New and digital media have contributed to the process of globalisation, the idea that the world is becoming increasingly interconnected through global culture. Using your own case study, evaluate the impact of new and digital media have had on globalisation (48)
It has become clear that globalisation has become something great as the world is increasingly becoming interconnected through global culture. New and digital media has given globalisation the possibility to connect audiences from all around the world.
Consider social media as an example. Social media has allowed people to connect with each other as well as communicate with each other despite living on the other side of the world. Social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram has become increasingly popular because people are connected on to one site where they can talk and post pictures for all to see. The comment section on social media and websites allow the audience to discuss points and topics which then turn into debates. Also, Twitter has become very powerful over the last few years because this is the way in which the audience have the power to bring awareness to topics that they view as important. For instance, the Kesha incident that happened recently. Kesha was being abused by her music producer and people started using the hashtag #kesha to bring the problem to the attention of others. When a topic becomes trending, people around the world will be aware of the situation. This is how people now find out about things. "The internet is an empowering tool" (Al Gore) in which it allows the audience to connect and discuss things with each other on-line.
Another way new and digital media has contributed to the process of globalisation is by globalising the news. Globalisation revolves around the global news system that has developed as a result of technological advances. New and digital media has made it possible for all media to be accessed via a single device therefore creating new forms of interaction across and among media. We receive news from one device, such as our mobile phones, from looking at news sites or Twitter and we all see the most famous news. However, due to familiarity (Galtung & Rouge) we only see the news that affects us or America. The news is influenced by American culture imperialism. National broadcasters are capable of and responsible for selecting and repackaging information to best suit their conceptions of domestic needs. The US monopolises the global information system, dominating nations that wield less power in it. Despite that, we can see the globalisation in news through the example of when Mashable struck a deal with France 24, the international news & current affairs public service broadcaster, to launch a french-language version of the social media site. A Guardian article explains how France 24 broadcasts 3 channels globally-French, Arabic and English- with a weekly audience of 50 million viewers across 180 countries. This shows that Mashable will be globalised through the aid of France 24.
Citizen journalism has also become popular and has become a big thing in globalisation. We can view events live as they happen and many people around the world share the same moment. New and digital media has brought about apps such as Pariscope and Snapchat. We are now living in what can be described as a "global village" (McLuhan) as we view each others videos that are posted on Snapchat. This is a key way in which fans stay communicated with their favourite celebrities. Kylie Jenner is known for being a celebrity who post many snap chats for all her fans to see around the world. The downside to user generated content is that it can't always be reliable. For example, an article in the Guardian states that fake Brussel YouTube videos where posted which proves the ease of digital disinformation. Sometimes, trolls will post user generated content for all to see but it is not accurate. This shows that "false information spreads just like accurate information" (Fainda Vis)
When examining the music industry, it is clear that new and digital has changed the way music works and has contributed to the process of globalisation. Before, people used to CD's to listen to music but now new and digital media has paved the way for streaming services to become the main way in which the audience listen to music. Steaming services such as Spotify allow the audience to stay connected with each other as people can follow each others playlists and see what is the top trending songs and albums that people are listening to worldwide. It has also been said that social media is saving the music industry. For instance, an article in the guardian explains how artists can hot wire ideas and newly recorded material to fans who give real-time feedback. Through the use of social media, celebrities can promote their albums and tours and become opinion leaders as they express their ideologies on-line as two step flow theory suggests.
From a Marxist perspective, we are enjoying an illusion of autonomy as we are forced to consume media that the elites censor, through the use of gatekeepers, and give to us. The elites are "dumbing us down" (Keen) as we are forced to accept unconsciously the status quo and the hegemony enforced by the dominant class. Dominant ideologies are sent to us like a hypodermic needle. The media reflect and create the social and cultural world we live in because the media producers construct our views of all these global events and therefore construct our values and ideologies. On the contrary, from a Pluralist perceptive new and digital media has become "the most important medium of the 21st century" (Briggs and Burke). The reception theory agrees with this as it states that the audience is active in the process and therefore the media producers only produce material which reflects the values and ideologies of the perceived audience. An example of this would be the recent article on the Guardian where Jeremy Corbyn explains that it was necessary for Labour to use social media to communicate with the public because rightwing media were censoring political debate in an unprecedented assault on the party. From a Marxist perspective, this shows that censoring still happens as the labour party complains that the rightwing media are censoring political debates. However, from a Pluralist perspective, we can say that new and digital media has given the audience the ability to overcome this because, as shown in this situation, social media has enabled the labour party to communicate with the public.
In conclusion, new and digital media has contributed in the process of globalisation as the audience are more connected in society due to new technology. From observing the current situation, soon we will be more connected in the news industry as Rupert Murdoch says himself that "the internet has given readers much more power".
