Question

Chapter 5 question from Global Communication: Explain the relationship between flow of information, global power and media. Provide examples and cite work.

Answer 1

An astonishing growth has taken place in research and writing on the international flow of information during the last decade. The development of communication technologies and media has a substantial impact on flow of information.The growing number of international media and potent global power is involved in almost all aspects of the international flow of information. The political, social and economic classification related to trade, marketing, education and culture have been a rich source of information. We may examine  the relationship between flow of information, global power and media with the help of following diagram:

Modern concept and arguments developed in the 1970s and 1980s still influence current debates in global flow/ globalisation. The research claimed the existence of unbalanced, unidirectional flows of TV programmes and foreign news from the “centre” to the “periphery” (Kaarle, Nordnstreng & Tapio Varis 1974 study “TV Traffic- A One-Way Street: A survey and Analysis of the International Flow of Television Programme Material. Media Imperialism developed within a broader analysis of cultural imperialism. Oliver Boyd-Barret defined it as “the process whereby the ownership, structure, distribution of content of the media in any one country are singly or together subject to substantial external pressures from the media interests of any other country or countries without proportionate reciprocation of influence by the country so affected.