Introduction
The internet is the most recent fundamental media in the contemporary society, which entirely relies on web browsers. The establishment of the web in the year 1989 was a triggered by the massive development of social sciences, as a result of increased urge to share accumulated knowledge among scholars and researchers.
According to Baym (2007), the internet has massively revolutionized the contemporary information dynamics with regard to the converging diverse global cultures. Considering the power of visual images on behavioral changes, the television has largely played a very significant role in the currently experienced modernization as a result of globalization.
As noted by Lester (2002), the ability of the media to allegorically amalgamate diverse lifestyles is facilitated by the level of motivation towards its use. As television out-fashioned the radio, the internet as the most personalized digital media has the potential to render the television less relevant. This paper will discuss the impacts of digitization and convergence on the internet in the currently globalized society.
As noted by Geer & Ranum (2005), the massive use of the internet in the contemporary society has culminated into an integral man of the 21st century, which far much enhanced co-existence. It is important to note that, the diverse cultural groups from various parts of the world have been brought closer into universal lifestyle through the digital media.
Quite importantly, the internet has created enough space for solving various worlds’ diverse problems. According to Boyd (2008), global archives are becoming more open and liberated to enhance information sharing among the integrated global community. One of the most significant social media, the internet has radically been facilitating cultural integration across the world.
For instance, Semantic Web has actively pushed efficiency in the information sharing through the internet, since it is instilled with special software to translate information from one language to another. As a result, it has been easy and more efficient internet users to share information sufficiently, despite their diverse languages.
Eric (2007) holds that, the rise of multiculturalism has been largely triggered by the rise of common media among nations. With the massive advancement of the internet, social cohesion and cultural integration among the people has been highly facilitated. This is due to the persuasive nature of this media, since most of the information shared within the browsers is both images and words.
Since images are powerful information conveyers due to their accuracy in creating mental pictures, individuals have been finding it easy and to adopt practices from other superior cultures easier. As a result, the internet media can be described to have played a remarkable role of facilitating cultural integration and interconnections among the people.
Following the current advancement in technology and modernization, the need for cultural integration among the nations has been rising sharply. It thus necessitates individuals to create personal pages in the World Wide Web so as to facilitate the quick transfer of information from one individual to another despite their geographical separation.
Costikyan (2002) reveals that, various individuals have been able to transact in various scenarios over the internet; though they have never met physically. More so, e-commerce and online learning programs have largely been facilitated through the internet.
On this basis, the internet has largely played significance roles of enhancing unified global society in various aspects. As a result, most global programs have been made common to all the people due to the commonness in lifestyles as facilitated by the internet media.
With the world knowledge becoming integrated, public libraries are being transformed to enhance online learning and sharing of information between virtually connected individuals. With the past trend of libraries where most of information was shared within the institutions’ staff and the students, cultural trends were static and conserved since limited social interaction was facilitated.
Particularly, educational systems have largely impacted on culture since all values and norms upheld by a particular culture are mainly conveyed through education system. Since the current education systems have bee revolutionized to incorporate online students from various parts of the world, the use of Web browsers has become part of life (Eric, 2007).
It should be noted that, the current high level of information system has not only become effective in cultural transformation, but also necessary with the current trend of technology advancement. The current society has become technologically tuned to an extent that, technology has become a necessity in living.
As noted by Costikyan (2002), the development of personal websites has generally contributed to the enhancement of information sharing among the people from diverse geographical regions.
Considering the rapidly dynamic world in terms of technology, various web based resources keep on being replaced by different contents; with regard to the changing trend of various phenomena due to convergence of cultures and lifestyles. Particularly, personal websites have been massively developed as a result of the urge by individuals to share information as well as for entertainment purposes.
The web media has largely participated in connecting people from various parts of the world, which has largely facilitated cultural integration. As reported by (), the web media has uniquely capacitated individuals to understand each other culture, which has been entrenched in the advancement of information technology across the world.
According to Boyd (2008), the partnership of colleagues and external associates has been enhanced through the development of more sophisticated information technologies. It is important to note that, various social organizations have established virtual partnership with their clients and employees which, has been enhanced by the development of internet services.
As a matter of fact, many social organizations have to a greater extent encompassed the current technology in communication; in which the organizations have found themselves in a better position of performing better and more effectively.
For instance, the development of Skye has reduced costs of communications among various businesses; as it has been found to be very cheap and more affordable. Specifically, the various IT strategies by various organization in the contemporary society have been found be quite important and useful in various ways.
Considering the current trends of world trade and commerce, the web media has largely been significant in facilitating various processes involved. According to Geer & Ranum (2005), e-commerce has been enhanced by massive increase in information system resulting into a more interconnected society.
Since intensive global trade results into sharing frequent sharing of cultural products and services from one part of the world to another, cultural integration has largely been enhanced. For instance, the apparent flow of technology from the western region as facilitated by the advancing media communication has largely changed the lifestyles of most less developed countries.
As a result, the cultural trends in most of these less developed countries can has been attributed to the lifestyles in the western culture, which is considered more superior. On this basis, the web media which has generally been the dominant channel for modernization in most developing countries has impacted a lot on the world’s cultural trends among nations.
However, the internet media has been observed to deteriorate moral values among the children and the youths largely. With the eminent use of social websites like the You Tube and social blogs, some images portrayed have been found to impact negatively on good cultural values among various societies.
For instance, the use of You Tube among the young children to watch pornographic movies and pictures can be described as degrading morality among the growing generation. As a result, such information portrayed through the media will be upheld among such children, in which the long-run effect will be a society dominated by immorality in the near future.
As held by Eric (2007), the media has been a very powerful tool to influence behaviors and lifestyles, as it reaches wider audience base within a very short time. On this basis, it is very important for the media to be regulated in terms of the content relayed in order to reinstate morality and other good values among the global society.
Conclusion
With the currently revolutionized society on technological basis, the internet has largely been observed to impact a lot on the overall cultural integration across the world. As it has been revealed internet media as one of the most powerful facilitators for exchange of cultural values among the diverse cultures through globalization.
This has been largely enhanced through liberalization of education systems and trade, resulting into global societies having common value systems. Notably, the western culture has been predominant in the entire process of cultural integration as a result of globalization.
However, the media has been revealed to impact negatively on moral values among the youths and the children. Since it has been possible to access morally degrading pictures and videos through the internet, the future generation is anticipated to be highly immoral.
References
Baym, N. (2007). The New Shape of Online Community: The Role of the Media in Cultural Transformation. Social Integration Review, 12(3): 341-359.
Boyd, D. (2008). Social Networks and Cultural Trends. New Jersey: Prentice Hall Publishers.
Costikyan, G. (2002). I Have No Words & I Must Design: Toward a Critical Vocabulary For Games. In F. Mayra (Ed.) Proceedings of Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference. Web.
Eric, G. (2007). Revolutionizing the Society through the Internet Media. Journal of Information Systems, 35(1): 672-684.
Geer, D. & Ranum, M. (2005). The Impact of the Internet on Cultural Trends. New York: John Wiley & Sons Publishers
Lester, B. (2002). Building a Sustainable Society: The Power of the Media. New York: Norton & Company.