Mass media are flooding the world with messages. Media contribute to development in a variety of ways. Thanks to today's media, people are better informed – an important prerequisite for democracy. Internet stimulates a free flow of information and enables direct connections for intellectual cooperation. Films and television programmes can strengthen solidarity throughout the world and spur people into action.
But there is also a flip side. The world's poor do not even have electricity, let alone radio, television or Internet. And it is the executives in charge of the television stations and newspapers who determine what we see and read. In a globalising world, Hollywood and Bollywood are threats to cultural diversity.