In The News

When Nike Speaks

December 10, 2002
The debate over sweatshops and corporate responsibility for factory working conditions has again made its way to American courts. When Nike issued misleading statements about its third-world labor policies, consumer groups took the company to court, charging Nike with false advertising. In May 2002, the California Supreme Court sided against Nike, allowing lawsuits against the company and...

A Jurisdictional Tangle

December 10, 2002
A high-court ruling in Australia may make it possible to sue a publication for libel from halfway around the world. An Australian businessman sued the Dow Jones Company using the libel laws in his home state of Victoria, claiming that because he could access the Wall Street Journal website from Victoria, any libelous material on that website could be prosecuted under Victoria’s jurisdiction....

Pew Survey Finds America’s Global Stature Diminished

December 4, 2002
The globalization of media and the information technology revolution have made American actions visible to the entire world. In a wide-sweeping survey of 38,000 people in 44 countries – a feat accomplished in large part thanks to globalization – the Pew Foundation finds a gloomy image of the US overseas. From the state of American democracy to America's unilateralist stance in the...

Can Global Warming Be Studied Too Much?

Andrew C. Revkin December 3, 2002
Globalization has resulted in a world in which actions in one area may have far-reaching consequences across the globe, and in no field of study is that fact more relevant than the current debate over global warming. The Bush administration has convened a three-day meeting to discuss the agenda for researching climate change. All agree that pollution, especially from fossil fuels, plays some...

US Tariff Plan Raises Concern at WTO

Ravi Kanth December 3, 2002
The US proposal to phase out tariffs on industrial goods is meeting with opposition from some members of the World Trade Organization. Many agree with a South Asian trade envoy who criticized the plan’s 'glaring absence of special flexibilities for developing countries with different levels of economic development'. Developing countries worry that revenue flow to their governments will...

Obstacles to Zero Tariffs

November 29, 2002
For many people, economic globalization means the dismantling of all barriers to free trade, a process which would eliminate all taxes on imported manufactured goods and agricultural subsidies. At the Doha round of world talks, the United States proposed zero tariffs on industrial and consumer goods by 2015. Though few can argue that lower tariffs will eventually benefit consumers, many...

No More Fanaticism as Usual

Salman Rushdie November 27, 2002
Globalization of the media allows us to hear and see almost instantly news from around the world, creating a space for global perspectives on important issues that affect people everywhere. Recounting recent events in Egypt, Iran, Nigeria, and the Netherlands involving religious violence and Islamicists, author Salman Rushdie calls on fair-minded Muslims the world over to stand up for their...