Why does globalization of popular culture cause problems? Chapter 4

Think about it…When does the diffusion of pop culture become a problem?

Popular Culture Contributions to the spread of popular culture Industrialization Urbanization Rise of formal education Resultant increase in leisure time All the reasons popular culture spread caused folk culture to retreat

Problems with the Globalization of Culture Often Destroys Folk Culture preserves traditions as museum pieces or tourism gimmicks. Mexican Mariachis Swimming Pool, West Edmonton Mall, Canada

Muslim Women in Traditional Dress at Indoor Ski Resort

Problems with the Globalization of Popular Culture: Destroys Folk Culture Western Media Imperialism? U.S., Britain, and Japan dominate worldwide media. Glorified consumerism, violence, sexuality, and militarism? U.S. (Networks and CNN) and British (BBC) news media provide/control the dissemination of information worldwide.

Environmental Problems with Cultural Globalization Accelerated Resource Use through Accelerated Consumption Furs: minx, lynx, jaguar, kangaroo, whale, sea otters (18th Century Russians) fed early fashion trends. Consumerism evident in most Western Media fashions, including hip hop and rock and roll. Inefficient over-consumption of Meats; meat-eating pop cultures New larger housing desires and associated energy and water use. Golf courses use valuable water and destroy habitat worldwide. Pollution: waste from fuel generation and discarded products, plastics, marketing and packaging materials

Pebble Beach, CA

Placelessness: Anywhere USA Their style is no style; a sense of sameness pervades. Nothing sets these structures apart as being in a particular place; this is placelessness

Placelessness James Kunstler speaks of “geography of nowhere” in describing America

Advertising Most effective device for popular culture diffusion Commercial advertising of retail products bombards us visually and orally Using psychology, we are sold products we do not need

Advertising Modern advertising is very place-conscious Products and services are linked to popular, admired places Example of the “Marlboro Man” and the romanticized American West Remarkably such techniques work in countries as far away as Egypt

Marlboro Man in Egypt

Advertising and Diffusion: Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia Symbols are important marketing tools and companies aim to get instant recognition for their products. Here a row of former Chinese shop houses has been renovated as a “strip mall.” The signs are international status symbols meaning “American.”

Advertising and Diffusion: Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia American pop culture is becoming increasingly popular in Asia to the dismay of many traditional parents. What signs do you recognize?

International diffusion Popular cultures of North America, Europe, and Australia have become similar and in constant contact Americans lineup to hear touring British rock musicians Rocky Mountain ski resorts are built in Alpine-Swiss architecture Latest Paris fashions appear in American department stores Fast-food franchises of McDonalds and Kentucky Fried Chicken diffused to Russia Motel chains such as Holiday Inn took root in Tibet and other countries

Bangkok, Thailand

Diffusion of TV, 1954–1999 Television has diffused widely since the 1950s, but some areas still have low numbers of TVs per population Much media is still state-controlled. Ten Most Censored Countries: North Korea Myanmar (Burma) Turkmenistan Equatorial Guinea Libya Eritrea Cuba Uzbekistan Syria Belarus Source: The Committee to Protect Journalists. www.cpj.org.

Cyberspace Perhaps the personal computer and Internet access have created another new type of place Certain words we use imply it has a geography—”Cyberspace” The information superhighway connects not two points, but all points, creating a new sort of place

Cyberspace Cyberspace possesses some geographical qualities Enhances opportunities for communication over long distances Allows access to rare data banks Encourages and speeds cultural diffusion The Internet helps heighten regional contrasts Uneven spatial distribution of Internet connections creates a new way people differ

Internet Connections

Internet Connections The Internet is diffusing today, but access varies widely.

Video http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/video/flv/generic.html?s=frow03pe6

Agree of Disagree? The country of Bhutan should have government control on TV to preserve it’s folk culture.