By April J. Anderson

“Eurotrip,” a production of DreamWorks, will likely be a hit with American teenagers. The morning boost of strawberry, non-fat yogurt you have just settled down with was probably manufactured by the French company Danone Group which owns Dannon Yogurt. More than likely if you ate a “good ol’” American bowl of Cheerios during your last trip to Europe—there was nothing American about it. Outside of North America, Nestle, a Swiss-based food firm, owns General Mills.

Maybe globalization isn’t Americanization. Yes, McDonald’s posted the highest earnings of any fast food chain in France last year. Yes, the Chinese Starbucks branches, the first of which opened four years, has enjoyed untold success. But while America may be flooding the world with new ideas, and fattening food—America’s hope during the Depression and the star of American childhood, Mickey is about to belong to the British firm Comcast. I wouldn’t be surprised if even McDonald’s goes international and is held by France, where it opened a new restaurant for each closed in other countries this year, during our lifetime.

Maybe globalization is international commercialization of culture. Co operations are increasing marketing and advertising efforts that focus on capitalizing on the moments that we all enjoyed in our childhood—playing with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, dressing up Barbie a hundred times over, drinking Kool-Aid and eating Rice Krispies treats. Perhaps, the “backlash” we hear about so often has nothing to do with “Americanization” and everything to do with publication of private memories. McDonald’s, the image so often associated with “Americanization” is one of the best examples. The “I’m lovin’ it” campaign is working not because the McNuggets are the newest type of cavier or because Coke is suddenly the nectar of gods. “I’m lovin’ it” is selling happy memories of laughing over a milkshake with friends. “I’m lovin’ it” is buying into the idea that a happy meal will produce a smile, a chocolate chip cookie, the warmth of Mom’s kitchen.

Thomas Friedman, author of The Lexus and the Olive Tree, (the authoritative lay person’s guide to globalization) and journalist for the New York Times, wrote that globalization is Americanization. And that Americanization “wears Mickey Mouse ears, it drinks Pepsi and Coke,” and “eats Big Macs.” But the ears will probably not be star-spangled much longer. Pepsi is held jointly by Unilever, which also promotes the traditional and British Lipton Tea. And what of the Big Macs, so many of us miss when faced with cafeteria food at college? Burger King just closed a campaign with a New York and London based firm to promote physical fitness through the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle figurines distributed in its kids’ meals.

It’s possible that our children will have to make a world tour to enjoy our “American” childhood memories of sticky Rice Crispy treats, lemonade, and Monopoly. Maybe it’s just as well they will probably grow up with dreams of characters like “Pokeman”, dress up in “hello kitty” garb and watch the U. K.-based T.V. series “Bob the Builder.” After all, the globalization is reshaping us faster than we can “Americanize” it.