(Person) Percentage - Sabanci University Research Database

The Asian Media & Mass Communication Conference 2010 Osaka, Japan
“The greatest social crisis has been seen in countries that are on top rungs of
globalization. The number of workers without medical coverage, non-unionized workers
and temporary or part-time workers with very little or no social benefits is highest in the
US, followed by the UK. Argentina and Brazil have high unemployment rates of 18% and
15% respectively, a result of globalization of their economies. A similar process can be
seen in Eastern Europe, where living standards have fallen by as high as 30-80% since the
transition to neo-liberalism began in 1980s. Mexico has seen a fall of 30% in incomes
during the same period. In almost all nations, a parallel development occurred making
the rich richer and the poor poorer. Wealth began to concentrate in the hands of a few,
creating gross inequality and reduction in the purchasing power of the common man.” 2
The story of LDCs is slightly different. Understanding of the terms Globalization and
Internationalization, by majority of the nations, particularly among the LDCs has taken a
beating just because it was conceptualized and mooted primarily by the interests of the
advanced and developed nations. It is interpreted as Americanization, Westernization,
meant for the interest of the few, not comprehensive or not futuristic, and so on. Hence,
there is absolute need for demystifying the terms and their full meaning in the actual
socio-cultural contexts.
Literature reviewed
Efforts to conceptualize internationalization through media adaptations
The media models propounded by the westerners failed to attract the LDCs, only to see
them as not applicable. Ex:- Daniel Lerner’s urbanization model and such other Linear
models. However, some later non-linear models of mass communication were applicable
to the LDCs as pro-development tool. Eg:- Westley McLean’s model.
In later 20 th Century, the NAM, G5 and G-8 countries influenced and almost usurped the
media agenda. In spite of technologies made accessible to the LDCs, it was not to rule out
the spy satellites with latest transponders disseminating most wanted information only to
selected countries. This continued to maintain gaps in development between the countries.
The role of International Telecommunication Union in permitting launching of satellites
onto the specific orbits with latest technologies and its repercussions on the LDCs is still
under question. But most advanced nations use satellites to dump information into
developing or LDCs to keep them diverted from the wanted information and maintain
confusion while priority information are conserved and confined among those advanced
nations as a national agenda. In the guise of information explosion, some international
vested interests are purposefully creating information pollution.
The satellite TV & globalization influences
1959-1975: It was after the successful SITE experiment that the activities of television
were increased, especially with the rechristening of Indian monopolistic TV station
‘Doordarshan’. There is a need to increase LPTs even to date as to reach to the rural lots.
There was invasion from the skies by the Television media onto Indian soil in 1980’s with
proliferating LPTs and HPTs, till then, there was no up-linking from the land.
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