GLOBALIZATION OF MEDIA:Media and consumerism, Media centralization

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Introduction to Mass Communication MCM 101

LESSON 41

GLOBALIZATION OF MEDIA

Globalization is a buzz word these days. It is more heard in the arena of economics where

transnational corporations are widening their scope of activities and earning massively. So strong is the

thrust for expansionism by the world corporate sectors that governments and other international

organizations like the UNO etc also at times seem to be only working for the cause of this sector. The wave

of globalization is not without criticism such as it is designed to make a few rich and the rest poor not only

in the financial sense but also culturally. The debate is raging high.

Media as an international entity both as a corporate sector and as a tool to represent culture of the region

it belongs to is also caught in the globalization campaign as many fear the new trend may prove to be

much horrific for the developing countries and regional cultures.

Here below we will examine various aspects of the globalization of media.

Media and consumerism

The media and communication industries are a leading sector in facilitating overall globalization. In

the first place, the role of telecommunication is critical to globalize production strategies. It is inconceivable

that the pace and depth of globalization could have been sustained over the past decades in the absence of

sophisticated telecommunications networking. Furthermore, content (or "copyright") industries, such as

television, music, video, film and the Internet, directly through advertising and indirectly through the

promotion of consumerist and individualistic lifestyles, are at the forefront of cultural preparation for

consumerism, an essential precondition and accompaniment to the opening up of new markets for a huge

variety of products, and to the breaking down of cultural and other barriers.

Another factor in the globalization of the media and communication sector is as a powerful agent in the

transformation of social, cultural and political structures. This is, of course, partly the flip side of media and

communications as a means of opening new markets and softening up cultures for consumerism, although

there is more to it than that. It is this set of (often unintended) side effects of the globalization of media that

have the most impact of all, namely the evolving cumulative impact of the gradual commercialization of

media and communications on critical social functions, such as the formation of individual and community

identity, cultural and language diversity, the capacity to participate in the political process and the integrity

of the public sphere, the availability of information and knowledge in the public domain, and the use of

media for development, educational and human rights purposes.

Dominance of TNCs backed by governments

Analyzing the effects of many historic, economic and political factors to have influenced the most

important characteristics of globalization of media systems in the last 15 years, and that what can be

observed is a domination of large countries and powerful transnational companies (TNC) which, according

to the effects of market laws, also affect the sphere of media industry and media systems.

Media centralization

Global Media experts maintain that these processes directly influence general commercialization of

media in the world and thereby most certainly democracy, both as an idea and system of governance.

Although, in their opinion, global media systems do not develop linearly in this direction, their trend is,

gradually and more or less, to become a part of the process of media centralization spearheaded by some

30 TNCs with the aim of taking control over the media. In this regard, economic interests unreservedly help

the political structures in large countries, which thus watch over the information and ideological orientation

inside nations, and in regions and on continents as well.

After providing a short historic overview of the appearance and development of the first massive medium

press and its historic predecessors, from early times gazettes, pamphlets, annals, to the first newspaper

editions in today's meaning, all the way to the appearance of the first electronic medium and development

of television and internet experts analyze the dynamics of the global media market and explain the strategy

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and funding of major media corporations, such as Time Warner, Disney, Bertelsmann, Viacom, and News

Corporation, which primarily have big film and television productions.

These TNCs are top players on the global media market, as one can see have imposing data indicating these

companies' clear profile, first of all their financial wealth measured in billions of dollars in annual income.

(For example, Time Warner, the biggest media corporation, had an income of close to $25 billion, Disney

had $24 billion, and News Corporation had $10 billion).

Their economic power is primarily thanks to a broad range of production and publishing activities, i.e.

internal growth, but also thanks to acquisitions and mergers.

(The biggest media corporation, Time Warner, was created in 1989 as a result of a merger between Time

Incorporated and Warner Communications Incorporated).

Media freedom and objectivity declining

The slogans under which the first media appeared, freedom of expression, freedom of writing,

principles of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity or, even better, fair reporting, are today thrown into question

by the fact that commercial values in the media have taken root with primacy.

It is precisely economic market relations which guide transnational companies, after integrating with one

another in the above two ways, to ruthlessly enter national and international arenas that have a fatal affect

on the character and structure of media programs. As a result, the general trend of media insistence on

entertainment and light contents is a consequence of the almost completed commercialization of the media.

The famous saying that the media create the culture of entertainment is now at work. This has a negative

effect on program quality and the demands of public opinion which is under its influence, and it promotes

an elitist consumer culture within the broader society.

Poor and less developed regions in terms of information and communications experience a particularly big

effect on this character of the modern media. The local cultural and political media landscape of these

countries is strongly affected by the operation of political and media systems of wealthy countries.

IMF blamed

Edward S. Herman and Robert W. McChesney, the two American university professors, say all

these processes in media systems, along with countries which TNC and their influences originate from, are

also supported by economic giants such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which, through some of

its programs, facilitates media penetration of the great powers into underdeveloped countries.

The marketing media TNC IMF scheme operates throughout the global system, stimulating

application of neo-liberal rules based on penetration of private investments and reduced social

appropriations that can be a very dangerous combination in a system of extreme inequality.

Hapless media standardization

Standardization of media, first of all through the structure and content of programs in all types of

media, may influence the particularity and sustainability of authentic characteristics of national cultures

which succumb to the consumer spirit of the media industry conglomerate. But these processes may result,

and are already resulting in a loss of public journalism and criticism of journalists, who often face the

dilemma of whether to write truthfully and accurately (?) or not to allow themselves to be neutral in writing

for the sake of higher interests of the media giants they work for. Instead of civil journalism, what is

present is new journalism with products which constitute commodities, with journalists who balance among

neutrality, hushing up truth and a media system insensitive to the local and the regional needs.

How to combat the alternate media?

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A solution to preserving national and media authenticity and pluralism is in alternative non-profit

media which would form a non-profit public sphere. Consequently, decentralization of global media and

economic giants is possible through concentration of alternative media markets.

Alternate media could be developed at local level, and after that at a higher level.

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