Nan Han
Professor Dewan
Social Science 189
27 February 2020
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The Global Grapevine, “The Menace of International Trade”
In an interesting perspective, rumours can be used as a tool to express fears and anxieties
of people in a society. This is what the authors of “The Global Grapevine: Why Rumours of
Terrorism, Immigration and Trade Matter” in the chapter “The Menace of International Trade”
seek to express. They are not seen as simply being idle talks. They are used to depict how
disturbing issues in society are talked about or expressed among people. Being specific, they
focus on The United States as a developed nation and its relations, involvement and associations
in trade with the rest of the world. Uncomfortable matters such as race, prejudice, culture are
addressed concerning how people in the society and the united states in general deals with such
issues as they engage with developing nations. Such issues would be uncomfortable to talk about
openly but rumours are used as an avenue that can be interpreted to depict how the society feels.
Human relations are complicated on many levels. It is even more complicated with the
recent developments of increased globalization. Through globalization, countries’ borders are no
longer a limiting factor to trade and association between people of different countries. There are
more interaction and exchanges between people of different races, languages, cultures, and
religious beliefs among others. With such differences, complications in relations compound
tremendously. With such complications, people will tend to have fears and anxieties. Gary and
Bill delve into the matter to show how rumours allow people to express their hidden fears and
desires that might have been as a result of these relations.
In this chapter, rumours have been depicted to be used as a mask to allow people in the
United States and developed West to express their attitudes towards other people without
claiming the attitudes as their own. It is without a doubt that globalization has come with its
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pressures. There are specific themes are explored. Rumours about terrorism, immigration,
international trade and tourism. It is exposed to how the American public reacts to perceived
global threats through rumours concerning the mentioned themes. In a world that is constantly
changing, American reactions are highlighted in terms of fears, fantasies, and beliefs about our
place in the world.
Various rumours over the years are brought to light as the authors seek to pass across
their point. One that stands out is the rumours that foreign workers used to urinate in Corona
beer. This was one of the most popular brands of imported beer from Mexico at the time. Within
a span of a short time, the beer had grown to be among the most popular on American soil. A
foreign commodity toppling the American brands in the market. The allegations were peddled
and appeared convincing to the masses and ended up affecting sales. It was said that Mexican
workers did it as an act of sabotage as they were considered immoral and they were angry over
their working conditions (Fine and Bill).
As it turns out, this was a corporate rumour meant to tarnish the Mexican company. Even
so, the rumour was believed by most people due to the fear of immigration as this was a Mexican
company whose profits would go a long way in favouring the Mexican economy more than it did
for the American. In this case, prejudice and circumstance were used to play against the
company and its related beer products.
Other rumours focused on the daily risks that individuals would allegedly be exposed to.
This was as a result of the lack of trust in everyday life. Specifically, is the spiders in the
restroom case. This is more associated with international contact than trade. It was rumoured that
individuals were bitten as a result of using the public toilet at the airport by spiders from South
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America. These were just rumours seen to express fears of using a public toilet or used as an
excuse for the treatment of STDs. Some rumours came as conspiracies while others were seen as
distractions that kept government resources occupied.
As the authors go on, one thing clear is that these rumours are reflective of anxieties and
fears on contact with foreign cultures. Whether being that foreign competition is seen as a poison
to the domestic market or that immigration is an erosion of American values. Rumours are
packaged as ideal vehicles to bring out hidden anxieties. They end up revealing a lot of issues
present in contemporary society.
The arguments made by Fine and Bill in this section is supported in the works of other
writings. In “The ‘knockout game’: moral panic and the politics of white victimhood” by Mike
King a demonstration is made how the fears of society are expressed in rumours. White fears of
black violence are projected and exaggerated around the theme of race and violent crime. The
main fear here is that as the world changes, the white American fears subordination and end up
carrying theories to indicate that there are possibilities of oppression. Similar to how Fine and
Bill explore the various rumour over the years and how stories have been passed from generation
to the next with alterations made with time.
In a different work, Ellis Bill tracks the use of legends in society and how narratives have
kept on changing reflecting what people in the society are going through at the moment. In the
chapter ‘The Fast Food Ghost’ in the book Aliens, Ghosts, and Cults: Legends We Live by Bill
Ellis readers are taken through how legends are carried and spread customized to the routine
lives of people working in fast food chains. These legends appear to be a mutation concerning
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the social process of society. They are also a way in which people spread their fears through
legends. These legends are seen as a possible way of inspiring people to action.
There are a lot of aspects to find convincing from the arguments made by the authors on
these issues. As globalization grows there is the movement of goods, services and people across
borders more than ever. Changes are bound to occur. As these changes transpire, people may not
be comfortable with some of them. People may develop fears brought about disruptions of
markets all over the world. America is consuming more goods from developing nations and local
productions are at risk of shutting down as competition becomes stiff from foreign products. This
is a reason to spark fear. Besides, as people cross borders, they tag along with their cultures. As
more of these cultures interact, there is always the fear of cultural erosion.
As it seems, relationships are complicated with these developments. Even so, it is not
always easy to talk about such matters openly. People do not want to appear judgemental, racial,
or prejudicial. Even so, they seem not to be able to hide their thoughts and feelings. They all
come to show in one way or another. Rumours is just one of how these fears are expressed.
These rumours carry messages that even though might be untrue on the surface, they tag along
with people’s feelings and beliefs. These feelings and beliefs can be interpreted to understand the
situation with a particular society. This has been done well by the authors and we can see how
complications have resulted from globalization and America relations with goods, services, and
people from developing nations. Attitudes and beliefs can be seen clearly from these rumours
making their arguments very convincing.
From the readings, we can see strained relations brought about by globalization. In as
much as there are benefits attributed to more trade across borders with other countries, there are
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also several concerns that come about. Strain in racial relations, prejudice, negative attitudes and
even exposed American local industry are just some of them. People do not openly talk about
these matters are use rumours and legends to peddle their fears. This is a matter of concern and
their needs to be more discussions on the matter to be able to seek proper solutions on them.
Evident here is that the world is changing and will continue to do so even more in future.
America is consuming more goods made in third world countries more than what is
manufactured within the borders. There are a lot of fears that may come as a result, top being
undermined sense of control that America once had. There is an aspect of uncertainty that creeps
in about the future. In as much as this would be normal the economic shift passes down to the
population and warnings come in the form of rumours.
These rumours are a suggestion of the possibilities of third world problems growing to be
American problems. Snakes in coats, spiders in fruits, deadly bacteria in food products are just
some of the ways rumours are packaged to depict a fear of uncertainty. These fears packaged as
contamination and many more are all a symbol of competition and inability to come to terms to
the economic shifts brought about by globalization. This is all complicated and intertwined with
anxieties and fears of contact with other cultures of the world.
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Works Cited
Ellis, Bill. Aliens, Ghosts, and Cults: Legends We Live. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi,
2001. Print.
Fine, Gary A, and Bill Ellis. The Global Grapevine: Why Rumors of Terrorism, Immigration,
and Trade Matter. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010. Internet resource.
King, M. (2015). The ‘knockout game’: moral panic and the politics of white victimhood. Race
& Class, 56(4), 85-94.
Running head: READING RESPONSE
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Reading Response: Urban Legends: Rumor and Society
Nate
UC Irvine
READING RESPONSE
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Reading Response: Urban Legends: Rumor and Society
Summary
In the book, the Global Grapevine, "There Goes the Neighborhood: Latino Migrants and
Immigration Rumors, the main argument the author put across is that the spread of rumors has
led to negative attitudes towards immigrants. Fine & Ellis (2010) argues that rumors spread very
quickly after tragic events in society, such as terrorism and disasters. When such events occur in
the neighborhood, rumors provide the information that people require to understand the cause of
these events. The authors argue that in the process, rumors can create distrust among
communities when they tend to link particular groups with adversities encountered in the
community.
Fine & Ellis (2010) presents their arguments about how rumors can affects the
relationship between different groups by giving several examples where people have developed
negative attitudes towards Latinos because of rumors. The authors begin by highlighting an
example of an incident that happened in Hazelton in which rumors spread about two Latino's
shooting a white. These rumors spread fear about the newcomers in Hazleton. People began to
view newcomers as potentially harmful individuals. They also believed that these newcomers
were members of organized criminal gangs. The Latinos were mainly considered as terrorists and
forced the governments to take strict measures, including an illegal immigration act, which
recommended fines for landlords who gave houses to Latinos without proper documentation.
Fine & Ellis (2010) mention that the fear of Latinos did not only spread in Hazelton but to
various parts of the nation as negative rumors about this group continued to spread. These
rumors have persisted and continue to create fear about immigrants, even in contemporary
society.
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Fine & Ellis (2010) argue that the spread of hostile rumors creates an enabling
environment for people to commit crimes and acts of violence. For instance, in Hazelton in 1989,
a group of students heard a rumor that their classmates were planning to conduct mass killings in
the school after joining a cult. An investigation into the issue revealed the contrary, and the
principle of the school solved the crisis.
A similar case of potential violence emerged in the neighboring town of Shenandoah.
The problem of illegal immigration led to the rumor that immigrants were taking over the town.
Because of this rumor, a group of employees returning from work spotted a young Latino boy.
They began chanting against him and eventually knocked him down, and the young Latino got
severe head injuries. The local government was, however, quick to prevent the situation from
escalating and arrested the mob who attacked the young Latino, and they were charged in court.
The authors argue that rumors possibly explain the lynching that occurred in Sothern America
during the era of slavery. It appears that rumors created tensions between the whites and the
blacks and therefore resulting in violence.
According to Fine & Ellis (2010), when people feel the threat of displacements, they
gather around to understand the source of such danger. The author argues that there are different
sources of new in the society from which citizens acquire information regarding situations and
events that occur in their neighborhoods. People rely on friends, neighbors, websites, and various
Media for information. However, the credibility of these sources is what leads to rumors. The
author argues that many narrators include their statements.
The arguments that Fine & Ellis present in their book are supported by other authors.
The argument that rumors spread so quickly is supported by Alan, Gary, and Turner, Patricia, in
their book Rumor in the Life of America: Riots and Race. In the second chapter of the book
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titled "how rumor works," Alan, Gary, and Turner, Patricia Turner explain in detail the process
through which rumor spreads. Alan and Turner explain that rumors begin because of four main
reasons. First, rumors can arise as a product of intentional deception. Such rumors are created by
malicious individuals who think that they have something to gain by creating untruthful stories.
For instance, in a political contest, these types of rumors are common tools used to injure the
confidence of the opponent. They argue that this strategy of creating malicious rumors has been
used in different scenarios, including World War II, where several Japanese women broadcasters
produced and aired rumors to kill the pubic morale. Secondly, the author argues that rumors can
also originate because of misunderstandings. Rumors can arise because people have a different
understanding, and sometimes people may have a different meaning to statements. Sometimes,
unaware of the speaker's intention, people assume that their perception of comments is the truth,
and this may probably lead to rumors. Thirdly, Alan, and Turner argue that rumors can begin
because of transformation. Transformation occurs because of the alteration and exaggeration of
the initial information. The two authors mention that as information flow from the source, the
chances that it gets distorted in the process are relatively high. In the end, people will come to
hear different kinds of information from what the source has, and that marks the spread of
rumors.
Finally, Alan and Turner (1947) mention that the fourth reason why rumor emerges is
because of suspicion and twisted details. They argue that some information and activities that
can only lead to speculation. For example, when a new product is introduced into the market,
many consumers can get very speculative, resulting in rumors about how the product is made and
its intention. The two authors gave an example of when various family planning methods were
introduced to African communities, arguing that many African societies did not accept them
READING RESPONSE
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because of the speculation, which leads to the rumors that these family planning methods were
harmful to women and could lead to sterility.
In the book Whispers on the color line: Rumor and race in America, the authors Fine and
Turner also support some of the arguments made by Fine & Ellis In the book, The Global
Grapevine, "There Goes the Neighborhood: Latino Migrants and Immigration Rumors.” For
instance, in chapter seven of the book Whispers on the color line: Rumor and Race in America
titled Cries and Whispers Race and False Accusations, the authors support the arguments that
rumor could lead to mistrust between different groups. Fine and Turner (2001) argue that rumors
have always provided a depressing window in American racial relationships. They support that
although rumors are always false, the relevant audiences treat them as real and act upon them.
Fine and Turner (2001) give an example of a situation that resulted in the lynching of black
people following accusations by the white citizens. The two authors further also that the rumors
are to blame for the incidences of police brutality towards minority races such as blacks and the
Latinos.
Critical Response
The authors of the book, the Global Grapevine, "There Goes the Neighborhood: Latino
Migrants and Immigration Rumor” deal with the issue of rumors and negative racial relations in
a way that looks simple for the audience to comprehend. Their discussion begins by presenting
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real-life examples in which the relationship between majority-white citizens and immigrant
Latinos have gone sour because of negative rumors.
The authors give an example of the case in Hazelton where rumors that two Latinos had
killed a white woman led to fear of the immigrants forcing the white population to develop
punitive measures to deal with the immigrants in their neighborhood and also forcing the local
government to institute an act that would punish landlords who allow undocumented immigrants
to stay in their houses. The authors also give an example of a case in Shenandoah in which
rumors that immigrants were taking over the town drove a group of employees returning from
work to attack a young Latino boy whom they met in the neighborhood. These examples by the
authors support their argument.
There are several arguments in the book that I find relatively convincing. For instance,
the authors argue that rumors spread very fast in the community after an incident, such as
terrorism or natural disaster. Indeed these statements are logical because, after such adversities,
people tend to find answers. They seek information from wherever source they can find to
explain the occurrence of these adversities. Under such circumstances, reports spread faster than
formal media can contain from one person to another. For instance, when President John
Kennedy was assassinated, the information spread across the country through the public than the
formal media. I also agree with the authors' arguments that rumors can result in a negative
relationship between different groups. One of the significant features of rumors is that it triggers
the emotions of the audience. When rumors trigger fear between different groups, then the
relationship between these different groups is likely to grow sour and may easily escalate into
violence. I agree with the author that negative rumors have motivated most of the incidences of
racial violence witnessed in America in the last. Looking at the historical conflicts that occurred
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between the whites and blacks, I concur that rumors always played a role in instigating fear
among the races and forcing people to react without thinking about the truth.
I agree with the author that the negative attitudes that people have towards immigrants in
contemporary America are because of the negative rumors they have heard, including that the
immigrants are the cause of unemployment and insecurity, some of which they cannot
substantiate.
This book significantly contributes to the general discussion about rumors in the society.
The authors creatively manage to make the audience understand how the issue of rumors can
easily lead to bad relations and affect peaceful co-existence in our neighborhoods. By presenting
historical instances where rumors have indeed led to negative ethnicity, the authors of the book
provide us with an opportunity to learn from our past. Going through the book, I find the
approach which the authors have applied to support their arguments by giving historical
examples very useful. The evidence presented by the authors reveal that three always need to
ensure proper and effective communication channels that will feed people with truthful
information to ensure peace.
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References
Alan, G, & Turner, P. (1947.). Whispers on the Color Line: Rumor and Race in
America.Berkeley: University Of California Press.
Fine, G. A., & Ellis, B. (2010). The global grapevine: Why rumors of terrorism, immigration,
and trade matter. New York: Oxford University Press.
Fine, G. A., & Turner, P. A. (2001). Whispers on the color line: Rumor and race in America.
Berkeley: University of California Press.
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