Theories of the Information Society, Third Edition - Cryptome

THE INFORMATION SOCIETY?
are the presence of unprecedentedly large transnational corporations, an intensification
of competition on a global scale (and thereby an acceleration of the
pace of change within capitalist parameters), the relative decline of national
sovereignty and, above all, globalisation. While it is an extraordinarily complex
phenomenon, globalisation does, for the most part, shape the world in ways that
bring it into conformity with Western ways. All of this is captured effectively, and
in refreshingly unapologetic terms, by New York Times columnist Tom Friedman
in his book The Lexus and the Olive Tree (1999). Friedman says it straight: there
is ‘only one game in town’, and this is one in which the United States – the leanest
and largest and most experienced operator – is the top seed. The current era is
‘dominated by American power, American culture, the American dollar and the
American navy’ (p. xiv), and it is one where – precisely because globalisation
expresses the United States’ triumph as the leading capitalist nation – some
homogenisation is unavoidable. That homogeneity means the rest of the world
must adapt towards Americanisation. As Friedman puts it, globalisation means
going ‘from Big Macs to iMacs to Mickey Mouse’ (p. 9).
In saying this, let me stress that neither Friedman nor I wish to suggest that
bringing the world into line with Western ways has brought stability or that it has
straightforwardly consolidated American national superiority (Friedman, 2005).
On the contrary, another major feature of globalisation is an intensification of
competition, as once separate realms are brought into relation with others, and
this impels deep uncertainty, as well as an acceleration of change itself (Soros,
1998; Greider, 1997). Tom Friedman (1999) concurs. Indeed, the central thesis
of his stimulating book concerns the tensions between living in a dynamic, everchanging
and unstable world which develops new products and processes as a
matter of routine (the Lexus) and the human need for stability, roots and
community (the Olive Tree). The Lexus, to Friedman, is the future.
What I do want to emphasise is that globalisation expresses, above all else,
the triumph of what one might call ‘business civilisation’. By this I want to underline
that the world, however much variety we may witness in it, has been brought
together under a common set of principles. These include:
• ability to pay will be the major criterion determining provision of goods and
services
• provision will be made on the basis of private rather than public supply
• market criteria – i.e. whether something makes a profit or a loss – are the
primary factor in deciding what, if anything, is made available
• competition – as opposed to regulation – is regarded as the most appropriate
mechanism for organising economic affairs
• commodification of activities – i.e. relationships are regarded as being
amenable to price valuations – is the norm
• private ownership of property is favoured over state holdings
• wage labour is the chief mechanism for organising work activities
To be sure, these are idealisations of what happens in practice, but what seems
to be unarguable is that these principles have spread round the globe at an
accelerated pace in recent decades.
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