Croteau

1
Croteau Hoynes Ch.10 Media in a Changing
Global Culture

• In the 1960s Marshall McLuhan hoped that the rise
  of the electronic media and the globalization of
  this media would help bring people closer
  together democratically, so that everyones voice
  could be heard.
• Unfortunately this has yet to happen. While it is
  true that the media have moved toward
  globalization, we have not seen a corresponding
  rise in media-supported citizen democracy. The
  trends are mixed at best.

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Globalization has two components

• 1. The declining significance of physical
  distance.
• Today an image can be sent all over the globe. We
  are seeing the globalization of economic and
  political systems in which few societies can
  escape these powerful forces.
• 2. The potential for inter-cultural relationships
  as the media cross cultural boundaries.
• The exchange and intermingling of different
  cultures means the altering of peoples ways of
  life, for better and worse. We see hybridization
  but we also see loss of traditional culture.

3
Media Globalization

• Critics fear that globalization results in the
  loss of cultural diversity as one huge, corporate
  capitalist new world order emerges, dominated by
  the Fortune 500 Corporations.
• Their primary agenda is massification into mass
  consumerism.
• The hopes of Marshall McLuhan have not been met.
  One possible exception of the Internet, which has
  yet to be colonized by Big Media. However, Yahoo,
  Microsoft, and Google are working on privatizing
  the Internet, so it is possible that this will
  soon be colonized.

4
The Reality of Media Globalization

• Unfortunately the rise of a global media has led
  to developments that are a cause of concern to
  most observers.
• We have seen the rise of centralized media
  conglomerates of unprecedented size and power.
• These conglomerates appear uninterested in
  democratizing the media they are mainly
  interested in colonizing the media toward their
  own self-interests private profit.
• In short the globalization of mass media has been
  neither democratic nor egalitarian.

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Media Globalization

• Today, just five multinational corporations
  control 95 of all music carried by record stores
  in America.
• They control 50 of the music in Europe.
• These corporations are
• Warner
• Bertelsmann
• EMI
• Universal Music
• Sony

6
Media and Oligarchy

• Oligarchy means rule by the few. Our media
  industries are oligarchal. They are not guided by
  democratic ideals. Decision-making is done by a
  handful of extremely powerful people (white,
  males, mostly wealthy) whose main interest is
  private profit.

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The Cultural Imperialism Debate

• Today, powerful Western nations (and private
  corporations) exert an overwhelming influence
  upon the cultural affairs of less powerful
  nations.
• Those who are concerned about cultural
  imperialism fear that the products of Western
  cultures contain messages, values, and ideologies
  that may erode the unique identities of other
  nations.

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Cultural Imperialism

• If the goal of media conglomerates is to massify
  the globe, then their hidden agenda is to destroy
  the diversity of the globes cultures.
• Some of the Western values that are being imposed
  on non-Western nations include
• Individualism and competition for self interest
• Consumerism and materialism
• Status consciousness based on wealth
• Covert racism (by favoring Western forms of
  music, fashion, beauty, etc).
• Excessive hedonism, violence, and sex

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The Case of MTV

• MTV, part of Viacom, seeks to globalize a mass
  youth culture oriented toward consumerism.
• MTV saturated the American market years ago, so
  they have been seeking to colonize new markets in
  Europe, Asia, South America, Africa, and
  elsewhere.
• MTV-Asia is a case in point. A few years ago,
  only 15 of MTV Asia consisted of Asian music.
  The rest of MTV-Asia consisted of British and
  American pop or hip hop music.
• The hidden message of MTV-Asia was that it is
  cool to be a young Western-style consumer.
• In creating the MTV version of youth culture, MTV
  helps to divide young from old, and rich from
  poor.

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MTV

• To critics, MTV represents a Trojan Horse of
  deception and colonization.
• The values endorsed by MTV are not all
  self-interested, however. MTV is generally
  pro-youth, pro-environment, pro-democracy, and
  pro-freedom of expression.
• Therefore, the message of MTV is complex be
  cool, be young, be tolerant, and above all, be a
  style-conscious consumer.

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What is the face of America to the world?

• Ronald McDonald
• Mickey Mouse
• Barbie Doll
• MTV
• Britney Spears
• Baywatch-style TV shows
• Hollywood Action films
• Are these the images we want the world to see
  about who we are?

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The Price of Cultural Imperialism

• The homogenization of the worlds cultures means
  the loss of cultural diversity.
• The loss of cultural diversity means the loss of
  freedom, because freedom and diversity go hand in
  hand.

13
The Backlash

• Reactions to MTV vary across the globe.
• Where the local culture has lots of pride, there
  is resistance to MTV.
• The French, the Canadians and the Jamaicans all
  have strong prideful local cultures. They have
  been able to withstand the effects of cultural
  imperialism by insisting that MTV play a greater
  percentage of indigenous music.
• Specifically, they have passed regulations that
  require that up to about one-third of MTVs
  content consist of indigenous music.

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The Backlash

• However, other cultures that do not have strong
  local pride are more vulnerable, and they are
  easy prey.
• But there is a more severe backlash. In Pakistan,
  it is not unusual to hear about an anti-American
  demonstration taking place at a McDonalds, or
  even of a bombing of a McDonalds.
• Terrorists like Bin Laden try to exploit the
  rising fears of American hegemonic influence in
  their region, and these types of terrorists are
  succeeding to some extent.

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Critique of the Cultural Imperialism Thesis

• 1. It tends to assume corporations have been
  successful at massifying non-Western culture into
  Western values.
• Research suggests that local audiences do not
  accept Western messages hook, line, and sinker.
  Non-Western audiences bring their own filters as
  they interpret Western products.
• One example of this argument is provided by John
  Fiske.

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Critique of the Cultural Imperialism Thesis

• John Fiske argues that the cultural imperialism
  thesis does not take into account the multiple
  interpretive strategies used by foreign audiences
  when they encounter American products.
• The meaning of a Barbie Doll is not necessarily
  scripted by the Mattel Corporation.
• There are limits to the appeal of Western culture
  in other nations. People pick and choose only
  those elements of Western culture that suit their
  own indigenous lifestyles.

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Critique of the Cultural Imperialism Thesis

• 2. The effects of American media vary according
  to the type of media.
• Capital-intensive media (like TV and film) tend
  to be powerful massification forces.
• Hence, American TV and films are commonly seen
  throughout the world.
• The media themes that sell well across the globe
  include happy sex and happy violence.
• But lower cost media (like radio, comic books and
  other print media) are less influential because
  local cultures can produce their own versions of
  these medias.

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Critique of the Cultural Imperialism Thesis

• 3. It is also important to note that cultural
  influence is a 2-way street. Globalization has
  brought new influences to American culture, as
  David Byrne and Paul Simon have shown.
• We are witnesses to an age in which new, creative
  hybrid music, fashion, and styles are emerging
  due to this 2-way influence. Indeed, the great
  breakthroughs in culture are often due to
  hybridization in which different cultures
  influence each other.

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The Corporate Response

• American corporations have responded in two ways
  to the issue of cultural imperialism
• 1. They have tried to impose their styles on
  local cultures, such as when MTV puts acts like
  Britney Spears in heavy rotation on MTV-Asia.
• 2. They have tried to adjust to the parameters of
  local cultures that actively resist imperialism
  such as by mixing Western styles with more local
  styles to appeal to the local culture. This
  strategy is more ethical because it is a bit less
  imperialistic.

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Conclusion

• Cultural imperialism is a real problem for the
  weaker developing nations, but less of a problem
  for those nations that already have strong local
  cultures.
• We need to be concerned about the worlds
  developing nations and the threat they face from
  cultural imperialism.
• They have been urging the United Nations to
  encourage a new form of mass media which promotes
  the mutual flow of culture rather than the 1-way
  flow promoted by most media oligopolies. So far,
  the media oligopolies have been getting their way.

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End