How does the Internet promote transnationality?
Through the use of the Internet music artists, independent filmmakers, foreign television shows or anyone who has something to say can share their hobbies or talents with the rest of the world at the click of a button. Sites like YouTube hold a fantastic array of videos that range from the bizzare to the magnificent. By publishing these videos online to everyone in the world, the Internet becomes a great place to get noticed and reach anyone on the globe, making your work transnational.
From one culture to another...
Below is a video from a Japanese television show that found international fame on the internet and was even recreated in the UK version of Big Brother (Downing, Lord, 2008). To view the Big Brother version please click on this link as embedding the video has been disabled. Without the Internet this Japanese television show would probably not have been seen in the UK, but by posting it on YouTube it became so popular it was imitated on the biggest reality television show in Britain.
Universally speaking
In this Phillipines prison, inmates performed the dance to Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' (Temperton, 1984), an American song.
Spivak (1988) wrote an article asking the question can the subaltern speak? The subaltern are the people at the bottom of society, much like these prisoners are in Phillipines. Here, Spivak explains how in the First World the subaltern can speak and be heard, but that this differs in other countries.
According to Foulcout and Deleuze (in the First World, under the standardization and regimentation of socialized capital, though they do not seem to recognize this) the oppressed, if given the chance (the problem of representation cannot be bypassed here), and on the way to solidarity through alliance politics (a Marxist thematic is at work here) can speak and know their conditions. We must now confront the following question: On the other side of the international division of labour from socialized capital, inside and outside the circuit of the epistemic violence of imperialist law and education supplementing an earlier econimic text, can the subaltern speak?" (Spivak, 1988, p. 25)
Spivak (1988) wrote an article asking the question can the subaltern speak? The subaltern are the people at the bottom of society, much like these prisoners are in Phillipines. Here, Spivak explains how in the First World the subaltern can speak and be heard, but that this differs in other countries.
According to Foulcout and Deleuze (in the First World, under the standardization and regimentation of socialized capital, though they do not seem to recognize this) the oppressed, if given the chance (the problem of representation cannot be bypassed here), and on the way to solidarity through alliance politics (a Marxist thematic is at work here) can speak and know their conditions. We must now confront the following question: On the other side of the international division of labour from socialized capital, inside and outside the circuit of the epistemic violence of imperialist law and education supplementing an earlier econimic text, can the subaltern speak?" (Spivak, 1988, p. 25)
This video shows that the subaltern are being noticed internationally for something they have achieved. However, this video could also be seen to be conforming to Western culture and not the subjects' own culture. This is another important point to consider when looking at transnationalism; does the subaltern only get heard when conforming to the Western way of life?
While this could be seen to be the case, other items on the Internet encourage differing cultures to celebrate what makes them unique. One example would be the Eurovision song contest where acts from all over Europe perform a song to represent their country. Another example is the video below, which shows a man dancing all over the world and inviting people from the countries he dances in to join him. This video celebrates different cultures and different landscapes without glamourising them, therefore uniting these people as one rather than segregating them into 'them' and 'us'.
On top of the world
While the Internet offers humourous videos such as the ones above that entertain the masses around the globe, it is also the place where anyone can become a world-wide star overnight. One recent example is Britain's Got Talent contestant Susan Boyle who found international success on YouTube after singing on the British reality television show. Without the Internet, Susan would not have been able to reach such a vast audience, even catching the eye of celebrities such as Demi Moore, who posted the video on her Twitter account, yet another form of Internet communication. Susan is now a world-wide success, appearing on American talk shows and even got invited to meet President Obama. To view the video please follow this link as embedding has been disabled.
