Weapons of Mass Distraction

What the world needs now is more Hollywood movies, McDonald's outlets, CNN newscasts and MTV videos, argues Fraser, editor of the Canadian daily the National Post, in this perceptive, sometimes eyebrow-raising analysis of America's global dominance in film, television, music and fast food and its effects on U.S. foreign policy. The author, a former university communications professor, sees the U.S. as a ""benevolent hegemon,"" not a ruthless imperialist, and he makes the case that pop culture has become a ""key strategic resource"" in the American-led fight against totalitarianism and terrorism. For Fraser, Hollywood is the oldest and most influential global purveyor of the ""Gospel of Americanism."" As he points out, the movie industry has long consorted with Washington to promote Brand USA, from Woodrow Wilson's recruitment of creative types to spread his vision of world peace and democracy to the Bush administration's secretive post- 9/11 discussions with Hollywood executives. There is resistance abroad to ""McDomination,"" particularly in places like France, and Fraser allows that protests against American cultural incursions usually mask valid fears of damage to national commercial interests. He also balances his glowing portrait of this American empire with the experiences of successful regional powerbrokers such as India and Hong Kong in film, and Mexico and Brazil in television. He gives short shrift, though, to the flip side of made-in-America pop life, barely touching on the international resentment caused by ""destabilizing"" images of ""violence and rebellion"" and dog-eat-dog ""Darwinian capitalism."" Can expanding American soft power save the global village from a ""clash of civilizations""? Fraser eagerly answers ""yes,"" concluding, ""If terrorism triumphs, our fate could be that of Rome-a collapse leading to a chaotic neo-medieval order with no central authority."" If readers aren't persuaded, they'll at least be entertained by his well-researched argument.