Global Communication and Media Policy

The second theory I chose to focus on, which is part of the second chapter of the textbook, is the ‘free flow of information’. This concept has emerged post WW2, as a reflection of the Western capitalist ideology. This ideology perceived international communication as a mean of promotion for democratic ideals, free market and freedom of expression. On the contrary, the Marxist ‘side’ commonly promoted state regulated communication, and was said to use communication for propaganda. The concept of ‘free flow of information’ means that the media are part of a liberal, free market economy, and can be sold privately from any owner to any other one. Because of the Western domination over world’s media resources and related capital, the West had also the most to gain from the international implementation of this ideology, and from the commodification of international communication. The ‘free flow of information’ has both a political and an economic dimensions. On one hand, the politica...

Chapter 7 of the textbook focuses on what was named the ‘Internet age’ by the Business Week, in 1999. What is meant by this terminology is an age when information treatment has become so much faster and less expensive, thanks to the development of a major new communication tool: Internet. The idea, or concept, I will focus on throughout this reflection is the “free flow of commerce”. Not only the rise of Internet has allowed an unprecedented increase in the volume and diversity of information exchanged; but it also gave birth to a new form of commercial transactions: the e-commerce. The textbook points out the way trade on Internet has outpaced all expectations and was representing $1.4 trillion in 2003. The reason why e-corporations have been so quick to rise is that Internet has made transactions considerably cheaper and faster. It reduced transaction costs, and eliminated issues of geographical positioning, while allowing a more direct form of online marketing. Moreover, as...