Globalization: Winners and Losers 2000
Distributed by Films Media Group, PO Box 2053, Princeton, New Jersey 08543-2053; 800-257-5126
Produced by Journeyman Pictures in association with Films for the Humanities and Sciences
Director n/a
VHS, color, 42 min.
High School - Adult
Economics, Business
Date Entered: 11/09/2018
Reviewed by Michael J. Coffta, Business Librarian, Bloomsburg University of PennsylvaniaGlobalization: Winners and Losers does a superb job of citing the overlooked outcomes of the new global economy. The film is replete with sobering statements and statistics. The world's consumption has doubled since 1975. Thirty years ago, there were approximately 7,000 multinational companies. Today there are over 50,000. The film speaks to the fact that market monoliths, such as General Motors, wield more power than many nations. The combined sales of the top ten multinationals exceeds the combined GDP of the 100 smallest countries (based on GDP). Viewers will find more compelling figures like these.
The film briefly discusses the topic of "cyber-millionaires," such as the Sabeer Bhatia of India, who sold Hotmail to Microsoft for US $400 million. Success stories like this are shadowed by India's poverty. Infosys has established a self-sufficient facility amidst the squalor of the city of Bangalore.
Because many banks worldwide have come to favor investing in real estate and stocks, these banks have sold off their gold reserves, causing the price of gold to plummet to a twenty-year low. This has caused the layoff of thousands of African gold miners, who have little or no other employment alternatives. This shift in banks' investment behavior has had another effect. After many Japanese banks invested in real estate, many of their high-risk debtors defaulted, which helped bring about the Asian financial crisis in 1998.
This film goes on to explain how countries, companies, and individuals must struggle and, in many cases, bend or break rules in order to survive in the global economy. The film discusses the rationale for the formation of multination conglomerates such as NAFTA and the EU, while demonstrating its unfortunate drawbacks. The film calls for global rules and consistent policies from bodies, such as the IMF and WTO.
This documentary is compelling and attentive to detail. While the film provides personal stories of grief, it identifies the story as the outcome of a chain of events. This film is truly appropriate for all viewers from high school on up. Highly recommended.