In many countries television shows many foreign-made programmes. The dominance of imported entertainment is harmful to the cultures of these countries. To what extent do you agree or disagree?

There are those who argue that in many countries TV shows a lot of foreign-produced programmes. They say that imported entertainment has imposed a threat to the cultures of native nations. In my opinion, there are both merits and shortcomings to the view. In defence of the

first

argument, there are many reasons why it makes sense if you ask me. Perhaps head and shoulders above all other considerations are cultural imperialism. It is more about one group being dominated by another through soft power tools like film. The spread of foreign culture through television programmes works in mysterious ways.

For instance

, Hollywood films have successfully exported the American lifestyle across the world and displaced local culture. Many people around the globe suddenly want to experience American music, food, and the like. As a rule, it is much easier for American companies to sell their products internationally. Having said that,

however

, there are

also

a lot of reasons why

this

view has problems, as far as I am concerned. For one thing, some local cultural practices have taken Western-style business models so greatly that they have created their own hybrid cultures. To name but one example, India's Bollywood film industry. Combining Indian traditional music and dance with American-style filmmaking has provided a way for their own people to stay connected with their culture and preserve the traditional values. Turning to my own experience, the way things are when it comes to

this

matter in my country, China, is much the same as it was across the world over. My home city of Lanzhou is a classic case in point. Here, the local government is restricting the number of foreign movies that can be shown in the Chinese cinemas each year. In conclusion, there are pros and cons to every choice we make in our daily lives. While cultural imperialism through films and shows might cause resentment in many parts of the world, the idea that local cultures are helpless under the crushing power of another country is clearly too simplistic to hold water. In fact, local creativity in adopting new methods is far more resilient than others think.