Communication and Globalization

Purposive Communication
Maureen A. Logronio
College of Arts and Sciences
Learning Outcome:
• Learning Outcome/s : LO.4Apply the
ethical principles in any forms of
communication and in academic and
professional writing.
Communication and Globalization
‘Globalization’ and ‘global’ are terms we often
encounter today. These terms are associated
with realities outside the territories of nation-
states. All countries are engaged in globalization.
Very few societies are unaffected by this
phenomenon. Because of this, we need to
understand exactly what it is, and more
importantly, how it impacts communication.
Globalization is the process by which people
and goods move easily across borders.
Principally, it’s an economic concept – the
integration of markers, trade and investment
with few barriers to slow the flow of products
and services between nations. There is also a
cultural element, as ideas and traditions are
traded and assimilated.
Globalization has brought many benefits to
many people. But not to everyone. (Gray, 2017)
 Storm in a Coffee Cup
To help explain the economic side of
globalization, let’s take a look at the well-known
coffee chain Starbucks.
The first Starbucks outlet opened its doors in
1971 in the city of Seattle. Today it has 15,000
stores in 50 countries. These days you can find a
Starbucks anywhere, whether Australia,
Cambodia, Chile or Dubai. It’s what you might
call a truly globalized company.
And for many suppliers and jobseekers, not to
mention coffee-drinkers, this was a good thing. The
company was purchasing 247 million kilograms of
unroasted coffee from 29 countries. Through its
stores and purchases, it provided jobs and income
for hundreds of thousands of people all over the
world.
But then disaster struck. In 2012, Starbucks made
headlines after a Reuters investigation showed that
the chain hadn’t paid much tax to the UK
government, despite having almost a thousand
coffee shops in the country and earning millions of
pounds in profit there.
As a multinational company, Starbucks was able
to use complex accounting rules that enabled it
to have profit earned in one country taxed in
another. Because the later country had a lower
tax rate, Starbucks benefited. Ultimately, the
British public missed out, as the government
was raising less tax to spend on improving their
well-being.
How Did Globalization Happen?
We might think of globalization as a relatively
new phenomenon, but it’s been around for
centuries.
One example is the Silk Road, when trade spread
rapidly between China and Europe via an
overland route. Merchants carried goods for
trade back and forth, trading silk as well as gems
and spices and, of course, coffee. (in fact, the
habit of drinking coffee in a social setting
originates from a Turkish custom, an example of
how globalization can spread culture across
borders.
What Drives It?
Globalization has speeded up enormously over
the last half-century, thanks to great leaps in
technology.
The internet has revolutionized connectivity and
communication, and helped people share their
ideas much more widely, just as the invention of
the printing press did in the 15th century. The
advent of email made communication faster
than ever.
The invention of enormous container ships helped too. In
fact, improvements in transport generally –faster ships,
trains and airplanes – have allowed us to move around
the globe much more easily.
What’s Good About It?
Globalization has led to many millions of people being
lifted out of poverty.
For example, when a company like Starbucks buys coffee
from farmers in Rwanda, it is providing a livelihood and a
benefit to the community as a whole. A multinational
company’s presence overseas contributes to those local
economies because the company will invest in local
resources, products and services. Socially responsible
corporations may even invest in medical and educational
facilities.
Globalization has not allowed nations to trade with
each other, but also to cooperate with each other
as never before. Take the Paris Agreement on
Climate Change, for instance, where the 195
countries all agreed to work towards reducing their
carbon emissions for the greater global good.
What’s Bad About It?
While some areas have flourished, others have
floundered as jobs and commerce move
elsewhere. Steel companies in the UK, for example,
once thrived, providing work for hundreds of
thousands of people. But when China began
producing cheaper steel, steel plants in the UK
closed down and thousands of jobs were lost.
 Every step forward in technology brings
with it new dangers. Computers have vastly
improved our lives but cyber criminals steal
millions of pounds a year. Global wealth has
skyrocketed, but so has global warming.
While many have been lifted out of
poverty, not everybody has benefited. Many
argue that globalization operates mostly in the
interest of the richest countries, with most of
the world’s collective profits flowing back to
them and into the pockets of those who are
already own the most.
Although globalization is helping to create more
wealth in developing countries, it is not helping
to close the gap between the world’s poorest
and richest nations. Leading charity Oxfam says
that when corporations such as Starbucks can
legally avoid paying tax, the global inequality
crisis worsen.
Basically, done wisely (in the words of the
International Monetary Fund) globalization
could lead to “unparalleled peace and
prosperity.” Done poorly, “to disaster.”
 The Impact of Globalization on
Communication
As more people cross borders because of
globalization more language contact happens,
making communication more challenging.
(Get and View a video or listen to an audio-
recording titled The Effects of Globalization on
Global Communication by Nikolay Danev.)
Reference:
R1. Madrunio, M.R. & Martin, I.P.(2018).
Purposive Communication: Using
English in Multilingual Contexts,
Philippines: C & E Publishing, Inc.