Abstract
The global village concept has fuelled soft capitalism and the rise of the ethos in this field within organizations. Let us first understand the basis of globalization. While not so different from traditional villages in its desire to engage in a free exchange of ideas, the global village is one that thrives on the communication and transportation infrastructure that seems to be binding the world into one ‘large, happy family'.
What had started out as a speculation on the part of Marshall McLuhan in the 1960s, regarding the fact that the world was being transformed into a “global village” in the face of TV and new telecommunication technologies, has become a debate of much greater dimensions. His prediction has gone past mere “telecommunication technologies”, to an arena where a new wave of digital technologies personified by the Internet and its offshoots, are proving to be as much a force for diversity as they are for similitude. While the spread of TV, radio and the telephone helped transform the third world countries to a great extent; a trend furthered by the advent of cell phones - the impact of the Internet has been the greatest in its reach and in fostering ties in the global village context. (Saffo,1990; Pp 7 to 14)
To answer the question of whether or not the world has turned into a global village in a single word, I would have to say yes. As we find the world shrinking, in terms of boundaries as well as the spread of knowledge of various cultures which further binds us all together; the media would have to be the ‘prime accused'. While international stories and advertorials have a ring of sameness to them, it is the details which keep changing the world over. The radio and print media on their part, have simply cemented such trends with their far reaching effects in any and every country. To put it in terms of dramatics - newspapers make and break personalities and empires every single day of their existence. The Internet takes things several steps further as it provides valuable personal communication and interface for exchange of knowledge and ideas, on a much larger scale, in a much easier way.
