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Cultural Exchange via Internet - Opportunities and Strategies
Forum of the House of World Cultures, Berlin

Intermediate Evaluation

Evaluation of the first phase of the forum:
12 October - 22 December, 1998



Preliminary remarks

In this intermediate evaluation, the progress up to this point is summarized, along with the most important topics of the debate. Unfortunately, the wide range of questions and problems brought up, the thoughts expressed, and experiences and projects introduced cannot be dealt with here in their entirety. Those who are interested in more detail should refer to the 10 statements, the 9 weekly reviews and of course the individual contributions which have been archived (access via Documentation).
The selection from the topics discussed and related statements concentrates on those which appear especially significant to the questions posed by the forum, or which should be discussed in more depth once the debate continues. Between the thematic complexes exist diverse interconnections and overlappings, which can hardly be made sufficiently clear here.
All authors are asked to understand that quotations had to be taken from the context of their contributions, in order to emphasize core statements on specific themes. In each case there are links leading directly to the corresponding postings or statements.
The evaluation was written by Gerhard Haupt, the forum's project director.


Participants and contributions - some figures

In the first 10 weeks, ca. 230 people from more than 35 countries subscribed to the discussion list. At the beginning of the break in December, 205 were still on the list; relatively few people dropped out. Even in the period following, more people signed up. With the continuation of the debate on 31 March, 1999, the mailing list had 272 members from more than 40 countries.
Including the authors of the 10 introductory statements, 56 people actively participated in the forum with 134 contributions altogether. There were 9 weekly reviews published in English, German, and Spanish as well as a number of further articles (see Documentation with an archive of all contributions from the past year). The texts on the website are also retrievable as emails.


Progress of the debate

Preparation

Preparation for the forum began with extensive online research, in order to determine which topics and questions could be interesting for the discussion. A selection of the websites found have been listed under Link directories. Numerous media experts, editors of cultural websites and webzines, directors and members of cultural institutions and organizations, artists, critics, curators, journalists, etc. around the world were contacted directly by the project director and invited to participate (over 1200 email invitations were sent). Thanks to the PR work done by the House of World Cultures, a lot of attention was dedicated to the event even before its beginning, especially by the Berlin-based media.

A slow start

At the beginning of the forum, 10 introductory Statements and a posting with Questions were sent to the members of the mailing list. Naturally, the abundance of this material first had to be read. Nonetheless, the relatively low number of discussion contributions which came in during the first four weeks was troubling. On 11 November, Olu Oguibe wrote: »It is somewhat disappointing to me that this forum has yet to generate the level of active participation that ought to be rightly expected of an opportunity like this. Going through the recently published list of subscribers, it strikes one that with so many individuals and groups already actively engaged in programs of cultural exchange through the internet, there ought to be more discussion, more sharing of stories, experiences, and lessons...«
The beginning reservation should, however, not be attributed to a lack of interest. How intense the interest actually was could be seen in the speedy growth of the mailing list, the visits to the website, the numerous email-retrievals of texts, and the positive feedback in mails received daily by the project director.

The debate gathers momentum

In the course of communication about the slow start (see themes discussed - Participation in Net forums) and faced with the end of the forum originally planned for the beginning of December, the debate finally hit its stride. In the last weeks of this first phase, it was often the case that up to 6 contributions came in during a single day. Notable is the increasingly personal tone of the mails. The forum has become, at least for some participants, a switching station for an information exchange which has continued outside the debate itself.
In the end, one quarter of the mailing list members involved themselves actively in the forum. The high quality of the contributions as well as the wealth of the published contents was repeatedly praised.

Prolongation of the forum

Due to the great interest and the explicit wish of many participants, the direction of the House of World Cultures decided to continue the forum, at first until the end of December, and then after an organizational pause, through 1999.


Themes discussed: Participation in Net forums

From participants' comments about taking part in our forum, as well as from my own observations, conclusions can be drawn which are interesting in relation to this form of communication on the Net:

Lack of time

The main reason for not contributing to the discussion was said to be a lack of time. In fact, it is the most active protagonists and theorists who are under the greatest pressure due to their numerous commitments. Many would obviously rather not contribute if they do not find enough time to write something which is able to meet their own high standards. In Net forums however, polished essays are by no means necessary. It would still be an enrichment to the debate if experiences and knowledge were incorporated at least in brief remarks.

Language barriers

For participants who do not come from English speaking regions, it is a great handicap that the discussion takes place in English. In the interest of having as widespread communication as possible, we decided to use the language spoken by the majority of Internet users. It certainly may be difficult to overcome language-related inhibitions, when the spokesmen of such a forum are eloquent specialists with a perfect knowledge of English. In this case more self confidence is indeed appropriate, since grammatical correctness is not nearly as important as the core meaning of a statement. Many of the forum participants proved that one can very actively take part in such a debate, even with a limited vocabulary.

Silent majority

As with »real« conferences, it is also very common in Net forums and newsgroups that many just have a quick look in, and/or keep to the role of passive observer the entire time. In Web jargon, these people are called »lurkers«, though the expression isn't necessarily used in a negative sense. It seems remarkable that the fluctuation within our mailing list was relatively small. Once people signed up, they usually stayed on the list.

No forum without exchange

Indeed, such a forum only has meaning when people communicate with one another. This is a truism of course, though it seems that its conclusion, as well as the opportunities in this form of exchange are not obvious to all. Not without cause, Olu Oguibe wrote: »Though it may sound like a cliche, I still believe that one of the fundamental glories of the internet is that we have the opportunity to generate multiple voices and perspectives on such crucial matters, interactively and in critical tandem, rather than lean on the intellectual mercy of those few 'experts' or 'authorities' who have the opportunity or patience to write it all in the next, definitive book on the subject, or the funds and time to go to a limited-registration conference.«

Presentation of projects

Once again, Olu Oguibe should be quoted: »My own expectation is that this forum would bring forth stories of practical successes in cultural exchange through the internet, new ideas for practicable strategies and projects, as well as theoretical explorations of lessons drawn from existing projects and instances, and the possibilities and implications of different strategies, ideas, and proposals. ... A forum like this provides ample opportunity to share those lessons, but also to explore collectively, aspects of success or shortcoming that might not be obvious to those who are directly involved.«
In fact, during the forum many such projects and activities on the Web were introduced, and particular experiences were described. Up to now however, there has hardly been any real discussion. As a rule the postings weren't more than informative presentations.

Psychology of the interaction in forums

Ricardo Basbaum analyzed the psychological mechanisms in Net forums: »What kind of psychology is transmitted through this limited type of interaction? ... the majority of the messages concentrate on describing oneself, in a self-statement with presentation purposes. Should we speak of a kind of narcisism? ... What makes this interaction so pleasureable for everybody is the feeling for a wide and open space where we can attach ourselves, feeling free to express what we do, who we are, what are our believes, etc. So, is the internet a place where to expand individuality?« In the WWW, sites compete for attention in a kind of »seduction game«. Hence Basbaum's interest in this forum was also »the possibility of exercising ourselves in a new communication game.« In this we discover »new practices of seduction and communication, new psychology which involves (and transforms) the old forces of attraction, repulsion, grouping, etc. combined with new tools, a new pragmatic.«
Cristina Ferran Jadick added: »When we use the internet to communicate with each other, we do not have the benefit of the usual visual (gestures, facial expressions, body language) and oral cues which normally provide specific context for meaning in face to face dialogue. Therefore, on the net, the autobiographical information... serves as a functional equivalent..., by giving us the background to develop a perspective from which to interpret the words we're reading.«
As Pedro Meyer emphasized, one needs a lot of time »in order to generate such dialogues that are mutual, reciprocal and multidimensional.« It is therefore very important that this forum be extended through 1999.

Suggestions for new projects

In this first phase of the forum some new projects and activities were suggested, at first rather vaguely, which should be further discussed when the forum continues:
Leandro Katz thought that a special section of the forum should be dedicated to networking and to the exchange of information on practical aspects.
José Tlatelpas suggested creating an »international network of alternative cultural organizations in the web«.
Sam de Silva would like to have an exhibition »through which we can express - artistically or otherwise - what we think? perhaps it could be part of a physical conference/event also...«
Britta Erickson went in a similar direction in suggesting to the House of World Cultures that they organize an »internet exhibition on the effects of the internet/speedy communication on world culture«. The board of directors of the HWC took this idea into consideration with great interest, and will comment upon it at a future time.


Themes discussed: Fragility of server-based information

In one of the first postings, Pat Binder lamented the disappearance of the 2nd Johannesburg Biennale's website from the Internet. After some initial misunderstandings, Olu Oguibe used this as an occasion to note the vulnerability of digital information as one of the greatest disadvantages of the exchange via Internet.

Traditional structures of control remain

Oguibe wrote: »While many have applauded the power of the internet to take information out of the hands of traditional structures of control, often we have ignored the fact that the opposite is also very true; that the very nature of server-based information places it at the mercy of those who control real locations, and the individual who controls the server.«

Enrichment of the WWW as a cultural task

Gerhard Haupt added, that this refers »not only to conscious interventions in the sense of censorship, but also - and to a larger extent - to a widespread ignorance displayed by the institutions when facing the net.« Web presentations are all too often seen as a temporary element within the PR work for a particular event (exhibitions, festivals, etc.), and once the event is over, they are taken off the server. Many of those who would be capable of filling the so euphorically praised virtual library with content, are obviously unaware of their enormously important cultural task.

False understanding of the Internet?

Regarding this statement, it seemed to Harald A. Friedl that »some serious misunderstandings concerning the structure and function of the Internet« exist. »The image of the 'fragility of the Internet' doesn't really correspond to its technical structure and functional processing.« »If suddenly an (important?) web-page disappears, this phenomenon is nothing but normal - or even typical about the Internet: its permanent growth, a never-ending development of new centres, integrated webs by new links, new forums, which come and go.«
Naief Yehya went further: »...keeping the content of the Net in some kind of stable files is a process that will not only affect the form but also the content itself.« »... if we create a mechanism to save some of it's contents, we will have to discriminate and will impose our own agenda for the preservation of information.«

Secure the availability of information

However one judges the particular character of the Web, it is indisputable that it is perceived by the majority of its users as a virtual library. Most information is more easily attained via Internet than by other means (i.e. »real« publications). In the case of the art and culture of Africa, Asia/ Pacific and Latin America, for instance, certain Web presentations are often the only source of information on the respective themes.
Hence came the energetic argument from Oguibe »... the fact that the inherent fallibility of the internet is 'normal' does not in itself serve good reason to abandon the search for remedies that make siginificant items of cultural information readily accessible.« One should therefore discuss possibilities of fall-backs and alternatives for important information, for instance: additional mirror-sites, site downloads, monitoring, print outs, alternatives to official sites. Inquiries must be addressed »to institutions when sites and pages that we consider important are withdrawn from the public.« Gerhard Haupt questioned if it would make sense to set up an alarm network for »endangered Websites«.

Copyright

Haupt nevertheless brought up legal aspects still to be clarified in the re-publishing of websites which were provided by institutions and then taken off of the server: »What about copyright of the institutions, that originally financed the sites? And what rights have the authors, who developed the content and design, even when their work was paid by an institution?«


Themes discussed: Cultural practice in the Internet

Access to the Internet

Whenever use of the Internet in Africa, Asia/Pacific and Latin America is discussed, the current restrictions to access unavoidably come up. Among others in our forum, Armin Medosch and Sue Williamson commented upon this. Williamson wrote, for instance: »For many artists in South Africa who do not have the money to buy the basic art materials they need to make work, the internet is still regarded as inescapably elitist.«
As important as it is to be conscious of these problems, a number of participants were also right in saying that one should complain less about the current state, and instead should much more intensively discuss possibilities which already exist, as well as the potential use of the Internet in the future. Because even in the less developed regions of the world, the medium is increasingly spreading. »The rapid pace with which its demographics have changed over the past few years is a revealing indicator.« (Olu Oguibe)

New structures of mediation and diffusion?

With the Internet exists for the first time ever a medium via which one's own cultural contents can be brought closer - at least potentially - to an audience of millions. One of the questions posed at the beginning of the forum was, if it has now become possible to avoid the established structures, i.e. the excluding mechanisms of the dominant art and cultural system? Can the Internet help to overcome the dichotomy between »curated and curating cultures«?
Beral Madra from Istanbul was one of the many participants who addressed this topic: »At least now the intellectuals of the curated cultures have a medium to discuss or to announce the sanctions imposed on them by the curating forces. ... I worked very hard to make myself and my art center known in the international art scene and to break through the prejudices of Western institutions; the process has put on speed as soon as I had a web-site...«
However, expectations of expanding one's own operating space should not be too high. Coco Fusco wrote, artists »face the problem of how to gain access to audiences in an overwhelmingly large virtual space where huge commercial entities have the advantage of controlling channels that put internet users in contact with the services and entities that interest them. All this to say that it is extremely difficult to break through hegemonic corporate control of the internet.«

Effects on the »real« art system?

Among those who commented on the question as to what degree the ÈrealÇ art system can be affected by the Internet was Gilane Tawadros, Director of the Institute of International Visual Arts (inIVA) in London. She doesn't believe that Internet can appreciably change the established value systems. »Not as long as the principal sites for the dissemination and validation of art works and of cultural values remain the art gallery and the art journal. There may indeed be a proliferation of discussions, art works and interactions among artists, curators and critics from different parts of the world on the Net and this is vital to shifting the cultural emphasis way from the 'centre'. But these discussions, artworks and interactions will remain peripheral to the established art world for some time to come. The real issue is not how these conversations on the Net will shift the 'status quo' of the established art world but rather how these cyber-networks can create another space where ideas and images can be exchanged in a fluid, dynamic and open way, in contrast to the conventional spaces of the art world which are becoming increasingly parochial, conservative and market-orientated.«

Art on the Net

Numerous projects were introduced in the forum, but there was still relatively little exchange about the specifics of art in the Internet. Most of the exchange was concerned with the Internet as a space for artistic activities in a general sense.
Kim Machan commented on this in relation to the festival MAAP (Multimedia Art Asia Pacific, in Brisbane, Australia), which she directs, and the cross-cultural network which came as a result of it. »The active space that the Internet provides is one that is responsive and one that can morph to accommodate creative dialogue. Artists do have a great empowerment of their web space purely by their control of design and having an upper hand with the technology over many curators coming into the space.«
Pedro Meyer dedicated more attention to the theme of Web-art, as he thought about what »ZoneZero«, the on-line photography center he created, actually is: »a Magazine? ... a Gallery ? or a Museum ? or a Library ? or Book Store? or Book? or Cultural Center? ... These are all metaphors of our analog world that somehow do not seem to fit exactly to our anatomy ...« »If Marcel Duchamp took a urinal and declared it was a piece of art, what stops me from declaring that ZoneZero is a work of art as well?« Meyer finds a number of the websites presented as art completely boring. The many effects created with the help of Photoshop filters are astounding. »But are they art? Have we now all become artists? is the notion of art as traditionally understood in need of some severe revision?«
José Tlatelpas believes that »the art and culture published in the web are not, by themselves, a different culture and a different art. The web works as a media to distribute the cultural products and services and, in the process, affects its development, style and way, not the essence.«

Networking

A further question at the beginning of the forum asked about the concrete uses of cultural networks in the Internet. A few interesting examples were brought up here, too, for instance »Culturelink«, a »Network of Networks for Research and Cooperation in Cultural Development«, introduced by Aleksandra Ivir, or the »Cultural Diversity Committee« of the ISEA (Inter-Society for the Electronic Arts), presented by Cynthia B. Rubin.
On this topic, however, there could have been much more as well as a more practice-oriented exchange of experiences, since networking has fundamental meaning for interaction in the Internet. This is true for institutional cooperation as well as on informal levels. In her piece on Internet communities, Cynthia B. Rubin wrote: »To insure the place of alternative voices on the Internet, we need to actively work to construct new communities of independent artists, theorists, and curators.«
José Tlatelpas asserted that »the basics of the discussion still lies in the interactivity between the Occidental World and the 'South'... I think this is not the center of the problem. What about the relations of Africa with Latin America?... between Asia and Native America...?« It would certainly be important to deal more intensely with the so called »horizontal« communication and interaction on the Net in the continued debate.
Ravi Sundaram already touched on this topic in his statement: »The political impulse of a Third World cultural dialogue are as relevant as ever. The questions have, however to be reposed, outside the rhetoric of state managers and global policers of cultural politics. A critical intra-Third World cultural communication was always hampered by the old system of sovereignty (which privileged states). With the net it is possible for us to actually speak to each other, on a regular critical basis. This is a cheap technology of translation, but our tools of dialogue should respect the peripheral nature of our societies and reject the temporal acceleration of the metropole, not by repeating the old rhetoric but by a modesty and an intelligence.«


Themes discussed: Digital discourse / market mechanisms

Repeatedly touched upon during the forum, was the assertion that by using the Internet in cultural exchange, the commercial structures built into the peculiarity of the medium as well as the market mechanisms as such have to be taken into consideration. This was said in relation to their influence on the perception of cultures, on terms of value and on the artistic and cultural processes themselves.

Commercial structures of the Internet

The thoughts of Yu Yeon Kim on this theme are very complex. In her statement she wrote: »...The fact that contradiction and change is the very essence of the Internet, bodes well for its future. Yet we are increasingly thinking and creating within the parameters of electronic programs that were created to meet specific commercial demands. The Internet changed forever the way we perceive the interconnectivity of our cultures, but the commercially orientated technologies that facilitate its navigation and define its course, also bias the way we think, perceive and assimilate knowledge. The role of international cultural practitioners should be to subvert these structures and devices in such a manner as to expose and illuminate their dynamics and effect.
If we are to consider the Internet as a contact zone of international cultures then we must also examine the intricate operation of post-colonialist and neo-imperialist values as projected through Western consumerism and therefore through the inherent mechanisms of the Internet.«
In the first contribution to the discussion, Manfred Brönner stated: »Unfortunately it is futile to lament about the development which uses and incorporates the arts in its strive for business.« Yu Yeon Kim assumed that this sentence was in reference to her statement, and answered: »My point was how relationships and language have already to an extent been predefined in digital discourse by the nature of its commercially orientated structure and tools as well as the market place, which fuels its technological development. To work critically and creatively within or in relationship to such an environment requires recognition of these aspects of it, at least.«

Market / consumer behavior

The question posed at the beginning of the forum as to if the Internet contributes to the change of established value systems was answered by Coco Fusco rather negatively: »The majority of the opportunities for interaction on the net and the ways of organizing users into groups correspond to the imperatives of the marketplace - which is to say that engagement usually takes the form of consumption and that people are addressed as members of a 'market' joined by like interests and consumer tastes. This would hardly suggest a radical revision of established values, since it is precisely the goal of pancapitalism to commodify leisure activity and to transfer the energies once invested in political engagement to consumerism.«

Marketing and cultural diversity

Especially in the last three weeks, the discussion about the influence of the globally-acting power of the market on culture and cultural terms of value became more intense. (more on this, see Globalization/global culture)
After Pedro Meyer wrote that, »globalized culture is as possible as having all the females and the males in the world think alike «, Sam agreed with him in principal, added however: »... but what concerns me is the way the marketing forces (not market forces) are so effective in their campaigns throughout the world ...« He polemically concluded: »And Cultural Diversity needs to be discussed further - or is it Consumer Diversity that needs to be discussed further?«
With this came the starting shot for a debate about advertising strategies. Pedro Meyer doesn't believe that they lead to a homogenization of cultures: »Each campaign has to be adjusted to the idiosyncrasy of each culture, age group, gender, etc. etc..« Even with regard to the manufacturing of products, it is not true that we are on our way to an era of »one size fits all«. The business world is not at all interested in »cover[ing] the planet with the same values all over.« If the Internet is used so intensely for advertising, »it will allow for the individualization of consumption to degrees never dreamed of before. And that cannot happen if the cultural values are not being catered to at the same time.«
Sam's following proposal was not further discussed: »For the marginalised content producers ... we'd have to develop a segmented advertising strategy - if we were to somehow compete with mass entertainment content...«


Themes discussed: Globalization / global culture

As already mentioned in previous sections, different aspects of globalization and the possible cultural consequences of the expansion of the Internet play a large role in the debate. Though not directly stated in most cases, an issue behind the debate was the old question: how great is the danger of cultural homogenization under US-American dominance?

Americanization of the global culture?

Armin Medosch noted in his statement, that a large number of the myths as well as the ideology of the Internet were developed in the USA. Though elements like »organized dissidence (underground rock and pop culture), individualism - supported by nerd and hacker fantasies - and a kind of transnationalism which mainly addresses metropolitan youth and which is saturated in elements of American popular culture (apropos MTV), ... determine the Internet's hip image, the big multinational technology and telecommunication groups have the green light with their expansion plans. As a result, the Internet could become a pipeline for the kind of globalization that can bring harm to previously protected local economies and cultures. Being 'connected' not only means having access to the entire global network but also the opposite - that it also has access to you.«
Cynthia Beth Rubin made an important point in relation to »Americanization of global culture«: »But American culture is diverse and fluid. What gets exported is what sells abroad, not necessarily what reflects the actual culture of the USA...«

Cultural stereotype

Yu Yeon Kim refered to Armin Medosch with the following observation: »Indeed, it must be very difficult from the Western perspective, with its history of colonialism, to go further than the mere fetishization and stereotyping of Asian, African and so-called Third World cultures. These cultures do not need protection from being infected or contaminated by ... 'the kind of globalization that can bring harm to previously protected local economies and cultures'.« As a result of the evolution of global culture that set in long before the Internet came about, »both the carrier and the recipient are 'contaminated' by their meeting«.
In her Statement, Kim had already written: »If we are to consider the Internet as a contact zone of international cultures then we must also examine the intricate operation of post-colonialist and neo-imperialist values as projected through Western consumerism and therefore through the inherent mechanisms of the Internet. Actually, there is no simple separation with the Other, that conglomerate of fabricated so-called 'Third World' identities has already reinfused itself, problematically, into this milieu - the transference of meaning is well underway in many directions. However, the real zone of exclusion starts at the furthest reaches of the technologically empowered - where the technologically poor discover that they at a new level of disenfranchisement while being fetishized as the 'Other' by the technologically rich.«

»Global« culture is pluralistic

The majority of contributions on this theme represented the view that Internet either not at all or hardly endangers cultural diversity. Since very clear assertions came from Yu Yeon Kim on this topic as well, she should once again be quoted. Kim wrote that the »Global culture« in the Internet that arises from the multitude of individuals, organizations, companies, governments, etc. »essentially implies plurality, but also a confluence of cultures that are in a continuous process of contact, exchange and evolution that is determined to an extent, by the problematic entwining of their histories.«
She further underpinned this, and added the following remark about her understanding of exchange: »Modern 'global' culture is a pluralistic discourse of cultures in which the transport (I hesitate to say 'exchange', as what is transferred is transformed in the process) of cultural ideas has been accelerated perhaps beyond our ability to reasonably assimilate them. However, this data is always translated on arrival according to its relevance to the locality.«
Pedro Meyer is certain that »... as the internet becomes larger, each cultural representation will have their own presence on the web, with each group having their own language and cultural values very much present.«

»Global« culture as a reference system

Joana Breidenbach also emphasized: »Certain goods, services, institutions and ideas are globalized ... [but] this doesn't necessarily mean that we are all being homogenised and that cultural differences are being wiped out. People all over the world incorporate global influences in the most diverse ways.«
Her following presumption is both interesting and inspires further consideration: »I believe that we are witnessing the emergence of a global culture, understood as a new worldwide reference-system.« ... »We are not all becoming the same, but we are increasingly articulating our differences in a way which is understood by people from other cultures.«
»The globalization of the concept 'culture' has sparked a whole new identity-boom and power-instrument for minorities.« ... »I see more and more evidence that non-western societies ... challenge the old hegemonic structures and contribute to the globally valid terms of reference.«


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Project direction: Gerhard Haupt - haupt@uinic.de

©  House of World Cultures, Berlin. 1998/2000