Article & Journal Resources

December 10, 2007
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WHEN chips become fries and blokes become guys, Australians get really annoyed.

But other US cultural imports, such as iPods, Hollywood movies and even Britney Spears and her ex-beau Justin Timberlake are just bonza.

Australians' love-hate relationship with our long-standing ally is confirmed in a poll released today by the US Studies Centre in Sydney.

The survey of Australian attitudes towards the US moves beyond foreign policy and defence matters and takes a closer look at popular culture.

It shows Australians most admire American technology, art and literature. American films, music, clothing and television all rate favourably. But American-style fast food is deeply unpopular, with two-thirds of people worried about its impact on Australia.

And, in a warning for marketing executives who import ad slogans without tailoring them to a local audience, more than half Australians think American language has a corrosive influence on Australian culture.

Dr Brendon O'Connor, a specialist in American politics at Griffith University in Brisbane, said the results showed people were still anxious to protect a unique Australian identity.

The poll follows results released in October that showed Australians expected the US to remain a close security partner.

But a sharp decline in Australians' trust in Washington to do the right thing in world affairs has sparked official US Government concerns, especially with the risk that opposition to the Iraq war could sour relations.

A high-ranking US diplomat paid an official visit to Canberra last week, offering assurances that President George Bush welcomed the new Labor Government, despite plans to pull Australian combat troops out of Iraq.

DANIEL FLITTON