What is Globalization?

Depending on how it's viewed, globalization can have several definitions. In the most unbiased terms, globalization is simply increasing interdependency between various countries and corporations despite being geographically separated. Where it becomes more convoluted, however, is when you consider how it effects the people in these various countries and corporations. An American business owner who has begun shipping in his products from sweat shops in China would have a very different opinion of globalization than the American factory worker who was just laid off. In many ways, globalization could be seen as a new era of screwing over the little guy, as it has in many ways decreased wages by creating a large population of cheap laborers[1]. However the wealthy might have a very different view of globalization, best summed up by a rhyme Noam Chomsky quoted, "The poor complain, they always do but that's just idle chatter. Our system brings rewards to all, at least to all that matter."[1].

However beyond just the economic effects of globalization, there is also a significant cultural effects. Today, the United States' biggest export is it's culture. Mass communication through the internet and other forms of communication make our movies, music, and various other forms of entertainment available to those in all corners of the world. This is also done through our efforts to aid what we consider "developing" and "3rd world" countries. We attempt to spread our ideas of democracy and freedom with the assumption that this is of course the best way of life available and often rip nations of their former identity, thus further decreasing global diversity. This is all done in an attempt to "modernize" what we see as nations which have yet to "develop" to where we are today. However as James Curran and Myung-Jin Park put it, this simply "promotes American capitalist values and interests, and erodes local culture in a process of global homogenization."[2].

Good or bad, globalization can really just be called the world getting smaller.

[1] Chomsky, Noam. "What Is Globalization?" YouTube. 26 Mar. 2007. Web. 06 January 2011

[2] Curran, James, and Myung-Jin Park. "Beyond Globalization Theory." De-Westernizing Media Studies. London: Routledge, 2000. Print