Indispensable Nation
Indispensable Nation: How the U.S. Influences the World
by: Guadalupe Martinez
You may not realize just how much the United States influences the rest of the world. The cultural influence the U.S.A. has around the world has only increased even as decades pass. Whether you live in Europe, Asia, Africa, or South America, the impact of the US is felt in some way in your daily life. As a citizen of the world in the 21st century, it's vital to understand the scope and implications of America's power and reach around the globe. America is still growing as a country and will continue to grow as time passes. The United States is a global Superpower and its influence is not something to laugh about.
Origins of the American Voice
So how did the United States of America first influence foreign countries on a cultural level?
It all starts in the 20th century—more specifically—in the aftermath of World War II. After the fall of the Axis Powers and the eventual surrender of the Empire of Japan, the war is finally over in 1945. A month later, The United Nations is created by the United States, India, France, and additional countries as a “better version” of its predecessor, (the League of Nations) with the aim of preventing future world wars. According to the US Department of State, the U.N. draws up a list of humanitarian rights for countries to uphold in order to protect the innocent lives of the people from atrocities like the Holocaust from happening again. Article 19 the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the one Americans were affiliated with the most as it says that everyone has the right to freedom of opinion, freedom of expression, and to receive information and ideas through media, regardless of frontiers. American newspapers that were published by The Associated Press (an American, Not-for-profit news agency of certified journalists) sold hundreds of thousands of newspapers to the rest of the world since other countries could not always afford to develop their own news coverage. Nations such as the United Kingdom, Italy, and France with populations in the millions become reliant on American wire companies for their news. Of course, some people questioned this dependency on American media coverage as a delegate from India wrote in 1947, “If you believe in an equal access to information and culture, shouldn’t you redistribute some of your media-creating capacity to developing nations like ours so that we have an equal opportunity to tell the world our stories?” But as a Capitalist country, the U.S. did not budge. In 1944, thirty-eight countries were being sold newspapers from The Associated Press, and by 1951, that increased to seventy countries. These newspapers are heavily Americanized, and their sales are good for the media companies and the U.S. State Department because they propagate American views and values. In 1944, 38 countries were being sold newspapers from the Associated Press, and by 1951, 70 countries. The Newspapers were, of course, heavily Americanized, and good for the media companies and the U.S. State Department.
Simultaneous to American newspaper sales, American movies, and cartoons were also huge around the world. According to The New Republic, nearly half the films shown in European and Asian theaters are from the U.S., and in Latin American nations, 66% of films in theaters are American-made. Animation companies such as Disney existed as huge hits worldwide, and notably in Europe. The United States was able to produce these kinds of entertainment services because they could afford to, unlike countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa which had to rebuild after the damage the Second World War had caused, the U.S was relatively untouched, and because of that, Filmmakers were able to create lavish creations as a result. The U.S. has dominated pop culture worldwide. Blockbusters from Hollywood hit TV shows, and music sensations have permeated across borders. This promotes American values and fuels demand for U.S. goods and tourism. In 2016, the six largest Hollywood studios alone accounted for more than half of global box office sales and Foreigners follows copious amounts of American News and Television. American media is everywhere and many countries around the world enjoy seeing the productions created by Americans for a worldwide audience, American movies often hit cinemas across the globe as soon as it's released. It’s no surprise the cultural influence the country has on media everywhere. We can find American media in just about any nation in the world.
The Bruin’s Eye asks our own G.H.S. Social Science teacher Caleb Golston when he believes the U.S first started to have a cultural effect on foreign countries. Golston explains that “The Monroe Doctrine” started it all in 1823. This policy, set by President James Monroe, essentially results in the U.S. warning the European powers (such as the British Empire and France) not to interfere in affairs of the Western Hemisphere as we practically force our own Western ideas upon the world. When asked what countries the United States influences overall, Golston tells us Allied powers like the United Kingdom and Canada, are all influenced by America, most significantly, our military policy. Golston elaborates: “When I was in high school, the Iraq war was going on. The U.S. influenced the United Kingdom to support them in the war.” In other words, the U.S. has the strongest military in the world, and in turn, other countries are inclined to ally with them instead of against them even if they don’t entirely agree with their policies. Most Americans, however, question the military policies the country has, in fact, according to the U.S. Department of Defense, “Trust in all public institutions dropped according to the Gallup Poll conducted yearly. Still, 60% of Americans trust the military.” While still high, the Americans' trust in the military has dropped. Many Americans don’t see a reason to join the military and do military service as other countries do.
But the United Kingdom is not the only nation in Europe to be influenced by the U.S. France, another European nation that has just as much historical relations with the U.S. as the UK does, was one of the nations that helped America gain its independence from the British crown. France has been one of our oldest allies and they even gave us the Statue of Liberty as a sign of peace and Friendship between the two countries. America has influenced France in turn, especially in education. When asked why he speaks the American version of English rather than the British version, G.H.S. French teacher Eric Beuzet reveals, “My Generation learned English through British stories and my pronunciation was not the greatest. You learn US English in college courses in France.” The French and the British had never gotten along, However, the French and Americans have a closer relationship politically and because of that French schools are more inclined to teach American pronunciation than British pronunciation. Do the newer generations of native French speakers speak U.S. English due to college as well? Actually, popular culture has a stronger influence on French people today. Beuzet adds, “The newer generation speaks the American way of English due to its popularity in media.” The United States has influenced the way dialect and the way people speak English, most people say it’s the ‘simplified way” of speaking English and prefer to learn that way.
How America Culturally Influences Other Nations
Additionally, the behaviors in the way people of East Asia live today can be credited to the United States of America. The U.S. has the biggest impact on popular culture, education, religion, political, and economic prosperities in this part of the world. They’ve changed the way they play, pray, and how they are governed based on the American lifestyle. The cultural effect of Westernization influences Asia to this day. After the 20th century, the United States significant impact on the popular culture, economics, and politics of East Asians, many of whom enjoy certain features of the American lifestyle. According to an article published by the Association for Asian Studies in 2006, “Until a few years ago, the only alternative to government-controlled TV in South Korea was the U.S. Army channel, which offered American programming twenty-four hours a day—and young Koreans soaked up American popular culture, even as they demonstrated against the continued presence of American troops in Seoul.” Korean people have protested the American Military in Seoul but they themselves seem to take on a very important idea in American lives, The right to demonstrate in public against an authority group. While everyone talks about Anime when speaking out about Asian media in America, they often overlook the popularity of Korean K Dramas that are popular in the U.S. Squid Game is a prime example of a K Drama that gained widespread popularity in America at about 77% of Americans calling it their favorite. But let's not forget that American shows like the Big Bang Theory or Breaking Bad are also extremely popular in Korea. In fact, the craze over American TV shows in Korea has increased over the recent years.
Another prime example of American influence in Asia occurs in the country of Japan. After their defeat in World War II, the United States occupies Japan and rehabilitates this island nation. The U.S. government conducted widespread military, political, economic, and social reforms during the occupation. The official documents of the Office of Historian state that General Douglas MacArthur remained the one in charge of the foreign policy in Japan: “In September 1945, General Douglas MacArthur took charge of the Supreme Command of Allied Powers (SCAP) and began the work of rebuilding Japan. Although Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and the Republic of China had an advisory role as part of an “Allied Council,” MacArthur had the final authority to make all decisions.” The American government believed that establishing democracy in Japan involved changing all areas of Japanese culture. Japan had gone through many reforms like Civil values, Economic Changes, and Political changes. They got a parliament that worked similarly to its American counterpart that was made up of freely elected representatives of the people. To this day, Japan is one of our closest allies, and we in turn love Japanese culture like Anime that portrays Americans like Blonde models you see in magazine covers. The United States' occupation of Japan is called imperialism by many historians as America pushed its own political and economic policies onto the Nations. Japan adopted a new constitution that’s sometimes called the MacArthur Constitution that declared the sovereignty rested with the people and not the emperor as a political basis of democracy.
Another example of American influence in Asia is The Republic of the Philippines. America had occupied and colonized the country after its victory in the Spanish-American war, as it took over Spain's colonies. As an article published by the Association of Asian Studies, “English was introduced as the official language; the education system reformed; port, rail, and road-building programs initiated; and war-damaged settlements rebuilt.” America’s greatest achievement in the Philippines was the introduction of the public school system that taught an increasing number of Filipinos to read and write. The literacy rate in 1903 was 44.2 % which refined the context of the content and the form. As of 2021, 4.4 million Filipinos live in the United States with large communities in California, Hawaii, Illinois, Florida, Texas, and New York due to 20th-century migration when the Philippines was a U.S. territory. The United States is still influencing the Philippines today with its economy and strong security relationship based on the Mutual Defense Treaty of 1951. The treaty is put in place so that if another party were to attack either country, The U.S. or Philippines would join to protect the other. To this day, The Republic of the Philippines is a close ally of the United States and both countries have mutual respect for each other.
American Influence Isn’t Always a Positive
The U.S. has an immense influence on the global stage, but that doesn’t mean it is being used for the better. The United States frequently pushes its own capitalist agenda and values onto other countries through threats of sanctions or other military actions. The U.S. has a history of also forcing its will and system of government to sovereign nations. They often use military intervention to exert control, often with devastating consequences. The CIA uses coups to fuel civil wars. The Middle East in particular, such as the War in Iraq destabilized the region and led to greater influence. U.S. drone strikes and special force operations span the globe, fostering resentment and undermining human rights. The United States has always had a strong economy and uses that to its advantage like economic sanctions and trade embargos. They used their political powers as a UN member to veto any country that suggests anything they don’t like. They in turn use Foreign Aid to keep their allies close and keep trade going which helps their economy. For example, one of the main factors for the Japanese bombing of pearl harbor is the United States placing a trade embargo on the Japanese empire as they were allies to Nazi Germany. One of the resources that was embargoed was oil, which the Japanese needed because they had little resources of their own. The United States of America is smart in the way that keeps its allies closer and enemies out of sight, with its political and economic policy, it is able to keep power for itself.
As a result, The U.S. government still shows Cold War Paranoia in the modern day as it is ramping up its foreign policy. The United States likes to intervene in any conflict if it means they can benefit from it in any way it can. The Cold War era completely took over the propaganda system and turned it down south. The US frequently interferes in the political affairs of other nations - whether through propaganda, election meddling, coups d’état, or military intervention. The goal is usually to install leaders or regimes that are friendly to US political and economic aims. The U.S. has supported anti-communist leaders but often than not, those leaders end up as dictators or oppressors to the people of the nations. Some examples like the attempt to influence elections in Bolivia, Venezuela, and Nicaragua. While the US argues its actions promote “democracy” and “stability”, critics claim they undermine sovereignty and self-determination in the countries affected. The enormous global sway of US influence will likely continue to be controversial. While both sides of the argument on whether or not the U.S. should be playing the Global police officer or not will likely never get an agreed-upon answer, The United States of America is a Global superpower for a reason. The Government is full of people who are paranoid about having another powerful Nation who challenges them like Russia or China from having too much power that it actively puts other nations on the hotseat.
Americans are no strangers when it comes to imperialism or imperialist tendencies. The Anti-imperialist League in America began in 1898 after the annexation of the Philippines although it disbanded. People disagreed after Hawaii became an official U.S. state in 1959 as Hawaii had been its own independent kingdom, the Kingdom of Hawaii before it was annexed by the United States. Puerto Rico, despite not being an official U.S. state still holds commonwealth status. America had acquired Puerto Rico in the Spanish-American war and its residents became official U.S. citizens in 1917. It voted for independence from America in 1914 but was rejected by U.S. Congress as “unconstitutional” and a violation of the 1900 Foraker Act that established civilian government on the island. In today's globalized world, America's reach and impact are felt everywhere. You've seen how the United States wields considerable influence on the global stage through a variety of means. From pop culture and brands to technology and business, the American way of life has permeated societies around the world. For better and worse, US influence shapes the lives of billions of people outside its borders. While America aims to spread values like freedom and democracy, its actions often undermine those very principles and leave chaos in their wake. The US must recognize both the promise and perils of its role on the global stage.