Different voices, similar perspectives? "useful" reviews at the international movie database

Digital networked environments have enabled cross-border interactions, which can facilitate understanding and multiperspectivalism when participants' opportunities to be heard by others are not limited by social or technical factors. We examine the International Movie Database, where people worldwide contribute movie ratings and reviews. An important feature of IMDb is its social voting mechanism, which serves as a gatekeeping process; participants vote as to whether or not reviews are "useful," and the most useful reviews are predominately displayed. We question whether or not international voices are represented among these elite reviews, and whether they bring unique views that differ from domestic (U.S.) perspectives. We find that international contributions are among the best-rated reviews at rates we would expect. However, we find little evidence that these reviews differ from those written by locals, and question whether participants are really exposed to alternative views of popular movies, despite IMDb's international character.