Who Makes the News

1
Who Makes the News

• Gender and Media
• Advocacy Training Workshop
• Amman, December 12-14, 2006

2
How Media Function
Nebojsa Radic WACC Gender and Media Advocacy
Training Workshop Amman, December 12-14, 2006
3
Media Provide Information

• Media provide news
• Newsworthy
• New, unusual, different
• Geographically close
• Timely
• Participation of significant people

4
Newsworthy or Not?

• But news is also a subjective choice
• result of conventions
• shared believes
• and personal preferences
• Process full of imperfections

5

• Every newspaper when it reaches the reader
• is the result of a whole series of selections as
• to what items shall be printed, how much
• space each shall occupy, what emphasis each
• shall have.
• There are no objective standards here.
• There are conventions.
• Walter Lippmann

6
Media Educate

• They educate, but can also perpetuate
  discrimination
• Media are a mirror of the society
• They also define the acceptable, they shape the
  society

7
Reflect and Shape

• They reflect
• Prejudices
• Discrimination
• Power structures
• Gender roles presented in the media often
  reinforce prejudices

8
Media is a Message

• Selection of news
• Language
• Choice of people interviewed
• Rang of importance of news
• Selection of images
• They all send a message

9

• The media do not merely represent they also
• recreate themselves and their vision of the
• world as desirable, salable. What they
• reproduce is chosen, not random, not neutral,
• not without consequence.
• Patricia J. Williams

10
Media Entertain

• Music
• Movies
• Soap operas
• Entertainment programs further shape the society
• Acceptable language
• Behavior
• Culture

11
Guiding Principles

• Media strive to provide timely, credible and
  reliable information
• To be watchdog, to provide for accountability
  of government
• Principles
• Accuracy
• Fairness, balanced representation
• Diversity

12
Bottom Line

• Information market
• Market economy rules
• Cater to the consumer
• Competition - Bottom line
• Ratings / circulation / advertising
• Example Hungarian Public TV

13
Media Influence

• Shape public opinion and attitudes
• Determine public discourse
• Shape political, cultural, economic priorities
• Influence public policy through news agenda
• Reinforce or challenge stereotypes and norms
• Can be catalyst for social change

14
Who is Who in the Media?

• Board/Governance structures
• Media managers
• Editors
• Sub-editors
• Reporters
• Admin staff

15
Board/Governance

• Highest governing structure
• Often non-media influential people
• Media owners and managers represented
• Appoint, control managers, approve policies and
  financial reports
• Interest Compliance, protect shareholders

16
Media Managers

• Decision makers
• Editorial and non-editorial
• Vision, direction
• Management issues
• They can implement new policies
• Often not involved day-to-day in editorial

17
Editors

• Gatekeepers, decision makers
• Assign news and stories to reporters
• Decision on top stories
• Decide on sources
• Shape the angle
• Key role in development of guidelines, codes and
  policies

18
Sub-editors

• Facts, spelling, grammar
• Style guidelines
• Length (space/time)
• Decision on selection
• Write headlines, captions
• Illustrations

19
Journalists / Reporters

• Filling in the papers and broadcasts
• Gather the news
• Can provide their angle and interpretation
• But they are not the final decision makers
• Their stories can be refused or reshaped

20
Other Players

• Corporate owners
• Advertisers and business groups
• Government / political power
• Lobbying groups
• Foreign owners
• Transnational media corporations
• Professional associations

21
Media Regulation

• National broadcasting authority (legislation)
• Industry broadcast standards councils
• Advertising standards authority
• Codes of conducts industry, associations,
  individual outlets
• Stylebooks
• NGOs, media watchdogs