How is Nike an example of imperialism today?
Nike is an american globally-known sport brand. It plays a part in 'globalisation' (which is defined by merriam-webster online dictionary as being "the process by which businesses or other organisations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale"), along with several other companies such as McDonald's, Starbucks, to name a few. With the help of media, these companies have spread to the point that almost everyone knows the United States, and how it is to live in America, no matter where they are in the world.
Because of this, it is a prime advocate of imperialism today- especially for cultural and economic imperialism.
As defined by NYU Wiki, cultural imperialism is the "practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, and artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation in another". Thus it is evident that NIKE is an example of cultural imperialism - as a global company, whose brand is known almost everywhere, it projects american culture onto other countries through sports apparel and fashion, slowly taking the place any fashion there was beforehand. As NIKE is so well-known, it takes precedence over any existing sports/fashion companies as it is so popular. In a sense, it plays a part in the cultural hegemony of western culture over the rest of the world.
Because of this, it is a prime advocate of imperialism today- especially for cultural and economic imperialism.
As defined by NYU Wiki, cultural imperialism is the "practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, and artificially injecting the culture or language of one nation in another". Thus it is evident that NIKE is an example of cultural imperialism - as a global company, whose brand is known almost everywhere, it projects american culture onto other countries through sports apparel and fashion, slowly taking the place any fashion there was beforehand. As NIKE is so well-known, it takes precedence over any existing sports/fashion companies as it is so popular. In a sense, it plays a part in the cultural hegemony of western culture over the rest of the world.
An example of NIKE's cultural imperialism would be in China, where it sponsors Liu Xiang: China’s first track and field olympic gold medalist. He dons NIKE apparel, advertising them to Chinese public, who would most likely follow in the footsteps of their sports icon and buy some themselves. Since NIKE represents the core-values of american sport, this representation of them also promotes american culture over Chinese culture. It pushes the public to think that NIKE is better than other sports brands -especially Chinese - as their favourite sports idol is wearing them. As a result, NIKE takes precedence over Chinese sports brands and influences the public into buying NIKE products - thus being a classic example of cultural imperialism in the modern world.
Nike also plays a part in economic imperialism through the wide spread use of its product and the cultural imperialism that this results in. NIKE influences the countries it has factories in as it takes over local shops and creates another source of income for the populace - by controlling salaries, it also has a hand in the economy of said country.
Through globalisation, NIKE is able to form workshops in dozens of countries, particularly under-developed ones. As such, not only does NIKE affect different cultures through globalisation, it also exploits the people in under-developed countries. Essentially, NIKE plays a part in 'regressive imperialism', which is the exploitation of people solely for their own gain. There are several cases where NIKE has been found using under-developed countries, such as Pakistan, for slaves in order to make their wares.
Through globalisation, NIKE is able to form workshops in dozens of countries, particularly under-developed ones. As such, not only does NIKE affect different cultures through globalisation, it also exploits the people in under-developed countries. Essentially, NIKE plays a part in 'regressive imperialism', which is the exploitation of people solely for their own gain. There are several cases where NIKE has been found using under-developed countries, such as Pakistan, for slaves in order to make their wares.
These people work in sweatshops and depend on NIKE for jobs and money - hinting that NIKE also plays a part in economic imperialism. The people working in the sweatshops gain very little compared to what NIKE is selling their merchandise for (Stanford University claims that NIKE sells their merchandise 250 times the salary of the worker making the clothes). This means that NIKE gains much more from this than the people, and consequently is a great example of economic imperialism. This has both good and bad impacts for countries such as Pakistan - it means that these people have jobs, although terrible ones- but it also means NIKE takes over any local business as it offers more and thus the people rely on it more than anything else.
In conclusion, one can see that due to its wide-spread popularity, NIKE is able to have both a cultural and economic impact on the world, especially the under-developed world.
In conclusion, one can see that due to its wide-spread popularity, NIKE is able to have both a cultural and economic impact on the world, especially the under-developed world.