Afghans unite to cheer their brave new stars as The X-Factor comes to Kabul

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/23/afghanistan.realitytv

The people of Afghanistan came together in a moment of cultural unity on Friday. The vast majority of them watched - some nervously in secret, others openly, gathered outside cafes - as the grand final of the television talent contest Afghan Star was broadcast. The weekly show had become a national phenomenon, penetrating into strictly religious areas, bridging the gender divide and challenging fundamentalist attitudes.

I found this text particularly interesting as I believe that the superpowers that are America and England are filtering through ideologies through to the rest of the world. This shows that alot of the world is being westernised. For me this is something I believe to be problematic as I feel alot of cultures are now losing value as they are developing into others. Although this is only a small instance, everything starts from somewhere and therefore this could be the start of westernisation even in the Afghan culture.
The opposite view here could be seen that fundamentalists and radicalists are being challenged and showing almost a more "normal" view of these countries. However the view of being "normal" is something that hegemony may hav allowed us have certain stereotypes of and therefore afghanistan should create a balance between culture and westernising in order to keep value but not come across as an extremist nation.