The Globalist Cookbook

Images of American cultural dominance – McDonald’s, Hollywood, and megastores – rile groups as diverse as Muslim fundamentalists, French nationalists, and anti-globalization activists. But Tyler Cowen, a pro-free market cultural economist, sees opportunity in the globalization of culture. “Capitalist multiculturalism” offers consumers different options – in their restaurants, music, and fine arts – that they would never have encountered without globalization, he argues. Others, including notable political scientist Benjamin Barber, take issue with Cowen’s views, but Cowen remains optimistic that globalization will eventually fashion a diverse world culture from which people in every nation will benefit. – YaleGlobal