Effects of Transnational Media on Asian Culture - Research Proposal Example

?Effects of Transnational Media on the Culture of the People in selected Asian Countries Introduction The media and communications sectors in Asian countries were in the process of drastic transformation at the end of the twentieth century. The arrival of borderless media especially of transnational television at the beginning of the last decade of 20th century, made a surprise movement among Asian governments, broad casters, advertisers and customers. Since the inception of CNN broadcasts of Gulf crisis of 1990-91, the transnational media has been capturing the attention and imaginations of audiences in many Asian and Middle East countries who had been accustomed to public broadcasting or commercial broadcasting under government control. The advancement in technology led to the free flow of communication to all over the world despite the resistance from the non-Western countries. Rapid advancement in communication technology guaranteed the transnational media the uncontrolled exposure of audience all over the world to the western messages. Western movies, news, music, game shows and other entertainment items have become easily assessable to all. This uncontrolled penetration of westerm media to other cultures and traditions has become dominant feature of the advancement of transnational media. Satellite, cable and computer have empowered the audience to choose and receive the media messages without any control. Local governments have no freedom to censure and control the content of the transnational media programmes and the local audience have gained the total freedom of choice, based on their values and tastes, what to see and not to see. This often leads to the cultural ‘sensitization’ or ‘hybridization’ internationally. The international audiences are constantly exposed to the social and cultural situations which are completely contradictory to their original cultural and traditional beliefs. For example, in many (most of) Asian countries, behaviors like dating (or any premarital sex), gambling and alcohol drinking are antisocial and unacceptable. But as a result of cultural desensitization, the constant exposure to these activities through entertainment shows, the people in Asia become desensitized to be free from the social inhibition and finally become more accepted and indulged in the above said Western behaviours (Galander, 2008). 2. Background of the Study and Review of the Existing Literature Initially, globalization affected industry, trade, finance and even agriculture of the nations, but the culture and traditions are also influenced by the globalization process by extending the activities of electronic and borderless media. It has led to the ‘statelessness’ and oligopolistic market of few transnational media firms (Hamelink, 1993). With the advent of communication technologies, media firms penetrated into the foreign markets by utilizing the opportunities of the opening up of communication sectors in the developing nations and tried to create production and distribution efficiency and built their own transnational media empires (Gershon, 1993). Globalization of entertainment industries with the advent of transnational media has led to the homogenization and westernization of traditions and cultures. This post modern hybridization of culture has occurred within the larger context of economic, political and cultural process within the regions, nations, ethnic communities and this growth was influenced by not only the policy decisions of the governments but also by the strategic management decisions of media owners, cable operators, satellite providers and agencies. The popularization of transnational media and process of globalization of electronic media raise various socio-cultural and ethical issues in the newly emerging Asian countries (Thomas, 2005). Transnational cable channels apply domestication strategies for attracting the attention of local audience and through the local productions and other domestication strategies, homogenization of culture and ideas become easy. Majority of the transnational cable channels in Taiwan are either entertainment or programmes for children and out of the five major channels (HBO, Disney Channel, STAR Sports, Super TV and MTV) only two channels offer locally produced programmes. Even in non-locally produced programmes, different domestication strategy is applied by all channels. The high ranking local managers of the transnational cable channels acknowledge the value of the domestication strategies and its role in capturing local market. (Chen, 2004). It is obvious from the analysis the cases of many Asian countries that transnational media led to the transformation and translation of culture instead of cultural imperialism. In other words, a media commodity has become highly hybridized and localized across all the national media spheres (Keane, 2001). While globalization has made a destructive influence on the traditional cultures of developing nations, an interesting question remains that to what extent technology transfer and transnational media have transformed the day-to-day lifestyles and living patterns of the people. The answer to the question is very difficult to be generalized. Supporters of globalization like Mario Vargas Llosa (2000) argued that flows of ideas and information through newly emerged global media have helped to break down the ‘straitjacketing of cultural tradition’ and allowed greater cultural diversity. On the other hand, the loss of diverse traditions through transnational media may be similar to Yuri Lotman’s (1990) idea of the’ semiosphere’ and it leads to the vanishing of creative diversity. The global media put forward the language of markets and it brought about the desire for commodities through the typical programmes broadcasted by the global media. The effects of transnational media on culture would be much revealing if the consumption and the idea of consumerism promoted by the transnational media firms are well analyzed. The cultural identity of the people has become a commercialized one by utilizing the logic of markets in order to resist the effects of transnational media firms) for the preservation of traditions (Dirlik, 2001). The role of the media for the construction of cultural identity is crucial and the idea of cultural identity is influenced and formulated by the communications media. The concept is the product of media and it was treated as a social phenomenon whose first reason was the content of the media (Ady, 1999). 3. Theoretical Frame of the Study The effects of media can be investigated covering variety of issues from changes in attitudes and behaviour of the people to the social order of the society. Several theoretical perspectives exist as frameworks of analysis of the studies related to the media effects (Robert and Bachen, 1984). The cultivation approach gives the best explaining theoretical framework to the proposed study. According to the cultivation theory, long-term exposure to the mass media, especially television, will lead to the cultivation of reality peculiar to the media, for the audience. In other words, attitudes and opinions will be shaped by the media through a long-term exposure and eventually, it leads to the adoption of behaviour communicated by the media. The total or partial Western takeovers of the media in Asian countries and its impact on the cultural identity can better be explained through the cultivation approach. As the transnational media enter into more nations, more receivers of the global media messages will be under the risk of contradicting the media exposed values to their own value systems. The cultivation theory also explains the dimensions of exposure of local audiences to the global programmes. The process of ‘glocalisation’, thus, can better be contextualized (Singnorielli and Morgan, 1990). . 4. Research Problem and Objectives of the Study With the increasing importance and dominance of global communication technology, transnational media has a crucial role in the transformation of culture and traditions of Asian countries as the media convey and disseminate Western values in all forms and shapes. The proposed dissertation aims to assess the impact of these transnational media on the culture of Asian people within the context of media effect theories. With this major research problem, the proposed study intends to analyze the following research questions: 1) Whether the long term exposure to media has shaped the attitudes, opinions and behavior of the people in Asia? 2) How far transnational media play role in the Desensitization, hybridization and homogenization of culture? 2) Whether localization of transnational media has made any significant contribution in this process? 5. Conceptual Discussion 5.1 The concept of Transnational Media stands for the expansion of communication space including the world wide communication and its diversity. The concept, for my study, refers to television, movies, magazines music and advertisements. Transnational media enterprises own and control the media products in different countries. They are economic institutions engaged in the production and dissemination of the content towards the consumers of different targeted nations (Picard, 1989). The major difference between the transnational media enterprises (TNME) and other Transnational Enterprises (TNE) is that the products being sold by the TNME is information and entertainment while that of TNE are tangible products (Gershon, 1997). 5.2 Change on culture The concept of culture is a broad one which covers the attitudes, behavior, perceptions and living styles of the people. Hence in my study in order to capture the lifestyles, traditions, attitudes and behavior, the word culture is used. This type of communication gives us observation of events in the remote locations; it facilitates the participation in the political and economic discourses of global as well as local relevance. Through this process, knowledge, values and ethics, aesthetics and lifestyles may be exchanged and a ‘third culture’ or ‘unity within the diversity’ takes place. Such a ‘global world culture’ is framed and shaped immensely by the transnational `media (Featherstone, 1990). The entry of TNEs is believed to be a threat to a country’s social beliefs and cultural integrity (Gershon, 2000). If the social and cultural distance is larger and more visible, it will be difficult for the TNEs to formulate a strategic approach including the management styles to meet the local tastes and preferences. It would be difficult for a TNME to operate in the host country if the TNME is completely unaware of the beliefs, values and attitudes of the people (Miller, 1992). 5.3 Cultural Desensitisation and Hybridisation Cultural desensitization is a concept which refers to the impact of heavy and constant exposure to the media on people’s sensitivity to the social or political issues. It describes the gradual change in the attitudes of the people due to the media use. The changed attitudes may just contradictory to the original attitude of the person (Taylor and Arrow, 1988). If cultural desensitization happens, to say, violence, people will be less sensitive and more tolerant to the violence. Gradually this tolerance may lead to the violent behavior of the individual. Cultural hybridization happens as a consequence of the cultural desensitization. Hybridization refers to the integration local and global cultures. The continued exposure to the television images leads to the desensitization of local cultural behaviors. The audience may become a new (hybrid) cultural construct in which both the local and the global images are mixed. Hence, hybridization is a process of rejection of both the global and local identities and acceptance of a new cultural identity which is entirely different from earlier. The cultural sensitization and hybridization lead to the cultural homogenization. Cultural homogenization is the complete rejection of own cultural values and acceptance of the dominant cultural values. 6. Design of the Research and Methodology The purpose of my research is to examine the effects of transnational media on the attitudes, behaviour and lifestyles of the Asian people. As the focus of the proposed study is on people and culture, mere numbers can not contribute much the study and hence qualitative approach will be adopted (Bryman, 2008). A study about the effects of transnational media from an academic perspective has to consider the nuances involved in the unfolding of such impacts from the perspective of the social, cultural, political and economic realities of the society being studied. The influence of multinational media on the local culture, however, cannot be deciphered from changes at the material level alone. The nature of the effects being studied may range from those touching upon the most micro aspects of everyday lives to issues that are macro in nature. However this investigation is restricted to understanding such effect at the level of attitudes, behaviour and lifestyles of people living in Asian countries. The study includes such abstract entities as the perception standards of people living in those geo-political contexts, the rapid changes these cultural realms have experienced, and still experiencing, and the standards of aesthetics, especially in terms of what constitutes popular forms of cultural representation. Precisely for the reason that the studied area involves more dynamic enterprises than what could be sorted and represented in numerical terms, this investigation deploys qualitative methods in order to understand the subtleties involved from a wider range. “Qualitative research provides detailed description and analysis of the quality, or the substance, of the human experience” (Marvasti, 2004: 7). This is not to discount the possibilities of quantitative methods in enhancing an understanding of and categorizing the social realities. It has to be, first of all, admitted that there are certain common themes running through both these research traditions which do not constitute diametrically opposed categories. Silverman argues that both, qualitative and quantitative, researchers agree on their take regarding the existence of a real world “out there” which needs to be further studied using methods that are sufficient to capture the empirical as such. In other words as long as the researcher maintains the scientific rigour and adherence to certain basic rules and procedures the result such an attempt produces should be well acceptable irrespective of whether they used qualitative or quantitative methods (Silverman, 1985: 16-18). Nevertheless depending upon the nature and type of the topic being studied choice between the different methods may well affect the precision of the conclusions drawn. For instance in a study like that is being proposed now, which involves an array of categories that remain at the level of conscious and unconscious realm of articulations within a given cultural context, it should be possible to revisit the subjective worlds that are being reconstructed under the influence of media. The impacts under question take place precisely in the realm of ideas and their manifestations which is the reason why I prefer qualitative methods for this study. However as a prelude to the forthcoming analysis, I shall use certain quantitative techniques in order to identify the core geopolitical contexts and areas of significance before embarking on my qualitative investigation. Inductive reasoning based on the existing literature and theoretical frameworks can be done as the proposed study will be enriched with the observation and interpretation (Mason, 1996 and Popper, 1961). The following are some of the key methods that shall be deployed during the course of this study. I shall first describe the major qualitative methods to be used in the study. I shall briefly elaborate upon the quantitative techniques that I propose to be used in the study after that. 6.1.1 Content Analysis According to Bauer (2000), content analysis involves “systematic classification and counting of text units [to] distill a large amount of material into a short description of some of its features” (pp. 132–33). The text, for the purposes of analysis from a social science perspective, is recorded information of social life in the form of visual images, published materials, or even transcribed interviews. Bauer further articulates that one way of interpreting data derived from the text is to examine it as a medium of expression that reflects the culture and practices within a given context. He argues that “[Content analysis] allows us to construct indicators of worldviews, values, attitudes, opinions, prejudices and stereotypes, and compare these across communities. In other words [content analysis] is public opinion research by other means” (2000, 133–34). Nevertheless the process of analyzing the text and drawing conclusions therefrom is simultaneously a troublesome task since the relationship between the text and its context always involve such problematics as facts grubbing, incorrect reading of materials and for a wrong reading of the social into the textual (Ellis 1977, 105; also see Taylor 2002 and Melve 2007). Therefore immense care is required while considering the representational value of the textual materials and while drawing conclusions therefrom.. For the accuracy of transcription, tape-recording will be used. 6.1.2. Conversation analysis Conversation analysis makes everyday talk the topic of investigation. It was basically introduced in academics by the epistemic branch in sociology known as ethnomethodology. Ethnomethodology, initially proposed by Harold Garfinkel, is basically concerned with the methods that people deploy in their everyday lives to make sense of their surroundings and assign order to it. Ethnomethodology identify reality, rather than as something which is inherent and given, as that which is accomplished in the social interaction (Garfinkel 1967). Conversation analysis is a direct offshoot of this ethnomethodological enterprise investigating how everyday social reality is constructed and reproduced through conversations. It empirically shows, with as much detail as possible, how social reality is brought to life through verbal exchanges and their taken for granted norms. As Silverman states, ‘conversation analysis is based on an attempt to describe people’s methods for producing orderly interaction [through talk]’ (2001: 167). Talk, in this context, stands significantly different from “researcher provoked data” (ibid) and carries important connotations for the research to be carried out. Although this method invokes a commonsensical imagination of the restriction in terms of linguistic differences between the researcher and the social context being studied, such an implication is practically removed from vicinity by the fact that transcriptions of various forms of conversations and the differences that remain in the implicit and explicit meanings of different expressions can always be depended for this form of analysis. 6.1.3 Interviews Interview, one of the most elementary methods of data collection, is definitely a complicated process than just asking questions to get answers. The main potential of interviews lie precisely in the fact that it can yield deeper insights about the everyday living experiences of people, the values they follow, their opinions and ambitions, and also their attitudes and even the most subjective feelings. Beyond the technicality of its practice as a research method, interviews are required to be conducted by sufficiently considering the contextual specificities and the societal and interpersonal aspects (Denzin 2000, 645-647). As contextual analysis is needed, more flexible and loose interaction is designed rather than using a uniform format. For this reason in-depth and semi structured interviews are preferred in this study precisely to allow more flexibility in order to draw on the subjective meanings that the respondents attach to the larger transformations occurring. While in-depth interviews can allow more informal and free interaction with the respondents (Knight 2002) remaining semi structured enables the researcher to add and change questions, and even to change the direction of interactions with the respondents, according to the newer insights that might be drawn during the course of interview itself. The latter changes and additions are important to the extent it keeps the researcher on a flexible trajectory than a rigid one, at the same time as anchoring himself to the basic research questions. Keeping away from a fully structured interview schedule also saves the researcher from the difficulties involved in the variations that may be required later and also exempts him from the pre-determinations that may affect the study inversely. For the in-depth interviews, list of topics covering the research problems will be selected and the topic guide will start with introductory questions and later more interpretative and complex questions. 6.2 Other Methods I will definitely need to resolve certain preliminary ambiguities concerning this study before I start to embark on my qualitative analysis. These pertain to the information prima facie required at ready disposal, like the actual physical areas to be studied (although I have tentatively decided to conduct my study in the social context of the Indian nation I need to identify the exact areas within such a widely heterogeneous society like India), a final list of conceptual areas to be given emphasis during the study, the kind of texts that would be useful while making textual analysis and so on. Precisely for these reasons I prefer to conduct an initial survey with very general questions pertaining to the topic of this study. Apart from this I also suggest to make use of internet sites, online newspapers and research papers published and made available online by premium research institutions in India like National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS, Bangalore), Centre for Development Studies (CDS, Thiruvananthapuram), Centre for the Study of Social Sciences (CSSSC, Kolkatta) etc. The responses to the survey questionnaires and the literature review shall enable to further narrow down and list out the areas of research. As I mentioned earlier in this section, the study shall use quantitative techniques although qualitative methodology constitutes the primary source of its investigation. One of the first task in research is invariably the selection of participants or respondents. In an exploratory research as this one I consider use of convenience sampling method as it is commonly considered as the most affordable way of estimating reality. Since it is not possible to study the whole population (Ader et al, 2008) in most of the research enterprises some kind of a sampling method becomes almost essential in order to identify the target population within the geopolitical context selected for the study. In an exploratory research as this one convenient sampling is expected to yield higher results taking into consideration not only the heterogeneity of the societies under scrutiny but also the feasibility to preserve the larger interests of the society being studied. Hence sampling shall constitute one of the primary tasks in the preliminary phase of this study. Another major task inherently associated with is the analysis of the data collected during the course of study. It is generally understood that analysis of descriptive data is less formulaic than is with the case in quantitative analyses. Qualitative researchers have to be more careful and attentive about the role of the social, cultural, political and historical contexts in all aspects, and in all steps, of the study including forming the central questions of the study, data collection and even reporting and writing the findings (Bambarger, 1999). This is precisely because, as I have already mentioned earlier, the researcher in a qualitative research have to understand the context as that critical element which shapes the meaning of what is studied and reported. With regard to data analysis two approaches gather predominantly in terms of how the collected data needs to be seen and understood. While on the one hand, relying upon the basic principles of objectivity and the structuralist visions, the collected data could be deployed to reveal a reality – whether structured or beyond the paradigm of structure – about the “social world beyond the data itself” (Marvasti, 2004: 83), the second method, which is a more constructionist one, assumes that the data – text, talk, survey reports, attitudes and so on – itself is a creation of everyday interactions and the larger social and political guidelines that regulate them. Although I still need to think much more largely on this aspect, for the kind of theoretical interests that guide me – postmodern and poststructural, and constructionism – I prefer to opt for a constructionistic analysis of data at disposal. Efforts on this trajectory shall be commenced from the very beginning of the research process itself. 7. Limitations of the study Nevertheless as any research endeavour should know, I too admit that there are several limitations associated to this study. In one sense most of them emerge from the very fact of it being a qualitative analysis, since deploying methodologies like interviews, textual and conversational analysis etc., can always invoke serious questions pertaining to the fundamental issues of subjectivism versus objectivism. This is precisely because of the bias that may preoccupy the researcher as well as the respondent/s awareness of being observed/studied which may further lead to wrong or calculated responses further misleading the researcher. Further the text/context relationship still continues to be a problematic one making it difficult to generalize what is observed from texts. The difficulty is further added by the fact of the society under investigation being much more heterogeneous than its European counterparts. However the intention of the study is not generalization; on the contrary it aims at the opposite by complicating simplified understandings of how transnational media influence these societies by exerting different impacts for people living in different locations (like rural and urban), in different catagories (in terms of caste, class and gender) etc. Also just as there are limitations attached to qualitative analysis, there are major disadvantages associated with quantitative analysis as well. Hence the critical question is how to neutralize the adverse effects. The reason why I have combined textual analysis with on-the-ground conversations and observations, apart from other questionnaire methods, is mainly to make a cross matching possible between the outcomes of these different methods rather than reading the one to the other. 8. Scheme of the study Time Scales Activity Throughout the process Literature review April Initial work of Problem finalization, pilot interviews May, June Interview, Transcription, posting of questionnaires through the postal and internet. July Data Analysis- qualitative as well as quantitative data August Finishing the write up and conclusion, Proofing. - References Ader H. J., G. J. Mellenbergh, & D. J. Hand, (2008) Advising on Research Methods: A Consultant's Companion. Huizen, The Netherlands: Johannes van Kessel Publishing. Ady, Jeffery C. (1999) ‘Transcending the Dialectic of Culture,’ in Vinvent K and M. Traber (ed.) Towards Equity in Global Communications: Macbride Update, New Jersey: Hampskill press. Bamberger, M. (1999) Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Research in Development Projects.Washington D. C.: World Bank. Bauer, M.W. (2000) ‘Classical Content Analysis: A Review,’ in Qualitative Researching with Text, Image and Sound. London: Sage. 131–151. 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Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Thomas, Amos, Owen (2005) Imaginations and borderless Television: Media, Culture and Politics Across Asia, New Delhi: Sage. Read More