Media Globalization and Cultural Imperialism: Contrary evidences from Indian television

Mira K Desai, PhDUniversity Department of Extension Education

SNDT Women’s University, Juhu Campus, Mumbai

What is Culture?

Clothing

Sports

Entertainment

Artifacts Food

Identity

Culture also is………..

Discourses

VerbalNon-verbal

Symbolic codes

Institutions

BeliefsPractices

AttitudesValues

EthosBelonging

Globalization -Cultural Imperialism

• LPG and changing patterns of financial flows• Growth in size and power of Corporations• Advances of ICT and Media reach• Changing flow of people• Intersections of Environment-Economy-

Politics-Culture-Society• American Imperialism on ‘others’

Assumptions of Cultural Imperialism

• Rooted in the realities of the 1970s, depiction of a hegemonic media pied piper (America) leading the global media mice (third world countries).

• Corporations have been successful at massifying non-Western culture into Western values.

• The effects vary according to the type of media. Capital-intensive media (like TV and film) tend to be powerful massification forces.

Historically……Cultural Imperialism

• Has roots in New World Information and Communication Order (NWICO).

• Refers to the spread of one culture at the expense of others usually because of differential economic or political influence.

• While mass media and related technology contribute to the erosion of local cultures, they are increasingly being used as media for the outward diffusion of local cultures.

Western values…..

Individualism and competition for self interest (opposite of Collective)

Consumerism and materialism Status consciousness based on wealth Covert racism (by favouring Western

forms of music, fashion, beauty, etc) Excessive hedonism, violence, and sex

Cultural Imperialism through TV!

• Structural elements: • Economic frameworks- Advertising revenue• Technological bases- Satellite, air travel• Institutional forms of organization and operation: national

market structures, ownership rules, production incentives and subsidies, financial rules, frequency assignments, technical standards, content rules, economic restructuring, International powers (IMF, WTO)

• Cultural elements: Regionalization in terms of geography-language and culture,

Formation of language and cultural communities, Creation and flow of content across globe

TV Globalization!!!

• Operations: national or local-{frequency licensing, satellite orbit controls, market definition, financial incentives, cultural policy and advertising, and other financial controls by nation-states}

• organization: transnational, international, macro-regional, national, micro-regional, municipal, local

• Investments: truly global• Productions: copycat/dubbed/syndicated• Flows: Geo-linguistics and regionalization• Impact: Evidences about flow, genre or broadcast model

based impact on audiences

Cultural Imperialism…..1960s and 1970s (Conception)Unequal TV flows – Structural inequalities of TV production

1980sDisagreements

1990s onwardsGlobalization, Post-colonialism,

Postmodernism, Active audiences

Indian Television….The Journey

• From 1959 to 2014 and From B&W to Colour• From 1 channel to 845 channels • From 40 sets to 14 Million TV Sets• From Social Development to Entertainment• From PSB to niche audience and segmented realities• From terrestrial to Cable-STB-DTH-IPTV-Mobile TV• From Neighborhood TV to multiple TV sets in a house• From local- Hum Log to glocal-…KBC……..

Questioning of Cultural Imperialism

• Non-Western rise of soft power: film from India and Egypt, television from Mexico and Brazil

• Contra-flows: Indian films dominating in Asia• Globalization of media forms• Globalization of media Firms (TNCs)• Global media flows• Media localization and global/national values• Nationalism to Transnationalism

Contrary Evidences-1

• Media text: Hybrid programming, Indian look and Western values

• Transnational Operations: Copycat TV, Licensed/Syndicated shows, Film collaborations, content exchange collaborations

• Media structure ownerships• Audience Studies with diverse findings

ZEE Story- Local gone Global

• ZEE reaches 169 countries across the globe.• ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. launched its

2nd Arabic channel, Zee Alwan, in 2012. • ZEEL has been syndicating Indian dramas dubbed

in Mandarin to Chinese television channels since 2006 and became the first Indian channel to receive landing rights in China in 2012.

Contrary Evidences…2

• Regional Networks• Manufacturing of ‘Indian’ identities• Localizing the global and Globalizing the local• Market tensions and negotiated identities• Nation-state may not be decisive category• Ethnically homogenous nation-states sharing

content

FICCI-KPMG 2013 Report….

• GEC channels like Zee TV (169), SET (77), Star Plus (70) and Colors (50) are available globally.

• Hindi GEC viewership share is 30% (regional GEC- 20.18%) compared to English entertainment (0.14%), English news (0.23%) and English movies (0.88%).

• Hindi and regional GEC is 50% viewership share• 2012 as DAS-Digital Addressability System year• TV Advertising spent lesser than expected - 8%

(compared to 12% of 2011 and 17% in 2010)

3 types of Indian Content on move

• Ernest & Young and FICCI report on Indian Content on Move, 2007 estimates Indian content as 200 USD million industry and 20 Million NRIs as market

• FIRST, the colour, song, dance and drama that is its hallmark. It is for Indians and other audiences who are culturally aligned to Indian sensibilities.

• SECOND is content with an Indian theme. Rich Indian mythology, culture or characters based in India seeking a global audience.

• THIRD to serve markets with supply deficiency of local programming. There fresh programming costs are high compared with the size of the local audience For eg. Animation or kids content West Asia, Eastern Europe and other such markets.

Contrary Evidences-3

• States: employ political power, define aspects of cultures, license broadcasters, create market incentives, limit imports through quotas, and counteract global actors who wish to penetrate national cultural space.

• Market- size and wealth, National- commercial structure and financial base, Competition, Government policies, Other cultural industries, Producer behaviour,

Cultural Imperialism

PAST• Domination-

Hegemony• Media Imperialism• Discourse of

nationality• Critique of global

capitalism• Critique of modernity

PRESENT• Localization • Glocalisation • Counter-flow • Local resistance • Cultural proximity,

economic capital • Hybridisation - music,

fashion, and styles

Thanks for your time and patience

Feel Free to connect:drmiradesai@gmail.comsndtmedia@hotmail.com