In The News

In Asia, English Is Useful But Mandarin Is Rising

Simon Montlake January 13, 2006
Given the innate capacity for language acquisition in schoolchildren, it makes sense to introduce immersion programs at a young age. In many Asian countries, elementary schools already instruct in English, a language seen as widely useful, especially for global business. Now Thailand has started programs to train students in Mandarin, perhaps equally practical in the growing inter-Asian economy....

Insults from America

Mike McPhate January 13, 2006
Indian call center employees have discovered an unexpected drawback in their line of work. Of millions of calls, about 5 percent involve bigotry from US customers who are angry about outsourcing and grasp an opportunity to speak their minds. Call center workers hear attacks about cultural inferiority and accusations about reaping the benefits of outsourcing at the expense of US workers. These...

Gunning for the World

David Morton January 13, 2006
The National Rifle Association has traditionally represented a highly specific interest group among the US population. Increasingly, though, the NRA has come to link the success of its pro-gun lobbying in the US with similar struggles underway in other nations. NRA leaders have exhibited a sophisticated understanding of increased interconnectivity among world cultures, and the most practiced...

Politicus: U.S. Model for Europe: Immigrant Work Ethic

John Vinocur December 14, 2005
As the recent riots in France show, Europe faces a conundrum when it comes to integrating its immigrant populations into their host societies. Some acknowledged and indisputably real factors need to be addressed, including discrimination and lack of education. However, a new notion is garnering attention from some European politicians – the idea that the US has had more success integrating...

It’s Now Hollywood Outsourcing to India

December 14, 2005
The Indian government is altering its decades-old stance of suspicion towards Hollywood and foreign cultural influence, and deliberatly positioning India as an outsourcing destination for the international film industry. India has become an attractive location for future blockbusters, offering cost savings of forty to sixty percent on typical big-budget productions and potential for profit. The...

The Vicious Underbelly of Urban Culture

Bronwyn Winter December 13, 2005
On the heels of last month’s riots in France a storm of violence has broken out in Sydney, suggesting that comparisons should be made. Both events involve tensions between Arabs and the wider cultures in which they live. The riots in Sydney, however, make clearer the particular contribution of a long-cultivated urban “machismo” culture that provides an underlying motivation for the violence....

Why Globalization Hurts Football

Andre Santamaria December 12, 2005
To most people, issues related to globalization revolve around open economies and free trade. Yet the effects of globalization can be felt in many more arenas, including in the world of professional football. From a certain standpoint, globalization may be said to be the enemy of the distinct styles of play that have traditionally made the sport a theatre for the display of national character...