Reader response draft 1

In the article "Globalization of Culture Through the Media", Kraidy (2002) discusses that cultural globalization is a result of cultural and media imperialism.  As Kraidy mentions, western countries have manipulated mass media to exert their cultural influences across the world, especially the developing states. As interaction between countries increases, there is a shift from a parasitic relationship to a mutualistic one – Globalization. Mass media’s great contribution towards the homogenization of cultural difference proves that it is one of the main driving forces of cultural globalization. However, it still remains debatable whether media acts as the trigger of such revolution, or simply accelerates the process.

I agree with Kraidy that mass media serves as an vital platform for the spread of globalisation. In modern society, just by a click will render countless information at our disposal. As a result of globalization, we are becoming increasingly interconnected within the globe. With increasing number of social media networks, it is difficult not to be connected with the rest of the world. By using Facebook, we are able to network with people in different countries and to a certain extent, stick our nose into their private lives.  Since the revolution of Internet, a country’s domestic news becomes more easily available and accessible. For instance, stories about the wreck left behind after the most recent Thailand political elections is circulated everywhere almost everywhere on the Internet. The “World Wide Web” phenomenon has resulted in a ‘symbiotic association’ that no one has ever predicted.

However, globalization is driven not solely by mass media. There are several other factors that proliferated globalization. Resources needed for a country’s individual growth are dispersed and we have to depend on one another for trade.  It is essential to have vital connections amongst country for economic purposes, especially for countries such as Singapore. With no natural resources and land scarcity, she heavily depends on the trading industry.

Since the Second World War, countries began multinational military trainings and even joint military exercises. In 2012, Singapore held a bilateral Navy training with Australia. The training was titled Singapore. As a result of military exchanges at a multinational level, it is inevitable that countries are becoming interconnected as one, fuelling globalization.

It is hard to refute that there is a transition from media imperialism over the developing states to a tightly weaved international relationship. Knowledge of different parts of the world, culture and society began spreading across the globe due to mass media. However, there are other underlying reasons for the rapid globalization experienced by everyone. Globalization is like a burning torch, which will evolve into a burning flame when fuelled by external factors.