Abstract
What we are currently witnessing is the construction of new mediascapes that are built by the global flows of information through electronic media, like satellite broadcasting and the Internet. Electronic media have decisively changed the wider field of mass media and other traditional media that have played a significant role in organizing the collective life and culture of a nation as “national media”.
This paper aims to examine the views on the relationship between global media and audiences situated in a specific place that is determined by the discourse power in three analytical frameworks responding to globalization : cultural imperialism, cultural studies and cultural-geographical approaches-these approaches are proposed by D. Morley, K. Robins and A. Appadurai respectively. In addition, this paper aims to propound important issues for empirical researches in media studies.
Cultural imperialism follows the uncertain assumption that the global flows of information conclude the uniformity of cultures in developing countries because American media companies possess large amounts of funds to produce and deliver information and images. Therefore, this assumption is regarded as a theory of the past. Even we cannot accept this assumption. However it is very important that cultural imperialism focuses on the structural inequality of the global flows of information. On the other hand, cultural-geopolitical approaches that are created from the dialogue between cultural anthropology and cultural studies indicate that there are several conflicts and inconsistencies in mediascapes, moreover, these approaches suggest that each audience constructs various types of media-landscape that respond to the complexity of mediascapes.
For a more balanced research on the social processes of media globalization from the cultural-geographical perspective, it is necessary to analyze the power relationship between exclusion and inclusion in mediascapes that are regulated by media conglomerates, the state and national media. It is also necessary to clarify the mode of consumption from the historical viewpoint.
