Global Flows of Visual Culture

The Global Flow of Visual Culture

It goes both ways, you know. First, I’d like to point out that the commonly held belief that globalization = Americanization does not take into account the full situation. Yes, McDonalds and Mickey Mouse have gone to China and other nations around the world. Yes, American culture has seemed to dominate the global flow of culture in somewhat of a one-way stream for many years. And yes, sometimes Americans are a bit more resistant to allowing other cultures to flow this way.

But that is not to say it does not happen. Witness the flow of Latin musicians to America (Shakira, Christina Aguilera, Enrique Iglesias…the list goes on. There are actually some good names too, but you have to go back a few years.) The U.S. has imported music and images from Latin America and the Caribbean for years. And it doesn’t stop there. Just open up and U.S. newspaper or magazine, and I guarantee that you will find the latest craze…Sudoku. Other evidence of the back and forth nature of this flow can be seen by turning on a TV or looking at popular trading-card games among kids. Japanese animation has basically overtaken Cartoon Network, and has produced shows so popular among kids in the U.S. that the characters are now part of trading card games.

Another thing I’d like to mention about the global flow of visual culture is this new invention “The Slingbox.” Originally developed by displaced baseball fans yearning to see all of their team’s home games, the Slingbox allows viewers to connect to TV streams wirelessly around the globe, so I can follow the New York Yankees here in Los Angeles (if they didn’t have an evil monopoly on their TV coverage with the YES Network, but that’s another story…) This has allowed for an even great free flow of visuals and cultural elements from nations around the world to follow citizens wherever they may go, whether it be a different state or an entirely different country.

Now what has enabled all of this, you say? Well, one major force behind it has been the internet. The internet has allowed greater connectivity around the globe, opening up channels for these visuals and cultures to flow. No longer is an immigrant completely cut off from their home country. They can easily go on the internet and get news, visuals, media, and converse with those back home, all at the click of a button. So is this internet a good or bad thing? So far it sounds good, helping people cope with being displaced in a foreign country, giving them new communities to turn to on the World Wide Web. Yet it can also be isolating. Imagine somebody new to a state or country, no friends in the locale. So they go on their computer. All the time. And do nothing else. They may have a community on the internet, but personal connections…not so many. That is not to say the internet is evil by any means, however. Many argue that these online communities are great things that help members build self-confidence and interact with likeminded people that they might not be able to find where they are located. The book mentioned a woman named Sherry Turkle, who wrote a book titled “’Life on the Screen,” discussing the various pros and cons of this new world of simulation that we live in. I actually read the book for another class I took here at USC and found the different arguments and perspectives very interesting. Some cited online environments as places people suffering depression could turn to for help or help them develop the self-confidence they need. Others discussed the way the internet allows people to connect with others around the globe that they would have missed otherwise.

The internet is a great thing that has allowed us all greater access to a number of terrific things. Now I can be exposed to virtually whatever I want from around the world. I can Google a certain culture from somewhere around the globe, and a visual will pop up immediately. I can then wikipedia it, and learn all about my new favorite painting or cartoon. The only problem with this greater connectivity is that it can get pretty confusing pretty fast. With people around the world all being exposed to visuals from different cultures around the world, a lot can get lost in translation. Just think back to those Mac ads we saw in class on Wednesday. So how people navigate and cope in this new global atmosphere will be interesting. Will many niches develop? Will one global culture emerge? Who know…I certainly don’t.