ABSTRACT
Contemporary technological developments, and particularly the emergence of satellite television, have given a new urgency to the question of information flows. Various commentators have pointed to the re-emergence of nationalist movements in recent years and also to the politically contradictory, character of their demands for national autonomy. The cultural significance of this development has been the subject of considerable debate in the United Kingdom (UK) over the last few years. The idea that English or European ‘high culture’ is in danger of being swamped by a relentless deluge of ‘Americana’ is not new. Dick Hebdige traces these fears back to at least the 1930s, when writers as different as the Conservative Evelyn Waugh and the Socialist George Orwell were united by a fascinated loathing for modern architecture, holiday camps, advertising, fast food, plastics, and chewing-gum. The proliferation of broadcast channels, cable, and satellite is likely to move people towards more fragmented social world than that of traditional national broadcast television.
