"Globalisation, Sustainability and the Media"
Richard Miles
Globalisation
- Socialist- The process of transformation of local or regional phenomena into global ones. It can be described as a process by which the people of the world are unified by a single society and function together. This process is a combination of economic, technological, sociocultural and political forces.
- Capitalist- The elimination of state-enforced restrictions on exchanges across borders and the increasingly integrated and complex global systems of production and exchange that has emerged as a result.
A by-product of markets expanding into second and third world countries- This has created a dominance of one particular culture over the rest of the world- Western Culture
"McDonaldization"
- Multi-layered complex culture
- How american big companies are taking over the globe
- A particular idea of life which is transposed all over the world- a forced model of society
dominating
- The idea of a fragmented, disposable culture
- A job which you don't want to do but you have to do because there is nothing else to do- work
doesn't become meaningful or fulfilling
"Understanding Media" Book (1964) by Marshall McLuhan
- Argued that telecommunication would have a huge effect on our society- bringing the world together
"A Sudden implosion has heightened human awareness of responsibility to an intense degree"
- Marshall McLuhan
- Rapidity of Communication echoes the senses
- We can experience instantly the effects of our actions on a global scale
The Internet
- These effects argued by McLuhan hasn't happened
- As a society, we are desensitised to this and are not sympathetic
- We are more separated than ever due to this technology
- Different cultures are realising that there values are being taken over
- Globalisation has reshaped our world in a more negative way
Jihad McWorld by Benjamin R. Barber
- Centripetal Forces- bringing the world together in uniform global society
- Centrifugal Forces- tearing the world apart in tribal wars
- Feel like there values are being destroyed and take over by the world
Three problems of Globalisation
- Sovereignty- Challenges to the idea of a nation-state
- Accountability- Transnational forces and organisations: who controls them?
- Having multinational companies means they are almost impossible to police
- Businesses are more powerful than Governments- the can act outside of this control
- Passing laws will do nothing
- Identity- Who are we?
- Loss of identity due to this monoculture
"We are not moving towards a cultural rainbow that reflects the diversity of the worlds existing cultures. Rather, we are witnessing the rise of an increasing homogenised popular culture underwritten by a Western Culture Industry based in New York, Hollywood, London and Milan"
- Steger
Cultural Imperialism
- If the "Global Village" is run with a certain set of values then it would not be so much an integrated community as an assimilated one
"Rigging the "Free Market"
- Media Conglomerates operate as Oligopolies (Giant Clusters of Businesses all in the control by One Central Figure)
- Effectively, 6 companies are controlling the world's media, all of which are American
- These companies control the output of the worlds media- Internet, Magazines, Television
- Whatever you are reading, by proxy, you are taking an American take on the world
- There are 4 main targets by American Oligopolies- North America (Prime Market), Western Europe/Japan/Australia, Developing Countries and Tiger Countries, Then Rest of the World (As there isn’t as much money to be made there)
- Very slow, through the back door understanding
on the culture where the values and ideas of
Amercian Capitalism gets spread. This
is a slow force of indoctrination, making everyone else
believe that your way
of life is the best way of life.
- - Schiller-
dominance of US driven commercial media forces US model of broadcasting onto
the rest
of the world nbt also inculcates US style consumerism n societies that
can ill afford it
- - Big
Brother- western cultural ideas re-packaged all over the world and specific to
the culture they
are marketed at. Making money for the original source.
- - Skin Whitening Cream in India- Perverse form of cultural assimilation
Chomsky & Herman (1998) "Manufacturing Consent" Book
- Argues that the in the media system is a form of propaganda for the way of western life
- Indoctrination effect of constantly being fed this through what you watch and read
- Propaganda Model (5 Basic Filters)
- Ownership
- Funding
- Sourcing
- Flak
- Anti Communist Ideology
Ownership
- Large percentage of newspapers are owned by Rupert Murdock
- He has a particular political take on the world
- His agenda is to make as much money as possible
- His newspapers articles are very self-serving and will do anything to make their money
- These people have immense power- peoples political allegiance can be swayed by Newspapers
Sourcing
- The stuff that is reported is what is only allowed to be reported
- Looking out for there best interests
Funding
- Newspapers acting as businesses to make a profit
- Advertisers will withdraw funding if there adverts are not done properly
- Controls the information we get which is representative of big business
Flak
- Organisations which manipulate the news even further
- Lobby Groups or Media which spreads their take on the world
- Global Climate Coalition- Flak group to represent multinational Oil Companies
- Get adverts and news in the newspapers while arresting protesters
against- destroying voices of dissent and paint the oil company's in a great
light
"Global warming is one of the biggest hoaxes ever perpetuated on the Amercian public"
- Jim Inhofe
- Using the media to transform the way people think
- Dramatic way of getting the message across using scientific evidence
- To save the Planet:
- Release less C02
- Plant more Vegetation
- Try to be c02 Neutral
- Recycle
- Buy a Hybrid Vehicle
- Encourage everyone to watch this film
- The solution to the worlds problems is to save more stuff- more money for the big businesses
Sustainability
"The development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet this town needs"
- Brundtland Commission (1987)
- Needs (Particularly the World's Poor)- Limitations of Technology
- Sustainable Capitalism
BIOX Power Plant in Canada
- an attempt to make a power plant that is sustainable using alternative ways to make alternative,
clean fuel
- Its renewable but it is more expensive to produce with less profit so this would never interest large
fuel companies
Greenwashing
- Exploiting the concerns of people being concerned about the environment
- A Green market to make it look more eco-friendly
- McDonalds have changed to Green so that they appeal to a new market
- You can now buy Eco to make yourself feel better
G20 Protests
- People are realising that this problem is being caused by the Governments and not by themselves
"Most things are not designed for the needs of the people but for the needs of the manufacturers to sell to the people"
- V. Papanek
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