WITH LYRICS in English, French, Spanish, Italian and Japanese, the theme tune of the men’s World Cup, performed at its opening ceremony on June 11th, exemplifies(体现了) the contest’s claim to foster global unity. Nearly half the world is expected to tune in(收看/收听) over the coming weeks as the tournament moves towards its final on the outskirts of New York. A viewer might come away with(获得（结论）) two conclusions. First, that entertainment culture is more globalised than ever. Second, that America remains the soft-power superpower at the centre of it all.
世界杯男足主题曲以英语、法语、西班牙语、意大利语和日语演唱，于6月11日开幕式上表演，体现了该赛事促进全球团结的主张。未来几周，随着比赛向纽约郊外的决赛推进，预计将有近一半的全球观众收看。观众可能会得出两个结论：第一，娱乐文化比以往任何时候都更加全球化；第二，美国仍是这一切的核心软实力超级大国。
Both assumptions(假设) would be wrong. Mega-events like the World Cup still seize global attention. But the bigger picture is that entertainment is fragmenting. From music to television to social media and gaming, audiences are tuning out of(不再关注) American content and embracing alternatives from closer to home. There is an emerging paradox: even as the world becomes more connected, people are choosing more local forms of fun. Even as billions tune in to a single show in North America, the American-led monoculture(单一文化) is fading.
这两个假设都是错误的。像世界杯这样的大型赛事仍能吸引全球关注，但更宏观的图景是，娱乐正在碎片化。从音乐到电视，再到社交媒体和游戏，受众正逐渐远离美国内容，转而接受来自本土的替代品。一个新兴悖论浮现：即便世界联系日益紧密，人们却在选择更本土化的娱乐形式。即便数十亿人收看北美的一场单一节目，美国主导的单一文化正在消退。
This local turn(本土化转向) is the opposite of what many predicted. Global entertainment platforms such as Spotify, Netflix, YouTube, and the Apple and Google mobile-app stores give people everywhere access to the same music, video and games. The biggest winners have been a lopsidedly(不平衡地) American elite of megastars and brands—think Taylor Swift, MrBeast or Roblox—which have gone global as never before. The biggest sports leagues have soared(飙升) in value along with them.
这种本土化转向与许多人的预测相反。像 Spotify、Netflix、YouTube 以及苹果和谷歌的移动应用商店这样的全球娱乐平台，让世界各地的人们都能接触到同样的音乐、视频和游戏。最大的赢家是一批严重偏向美国的超级巨星和品牌——想想泰勒·斯威夫特、MrBeast 或 Roblox——它们以前所未有的方式实现了全球化。最大的体育联盟与它们一起价值飙升。
Moving the goalposts
改变规则