Time flies in a blink of an eye, it seems like yesterday but the semester A has come to an end. Through my BCM 288 course, I have learned a lot about the issues that result in the transnational development of global media and culture.
We have covered various types of topics such as the production, distribution and cosmopolitanism media, getting more in-depth on topics like the translation of popular culture, film co-production, film and media policy, global hegemony vs. diasporic audiences, and film festivals. These were the topics that I wasn’t quite familiar with at the beginning of the lesson but after writing a blog on each related topic it helped me get a better understanding of the topic and I even started to think and question about these topics like how what is cosmopolitanism or how can the film festivals be more appealing for more people and raise its presence.
Our first topic was on different types of television shows like reality shows, drama, comedy, lifestyle shows etc. I was super excited about this topic because I love watching Tv shows and when I found out that we would be watching some clips of TV shows not just in the tutorial but also lectures it was double happiness. Through this topic, we learned that even if it’s the same programme there were different ways the countries would produce their programme. For example, the “Modern Family” clip shown in class showed us that despite it being the same show format, there are some adjustments made in Chile version of the show compared to the original from the US. We think it because the people in Chile are a little more conservative compared to the US so they can’t show and follow the exact scenes at the time due to the cultural differences in between two countries.
The other topic was on the development of the media industry. We learned that it takes a lot of things to produce a successful film or television shows like capital, employees, creative and technical resources etc. Co-production was an interesting topic, as it meant that countries were collaborating and generating more income and fame not just in their respected countries but also internationally. In recent years we can see South Korean rising above in the media industry and promoting their culture through drama., film and music. With K-pop idols like BTS performing and winning awards in the US like the Billboard awards or Psy’s “Gangnam Style” song, South Korea has made drastic progress in spreading there cultural through the mass media.
Next, we talked about cosmopolitanism which refers to the capacity to appreciate and understand different values and ways of living (Beck, 2011). Alternatively, a cosmopolitan nation is an ongoing process that refers to the erosion of clear borders, separate markets, civilisations, and cultures, which implies the involuntary inclusion of the global other (Beck, 2011). It’s an ideology that all human beings belong to a single community, based on a shared morality. One of the most important parts of cosmopolitanism is the “rediscovery and redefinition of the local” (Beck 2006, in Mills & Green, 2013, p.115). Global media flows and human mobility affect local media and culture in both positive and negative ways. Social media is playing a role in moving audiences closer to empathy for the circulation of information. Moreover, cosmopolitanism is fundamentally about challenging creative and cultural flows from the US, and opening up perspectives to and dialogue about other cultures, different genders, sexualities and religions.
To sum up, I have learned a lot by taking the “Transnational Media and Culture Industries” course as it gave me more insight on the aspects of the development of the global media and culture industries. I will carry on this knowledge and looking forward to semester B.
Laxmi’s Blog 