Mass Media & the Political Agenda



Mass Media & the Political Agenda

I. Just the Facts

Mass Media:

Television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the Internet and other means of popular communication

High-Tech Politics:

A politics in which the behavior of citizens and policymakers and the political agenda itself are increasingly shaped by technology

Effective communication through media is key to political success.

60% presidential campaign spending is TV ads; 2/3 is negative.

The Print Media: Newspapers and magazines (newspaper and newsweekly circulation has declined)

The Broadcast Media: Television and radio

Brought government and politics into peoples’ homes (Vietnam War)

Politicians’ appearance and mannerisms more important (Kennedy-Nixon presidential debate)

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From Broadcasting to Narrowcasting: The Rise of Cable News Channels

Narrowcasting: media programming on cable TV or Internet that is focused on one topic and aimed at a particular audience, e.g., C-SPAN

Potential of cable to report on news as it happens and offer myriad choices (but resources are limited and stories are not substantive)

The Impact of the Internet

Television news can affect what people think is important: Agenda-setting effect

Private Control of the Media: Only a small number of TV stations are publicly owned in America.

Bias in the News

Many people believe the news is biased in favor of one point of view.

Generally are not very biased toward a particular ideology

News reporting is biased towards what will draw the largest audience; good pictures and negative reporting

Democracy and the Media

“Information is the fuel of democracy.”

But news provides more entertainment than information; it is superficial.

News is a business, giving people what they want.

II. Case Study: Fox News

According to the Wikipedia entry for Fox News Channel:

Fox News Channel (FNC), also referred to as Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation. As of April 2009, the channel is available to 102 million households in the United States and to viewers internationally, broadcasting primarily from its New York studios.

The channel was created by Australian-American media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who hired former NBC executive Roger Ailes as the founding CEO. The channel was launched on October 7, 1996 to 17 million cable subscribers. The channel grew in the late 1990s and 2000s to become the dominant cable news network in the United States. In 2010, the network's programs took the top 10 spots for most-watched cable news programs in the 25–54 demographic and the top 12 spots among total cable news programs viewers.

Critics have asserted that Fox News Channel promotes conservative political positions and biased reporting. Commentators, news anchors, and reporters at Fox News Channel have responded that news reporting and political commentary operate independently of each other and deny any bias in the news reporting.

We will be viewing the 2004 documentaty film Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism. This film is very critical of the Fox News Channel, claiming that the channel is used to promote and advocate right-wing views. The film says this pervasive bias contradicts the channel's claim of being “Fair and Balanced”, and argues that Fox News has been engaging in what amounts to consumer fraud.

Fox News responded to the film:

A new movie financially backed by the political groups and the Center for American Progress claims FOX News Channel is not fair or balanced. The documentary is called Outfoxed, and it features some former FOX workers accusing this network of bias toward Republicans. FNC denies the claim and points out that some of those employees actually worked for local FOX stations and had no connection with the FOX News Channel Network, and it says none of the people who did work here complained about these editorial issues while they were employed here.

There have been many reviews of the film. Here are excerpt from an unfavorable one:

The new film "Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism," which attempts to undermine the Fox News Channel with its own words, pictures and memos, is neither fair, balanced nor especially effective.

Still, "Outfoxed," with its quick pace and abundance of detail, will satisfy many Fox News detractors. Even the most ardent, though, should have reservations.

The film often fails to distinguish between programs Fox bills as news and those it calls commentary, and it employs rapid-fire editing that tends to blur together everything said on Fox News, whether it's by a news anchor, a reporter, an opinion host such as Bill O'Reilly or a guest. Sometimes you don't know who is speaking at all, which makes for snappy viewing but offers no kind of proof.

Steve Johnson, Chicago Tribune television critic

Please keep all of this in mind as you view the documentary.

I am unaware of any recent documentaries on the subject of liberal bias in the news media, e.g., MSNBC. When one becomes available, or if you know of one, please let me know so we can evaluate it along with Outfoxed.

Homework: View one hour of cable news and record your reactions in a blog posting. Which program(s) did you watch and what are your perceptions? Were the programs fair or biased? Did you view a “straight news” type program or an editorial/opinionated program?

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