13a

Recording 13a

Bill: Just look at this, they’re putting one of those cheap restaurant chains in where that nice tea-shop used to be. They’re owned by some multinational company.

At this rate our culture will disappear altogether we’ll all end up eating the same bland food.

Amy: Well, a lot of people are worried about globalisation and the impact it could have on the local people. But actually I’m beginning to think it works the other way around.

Bill: You can’t be serious.

Army: Yes, I’m reading a book about it actually and the author males some very valid points.

Bill: He probably works for one of the big multinationals himself!

Amy: Actually, no. I’m pretty sure he’s a journalist.

Bill: So, what does he say then?

Amt: Well, he points out that there are Far more restaurants in England than people realise, for example, there are seven Indian restaurants for every one McDonald’s in the UK.

Bill: Really? I didn’t realise that.

Amy: Yes, and globally, pizzas are actually more popular than burgers. I think globalisation could mean that we end up living a more interesting and multicultural life.

Bill: Yes, but you’ve got to admit that, worldwide, the soft drinks market is totally dominated by just one or two big companies.

Amy: Well, according to this author, there’s a new energy drink taking over the market and it’s a joint venture between Thailand and Austria. Without globalisation international companies just wouldn’t merge like that.

Bill: Well, I think that globalization just pushes popular culture to the masses and spreads it even further. When people go traveling to far flung places, they want to see something exotic, not the same icons they see all around them at home!

Amy: Yes, but I doubt the local people there feel they’re losing their national identity just because a fast-food outlet has opened up. And anyway, the nice thing about it is that, in many places, these chains have to change the food they sell to suit the local culture. So, there is a lot of give and take going on and you still get cultural diversity to some extent.

Bill: I suppose so. I suppose so. I guess no one big multinational has a monopoly over the fashion market either, does it?

Amy: That’s right, the big fashion labels are spread over a lot of different countries.