Social values Concentration impacts uponvital social values. Concentration without control equals censorship of opportunities – it excludes citizens from the right to freely participate in the economic, social and cultural life of their country. Culture and cultural expression are essential symbols of tolerance and liberty. They are vital tools to combat social exclusion and isolation in a globalised world. It offers creative, educative and economic potential regardless of gender, age, wealth or location. Concentration is a major barrier to social inclusion. It impedes individuals having access to a wider range of information and culture as well as to the instruments of creation and dissemination. Concentration also curbs societies’ right of freedom and self-determination. It strangles this vital principle and reduces it to an empty shell: where external forces determine who does and who doesn't have the right to take part to the economic, political and social debate. Cultural expression is the source of our freedom. We are free because we can discover, confront and exchange our respective personal values and beliefs. Liberty is an essential prerequisite for creativity. Creativity springs from plurality and difference, from the free exchange between parties. A standardised world, a Big-Brother style society where we are not free to decide is the antipathy of essential social values yet this is precisely what we risk by increasing concentration in media and entertainment /culture. Creativity stagnates and perishes when exposed to excessive concentration. Standardisation and uniformity dominates the market. This is cultural and social hegemony. Consumers are deprived of diversity and their freedom of choice. Distribution, price and content is all pre-determined. The World Social Forum recognised the importance of cultural diversity, plurality and identity in the social debate. Europe too recognises the importance of social cohesion – it is one of the priorities it seeks to deliver with its so-called Lisbon strategy. The information society and the creative sectors are key to achieving Lisbon. The EU needs is tap into its hidden talent, its own creativity and unleash its social and economic power and help itself achieve its Lisbon ambitions. The world’s creators are ready and willing.
	Developed by KEA european affairs