The Contemporary World: Midterm

• Global Divides


  Imbalance in the socio-economic and political categories of the world, divided into north and south, and first, second, and third world
• Global South


  Socio-economic and political divide primarily focused on the southern hemisphere, consisting of Africa, Latin America, and Asia including the Middle East. Developing countries as opposed to rich, industrialized, and wealthy nations
• Why the North and South Divided

  1. Slavery divided the United States into two sides (north and south)

  2. The north emerged as the center of anti-slavery activity during the abolitionist movement

  3. The South steadily held to slavery and attempted to expand it
• Global North is not dependent on Global South, it's the opposite; South is dependent on North
• Global North


  The home of all members of the Group of Eight: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, Russia, and USA. Developed countries that are comprised of all the First World and most of the Second World countries
• Even before war, relations between the North and the South were poisoned by tax disputes
• Globalization


  Promotes the integration of economies across state borders all around the world, brings interconnectedness in every country in the world
• Regionalization


  Divides an area on a regional basis, opposite of globalization, monopolies are more likely to develop
• Factors leading to greater integration of Asian Region

  • Economic interaction and globalization
  • New technological trends
  • Rise of the PRC and India
  • Region's growing weight in the global economy
  • 1997/98 financial crisis
• Asian states are really tied together due to regionalization, economic policy cooperation and coordination among countries were established
• Problems/crucial challenges brought by globalization

  • Environmental problems (global warming, depletion of natural resources, harmful chemicals)
  • Instability and lower investment, spending, growth, and higher unemployment
  • Race to the bottom in wages, labor rights, employment practices, and the environment
  • Developing countries on the bottom line, loss of local culture
  • Financial challenges (foreign currency exchange, taxation)
• Regionalism


  A functional relation that bundles multiple nations with political, economic and cultural inheritance, often based on the geographical advantage
• Factors leading to greater integration of the Asian region

  • Trade
  • Similar Culture
  • Common Goals
• Significance of Regionalism


  • Common sense of identity
  • Combines creation and implementation of institution
  • Shape a collective action within a geographical region
• ASEAN


  A regional grouping founded to promote accelerated economic growth, facilitate social progress and cultural development, pursue regional peace in the Southeast Asian region through multilateral cooperation
• APEC


  A regional economic forum to leverage the growing interdependence of Asia Pacific, established to eliminate trade and investment barriers in Asia Pacific region
• Regions of West Asia

  • Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Yemen
• Regions of Central Asia

  • Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan
• Regions of East Asia

  • China, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau
• Regions of Southeast Asia

  • Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, Vietnam, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands
• The ASEAN Integration has been one of the central issues of public debates in the recent years
• Aims and Purposes of ASEAN

  • Accelerate economic growth, social progress, and cultural development
  • Promote regional peace and stability
  • Promote active collaboration and mutual assistance
  • Provide assistance in education, professional, technical and administrative spheres
  • Collaborate for greater utilization of agriculture and industries, expansion of trade, improvement of transportation and communications facilities, and raising of living standards
  • Promote Southeast Asian studies
  • Maintain cooperation with existing international and regional organizations
• Fundamental Principles of ASEAN

  • Mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity, and national identity of all nations
  • The right of every State to lead its national existence free from external interference, subversion or coercion
  • Non-interference in the internal affairs of one another
  • Settlement of differences or disputes by peaceful manner
  • Renunciation of the threat or use of force
  • Effective cooperation among themselves
• Purposes of ASEAN


  • To accelerate the economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region
  • To promote regional peace and stability
  • To provide assistance to each other in the form of training and research facilities in the educational, professional, technical and administrative spheres
  • To collaborate more effectively for the greater utilization of their agriculture and industries, the expansion of their trade, including the study of the problems of international commodity trade, the improvement of their transportation and communications facilities and the raising of the living standards of their peoples
  • To promote Southeast Asian studies
  • To maintain close and beneficial cooperation with existing international and regional organizations with similar aims and purposes, and explore all avenues for even closer cooperation among themselves
• Fundamental principles of ASEAN

  • Mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity, and national identity of all nations
  • The right of every State to lead its national existence free from external interference, subversion, and coercion
  • Non-interference in the internal affairs of one another
  • Settlement of differences or disputes by peaceful manner
  • Renunciation of the threat or use of force
  • Effective cooperation among themselves
• In 1997 during the ASEAN's 30th anniversary, the ten State/Government heads signed the ASEAN Vision 2020
• The ASEAN Vision 2020 agreed on a shared vision of ASEAN as a concert of Southeast Asian nations, outward looking, living in peace, stability, and prosperity, bonded together in partnership in dynamic development and in a community of caring societies
• During the 9th ASEAN Summit in 2003, State/Government Leaders established a common goal to turn the organization into one unified ASEAN Community
• ASEAN leaders decided during the 12th ASEAN Summit held in 2007 in Cebu, Philippines to fast track the regional integration to 2015
• The three pillars of the ASEAN Community

  • ASEAN Economic Community (AEC)
  • ASEAN Political Security Community (APSC)
  • ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC)
• ASEAN Economic Community (AEC)


  A vision to integrate resource markets, creating a single market and production base which allows the free flow of goods, services, investments, and skilled labor, and the freer movement of capital across the region
• ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC)


  Oversees that the ASEAN Community continues to live in peace, stability, resilience, and in concord, establishing a rule-based community of mutually shared norms and values
• ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC)


  Aims to promote a "caring and sharing society" by providing fair access to opportunities, upholding social justice, addressing issues of poverty and equity, providing special care and privileges to vulnerable groups, and protecting the environment
• Social construction in uniting multi-cultural societies

  • Establishing respect for law and justice, eradicating poverty and socio-economic differences, sustaining good governance and inciting civic engagement through the collective appreciation developed with the assistance of educational institutions
• Human capital in the changing labor market


  • Education systems must focus on delivering skills necessary for the imminent changes in the labor market, equipping the local labor force with vital skills and proficiency to compete with the labor force of other ASEAN members
• The K to 12 program in the Philippines may still lag behind due to the delayed implementation of legislations related to the education system
• Periods of media evolution

  • Oral communications
  • Script (Handwriting)
  • The printing press
  • Electronic Media
  • Digital Media
• Global Village


  Marshall McLuhan's concept of television turning the world into a global village, where people's perception about the world would contract as they sit in front of their TV and listen to the same stories, creating a homogenized culture
• Cultural Imperialism


  The exercise of domination in a cultural relationship where the values, practices, and meanings of a powerful foreign culture are imposed upon one or more native cultures
• Perspectives on the global media debate

  • Cultural imperialism theory argues that audiences across the globe are heavily affected by media messages emanating from the western industrialized countries
  • The proponents of the idea of cultural imperialism ignored the fact that mass media are not just made by the producers; they are also consumed by the audiences
  • The field of audience studies emphasize that media consumers are active participants in the meaning making process because they view the text in their own cultural lenses
  • The New Information Order Debate (NWIO) and the New World Information and Communication Order (NWICO) wanted to have news flows plus international Media flows