WHO RUNS THE GLOBAL VILLAGE?
Cultural imperialism and the convergence of cultures
Our progress 
We have introduced the development of globalisation and its impact on local cultural identities, specifically nationhood
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We considered the impact of transnational media conglomerates in developing a global communications system
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We will now examine how this system impacts upon cultures and people around the world
The Situation
The processes of globalisation mean that many cultures are now heavily exposed to ‘foreign’ cultural influences
These influences are primarily American and are dominated by transnational media conglomerates
But does it result in cultural change that produces greater cultural sameness ?
How are our cultural identities actually affected by these global processes?
To what extent has your cultural identity been affected by the processes of globalisation?
Global media
You
Today
An introduction to cultural imperialism
Social media the global imagined community
Social media and cultural pluralism
The stubbornness of local audiences
Cultural imperialism
This predominance of Western media has led many to suggest that these forms of media, along with the spread of ‘Western values’, are the latest form of ‘cultural imperialism’
Cultural imperialism occurs when the ideas, practices and systems of one culture are imposed upon or adopted by another culture
Imperialism once involved the active takeover of one civilisation for another (colonialisation), now it can often be a voluntary process
Media and imperialism 
Concerns over the impact of global communications on developing countries emerged in the 1960s as these nations began to enter global society
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As many nations were establishing their independence, global media influences were seen to be stifling this growing cultural expression
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Transnational media is arguably now colonising the Western world too
Spreading Americans
American culture is being spread by media corporations, rather than the American government
Nonetheless, American ideals are strongly present
This presence is in both the content and the style of American media
How much has your cultural identity been influenced by American culture?
Profitable culture
American culture is spread not only through its content, but its style
The drive for profitability has led to the reproduction of similar forms of entertainment, even if the content is different
Re-makes, cross-overs and re-runs are becoming increasingly common to avoid the risks of originality
Culture is being commodified, reduced and reproduced as superficial brands
The culture industry
For many these global, or American, brands wholly represent Western values
They become an aspirational point of identification that mediates cultural identity
Here a large ‘culture’ industry has developed that promotes and sells cultural images and ideals in a commodified form
McDonaldization
This spread of homogenous global cultural form is captured by George Ritzer’s (1993) concept of McDonaldization
Comparing global cultural process to those of McDonald’s restaurants, Ritzer argued that global cultures are becoming increasingly standardised and calculable
Similar concepts of ‘Disneyification’ and ‘McWorlds’ portray the homogenisation of culture through commercialisation, mass reproduction and inauthenticity
Chinese mimicry
This trend of ‘architectural mimicry’ or duplictecture in China (Bosker, 2013), is consider ‘self-colonisation’
These towns are entirely ‘themed’ around Western icons, but are Chinese interpretations or ‘remixes’
This pattern of replication is repeated in other industries with China and South-East Asia
Why?
An imagined community
When defining the nation, Benedict Anderson (1983/1991) argued that because large communities cannot be cohered through faceto-face interaction, cohesion must occur through an imaginary identification with others
This imaginary is based upon an identification with symbols and ideas that allow for the construction of a common identity and common bond with other people
If communities are imagined on the basis of shared resources, globalisation provides a much wider range of symbolic points of identification
We can identify with certain shared cultural ideas, practices, images and ‘sayings’ on a global scale
The digital village
Marshall McLuhan’s (1911 -1980) argued that we developing an electronically connected ‘global village’
Ideas and events are shared more intensely with little regard for geography
We are able to establish non-territorial ‘communities of interest’
Structuring our digital lives 
We live in a singular body, even if our mind travels elsewhere
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Laurence Scott argues that we can be materially present, but social media facilitates our mind to be actively elsewhere – we can be in multiple places at once
Do you share more in common with a distant or virtual cultural community than your current geographical location?
The plurality of social media
The internet promotes cultural pluralism because it allows for collective audience participation and interpretation, as opposed to ‘top down’ ideologies and journalism
Social media users are producers of media as well as consumers
As a consequence of this wide range of users, diverse views are available to a global audience
Social media thus allows for users to construct cultural identities and communities of interest that are not strictly tied to local geography or traditions
Interpretative audiences
Social media facilitates critical engagement with media
Audience reception theory suggests that the meaning of a text is not inherent to that text
Instead it is produced through audience interpretations, which can be dominant, negotiated or oppositional
Audiences thus have some control over the influence of global media, but this control occurs within a framework that limits these options
Watch a trending YouTube video Where is it from and who is commenting on it?
What proportion of your social media connections are from your local culture?
The stubbornness of the local
Despite the availability of global cultural influences, for many people the most meaningful cultural interactions are locally orientated
Cultural identities and practices and not just constructions but are emotional attachments
Audiences are inherently local and remain embedded within cultural traditions
As a consequence, local cultures are resistant to change
Indigenisation
Arjun Appadurai (1998) defines indigenization as the local appropriation of global forces
Global media may appeal to local consumers, but they bring cultural traditions or ‘memories’
The cultural tradition may be global, but it is reinvented until it ‘feels’ like a local tradition
This ‘new’ tradition often stands are a marker of cultural independence
Conversely, corporate global media also appropriate this process
Hybridisation
Hybridisation is, according to Rowe and Schelling (1991) “the way in which forms become separated from existing practices and recombine with new forms in new practice”
Consequently, we see ‘hybrid’ cultures that are expressed in the media, such as in reality TV where a global concept is locally interpreted
Do you participate in any cultural practices that originated elsewhere?
Glocalisation
Glocalisation describes the process of adapting products for local markets
Glocalisation occurred as capitalism sought to be more flexible in its approach to global consumers
This allows for the reproduction of the commodity form through the appropriation of local content
Is this local or global?
Summary
We are increasingly exposed to images and ideas from outside of our cultural traditions and locations
These ideas tend to be Western or American
However, audiences are always critical and interpretative and social media technology allows for consumers to be producers of media and culture
Next week
The next week WEEK 6
GLOBALISING SOCIALISING: FROM THE GLOBAL TO THE PERSONAL
NOW IN LC068 READING: Beck-Gernsheim, E. (2007) From 'the family' to 'families': How individualisation and globalisation are changing our personal lives. Soundings 35, March 2006, pp.105-114