Shehab Zahda Essay

Are Global media helping create a global public sphere?

Public sphere is the interaction between citizens, civil society, and the state, communicating through the public sphere, which ensures that the balance between stability and social change is maintained in the conduct of public affairs (Castells, 2008: 79). It is the mediating focal-point between the state and the society a network for communicating information and points of view (Habermas 1996: 360). The principles and mechanisms of Habermas model of public sphere are relevant to the theory and practices of global public sphere and global civil society (Khan et al., 2012: 42). The public sphere helps to permeate the communication of ideas and matters that stem from the society, and address decision-makers in the states institutions. The process of globalization has rendered the public sphere to globality, which initiated the emergence of a global civil society, it shifted from the local/ national to the global society. It emerged due to; inter alia, the global communication networks. The global civil society is defined as the organized expression of the values and interests of society (Castells, 2008: 78). The current globalization era differs from previous age of imperialism, particularly in the realm of media, politics and economics. The development of global media, economics and political institutions urged for the creation of a global public sphere (Sparks, 2001: 76). Media are now probably the key institution of the public sphere, and its quality will depend on the quality of media (McQuail, 2005: 566). There is a shift in the public sphere in the media system which includes mass self-communication, that is, networks of communication that connect many-to many in the sending and receiving of messages in a multimodal shape of communication that can bypass mass media and often escape government control (Castells, 2008: 90; Khan et al., 2012: 44). Global media include the mass media, the internet and wireless communication networks (Khan et al., 2012: 45). Global media and their content are distinct from the media of earlier periods; they constitute the basic structure of the global public sphere that might exist or emerge (Sparks, 2001: 76). The digital technologies which made global connectivity possible marked the birth of the current global public sphere (Khan et al., 2012: 42). Public sphere according to sparks has two main types; the familiar and political public sphere which deals with matters of public policy, and the second literary public sphere is concerned
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with general life and social behaviour issues (Sparks, 2000: 76). Media communication networks, including mass media, internet and wireless communication, or better said, Information Communication Technologies (ICTs), are the major component of the global public sphere in our society. The contemporary global public sphere is largely dependent on the global/local communication media system; it comprises television, radio, and the print press, as well as a variety of multimedia and communications systems, among which the Internet and horizontal networks of communication now play a decisive role (Castells, 2008: 79). Deriving the main criteria of global public sphere from Habermas model of public sphere, one would assume the structural preconditions of the public sphere to be the same so that one can say global public sphere exists. The preconditions starting with global media institutions being the foundation of the global public sphere as they provide information and fora for the global public dialogue, the national press carrying the global public press debate, having an addressee of public debate in the shape of sovereign global state is essential, and a vibrant global civil society being imperative to guide public debate (Khan et al., 2012: 44). Some writers refer to it as the ideal normative (global) public sphere (Sparks, 2000: 77), where access is guaranteed to all citizens (Habermas, 1974: 14). Some writers argue the emergence of satellite broadcasting and global media corporation to be the evidence we live in an arena in which the necessary media infrastructure for a global public sphere does already exist (Sparks, 2000: 83). One of the main structural preconditions of global public sphere is having communicative networks to enable broad participation across state borders. This prerequisite has already been met in terms of material capability (Khan et al., 2012: 44). As globalization is a recent phenomenon, that self-evidently leads us to the fact that global media are relatively of recent origin, too (Sparks, 1998: 110). The collapse of time and space through ICTs distant fast communication shape the contemporary information society and knowledge industries (Khan et al., 2012: 44). New ICTs are leading to more intensified forms of global interconnectedness. A number of new technologies such as; internet, email, fax, mobile phone, wireless networks and text messaging have facilitated the process of communication across the globe (Hopper, 2012: 236). Interconnectedness is what constitutes globalization in many forms. These include as Castells puts them:
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Shehab Zahda Essay

Global financial markets; global production and distribution of goods and services; international trade; global networks of science and technology; a global skilled labour force; selective global integration of labour markets by migration of labour and direct foreign investment; global media; global interactive networks of communication, primarily the Internet, dedicated computer networks; and global cultures associated with the growth of diverse global cultural industries (2008: 81). The forms of human interconnectedness have significant cultural consequences. The processes of globalization, for some writers, result in cultural homogenization which facilitates the emergence of global culture by eroding local cultures. Globalization plays the role of spreading aspects of modernization, capitalism, rationalization, democratization, liberalism and industrialization (Hopper, 2012: 46-49). The emergence of a global unitary public sphere may cause marginalization and suppression of the diverse societies being a restrictive and disciplinarian force (Dahlgren, 2001: 39). These new technologies dont only broaden the precedent communication media; they are different in terms of structure, speed and scope. The global public sphere spreads widely due to digital gadgets, that is, computer networks are built, then networks across the cities nodes- have been set up, and states across the globe form the shape of global networks linked with the gadget of internet, this offers a global platform connecting every citizen to be become an international citizen, which subsequently offers global discussion and dialogue opportunities that build up the global public sphere as a second precondition (Khan et al., 2012: 44). Global public sphere being a unitary sphere (Dahlgren, 2001: 39), as it implies invites to controversies and arguments about the forms of cultural homogenization like Americanization, McDonaldization and Westernization. Americanization theorists argue that the global culture becomes defined by the USA through a combination of its economic, political and military power. As the only super power in the world, the USA can exercise enormous international cultural and political influence, especially via the UN system. The USA has certain advantages over its competitors as the information revolution started in the States. American culture shapes global culture at a popular level through domination of the media and entertainment industries. Well known media entertainment conglomerates, like Time-Warner, CBS and Walt Disney, are
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American. In addition to that, American brands (Levi-Strauss, Burger King, McDonalds, Pepsi, Coca-Cola and Pizza Hut), music, street fashions, and other aspects of its popular culture are spread at a global level have global appeal (Hopper, 2012: 47-49). These notions of westernization or Americanization underplay the possibility of cultural counterflows in the form of cuisines, fashion, religion, music, films (e.g. Bollywood) and other influences travelling to the west from other countries (Hopper, 2012: 50). Some forms of western cultural domination in contemporary globalization. For example, ICTs and transnational media have helped to spread the English language, which is now spoken by about a quarter of the human race, which led some linguists predict that over 90 per cent of non-English languages could die out during this century. While a more optimist view of globalization goes for hybridity theorists who view the contemporary globalization as a drive of cultural mixing (Hopper, 2012: 50). On the other side, capitalism is the leading force behind globalization, which stimulates generating a universal consumerist culture (Hopper, 2012: 49). Some argue that what Habermas concluded from the commercialization of the public sphere through the development of modern commercial mass media and of public broadcasters would lead to refeudalization of the public sphere. In which the public are reduced to be spectators, and democratic debate would be replaced by content of corporate power (Sparks, 2000: 75; Khan et al., 2012: 43). The globalization of news media has prompted scholars to extend the Habermasian idea of public sphere into a global arena (Thussu, 2007: 169). Events that take place in a country are visible and being witnessed and watched by millions of people around the world form a new kind of global arena, for example, starting from the Gulf War in 1991, and Israeli violations in the occupied Palestinian territories lately in Gaza. In addition to that, many issues are becoming global in nature. Global warming is a prominent example of such aspect. This has helped create a global public sphere as did political journalism create a public sphere in the eighteenth-century England, where individuals came together in public spaces, like salons and coffee houses, to discuss issues of the day. This was a key factor in the build-up of modern democratic politics. The global public sphere can be sensed in the way the global system, especially through NGOs, becomes more concerned with global policy and advocacy networks. These are dynamic forces,

Shehab Zahda Essay

share information, drive the development and enforcement of global norms, and power global activism (Thompson, 1995: 41; Castells, 2008: 81). The global and the local is tackled in almost every book and article on communication (Sparks, 2000: 74). Cultural flows may move from the local to the global, the process of informing. The global and local interpenetrate to the extent that glocalization is perhaps a more appropriate concept to describe this condition (Roland Robertson in Hopper, 2012: 48). The current global media system is a mixture of global and local at the same time (Castells, 2008: 90). The national and international duality is now a main aspect of the global arena, global politics shifted to global domestic politics, that is national politics are no more confined to boundaries and foundations (Khan et al., 2012: 47). The development of mass communication created new forms of publicness that did not exist before, actions and events are no longer shared to the locale only. They can be seen or heard by co-present individuals around the globe (Thompson, 1995: 39). The global public sphere dwells in the media communication system and internet networks, especially the social spaces like YouTube, MySpace, Facebook and the emergent blogosphere. Internet and wireless communication form a global and horizontal network communication; they offer a tool and means for debate, dialogue, and collective decision making (Castells, 2008: 8690). The internet is providing unprecedented access to information and has resulted in a rise on the international exchange of data. Besides, telecommunications infrastructure underwent a significant growth due to the efficient fibre-optic cables and satellite and digital technologies, a process that facilitated social and cultural interaction across borders, regions and continents (Hopper, 2012: 236). From early 1990s, the number of internet users has increased from few millions to two billions. On the same time, social media emerged as a reality for civil society worldwide involving regular citizens, activists, non-governmental organizations, to businesses, market brokers, telecommunications firms, software providers, and of course, governments (Khan et al., 2012: 45). The internet extends and pluralizes the public sphere (Dahlgren in Thussu, 2007: 170), still its degree of promoting democracy cannot be speculated (Thussu, 2007: 170). The internet is global as its basic communication protocols are designed to be transparent, and it is an

Shehab Zahda Essay

interactive communication (Sparks, 2001: 79-80). Still controlling the internet would challenge the basic freedoms encoded by the internet and the public sphere (Khan et al., 2012: 48). Although the internet is a public medium, it was still invented in a capitalist era. The Internet has to some extent been developed, monitored and regulated by government It is an indispensable aspect of the social and political world. It has been developed. On the other hand, the internet is dominated and controlled by commercial conglomerates; the same factors that have altered radio and television (Khan et al., 2012: 47-48). The audiences are heterogeneous online; still the stipulated language of the internet is predominantly English (Sparks, 2001: 8086). From a positive perspective, the internet expands to embody a growing (global) public sphere (Dahlgren, 2001: 50). Although, on the internet as in other forms of global media, the audience of the global media are from the elite, and they need to understand a world language, predominantly English or Spanish (Sparks, 1998: 119). The fact that there is a tiny, rich, educated, English-speaking class of people that do indeed have access to information and debate about the global polity is not at all evidence of a new public sphere (Sparks, 1998: 121). It is still remarkable that not everything or everyone is globalized, but the global networks that structure the planet affects everything and everyone networks connect and disconnect at the same time (Castells, 2008: 81; Khan et al., 2012: 47). The global digital divide refers to inequalities of access to and usage of ICTs on the international level, ICT revolution is still relatively unmarked in the South. The digital divide underplays the capacity if ICTs to boost development, 71 per cent of developed countries are online, while only 21 per cent of developing countries are online. That is, a person in a developed country is 22 times more internet user than someone from a developing country (Hopper, 2012: 238). In terms of socioeconomic aspect, the existing digital divide reveals an undemocratic structure of the global public sphere. Studies have shown that the pattern of using patters is also related with groups that are considered disadvantageous, such as women, ethnic minorities, ruralists, and the poorly educated. On the same time, access to the internet does not necessarily ensure liberal political discourse (Khan et al., 2012: 43-48). The global public sphere empowered by global media is flourishing through the expansion of interconnectedness of the global citizens, the government-based international institutions and the global civil society. Hence, there are optimistic developments. Modern communication
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technologies have the potential to make it possible for anybody anywhere in the world to find out the best and the latest information on any global issue. Moreover, the internet will open the doors to a cultural and political renaissance, despite the fact that large business corporations and government control. Many studies have shown how citizens utilize computers and the Internet for enhanced political and democratic participation. The ICTs are rapidly transforming all the societal, political and economic aspects of life. Global Media itself cannot change political participation and grassroots democracy at once. New technologies provide additional means tools; meanwhile, it would probably take some time to alter the global political and economic system that has existed for centuries (Hopper, 2012: 236; Khan et al., 2012: 48; Castells, 2008: 90).

Shehab Zahda Essay

References Castells, M. (2008) The New Public Sphere: Global Civil Society, Communication Networks, and Global Governance, The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 616 (1), 78-93. Dahlgren, P. (2001). The public Sphere and the Net: Structure, Space, and Communication. In Bannet, W. & Entman, R. (eds.), Mediated Politics: Communication in the Future of Democracy. Pp. 75-95. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Habermas, J. (1974). Theory and Practice (trans. Viertel, J.). London: Heinemann. Habermas, J. (1996). Between facts and norms: Contributions to a discourse theory of law and democracy. Cambridge: Polity Press. Hopper, P. (2012). Understanding Development: Issues and Debates. Cambridge: Polity Press. Khan, M. & Gilani, I. & Nawaz, A. (2012). From Habermas Model to New Public Sphere: A Paradigm Shift. Global Journal of Human Social Science. 12 (5), 42-51. McQuail, D. (2005). McQuail's Mass Communication Theory. 5th ed. London: Sage Publications. Sparks, C. (1998). Is there a global public sphere?. In Thussu, D. (eds.) Electronic Empires: Global media and local resistance. Pp.108-124. London: Arnold Publishers. Sparks, C. (2000). The Global, the Local and the Public Sphere. In Wang, G. & Servaes, J. & Goonasekera, A. (eds.). The New Communications Landscape: Demystifying Media Globalization. Pp. 74-95. London: Routledge. Sparks, C. (2001). The Internet and the Global Public Sphere. In Bannet, W. & Entman, R. (eds.), Mediated Politics: Communication in the Future of Democracy. Pp.75-95. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Thompson, J. (1995). Social Theory and the Media. In Crowley, D. & Mitchell, D. (eds.), Communication Theory Today. Pp. 27-49. Cambridge: Polity. Thussu, D. (2007). News as Entertainment: the Rise of Global Infotainment. London: Sage Publications.