GLOBAL MEDIA INDUSTRIES

Lecture on April 25, 2006

1. Roger Silverstone: „Finding a Voice – Minorities, Media and the Global Commons” (2002)

Basic Assumptions

• Media are essential for every analysis of global entity.
• There is a bitter fight for shares of the digital world on the market of being perceived.
• Media are converging, which means that they are melting together while at the same time forming a further growing network.

Core Terms
The Global Common: Silverstone applies the metaphor of the global common for the internet which could serve as a common global space. His core question is to what extent and with which consequences minorities are able to take part in this global community
Disaspora – the marginal space of minorities: Minorities want to use electronic media to create community, identity, mobility and agitation. Like that cultures with members living in diaspora (i.e. scattered over different regions) are able to persist – though in another form than before.
Global Culture: Silverstone describes the global culture as a very complex network which is in a continuous flow and therefore instable and fragmented. The advantages of globalization in the field of media and culture are not equally distributed.

2. Ien Ang: „Media Globalization, 'Cultural Imperialism', and the Rise of 'Asia'” (2002)

Basic Assumptions

• Media promote global cultural competition. The ascent of Asia us an ascent of global capitalistic culture.
• Nations with weak national identities tend to strong connections to media for building up their own culture.
• Communication technologies are seen as a new challenge in Asia. By using media creative Asian ideas shall be put on the global market.

Core Terms
Cultural Imperialism: Ang describes cultural imperialism as an uneven proportion of power between the culturally dominating West and the subordinated rest. It can be seen as a kind of colonization by concepts and beliefs with the aid of media. Cultural Imperialism results in a capitalistic globalization through media and in a “mass-westernization”.
Reverse Cultural Imperialism: The reverse cultural imperialism expresses the wish of Asia for global economic power and cultural authority. The western dominance in global media is attacked by spreading Asian values by media.
Glocalization: Combination of globalization with acting in a local sphere. Media form the network which enables cultural identities to persist but also allows manipulations by other cultural influences.

3. Michael Kunczik, Astrid Zipfel „Die Globalisierung der Agenturen im Werbe-, PR- und Marketingsektor“ (2002)

Basic Assumptions

• Globalisation of advertising, PR and marketing agencies follows the internationalisation of their clients.
• The reduction of restrictions in American Media Law in die 1990ies caused a change in advertising industry – this was followed by a spate of mergers in the agency sector (biggest example: AOL + TimeWarner)
• Campaigns for global clients become more diversified and culture-specific whereas realisation and billing in the same agency provides advantages.

Core Terms
Holding-structure: Global agencies are concentrated in an oligopoly. They use their knowledge through networks and offer intercultural expertise. This organisational structure profits from synergy-effects but includes the danger of inter-organisational power struggles.
Strategies: Besides a geographical diversification agencies search for niches. They want to serve their clients all over the world in all fields of activity.

Summary of Core Theses
Silverstone: Media are important as a global mediator of cultures especially for minorities. The growing media network functions as a virtual common space which is difficult to regulate and control.
Ang: There is a competition between cultures in the media which more likely promotes cultural pluralism than homogenisation. National media are an important economic factor and a strong instrument of cultural power which is reflected in the Asian fight against Western cultural imperialism.
Kunczik/Zipfel: The advertising, PR and marketing sector serves as interface between international economy and mass media. Global advertising agencies analyse and observe cultural particularities of different societies in a global context. By that they are able to influence intercultural communication and intra-cultural developments.

Synthesis
The connection of media and culture is getting stronger because of economic globalization and technological progress. On the one hand media serve as space for intra- and intercultural communication and promote cultural diversity and community. On the other hand media can be exploited by the state or economy by regulating and controlling their contents. The development is more likely to result in pluralism than in homogenisation as cultures constantly compete with each other.

Karolin Böhm, Katharina Pracejus & Carolin Winter