How American is the world really becoming?
In a global community struggling to balance access and content on an international cyber platform, cultural commodification is a driving force in today’s economy.
As related by O’Shaughnessy and Stadler (Media and Society), “decreasing sensitivity to distance and diminishing production costs lead to benefits for local media producers and isolated communities”; the counter-argument to this viewpoint is the possibility for the spread of dominant cultures – what many perceive as ‘Americanisation’, throughout the world both culturally and economically through media and industry.
In the below infographic from Princeton’s International Networks Archive, it is clear the way in which two popular American food service organisations, McDonald’s and Starbucks, act to connect communities throughout the world – and the expanse of the respective global empires.
Starbucks’ and McDonald’s international expansion continues to be point of contention in terms of globalisation.
Though this image explores international relationships through food and beverage service, it acts as a signifier of the spread of American culture throughout the world, and the perceived acceptance of this.
Admittedly, there are other intra-cultural influences which come in to play when talking about such Americanisation, as Dr Melissa Chiu, Director of the Asia Society Museum in New York and Vice President of the Society’s Global Arts Programming, discusses in this Big Think video.
As Dr Chiu explains, global organisations become localised to the regions in which they are operating, encouraging both the preservation of the indigenous culture, but also the evolution of a new hybrid culture.
Throughout history, as empires rise and fall, as races migrate from nation to nation, hybridisation and convergence of cultures have continuously occurred and flourished.
Of course, as is seen in the case of conflicts globally, there can also be tension generated from attempted convergence of cultures.
Rooted initially in economics, and despite being driven in some ways by media, cultural convergence is also a natural evolution brought about by humanity’s capacity for exploration and adaptation.
P.s. Thankyou New Mandala for the image.
P.p.s. Thankyou Princeton INA for the infographic.
P.p.p.s. Thankyou Big Think for the video.
