ABSTRACT
Few aspects of contemporary everyday life capture the imagination of scholars of globalization as much as global media events. The Football World Cup, Olympic Games, the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships, the Super Bowl or the Eurovision Song Contest in their seemingly exceptional and spectacular, yet in their sum almost quotidian nature, evoke passion, enthusiasm, and committed consumption among audiences across the globe. Box office hits such as the Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, internationally distributed and franchised television shows from 24 to various casting and reality shows have led to a convergence of audiences' viewing practices and experiences across different global regions. The images of stars and celebrities—from John Lennon, who notoriously proclaimed to be more famous than Jesus, to Mohammed Ali and David Beckham—are among the cultural resources that enjoy widespread transnational recognition and adoration.
