Title: What Is the Meaning of Cultural Imperialism? | The Classroom
Headings: What Is the Meaning of Cultural Imperialism?
What Is the Meaning of Cultural Imperialism?
Core Concept of Cultural Imperialism
Examples of Cultural Imperialism
Nonreciprocal Media Imperialism
Critiques of Cultural Imperialism

Content: As globalization, media proliferation and instant worldwide communication become the norm, cultural imperialism is perhaps more significant now than ever before. Core Concept of Cultural Imperialism
According to the theory of cultural imperialism, less economically prominent cultures essentially import examples of culture from wealthier countries -- chiefly Western countries, which have the economic means necessary to produce a majority of the world's cultural media -- mostly via the global transmission of media. As one society exerts cultural influence over another, the latter society adopts its customs, philosophies, worldviews and general ways of life. Under the imposition of another culture, the “lesser” culture is thought to lose some of its own cultural identity in the process. Examples of Cultural Imperialism
Since Herbert Schiller's book “Communication and Cultural Domination” first coined the phrase in 1976, the concept of cultural imperialism is often used to refer to the idea of America exerting cultural influence over the rest of the world, with a particularly powerful imposition on Third World countries. Examples of American cultural imperialism include brand name products, mass-produced food and, perhaps of primary importance, video media. While this may come with some positive effects -- showing women's rights or racial equality in a positive light, for example -- it also tends to paint America as a leader or hero, potentially exerting a negative effect on the viewer's perception of his own country or other non-American cultures. Nonreciprocal Media Imperialism
Although cultural imperialism extends to the development of governmental and economic systems, it also focuses on the assimilation of media, including literature, film, television, music and Internet content. This concept, known as media imperialism, refers to a situation in which a culture is chiefly exposed to the media interests of another society rather than their own. This occurs without reciprocation -- the affected country or culture's media is not exported in turn to the influencing country in any significant fashion, making media and cultural imperialism a strictly one-way street.