How Has American Culture Changed British Culture?

The recent rise in political tension between the US and Europe suggests the potential of a rift in the West, as the US puts distance between America and Europe. Donald Trump’s early returning months in office have shown the world that as chaotic and rash his rhetoric may be, he is undoubtedly a strong leader of an even stronger nation. His frank rudeness and arrogance when addressing European countries, particularly Ukraine, and their subsequent cautious responses have revealed that Europe has fallen behind. In many ways, even in reluctance, it feels inclined to bend to the superpower’s every need. However, for the ordinary citizen of the EU and the UK, the United States’ economic and military power is not what dominates our every life. Instead, America’s greatest control over us is culture. The US has ingrained itself into the hearts, minds, and souls of the people in every facet of life. What we eat and drink, what we watch, what we wear, and how we speak has all been Americanised. Since the Cold War, Americanisation has acted as a method of soft power over the rest of the world and has become increasingly prevalent with the rise of the internet. Since Britain relinquished control of America, the pendulum has swung ever increasingly in the opposite direction. Founding Father John Adams, in a letter to Thomas Jefferson, wrote: “Britain will never be our friend, till we are her Master.” His statement in many ways laid the foundations of the future.

By the 1920s, New York had surpassed London as the financial capital of the world. America’s financial and cultural influence only grew year by year. The 1950s saw the prominence of American-produced music and its popularity around the globe. The rise of rock and roll further cemented America’s cultural rise, with stars like Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly leading the way. The ’60s saw a cultural conquest in the other direction: the British Invasion, with bands like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones proving that British and American culture could be welded together and exist as one. In the 1980s, Margaret Thatcher centred individualism and personal responsibility in a way that had not been done before. The American ideology of expression, individualism, and capitalism began to become not American but Western, with America as their poster boy.

The nature of American culture is not only to be unconfined by its borders, but to be the culture of the globe. In Britain, not a day passes without reference to or consumption of American brands, technology, or entertainment. In many ways the emergence of McDonald’s epitomises Americanisation. Consider the McDonald’s drive-thru versus the traditional British chippy. You can drive up and buy at least as notorious food for the same price or cheaper. It is efficiency in which people place value, and franchises bring recognisability, trust, and consistency that is difficult to compete against. This model transcends the fast-food chain and exists in all forms of globalisation. Hollywood has beaten down the same narratives for over one hundred years now, and with each blockbuster or hit TV show, the US, with its ideologies and language, becomes more ingrained in our existence and infiltrates our culture.

Social media has only exacerbated this homogenisation of British and American culture, as two distinct cultures become closer together than apart. We use American tech companies and software, from Apple to Microsoft and Facebook to YouTube. These services define how we live our lives. When using Tinder, for example, you may meet a fellow British girl, but you are paying an American for the privilege. People, governments, and companies follow successful systems—even culturally—because culture has great power. It has the ability to shift ideology and create great economic success. Once upon a time, Britain imposed its language and politics onto the world, and now America is in the process of doing the same, even if in a far more subtle, unofficial way. However, how far does this acceptance of American values and thought, conceal our own important British ones?