Globalization is a modern day notion that has been forwarded and enhanced by international politics, economic relations between nations and, of course, cultural exchanges. The plurality of countries that conform the world as we know it have traits that make them unique and distinguish them from others, traits that derive from their history, traditions and customs.
Knowing that what mostly defines and reflects what a country is is the way it, as a society, constructs reality from their own viewpoint and experiences, it is also what enables it to connect and relate to the rest of the world, establishing reciprocal relations. This process is made decidedly easier since the dawning of the age of telecommunications, made simple and accesible through the like of fax machines, the internet and of course satellite television.
The advent of satellite T.V. has helped difuse frontiers and allowed people from all over the globe to have access to programs and events that would otherwise be far from their reach if only because of geography. Now, Wimbeldon can be seen by millions in millions of different locations, the japanese can follow the Michael Jackson trial, Madonna´s concert in UK can be assisted to by venezuelans from the comfort of their living room couch. The world is there literally within reach, on a smorgasboard of channels that a remote control puts at your fingertips, just a click away.
This cultural unification through television is testament of the power of images and imageries and of how they can educate and inform on a myriad of topics from the most banal to the most profound. It is within this range of topics that human nature lies in its different forms, manifestations and idiosyncrasies. It is within this range of topics that we can get to know each other as societies saving ourselfs the expense of short or long distance travel, hotels, restaurants and miscellaneous. Granted, the experience of actually being in a different country and physically mingling with it has to offer is ideally what we all want, but in its absence, what better than a flat screen television set that can take you to the Great Wall of China? Citizens of the world, let us unite . . . and meet on channel 65.
