Blog 2: Cultural Globalization - KIM MINJI

 

1. Summary

Culture and globalization are closely connected because globalization allows people, ideas, and cultural products to move across national borders. Through movies, music, food, and social media, people can experience cultures that are different from their own. This can increase cultural exchange and help people understand other societies. However, globalization can also make certain cultures more dominant than others, especially when products from economically powerful countries reach a global audience.

At the same time, globalization does not mean that all cultures become the same. Peter Dicken's discussion of transnational corporations (TNCs) shows that companies are still influenced by the cultural and institutional characteristics of their home countries. Even when companies expand internationally, their management styles and organizational structures can reflect their national backgrounds. For example, Japanese keiretsu and Korean chaebol demonstrate how business organizations can develop differently depending on their local economic and cultural environments.

TNCs also need to consider local cultures when entering foreign markets. Consumer preferences, social values, and local customs can affect how companies promote and sell their products. Therefore, globalization involves not only the spread of products and ideas across borders but also the interaction between global influences and local cultures.

2. My Thought

Before studying this topic, I mainly thought of globalization as the process of countries becoming more connected through trade, technology, and media. However, I realized that culture plays an important role in how globalization actually works. Although people around the world can access the same movies, music, and products, they may understand and use them in different ways depending on their own cultural backgrounds.

South Korea is a good example of this relationship. Korean music, dramas, and films have reached audiences around the world through digital platforms. At the same time, Korean culture is also influenced by foreign content and trends. I think this shows that cultural globalization is not simply about one culture spreading to others. It is also a process in which cultures influence and change one another.

I also found it interesting that globalization does not completely remove national differences, even in business. Companies may operate in many countries, but their decisions are still affected by local values, institutions, and consumer behavior. This made me realize that global companies cannot succeed simply by using the same strategy everywhere.

In my opinion, the important point is to encourage cultural exchange without assuming that every culture should become similar. Globalization provides more opportunities to experience different cultures, but we should also pay attention to cultural diversity and the unequal influence of economically powerful countries. Rather than seeing globalization as the disappearance of cultural differences, I think it is better to understand it as an ongoing interaction between global connections and local identities.

3. Question, Concern, or Discussion Angle

One question I had while thinking about the relationship between culture and globalization is whether cultural globalization creates equal opportunities for different cultures.

Digital platforms make it easier for people to share their own cultural content with international audiences. However, not every country has the same resources, production budgets, or global distribution networks. Content from countries with large markets and powerful media industries may have more opportunities to reach international audiences. As a result, some cultures may become much more visible than others.

This also raises a question about the role of global platforms. Even when people can access content from many countries, recommendation algorithms and platform policies may influence which cultures they encounter most often. Therefore, greater access to content does not necessarily mean that cultural exchange is equally balanced.

I would like to ask: How can globalization promote cultural exchange while preventing the cultures of economically powerful countries from dominating global media and marginalizing less widely represented cultures?

4. Use of AI

I wrote this text myself and used AI only to help smooth out the wording.

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