Essay Example on Global Communication: Exploring Cross-Border Connections

Introduction

Global communication is the passing of information or ideas across international borders. Global communication has been developed because of the fact that there has been an increase in globalization which affects and influence on global affairs. Therefore, various institutions all over the world have devoted their resources to studying global communications as a way of exploring how people share, connect, mobilize and relate across geographical, economic, political, cultural and social divides. In most cases, global communications occur when there is a transfer of power from various centers to the peripheries. It also involves the imposition of new cultures on already existing ones which is often referred to as soft power (Tehranian, 2019).

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The introduction and growth of technology has helped in the development of globalization in the last couple of years. Matters and issues surrounding internal communication have also changed tremendously (Mowlana, 1996). Therefore, researchers and authors use the term 'global communication' to describe the activities that are taking place in terms of communication between different nations and states as well as communication between people across various borders. It also refers to the growth of transnational media companies and corporations (Frederick, 1993). In the past, the term international communication was used, but it was later revoked after it emerged that its definition was used to refer to dependency, modernization, and cultural imperialism which is different from global communication (Mcphail, 2002).

A study into global communication indicates that it grew drastically shortly after the Second World War because of the increasing military considerations which were characterized by political and economic implications. Researchers during this period were determined to establish the role played by global communications primarily in the spread of information across borders. This studies were helpful in understanding the spread of propaganda in the 1950s and would later be used during the cold war in 1960s. In the '70s, the investigation into global communication had grown, and there was more research into various subjects like the comparative mass communication systems. Other topics included the role of communication in national development, propaganda influence and the power of public opinion (Frederick, 1993).

Technological Advancements

The nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries have witnessed tremendous advancements in the technological department which has also played a vital role in the improvements in global communications (Spark, 2007). Such developments include the introduction of a significant global communications phenomenon, the introduction of the internet and other digital environments as well as convergence. Such improvements have led to the transition to global communication from international communication (Mcphail, 2002).

Evidence of this shift was first seen after the fall of the Soviet Union and events that took place after the Cold War which saw a shift economic, social, and political conflicts and alliances. The shifting currents, especially in the social and cultural sphere, paved the way for the study of global communication and a shift from international communications (Mowlana, 1996).

Global communications first began as international communications. There were a few key players that paved the way for the growth and development of international communication. In 1835, the first world news agency was formed by Charles-Lois Havas. A decade later, Bernhard Wolff and Paul Julius Freiherr von Reuter started stock market news and daily reports and commercial services respectively. The three individuals would later form the Ring Combination or the League of Allied Agencies in 1859. The agencies later assimilated American News Agency Associated Press in 1887 (Fredrick, 1993).

Factors that led to the growth of Global communications

The agencies alone were not enough to sponsor the growth of global communications. There were other factors that contributed to the improvement of global communications. One such factor was the world population explosion where there was a dramatic increase in the world's population and thus increasing the market and need to develop a communication structure that would reach the large population. During the same period, there was a shift from geopolitics to gaiapolitics which meant that politics were no longer regionalized, but it was now a global affair where the actions of one nation affected those of another. Global communication provided a platform for the harmonization of various actives across various regions all over the world. The same period saw an increase in the number of cross-cultural communications where people from multiple cultural backgrounds had platforms that helped them communicate with each other.

It was now evident that the concept of community was slowly changing and there was an embracement of the term 'the global community'. With the global community slowly improving the need for global communication platforms also increased. There was a need for a centralization of control to govern this growing global community. Global communication was the most viable option which would help in the process of activities organization, policy and decision making, framing strategy as well as planning. In countries like the United States, it was important to ensure that the various states had access to the same information in terms of government policies, plans and regulations. Global communication structures offered the right platform to ensure that this was a success.

The twentieth century was also characterized by information explosion which ushered a new era of the spread global information. Much of this information explosion was a result of changes in information technology. The need for global communication increased as the demand for global news increased tremendously. The twenty-first century also saw a shift from localized communication to dependence on global communication. As more and more countries gained their independence and became democracies, there was a greater interdependence which also sponsored the growth of global communications as countries worked together to come up with interdependent networks.

In the twenty-first century, the United Nations was on a mission to advocate peace and unity all over the world. As such the communication on peace and war greatly impacted the global growth communications. Information about war eruptions could be passed quickly from one point to another as well as the efforts that were being made to mitigate the situations.

Benefits of Global Communications

Global communications have been identified to have various benefits especially in terms of the spread of information from one nation to another. Using the transcultural political economy concept which was presented by Chakravarttya and Zhao (2008) it easier to see how global communications impact the global flow of information and culture. Global media flow has taken center stage over the last couple of years which has dramatically influenced cultural identity and nationhood.

Technology has contributed significantly to the growth of globalization as well as global communication (Devereux, 2007). One huge benefits of global communication is the growth of digitalization, direct broadcast satellites, and the internet which makes it easier to transfer large amounts of data across the globe in a short amount of time. Spread of information even in the past when radio, telephony, and telegraph were still coming up, was one of the main contributions towards globalization (Price, 2003). Therefore, one of the main benefits of global communication in promoting globalization. With the introduction of technology as one of the pillars behind globalization, there has been an introduction and development of the internet, smartphones and devices, smart televisions, and other devices which enable people to access various media contents from different platforms (Flew, 2013).

The benefits of global communication on local, national and global entities are also highlighted in Daya Kishen Thusssu's (2006), Mapping Global Media Flow and Contra-Flow which is a case study that looks at the complex relationship between the worlds activities and the global media flows. Media flows have been identified to increase capital flow, information flow, technological flow, organizational interactions flow and the flow of symbols, sounds and images (Castells, 2000). All these forms of flow have greatly influenced the global community in beneficial ways.

Drawbacks of Global Communication

Fears have also emerged on the effects of global communication especially in the erosion of native cultures which is referred to as the choking of the world's native flora (Appiah, 2006). The flow of information all over the world has led to the erosion of values and images that are less dominant on the global scene. Billion-dollar entertainment companies such as Hollywood and Bollywood have greatly influenced much of the world depending on where these corporations dominate. Globalization has increasingly led to job insecurity in many developed nations. Many of these countries that dominate the flow of information often outsource relatively cheaper labor from other countries.

Dominant international media have also achieved a precise predominant flow of information especially in the form of entertainment from the North with the United States as its core which is then mainstreamed and consumed by other heterogeneous global audiences. In some communities in the world, local content and spread of local information have been overshadowed by international media. Thussu (2006) describes this phenomenon as the designated subaltern or contra flows which follow the dominant flows. In his cases study, he establishes that the global community is increasingly becoming connected and networked and therefore, the flow of information is growing in size and direction at a very high rate. This growth has aided the rapid growth of cable and satellite television as well as the improvement of the internet. In the end, it becomes challenging to control global communication as a result of privatization and deregulation of telecommunication and broadcasting networks.

References

Appiah, K.A., 2006. The case for contamination. New York Times Magazine, 1, p.32.

Castells, M., 1997. End of Millennium: The Information Age: Economy, Society and Culture. Blackwell Publishers, Inc.

Castells, M., 2000. The Rise of the Network Society. The Information Age: Economy, Society and Culture. Oxford: Blackwell.

Devereux, E., 2007. Understanding the media. (pp. 28-30). London, Los Angeles: SAGE.

Flew, T., 2013. Global Creative Industries. (pp. 19-24). Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.

Fortner, R.S., 1993. International communication: History, conflict, and control of the global metropolis. Wadsworth Publishing Company.

Frederick, H. H.,1993. Global communication and international relations.

Mcphail, T. L., 2002. Global Communication Theories, stakeholders, and Trends.

Mowlana, H., 1996. Global communication in transition (Vol. 19). Sage.

Nalbach, A.S., 2000. " The Ring Combination": Information, power, and the world news agency cartel, 1856-1914.

Price, M.E., 2003. Global Media, Historic Development of. Vol. 2

Sinclair, J. and Cunningham, S., 2000. Go with the flow: Diasporas and the media. Television & New Media, 1(1), pp.11-31.

Sparks, C., 2007. Globalization, development and the mass media. pp. 126-149. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications.

Tehranian, M., 2019 "Global Communication and international relations: changing paradigms and policies". The International Journal of Peace Studies.

Thussu, D. K.(2...