Globalization and American Popular Culture

by Lane Crothers

Overview

Now in a fully updated edition, this concise book explores the ways American movies, TV, music, fast food, sports, gaming, and fashion influence globalization. Projecting the future impact of popular culture, from both the United States and elsewhere, Crothers makes a powerful argument for its central role in shaping global politics and economies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538142684
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	02/12/2021
Series:	Globalization
Edition description:	Fifth Edition
Pages:	328
Product dimensions:	6.11(w) x 9.03(h) x 0.79(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Lane Crothers is professor in the Department of Politics and Government at Illinois State University and managing editor of the journal Populism. His books include Rage on the Right: The American Militia Movement from Ruby Ridge to Homeland Security, Second Edition.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments xi

1 Globalization and American Popular Culture 1

American Popular Culture and Global Politics 2

Grasping Globalization 7

Globalization's Promise 9

Challenges and Complications of the Global Era 13

Globalization Today 17

Understanding Culture 20

"American" Culture as a Case of Culture 24

Popular Culture as a Case of Culture 28

"American" Popular Culture 30

Globalization, Cultural Change, and the "Problem" of American Popular Culture 36

Plan of the Book 39

Conclusion 41

2 "American" Popular Culture 47

Building the American Audiovisual Popular Culture Industry 48

Why Not Europe? 48

The American Exception 50

The Economic Context of the Making of American Audiovisual Popular Culture 52

The Cultural Context of the Making of American Audiovisual Popular Culture 54

How Movies, Music, and Television Became American 56

How Popular Music Became American 56

How Movies Became American 63

How Television Became American 70

American Popular Culture beyond Movies, Music, and Television 76

A Brief Cultural History of Coca-Cola 76

A Brief Cultural History of McDonald's 79

A Brief Cultural History of Blue Jeans 83

Conclusion 86

3 American Popular Culture Goes Global 91

The Corporate Makers of Global American Audiovisual Popular Culture 92

Synergy and Integration in the American AV Popular Culture Industry 94

Franchising American Popular Culture 101

Exploring the Global Scope of American Music, Movies, and Television 106

American Movies Go Global 108

American Music Goes Global 113

American Television Goes Global 117

Understanding the Global Scope of American Fast Food, Fashion, and Sports 122

McDonald's Goes Global 123

Coca-Cola Goes Global 125

The NFL Begins to Go Global 126

Everything, Everywhere, All the Time 129

Conclusion 131

4 American Popular Culture in the Digital Era 137

The Digital Revolution and American Popular Culture 139

American Popular Culture Goes Digital 140

The American Popular Culture Ecosystem in the Digital Era 147

Social Media and American Popular Culture 148

Streaming and American Popular Culture 158

Gaming and American Popular Culture 161

Intellectual Property, Digital Piracy, and American Popular Culture in the Digital Age 168

Conclusion 174

5 Global Responses to American Popular Culture 183

Free Trade and American Popular Culture: A Global Debate 184

The American Argument 186

The Counter-American Argument 187

Popular Culture in International Trade Agreements (1947-2020) 193

GATT/WTO 194

NAFTA/USMCA 198

The Failure of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) 204

American Popular Culture in France, Iran, and Finland 206

France 208

Iran 212

Finland 215

American Popular Culture and China 218

The Dynamics of American Popular Culture in China I: The NBA 224

The Dynamics of American Popular Culture in China II: Disney 227

The Dynamics of American Popular Culture in China III: The Great Firewall of China 230

Conclusion 236

6 American Popular Culture and the Future of Globalization 245

Culture, Change, and Globalization Revisited 247

The Future(s) of Globalization and American Popular Culture 251

Path I Populism and Anti-Americanism 251

Path II Building Walls, Defining Borders 256

Path III American Empire 261

Path IV Hybridity, Globalization, and American Popular Culture 267

Conclusion 276

Glossary 281

Recommended Readings 287

Index 295

About the Author 313

Editorial Reviews

To keep a survey of American popular culture amid globalization both up-to-date and coherent requires an insatiable curiosity about constantly proliferating cultural products and the critical judgment to separate ephemeral from significant. Fortunately, Lane Crothers has both. Though popular culture continues to change at the speed of light, Crothers manages to keep both his analysis and his well-chosen case studies fresh and relevant. More than previously, this edition grapples with the increasingly dark side of both globalization and the internet. Readers will find digital media centered here, along with fine new sections on gaming, COVID-19, and the porn industry. Crothers seems to know virtually everything about American popular culture—and still (mostly) enjoy it.

David W. Stowe

Globalization is such a defining force in students’ lives today that it’s often difficult for them to step back and consider it critically. Crothers’s Globalization and American Popular Culture challenges them to consider the cultural values embedded in the music, television, films, and video games they consume on a daily basis and reflect on how those values might ‘play’ on the global stage. As an accessible text that students actually enjoy reading, it’s been a fixture in my international relations theory course for years. Moreover, this new edition builds on an already strong foundation with up-to-date pop culture examples and an even sharper analytic focus.

Jess Morrissette

Globalization is such a defining force in students' lives today that it's often difficult for them to step back and consider it critically. Crothers's Globalization and American Popular Culture challenges them to consider the cultural values embedded in the music, television, films, and video games they consume on a daily basis and reflect on how those values might 'play' on the global stage. As an accessible text that students actually enjoy reading, it's been a fixture in my international relations theory course for years. Moreover, this new edition builds on an already strong foundation with up-to-date pop culture examples and an even sharper analytic focus.

In a deeply textured and solidly researched book, Lane Crothers identifies the connections among American popular culture, the global reach of the U.S. movie industry, and the ability of films and television to transmit images, often conflicting, of the values of American society. Moreover, there is circularity in the process because the context of American popular culture can shape the content of American popular culture in films and television programs. This is an important book that contributes much to our understanding of the reach of American popular culture and the processes that create it. A must-read!

To keep a survey of American popular culture amid globalization both up-to-date and coherent requires an insatiable curiosity about constantly proliferating cultural products and the critical judgment to separate ephemeral from significant. Fortunately, Lane Crothers has both. Though popular culture continues to change at the speed of light, Crothers manages to keep both his analysis and his well-chosen case studies fresh and relevant. More than previously, this edition grapples with the increasingly dark side of both globalization and the internet. Readers will find digital media centered here, along with fine new sections on gaming, COVID-19, and the porn industry. Crothers seems to know virtually everything about American popular culture--and still (mostly) enjoy it.

From the Publisher

In a deeply textured and solidly researched book, Lane Crothers identifies the connections among American popular culture, the global reach of the U.S. movie industry, and the ability of films and television to transmit images, often conflicting, of the values of American society. Moreover, there is circularity in the process because the context of American popular culture can shape the content of American popular culture in films and television programs. This is an important book that contributes much to our understanding of the reach of American popular culture and the processes that create it. A must-read!

Paula D. McClain

In crisp and accessible language, the author distills central arguments in the study of global media and popular culture in their overlapping national and global political-economic context and legal-regulatory environments, often with a historical perspective. (Previous edition praise)

Global Media Studies

Lane Crothers's book has grown better with each edition. In its latest form, it provides an accessible yet sophisticated and engaging introduction to the complex position that American popular culture occupies within global networks of production, trade, and consumption. Globalization and American Popular Culture invites readers to ponder not only the local-global dynamics of contemporary life, but also the role of popular culture as a central, if often-neglected, contributor to the global image of the United States. (Previous Edition Praise)

Oana Godeanu-Kenworthy

A lucidly written piece of work. (Previous Edition Praise)

Kema Irogbe

Globalization and American Popular Culture is a fixture in my upper-level international politics course. Not only do students routinely single it out it as their favorite reading of the semester, but it also challenges them to rethink the significance of the pop culture they consume on a daily basis in the broader context of international relations. It’s the rare example of a book that is both scholarly in its approach and a fun read for students.

Jason Morrissette

This book presents an in-depth and nuanced analysis of the role of American popular culture in shaping globalization. It nicely balances discussions of the unifying components of cultural globalization with the equally insistent pressures toward fragmentation. Such an analysis is a necessary complement to the more prevalent studies of international trade and economic globalization in order to understand interactions between individuals and nations today. (Previous Edition Praise)

Linda Datcher Loury