Listening to Others: Dubbing Global Media in Québec

Abstract

Context: In intellectual work and cultural policy documents related to the francophone media market, the struggle between the old mechanisms, bound to the physical infrastructure of the land, and the new virtual ones is recast as a competition between nation and globalism, between québécois—a local accent seen as a marker of national character and self-recognition—and the linguistic construct of français international—spoken only on the dubbing stage. Analysis: This article examines how dubbing practices become acts of cultural diplomacy in the clash between legacy and platform distribution. Conclusions and Implications: Ambivalent towards traditional displays of national selfhood, the Québec dubbing industry insists that its cultural identity is more accurately represented through participation in the global market rather than through regional accents.