America is a cultural centre, absolutely and New York has achieved legendary status...
But that's just right now. People are looking at this from a very short term perspective. America has only been a cultural centre since the end of the war. (Perhaps since the 30s when so many artists had to leave Europe).
For example, it is English sports, football, cricket, and rugby, which dominate the world's stage. Not to mention Scottish golf. And tennis and the modern Olympics from France. Can skateboarding and basketball really compare to those?
English is the world's lingua franca.
The world's premiere broadcasting service? CNN? CBS? No, it's the BBC.
And that's just England's contribution.
What of food? Pizza and pasta are italian contributions. Hamburgers and Hot dogs from Germany (though, fair enough, both have been modified by Americans to their credit). There are very few purely American culinary contributions.
Hollywood films make the most money, to be sure, but ask a true movie buff where the artistic center of cinema is. The answer will more often than not be condensible to Europe.
Literature? Does the American contribution really outweigh that of Shakespeare, Homer and Cervantes (to name a very very very few)?
As for musicals, musicals were invented by the Greeks, not Americans. Americans just figured out how to sell them. (Another argument for giving Americans extra corporate bonuses rather than cultural ones).
And what of museums? America has great ones to be sure, but America's is in no way dominant. The Smithsonian is great, but is it in any way better than the Louvre, the British museum, or the Hermitage?
Americans are great at selling things (though again, that is an English tradition that they tweaked). Most of their cultural 'achievements' are really an extension of that.
Oh and BTW, none of those things I mentioned comes out of LA. When compared to London or Paris or ancient Athens, Rome, or Alexandria, New York holds its own. LA doesn't even belong in the same breath.
This isn't intended to pick a fight. It's just intended to give a worldview, which vicious as it sounds, many, if not most, Americans lack. (America being a large and isolated country, it probably couldn't be otherwise in all fairness).
This is ridiculous. I have lived for more than a year in 4 different countries on 3 different continents, visited more than 30 countries on 5 different continents. Every place I go I interact and work with locals, I intentionally avoid ex-pat bubbles. I don't lack worldview at all, but I know plenty of Europeans who do. Way to generalize.
You're right, America has only been a cultural center recently. But they have achieved greater cultural dominance than any civilization prior in a shorter period of time. That's the whole point. In the context of the scenario... it is impossible for America to win a cultural victory. Even though in reality they have come closer than any other civilization has, as I explained before. No other culture has been as dominant and pervasive all over the world. Not the Greeks, the Romans, the Chinese, the Indians, the Arabs, the Spanish, the French, the British... none of them. I'm NOT saying that these cultures are inferior... just that they have not been as dominant and omnipresent, either today, during their heydey, or as a sum total. I'm not looking at it with a short-term perspective. I'm adding up the total influence each of these civs has had on global culture.
Sports... well you must accept the definition I gave of culture earlier if you even consider this as qualifying as culture. Yes, soccer is the most popular sport in the world. Cricket comes in number 2 in terms of numbers... but only because there are so many people in India. Basketball is played all over the world. Much moreso than cricket. Baseball is enormously popular in Japan, all over Latin America, and in many other places. I'm not claiming American dominance in this area, but... I think they are at least 2nd after the British. When was 2nd place worthy of one star?
English is the international language, yes. Why? America. If not for the USA English would have long ago been eclipsed by German, Russian, or Spanish. If it hadn't been, then it would rapidly be losing against Chinese or Hindi right now. This is just a plain fact of history. I teach English all over the world. I should know why students want to learn English. It's not so that they can do business with New Zealand, or because they want to watch British films, or because they hope to emigrate to or study in Jamaica. The large majority of them wish to learn American English over British English or any other variety, and specifically say so.
The world's premiere broadcasting service is the BBC? Wow, that's not biased... well, again, I have lived all over the world. I can absolutely guarantee you that there is FAR more American television programming seen around the world than there is British. Between the BBC and CNN there is really little distinction made by those outside of Europe and North America. They are about equally well known. Still, my basic point stands... even if the USA is #2 (and they so clearly are NOT. American television DOMINATES TOTALLY), does that really warrant a one star rating?
Food.. point taken about few things being purely American. but... you want pure European food? That means bread and water, mostly. Tomatoes used in Italian pasta? Those came from the Americas. Hot peppers used in cuisines around the world from Asia to Africa? Those came from the Americas. Chocolate? Potatoes? Squash? All American... no country's cuisine is "pure." This is a naive idea. They all have components taken from other places and other cultures.
So how does American food dominate? You can get a McDonald's hamburger, a Coca Cola or Pepsi brand soft drink, or a Starbuck's frappacino in virtually every country in the world. They are popular and wildly successful the world over, as much as some people like to criticize them. You want bangers and mash in Korea, Saudi Arabia, or Mexico? You're probably SOL... Again I'm not saying American food is necessarily superior... it's just totally omnipresent. Almost everywhere in the world, in terms of popularity, what comes right after local cuisine? American. Italian is up there, as is Chinese. But if America isn't #1, it's definitely top 5. Again... deserving of one star? Clearly not.
Ask a true movie buff where the cultural center of film is and they'll say Europe? Jesus you people are soooo stuck on yourselves. You are absolutely wrong. Once again, Americans ABSOLUTELY DOMINATE the culture of film and have since the invention of moving pictures. American movies make the most money because they are enjoyed the world over by people from every culture and country. and for every big, dumb, popcorn film you name I can name one that is internationally recognized as a brilliant piece of art. There is no contest here. None.
Literature... America probably loses this one. But still they have made some enormous contributions and deserve more than one star, even in this, perhaps their single greatest weak spot of those you've listed. Emerson, Hawthorne, Whitman, Twain, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Updike, Lewis, Eliot, Faulkner, Steinbeck, Poe, Asimov... not exactly hacks. Personally I'm partial to Orson Scott Card and Chuck Palahniuk... also American. They get way more than one star in this category, even if they don't dominate as much as they do in other areas.
Musicals.. which are relevant today? Resentment doesn't equal a strong argument. If something is making money that means it is popular and widely-liked and widely known which gives credence to my argument. Yes London theater is great but many of the musicals you can see there were written in the United States. I'm not going to argue that Broadway has made a bigger impact on the world than the operas of Mozart or Wagner, or the tragedies of the ancient Greeks... they haven't... mostly because most people don't really care about musicals... but again their contribution is not equal to one star.
Museums... the Louvre is my personal favorite. The French really were excellent thieves.
The museums in Britain are also wonderful. In terms of classical art and anthropology nothing touches the museums of old Europe. Though the Smithsonian and the MET are no slouches... again.. not worthy of one star. And... if you want to see a museum of modern art, aviation technology, or recent cultural history there's no place better you can go than the USA.
It's a popular criticism of Europeans, bitter at their own increasing irrelevance in the waning years of their empires, to accuse Americans to only be good at selling things. If people didn't want to watch American movies, no amount of advertising would convince people to go see them. Sour grapes, guys... and if there is some credence to the argument that American culture is an extension of capitalism... well... they've done a fantastic job of spreading *that* aspect of their culture all over the world, too. It's just one more way out of many in which American culture permeates and touches everything, imitated over and over. Americans did not invent capitalism, but they did spread it everywhere.
You didn't even mention music. Everybody listens to American music. Spanish, Hindi, Arabic, Korean and Chinese music is very popular... in their particular markets... but American music dominates everything and is popular the world over, imitated everywhere. Rock and Roll, Rap, Hip Hop, Jazz, Blues, Country... and all the many different sub genres of each... all American. Not that other countries haven't made contributions... but without American music there would have never been The Beatles. Granted without Bach or Beethoven it's hard to imagine what musical tradition would have taken hold in America if any had at all... but what impact did each of these musicians and musical traditions have in their time? and today? Which has completely dominated culture on a global scale? (the likes of which you might say constitutes a "cultural victory")
Then of course there is style, technological innovations which have changed our lives and therefore our global culture (including the internet), political philosophy, gaming, pornography... etc etc etc etc
Point is... which I made clearly before... the Americans should be the MOST likely Civ in the game to win a cultural victory. Not the LEAST.
This part of the scenario is as unrealistic as their military superiority that they start the game with.
Sorry for the late reply.