ABSTRACT
In this chapter, Gary R. Weaver traces the development of international and intercultural communication studies through his professional development and the growth of the International Communication Program at American University in Washington, D.C. He begins his essay by underlining the importance of researching and understanding culture in international relations and international communication. He describes the contributions of systems theory, the Frankfurt School scholars, and cultural anthropologists such as Margaret Mead to the emergence and evolution of international communication as an interdisciplinary scholarly field since World War II. Weaver also offers a persuasive critique of the dominant “ethnocentric” paradigm, which is predicated on the assumption that the development of all other countries should be the process of assimilation into U.S. European American culture. He warns against the resurgence of the old paradigm as exemplified by Samuel Huntington’s thesis of “the clash of civilizations.” He concludes his essay by underscoring dialogical relationships among cultures that require us to communicate with people rather than to people.
