U.S. Embassy Support for Hollywood’s Global Dominance: Cultural Imperialism Redux

Abstract

Hollywood’s global market power has been attributed to several factors, but little attention has been given to the support it receives from the U.S. government, especially State Department embassies. However, the release of more than 250,000 U.S. diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks in 2010 has provided scholars with an opportunity to examine in detail this aspect of U.S. government support for Hollywood’s market power. This article explores how the State Department’s global network of embassies supports Hollywood’s economic interests. I conclude that this state–Hollywood relationship is evidence of contemporary American cultural imperialism.