Beyond Cultural Imperialism

Book excerpt: Moving beyond notions of cultural imperialism, this book furthers our understanding of the implications of global media culture and politics in the 1990s. Leading scholars from a range of fields bring different perspectives to bear on the role of the state, the range of culture beyond the media, the contribution of international organizations, and the potential for resistance and alternatives. They reflect on the New World International Communications Order' as delineated since the 1970s, and examine its changing nature. Throughout, they connect analysis of the flows and forces which form the world media and communications with the fundamental themes of social science, and illuminate the ways in which underlying questions of inequality, power and control reappear within new media environments.