Critical reflection I Lara Mangrané

Media Sociology

Media and their impact to the modern world

A study of modernization and media based on the readings of Lerner and Sparks.
The concept of modernity has often been used as a synonym for progress, for predominance. It
is a word stained by European and American superpowers, where their model and paradigm
prevail, leaving aside alternative conceptions and diverse models. The only correct path is the
one marked by the West. The media have played a key role in this development of the modern
spirit. Radio is the perfect example of how new values have reached the entire population,
which had never had access before. This phenomenon is what Sparks and Lerner's readings
address, how modernity is formed, and what role the media play in this establishment.
To begin with, it is necessary to understand where the concept of modernity comes from, and it
is clearly a pattern first established by European powers and, after World War II, by the United
States and the USSR. ‘The USA would offer its own model of the path to development for the
poorer countries of the world’ (Hernández-Ramos and Schramm, 1989: 9). A model that, on pa-
per, had guaranteed effectiveness but faced various problems in its implementation that had not
been considered.

In this theoretical model, the media play a crucial role in disseminating the values of modernity
everywhere and causing social change to achieve prosperity and fulfill the capitalist ideal. But
what is modernity? Sociologist Max Weber defines modernity as much more than simply a
system of property relations, and often he used the broader term 'modern' for the system he was
analyzing’ (Gerth and Mills, 1958: 196ff).
Modernity is the response to traditionalism, and the Western model of modernity has been
sought to be imposed everywhere. Rogers specifies that 'modernization, then, is a multi-
dimensional concept which is not to be equated with Europeanization or Westernization and
which implies no value judgment as to its desirability' (Rogers, 1969: 15). A poorly chosen
quote given the historical perspective it dissolves.
Modernity has always adapted to what the superpowers have wanted: to make countries have a
capitalist or communist economy. Modernity is explained as global when it has ultimately been
reduced to the economic aspect from all countries, as Weber explained modernity and capitalism
are intertwined. The communist model doesn’t escape of this vision, as it has also been used to
indoctrinate developing countries.
For Sparks, modernity arises from empathy to imagine oneself in a different position from the
current one. Something that the author himself admits does not occur in populations where
traditional agriculture is the economic foundation. Lerner also expresses this same idea with the
example of the Iranian film industry, impossible to push forward despite the education of
thousands of students. Modernity goes beyond values and is deeply intertwined with economic
support. Without an economic engine, there is no way to progress because the population does
not have a collective imagination to identify itself in a higher position than that of a farmer.
Faced with this problem, the solution of experts has been based on two axes: formal education
and the expansion of mass media like radio. Through education, children - it seems that, in
many cases, the female half of the population was relegated to domestic tasks - adopted the
values that the government wanted: the values of modernity. But education is a slow process,
and mass media offered the same effects without as many costs and time. Nevertheless, as
Lerner expresses, the case of Egypt: 'In the remote villages of Egypt, when the government
inserted radio into the community, nothing else changed in the daily round of life-except the
structure of expectations. This is the typical situation that over the past decade has been
producing the revolution of rising frustrations. The mass media have been used to stimulate
people in some sense. It does so by raising their levels of aspiration for the good things of the
world, for a better life.' (Lerner, 1963: 344)
Critical reflection I Lara Mangrané
Media Sociology
Therefore, this theoretical imposition ultimately leads to the revolution of rising frustrations. A
revolution that usually ends in dictatorial regimes or with models far from democratic, like the
dictatorships in Central America in the second half of the 20th century. Hence, many experts
like Lerner argue that 'a seeking for something better must be balanced by a finding - as, in
equilibrium, a demand must be balanced by a supply. It is the continuous failure of many
transitional societies to maintain the balance of psychic supply and demand that underlies the
new revolution of raising frustrations.' (Lerner, 1963: 333)
Currently, models like the Chinese one present undemocratic alternatives to modernization,
which combine endless economic and industrial growth with the social control typical of
communism. This has made China an economic superpower in recent decades through citizen
control and repression. Is this really the reality sought through modernity? A modernity based
on the absence of democracy and human rights, on the culture of wage exploitation, and the
annihilation of individual thought? What indoctrination role do mass media play in this
spectrum? It seems increasingly close the rejection of democracy and human rights, how can
this be stopped?
The modernity of the 20th century is already surpassed in today's world; media studies and
sociology must face new challenges and seek real and feasible solutions to prevent regression
towards non-democratic systems. Solutions that should not leave behind the most marginalized
sectors of society and should benefit everyone, not just a wealthy minority. A solution that must
consider the planet's production limits as well as the quality of life for the entire population.
Confusing times are coming when the definition of modernity will be molded in favor of
individual interests; we must be resolute in our slogans to make the planet a more welcoming
place for everyone who lives in it.

Lara Mangrané Giné