REGIONAL FOCUSLATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

Most of our discussion, while pertinent internationally, Has taken a “core-centric” viewpoint, i.e., we have

looked at theories and issues in international communications from media and policy originating in the “core nations”

Remember….core/periphery nations:The theory that posits as one region or state expands in

power and influence, it culturally and economically controls regions nearby to ensure its own ongoing economic and political success. When speaking of nations, the powerful are the core and the not so

powerful….the periphery.

However, we cannot look purely through the eyes of the core nations (particularly U.S.) because1.Even if the core/periphery paradigm is taken as

a given, it is changing, evolving with globalization and technology. New

opportunities for growth are expanding via new communications technology.

2.NON CORE NATIONS, SUCH AS THOSE IN

LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN ALSO HAVE AN IMPACT ON GLOBAL

CULTURE THROUGH NEW MEDIA

Lecture this week will consist of a background and history of Latin America and the Caribbean. You should use this

information to guide your reading, keeping in mind the question how the

region has both affected and been affected by global media culture.

Our class discussion board will revolve around this question…….

Latin America is a term loosely used to describe the following regionsMexicoCentral America-Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, PanamaSouth America-Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, VenezuelaThe Caribbean NationsCuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Jamaica

The region was first inhabited by people crossing into the Bering Strait (when it was a land bridge) more than ten thousand years ago

By 1000AD, South America’s rainforests, mountains, plains and coasts were the home to tens of millions of people.

The Chibchas of Colombia, Quechuas of Peru, and Aymaras of Bolivia were the three indigenous groups that settled most permanently

Latin America and the Caribbean is home to many

indigenous peoples and advanced civilizations including the Aztecs,

Toltecs, Caribs, Tupi, May and Inca.

The Golden Age of the Maya began around 250 AD, with

the last two great civilizations-the Aztec and

the Inca-emerging into prominence later in the

early 14th and 16th Centuries.

Enter ColumbusIn the late 15th Century,

Columbus’s voyages began the mass migration of Colonial Europeans

The indigenous elites quickly lost power to Conquistadors, like Hernan Cortes

Cortes and other European forces were aided by conscripted natives and anti-elite indigenous forces. After much violence toward the indigenous elites, the Incan Rule in Western South America was extinguished and Colonial Rule began

European powers colonized the region, which, along with the rest of the uncolonized world, was divided into areas of Spanish and Portuguese control by the 1493 Line of Demarcation, which gave Spain all areas to the West (in the “New World”-AKA Latin America/Caribbean) and Portugal all the lands to the East. Eventually, Portugal had Brazil, and Spain the rest.

By the 16thCentury, Europeans occupied Central and South America all the way to the today’s Southern U.S.

Mexico, while part of North America, is sometimes lumped in with Central America-especially until recently when Mexico was

considered a “developing nation” This doesn’t generally sit well with the

Mexican people who tend to think of themselves as (Mexicans first, of course)

North Americans although they call United States occupants “norteamericanos” and

themselves “americanos”.

In addition to Conquistadorian violence toward the indigenous peoples of the region, European colonization had disastrous effects on the population.

1. DISEASE: brought by Columbus and his followers, such as

smallpox and measles; historians cannot determine the exact number of people who died from European diseases, but the estimates run up to 85% of the entire population

SUBJUGATION:many of the surviving people were displaced from

their lands and forced to work in European plantations and mines

The early 1820’s brought with it the Monroe Doctrine and Latin and America and the Caribbean movements for Independence from Spain. By 1825 every nation gained independence besides Cuba (see Timothy Gjelten’s: Barcardi and the Long Battle for Cuba for a fascinating read on this) and Puerto Rico which was sold to the U.S. for 20 million at the Treaty of Paris in 1898

Worried that the European countries would try and win back the colonies they had lost in the Latin American movement for Independence and motivated by a desire to keep the region’s exploitable natural resources for themselves, the U.S. expanded the Monroe Doctrine vis a vis the Roosevelt Corollary which basically stated that the U.S. reserved the right to intervene-militarily or otherwise-when it felt itself threatened by problems faced internally by it’s neighbors to the South and East.

United States Interventions in Latin America and the Caribbean

Interactive Map of US interventions around the World

(note the relative number of those in Latin America and the Caribbean)

More than 1.5 billion people live in Latin America and the Caribbean today

While Spanish is the official language of almost all (save Jamaica and Brazil-English and Portuguese, respectively) many indigenous languages also present

While not for a lack of trying, the U.S. has been unable to keep up dominance in the region. This is despite or because of NAFTA

NAFTA of course is not the only factor to look to when evaluating the region’s ability to maintain its cultural, political and economic identity free (at least partially) from total U.S. dominance Long history of struggle for independence Strong indigenous cultural traditions History of involvement with the U.S. as an

exporter as well as importer of cultural products

Lozano offers the following terms ( the definitions are in the text and will be on this week’s quiz and/or the next exam) Cultural proximity Cultural Discount Cultural Linguistics Markets Asymmetric Interdependence (how is this

more complex than ‘dependency theory’?)

The Mexican telenovela sensation “Marimar” was first a hit around the world, then taken and repackaged by other nations

Isn’t this a bit like the J.K. Rowling case?Watch this clip that someone posted regarding the two versions. Many watched the Mexican version first and then the Filipino

As the article points out, many countries have imported telenovelas and now produce their own…..

An example of an imported product or, as Lozano dubs it “reverse cultural imperialism” is a telenovela originally produced in Colombia

Betty La Fea O

Ugly BettyCheck out this intro to one of the Latin

American Betty la Fea versions (you do not need to watch the whole clip)

Some media critics have called Ugly Betty subversive , noting that the show (among many others today) offers an alternative portrayal to the mainstream media’s portrayal of immigrants or other marginalized groups (e.g., homosexuals) NOTE: media researchers have documented

that many immigrants are labeled or portrayed as “invaders”, or likened to bugs in that they “swarm” into the U.S.

ILLEGAL ALIENS IN AMERICA

BETTY AND IMMIGRATION

How are immigrants portrayed in Lou Dobbs report?

How are they portrayed in the Ugly Betty program (I had a clip but it was removed

from youtube)?Could Ugly Betty be contraflow pushing

back against Lou Dobbs?Can peripheral cultures influence core

cultures From within?

From without?

Here is a clip that is very funny and very interesting:

Qué Hora Es?

The clip is mocking the emotional exaggeration (to U.S. culture) that typifies the telenovela. But isn’t it also making fun of U.S. or Western citizens who for some reason cannot master the art of a second language.