Post by Stefan Pasti on May 26, 2012 15:33:57 GMT -5
Evidence for Critical Challenges #2 “Cultures of Violence, Greed, Corruption, and Overindulgence”
(from “A Multi-Angle View of the Debt Crises” p. 33-36)
(at www.ipcri.net/A_Multi-Angle_View_of_the_Debt_Crises.pdf )
B. Small Arms Proliferation
1) From the “Publications” section of the Small Arms Survey website, in the subsection “Small Arms Survey 2003”, (in “About the Small Arms Survey 2003, see “Key Findings” box)
(at www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2003/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2003-About-1-Press-Release-EN.pdf ) (Confirmed April 19, 2011)
“There are at least 639 million firearms in the world today, of which 59% are legally held by citizens.”
“At least 1,134 companies in 98 countries worldwide are involved in some aspect of the production
of small arms and/or ammunition.”
C. Global Drugs Trade and Global Arms Trade
1) From the “World Report on Violence and Health” (World Health Organization Geneva 2002) in Chapter 9 “The Way Forward: Recommendations for Action” p. 254 (at
whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2002/9241545615.pdf ) (Confirmed April 19, 2011)
“The global drugs trade and the global arms trade are integral to violence in both developing and industrialized countries. Even modest progress on either front will contribute to reducing the amount and degree of violence suffered by millions of people. To date, however—and despite their high profile in the world arena—no solutions seem to be in sight for these problems.”
D. Global Entertainment
1) From article “PricewaterhouseCoopers releases Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2010-2014” (June 15, 2010), in the “World News Report” section of the EIN website (An EIN News Service for Global Professionals) (see www.einnews.com/pr-news/90509-pricewaterhousecoopers-releases-globalentertainment-and-media-outlook-2010-2014- ) (confirmed April 3, 2011)
“PricewaterhouseCoopers' Global Entertainment and Media Outlook: 2010-2014 (Outlook), forecasts that global entertainment and media spending is expected to rise from $1.3 trillion to $1.7 trillion by 2014.”
2) All excerpts below are from “International Communications: A Media Literacy Approach” by Art Silverblatt and Nikolai Zlobin M.E. Sharpe July, 2004 (most content accessible at Google Books) (confirmed October 21, 2009)
“Popular programming reflects a level of acceptance and shared values among large numbers of people. People tend to watch programs that meet their approval. If they are truly offended by violent programs, they would not watch them. In that sense, media programming can be regarded as a text that reflects the attitudes, values, behaviors, preoccupations, and myths that define a culture.” (p. 66)
“At the same time, media programming reinforces cultural attitudes, values, behaviors, preoccupations, and myths. Media messages are communicated through the countless hours of media programming that repeat, directly or indirectly, the cultural script.” (p. 68)
“Finally, the media do not merely reflect or reinforce culture, but in fact shape attitudes, values, behavior, preoccupations, and myths.” (p. 68)
“The international market is saturated with American entertainment programming. Hollywood films account for approximately 85% of movie audiences worldwide. Further, American programming makes up approximately 65% of global prime-time TV viewing.” (p. 69)
E. Worldwide and U.S. Advertising Expenditures
1) From article “Worldwide Advertising Spending by Media” (July 22, 2009) at the website “BitBriefs”
(Marketing Trends, News, Stats) (see
bitbriefs.amplify.com/2009/07/22/worldwide-advertisingspending-by-media/ ) (Excerpt: According to the “Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2009-2013” (PricewaterhouseCoopers) (PwC), worldwide advertising spending will reach $421 billion in 2009.” (Also included: a Table which breaks down the spending into categories.) (confirmed April 3,2011)
Worldwide Advertising Expenditures (2009)-- $421 billion (Total Expenditures are in U.S. Dollars)
2) From an article titled “Worldwide Internet Advertising Spending to Surpass $106 Billion in 2011”, at the website “Marketing Charts” (at marketingcharts.com) (Excerpt in paragraph 2) (see www.marketingcharts.com/television/worldwide-internet-advertising-spending-to-surpass-106-billion-in-2011-5068/ ) (Confirmed April 3, 2011)
“The United States will lead the world in total advertising expenditures and online advertising expenditure with forecasts for 2011 at $265 billion and $45 billion.”
3) Commentary on the subject of Advertising
The following passages are excerpts from “People of Plenty: Economic Abundance and the American
Character” by David M. Potter (first edition 1954) (p. 176-177)(partially accessible at Google Books)
“… we must realize at once that we are dealing with… one of the very limited group of institutions which… guide the life of the individual by conceiving of him in a distinctive way and encouraging him to conform as far as possible to the concept. For instance, the church, representing the force of religion, conceives of man as an immortal soul; our schools and colleges, representing the force of learning, conceive of him as a being whose behavior is guided by reason; our business and industry, representing the force of the economic free-enterprise system, conceive of him as a productive agent who can create goods or render services that are useful to mankind. Advertising, of course, is committed to none of these views and entertains them only incidentally. Representing as it does the force of a vast productive mechanism seeking outlets for an overwhelming flow of goods, it conceives of man as a consumer. Each institution is distinctive, again, in the qualities to which it appeals and in the character of the reward which it offers: the church appeals to the spirit of conscience of the individual and offers the rewards of salvation and peace of mind; learning appeals to the reason of man and offers the hope of a perfected society from which evils have been eliminated by the application of wisdom; free enterprise appeals to the energies and the capacities of man and offers the rewards of property, personal attainment, and satisfaction in the job. Advertising appeals primarily to the desires, the wants—cultivated or natural—or the individual, and it sometimes offers as its goal a power to command the envy of others by outstripping them in the consumption of goods and services.
“To pursue this parallel a step further, one may add that the traditional institutions have tried to improve man and to develop in him qualities of social value, though, of course, these values have not always been broadly conceived. The church has sought to inculcate virtue and consideration of others—the golden rule; the schools have made it their business to stimulate ability and to impart skills; the free enterprise system has constantly stressed the importance of hard work and the sinfulness of unproductive occupations. And at least two of these institutions, the church and the school, have been very self-conscious about their roles as guardians of the social values and have conducted themselves
with a considerable degree of social responsibility.
“In contrast with these, advertising has in its dynamics no motivation to seek the improvement of the individual or to impart qualities of social usefulness, unless conformity to material values may be so characterized. And though it wields an immense social influence, comparable to the influence of religion and learning, it has no social goals and no social responsibility for what it does with its influence, so long as it refrains from palpable violations of truth and decency. It is this lack of institutional responsibility, this lack of inherent social purpose to balance social power, which, I would argue, is a basic cause for concern about the role of advertising. Occasional deceptions, breaches of taste, and deviations from sound ethical conduct are in a sense superficial and are not necessarily intrinsic. Equally, high-minded types of advertising which we see more regularly than we sometimes realize are also extraneous to an analysis of the basic nature of advertising. What is basic is that advertising, as such, with all its vast power to influence values and conduct, cannot ever lose sight of the fact that it ultimately regards man as a consumer and defines its own mission as one of stimulating him to consume
or to desire to consume.
“If one can justifiably say that advertising has joined the charmed circle of institutions which fix the values and standards of society and that it has done this without being linked to any of the socially defined objectives which usually guide such institutions in the use of their power, then it becomes necessary to consider with special care the extent and nature of its influence—how far it extends and in what way it makes itself felt.”
F. Alcohol, Gambling, Tobacco (United States); Lottery Revenue (United States)
1) From article “Economics of Alcohol and Tobacco—U.S. Alcohol Sales and Consumption” at the
libraryindex.com website (see www.libraryindex.com/pages/2127/Economics-Alcohol-Tobacco-U-S-ALCOHOL-SALES-CONSUMPTION.html ) (Excerpt: “According to the Economic Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, retail sales of alcoholic beverages totaled approximately $115.9 billion in 2003, up from $102.4 billion in 2000.”) (confirmed April 3, 2011)
United States retail sales of alcoholic beverages (2003)-- $115.9 billion
(from “A Multi-Angle View of the Debt Crises” p. 33-36)
(at www.ipcri.net/A_Multi-Angle_View_of_the_Debt_Crises.pdf )
B. Small Arms Proliferation
1) From the “Publications” section of the Small Arms Survey website, in the subsection “Small Arms Survey 2003”, (in “About the Small Arms Survey 2003, see “Key Findings” box)
(at www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2003/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2003-About-1-Press-Release-EN.pdf ) (Confirmed April 19, 2011)
“There are at least 639 million firearms in the world today, of which 59% are legally held by citizens.”
“At least 1,134 companies in 98 countries worldwide are involved in some aspect of the production
of small arms and/or ammunition.”
C. Global Drugs Trade and Global Arms Trade
1) From the “World Report on Violence and Health” (World Health Organization Geneva 2002) in Chapter 9 “The Way Forward: Recommendations for Action” p. 254 (at
whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2002/9241545615.pdf ) (Confirmed April 19, 2011)
“The global drugs trade and the global arms trade are integral to violence in both developing and industrialized countries. Even modest progress on either front will contribute to reducing the amount and degree of violence suffered by millions of people. To date, however—and despite their high profile in the world arena—no solutions seem to be in sight for these problems.”
D. Global Entertainment
1) From article “PricewaterhouseCoopers releases Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2010-2014” (June 15, 2010), in the “World News Report” section of the EIN website (An EIN News Service for Global Professionals) (see www.einnews.com/pr-news/90509-pricewaterhousecoopers-releases-globalentertainment-and-media-outlook-2010-2014- ) (confirmed April 3, 2011)
“PricewaterhouseCoopers' Global Entertainment and Media Outlook: 2010-2014 (Outlook), forecasts that global entertainment and media spending is expected to rise from $1.3 trillion to $1.7 trillion by 2014.”
2) All excerpts below are from “International Communications: A Media Literacy Approach” by Art Silverblatt and Nikolai Zlobin M.E. Sharpe July, 2004 (most content accessible at Google Books) (confirmed October 21, 2009)
“Popular programming reflects a level of acceptance and shared values among large numbers of people. People tend to watch programs that meet their approval. If they are truly offended by violent programs, they would not watch them. In that sense, media programming can be regarded as a text that reflects the attitudes, values, behaviors, preoccupations, and myths that define a culture.” (p. 66)
“At the same time, media programming reinforces cultural attitudes, values, behaviors, preoccupations, and myths. Media messages are communicated through the countless hours of media programming that repeat, directly or indirectly, the cultural script.” (p. 68)
“Finally, the media do not merely reflect or reinforce culture, but in fact shape attitudes, values, behavior, preoccupations, and myths.” (p. 68)
“The international market is saturated with American entertainment programming. Hollywood films account for approximately 85% of movie audiences worldwide. Further, American programming makes up approximately 65% of global prime-time TV viewing.” (p. 69)
E. Worldwide and U.S. Advertising Expenditures
1) From article “Worldwide Advertising Spending by Media” (July 22, 2009) at the website “BitBriefs”
(Marketing Trends, News, Stats) (see
bitbriefs.amplify.com/2009/07/22/worldwide-advertisingspending-by-media/ ) (Excerpt: According to the “Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2009-2013” (PricewaterhouseCoopers) (PwC), worldwide advertising spending will reach $421 billion in 2009.” (Also included: a Table which breaks down the spending into categories.) (confirmed April 3,2011)
Worldwide Advertising Expenditures (2009)-- $421 billion (Total Expenditures are in U.S. Dollars)
2) From an article titled “Worldwide Internet Advertising Spending to Surpass $106 Billion in 2011”, at the website “Marketing Charts” (at marketingcharts.com) (Excerpt in paragraph 2) (see www.marketingcharts.com/television/worldwide-internet-advertising-spending-to-surpass-106-billion-in-2011-5068/ ) (Confirmed April 3, 2011)
“The United States will lead the world in total advertising expenditures and online advertising expenditure with forecasts for 2011 at $265 billion and $45 billion.”
3) Commentary on the subject of Advertising
The following passages are excerpts from “People of Plenty: Economic Abundance and the American
Character” by David M. Potter (first edition 1954) (p. 176-177)(partially accessible at Google Books)
“… we must realize at once that we are dealing with… one of the very limited group of institutions which… guide the life of the individual by conceiving of him in a distinctive way and encouraging him to conform as far as possible to the concept. For instance, the church, representing the force of religion, conceives of man as an immortal soul; our schools and colleges, representing the force of learning, conceive of him as a being whose behavior is guided by reason; our business and industry, representing the force of the economic free-enterprise system, conceive of him as a productive agent who can create goods or render services that are useful to mankind. Advertising, of course, is committed to none of these views and entertains them only incidentally. Representing as it does the force of a vast productive mechanism seeking outlets for an overwhelming flow of goods, it conceives of man as a consumer. Each institution is distinctive, again, in the qualities to which it appeals and in the character of the reward which it offers: the church appeals to the spirit of conscience of the individual and offers the rewards of salvation and peace of mind; learning appeals to the reason of man and offers the hope of a perfected society from which evils have been eliminated by the application of wisdom; free enterprise appeals to the energies and the capacities of man and offers the rewards of property, personal attainment, and satisfaction in the job. Advertising appeals primarily to the desires, the wants—cultivated or natural—or the individual, and it sometimes offers as its goal a power to command the envy of others by outstripping them in the consumption of goods and services.
“To pursue this parallel a step further, one may add that the traditional institutions have tried to improve man and to develop in him qualities of social value, though, of course, these values have not always been broadly conceived. The church has sought to inculcate virtue and consideration of others—the golden rule; the schools have made it their business to stimulate ability and to impart skills; the free enterprise system has constantly stressed the importance of hard work and the sinfulness of unproductive occupations. And at least two of these institutions, the church and the school, have been very self-conscious about their roles as guardians of the social values and have conducted themselves
with a considerable degree of social responsibility.
“In contrast with these, advertising has in its dynamics no motivation to seek the improvement of the individual or to impart qualities of social usefulness, unless conformity to material values may be so characterized. And though it wields an immense social influence, comparable to the influence of religion and learning, it has no social goals and no social responsibility for what it does with its influence, so long as it refrains from palpable violations of truth and decency. It is this lack of institutional responsibility, this lack of inherent social purpose to balance social power, which, I would argue, is a basic cause for concern about the role of advertising. Occasional deceptions, breaches of taste, and deviations from sound ethical conduct are in a sense superficial and are not necessarily intrinsic. Equally, high-minded types of advertising which we see more regularly than we sometimes realize are also extraneous to an analysis of the basic nature of advertising. What is basic is that advertising, as such, with all its vast power to influence values and conduct, cannot ever lose sight of the fact that it ultimately regards man as a consumer and defines its own mission as one of stimulating him to consume
or to desire to consume.
“If one can justifiably say that advertising has joined the charmed circle of institutions which fix the values and standards of society and that it has done this without being linked to any of the socially defined objectives which usually guide such institutions in the use of their power, then it becomes necessary to consider with special care the extent and nature of its influence—how far it extends and in what way it makes itself felt.”
F. Alcohol, Gambling, Tobacco (United States); Lottery Revenue (United States)
1) From article “Economics of Alcohol and Tobacco—U.S. Alcohol Sales and Consumption” at the
libraryindex.com website (see www.libraryindex.com/pages/2127/Economics-Alcohol-Tobacco-U-S-ALCOHOL-SALES-CONSUMPTION.html ) (Excerpt: “According to the Economic Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, retail sales of alcoholic beverages totaled approximately $115.9 billion in 2003, up from $102.4 billion in 2000.”) (confirmed April 3, 2011)
United States retail sales of alcoholic beverages (2003)-- $115.9 billion