Nokia Going Global With Ad Campaign
According to The Wall Street Journal, Nokia is launching its first fully global ad campaign. The slogan “1,001 reasons to have a Nokia imaging phone” will find its way into …
Culture
Microsoft’s Global Blunders
CNET News features an entertaining article on some of the creative ways that Microsoft has offended people around the world through cultural and linguistic blunders. These anecdotes come from a …
Web Globalization Back on the “Front Burner”
Two months ago I began interviewing executives at a number of large multinationals about their global Web sites. As you know, I’ve been following this industry for many years now, …
Hispanic Histrionics
According to Samuel Huntington, in Foreign Policy Magazine, the “unprecedented inflow of Hispanic immigrants threatens to divide the United States into two peoples, two cultures, and two languages. Unlike past …
Heed the Body Language Lady
Here’s an entertaining CNN article about the inherent risks of extending humor across cultures. For example, according to the Body Language Lady… A smile, often the best ice breaker, is …
Globalization and the Next Generation
The Pew Global Attitudes Project recently released the results of a study that show remarkable differences between how different age groups (and cultures) view globalization. You can download the complete …
Words Without Borders
The NY Times published an article yesterday about a relatively new literary journal that publishes only translated prose. It is called Words Without Borders: www.wordswithoutborders.org. Why is such a journal …
Global Internet Usage Trends
The UCLA World Internet Project released findings from a recent survey of more than a dozen countries. Key findings include: • Television viewing is lower among Internet users than non-users …
Chinese Whispers
This very interesting article is not about China but about the EU Parliament, and how it intends to manage its ever-increasing number of languages. As the EU expands, so does …
Global Gender Gaps
The Pew Research Center has released an interesting study about the differences between men and women around the globe. One area where there appears to be general agreement is the …
Pampering Russia
This is a great article about Procter & Gamble’s adventures in Russia. While currency devalatuations have been challenging, the economy has since stabilized and sales are growing at 50% annually …
Casual Dress Going Global
According to the Herman Report, casual dress is gaining popularity around the world… Recent research by the Bank of Scotland discovered that a significant number of employers now operate with …
The New Old Globalization
An excellent editorial by Robert Wright in The New York Times about globalization. He does a wonderful job of showing how globalization is far from a new development, yet one …
The Galling Rise of English
The Economist featured a very good article on the growing popularity of English in the European Union. Although English is not the official language of the EU, it is fast …
English Marches Eastward
An article in EU Business documents the decline of Russian instruction in Central and Eastern Europe and the rise of English instruction. Here’s an excerpt: Russian, which was obligatory under …