Modern American pop began when the pioneer record companies, producers and songwriters of the Brill Building began to commercialise the sounds of the 1950's for a more mainstream audience in the wake of the demise of rock & roll. It's target audience was the clean-cut American kid who did not necessarily want to rebel, but the product was so inoffensive it probably also appealed to his or her parents.
All pop is essentially a polished derivative of other styles rather than a style itself, produced by the more conservative elements of the record industry for the perceived mass market for "easy listening". As well as Brill Building and it's antecedents, this market also includes the extension into modern times of vocal pop , essentially a post-war leftover of the Big Band swing era, and popular songs derived from musical theatre. This is the soft centre, the most obviously market-orientated section of the industry.
It doesn't necessarily follow, however, that the songwriting is sub-standard. Take, for example, the masterful, urbane pop that Burt Bacharach & Hal David wrote for Dionne Warwick in the 1960's. This is arguably songwriting honed to near perfection. And many regard the songs of Jimmy Webb as pop masterpieces. Similarly, the intricate structure of Brian Wilson's California pop was described by Leonard Bernstein as " music of genius ".
One could also make a strong case for the country-tinged songs written by Felice & Boudleaux Bryant for the Everly Brothers, the heart-felt ballads of Roy Orbison, some of the songs Bob Crewe & Bob Gaudio wrote for The Four Seasons and The Walker Brothers, Roger Nicholls & Paul Williams' schmaltzy pop for The Carpenters, Prince's material written for Sheena Easton, The Bangles and Sinead O'Connor and the songs Tom Kelly & Billy Steinberg wrote for Cyndi Lauper and Madonna to be designated as "classic pop".
The list could be extended, but it has to be said that the 1990's and beyond has seen a decline in mainstream pop due partly to lower exposure being given to what used to be called "hit parades". Traditional pop songwriting has inevitably also declined somewhat in the face of unrelenting onslaught from rap, hip-hop, DJ, and techno etc.
How this category will progress is not clear. It's future may lie partly in songs derived from these modern styles, as evidenced by their inclusion in the teen pop of Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and NSYNC, for example.

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