Television, Ethnicity and Cultural Change - Essay Example

The word, "Minority" itself has its base originating from social fragmentation. Obviously, the channels associated with minorities shall be focusing on the division of society. Before going into the actual topic of whether minority media fuels social fragmentation, it is worth focusing on the points such as the need for minority media, the existing situations in the UK, and a few other points. Here is a brief about UK history on minority policies. British history of migration and ethnicity, multiculturalism, and media policies have some commonalities as well as differences compared to the rest of the European countries.

A study of points which are unique to the UK can help us understand why minority media cultures develop the ways they do. It also allows examining the importance of legislation, history, and national particularity and assists in drawing conclusions about processes of exclusion and inclusion and the significance of policies and politics of and for minorities and the media. Britain is considered to be one of the European countries with the highest levels of sensitivity to multiculturalism and integration (Parekh, 1997), in spite of the argument which does not imply that there is no discrimination, racism, and exclusion of minorities.

As Parekh argues, it should not be assumed that ethnic minorities enjoy greater overall equality, but rather it should be focused on the different dimensions of equality. Homogenous cultures do not exist anymore (Hall, 1996; Bhabha, 1996) - if they ever did. Any particular section of people with an independent way of living, which fully defines their everyday style, shall be rejected. Thus, the attachment of people to ethnic diasporic communities and the meanings of identity and ethnic particularity are shaped through the never-ending dialogue between communities and cultures, the multiplicity of minority members' experiences, and the interrelation of the multiple identities of their members (Hall, 1992; Gillespie, 1995).

Media 'images can connect local experiences with each other and hence provide powerful sources of hermeneutic interpretation to make sense of what would otherwise be disparate and apparently unconnected events and phenomena' (Urry, 2000: 180). Diasporic media can help the development of imagined presences (ibid.), of '[nonnational] communities of sentiment and interpretation' (Gilroy, 1995: 17). The self-representation and the mediation of media have been increasing in the media cultures which is leading to diasporic tendencies.

In order to accept the importance of self-presentation, media has to be recognized as a key element in developing identity and community. Diasporic media is the diasporic self which is the community, and in other words, the homeland. Diasporic communication is manifested through community media (Dayan, 1998) of great diversity; diasporic communication is also changing in the case of different ethnic groups, and subgroups, at various stages of people's lives, in time and space (Cohen, 1994). It has also changed a lot when compared to the past or even the present.

The general global flow of information through media, networks, etc is leading to the emergence of cultural signification which is resisting the most syncretic opportunities.