Jenny Burman introduced a completely new and unfamiliar area for communication analysis in her article, “ Migrant Remittances and Diasporic Communication”. She described migrant remittances, which are essentially monetary transfers from members of migrant communities in new countries of residence to their ‘intimates back home’, as transactions that are saturated in meaning (Burman 2006). Instead of the exchange of money existing as a simple transmission of monetary value, she explains how migrant remittances in particular, hold great significance.
Before this reading, I was unaware of this topic as a site for communication scholars. As part of the third tier in international communication, I did acknowledge the interest in examining migrant individuals and the types of communication they engage in with their homeland. However, I definitely failed to acknowledge the interest with any analysis involving monetary exchange or transfer. I found this fairly new idea quite interesting, and quickly understood what she meant. Money exchanged between distant parties, like any other object, connotes various types of meaning. Whether it is money sent from person to person, from corporation to corporation, or from an immigrant of a new country to their family back home, there is an enormous amount of meaning associated.
She explained how migrant remittances can communicate a range of meanings depending on when they were sent, how they were sent and by whom they were sent. Often money sent by a newly immigrated member to his/her family left at home, acts an emotional channel, allowing a mother or father for example, to disseminate love, care and comfort to their children left behind. Burman even explained how it can become almost like “a mothering practice” (Burman 2006). In times of need or crisis money can also act to commute safety and security, and provide a sense of non physical support from migrant members. For a lot of migrant groups, remittances hold a substantial place within their current culture. They represent strongly and vividly meanings that most non-migrant individuals do not necessarily understand.
On a personal note, I worked at a resort up North in Muskoka for 3 years that predominately relied on international staff from Barbados. The Bayesian community therefore was quite large and in a sense were a migrant community. Interestingly enough, as a group, they heavily relied and anticipated the third payday of every month. This day, for many of them, was the day they received the cheque that they would designate to send back to their family, be it their children, parents or sometimes even friends. Many of the workers, especially the restaurant staff, individually left their families etc in search of success for the season. During this time of the month, the Bayesian staff was always noted to be happier and more upbeat, mainly due to the ability to transfer money ‘back home’. These ‘remittances’ I understand, probably helped to convey what many of them couldn’t afford to communicate over the phone, the news of success and love. In a sense, these exchanges held great meaning and significance for the Bayesian workers, and this significance as everyone at the resort could see, was not strictly because of the money.
Furthermore, Burman even discussed how remittances not only convey a sense of meaning from the sender to the receiver, but they also often tend to represent and convey a sense of meaning to the receiver’s surroundings. Remittances, which are sometimes spent conspicuously, can represent a certain status, and can even reflect to outsiders that one is receiving remittances (Burman 2006). This was most interesting because I had never thought about money, with regards to migrant exchange, this critically before. These migrant exchanges are essentially as significant a communication network as any other, if not more, acting as a relationship between individuals in opposing regions of the world. Diasporic communication in the form of monetary exchange possesses strong cultural importance for many migrant groups, signifying much more than what many people see as purely financial.
It is really provocative to think about the way that these types of monetary communication channels shape the cultural meanings and migrant relationships on a global scale. This area of study surely seems like a forum that deserves a lot of attention and focus, as there are many more ways to think about and understand these networks. I agree with Burman that remittances are becoming an “increasingly important part of transmigrant communication circuits” (Burman 2006). I also think that a further analysis of the meanings behind migrant remittances could possibly even prove beneficial for economists or other scholars involved in foreign international development. These types of migrant exchanges obviously influence many country’s economies and their financial structure and therefore taking a closer look at the underlying meanings involved in these practices would seem beneficial. Burman even mentioned that economists already frequently discuss the motivations for sending remittances (Burman 2006).
All together, Burman demonstrated a curious topic for this week’s lecture and discussion, and led me to support her belief that remittances are indeed an important aspect to the study of diasporic communication.
Burman, Jenny (2006). ‘Migrant Remittances as Diasporic Communication’. The Journal of International Communication, 12 (2): 7-18.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Monday, March 31, 2008
The Haka::
Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3o0pv6k37yE&eurl=http://musicandsports.bossaball.net/2007/haka-football-is-war-polynesian-tribal-chants.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3o0pv6k37yE&eurl=http://musicandsports.bossaball.net/2007/haka-football-is-war-polynesian-tribal-chants.htm
Global exploitation of a fluid cultural form..
The Haka: Polynesian Tribal Chant
Music and cultural globalization accounts for an interesting and vibrant theme within international communication. What interested me most about this weeks topic and discussion was the idea of looking at music and sound as cultural medium that is fluid, unstable, transportable and mobile. The ideas of hybridity and authenticity engaged a lot of my attention as the fluidity and intermixing of various musical forms and participatory traditions evoke a lot of questions about purity, geographical location and origination. After thinking about music as a commodified product, the previous week, it seemed appropriate to turn to the issue of music as a cultural entity, reflecting certain traditions and indigenous ways of life. The article by Feld, illustrated quite well the types of problems and issues that can arise when battling with indigenous music as a transportable, fluid medium.
In lecture we discussed how musical traditions and genres have been historically formed through long and complex relationships of borrowing and incorporating with one another. As illustrated with the example of the slide guitar, musical instruments are one form of ‘music’ that has experienced somewhat of a global life, originating in one locale, and disseminating over time, throughout many regions, and within many musical domains. Flowing from initial Spanish origins to Hawaiian adaption, this global instrument was later utilized throughout the United States, incorporated into the genres of Country and Blues music and eventually taken up in a Nigerian and Indian context. This type of adaptation and innovation corresponds to many other musical instruments and technologies, and also illustrates what many indigenous harmonies, melodies, and practices of listening and participating have experienced throughout recent history.
Given the type of intermixing, music and musical traditions have undertaken throughout history, many heated and problematic issues concerning its rightful and authentic origins have come alongside (Afunakwa’s song is a prime example). With the expanding growth of the music and media industry, and the increased Western desire for non-Western and ‘authentic’ cultural forms, indigenous music and musical traditions have been exploited in many ways. One recent issue that demonstrates the type of struggle that indigenous cultural forms experience due to globalization, involves the New Zealand All Blacks and the Haka.
The Haka is a tribal song and dance of the Maori culture that has been most renown as the pre-game dance performed by the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team (Bossaball 2007). Hakas traditionally have various uses in everyday life, but are best known in the aggressive form of a war dance to prepare for battle, garner strength, proclaim their powers, and triumph life over death. The dance consists of a combination of rough body movements, including body percussion and facial expressions, and rhythmically chanting vocals, including crying out loud and grunting. The indigenous dance, has been performed by the All Blacks rugby team for over a hundred years at all international and home games to represent their cultural heritage and local ancestral roots (Bossaball 2007). This dance however, has been recently exploited by an American College Football team from Hawaii, known as the Warriors. In 2006, the Warriors, performed the Haka before almost every game. Claiming that their cultural heritage coincided with New Zealand and the Maori tribes, they expressed that it was their right to perform the song and dance. This issue sparked much controversy in the press and the All Blacks, along with their New Zealand nation did not express much support. The team was eventually penalized by the league for using the dance which led the team to abandon the dance. However, the Warriors have not been the only ‘Western’ team to exploit this indigenous dance. Jefferson High-school in Oregon, also decided to perform the Maori dance before several games in 2007, which also lead their team to be penalized by the league (ONE News 2007).
In addition, sports teams have not been the only players to recently exploit the dance. The international car company Fiat, launched a very controversial advertisement in 2006 of women imitating the Haka (Ka mate’) (Pierard 2007). The car commercial portrayed women in an Italian street mimicking the Haka’s words and actions, with a voice over at the end proclaiming that modern women need to be more assertive. The advertisement was condemned for its exploitation without permission, criticized by the All Blacks coach, and even noted to have been aired despite caution from Foreign Affairs (Pierard 2007).
These strong examples raise issues about the fluidity of music, musical performance and the intensification that media and new technologies place on these types of cultural forms. These sports teams and this car company essentially took a dance they saw on television or heard about through other mass mediums and used it for their own purposes. They disregarded the original indigenous purposes and the meanings attached, and exploited the dance for their own gain. These football teams took something sacred and traditionally representative of Maori identity, and essentially recreated something inferior. Each essentially misrepresented an indigenous musical performance without permission and without any respect to accuracy. This, in my opinion, provides a perfect example of how globalization has led to the Western tendency to take primitive and pure forms of cultural expression and reproduce it for themselves. This type of cultural borrowing does produce many problems in my opinion, especially with regards to authenticity. Instead of preserving and exposing the authentic Haka, both Fiat and the sports teams performed an impure and disrespected version of the original. It is unfortunate, that this is only one of many instances where a traditional or indigenous cultural form has been exploited by the world market. Music and musical performance, as displayed within Feld’s article, is arguably one of the most fluid non material forms that faces incredible pressure due to globalization.
Bossaball. “Music and Sports; An Explanation of Crossroads: Haka, Football is War: Polynesian Tribal Chants.” 2007. 29 March 2008 < http://musicandsports.bossaball.net/2007/haka-football-is-war-polynesian-tribal-chants.htm>.
ONE News. “US highschool causes stir with haka.” 2007. 29, March 2008 < http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/536641/1459688>.
Pierard, Louis. “Hawke’s Bay Today: We are too precious about Haka.” 2007. APN News and Media. 29 March 2008.
Music and cultural globalization accounts for an interesting and vibrant theme within international communication. What interested me most about this weeks topic and discussion was the idea of looking at music and sound as cultural medium that is fluid, unstable, transportable and mobile. The ideas of hybridity and authenticity engaged a lot of my attention as the fluidity and intermixing of various musical forms and participatory traditions evoke a lot of questions about purity, geographical location and origination. After thinking about music as a commodified product, the previous week, it seemed appropriate to turn to the issue of music as a cultural entity, reflecting certain traditions and indigenous ways of life. The article by Feld, illustrated quite well the types of problems and issues that can arise when battling with indigenous music as a transportable, fluid medium.
In lecture we discussed how musical traditions and genres have been historically formed through long and complex relationships of borrowing and incorporating with one another. As illustrated with the example of the slide guitar, musical instruments are one form of ‘music’ that has experienced somewhat of a global life, originating in one locale, and disseminating over time, throughout many regions, and within many musical domains. Flowing from initial Spanish origins to Hawaiian adaption, this global instrument was later utilized throughout the United States, incorporated into the genres of Country and Blues music and eventually taken up in a Nigerian and Indian context. This type of adaptation and innovation corresponds to many other musical instruments and technologies, and also illustrates what many indigenous harmonies, melodies, and practices of listening and participating have experienced throughout recent history.
Given the type of intermixing, music and musical traditions have undertaken throughout history, many heated and problematic issues concerning its rightful and authentic origins have come alongside (Afunakwa’s song is a prime example). With the expanding growth of the music and media industry, and the increased Western desire for non-Western and ‘authentic’ cultural forms, indigenous music and musical traditions have been exploited in many ways. One recent issue that demonstrates the type of struggle that indigenous cultural forms experience due to globalization, involves the New Zealand All Blacks and the Haka.
The Haka is a tribal song and dance of the Maori culture that has been most renown as the pre-game dance performed by the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team (Bossaball 2007). Hakas traditionally have various uses in everyday life, but are best known in the aggressive form of a war dance to prepare for battle, garner strength, proclaim their powers, and triumph life over death. The dance consists of a combination of rough body movements, including body percussion and facial expressions, and rhythmically chanting vocals, including crying out loud and grunting. The indigenous dance, has been performed by the All Blacks rugby team for over a hundred years at all international and home games to represent their cultural heritage and local ancestral roots (Bossaball 2007). This dance however, has been recently exploited by an American College Football team from Hawaii, known as the Warriors. In 2006, the Warriors, performed the Haka before almost every game. Claiming that their cultural heritage coincided with New Zealand and the Maori tribes, they expressed that it was their right to perform the song and dance. This issue sparked much controversy in the press and the All Blacks, along with their New Zealand nation did not express much support. The team was eventually penalized by the league for using the dance which led the team to abandon the dance. However, the Warriors have not been the only ‘Western’ team to exploit this indigenous dance. Jefferson High-school in Oregon, also decided to perform the Maori dance before several games in 2007, which also lead their team to be penalized by the league (ONE News 2007).
In addition, sports teams have not been the only players to recently exploit the dance. The international car company Fiat, launched a very controversial advertisement in 2006 of women imitating the Haka (Ka mate’) (Pierard 2007). The car commercial portrayed women in an Italian street mimicking the Haka’s words and actions, with a voice over at the end proclaiming that modern women need to be more assertive. The advertisement was condemned for its exploitation without permission, criticized by the All Blacks coach, and even noted to have been aired despite caution from Foreign Affairs (Pierard 2007).
These strong examples raise issues about the fluidity of music, musical performance and the intensification that media and new technologies place on these types of cultural forms. These sports teams and this car company essentially took a dance they saw on television or heard about through other mass mediums and used it for their own purposes. They disregarded the original indigenous purposes and the meanings attached, and exploited the dance for their own gain. These football teams took something sacred and traditionally representative of Maori identity, and essentially recreated something inferior. Each essentially misrepresented an indigenous musical performance without permission and without any respect to accuracy. This, in my opinion, provides a perfect example of how globalization has led to the Western tendency to take primitive and pure forms of cultural expression and reproduce it for themselves. This type of cultural borrowing does produce many problems in my opinion, especially with regards to authenticity. Instead of preserving and exposing the authentic Haka, both Fiat and the sports teams performed an impure and disrespected version of the original. It is unfortunate, that this is only one of many instances where a traditional or indigenous cultural form has been exploited by the world market. Music and musical performance, as displayed within Feld’s article, is arguably one of the most fluid non material forms that faces incredible pressure due to globalization.
Bossaball. “Music and Sports; An Explanation of Crossroads: Haka, Football is War: Polynesian Tribal Chants.” 2007. 29 March 2008 < http://musicandsports.bossaball.net/2007/haka-football-is-war-polynesian-tribal-chants.htm>.
ONE News. “US highschool causes stir with haka.” 2007. 29, March 2008 < http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/536641/1459688>.
Pierard, Louis. “Hawke’s Bay Today: We are too precious about Haka.” 2007. APN News and Media. 29 March 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
"Rip, Mix, Burn!"
(1) Music Industry, in need of a cultural turn.
(2) P2P downloading develops new love affairs with music..
This past week, we explored a topic that significantly affects our modern digital culture. As university students, and as media scholars, the topic of piracy lends a hand to a rich and passionate arena for discussion. With the development and recent global explosion of digital technology, control over information and cultural content has been severely displaced from producers to consumers. Music, film, video games and software along with almost any type of digitalized information, have ultimately been converted into something that can be ‘freely’ ‘shared’ on a global scale. Essentially, new technologies initiated by the internet, have allowed mass amounts of people around the world, to engage in the unauthorized reproduction and circulation of cultural and media products. The phenomenon of digital piracy, the stealing of digital information, has severely affected many cultural industries especially those involved in music and film.
This weeks readings in particular, proved to be very constructive. Each article contributed to expanding my current knowledge and understanding of a number of issues that greatly affect my generation of young adults. Specifically, music piracy is an issue that is central to my role as an avid music consumer. As bad as it might be to admit, I frequently engage in music piracy, downloading and sharing songs and albums free from the constraints of monetary expense. Out of the three articles assigned, I tend to favor the article by Ian Condry, entitled, “Cultures of Music Piracy” which focused on an ethnographic comparison of the US and Japan. Condry’s article was very thought provoking as he took an approach to the topic of music piracy in a way that I was not quite expecting. What was most interesting to me was how he discussed solving the issue, or the possible ways he thought would be most influential. He emphasized the struggles of protecting digital content these days and basically stated that he did not think stricter technologies would help resolve the issues of piracy. I definitely agree. Given the strength of our global network and the widening range of storage and transferring technologies, it seems more than unlikely that technology is the answer to combat a technological problem. What Condry emphasized, which really got me thinking, was whether or not the solution could be cultural. Could piracy be solved by some sort of cultural intervention or coerced cultural transformation? Can the industry essentially teach respect for property? I greatly believe this to be so, however the likelihood of this happening anytime soon, given its omnipresence and global scale, is far from realistic. Despite this justified pessimism, I think that this article provides a very informative review, outlining a number of ways that we can understand, and try to battle, the issue of music piracy (or at the very least, provide another way of looking at potential ways to counter some of its effects).
When looking at Japan in comparison to the US, Condry briefly discussed the effects that certain marketing techniques had on the falling numbers in CD sales and rising numbers in music piracy (Condry 2004). He mentioned that the way the music industry was promoting their products and the relationships they were developing was quite detrimental to their cause. Modern singers and bands have a tendency to be marketed to develop fan relationships with their songs, rather than with themselves as artists or individuals. With the overabundance of tie- ins with television commercials, and prime time dramas, featuring certain hit singles for example, audiences are led to associate mainly with that one song rather than with the band or singer (Condry 2004). Consumers then desire the song, not the full album and therefore download or burn that one song. And, the times they do decide to buy the album, they usually regret it, because the rest of the album is not what they were expecting, having heard only that one song. Condry articulated; instead of focusing on the hit songs and marketing them in such a way, they need to focus on building relationships between the fans and the artists (Condry 2004). Essentially, as a culture, consumers need to be taught that the music is not a simple commodity, rather music is a piece of the artist or groups soul. This might create an increased level of respect for the music and for the artists, which in turn might inhibit future piracy.
I specifically thought this was quite relevant to the way that music is viewed and consumed in Canada and the US. As a music consumer, I view most artists and bands, along with their music, as mere commodities, rarely viewing them as anything else (marketing has definitely contributed to this view). Although this type of a suggestion is by no means a solution to the pervasive problem of music piracy, I think it provides a way of looking at the problem that I think is crucial to ever improving it. I believe the problem cannot be remedied by stricter regulations, enforced government policies or increased taxation. I believe the problem is, like Codry says, cultural, and therefore can only be solved by instilling a different cultural mindset. By encouraging a variety of cultural values and attitudes associated with music, via marketing etc, I think that the industry can help redirect the current route that music piracy is taking.
Although I am ashamed of participating in the pirating of music, mainly using P2P’s, I do believe it to be very detrimental to the music industry in a number of ways. It obviously decreases music sales, disrupts the flow of music from the producer to the consumer, and generally creates many international hard-feelings and disputes, like the ones evident in the issue of Pirate Bay. However, given the number of negative implications associated with music piracy and P2P downloads, mainly on the side of the music industry, I do feel there is one major benefit. As Condry mentioned at the end of his article, P2P downloads develop new love affairs with music (Condry 2004). Although the piracy of music, via P2P downloading networks for example, provides an arena where most of the music industry is hindered, it also provides an arena where independent bands and artists can be heard and even flourish. The music industry is dominated by a select few of major players, making it incredibly hard for local, indigenous or indie artists to be heard on a large scale. P2P downloading and the copying and widespread distribution that new technologies provide, are a godsend to many artists that would otherwise only be heard on a remote scale. Independent music labels and artists are given the opportunity to find a place within the music market giving them an even greater probability of becoming mainstream and gaining popularity. We always talk about how cultural products are being exploited with these new technologies, and the emergence of indie artists via P2P networks proves this idea otherwise, as these independents prove to actually broaden the volume of cultural production rather than limit it.
A good example of a local indie label that supports and utilizes P2P sharing would be the Toronto-based Underground Operations. Underground Operations is, “an independent record label that puts out socially conscious, subversively political, and/or just strong hearted music, records, & art” (Underground Operations 2005). The label is home to six different bands and concentrates on helping the bands succeed in the local market. (If anyone cares: they often play shows in Toronto at smaller venues such as “El Mocambo” or “The Bovine Sex Club,” and once a year they embark on an Eastern Canadian Tour labeled the “Unity Tour” (Underground Operations 2005). The bands that Underground Operations supports strongly rely on music ‘piracy’, in a sense, for the distribution and successful dissemination of their music. Without these types of technologies, their music would essentially become unaccessible and unheard to many of their fans nationwide.
I guess my goal was to conclude my blog by illustrating the cultural benefits to music piracy, because I know there are so many drawbacks. Overall, I thought this week's lecture material and assigned articles lead to an exciting topic of exploration, a topic in my opinion, that could have been given more attention.
Condry, Ian (2004). ‘Cultures of Music Piracy: An Ethnographic Comparison of the US and Japan’. International Journal of
Cultural Studies, 7 (3): 343-363.
Underground Operations. “Artists.” Underground Operations Official Website. 2005.
20 March 2008 < http://www.undergroundoperations.com/artists>.
(2) P2P downloading develops new love affairs with music..
This past week, we explored a topic that significantly affects our modern digital culture. As university students, and as media scholars, the topic of piracy lends a hand to a rich and passionate arena for discussion. With the development and recent global explosion of digital technology, control over information and cultural content has been severely displaced from producers to consumers. Music, film, video games and software along with almost any type of digitalized information, have ultimately been converted into something that can be ‘freely’ ‘shared’ on a global scale. Essentially, new technologies initiated by the internet, have allowed mass amounts of people around the world, to engage in the unauthorized reproduction and circulation of cultural and media products. The phenomenon of digital piracy, the stealing of digital information, has severely affected many cultural industries especially those involved in music and film.
This weeks readings in particular, proved to be very constructive. Each article contributed to expanding my current knowledge and understanding of a number of issues that greatly affect my generation of young adults. Specifically, music piracy is an issue that is central to my role as an avid music consumer. As bad as it might be to admit, I frequently engage in music piracy, downloading and sharing songs and albums free from the constraints of monetary expense. Out of the three articles assigned, I tend to favor the article by Ian Condry, entitled, “Cultures of Music Piracy” which focused on an ethnographic comparison of the US and Japan. Condry’s article was very thought provoking as he took an approach to the topic of music piracy in a way that I was not quite expecting. What was most interesting to me was how he discussed solving the issue, or the possible ways he thought would be most influential. He emphasized the struggles of protecting digital content these days and basically stated that he did not think stricter technologies would help resolve the issues of piracy. I definitely agree. Given the strength of our global network and the widening range of storage and transferring technologies, it seems more than unlikely that technology is the answer to combat a technological problem. What Condry emphasized, which really got me thinking, was whether or not the solution could be cultural. Could piracy be solved by some sort of cultural intervention or coerced cultural transformation? Can the industry essentially teach respect for property? I greatly believe this to be so, however the likelihood of this happening anytime soon, given its omnipresence and global scale, is far from realistic. Despite this justified pessimism, I think that this article provides a very informative review, outlining a number of ways that we can understand, and try to battle, the issue of music piracy (or at the very least, provide another way of looking at potential ways to counter some of its effects).
When looking at Japan in comparison to the US, Condry briefly discussed the effects that certain marketing techniques had on the falling numbers in CD sales and rising numbers in music piracy (Condry 2004). He mentioned that the way the music industry was promoting their products and the relationships they were developing was quite detrimental to their cause. Modern singers and bands have a tendency to be marketed to develop fan relationships with their songs, rather than with themselves as artists or individuals. With the overabundance of tie- ins with television commercials, and prime time dramas, featuring certain hit singles for example, audiences are led to associate mainly with that one song rather than with the band or singer (Condry 2004). Consumers then desire the song, not the full album and therefore download or burn that one song. And, the times they do decide to buy the album, they usually regret it, because the rest of the album is not what they were expecting, having heard only that one song. Condry articulated; instead of focusing on the hit songs and marketing them in such a way, they need to focus on building relationships between the fans and the artists (Condry 2004). Essentially, as a culture, consumers need to be taught that the music is not a simple commodity, rather music is a piece of the artist or groups soul. This might create an increased level of respect for the music and for the artists, which in turn might inhibit future piracy.
I specifically thought this was quite relevant to the way that music is viewed and consumed in Canada and the US. As a music consumer, I view most artists and bands, along with their music, as mere commodities, rarely viewing them as anything else (marketing has definitely contributed to this view). Although this type of a suggestion is by no means a solution to the pervasive problem of music piracy, I think it provides a way of looking at the problem that I think is crucial to ever improving it. I believe the problem cannot be remedied by stricter regulations, enforced government policies or increased taxation. I believe the problem is, like Codry says, cultural, and therefore can only be solved by instilling a different cultural mindset. By encouraging a variety of cultural values and attitudes associated with music, via marketing etc, I think that the industry can help redirect the current route that music piracy is taking.
Although I am ashamed of participating in the pirating of music, mainly using P2P’s, I do believe it to be very detrimental to the music industry in a number of ways. It obviously decreases music sales, disrupts the flow of music from the producer to the consumer, and generally creates many international hard-feelings and disputes, like the ones evident in the issue of Pirate Bay. However, given the number of negative implications associated with music piracy and P2P downloads, mainly on the side of the music industry, I do feel there is one major benefit. As Condry mentioned at the end of his article, P2P downloads develop new love affairs with music (Condry 2004). Although the piracy of music, via P2P downloading networks for example, provides an arena where most of the music industry is hindered, it also provides an arena where independent bands and artists can be heard and even flourish. The music industry is dominated by a select few of major players, making it incredibly hard for local, indigenous or indie artists to be heard on a large scale. P2P downloading and the copying and widespread distribution that new technologies provide, are a godsend to many artists that would otherwise only be heard on a remote scale. Independent music labels and artists are given the opportunity to find a place within the music market giving them an even greater probability of becoming mainstream and gaining popularity. We always talk about how cultural products are being exploited with these new technologies, and the emergence of indie artists via P2P networks proves this idea otherwise, as these independents prove to actually broaden the volume of cultural production rather than limit it.
A good example of a local indie label that supports and utilizes P2P sharing would be the Toronto-based Underground Operations. Underground Operations is, “an independent record label that puts out socially conscious, subversively political, and/or just strong hearted music, records, & art” (Underground Operations 2005). The label is home to six different bands and concentrates on helping the bands succeed in the local market. (If anyone cares: they often play shows in Toronto at smaller venues such as “El Mocambo” or “The Bovine Sex Club,” and once a year they embark on an Eastern Canadian Tour labeled the “Unity Tour” (Underground Operations 2005). The bands that Underground Operations supports strongly rely on music ‘piracy’, in a sense, for the distribution and successful dissemination of their music. Without these types of technologies, their music would essentially become unaccessible and unheard to many of their fans nationwide.
I guess my goal was to conclude my blog by illustrating the cultural benefits to music piracy, because I know there are so many drawbacks. Overall, I thought this week's lecture material and assigned articles lead to an exciting topic of exploration, a topic in my opinion, that could have been given more attention.
Condry, Ian (2004). ‘Cultures of Music Piracy: An Ethnographic Comparison of the US and Japan’. International Journal of
Cultural Studies, 7 (3): 343-363.
Underground Operations. “Artists.” Underground Operations Official Website. 2005.
20 March 2008 < http://www.undergroundoperations.com/artists>.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Media's power to create panic and neglect tragedy:
This past week, which was designated to our last four presentations, provided a number of excellent group topics that heated the room with discussion. The groups who focused on India and Microsoft, developed several key arguments and avenues of thought that definitely aided in my understanding of both topics. India, as a recently expanding nation, involved in the IT revolution, has undergone a substantial and significant transformation. I learned that India has entered into an era not only characterized by rapid economic and political growth, but also by social, cultural and structural change. As an imminent global leader, it is interesting to analyze India and predict how it will adapt to its new position. It seems that India will definitely experience some internal and external struggle as it’s cultural, social and religious beliefs adjust to the effects of globalization. With the invasion of Western capital, and help from world organizations like the IMF and World Bank, there will likely come inevitable change. India is undoubtedly a country, impacted greatly on an international level. In my opinion, it is the most appropriate country in our modern world to be used as a case study to understand and analyze the various networks and profound implications of globalization.
Besides the interest that I had with the India presentation, the topic that was most thought provoking was the presentation on SARS. As one of the four groups that presented this week, I thought that the major underlying themes of our Rwanda presentation were also predominant in the groups presentation on SARS. The power of the media, and the overall control that the media possesses to set the public agenda proved to be the major mutual theme. The Rwanda genocide was a horrific tragedy that occurred in large part because of the lack of accurate and substantial international media coverage. To put generally, media outlets constructed the events of Rwanda in a certain way, (i.e.- representing it as civil war rather than genocide) which lead the public and international community to perceive the events in a particular light. The media essentially, holding great power, set the international agenda in 1994 with ‘the genocide of Rwanda’ remaining absent. In this instance, the media framed and constructed what was important, what was crucial and what was of greatest interest to the international public.
The SARS presentation allows us to examine a similar theme, however from a somewhat different angle. This is most interesting because, unlike the Rwanda case, as communication students, the majority of our time is directed to discuss the overabundance and concentration of media coverage of some events over others. The SARS case illustrates the media’s tendency to over-accentuate and sensationalize a certain issue over others. The media thrives off of highlighting risk and further dramatizing stories to gain ratings and increase public interest. McCleans even stated in an article discussing SARS “conventional wisdom holds that if the media are given an inch, they'll take 1,000 miles, sensationalizing stories in a drive to attract audiences” (Durbin 2003).
In my opinion, SARS, as an issue characterized as a ‘dangerous international epidemic’ that dominated the medias agenda, is nothing more severe than such health scares as Mad Cow Disease, West Nile, Bird flu and even the Spinach scare. Each of these issues or events, took on a similar role within the media, as they were all depicted in an exaggerated light.
When Mad Cow disease was first mediated within the UK, it was immediately described as an extremely dangerous and pertinent issue; it was forecasted to become an incredibly harmful and devastating international epidemic. Consequently, with the first cases uncovered in Canada, the media exploded to announce public health safety warnings about all beef and beef products. After many extensive investigations initiated by the government to ensure our industry’s safety, several cows on a local farm out West were found infected. The probability that our beef market was completely contaminated due to the identification of only several sick cows in a local Western town was incredibly low, yet the media exploited the issue and represented the event as a nation wide health scare. Beef was represented by the media with fearful connotations, and as a result our market severely suffered.
The meanings that various media outlets perpetuate, are incredibly potent in the realities that they construct. The terminology alone, as emphasized by the SARS group, such as ‘it strikes’, ‘it stalks’ and ‘it kills’, played a central role is framing the severity of the SARS issue. Specifically the metaphors and descriptions of war, the visual images of countless Asian civilians with masks etc all accumulated to frame the issue for the public to fear. One headline in particular that I remember from the media specifically during the SARS epidemic was “the headline at the Drudge Report that drooled, 'SARS Bug Said Deadlier Than AIDS!'" (Durbin 2003). These types of powerful statements, used by the media to attract audiences and readers, essentially create an unnecessary public panic, while constructing issues like SARS and Mad Cow Disease to be larger than life.
The Bird Flu, West Nile and the Spinach scare, are all other examples where the media utilized their power to initiate an international health scare, and alter the public’s perceived concern. In particular, I remember a couple of years ago, when the West Nile Virus was the topic of media discussion and I was up North at my cottage in Muskoka. People were so concerned and paranoid about the mosquitoes that you would see residents and visitors wearing long sleeve shirts, long pants, hats with nets, and gloves out at night around the camp fire. Ironically enough, as you probably already know, at that time there was probably no more than 2 documented cases of West Nile in all of Canada that year. With that said, even until this summer, I still had friends that would not go outside at night without multiple layers of clothing on, for fear they would contract West Nile. This honestly amazes me, as there has never been a case of West Nile in Muskoka, and the chances of contracting the virus in general is virtually slim to none.
However, given the amount of designated coverage and the way the media constructs and frames these issues, i guess its not that hard to see how the public gets sucked into the mediated realities associated with these health ‘scares’.
Given this blog about the previous weeks presentations, I think the most important theme that I wanted to stress was essentially the media's power to set the agenda and to construct and represent certain chosen realities. What I think is most detrimental about the media's tendency to accentuate certain news stories, is not so much the fact that they embellish certain issues, rather that these embellishments take away from the media’s concern for other more important news events, such as the Rwanda genocide.
When the media was directed to extensively cover SARS, were there other more important issues that should have been acknowledged by the media? These are the types of questions that concerned me during this presentation.....as I had the Rwanda genocide and the media’s agenda on my mind...
Durbin, Jonathan. “Fear Factory: Have the media overblown Canada’s Health Scares?” Macleans.ca. June 2003. Rogers Publishing. 17 Mar. 2008.
Besides the interest that I had with the India presentation, the topic that was most thought provoking was the presentation on SARS. As one of the four groups that presented this week, I thought that the major underlying themes of our Rwanda presentation were also predominant in the groups presentation on SARS. The power of the media, and the overall control that the media possesses to set the public agenda proved to be the major mutual theme. The Rwanda genocide was a horrific tragedy that occurred in large part because of the lack of accurate and substantial international media coverage. To put generally, media outlets constructed the events of Rwanda in a certain way, (i.e.- representing it as civil war rather than genocide) which lead the public and international community to perceive the events in a particular light. The media essentially, holding great power, set the international agenda in 1994 with ‘the genocide of Rwanda’ remaining absent. In this instance, the media framed and constructed what was important, what was crucial and what was of greatest interest to the international public.
The SARS presentation allows us to examine a similar theme, however from a somewhat different angle. This is most interesting because, unlike the Rwanda case, as communication students, the majority of our time is directed to discuss the overabundance and concentration of media coverage of some events over others. The SARS case illustrates the media’s tendency to over-accentuate and sensationalize a certain issue over others. The media thrives off of highlighting risk and further dramatizing stories to gain ratings and increase public interest. McCleans even stated in an article discussing SARS “conventional wisdom holds that if the media are given an inch, they'll take 1,000 miles, sensationalizing stories in a drive to attract audiences” (Durbin 2003).
In my opinion, SARS, as an issue characterized as a ‘dangerous international epidemic’ that dominated the medias agenda, is nothing more severe than such health scares as Mad Cow Disease, West Nile, Bird flu and even the Spinach scare. Each of these issues or events, took on a similar role within the media, as they were all depicted in an exaggerated light.
When Mad Cow disease was first mediated within the UK, it was immediately described as an extremely dangerous and pertinent issue; it was forecasted to become an incredibly harmful and devastating international epidemic. Consequently, with the first cases uncovered in Canada, the media exploded to announce public health safety warnings about all beef and beef products. After many extensive investigations initiated by the government to ensure our industry’s safety, several cows on a local farm out West were found infected. The probability that our beef market was completely contaminated due to the identification of only several sick cows in a local Western town was incredibly low, yet the media exploited the issue and represented the event as a nation wide health scare. Beef was represented by the media with fearful connotations, and as a result our market severely suffered.
The meanings that various media outlets perpetuate, are incredibly potent in the realities that they construct. The terminology alone, as emphasized by the SARS group, such as ‘it strikes’, ‘it stalks’ and ‘it kills’, played a central role is framing the severity of the SARS issue. Specifically the metaphors and descriptions of war, the visual images of countless Asian civilians with masks etc all accumulated to frame the issue for the public to fear. One headline in particular that I remember from the media specifically during the SARS epidemic was “the headline at the Drudge Report that drooled, 'SARS Bug Said Deadlier Than AIDS!'" (Durbin 2003). These types of powerful statements, used by the media to attract audiences and readers, essentially create an unnecessary public panic, while constructing issues like SARS and Mad Cow Disease to be larger than life.
The Bird Flu, West Nile and the Spinach scare, are all other examples where the media utilized their power to initiate an international health scare, and alter the public’s perceived concern. In particular, I remember a couple of years ago, when the West Nile Virus was the topic of media discussion and I was up North at my cottage in Muskoka. People were so concerned and paranoid about the mosquitoes that you would see residents and visitors wearing long sleeve shirts, long pants, hats with nets, and gloves out at night around the camp fire. Ironically enough, as you probably already know, at that time there was probably no more than 2 documented cases of West Nile in all of Canada that year. With that said, even until this summer, I still had friends that would not go outside at night without multiple layers of clothing on, for fear they would contract West Nile. This honestly amazes me, as there has never been a case of West Nile in Muskoka, and the chances of contracting the virus in general is virtually slim to none.
However, given the amount of designated coverage and the way the media constructs and frames these issues, i guess its not that hard to see how the public gets sucked into the mediated realities associated with these health ‘scares’.
Given this blog about the previous weeks presentations, I think the most important theme that I wanted to stress was essentially the media's power to set the agenda and to construct and represent certain chosen realities. What I think is most detrimental about the media's tendency to accentuate certain news stories, is not so much the fact that they embellish certain issues, rather that these embellishments take away from the media’s concern for other more important news events, such as the Rwanda genocide.
When the media was directed to extensively cover SARS, were there other more important issues that should have been acknowledged by the media? These are the types of questions that concerned me during this presentation.....as I had the Rwanda genocide and the media’s agenda on my mind...
Durbin, Jonathan. “Fear Factory: Have the media overblown Canada’s Health Scares?” Macleans.ca. June 2003. Rogers Publishing. 17 Mar. 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
1rst WEEK OF PRESENTATIONS:
DUBAI & STARBUCKS, my favourites...
This week's lecture was definitely a change of pace, providing quite a compelling class, and generating a lot of constructive discussion and debate. Four groups presented their own individual topics relating to the course material; Group 1 discussed Dubai’s Media City, Group 2 chose the corporate giant Starbucks, Group 3 focused on Cuba; mainly targeting Fidel Castro’s resignation, and Group 4 examined the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (aka the SPP). Each presentation proved to be quite unique in their scope and approach, as each focused on a different topic of interest. However, even given the uniqueness of each subject matter, the groups still managed to examine their topic with the use of several major underlying and pertinent themes. Globalization, homogenization, cultural imperialism and the role of the media all seemed to be common themes embedded within each.
The first presentation in my opinion was the most appealing, as I have always been fascinated in Dubai as a city, however have not had the opportunity to gain any concrete knowledge about its current global status or political structure. It was enlightening to learn not only about how technologically advanced it has become, but also about how its political infrastructure outside of ‘media’ city still remains to be quite primitive. The topic of censorship ( both self censorship and censorship of media) was raised and focused on throughout the presentation, and the lack of rights that Dubai citizens have as free agents really stuck with me. Living in such a democratic country as Canada, the ability to access information at no cost, and with incredible availability, makes me stop and cringe at the rights we take for granted. The most confusing part for me was the explanation of the divide between life in the media city and life outside. Its interesting for me to imagine a community like Dubai, in which there exists a miniature ‘global world’ within such a traditionally oriented geographic location. It just seems so bizarre. The issue of whether or not censorship will eventually ‘die’ in the United Arab Emirates was raised, along with several reasons supporting its death. I definitely believe, given the advancements in technology and the ever increasing global expansion of media and communications, formal censorship specifically within UAE will disappear. I am not as certain with regards to other surrounding nations, however given Dubai’s unique case, and its present position within the global media market, I think it’s nations censorship shift is imminent. Although the issue of religion and tradition, as it was brought up in class, plays a central role in determining the country’s reasons for upholding censorship, I still believe modernity and its corresponding values will supersede. Religion and tradition are obviously deeply embedded within Middle Eastern culture, however UAE it seems, has the ability, and the potential, to actively preserve its strong religious and traditional beliefs, while simultaneously enter the global democratic media arena. Essentially, in my opinion, if Dubai’s media city aims to survive into the next century as a global corporate centre, the UAE will need to embrace, as a nation, the forthcoming era dominated by free press and fluid communication networks.
On another note, the presentation that proved to exert the greatest amount of personal dissonance was the Group 2 who chose Starbucks. Besides the fact that it is another corporate media giant, whose success has exploded almost overnight, I honestly do not see the passion that lies beneath so many peoples hatred. The topic of cultural imperialism was raised as a topic of debate, an issue that lead to a long discussion that initiated a strong but silent personal reaction. As a communications student, I guess I am exhausted when I hear the same anti corporate, anti capitalist responses that I hear every time the topic centers on a major successful corporation. I am an advocate for scholarly analysis and I am an advocate for examining issues from a variety of angles and under the scope of an array of theoretical approaches, however, I get irritated, listening to the same redundant reasons why another corporation is the big bad imperialistic bully. In my opinion, Starbucks, in comparison to countless other corporately owned ‘restaurant chains’, is of least importance when it comes to the issue of cultural imperialism.
Starbucks is essentially a multinational coffee house that provides an extensive menu in a relaxing venue that grounds its superiority in the coffee market. Starbucks also does seem to replace smaller, more local coffee houses and put them out of business. Starbucks does offer an endless array of beverages, coffees, teas, shakes, and juices, to satisfy almost any consumer; however at very high prices. It does provide a casual, and comfortable environment in which customers can either enjoy their purchases or engage in other ‘coffee- house activities’. It also relies on a certain restaurant prototype in which the layout and visual structure of the store is essentially replicated for almost all its multinational locations. It does not completely adapt or mold to fit whichever country or city in which it is located. Starbucks also provides very friendly and attentive staff that are all oriented toward the goals inherent in traditional ‘American’ ideals of customer service. Starbucks is also suspect of utilizing unfair coffee trade methods, and scrutinized for it, although they communicate and advocate otherwise (for the anti-Starbucks individuals; where do you think smaller, more local coffee shops get their coffee? Do you think they get it from legitimate sources?). All of these issues were mentioned in class leading to the discussion that the company is indeed engaging in cultural imperialism.
In my opinion if Starbucks was not an American corporate giant, accumulating immense amounts of revenue, I do not think it would be pinpointed as a bad guy. I do not think that just because there is a Starbucks in Athens that it takes away from Greek culture. I also do not think that just because their is a Starbucks in London, that it places any pressure on English culture to adopt American ideals. As a tourist, and also as a local resident in any city in which a Starbucks resides, a choice is always provided; to go to Starbucks or not to go to Starbucks. Starbucks in my opinion does not over advertise and it does not over saturate the market with messages disseminating a certain lifestyle like many other multinational corporations. As of right now, I believe the expansion of Starbucks is not a bad thing at all, as it is just a coffee house, however if it does reach similar numbers to the fast food giant McDonald’s than there might be something to worry about. Then again, an invasion of caffeine doesn't seem as bad, as an invasion of cholesterol.
This week's lecture was definitely a change of pace, providing quite a compelling class, and generating a lot of constructive discussion and debate. Four groups presented their own individual topics relating to the course material; Group 1 discussed Dubai’s Media City, Group 2 chose the corporate giant Starbucks, Group 3 focused on Cuba; mainly targeting Fidel Castro’s resignation, and Group 4 examined the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (aka the SPP). Each presentation proved to be quite unique in their scope and approach, as each focused on a different topic of interest. However, even given the uniqueness of each subject matter, the groups still managed to examine their topic with the use of several major underlying and pertinent themes. Globalization, homogenization, cultural imperialism and the role of the media all seemed to be common themes embedded within each.
The first presentation in my opinion was the most appealing, as I have always been fascinated in Dubai as a city, however have not had the opportunity to gain any concrete knowledge about its current global status or political structure. It was enlightening to learn not only about how technologically advanced it has become, but also about how its political infrastructure outside of ‘media’ city still remains to be quite primitive. The topic of censorship ( both self censorship and censorship of media) was raised and focused on throughout the presentation, and the lack of rights that Dubai citizens have as free agents really stuck with me. Living in such a democratic country as Canada, the ability to access information at no cost, and with incredible availability, makes me stop and cringe at the rights we take for granted. The most confusing part for me was the explanation of the divide between life in the media city and life outside. Its interesting for me to imagine a community like Dubai, in which there exists a miniature ‘global world’ within such a traditionally oriented geographic location. It just seems so bizarre. The issue of whether or not censorship will eventually ‘die’ in the United Arab Emirates was raised, along with several reasons supporting its death. I definitely believe, given the advancements in technology and the ever increasing global expansion of media and communications, formal censorship specifically within UAE will disappear. I am not as certain with regards to other surrounding nations, however given Dubai’s unique case, and its present position within the global media market, I think it’s nations censorship shift is imminent. Although the issue of religion and tradition, as it was brought up in class, plays a central role in determining the country’s reasons for upholding censorship, I still believe modernity and its corresponding values will supersede. Religion and tradition are obviously deeply embedded within Middle Eastern culture, however UAE it seems, has the ability, and the potential, to actively preserve its strong religious and traditional beliefs, while simultaneously enter the global democratic media arena. Essentially, in my opinion, if Dubai’s media city aims to survive into the next century as a global corporate centre, the UAE will need to embrace, as a nation, the forthcoming era dominated by free press and fluid communication networks.
On another note, the presentation that proved to exert the greatest amount of personal dissonance was the Group 2 who chose Starbucks. Besides the fact that it is another corporate media giant, whose success has exploded almost overnight, I honestly do not see the passion that lies beneath so many peoples hatred. The topic of cultural imperialism was raised as a topic of debate, an issue that lead to a long discussion that initiated a strong but silent personal reaction. As a communications student, I guess I am exhausted when I hear the same anti corporate, anti capitalist responses that I hear every time the topic centers on a major successful corporation. I am an advocate for scholarly analysis and I am an advocate for examining issues from a variety of angles and under the scope of an array of theoretical approaches, however, I get irritated, listening to the same redundant reasons why another corporation is the big bad imperialistic bully. In my opinion, Starbucks, in comparison to countless other corporately owned ‘restaurant chains’, is of least importance when it comes to the issue of cultural imperialism.
Starbucks is essentially a multinational coffee house that provides an extensive menu in a relaxing venue that grounds its superiority in the coffee market. Starbucks also does seem to replace smaller, more local coffee houses and put them out of business. Starbucks does offer an endless array of beverages, coffees, teas, shakes, and juices, to satisfy almost any consumer; however at very high prices. It does provide a casual, and comfortable environment in which customers can either enjoy their purchases or engage in other ‘coffee- house activities’. It also relies on a certain restaurant prototype in which the layout and visual structure of the store is essentially replicated for almost all its multinational locations. It does not completely adapt or mold to fit whichever country or city in which it is located. Starbucks also provides very friendly and attentive staff that are all oriented toward the goals inherent in traditional ‘American’ ideals of customer service. Starbucks is also suspect of utilizing unfair coffee trade methods, and scrutinized for it, although they communicate and advocate otherwise (for the anti-Starbucks individuals; where do you think smaller, more local coffee shops get their coffee? Do you think they get it from legitimate sources?). All of these issues were mentioned in class leading to the discussion that the company is indeed engaging in cultural imperialism.
In my opinion if Starbucks was not an American corporate giant, accumulating immense amounts of revenue, I do not think it would be pinpointed as a bad guy. I do not think that just because there is a Starbucks in Athens that it takes away from Greek culture. I also do not think that just because their is a Starbucks in London, that it places any pressure on English culture to adopt American ideals. As a tourist, and also as a local resident in any city in which a Starbucks resides, a choice is always provided; to go to Starbucks or not to go to Starbucks. Starbucks in my opinion does not over advertise and it does not over saturate the market with messages disseminating a certain lifestyle like many other multinational corporations. As of right now, I believe the expansion of Starbucks is not a bad thing at all, as it is just a coffee house, however if it does reach similar numbers to the fast food giant McDonald’s than there might be something to worry about. Then again, an invasion of caffeine doesn't seem as bad, as an invasion of cholesterol.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Appadurai's Complementary Dimensions:
Apparadui’s article entitled, “Disjuncture and Difference In the Global Cultural Economy”, proves to be very enlightening as it adds a new way of conceptualizing the global cultural flows that influence our modern landscape. Globalization and cultural imperialism have been our most vital topics of discussion over these last couple weeks, as we have been learning alot about the various ways of understanding flows and counterflows. Unlike other models that describe the global cultural flow, he does not analyze culture in terms of a traditional core or periphery network, rather he conceives of global cultural flow in terms of five specific dimensions, which he refers to as: ethnoscapes, finanscapes, technoscapes, mediascapes, and ideoscapes.
Each concept in essence, refers to a type of movement. To put concisely, ethnoscapes refer to the flow of peoples (immigrants, refugees, tourists, exiles etc.) throughout the globe as we become increasingly mobile. Finanscapes involve the flow of money through currency markets and stock exchanges for example. An example of this would be foreign investments channeled through the World Bank for energy and transportation development projects in Brazil (Lull 2000). Technoscapes include the flow of machinery, hardware and software, through the production processes of transnational corporations, national corporations and governments. India, China, Russia and Japan for example, have all exported technology to Libya in order to construct a huge steel complex there (Lull 2000). Mediascapes consist of the flow of images and information from the various forms of mass media and growing interactive technologies. Viewers essentially use these images of the mediascape to construct cultural narratives of the ‘other’ (Lull 2000). Finally, ideoscapes are similar to mediascapes in that they are image-oriented, however they are more often political in nature and deal with the flow of ideology throughout the globe. Ideological arenas such as democracy, rights and freedom, equality, responsible etc, are all examples of common domains represented as part of these ‘ideoscapes’ (Lull 2000). Appadurai describes the relationship between these ‘scapes’ as deeply disjunctive and unpredictable and sees that they influence culture not by their hegemonic interaction, global diffusion, and uniform effect, but by their differences and ‘counter-tendencies’.
This line of thinking is very unique as he strays from more traditional views and focuses more on the complex set of interactions and contested relationships that occur between each. Basically its how people organize these cultural stresses that determines the key to understanding contemporary social stability on the whole. I find these concepts and their connection in understandings global cultural flows to be very useful in understanding a number of present day phenomenon's. This theoretical model, or conceptualization, provides us, as media scholars, with an additional avenue to further our understanding and analysis of our complicated cultural world.
The concept of deterritorialization, as discussed in Appadurai’s article, proved to catch my interest. It essentially refers to the loss of the natural relation between culture and its geographic and social territory, and has been described as bringing “ laboring populations into the lower class sectors of spaces of relatively wealthy societies, while sometimes creating exaggerated and intensified senses and criticisms to politics in the home state” (Appadurai 38). The migration of people from third world nations, to more developed countries, and their loss of a physical and cultural connection with their homeland, is essentially what this is referring to.
More specifically the corresponding concept of reterritorialization, as a more positive term leads to a good example of a disjuncture between ethnoscapes and finanscapes. Reterritorialization refers to the attempt by people to re-establish a new cultural home wherever they migrate.
Labeled as ‘ethonscapes’ in Appadurai’s terms, many cohorts of individuals migrate to Canada and the United States for example, for a variety of reasons, usually leading to a number of consequences. Alot of the time when people migrate to Western countries, with the use of modern media and communication technologies, they tend to engage in media and cultural consumption from their homeland. Culturally symbolic forms such as pop music, videos, newspapers, magazines, books and computer software are vital in the reterritorialization processes to establish diasporas communities. Essentially immigrants create a need for indigenous products from back home. These populations in turn create new business opportunities for entrepreneurs especially for those in the media and cultural industries of their homeland. This relationship I can see most related to the disjuncture or difference between finanscapes and ethnoscapes, where unequal or opposing flows become evident. Migrants move, or ‘flow’ into one country while at a very different rate and direction, their economic capital or finances move, or ‘flow’ outward in the consumption of indigenous cultural products from their homeland. In addition to the desire that these diasporas groups have for indigenous cultural products from home, there is also a growing market for videos, music, magazines, clothing and software produced in exile and sent back to their home countries. For instance, Vietnamese cultural materials produced in California sell well in Vietnam and Persian products exported from Los Angeles sell well in Iran (Lull 2000). These types of bi-directional cultural flows further show how Appadurai’s conception of ‘scapes’ can be used to explain these disjunctive global relationships.
It is evident that Arjun Appadurai deals precisely with the diverse global economic and cultural activity that threatens the nation state (Lull 2000). His theoretical concepts and five dimensions prove to compliment many of the theories we have concentrated on so far in the course, and it clearly adds a new ‘dimension’ to the way that I view global culture. His ideas, however, should not be used alone, rather I emphasize once more, that I believe they provide an additional way to further analyze global culture.
References:
Appadurai, A. “Disjuncture and Difference in the Global Cultural Economy.” Modernity at Large:Cultural Dimensions of Globalization. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, 1996. 27-47.
Lull, James. Media, Communication, Culture: A global Approach. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000.
Each concept in essence, refers to a type of movement. To put concisely, ethnoscapes refer to the flow of peoples (immigrants, refugees, tourists, exiles etc.) throughout the globe as we become increasingly mobile. Finanscapes involve the flow of money through currency markets and stock exchanges for example. An example of this would be foreign investments channeled through the World Bank for energy and transportation development projects in Brazil (Lull 2000). Technoscapes include the flow of machinery, hardware and software, through the production processes of transnational corporations, national corporations and governments. India, China, Russia and Japan for example, have all exported technology to Libya in order to construct a huge steel complex there (Lull 2000). Mediascapes consist of the flow of images and information from the various forms of mass media and growing interactive technologies. Viewers essentially use these images of the mediascape to construct cultural narratives of the ‘other’ (Lull 2000). Finally, ideoscapes are similar to mediascapes in that they are image-oriented, however they are more often political in nature and deal with the flow of ideology throughout the globe. Ideological arenas such as democracy, rights and freedom, equality, responsible etc, are all examples of common domains represented as part of these ‘ideoscapes’ (Lull 2000). Appadurai describes the relationship between these ‘scapes’ as deeply disjunctive and unpredictable and sees that they influence culture not by their hegemonic interaction, global diffusion, and uniform effect, but by their differences and ‘counter-tendencies’.
This line of thinking is very unique as he strays from more traditional views and focuses more on the complex set of interactions and contested relationships that occur between each. Basically its how people organize these cultural stresses that determines the key to understanding contemporary social stability on the whole. I find these concepts and their connection in understandings global cultural flows to be very useful in understanding a number of present day phenomenon's. This theoretical model, or conceptualization, provides us, as media scholars, with an additional avenue to further our understanding and analysis of our complicated cultural world.
The concept of deterritorialization, as discussed in Appadurai’s article, proved to catch my interest. It essentially refers to the loss of the natural relation between culture and its geographic and social territory, and has been described as bringing “ laboring populations into the lower class sectors of spaces of relatively wealthy societies, while sometimes creating exaggerated and intensified senses and criticisms to politics in the home state” (Appadurai 38). The migration of people from third world nations, to more developed countries, and their loss of a physical and cultural connection with their homeland, is essentially what this is referring to.
More specifically the corresponding concept of reterritorialization, as a more positive term leads to a good example of a disjuncture between ethnoscapes and finanscapes. Reterritorialization refers to the attempt by people to re-establish a new cultural home wherever they migrate.
Labeled as ‘ethonscapes’ in Appadurai’s terms, many cohorts of individuals migrate to Canada and the United States for example, for a variety of reasons, usually leading to a number of consequences. Alot of the time when people migrate to Western countries, with the use of modern media and communication technologies, they tend to engage in media and cultural consumption from their homeland. Culturally symbolic forms such as pop music, videos, newspapers, magazines, books and computer software are vital in the reterritorialization processes to establish diasporas communities. Essentially immigrants create a need for indigenous products from back home. These populations in turn create new business opportunities for entrepreneurs especially for those in the media and cultural industries of their homeland. This relationship I can see most related to the disjuncture or difference between finanscapes and ethnoscapes, where unequal or opposing flows become evident. Migrants move, or ‘flow’ into one country while at a very different rate and direction, their economic capital or finances move, or ‘flow’ outward in the consumption of indigenous cultural products from their homeland. In addition to the desire that these diasporas groups have for indigenous cultural products from home, there is also a growing market for videos, music, magazines, clothing and software produced in exile and sent back to their home countries. For instance, Vietnamese cultural materials produced in California sell well in Vietnam and Persian products exported from Los Angeles sell well in Iran (Lull 2000). These types of bi-directional cultural flows further show how Appadurai’s conception of ‘scapes’ can be used to explain these disjunctive global relationships.
It is evident that Arjun Appadurai deals precisely with the diverse global economic and cultural activity that threatens the nation state (Lull 2000). His theoretical concepts and five dimensions prove to compliment many of the theories we have concentrated on so far in the course, and it clearly adds a new ‘dimension’ to the way that I view global culture. His ideas, however, should not be used alone, rather I emphasize once more, that I believe they provide an additional way to further analyze global culture.
References:
Appadurai, A. “Disjuncture and Difference in the Global Cultural Economy.” Modernity at Large:Cultural Dimensions of Globalization. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, 1996. 27-47.
Lull, James. Media, Communication, Culture: A global Approach. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Change of Heart: "Nay" side wins my vote!!!
“Be it resolved that Cultural Imperialism is a viable theoretical model for analyzing the relationship between American cultural production and the rest of the world.”
Following our debate in lecture last week, and our intense discussion over the viability of the theoretical model of cultural imperialism, it has been concluded that it is indeed, not a viable model for analyzing the relationship between American cultural production and the rest of the world. At the beginning of lecture, we were assigned into two groups, either belonging to the group in favor of the model, or the group not in favor of the model; essentially a part of the ‘yay’ or ‘nay’ party. Assigned as a member of the ‘yay’ group, I was initially relieved because I believed that it would be the easiest to defend and because at this point, I thought that was the standpoint I favored the most. However, as discussion commenced and both sides initiated the debate, I could not help myself but be swayed by the opposing party. The ‘nay’ group essentially proved to broaden my once narrow view, and lead me to reconsider the true strength and validity of the theory. The two concepts of re-appropriation and glocalization that were first identified by the ‘nay’ group heavily influenced my reconsideration, in addition to several other key points and criticisms that I remembered from earlier in the course.
At first, I heavily believed that the concept of cultural imperialism was a viable model for examining the relationship between American cultural production and the rest of the world. Chapter five of the Thussu text proved to be quite a shock, as the number of statistics illustrating the extreme abundance of American media content, and its production, distribution and consumption on a global scale was very evident. From the statistics presented on film and television, to the statistics indicating the presence of global brands, it could not be more clear that American cultural content on a global scale, greatly outnumbers any other country. Essentially it is easy to compare; US cultural content saturates the flow. American content is more pervasive than any other cultural form or content broadcasted and disseminated globally. Economically the US prospers, with control over almost every industry and almost no sign of this trend imminently changing. The question is; do these trends reflect cultural imperialism? Is cultural imperialism a viable trend for explaining American cultural production and the rest of the world?
Cultural imperialism is essentially the imposition of a foreign viewpoint or civilization on a people and can be loosely defined as the practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, or artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation into another (Wikipedia 2008). I believe that the concept of Americanization does exist, and that subsequent terms such as Coca-colization and McDonaldization are valid in illustrating the commercial and consumerist lifestyle that the US promotes. I also see that it is evident that modern information technologies along with global communications systems strongly support the cultural distribution and consumption of American content. It is also obvious that there is an extreme over abundance of American cultural content compared to all others, as it dominates the global network of flows. However, with this said, I do not think that this demonstrates a viable interrelationship that can be labeled as cultural imperialism.
Culture, as it exists within every nation, consists of much more, and can be identified by much more than by the mere presence of various corporate bodies or the copious amount of broadcasted media content. Culture is something that consists of people, customs, traditions, knowledge, family, intellect, ways of life, class and gender relations etc- things that I believe are not necessarily influenced by the mere abundance of global American cultural production and dissemination. One issue that really bothers me, and is a true fault of this theoretical model, is that it ignores the question of media form and content as well as the role of the audience. It does not acknowledge that media texts are polysemic and encompass a range of different meanings and ways of interpreting. In turn this theory reinforces the idea that audiences are passive rather than active in their interpretation of meaning, and it rests on the notion that people are cultural dupes, accepting what is in front of them with face value, neglecting any form of agency or ‘free will’, as one might say. Media cultural content and it’s effects on viewers cannot be explained using a hypodermic needle model, assuming the injection of material into its viewers. People actually negotiate meaning and actively process information.
The concept of reappropriation provides a perfect example of how this cultural imperialistic model simply does not fit. It has been found, through the use of many examples in lecture, that various members within almost every culture reconstruct and essentially reappropriate the value or use of certain subjects (ie- whether it be the Muslim Barbie Doll or the Chinese or Jewish rap groups) to make it their own. Instead of being injected with one nations culture or language, it has been proved that audiences worldwide reappropriate once ‘American’ cultural artifacts and make it there own. The cultural imperialistic model in my opinion essentially fails to point out how various global media texts work and basically fails to look at local patterns of media consumption, and ‘cultural consumption, especially in terms of American content and media.
I believe that it is too simplistic to explain our cultural system in terms of a one way flow (American cultural production). As we have discussed over and over in class; there are multiple flows and counterflows that exist in very complex relationships. Although the US dominates the flow, it does not necessarily mean that its profuse presence can be analyzed in terms of a cultural imperialist model. Just because the US dominates in terms of numbers and statistics, does not mean they dominate culturally. In my opinion, this model has very little academic grounding and is supported with limited empirical data. With this stated, it seems hard to use it to analyze something so significant and complicated as the role that American cultural production plays with regards to the rest of the world.
What I am basically trying to get at, and its something alot of us have explained and reinforced in lecture, is that culture is very complex, the nature of society and our global environment is very multifaceted, and given this model, and its faults, I definitely vote against it, and reinforce that it is NOT a viable theoretical model to analyze the relationship between American cultural production and the rest of the world.
Reference:
Thussu, Daya Kishnan. International Communication: Continuity and Change. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. “Cultural Imperialism.” 20 Feb. 2008 < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_imperialism.>.
Following our debate in lecture last week, and our intense discussion over the viability of the theoretical model of cultural imperialism, it has been concluded that it is indeed, not a viable model for analyzing the relationship between American cultural production and the rest of the world. At the beginning of lecture, we were assigned into two groups, either belonging to the group in favor of the model, or the group not in favor of the model; essentially a part of the ‘yay’ or ‘nay’ party. Assigned as a member of the ‘yay’ group, I was initially relieved because I believed that it would be the easiest to defend and because at this point, I thought that was the standpoint I favored the most. However, as discussion commenced and both sides initiated the debate, I could not help myself but be swayed by the opposing party. The ‘nay’ group essentially proved to broaden my once narrow view, and lead me to reconsider the true strength and validity of the theory. The two concepts of re-appropriation and glocalization that were first identified by the ‘nay’ group heavily influenced my reconsideration, in addition to several other key points and criticisms that I remembered from earlier in the course.
At first, I heavily believed that the concept of cultural imperialism was a viable model for examining the relationship between American cultural production and the rest of the world. Chapter five of the Thussu text proved to be quite a shock, as the number of statistics illustrating the extreme abundance of American media content, and its production, distribution and consumption on a global scale was very evident. From the statistics presented on film and television, to the statistics indicating the presence of global brands, it could not be more clear that American cultural content on a global scale, greatly outnumbers any other country. Essentially it is easy to compare; US cultural content saturates the flow. American content is more pervasive than any other cultural form or content broadcasted and disseminated globally. Economically the US prospers, with control over almost every industry and almost no sign of this trend imminently changing. The question is; do these trends reflect cultural imperialism? Is cultural imperialism a viable trend for explaining American cultural production and the rest of the world?
Cultural imperialism is essentially the imposition of a foreign viewpoint or civilization on a people and can be loosely defined as the practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, or artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation into another (Wikipedia 2008). I believe that the concept of Americanization does exist, and that subsequent terms such as Coca-colization and McDonaldization are valid in illustrating the commercial and consumerist lifestyle that the US promotes. I also see that it is evident that modern information technologies along with global communications systems strongly support the cultural distribution and consumption of American content. It is also obvious that there is an extreme over abundance of American cultural content compared to all others, as it dominates the global network of flows. However, with this said, I do not think that this demonstrates a viable interrelationship that can be labeled as cultural imperialism.
Culture, as it exists within every nation, consists of much more, and can be identified by much more than by the mere presence of various corporate bodies or the copious amount of broadcasted media content. Culture is something that consists of people, customs, traditions, knowledge, family, intellect, ways of life, class and gender relations etc- things that I believe are not necessarily influenced by the mere abundance of global American cultural production and dissemination. One issue that really bothers me, and is a true fault of this theoretical model, is that it ignores the question of media form and content as well as the role of the audience. It does not acknowledge that media texts are polysemic and encompass a range of different meanings and ways of interpreting. In turn this theory reinforces the idea that audiences are passive rather than active in their interpretation of meaning, and it rests on the notion that people are cultural dupes, accepting what is in front of them with face value, neglecting any form of agency or ‘free will’, as one might say. Media cultural content and it’s effects on viewers cannot be explained using a hypodermic needle model, assuming the injection of material into its viewers. People actually negotiate meaning and actively process information.
The concept of reappropriation provides a perfect example of how this cultural imperialistic model simply does not fit. It has been found, through the use of many examples in lecture, that various members within almost every culture reconstruct and essentially reappropriate the value or use of certain subjects (ie- whether it be the Muslim Barbie Doll or the Chinese or Jewish rap groups) to make it their own. Instead of being injected with one nations culture or language, it has been proved that audiences worldwide reappropriate once ‘American’ cultural artifacts and make it there own. The cultural imperialistic model in my opinion essentially fails to point out how various global media texts work and basically fails to look at local patterns of media consumption, and ‘cultural consumption, especially in terms of American content and media.
I believe that it is too simplistic to explain our cultural system in terms of a one way flow (American cultural production). As we have discussed over and over in class; there are multiple flows and counterflows that exist in very complex relationships. Although the US dominates the flow, it does not necessarily mean that its profuse presence can be analyzed in terms of a cultural imperialist model. Just because the US dominates in terms of numbers and statistics, does not mean they dominate culturally. In my opinion, this model has very little academic grounding and is supported with limited empirical data. With this stated, it seems hard to use it to analyze something so significant and complicated as the role that American cultural production plays with regards to the rest of the world.
What I am basically trying to get at, and its something alot of us have explained and reinforced in lecture, is that culture is very complex, the nature of society and our global environment is very multifaceted, and given this model, and its faults, I definitely vote against it, and reinforce that it is NOT a viable theoretical model to analyze the relationship between American cultural production and the rest of the world.
Reference:
Thussu, Daya Kishnan. International Communication: Continuity and Change. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. “Cultural Imperialism.” 20 Feb. 2008 < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_imperialism.>.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Journal Entry #4: Disney....always the bad guy?!
The article written by Burton- Carvajal J, “Surprise Package: Looking Southward with Disney”, was one of the two readings assigned for this week and corresponded to this weeks theme of cultural imperialism and the notion of ‘soft power’. Generally speaking, cultural imperialism involves the practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, or artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation into another. ‘Soft Power’, is associated with cultural imperialism, and is a concept that refers to an indirect form of control exercised under more coercive and subtle means. The United States of American, as the world’s leading empire, has essentially been charged with exercising cultural imperialistic practices onto the South American nations. Essentially, this week we painted a clear picture of how the American corporate body, Disney, utilized ‘soft power’ in the 1940’s to invade and culturally exploit South American way of life.
Burton- Carvajal’s article essentially reinforced this notion, and specifically referred to the Disney film, The Three Caballeros (1944), to illustrate his argument. Although this article proved to be quite intriguing, and compelling, I found myself to be critical of a several of her main points and ‘propositions’. To be completely honest, before learning more about the topic in lecture, and reading other fellow class members blogs, I found Burton- Carvajal’s analysis of The Three Caballeros to valid but also quite ridiculous and far stretched. She addresses Disney’s film, as a perfect instance where the Unites States, represented via the major American powerhouse Disney, reinforce their dominance while simultaneously reinforcing South American subordination. Through the narrated story of Donald Duck and his magical visit to South America, a number of ideologies are reinforced and represented to construct an ‘inaccurate’ depiction of reality. The author illustrates that stereotypes are heavily utilized, evident in the construction of Donald’s main Latin friends ‘ Joe Carioca and Panchito the boisterous Mexican rooster’, as well as unequal depictions of what is masculine and feminine, as they exist within a Latino culture. What is referred to by the author as “the end product of a process of cross cultural refiguration”, is essentially what is illustrated by this film (Burton-Carvajal 136).
Now with these points said, and after viewing parts of the film, I do not feel completely satisfied with her article. Although intense historical, political, cultural and economic reasons underly the motives of Disney for developing this film (motives I wont waste time repeating), definitely have contributed greatly to how it was constructed in representing both American and Latin American culture, I personally do not feel that this film is all that horrible. In terms of cultural imperialism, this definitely falls under the category of extreme soft power. As a communications scholar, as bad as it might be to admit, when I watched bits of this film, given even a minute amount of background information, I did not view it as that overtly detrimental to ones cross cultural understanding of Latin America and its’ people. The author demonstrates many concrete and interesting interpretations of the film as a cultural text, and conveyed a thorough semiotic analysis that really captivated and controlled the way I viewed the film. Her ten propositions proved to go above and beyond the interpretations and connotative meanings I derived from the film but definitely accentuated some valid associations. Several comments the author included about the morality of the film abruptly altered my view of this article and actually bothered me; “ The Three Caballeros, one of the most unfortunate experiments since prohibition... is not Disney’s private monster, his personal nightmare. It is a nightmare of these times....” (Burton- Carvajal 140). These types of comments by various writers in the 40’s really did not fit well with my understanding of the film.
I mean, was this film all that bad? Is it that exploitative of Latin American culture? Is it that sexual in nature? In my opinion I do not think that these types of films exploit Latin American culture, at least not more so than any other average fictional film depicting Latin America. Although I agree that this film displays minutely suggestive content, some sexual imagery, some stereotypical and some more accurately represented characters and scenes than others, I basically feel that this film has been very harshly criticized and used as a poor example of cultural imperialism. As bad as it might sound, (this is my opinion once again), I feel like this author in particular, creates a much more exaggerated depiction of The Three Caballeros than is warranted (especially with regards to sexuality and homosexuality). I think that these types of films should definitely be analyzed and decoded, however, it should also be recognized that they should be taken with a grain of salt, and taken for face value. The film was not designed to present an accurate depiction of South American way of life, nor was it designed to make one feel as if they were viewing a documentary of what the Disney creators experienced while submersed in the culture. This was a fictional, imaginative film, constructed to convey an underlying informative narrative. Don’t get me wrong though, I definitely believe that Disney had a side agenda, one that was absolutely evident in various embedded messages, however I do not feel that it poses as that much of a threat to their culture, their people, or an outsiders accurate view of their country. I strongly believe that the majority of people who view this film, would neglect the messages that express ‘domination’, ‘masculine supremacy’, or an ‘allegory of colonialism’. Basically, what I wanted to convey in this blog was simple; that I felt that this author provided a very harsh and exaggerated, one sided critical examination of Disney’s The Three Caballeros, one that was not necessary to prove her main points.
Sources:
Burton-Carvajal, Julianne. “ Suprise Package; Looking Southward with Disney.” Disney Discourse: Producing the Magic
Kingdom. Smoodin, E. Routledge, 2004. 131-147.
Burton- Carvajal’s article essentially reinforced this notion, and specifically referred to the Disney film, The Three Caballeros (1944), to illustrate his argument. Although this article proved to be quite intriguing, and compelling, I found myself to be critical of a several of her main points and ‘propositions’. To be completely honest, before learning more about the topic in lecture, and reading other fellow class members blogs, I found Burton- Carvajal’s analysis of The Three Caballeros to valid but also quite ridiculous and far stretched. She addresses Disney’s film, as a perfect instance where the Unites States, represented via the major American powerhouse Disney, reinforce their dominance while simultaneously reinforcing South American subordination. Through the narrated story of Donald Duck and his magical visit to South America, a number of ideologies are reinforced and represented to construct an ‘inaccurate’ depiction of reality. The author illustrates that stereotypes are heavily utilized, evident in the construction of Donald’s main Latin friends ‘ Joe Carioca and Panchito the boisterous Mexican rooster’, as well as unequal depictions of what is masculine and feminine, as they exist within a Latino culture. What is referred to by the author as “the end product of a process of cross cultural refiguration”, is essentially what is illustrated by this film (Burton-Carvajal 136).
Now with these points said, and after viewing parts of the film, I do not feel completely satisfied with her article. Although intense historical, political, cultural and economic reasons underly the motives of Disney for developing this film (motives I wont waste time repeating), definitely have contributed greatly to how it was constructed in representing both American and Latin American culture, I personally do not feel that this film is all that horrible. In terms of cultural imperialism, this definitely falls under the category of extreme soft power. As a communications scholar, as bad as it might be to admit, when I watched bits of this film, given even a minute amount of background information, I did not view it as that overtly detrimental to ones cross cultural understanding of Latin America and its’ people. The author demonstrates many concrete and interesting interpretations of the film as a cultural text, and conveyed a thorough semiotic analysis that really captivated and controlled the way I viewed the film. Her ten propositions proved to go above and beyond the interpretations and connotative meanings I derived from the film but definitely accentuated some valid associations. Several comments the author included about the morality of the film abruptly altered my view of this article and actually bothered me; “ The Three Caballeros, one of the most unfortunate experiments since prohibition... is not Disney’s private monster, his personal nightmare. It is a nightmare of these times....” (Burton- Carvajal 140). These types of comments by various writers in the 40’s really did not fit well with my understanding of the film.
I mean, was this film all that bad? Is it that exploitative of Latin American culture? Is it that sexual in nature? In my opinion I do not think that these types of films exploit Latin American culture, at least not more so than any other average fictional film depicting Latin America. Although I agree that this film displays minutely suggestive content, some sexual imagery, some stereotypical and some more accurately represented characters and scenes than others, I basically feel that this film has been very harshly criticized and used as a poor example of cultural imperialism. As bad as it might sound, (this is my opinion once again), I feel like this author in particular, creates a much more exaggerated depiction of The Three Caballeros than is warranted (especially with regards to sexuality and homosexuality). I think that these types of films should definitely be analyzed and decoded, however, it should also be recognized that they should be taken with a grain of salt, and taken for face value. The film was not designed to present an accurate depiction of South American way of life, nor was it designed to make one feel as if they were viewing a documentary of what the Disney creators experienced while submersed in the culture. This was a fictional, imaginative film, constructed to convey an underlying informative narrative. Don’t get me wrong though, I definitely believe that Disney had a side agenda, one that was absolutely evident in various embedded messages, however I do not feel that it poses as that much of a threat to their culture, their people, or an outsiders accurate view of their country. I strongly believe that the majority of people who view this film, would neglect the messages that express ‘domination’, ‘masculine supremacy’, or an ‘allegory of colonialism’. Basically, what I wanted to convey in this blog was simple; that I felt that this author provided a very harsh and exaggerated, one sided critical examination of Disney’s The Three Caballeros, one that was not necessary to prove her main points.
Sources:
Burton-Carvajal, Julianne. “ Suprise Package; Looking Southward with Disney.” Disney Discourse: Producing the Magic
Kingdom. Smoodin, E. Routledge, 2004. 131-147.
Monday, February 4, 2008
ONLINE JOURNAL #3!!!
EDUTAINMENT......
In class this week, we primarily focused on the increasing convergence of corporate entities and the amount of vertical and horizontal integration that has occurred within, and between, major media conglomerates. Our readings consisted of chapters 3,4 and 7 from Thussu’s text, examining the expansion of our global communication infrastructure and the emergence of the internet and its underlying implications. The topic that gained the majority of my interest involved the concept of edutainment. Edutainment is essentially the use of various media, such as computer software, to essentially educate and entertain. Briefly discussed in comparison to ‘infotainment’, Thussu described edutainment as making “education entertaining without sacrificing quality” (Thussu 2000:223). The children’s show Sesame Street was used as an example in the text; a program broadcasted with educational intentions and viewed as entertainment. The idea behind edutainment is that by entertaining while educating, children will engage more positively with the material taught and therefore gain more out of the programs. Edutainment, in its most basic sense, seems like a very beneficial and effective means to teach children.
When reading this section in Thussu’s text, it initially made me think of educational e board games, computer games, and educational television shows such as Barney, The Magic School Bus, Blues Clues, and Teletubbies etc. However, it also reminded me of a recent news program I viewed on CTV that hit a nerve. The news broadcast described an initiative to incorporate interactive e-learning video games into the Canadian elementary school curriculum. Due to the dramatic increase in the amount of time children spend at the computer, messaging and playing games, the idea of using this pastime to help further education has become common. Essentially, the idea described by this initiative was to use video games as a means to aid in child classroom learning. The video games described in the brief news program were basically designed as interactive mediums where children could browse various academic topics. For instance, children could surf various geographical environments,- ie- an African jungle or an Egyptian dessert- identifying certain types of animals and vegetation, in order to learn the components. Once interacting with the objects, the child would be provided with educational descriptions and ‘interesting’ facts etc.
Doug Thomas, a professor at the University of Souther California’s Annenberg School for communication, also an advocate of video game edutainment, is also currently developing a video game for students ages 10-12 that aims to teach ideas and skills not found in traditional textbooks. His game, called Modern Promotheus, uses the story of Frankenstein to teach children ethical decision making. Utilizing the video game genre, he hopes to help place this form of edutainment within the American classroom setting. Thomas acknowledges that his game currently fits into the elementary school system, but doesn't, as of yet, fit into many established middle school curricula. Stated in his article, “ to overcome that obstacle, Thomas is collaborating with Indiana University Professor Sasha Barab whose Quest Atlantis game is used by 4500 students around the world” (Reuters 2007).
In my opinion, edutainment, in the form of television programming, is fantastic, as it definitely aids to enrich children while entertaining them at the same time. However, edutainment in the form of video games should not be utilized as a means to teach children within the classroom. What does that say about our current society/world? These news stories were a definite shock. In my opinion, these stories help reinforce how reliant we are, as a nation, on entertainment and technology. They also reinforce the laziness of our culture- not only the laziness of our teachers, but also the laziness of our children. By utilizing these types of technologies to teach children, we would essentially be depriving them of the independence and satisfaction of reading or researching for example. Something just doesn't seem right about allowing a computer video game to educate our youth. Although these types of ideas are interesting in theory, I believe that if these types of learning programs were implemented, they would do more harm then good.
What is most sobering, is that these types of edutainment forms being combined with various education systems is not an unrealistic thought. Rather, it seems like a number of these educational video games are being utilized around the world...
Maybe I am pessimistic, but I just do not see the value in using video games to teach in the classroom setting...
Reuters.(2007). Video Games Invade University Classrooms. Retreived February 3, 2008, from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071206.wgtcollegegaming1206/BNStory
Thussu, Daya Kishan. The Historical Context of International Communication. International Communication: Continuity and
Change. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
In class this week, we primarily focused on the increasing convergence of corporate entities and the amount of vertical and horizontal integration that has occurred within, and between, major media conglomerates. Our readings consisted of chapters 3,4 and 7 from Thussu’s text, examining the expansion of our global communication infrastructure and the emergence of the internet and its underlying implications. The topic that gained the majority of my interest involved the concept of edutainment. Edutainment is essentially the use of various media, such as computer software, to essentially educate and entertain. Briefly discussed in comparison to ‘infotainment’, Thussu described edutainment as making “education entertaining without sacrificing quality” (Thussu 2000:223). The children’s show Sesame Street was used as an example in the text; a program broadcasted with educational intentions and viewed as entertainment. The idea behind edutainment is that by entertaining while educating, children will engage more positively with the material taught and therefore gain more out of the programs. Edutainment, in its most basic sense, seems like a very beneficial and effective means to teach children.
When reading this section in Thussu’s text, it initially made me think of educational e board games, computer games, and educational television shows such as Barney, The Magic School Bus, Blues Clues, and Teletubbies etc. However, it also reminded me of a recent news program I viewed on CTV that hit a nerve. The news broadcast described an initiative to incorporate interactive e-learning video games into the Canadian elementary school curriculum. Due to the dramatic increase in the amount of time children spend at the computer, messaging and playing games, the idea of using this pastime to help further education has become common. Essentially, the idea described by this initiative was to use video games as a means to aid in child classroom learning. The video games described in the brief news program were basically designed as interactive mediums where children could browse various academic topics. For instance, children could surf various geographical environments,- ie- an African jungle or an Egyptian dessert- identifying certain types of animals and vegetation, in order to learn the components. Once interacting with the objects, the child would be provided with educational descriptions and ‘interesting’ facts etc.
Doug Thomas, a professor at the University of Souther California’s Annenberg School for communication, also an advocate of video game edutainment, is also currently developing a video game for students ages 10-12 that aims to teach ideas and skills not found in traditional textbooks. His game, called Modern Promotheus, uses the story of Frankenstein to teach children ethical decision making. Utilizing the video game genre, he hopes to help place this form of edutainment within the American classroom setting. Thomas acknowledges that his game currently fits into the elementary school system, but doesn't, as of yet, fit into many established middle school curricula. Stated in his article, “ to overcome that obstacle, Thomas is collaborating with Indiana University Professor Sasha Barab whose Quest Atlantis game is used by 4500 students around the world” (Reuters 2007).
In my opinion, edutainment, in the form of television programming, is fantastic, as it definitely aids to enrich children while entertaining them at the same time. However, edutainment in the form of video games should not be utilized as a means to teach children within the classroom. What does that say about our current society/world? These news stories were a definite shock. In my opinion, these stories help reinforce how reliant we are, as a nation, on entertainment and technology. They also reinforce the laziness of our culture- not only the laziness of our teachers, but also the laziness of our children. By utilizing these types of technologies to teach children, we would essentially be depriving them of the independence and satisfaction of reading or researching for example. Something just doesn't seem right about allowing a computer video game to educate our youth. Although these types of ideas are interesting in theory, I believe that if these types of learning programs were implemented, they would do more harm then good.
What is most sobering, is that these types of edutainment forms being combined with various education systems is not an unrealistic thought. Rather, it seems like a number of these educational video games are being utilized around the world...
Maybe I am pessimistic, but I just do not see the value in using video games to teach in the classroom setting...
Reuters.(2007). Video Games Invade University Classrooms. Retreived February 3, 2008, from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071206.wgtcollegegaming1206/BNStory
Thussu, Daya Kishan. The Historical Context of International Communication. International Communication: Continuity and
Change. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
ONLINE JOURNAL #2!!!
Propoganda: "Systematic manipulation of public opinion.. consciously and deliberately used to influence group attitudes...almost any attempt to sway public opinion-- Generally, the term is restricted to the manipulation of political beliefs."
(http://www.reference.com/search?q=propoganda)
This week we covered the first chapter of Thussu’s novel, “ The Historical Context of International Communication”, which heavily focused on the historical development of communication technologies and its tight relationship with international politics. During lecture we began with a discussion of the nation state and contemplated the significant role that communication systems have played in influencing the nation state throughout history. The chapter provided a thorough account of the historical relationship between the early communication forms such as the telegraph and radio and their tight connection to the structure of international politics and international military action. What specifically caught my interest was the examination of radio and its role as a predominant and important tool for broadcasting early forms of propaganda. Thussu described the radio’s integral interrelationship with propaganda and its use in disseminating information during many historical war periods to gain dominance; the Russian communists utilized the radio to broadcast their interests and promote their political views, the German Nazi’s also participated, heavily relying on radio as a prime tool for perpetuating their anti-semitic ideologies. Thussu explained the amount of power that this early communication form possessed during these highly intense political time periods, contributing greatly to the manipulation of the beliefs and values held by those within various nation states. Essentially, the radio provided these politics groups and other forms of government with the means to acquire power and perpetuate their ideals in a way that was both effective and efficient, providing them with the opportunity to reach incredibly broad audiences. Crossing the boundaries of neighboring nation states, the Nazis in Germany could disseminate propaganda across the globe and garner supporters. Radio, although a primitive and early communication medium, provided these types of political groups with exactly what they needed at that time, an essential means to disseminate their propaganda in order to manipulate public opinion.
When I reflect and think about more modern forms of propaganda, I instinctively think of military advertisements and commercials. I think of recent commercials I have seen for the Canadian Military or the American Armed Forces; I rarely think of propaganda functioning on an international level for other international political or military purposes. However, without a doubt, there proves to be a significant appearance of propaganda within modern political conflicts, mainly observed in conflicts between the U.S and the Middle East. As part of the United States ‘strategized plan’, the U.S recently incorporated the use of propaganda as a technique to manipulate the values and beliefs of the citizens of the Middle East. The U.S essentially planned to develop an intensified propaganda program to help ‘win the hearts and minds’ of the people of the Middle East and basically try to get them to favor the American way of life. Their propaganda model has been thought to include things like: the establishment of a radio station to broadcast pop music, Eminem, and an American slant on the news to young listeners, the creation of Arabic-language web sites, and the placement of U.S. government-sponsored commercials and advertisements in Middle Eastern media outlets. These types of modern propoganda techniques initiated for political manipulation prove to be very interesting given their distinct similarity to previous historical methods utilized during the 17th and 18th century. Some things just have not changed. As a global leader, the U.S, following the footsteps of previously powerful nation states, have attempted to manipulate the values and beliefs of another nation state to essentially gain power and dominate; a trend that obviously and evidently continues to plague throughout history.
- Another interesting and recent instance where the U.S utilized propoganda as a means of control, involves the conflict between the U.S troops and the Taliban. The U.S used the early communication technology of the radio to communicate to the Taliban troops and manipulate them to surrender; specifically broadcasting messages reinforcing the surrender of the Taliba troops in Afghanistan;
Here's a complete text of one broadcast that I thought would be interesting to include on my post: "Attention Taliban! You are condemned. Did you know that? The instant the terrorists you support took over our planes, you sentenced yourselves to death. The Armed Forces of the United States are here to seek justice for our dead. Highly trained soldiers are coming to shut down once and for all Osama bin Laden's ring of terrorism, and the Taliban that supports them and their actions.
"Our forces are armed with state of the art military equipment. What are you using, obsolete and ineffective weaponry? Our helicopters will rain fire down upon your camps before you detect them on your radar. Our bombs are so accurate we can drop them right through your windows. Our infantry is trained for any climate and terrain on earth. United States soldiers fire with superior marksmanship and are armed with superior weapons” (http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/17/ret.us.propaganda/)
The US troops thought that by broadcasting these messages over and over via the radio, they could manipulate the Afghani troops to surrender. Unfortunately these messages proved to be unsuccessful, but they are clear examples of how relevant the use of the radio is for the international broadcasting of modern propoganda. It seems relevant and proves to be interesting to examine these communication mediums such as the radio etc in terms of international politics as they greatly contribute to the structure of military functioning between and within nation states.
(http://www.reference.com/search?q=propoganda)
This week we covered the first chapter of Thussu’s novel, “ The Historical Context of International Communication”, which heavily focused on the historical development of communication technologies and its tight relationship with international politics. During lecture we began with a discussion of the nation state and contemplated the significant role that communication systems have played in influencing the nation state throughout history. The chapter provided a thorough account of the historical relationship between the early communication forms such as the telegraph and radio and their tight connection to the structure of international politics and international military action. What specifically caught my interest was the examination of radio and its role as a predominant and important tool for broadcasting early forms of propaganda. Thussu described the radio’s integral interrelationship with propaganda and its use in disseminating information during many historical war periods to gain dominance; the Russian communists utilized the radio to broadcast their interests and promote their political views, the German Nazi’s also participated, heavily relying on radio as a prime tool for perpetuating their anti-semitic ideologies. Thussu explained the amount of power that this early communication form possessed during these highly intense political time periods, contributing greatly to the manipulation of the beliefs and values held by those within various nation states. Essentially, the radio provided these politics groups and other forms of government with the means to acquire power and perpetuate their ideals in a way that was both effective and efficient, providing them with the opportunity to reach incredibly broad audiences. Crossing the boundaries of neighboring nation states, the Nazis in Germany could disseminate propaganda across the globe and garner supporters. Radio, although a primitive and early communication medium, provided these types of political groups with exactly what they needed at that time, an essential means to disseminate their propaganda in order to manipulate public opinion.
When I reflect and think about more modern forms of propaganda, I instinctively think of military advertisements and commercials. I think of recent commercials I have seen for the Canadian Military or the American Armed Forces; I rarely think of propaganda functioning on an international level for other international political or military purposes. However, without a doubt, there proves to be a significant appearance of propaganda within modern political conflicts, mainly observed in conflicts between the U.S and the Middle East. As part of the United States ‘strategized plan’, the U.S recently incorporated the use of propaganda as a technique to manipulate the values and beliefs of the citizens of the Middle East. The U.S essentially planned to develop an intensified propaganda program to help ‘win the hearts and minds’ of the people of the Middle East and basically try to get them to favor the American way of life. Their propaganda model has been thought to include things like: the establishment of a radio station to broadcast pop music, Eminem, and an American slant on the news to young listeners, the creation of Arabic-language web sites, and the placement of U.S. government-sponsored commercials and advertisements in Middle Eastern media outlets. These types of modern propoganda techniques initiated for political manipulation prove to be very interesting given their distinct similarity to previous historical methods utilized during the 17th and 18th century. Some things just have not changed. As a global leader, the U.S, following the footsteps of previously powerful nation states, have attempted to manipulate the values and beliefs of another nation state to essentially gain power and dominate; a trend that obviously and evidently continues to plague throughout history.
- Another interesting and recent instance where the U.S utilized propoganda as a means of control, involves the conflict between the U.S troops and the Taliban. The U.S used the early communication technology of the radio to communicate to the Taliban troops and manipulate them to surrender; specifically broadcasting messages reinforcing the surrender of the Taliba troops in Afghanistan;
Here's a complete text of one broadcast that I thought would be interesting to include on my post: "Attention Taliban! You are condemned. Did you know that? The instant the terrorists you support took over our planes, you sentenced yourselves to death. The Armed Forces of the United States are here to seek justice for our dead. Highly trained soldiers are coming to shut down once and for all Osama bin Laden's ring of terrorism, and the Taliban that supports them and their actions.
"Our forces are armed with state of the art military equipment. What are you using, obsolete and ineffective weaponry? Our helicopters will rain fire down upon your camps before you detect them on your radar. Our bombs are so accurate we can drop them right through your windows. Our infantry is trained for any climate and terrain on earth. United States soldiers fire with superior marksmanship and are armed with superior weapons” (http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/17/ret.us.propaganda/)
The US troops thought that by broadcasting these messages over and over via the radio, they could manipulate the Afghani troops to surrender. Unfortunately these messages proved to be unsuccessful, but they are clear examples of how relevant the use of the radio is for the international broadcasting of modern propoganda. It seems relevant and proves to be interesting to examine these communication mediums such as the radio etc in terms of international politics as they greatly contribute to the structure of military functioning between and within nation states.
Thussu, Daya Kishan. " The Historical Context of International Communication." International Communication: Continuity and Change. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/17/ret.us.propaganda/
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB78/essay.htm
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB78/essay.htm
Monday, January 21, 2008
ONLINE JOURNAL #1!!!
As our first week of class commenced, we dove into the broad and integral topic of globalization. We examined what globalization meant to us, as students of communications, and we addressed its numerous definitions and facets; all of which seemed like crucial places to begin the course and introduce us to the course material. International communication comes to the forefront of our new global age and the process of instantaneous information sharing and transmission across vast boundaries highlights one of the most fascinating elements of our modern global society. Our readings for this week proved to be a good overview as many of the philosophical and theoretical approaches utilized in the study of communication were briefly reviewed.
One of our duties we learned for this course was to create weekly online blogs, which we would develop and post throughout each forthcoming week. As a communication student, new to blogs, I was a little intimidated I must admit. Firstly, I didn't know if I would have much to say in response to some of the weekly readings and secondly, not only that, I was intimidated that most people would get incredibly bored with my comments. However, with this said, after reading Thussu’s intro and second chapter, I have confidently been enlightened by some of the material and prove to have some strong critical thoughts and opinions.
Recent technological innovations, especially with regards to the speed, volume and cost of information processing, storage and transmission, have radically changed the world as we know it. Computing and digitalization breakthroughs have lead to a restructuring of Western life in particular. We now live in a global society, described accurately and theoretically as the ‘information society’; an emergent network that centers and thrives on the exchange of information. The internet has evidently been the major player whose existence has facilitated the intense interconnectedness we now experience. We can now access and disseminate large masses of information with the touch of a mouse or the click of a button. With this said, just as the internet has been met with radical debates over its benefits and drawbacks, so has theories regarding our emergent ‘information society’. Not only does our information society provide the opportunity to further democracy, allowing almost anyone to gain access to all types of information world wide, it also provides a framework in which many people can be exploited.
It was raised in the text that there was concern about new technologies being utilized for personal or political surveillance. Surveillance, in my opinion, is an incredibly pertinent topic that greatly affects our modern era dominated by technology and information sharing. The topic of surveillance brings to mind the famous scholar Michael Foucault and his concept of panoptic, disciplinary power. If any of you have taken Cote’s communication theory class, than this concept should be very familiar. To explain breifly, the idea of the panopticon comes from the late 18th-early 19th c. political economist Jeremy Bentham, who described the use of a ‘central tower’ within a prison to describe the forms of disciplinary power used to control society and aid in its functioning. Foucault- “[Disciplinary power is] how we surveil someone, control his conduct, his behavior, his aptitudes, intensify his performance, multiply his capacities, put him in his place where he will be most useful” (Cote lectures). In the late 18th and early 19th century, various institutions acted as disciplinary powers, including the church, the family, the factory etc, essentially surveilling and indirectly controlling individuals and society. But with the turn of the 21st century there came intense interconnectedness and the development of multiple networks greatly increased the need to find new ways to control society to ensure economic stability. It was no longer the institutions that would be able to surveil society, rather new systems had to be developed to monitor and surveil the flows between the newly abundant networks. Invasive, and in my opinion unethical, forms of surveillance and control such as SAP and ERP systems are just two examples of modern disciplinary powers. European software giant SAP established a ‘four-wall’ monitoring and control system, in which senior management could keep track of every imaginable element of their business, not to mention every single employee. Enterprise Resource Planning systems and other software have been constructed to essentially discipline and control working practices—which means anticipating all contingencies—and forcing them to flow through their ‘proprietary coding’. Basically with the use of new digital technology made possible by our newly advanced information society, the CEO and senior management now become the electronic eye, surveilling every move their workers make. Something just doesn’t seem right about that. Instead of trusting ones employees or letting them act on an individual level, companies are purchasing software to monitor every movement their workers make- and essentially exploit their individual work habits. Almost like a modern assembly line of workers don’t you think? Modern businesses are utilizing the technological and digital advances of our society to gain as much information through whatever network is possible to ensure as much control as possible. What makes this even more scary, is that this information can be processed and acquired internationally. What a worker in Germany is doing can be immediately transmitted and viewed by his manager or corporate owner on the other side of the world, in the US for example. There are obviously incredible benefits to this type of information transmission, but what I find most problematic is that it is not always consensual and it is not always necessary. This type of information surveilling and transmission has severe negative consequences when utilized to gain information on a personal level, and to be honest, I find it exploitative. Companies that purchase software to monitor and ‘spy’ on their employees I am sure could find more practical uses to ensure structured and organized employee output. Either way, the issue of personal surveillance and the transmission of other types of information provide a whole other topic of discussion, possibly for next week. However, with this said, hopefully this brief blog, - and my comments regarding new business surveillance- has provided some insight into a few of my thoughts for this week when reflecting on our class discussions and course readings.
One of our duties we learned for this course was to create weekly online blogs, which we would develop and post throughout each forthcoming week. As a communication student, new to blogs, I was a little intimidated I must admit. Firstly, I didn't know if I would have much to say in response to some of the weekly readings and secondly, not only that, I was intimidated that most people would get incredibly bored with my comments. However, with this said, after reading Thussu’s intro and second chapter, I have confidently been enlightened by some of the material and prove to have some strong critical thoughts and opinions.
Recent technological innovations, especially with regards to the speed, volume and cost of information processing, storage and transmission, have radically changed the world as we know it. Computing and digitalization breakthroughs have lead to a restructuring of Western life in particular. We now live in a global society, described accurately and theoretically as the ‘information society’; an emergent network that centers and thrives on the exchange of information. The internet has evidently been the major player whose existence has facilitated the intense interconnectedness we now experience. We can now access and disseminate large masses of information with the touch of a mouse or the click of a button. With this said, just as the internet has been met with radical debates over its benefits and drawbacks, so has theories regarding our emergent ‘information society’. Not only does our information society provide the opportunity to further democracy, allowing almost anyone to gain access to all types of information world wide, it also provides a framework in which many people can be exploited.
It was raised in the text that there was concern about new technologies being utilized for personal or political surveillance. Surveillance, in my opinion, is an incredibly pertinent topic that greatly affects our modern era dominated by technology and information sharing. The topic of surveillance brings to mind the famous scholar Michael Foucault and his concept of panoptic, disciplinary power. If any of you have taken Cote’s communication theory class, than this concept should be very familiar. To explain breifly, the idea of the panopticon comes from the late 18th-early 19th c. political economist Jeremy Bentham, who described the use of a ‘central tower’ within a prison to describe the forms of disciplinary power used to control society and aid in its functioning. Foucault- “[Disciplinary power is] how we surveil someone, control his conduct, his behavior, his aptitudes, intensify his performance, multiply his capacities, put him in his place where he will be most useful” (Cote lectures). In the late 18th and early 19th century, various institutions acted as disciplinary powers, including the church, the family, the factory etc, essentially surveilling and indirectly controlling individuals and society. But with the turn of the 21st century there came intense interconnectedness and the development of multiple networks greatly increased the need to find new ways to control society to ensure economic stability. It was no longer the institutions that would be able to surveil society, rather new systems had to be developed to monitor and surveil the flows between the newly abundant networks. Invasive, and in my opinion unethical, forms of surveillance and control such as SAP and ERP systems are just two examples of modern disciplinary powers. European software giant SAP established a ‘four-wall’ monitoring and control system, in which senior management could keep track of every imaginable element of their business, not to mention every single employee. Enterprise Resource Planning systems and other software have been constructed to essentially discipline and control working practices—which means anticipating all contingencies—and forcing them to flow through their ‘proprietary coding’. Basically with the use of new digital technology made possible by our newly advanced information society, the CEO and senior management now become the electronic eye, surveilling every move their workers make. Something just doesn’t seem right about that. Instead of trusting ones employees or letting them act on an individual level, companies are purchasing software to monitor every movement their workers make- and essentially exploit their individual work habits. Almost like a modern assembly line of workers don’t you think? Modern businesses are utilizing the technological and digital advances of our society to gain as much information through whatever network is possible to ensure as much control as possible. What makes this even more scary, is that this information can be processed and acquired internationally. What a worker in Germany is doing can be immediately transmitted and viewed by his manager or corporate owner on the other side of the world, in the US for example. There are obviously incredible benefits to this type of information transmission, but what I find most problematic is that it is not always consensual and it is not always necessary. This type of information surveilling and transmission has severe negative consequences when utilized to gain information on a personal level, and to be honest, I find it exploitative. Companies that purchase software to monitor and ‘spy’ on their employees I am sure could find more practical uses to ensure structured and organized employee output. Either way, the issue of personal surveillance and the transmission of other types of information provide a whole other topic of discussion, possibly for next week. However, with this said, hopefully this brief blog, - and my comments regarding new business surveillance- has provided some insight into a few of my thoughts for this week when reflecting on our class discussions and course readings.
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