Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Media Sociology Soc 473-1
Media Sociology Soc 473-1
This course examines the mass media as a social institution. In an era of globalization, it is
increasingly crucial to view the mass media through the lens of sociology. In recent years,
sociologists have studied significant changes in public policy that regulates the mass media,
popular culture is produced and experienced in both everyday life and in a broader social
context. Particular attention will be given to theories about the social organization of the mass
media industry. Topics include the organization of major media institutions, social forces that
shape production of mass media news and entertainment, selected studies in media content,
Think about this for a second: whenever you want to hear your favorite song, watch your
favorite show, or see the latest current events, where do you go? You more than likely turn on
your television, radio, or computer. The source that the majority of the general public uses to
get their news and information from is considered mass media. The mass media can be
Broadcast media transmit information electronically, via such media as film, radio,
television.
Digital media comprises both Internet and mobile mass communication. Internet media
comprise such services as email, social media sites, websites, and Internet-based radio and
television.
Outdoor media transmit information via such media as; billboards; blimps; flying billboards
(signs in tow of airplanes); placards or kiosks placed inside and outside of buses, commercial
Print media transmit information via physical objects, such as books, comics, magazines,
newspapers, or pamphlets.
Mass media means technology that is intended to reach a mass audience. It is the primary
means of communication used to reach the vast majority of the general public. The most
common platforms for mass media are newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and the
Internet. The general public typically relies on the mass media to provide information
regarding political issues, social issues, entertainment, and news in pop culture.
This is from a 16,000 year old cave painting from Lascaux, France
1st dated book. Printed with wooden blocks Printed in China 868
C.E.
England The London Gazette in 1666 was the 1st commercial newspaper
– home audio Patented by Thomas Edison in 1877 We can finally store and
transmit audio
The idea is more than 1000 years old. George Eastman made it more
available to the public in 1888 and founded the Eastman Kodak Company in 1892.
The history is clouded. Many people claim to have done it first. Nikola Tesla was most likely
1st
First public movie show in New York, 1896 Now we can store And
transmit video The first full length film (12 minutes) was The Great Train Robbery made in
1903
– live action in home 1936 First black & white then colour Allows us to transmit
more media to more people 1st Colour TV Philo Farnswoth in 1928 was the inventor
Computer 1964
Communication
The word ‗communication‘ is derived from the Latin verb ‗communicare‘, which means "to
share" or "to make common". It may be defined as the meaningful exchange of ideas or
Mass communication is "the practice whereby which a person, group of people, or large
organization creates a message and transmits it through some type of medium to a large,
and entities transmit information through mass media to large segments of the population at
the same time. It is usually related to newspaper, magazine, books, radio, television, film, the
internet etc as these media are used to propagate information, news and advertising.
The importance of communication
Communication, in all its varied forms, is a topic that is of great interest to sociologists. This
even in the simple societies of insects such as bees and ants. Mass communication is a recent
such as the steam-powered printing press, cinematography, and radio and TV broadcasting
As Marshall McLuhan (1964) has argued, the mass media can be seen as ‗extensions of our
senses‘— they allow us to see and hear beyond our normal sensory limits. But, unlike our
predecessors, the bulk of our knowledge is not based on our own direct experience. It is
mediated, or received second-hand, via the media. We may know more about drug-takers,
film stars, the problems of the Third World, or the national economy, but we have to rely
largely on the information on these topics provided by the mass media. As George Gerbner
writes: ‗Never have so many people in so many places shared so much of a common system
of messages and images and have the assumptions about life, society, and the world
embedded in them while having so little to do with their making. The fabric of popular
culture that relates elements of existence to each other and structures the common
consciousness of what is, what is important, and what is right, is now largely a manufactured
product.‘
Communication and Technology
In the olden times communities would communicate through the gong-gong beater, through
lighting fire, drums, the conch, horns etc. In Ghana after independence came the wired radios,
to stay connected anywhere, all the time, and the flow of information is nearly limitless.
Communication makes us feel that the world is at our finger tips. Modern communication has
brought a revolution to our present lives from education to medicine. In the future we will get
more benefit from the modern communication since it will develop day by day, thus bringing
Along with all the benefits, however, some mass media some potentially negative
consequences. Though our computers, televisions, and phones have its own advantages, they
have a negative impact on the way we communicate and interact. The more advanced
technology becomes, the more it seems to have control over our lives. Recent developments
in technology such as the internet also led to a decline in ―normal‖ social behaviours.
Modern technology has improved multiculturalism and the communication between cultures.
With modern communication technology such as TVs and phones, we can see what people at
the other end of the world are doing. This will greatly help us understand the cultural
diversity of this world, and we will learn to appreciate the cultural difference of people from
different part of the earth. Modern technology increases the communication between cultures.
By communication, one culture can learn from other culture and evolve.
CHARACTERISTICS AND FUNCTIONS OF MASS MEDIA
Mass media refers to the institutions that provide information: newspapers, magazines,
television, radio, film and multimedia Web sites. The term also is used for the specific
institutions of mass media, such as radio networks and television stations, movie companies,
music producers, and the Internet. Mass media is characterized by the transmission of
complex messages to large and diverse audiences, using sophisticated technology. Some of
One key characteristic of mass media is its ability to overcome the physical limitations
present in face-to-face communication. While one person can engage in public speaking and
reach one hundred thousand or so people in one of the world‘s largest stadiums, it would be
within an organizational setting. Examples of these sources are news reporters, film
producers, television producers and magazine editors. Likewise, the source generally is a
multiple entity, and the resulting message is the work of several persons. For example,
producers, writers, actors, directors and video editors all work together to create a television
message are a news report, a novel, a movie, a television program, a magazine article, a
erent aspects of
technology. Radio, for example, involves tape machines, microphones, devices that digitize
sound waves, transmitters that disseminate them, and receiving units that decode the sound
waves and render them back into audio form approximating the original. Sometimes, as in the
case of musical recording, the channel of mass communication may even enhance the sound
read a particular magazine. Mass audiences usually are heterogeneous, meaning that they are
both large and diverse. They actually are made up of groups of people with dissimilar
background, demographics, and socio-political characteristics; they are spread over a vast
geographic area. Such audiences are brought together by a single shared interest in the
particular message available through the mass medium. Message sources generally have only
limited information about their audiences. Radio station managers may know audience
demographics such as average ages, incomes, political interests, and so on, but they know
little about the individual members of the audience. Indeed, one characteristic of mass media
is that the audience members essentially remain anonymous. However, the mass media can
target a certain part of the population, for example, reaching mainly children through
cartoons.
communication is its lack of sensory richness. Mass media draws on fewer sensory channels
than face-to-face communication. While smell, taste, and touch can add context to a
conversation over a romantic dinner, our interaction with mass media messages rely almost
exclusively on sight and sound. Because of this lack of immediacy, mass media messages are
Last, mass media messages involve less interactivity and more delayed feedback than
other messages. The majority of messages sent through mass media channels are one way.
We don‘t have a way to influence an episode of Akan Drama as we watch it. Traditionally,
feedback has been minimal and generally delayed. We could send messages to the show‘s
producers and hope our feedback is received. A newspaper reader could write a letter to the
editor; a television viewer might respond to a survey. With the Internet, new possibilities are
have a need for information to satisfy curiosity, reduce uncertainty, and better understand the
world. Since information is knowledge and knowledge is power, media offer authentic and
timely facts and opinions about various event and situations to mass audience. Information
provided by mass media can be opinionated, objective, subjective, primary and secondary.
Informative functions of mass media also lets the audience knows about the happening
around them and come to know the truth. Media saturation has led to increased competition
to provide information, which creates the potential for news media outlets, for example, to
report information prematurely, inaccurately, or partially. Being the first to break particular
news or the most interesting pieces of news and pictures, such as journals putting themselves
in danger to get juicy information is a result of intense competition amongst the various mass
media.
(Christiane Amanpour, Persian Gulf War. Because of her emotional delivery from Sarajevo
during the Siege of Sarajevo, viewers and critics questioned her professional objectivity,
claiming that many of her reports were unjustified and favoured the Bosnian Muslims, to
which she replied, "There are some situations one simply cannot be neutral about, because
when you are neutral you are an accomplice. Objectivity doesn't mean treating all sides
equally. It means giving each side a hearing. Amanpour gained a reputation for being fearless
during the Gulf and Bosnian wars and for reporting from conflict areas.)
2. Education: Media provide education and information side by side. It provides education in
different subjects to people of all levels. They try to educate people directly or indirectly
using different forms of content. Distance education program, for example, is a direct
approach. Dramas, documentaries, interviews, feature stories and many other programs are
prepared to educate people indirectly. Especially in the developing country, mass media is
used as effective tools for mass awareness. In context of Nepal, media have been successful
in eradicating various traditional and evil superstitious practices from society through
continuous advocacy. In Ghana, for example, the mass media is employed to educate the
3. Entertainment: The other important function of mass media is the entertainment. It is also
performance that provides pleasure to people. Mass media fulfil this function by providing
amusement and assist in reducing tension to large degree. Newspapers and magazines, radio,
television and online medium offer stories, films, serials, and comics to entertain their
audience. By entertaining, the mass media provides diversion function. It is able to take
people‘s minds off impending examinations, distract people from problems and enable them
relax.
But these days, media have comprised information and education in the entertaining
programs. The fusion of entertainment and information is called infotainment. Similarly, the
and sets agendas in the public mind. It influences votes, changes attitudes and moderates
behaviour. Using editorials, articles, commentaries and among others, mass media persuades
Along with the above mentioned general functions, mass media performs some specific
functions too. Hence, the specific functions of mass media are explained below:
society closely. The function of mass media is to observe the society closely and
continuously and warn about threatening actions to the mass audience that are likely to
happen in future in order to minimise their effects. Likewise, mass media also informs about
the misconducts happening in the society to the concerned authority and discourage
Warning or beware surveillance occurs when the media inform us about threats from
hurricanes, erupting volcanoes, increasing inflation or military attack or coup d‘états. These
warning can be about immediate threats or chronic threats. Similarly, news of increasing
deforestation, drug abuse, girls trafficking, crimes etc. are also disseminated which may harm
the peace and security of the society. News about stock market prices, new products, fashion
ideas, recipes, and so on are examples of instrumental surveillance. In Ghana the mass media
informs the police and concerned institutions about accidents, fires, armed robbery, dumsor
etc.
The benefit of this is instantaneous awareness; the disadvantage is that misinformation can
travel just as quickly as accurate information, and speedy dissemination often means that
accusations and supposed facts are not verified before they are transmitted.
ii. Interpretation: The mass media do not supply just facts and data but also explanations
and interpretation of events and situations. Media offer various explanations, correlating and
interpreting information to make the reality clear. Unlike normal reporting, interpretation
function provides knowledge. News analysis, commentaries, editorials, and columns are
some examples of interpretative contents. Basically, such types of interpretative contents are
prepared by those journalists who have a vast knowledge of background information and
them operate in ethical grey areas because they use formats that make them seem like
iii. Linkage/Bonding: The function of mass media is to join together different elements of
society that are not directly connected. For instance, mass advertising attempts to link the
needs of buyers with the products of sellers or people who share common values and interests
can gather on an online forums. Similarly, by broadcasting news of those suffered from the
disease or natural disasters, media can help in collecting aids and provide the collected
amount to the victims. In this way, media become bridge between different groups who may
appropriate behaviour and attitudes. Media are the reflectors of society. They socialize people,
especially children and new-comers. Socialization is a process by which, people are made to
behave in ways that are acceptable in their culture or society. Though this process, we learn how
to become a member of our society or human society in greater sense. Television and film and in
recent times the internet have the greatest potential for socialization because they seem to be the
most realistic. They can be quite influential, particularly on young people; and images or role
models of social behaviour as well as fashion, grooming styles, and other aspects of social
interaction can be presented through television and film. Their effectiveness is evident in the
similarity of youth culture throughout the world, in which the only common influence is provided
by the media.
Though the process of socialization media help to shape our behaviours, conducts, attitudes and
beliefs. The process of socialization brings people close and ties them into single unit.
In addition to the functions discussed previously, media outlets also serve a gatekeeping
function, which means they affect or control the information that is transmitted to their
audiences. This function has been analysed and discussed by mass communication scholars
for decades. Overall, the mass media serves four gatekeeping functions: relaying, limiting,
expanding, and reinterpreting. John R. Bittner, Mass Communication, 6th ed. (Boston, MA:
In terms of relaying, mass media requires some third party to get a message from one human
to the next. Whereas interpersonal communication only requires some channel or sensory
route, mass media messages need to ―hitch a ride‖ on an additional channel to be received.
We also require more than sensory ability to receive mass media messages. While hearing
and/or sight are typically all that‘s needed to understand what someone standing in front of
you is saying, you‘ll need a computer, smartphone, or tablet to pick up that mic.com stories.
In summary, relaying refers to the gatekeeping function of transmitting a message, which
usually requires technology and equipment that the media outlet controls and has access to,
interpersonal and small group, we are primarily receivers when it comes to mass
In terms of the gatekeeping function of limiting, media outlets decide whether or not to pass
information to the public. Because most commercial media space is so limited and expensive,
almost every message we receive is edited, which is inherently limiting. A limited message
doesn‘t necessarily mean the message is bad or manipulated, as editing is a necessity. But a
range of forces including time constraints, advertiser pressure, censorship, or personal bias,
among others, can influence limiting choices. Limiting based on bias or self-interest is not
necessarily immoral as long as those who relay the message don‘t claim to be objective. In
fact, many people choose to engage with media messages that have been limited to match
their own personal views or preferences. This kind of limiting also allows us to have more
control over the media messages we receive. For example, some websites (eg. On police
brutality in the US) and cable channels allow us to narrow in on already-limited content, so
Gatekeepers also function to expand messages. For example, a blogger may take a story from
additional sources, and post it on his or her blog. In this case, expanding helps us get more
information than we would otherwise so we can be better informed. On the other hand, a
when gatekeepers translate a message from something too complex or foreign for us to
understand into something meaningful. Given that policy language is difficult for many to
understand and that legislation contains many details that may not be important to average
people, a concise and lay reinterpretation of the content by the gatekeepers (the media
outlets) would have helped the public better understand the bill. Of course, when media
outlets reinterpret content to the point that it is untruthful or misleading, they are not ethically
In each of these gatekeeping functions, the media can fulfill or fail to fulfill its role as the
While countries like China, North Korea, Syria, and Burma have media systems that are
nearly if not totally controlled by the state regime, the media in the United States and many
other countries is viewed as the ―watchdog‖ for the government. This watchdog role is
intended to keep governments from taking too much power from the people and overstepping
their bounds. Central to this role is the notion that the press works independently of the
government. The ―freedom of the press‖ is guaranteed by most democratic countries. The
media is supposed to report information to the public so they can make informed decisions.
The media also engages in investigative reporting, which can uncover dangers or corruption
that the media can then expose so that the public can demand change.
Of course, this ideal is not always met in practice. Some people have critiqued the media‘s
ability to fulfil this role, referring to it instead as a lapdog or attack dog. In terms of the
lapdog role, the media can become too ―comfortable‖ with a politician or other public figure,
which might lead it to uncritically report or passively relay information without questioning
it.
In terms of the attack-dog role, the twenty-four-hour news cycle and constant reporting on
public figures has created the kind of atmosphere where reporters may be waiting to pounce
on a mistake or error in order to get the scoop and be able to produce a tantalizing story. This
has also been called being on ―scandal patrol‖. Media scholars have critiqued this practice,
saying that too much adversarial or negative reporting leads the public to think poorly of
public officials and be more dissatisfied with government. Additionally, they claim that
attack-dog reporting makes it more difficult for public officials to do their jobs.
Sociologists refer to this as a mediated culture where media reflects and creates the culture.
Communities and individuals are bombarded constantly with messages from a multitude of
sources including TV, billboards, and magazines, to name a few. These messages promote
not only products, but moods, attitudes, and a sense of what is and is not important. Mass
media makes possible the concept of celebrity: without the ability of movies, magazines, and
news media to reach across thousands of miles, people could not become famous. In fact,
only political and business leaders, as well as the few notorious outlaws, were famous in the
past. Only in recent times have actors, singers, and other social elites become celebrities or
―stars.‖
The current level of media saturation has not always existed. As recently as the 1960s and
1970s, television, for example, consisted of primarily three networks, public broadcasting,
and a few local independent stations. These channels aimed their programming primarily at
two‐parent, middle‐class families. Even so, some middle‐class households did not even own a
television. Today, one can find a television in the poorest of homes, and multiple TVs in most
middle‐class homes. Not only has availability increased, but programming is increasingly
diverse with shows aimed to please all ages, incomes, backgrounds, and attitudes. This
widespread availability and exposure makes television the primary focus of most mass‐media
discussions. More recently, the Internet has increased its role exponentially as more
What role does mass media play? Legislatures, media executives, local school officials, and
sociologists have all debated this controversial question. While opinions vary as to the extent
and type of influence the mass media wields, all sides agree that mass media is a permanent
part of modern culture. The main sociological perspectives on the role of media are
discussed.
In one of the earliest formulations of media effects, widespread fear that mass-media
messages could outweigh other stabilizing cultural influences, such as family and
community, led to what is known as the direct effects model of media studies. This model,
prevalent in the 1920s and 1930s, assumed that audiences passively accepted media messages
and would exhibit predictable reactions in response to those messages. For example,
following the radio broadcast of War of the Worlds in 1938 (which was a fictional news
report of an alien invasion), some people panicked and believed the story to be true.
Limited-effects theory
In contrast to the direct effect theory, the limited‐effects theory argues that because people
generally choose what to watch or read based on what they already believe, media exerts a
negligible influence. This theory originated and was tested in the 1940s and 1950s. Studies
that examined the ability of media to influence voting found that well‐informed people relied
more on personal experience, prior knowledge, and their own reasoning. However, media
―experts‖ more likely swayed those who were less informed. Critics point to two problems
with this perspective. First, they claim that limited‐effects theory ignores the media's role in
framing and limiting the discussion and debate of issues. How media frames the debate and
what questions members of the media ask change the outcome of the discussion and the
possible conclusions people may draw. Second, this theory came into existence when the
Class-dominant theory
The class‐dominant theory argues that the media reflects and projects the view of the
minority elite, which controls it. Those people who own and control the corporations that
produce media comprise the elite. Advocates of this view concern themselves particularly
with massive corporate mergers of media organizations, which limit competition and put big
business at the reins of media. Their concern is that when ownership is restricted, a few
people then have the ability to manipulate what people can see or hear. For example, owners
can easily avoid or silence stories that expose unethical corporate behaviour or hold
The issue of sponsorship adds to this problem. Advertising dollars fund most media.
Networks aim programming at the largest possible audience because the broader the appeal,
the greater the potential purchasing audience and the easier selling air time to advertisers
becomes. Thus, news organizations may shy away from negative stories about corporations
(especially parent corporations) that finance large advertising campaigns in their newspaper
companies like Nike and other textile manufacturers were slow to run stories on their news
shows about possible human‐rights violations by these companies in foreign countries. Media
watchers identify the same problem at the local level where city newspapers will not give
new cars poor reviews or run stories on selling a home without an agent because the majority
of their funding comes from auto and real estate advertising. This influence also extends to
programming. In the 1990s a network cancelled a short‐run drama with clear religious
sentiments, Christy, because, although highly popular and beloved in rural America, the
program did not rate well among young city dwellers that advertisers were targeting in ads.
Critics of this theory counter these arguments by saying that local control of news media
largely lies beyond the reach of large corporate offices elsewhere, and that the quality of
news depends upon good journalists. They contend that those less powerful and not in control
of media have often received full media coverage and subsequent support. As examples they
Agenda-Setting Theory
In contrast to the extreme views of the direct effects model, the agenda-setting theory of
media states that mass media determine the issues that concern the public rather than the
public‘s views. Under this theory, the issues that receive the most attention from media
become the issues that the public discusses, debates, and demands action on. This means that
the media are determining what issues and stories the public should think about. Therefore,
when the media fail to address a particular issue, it becomes marginalized in the minds of the
public. When critics claim that a particular media outlet has an agenda, they are drawing on
this theory. Agenda can range from a perceived liberal bias in the news media to the
propagation of cutthroat capitalist ethics in films. For example, the agenda-setting theory
explains such phenomena as the rise of public opinion against smoking. Before the mass
media began taking an antismoking stance, smoking was considered a personal health issue.
and a variety of media outlets, the mass media moved smoking into the public arena, making
it a public health issue rather than a personal health issue. More recently, coverage of natural
disasters has been prominent in the news. However, as news coverage wanes, so does the
For most of the history of research in mass communication, content has been seen as a silver
bullet shot from a media gun to penetrate a hapless audience" (Anderson & Meyer, YEAR ?p.
48).The social action theory claims that people interact with media to create their own
meanings out of the images and messages they receive. This theory sees audiences as playing
an active rather than passive role in relation to mass media. Media audiences participate
actively in mediated communication; they construct meanings from the content they perceive.
It argues that meaning is not delivered in the communication process, rather it is constructed
within it.
Theorists emphasize that audiences choose what to watch among a wide range of options,
choose how much to watch, and may choose the mute button or the VCR remote over the
programming selected by the network or cable station. Studies of mass media done by
whether written text or media images and messages, they interpret that material based on
their own knowledge and experience. Thus, when researchers ask different groups to explain
the meaning of a particular song or video, the groups produce widely divergent
The cultivation analysis theory states that heavy exposure to media causes individuals to
develop an illusory perception of reality based on the most repetitive and consistent messages
of a particular medium. It states that media exposure, specifically to television, shapes our
social reality by giving us a distorted view on the amount of violence and risk in the world.
This theory most commonly applies to analyses of television because of that medium‘s
uniquely pervasive nature. Under this theory, someone who watches a great deal of television
may form a picture of reality that does not correspond to actual life. Televised violent acts,
whether those reported on news programs or portrayed on television dramas, for example,
greatly outnumber violent acts that most people encounter in their daily lives. Thus, an
individual who watches a great deal of television may come to view the world as more
Cultivation analysis projects a number of different areas for research, such as the differences
in perception between heavy and light users of media. To apply this theory, the media content
that an individual normally watches, must be analysed for various types of messages. Then,
researchers must consider the given media consumer‘s cultural background of individuals to
correctly determine other factors that are involved in his or her perception of reality. For
example, the socially stabilizing influences of family and peer groups influence children‘s
television viewing and the way they process media messages. If an individual‘s family or
social life plays a major part in his/her life, the social messages that he/she receives from
these groups may compete with the messages she receives from television.
This theory states that consumers use the media to satisfy specific needs or desires. Many
people use the Internet to seek out entertainment, to find information, to communicate with
need, and the needs determine the way in which media are used. By examining factors of
different groups‘ media choices, researchers can determine the motivations behind media use.
Researchers have identified a number of common motives for media consumption. These
include relaxation, social interaction, entertainment, arousal, education, escape, and a host of
interpersonal and other social needs. By examining the motives behind the consumption of a
particular form of media, researchers can better understand both the reasons for that
medium‘s popularity and the roles that the medium fills in society
Reciprocal Effect
The reciprocal effect points to the interactive relationship between the media and the subject
being covered. When a person or event gets media attention, it influences the way the person
acts or the way the event functions. Media coverage often increases self-consciousness,
which affects our actions. It‘s similar to the way that we change behaviour when we know
certain people are around and may be watching us. For example, the Occupy Movement that
began on Wall Street in New York City gained some attention from alternative media and
people using micromedia platforms like independent bloggers. Once the movement started
getting mainstream press attention, the coverage affected the movement. As news of the
Occupy movement in New York spread, people in other cities and towns across the country
started to form their own protest groups. In this case, media attention caused a movement to
The boomerang effect refers to media-induced change that is counter to the desired change.
In the world of twenty-four-hour news and constant streams of user-generated material, the
effects of gaffes, blunders, or plain old poor decisions are much more difficult to control or
contain. Before a group or person can clarify or provide context for what was said, a story
could go viral and a media narrative constructed that is impossible to backtrack and very
difficult to even control. Use a Ghanaian example (Okudzeto and the judgment debt issue).
Sensitization effect
As a result of their relative social isolation, the police rely to a large extent on the mass media
as a barometer of public opinion. If particular forms of crime and deviance are presented by
the media as matters of great concern (urban crime and ‗mugging‘, drug-taking, or street
demonstrations, for example) then the police will respond by focusing their attention on such
people and activities. They become particularly sensitive to signs of such behaviour from
among all those they could attend to. And because within any community there exist a large
amount of undetected crime, such focusing produces more arrests. The courts also become
sensitized to issues raised in the media and respond with sentences of increased severity. The
public too are put on the alert for particular forms of deviance. Part of the process of
sensitization is the way in which certain styles of dress and objects are elevated into visible
symbols of deviance.
During a moral panic, news reports may carry stylized images that emphasize these symbols
of deviance. And of course the deviants themselves, and many others who ‗appear‘ to fall
into the same category, are spun out of the world of ‗respectable‘ society into the deep space
of the ‗outsider‘ by the accelerating spiral or moral panic. At each stage the mass media are
Social Stability
When social change and conflict are high; and established institutions, beliefs, and practices
are challenged; people make new evaluations and choices. In such cases of instability,
In this section we examine some of the recent research into the effects of the media which
shows how the media reproduce a dominant ideology. Marxist theory has made an important
contribution to the development of this work, described by Stuart Hall as the ‗critical‘
approach. The way in which ideas help the ruling class to retain their control over other
groups and create consensus within society is an issue that has received a great deal of
attention by modern Marxist writers. But even writers who would not place themselves
within the Marxist tradition have recognized that the media and their effects cannot be
ideology which is expressed through the mass media. Criticism of the ‗dominant ideology‘
approach has come both from within and outside the Marxist perspective. Marxist and
pluralist critics have questioned whether there is a unified dominant ideology. They also point
to cases where it appears that the media operate in ways that are in conflict with ruling class
interests.
The term ‗agenda-setting‘ refers to a process whereby the terms of reference for debate are
fixed to suit the interests of the powerful. It should be stressed that setting an agenda does not
prohibit all debate or disagreement—it merely sets the boundaries within which the debate
should take place. A subtle form of ideological control can be successfully imposed on
It is in just such a way that the critical approach in media sociology sees the effects of the
mass media. They provide an illusion of ‗openness‘ as a forum for competing points of view,
but this is all circumscribed within an overall ‗discourse‘ or agenda which sets the limits to
what shall and, more importantly, what shall not, be discussed by society.
One approach which has been a strong influence on media sociologists in recent years is
based on the work of Karl Marx. Writing before the development of TV, film, and radio,
Marx did produce a number of useful insights into the role of the media in capitalist societies.
His own experience as a journalist was a useful resource in this (see Murdock, 1982).
In his view, all capitalist societies were split into two major sections. A small group of
powerful people (the ruling class), through their ownership of the factories and equipment
used to make the things needed by people in society, were able to dominate all other groups.
These other groups, to whom Marx referred collectively as the working classes, were put to
work by the dominant group as employees, although they were not allowed to receive the full
The power of this ruling group or class arose from their control of the economy but,
according to Marx, it spread out from here to cover all other aspects of society. For such an
unequal system to persist it was essential that the exploited working classes were kept under
firm control. At its most basic level this was achieved through the power that owners had to
sack workers and deny them the means of earning their living, but this control extended
throughout the major institutions of society: church, school, family, and the state itself. For
Marx, the state was no neutral institution which represented in a democratic way the interests
of all. Regardless of the electoral processes that led to the selection of a government, the
state, in a capitalist society, would continue to represent, in the main, the interests of the
ruling class. For these reasons, he believed, it was impossible to change society gradually
through democratic elections. The control of the ruling classes extended also into the control
of ideas. ‗In every historical epoch‘, wrote Marx, ‗the dominant ideas are those of the
dominant class.‘ The mass media are to be included in this observation. It is to be expected,
from a Marxist perspective, that the dominant ideas that they express will reflect ruling-class
interests.
The Frankfurt School theorists were among the first to examine the fundamental roles of the
media in shaping thought and behaviour, influencing politics, and managing consumer
demand in the twentieth century. The work of Theodor Adorno (1903–69) represents one of
the first sustained meditations on the effects of mass media on culture and society. Adorno‘s
account of mass media, or what he called the culture industry, was developed in the context
of the work of the Frankfurt School and their project of critical theory. The term "Culture
massification. The Institute began from a broadly Marxist position, however, they recognized
that the direction in which Western societies were developing could not be accounted for by
orthodox Marxism. This was a response to the apparent divergence between Marxist theory
and the developmental trajectory of advanced capitalist societies, in particular, the integral
role of culture in this context. Various phenomena, such as the emergence and the burgeoning
influence of a range of technological media, raised questions that highlighted the inadequacy
Cultural production and consumption were playing an increasing central role in capitalist
societies and, as a result, a new set of theoretical tools were required to analyse these
agencies which organize free time – for example the radio, television, film and professional
sport industries –the Frankfurt theorists stressed the urgency of developing a sociology of
In the 1930s the Frankfurt School‘s continued existence in Nazi Germany became untenable,
and it was forced into exile, eventually re-establishing itself in the USA. This experience
proved crucial in the evolution of Adorno‘s media theory. In Hitler‘s Germany he had
witnessed the powerful role that mass media could play in shaping the opinions and
behaviour of populations, and arriving in America he confronted a society in which the mass
media‘s influence was ubiquitous but apparently benign. The veneer of democracy and
simple diversion that characterized American media did not convince Adorno. He believed
that a common logic underlay both the propaganda of the Reich and the mass entertainment
of the USA: both were manifestations of the capitalism‘s infiltration of everyday life, and
thus any adequate theory of capitalism must factor in the role played by mass media, or what
he and his colleague Horkheimer had come to call the culture industry. Adorno and
Horkheimer saw media reproduction as the ingression of the capitalism into the very fabric of
They highlight the presence of mass-produced culture, created and disseminated by exclusive
institutions and consumed by a passive, homogenised audience in both systems. The Culture
Industry is influenced by European politics and the war by which the continent was
Adorno‘s vision of the culture industry receives its fullest expression in the Dialectic of
Enlightenment (Adorno and Horkheimer 1997 [first published in 1944]) in which they
proposed that popular culture is akin to a factory producing standardized cultural goods —
films, radio programmes, magazines, etc. — that are used to manipulate mass society into
passivity. Consumption of the easy pleasures of popular culture, made available by the mass
communications media, renders people docile and content, no matter how difficult their
economic circumstances. The inherent danger of the culture industry is the cultivation of
false psychological needs that can only be met and satisfied by the products of capitalism.
In their view, mass culture and communications stand in the centre of leisure activity, are
important agents of socialization, mediators of political reality, and should thus be seen as major
institutions of contemporary societies with a variety of economic, political, cultural and social
effects.
This regulation, via law, rules or procedures, can have various goals like intervention to
protect a stated "public interest", or encouraging competition and an effective media market,
or establishing common technical standards. The principal targets of media regulation are the
press, radio and television, but may also include film, recorded music, cable, satellite, storage
and distribution technology (discs, tapes etc), the internet, mobile phones etc.
Regulation refers to the whole process of control or guidance, by established rules and
procedures, applied by governments and other political and administrative authorities to all
kinds of media activities. Regulation takes many forms, ranging from clauses in national
can be internal as well as external. In the former case, we are usually speaking of `self-
regulation', where internal controls are applied, sometimes in response to public pressure or
universal provision as
well as securing communicative and cultural ends chosen by the people for themselves.
especially
and
public participation.
language.
undesirable content.
industries.
the societies in which they are implemented. What is defined as a regulatory issue or problem
In the West the freedom to publish is frequently regarded as one of the sacred values of
democracy alongside free speech and freedom of opinion. The freedom to publish is not
merely a protection for the individual from the excesses of government; it is seen as a
This flattering view of the role of the mass media is widely embraced by writers, journalists,
and broadcasters. They make up what is sometimes described as the ‗fourth estate‘ (the others
being the government, the judiciary, and the church), whose role is to seek out corruption and
stand up for the rights of the ordinary people: ‗muck-rakers, cross examiners of the great on
behalf of the common people, convenors of public debate and conveyors of hard fact…they
help to keep liberal democracy alive in societies too populous and too complex for face-to
Included in this notion of a ‗free‘ press is the idea that between them the media express a
range of views that satisfy the tastes and opinions of all. The free press idea is an important
component of the pluralist view of politics, in which power is balanced between competing
groups and interests but where no one group is dominant. Such freedom is often contrasted
with the position of the press in countries like the Soviet Union where it is seen to be more a
The view of the press as watchdog is criticized by Cirino (1973). Many matters of importance
to the public are effectively suppressed in the media by powerful interest groups. Issues like
the scale of hunger and malnutrition among America‘s poor, the hazards of motor vehicle
design, and the dangers of smoking—issues uncomfortable for politicians and large
media lead a campaign of protest, although they may be forced to adopt it once it is firmly
established.
But how valid is the claim that the media in western democracies are an independent force—
one of the guarantors of liberty? The details of the relationship between the state and the
media will, of course, vary with time and place. But the freedom of the press is to a large
extent a myth—a myth that is nevertheless much cherished by governments for the image of
develop unfettered by some form of regulation and control. The mass media have too
powerful an influence on citizens to allow them unlicensed freedom. One of the clearest
indications of this is the way in which invading forces now make the capture of the media
circumspection when dealing with the media. Despite the reality of intervention, governments
‗police‘ a mass medium that is itself so well-disciplined that it never steps out of line. The
arsenal of powers that the state is able to deploy against the media is for the most part kept in
When the State is in danger, our own cherished freedoms, and even the rules of natural justice
During periods of crisis and ‗national emergency‘, governments are likely to resort to more
direct forms of control over the media. For example governments frequently possess
At the beginning of the Second World War the British coalition government led by Winston
Churchill banned, for a time, the communist Daily Worker newspaper on the grounds that it
was a threat to a unified war effort, and the much larger circulation Daily Mirror was
threatened with similar treatment. In both these cases it has been argued (Curran and Seaton
1981) that the real motive for suppression was to muzzle political criticism rather than to
for them by the government. Control over this information flow provides governments with
A major mechanism for this control is the classification of information as state secrets. The
British government, for example, surrounds its activities with one of the most impenetrable
blankets of secrecy to be found in the West. This is the much-criticized Official Secrets Act,
signed by two million British civil servants, which assumes every official activity to be an
official secret unless otherwise designated by a civil servant. The all-embracing nature of this
law was neatly expressed by Sir Martin James-Furnival, former head of the intelligence
The Act has often been used by governments to silence their critics. A breach of the Act is
official secret. Junior civil servant Sarah Tisdall was sent to jail in 1984 for passing on
information to the Guardian newspaper about the manipulation of Parliament by the Defence
mechanism for manipulating the media—the government ‗leak‘. These are frequently not
genuine ‗leaks‘ but ‗controlled releases‘ of information that the government wishes to
become more widely known. Among the public relations sections of government departments
this has become a recognized method of news management—an essential part of the
In many areas of journalism the reporter has to rely on a particular organization for
information. The crime reporter, for example, cannot function without the co-operation of the
police. Recently media sociologists have come to recognize that the relationship a journalist
has with such official sources may strongly affect the stories that are written. It is one of the
subtle means by which the state, as a major source of information, can control what the media
report. It has been alleged, for example, that following a series of conflicts between the police
British cities in 1981 (the ‗riots‘), the police have refused to tell the press when similar events
Whatever their reasons, this shows that the police can and do suppress stories about which
Steve Chibnall‘s (1977) analysis of crime reporting in the British press illustrates this. A
reciprocal relationship develops, one that benefits both the police and the reporter. The
journalist can become a source of information for the police, in particular from the criminal
underworld. Similarly the police can use the crime reporter to appeal to the public for
information on, or witnesses to, a crime. False or misleading information may be released in
order to hoax a criminal into feeling secure from detection or to panic him into making a
mistake which leads to capture. In other cases stories may be created as a smokescreen to
draw the attention of the public away from some other ‗sensitive‘ aspect of police activity.
The crime reporter is, of course, often aware that these news management techniques are
being used by police spokespeople. But failure to co-operate with the police will make the
produce stories critical of the police are likely to be ‗frozen-out‘. They will receive no
assistance from the police in their stories. But this often only produces more ‗hostile‘ stories,
and the journalist who is punished in this way will anyway be able to obtain information from
other journalists.
More effective is the technique Chibnall calls ‗buttering-up‘. Drinks, lunches, and exclusive
stories may be offered as inducements to toe the line. Reporters who remain critical may be
Libel
Laws of libel exist to protect individuals against unjustified or damaging public statements.
As such they are an important legal safeguard of the citizen‘s right to personal privacy—one
supported by many international bodies such as the European Convention. This law can be in
conflict with the activity of investigative journalism—the interpretation of libel in the USA,
for instance, allows much more freedom to the press than in Britain.
The most serious criticism of the working of the law in Britain is that it provides protection
only for the rich and powerful. Libel cases are very expensive and losers may have to pay the
legal costs of both parties. Legal aid—a system of financial support for the legal costs of the
poor—is not available for such actions in Britain. In effect this means that most ordinary
people cannot afford the financial risk of a legal action against a national newspaper, for
example, even where they have a strong case. The law also inhibits journalists in what they
write about the wealthy, for they too may not be able to afford a legal action brought by a
(1977) has shown that the use by government of this law against the emerging popular
convict in such cases. But more importantly, even those cases the government won served
The government turned instead to a system of taxes on newspapers, their advertisements, and
newsprint (the paper on which they were printed) in an attempt to price working class readers
Contempt of Court
This law constrains what reporters may say about court cases that have begun or are about to.
It is an important protection of the right of the individual to a fair trial. The US version of this
law gives much more freedom to the press and allows, for example, interviews with witnesses
and reconstructions of cases before the trial has begun. But the law of contempt has
A famous case of this was the ban on an article that was to have been published in the Sunday
Times in Britain. It had alleged negligence on the part of the Distillers Company, makers of
the drug Thalidomide. The article was ruled in contempt of court because of its possible
effect on the outcome of cases against the company due to be brought on behalf of the
children affected by the drug. It has been argued that the revised 1981 Contempt of Court
Act, although allowing more room for press comment on court cases, would not have
Two competing views have shaped the political and academic discussion of broadcasting.
One sees broadcasting as a public service not concerned with profit. The other holds that the
interests of the audience are best served if broadcasting organizations are commercial
The public interest theory claims state ownership of the press enhances civil and political
rights; whilst under the public choice theory, it curtails them by suppressing public oversight
However, the state has not relinquished an interest in broadcasting even in those countries
where the commercial ethos reigns supreme. In every country the state has attempted to
In recent years the balance of arguments between the two competing views has shifted
towards the commercial model. Collins (1983) suggests two reasons for this. First there has
been an ideological shift towards views that are increasingly critical of notions of public
service, state control, and intervention. This has been associated with a strong swing to the
right in British and American politics. The second reason is the fact that new methods have
been developed for broadcasting signals which overcome the technical limitations of
conventional broadcasting.
Direct broadcasting by satellite and a new generation of cables which allow a broad range of
bands to be transmitted down them, mean that it is now possible to transmit an almost
unrestricted range of choices for consumers. These services offer the potential of being
increasingly interactive rather than simply one-way processes of communication. They are
expected to revolutionize patterns of work (which may now be done from home) and
consumption (shopping by direct order from home). The support given to these developments
by many governments is based on the optimistic belief that by nurturing the development of
these new technologies they will create the conditions for a new industrial revolution which
Two examples will be examined here. The case of French broadcasting is interesting because
until recently it was a total state monopoly. By contrast the development of broadcasting in
the USA has always embraced enthusiastically the commercial model and has in recent years
countries.
CIA made its own foray into news control in the 1940s with a programme to infiltrate the
media, with the idea to have select journalists parrot the official government line under the
guise of national patriotism. Some news members were simply duped, naively thinking that
they were helping America by disseminating important news. Others were simply
unscrupulous and morally deficient in their professional trade and were easily enough bought
out, spewing whatever disinformation and propaganda that they could cash in on.
This project was known as "Operation Mockingbird," the name alone was suggestive of the
mission's objective, total control of the U.S. media system. Many might naively scoff at such
an idea, until perhaps they hear it straight from the horse's mouth.
Commercial influences
Media organizations can be subjected to a variety of commercial influences. In the west the
majority of media organizations are themselves commercial undertakings. They are usually
part of some bigger industrial or financial group. In either case the need to maintain
profitability is likely to an influence on their activities. As we shall see there is debate among
sociologists about the extent to which profit-seeking is the prime motive in large modern
For many of the media organizations advertising is an important, and sometimes the most
Not all media organizations are in private ownership. Many are part of the public sector,
sponsored and regulated by the state, where the main requirement is to provide a public
service: informing, educating, and entertaining audiences. The BBC in Britain and the French
among media sociologists about whether such arrangements leave the organization free from
government and commercial influence (see pp. 69–78). They nevertheless have to exist
criteria. Often they engage directly in commercial activities. The BBC supplements its
revenue from licence fees by the sale of books and recordings to the general public and of TV
– or not use – as they see fit. A significant share of the influence media exert arises out of the
fact that they have become an integral part of other institutions‘ operations, while they also
have achieved a degree of self-determination and authority that forces other institutions, to
greater or lesser degrees, to submit to their logic. The media are at once part of the fabric of
society and culture and an independent institution that stands between other cultural and
social institutions and coordinates their mutual interaction. The duality of this structural
relationship sets a number of preconditions for how media messages in given situations are
media use and media effects need to take account of the circumstance that society and
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