Globalization and free expression...

I ran across a fascinating discussion about how our ideas about "globalization" affect the ability of people to express themselves freely. It's called the "McDonalds or McDocumenta: Artistic Freedom in a Global Economy Forum." It is a part of The Censorship in Camouflage project, which is dedicated to investigating how expression is stifled in ways less obvious than outright government censorship.

For better or worse, the changes to which theories of globalization refer define our present. Interesting point. An investigation into how the processes of globalization affect the ability of individuals, states and minority groups to voice their concerns and be heard is not of purely descriptive value; it could serve as the base of active intervention in cultural policy and thus have tactical as well as theoretical uses.

But, first, what is globalization? There are many ways to see globalization—depending on who is looking, where they are looking from and what they want to see. Yet, we can probably all agree that, in the widest sense, globalization refers to an intensification of worldwide economic and social relations, as a result of which the local and the global are linked to an unprecedented extent.

In culture globalization brings into play two main recognized forces—the forces of homogenization and diversification/ hybridization—each of them with its own complications. Homogenization refers to the global spread of cultural products coming mostly from the US, i.e. the proliferation of McDonalds, Hollywood, CNN, American pop music, and so on, while diversification emphasizes the process of multiculturalism occurring in different nations due to both foreign imports and the new visibility of internal minorities.

So, how long do you plan to hide behind YOUR definition of "gloabalization?"

Got your attention? Get on over to the full article. What do you think?