Friday, June 10, 2016

The Influence of Big Power

We all know that powers outside ourselves influence us; governments, corporations, and advertising all try and shape our worldview in varying ways and for different reasons. Our group is focusing on these three big powers and examining the way they influence us.

JORDANA CASHMAN // American Government and Cultural Influence

The United States is currently the world’s cultural icon. American media and pop culture is spread worldwide through Hollywood, television, and the Internet. Hollywood’s revenue is approximately four times that of the next-highest film revenue stream in the world, to the United Kingdom. The United states is the source of many of the most influential online websites such as Facebook, YouTube, and Google. This is similar to France in the late 1700s and early 1800s, when France was the cultural icon of Europe. Elites across Europe spoke French, lingua franca, even in nations like Russia who were terrified of Napoleon’s invasion. France’s high level of cultural influence was unstable; one nation cannot maintain the premier position forever. Eventually another nation took its place, Great Britain. We don’t know who will take the place of the United States, but in the meantime we can engineer our foreign policy to have more sustainable, positive relationships with other countries.

Read Jordana's post here.

SAM DERBY // Corporations vs Government: Who Gets the Power?

Who will be the first man on Mars?  Why is Donald Trump so popular?  Are companies like Coca-Cola and Disney more influential than our own government To answer all these questions we have to address the largest common factor,  The power of Business and Corporations.  In fact, corporations not only may have more influential power than the US government, but on many levels actually deserve it.

Read Sam's post here.

KAREE BROWN // Social Media as Propaganda

Think back to your history class when you were studying World War I and World War II. Do you remember hearing about the propaganda that governments used? You might be familiar with the classic poster that is a painting of Uncle Sam with the words “I want you for U.S. Army” underneath. Propaganda evokes emotion and influences people’s opinion. The problem is that some companies, like Hitler, have a double standard, that is unethical. Luckily, with social media, ideas are spread quickly and on massive levels. Your presence on social media gives you power to speak up and encourage companies and governments to be more ethical.

Read Karee's post here.


  1. You say that big power influences us, and obviously it affects our way of life, but I would like to present an argument that supports your claim in a new light.
    In a recent study, I came across an article that claims that powerlessness can in-fact corrupt/influence individuals more than power can corrupt/influence individuals. ( When people do not have power, often they will be in depression due to the social necessity of power.
    Dr. Kipnis said. ''The more resources you control, the better you feel.''
    Another psychiatrist, Dr. Bertram S. Brown, states that ''exercising power is the most effective short-range antidepressant in the world.''
    Thus I present that big power mentally affects us. It allows us to see ourselves and our country in a positive light.
    Would you say that America’s power is also what gives us the ideal society? How would you argue that big power affects us mentally, would you agree or care to disagree?

  2. In Howard Dean’s 2006 book, You Have the Power: How to Take Back Our Country and Restore Democracy in America [2006], he says:

    “Being organized and empowering people is the first part of taking back the power to change the country and restore American democracy.”

    The entire book talks about power of the individual to make a difference on a national and even international scale. Here’s how I see it: in each of your posts, to some degree, you talk about how these “big powers” promote the idea that one person (or one group of persons) can make a difference. Sam - you talk about the power of individual corporations and their influence. Karee - you talk about the power of one individual to make a difference through the “new” kind of propaganda. Jordana - you talk about the far-reaching influences of a singular country. Your blog post is an example of one singular group of people attempting to ORGANIZE and EMPOWER people, encouraging them to “take back the power” in their own way, whether it be through correct use of social media, confidently supporting large corporations rather than government programs in hopes that your opinion will likely, actually, be heard, etc. The conclusion - or at least the concluding question I’m coming to - is this: you claim that “big power” is what influences us, but aren’t you really saying that the real power lies with the individual? Aren’t the majority of your claims about, as Dean says in his book, “organizing and empowering” individuals?

  3. In your posts, you focus on the influence of big powers at the local, national, and global levels. I agree with your argument about how they influence the public's world view. I would like to share some thoughts that I had about the differences between big powers in the past and big powers today as I read your post.

    Although big powers were once publicly driven, they are now privately driven. My argument is that the difference between Napoleon France' worldwide ideological influence, NASA's exploration of space, and Hitler's propaganda in Germany and the United States' worldwide ideological influence, Space X' exploration of space, and the individual's propaganda through social media is that while before only governments could contribute to "Big Power" influences, now corporations and individuals can contribute to "Big Power" influences.

    This same transition from public to private happened during the Renaissance in Florence, Italy, although then it was only short-lived. At the beginning of the Renaissance, the Catholic Church was the principal patron of artists, but eventually private patrons influenced by humanist culture became the principal patrons of artists. This was made possible by a lengthly hiatus from war and the advent of new artistic practices such as the portrait and advancements in art such as perspective and lighting that allowed for more realistic portraits.

    The transition of big powers from public to private can be seen as the result of a modern-day renaissance and the rise of the amateur. This was made possible by a lengthly period of political stability in the developed world and the advent of new technologies.