Essay #3 - Christina Kellmann - Americanization of Foreign Advertising

Research has shown that Americanization of advertisements do have an effect on other cultures by making them more aware of what is happening in the Western part of the world. Although people of all cultures have their own way of looking at things, there is no denying that advertisements, especially through television, have an effect on foreigners. First of all, language is a major part of achieving globalization. English is prevalent in many foreign countries and thus used in many overseas advertisements. Also, the fact that a majority of homes have televisions makes it easy for American owned corporations to get their products out there, globally.

            Language is what we use in which to understand the world around us. Hardt and Negri (2000) said, ?Language, as it communicates, produces commodities but moreover creates subjectivities, puts them in relation, and orders them? (p. 33). Without language, there would be no method of communication that is as precise or detailed. Specifically, the English language is the most widespread language globally. It is the basis for many forms of communication across cultures. With an estimates 300 million people worldwide that know how to speak English, it is the ?language spoken by the greatest number of non-native speakers? (vistawide.com, 2004). According to the same website, English is also the most published language in the world (2004). English is used in advertisements frequently in Japan. According to a study by R. Jeffrey Blair (1997), ?Studies of Japanese commercials and advertising demonstrate that commercial managers employ positive ethnocultural stereotypes, usually of white North Americans or Europeans in the advertising of numerous products? (¶ 8). English has a positive connotation in foreign cultures, in this case Japan. ?English language attracts much more general prestige than French or any other foreign language? (Blair, 1997, ¶ 8). Language definitely contributes to Americanization of foreign cultures because it adds a sense of prestige that is not attributed to the home language of a certain country.

            Television goes hand in hand with language as a huge factor in the Americanization of advertisements. Television is a major force in the world of advertising because it is a very common media outlet. Along with print journalism and radio, television?s presence in the daily life of global society is very large. For example, 98% of German households contain at least one television set (Kleinsteuber and Thomass, 2006). Even in countries like Russia, ?practically each?household owns at least one TV set? (Krasnoboka, 2007). If countries have such access to television, it makes it that much easier for American owned corporations to advertise through that medium. Morley and Robins (1995) said, ?Television thereby becomes the basis of common experiences and interactions? (p. 132). This being said, television creates a source of marketing information for people across the globe at any given time. The fact that television is so prevalent makes it a great outlet for advertising therefore American corporations can get into foreign markets easily.

Sources:

Hardt, Michael, and Negri, Antonio (2000). ?Preface? (pp.xi-xvii) and Part I (pp. 1-66), Empire. Cambridge, MA, and London, England: Harvard University Press. Online:

http://social.chass.ncsu.edu/~wiley/courses/447/hardtnegri2000.pdf

Morley, D., and Robins, K. (1995). Under Western eyes: Media, empire, and otherness. In D. Morley and K. Robbins, Spaces of identity: Global media, electronic landscapes, and cultural boundaries. London: Routledge.

Electronic reserve: Part 1: http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/eresdocs/files2/h5974.pdf. Part 2:

http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/eresdocs/files2/h5975.pdf.

Blair, R. J. (1997). The role of English and other foreign languages in Japanese society. The Internet TESL Journal, 3(7), July 1997. Retrieved from: http://iteslj.org/Articles/Blair_EngJpn.html

Media Landscape of Germany. European Journalism Centre. 2006. http://www.ejc.net/media_language/article/germany/

Media Landscape of Russia. European Journalism Centre. 2007. http://www.ejc.net/media_language/article/russia/

Posted at 04:29PM Jun 07, 2007 by KELLMANN, CHRISTINA in General  |  Comments[2]