ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes discourses of “place” in Israeli music videos primarily as modes of response to globalization. Based on the premise that music videos comprise a unique genre that works between and across music, lyrics, and a short film, a multimodal method of approach is used. Three primary types of place are subsequently identified: 1) the anonymous place or “non-place”; 2) the imaginary, fantastic/phantasmatic place; 3) the real, concrete urban environment of Tel Aviv. A twofold conclusion is reached. First, that music videos must be seen as a global genre defined by the combination of various element into a multifaceted text conducive to conveying the complexities and contradictions of “place”. Further, by representing counter-forces of localization even in the most globalized contexts, music videos work to present alternatives to the blurry identities created by globalization and ultimately to forge a “global sense of place.”
