In The News

In a surprise turnaround for Disney, Shanghai has decided to favor Universal Parks and Resorts, a subsidiary of Vivendi Universal, with plans to open a theme park outside the city. Disney had originally negotiated with Shanghai to open its own theme park outside of the city. However, the slow process of the deal, the competition with Disney’s proposed theme park in Hong Kong, and the exorbitant...

Hollywood films represent more than half, and sometimes more than two-thirds of total box-office receipts in major markets. Films that succeed in the US market also tend to succeed in foreign markets. This suggests that a convergence of popular taste may be coming about, though in many countries this phenomenon also occurs against a backdrop of cultural contestation. Hollywood has been a success...

Governments understand the influence of international publications. A Time magazine article disclosing terrorist training bases in Thailand has riled Thai officials. "It is not acceptable that a world-standard magazine like Time would run a report that quoted only a single source. The magazine's report… is close to fiction," said Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. A Royal Thai...