Week 16 Rumination
This chapter discussed the flow of images and visuality on a global scale. It could be argued that mass media began in Han Dynasty China with woodblock printing. Gutenberg’s printing press enabled a boom in mass media. Its economic justification was, just as it is now, advertising. Edo-era Japan used woodblock printing for advertisements, the European printing press was used to produce the Bible (an advertisement for a particular God), and Donald Duck cartoons were used to advertise the false friendliness of the U.S. as it meddled in sovereign nation’s governments. Image circulation causes cultural intermingling, which is not just ideological, but a trojan horse for political acquiescence. Through this concept arises cultural imperialism like that of the Donald Duck scenario.
Deterritorialization is about power and dominance over others and theft of important cultural artifacts is an effective method. Museums like the British Museum in London have stripped other countries of the artifacts that would help unify communities’ sense of cultural cohesion and essential nation-building mythology. Their explanation comes from the hubristic idea that other countries are too unstable to safely store the artifacts. This idea ignores the possibility that distribution of artifacts to their homes could prevent civil conflicts (many dating back to imperialism) that would endanger the artifacts. Cultural imperialism is the idea that politically dominant groups export culture via media to other peoples.
This socio-politically top-down flow of images is evident throughout history, including right now. Even today, in the internet age, corporations and governments are, if not controlling, are at least filtering images through algorithms. As technology has improved, media has become increasingly advanced and globalized. In 1884, Le Petite Journal used the first reproduced color images and Life showed the capitalistic potential for such images. Mass-media has had some unifying effects. Revolutions will be televised and they will inspire others, like with Cairo in 2011. The 1969 broadcast of Earth from space was unifying in that it showed humanity as one people and inspired peace/environmental movements.












