Information and money flow move faster than ever before. Goods and services made in one part of the world are now increasingly available in all parts of the world. International travel is occurring frequently. International communication is a commonplace. There is a mixing of culture across national boundaries (71). Globalization is working in a compacting way, causing homogenization along Western lines. In other words, a new culture is in the making that rises above the old political and geographic walls (Kulver).
Technology has now created the possibility of a global culture. The Internet, fax machines, satellites, and cable TV have taken away the old national cultural boundaries (Masuda 67). Will local cultures eventually fall victim to a global culture? Web access allows anyone to explore the histories, politics, economics and societies of the most inaccessible regions. It allows outsiders to discover more about cultural, religious and historical traditions without the distortion caused by the traditional media (Chase-Dunn 113). Anyone with access to this technology can gain information concerning any part of the globe. Cultural globalization causes infinite possibilities for individuals to make different decisions than were previously offered (Chase-Dunn 120).
Globalization makes it more difficult to define culture. One of the challenges is our disposition to relate culture with a certain notion (Quintero). Society usually speaks of culture in reference to origin, such as Japanese culture or Russian Culture, but we do not distinguish between the numerous groupings inside a national boundary. A nation is a political concept, and is unquestionably very different from culture (Blij 56). With a larger cultural diversity inside of our nations, our idea of culture will soon have smaller frames of reference, forcing society to redefine cultural boundaries (Kluver).
Globalization effects intercultural communication, how individuals define their local and community identity.
