2Political Role13

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THE POLITICAL ROLE

OF THE MEDIA

Media as the Fourth Estate Associate Professor Sharyn Davies



The other three ‘estates’

1. The nobility

2. The clergy

3. The common people



The House of Lords

(lst and 2nd

estates) 1st estate The ‘lords

temporal’ i.e. the

aristocracy, titled people,peers of the realm.

2nd estate The ‘lords

spiritual’ i.e.. Thereligious leaders, bishops

etc.



The House of Commons

3rd Estate

The commoners elected by the common

people



The Fourth Estate Role of the

Media

Providing information for citizens

Scrutinizing the government and

politicians

Allowing and encouraging public debate of

issues



TYPES OF MEDIA

Newspapers and print

Radio

Television

Internet



Internet

Individual access to different parts of

internet

Print, radio, TV also available on internet

Social networks: Facebook, Twitter

New media: Wikileaks, Blogs



Newspapers and Print

Longest standing form of mass

communication from 19th century

Privately owned

Originally controlled by politicians

20th century advertising funds newspapers

Now in the hands of major conglomerates Fewer newspapers (TV and internet)



Newspapers and Print (cont.)

Most in-depth coverage

Reader controls time and place of access

to information

Readers controls sequence

Permanent written record.



Radio

1930s-1960s State monopoly

Many private radio stations

Instant information First with the news

Easy access – can do other things

Accessibility of talk-back radio



Television

Politically most important medium, at least

until recently

Until recently most people get political info

from TV

Most able to persuade and influence

Replaced political meetings Extremely expensive

Relies heavily on advertising

Advertising determines content



TRADITIONS OF

BROADCASTING

The British Model – the Public Service

Tradition

The American Model – the CommercialTradition



Public Service Model

The media role is social and political

Viewers are seen as citizens

Citizens need resources to be able toparticipate in democracy



Public Service Model II

All members of audience should be equal

No sector is more important

Media should provide information as a

resource required for citizenship



Public Service Model III

Democracy works best if citizens are

involved in the decisions which affect

them.

This will lead to cooperation and peace

Scrutiny of government will prevent

authoritarian domination of society





Commercial Model II

The viewers are consumers and the

programmes are the commercial product

They are not just consumers of the

programmes, but they are also potential

consumers of products advertised



Commercial Model III

Programmes are designed to attract

viewers (consumers) not necessarily

inform them.

Programmes are thus designed to be what

will attract the most people

Ratings are therefore important



Commercial Model IV

Programmes have to deliver an audience

to the advertisers

The audience is not treated equally

Need to be identified in terms of

demographic categories (rich, young etc.)



Commercial Model V

Different audiences are targeted by

advertisers for different sorts of products

Programme content is reflected in the

surrounding advertising. (e.g. motoring

shows)

Programmes are designed to sell

particular products (e.g. home

improvement shows)





Consequences of

Commercialisation

1. Expansion of advertising



More advertising

• New Zealand now has the highestadvertising content of any TV in

the world.

• TV3 up to 22 minutes per hour.



Consequences of Commercialisation cont.

3. Less politics



Depoliticisation



Consequences of

Commercialisation cont.

Less representation

Less variety

Less expertise



What is needed for democracy

‘The ability to follow an argument, grasp

the point of view of another, expand theboundaries of understanding and debate

the alternative purposes that might be

pursued.’ (John Dewey)



What TVNZ thinks

‘We aim to thrill and amaze’ (TomFinlayson)



How well does NZ TV carry out its

Role as the Fourth Estate

Providing information for citizens

Scrutinizing the government and politicians

Allowing and encouraging public debate of issues



Providing Information for Citizens

Constraints

1. Television is the most influential of the

media, but also the most expensive.

2. The issue of funding is thus crucial

3. Public funding is being replaced by

funding from advertisers and sponsors



Constraints (cont.)

4. Commercialisation and deregulation

leads to morselisation and de-

politicisation.

5. This leads to less information useful for

citizens in a democracy.



Scrutiny of Government and

Politicians

1. Investigative journalism costly and time-

consuming

2. Politicians are the major source of news

for political reporting

3. Symbiotic relationship between

journalists and politicians



Scrutiny of Government and

Politicians (continued)

5. Use of spin-doctors

6. Political news reporting increasinglysuperficial.

7. Libel and privacy laws



But

Use of political cartoons can undermine spindoctoring.



Political cartoon



Allowing and Encouraging Political

Debate

Recently limited access for ‘ordinary’

people, but there are increasingly more

avenues:

Talk-back radio

Documentaries

Sky programmes

WikiLeaks

Al Jazeera

Influence of social media in Arab Spring





Al Jazeera

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Jazeera



CONCLUSION

The media plays an essential role indemocracies.

The commercialisation of the media has a

negative effect on its role as the fourthestate.

But alternative media are providing criticalviewpoints.

There are important ethical implications for journalists.

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