly valued.

This omission has profound consequences: the lack of older role models in positive roles feeds the idea that aging is disappearing. That is why rethinking popular culture is key to building an inclusive longevity society, where all generations can see themselves reflected and recognized.

Representing What Matters

We need stories that reflect the plurality of longevity: active people and frail people, stories of love and loss, learning, contradictions, and new searches. Longevity should not be a parenthesis, but rather a chapter with all the possibilities of life.

When popular culture offers diverse images, it helps reduce prejudices, broaden horizons, and prepare younger generations for their own long-lived futures. Representing what matters is, ultimately, an exercise in cultural justice.

Toward a Real Presence

Longevity challenges us not only in hospitals or public policies, but also in songs, series, memes, or novels. Being present in popular culture means being able to recognize yourself in it: feeling that your age does not erase you, but includes you. And that recognition is not a luxury: it is part of the right to continue being visible and valued in social life.

A society that integrates longevity into its cultural expressions gains symbolic richness, cohesion, and the capacity for dialogue between generations. Because growing old without disappearing is not only an individual aspiration: it is a collective challenge for which we need new perspectives, new stories, and new voices.

If you could decide how longevity is represented in popular culture… what images, words, or stories would you like to see reflected so as not to disappear?