Band 6+: The differences between countries are becoming less obvious. Today, people everywhere watch the same movies, follow the same fashion, and see the same brands, advertisements, and TV shows. Do the advantages of this development outweigh the disadvantages? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

In recent years, there have been fewer differences between nations when people all watch the same things. From my perspective, this trend can solve the issue of cultural barriers and increase awareness of global concerns. However, in return, the loss of cultural identity and difficulty in promoting local brands, which is more alarming.

On the one hand, the growing similarity between countries can lessen the concern about cultural barriers. This is due to the modern lifestyle, which is mostly affected by media that are relatively the same in different countries. In consequence, some culturally identifying habits may no longer exist, making people feel more easier to talk with each others when the similarities occupy more than differences. In addition, the growing similarity of global media content increases awareness of some global issues considerably, which used to be a concern in some particular areas. This makes sense in the results held by UNPD and Oxford University around the globe, which has collected an unexpected result of 80% of attendees agreeing that climate change is an emergency.

On the other hand, I believe that the negative effects of this trend outweigh its advantages regarding losing cultural identity and struggling local brands. A key drawback of rising likeness between nations is the risk of losing cultural identity. Since the modern lifestyle of people is getting more and more similar due to the aforementioned reason, some cultural values are gradually fading in people’s habits, leading to the disappearance of those identities. This is obvious in language when the impact of global languages is greater, possibly leaving 1500 languages unknown at the end of this century (UNESCO). Moreover, local businesses can face great difficulties in promoting in a market where the bombardment of global brands is extremely powerful. For instance, a local fashion brand finds it difficult to promote its products when international trends and brands overshadow them in their nation.

In conclusion, country likeliness can be advantageous in connecting people with each other without the barrier of cultures and raising international concerns, I assume that the drawbacks of the disappearance of cultural identity and promotion in local brands.