Armchair Tour Of Global Media

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Armchair Tour Of Global Media
Dana Littlefield David Coffey Don Wedington II
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Three Theories of Mass Media

• Three Perspectives
• First, Second, and Third World Countries

• Four Theories
• Authoritarian, Libertarian,
• Social Responsibility, Communism

• Five Concepts
• Authoritarian, Western, Communist,
• Revolutionary, Developmental

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Three Perspectives
Stevenson breaks this theory down by separating
the world into three political entities

• First World Countries
• Industrialized Western Democracies

• Second World Countries
• Industrialized Eastern Socialists

• Third World Countries
• Non-Aligned and/or Developing

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J. Herbert Altschulls modified version of the
Three Perspectives (1995)
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Third World
Tony Barnett said
The idea of the Third World arose from
independence struggles. It was more of a slogan
than analytical category.
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Four Theories
Social Responsibility
Media is becoming concentrated in the hands of
few. The media, government or society needs to
take steps to insure that different points of
view are represented.
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Four Theories
Social Responsibility
The founding fathers of this theory
are Commission on Freedom of the Press A Free
and Responsible Press William E. Hocking,
Freedom of the Press A Framework of Principles
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United Kingdom

Television sets 1 per 2.3 persons Television
broadcast stations 207 Radios 1 per 0.7
persons Radio broadcast stations AM 225, FM 525
Telephones 1 per 2.0 persons Daily newspaper
circulation 352 per 1,000 population
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United Kingdom

Case Study
BBC
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Four Theories
Communist
The truth is what the communist party sees as the
truth
The press is used to advance the programs and
beliefs of the party
Father of theory Marx Media is owned by the
state and all news is to serve the state
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China
Constitutional Freedom of the Press Chinese
Constitution Chapter 2 The Fundamental Rights
and Duties of Citizens All citizens are equal
before the law and all citizens over 18 have the
right to vote and stand for election. There is
freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom
of religion, and freedom of assembly,
association, and demonstration. The personal
freedom and the homes of citizens are inviolable,
as is the privacy of communications.
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China

Television sets 1 per 5.3 persons Television
broadcast stations 202 Radios 1 per 5.4 persons
Telephones 1 per 30 persons (principally cities
and industrial centers) Daily newspaper
circulation 23 per 1,000 population
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China

Case Study
Chinese Press Coverage of Rural Development
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Four Theories
Authoritarian

• Media should support and advance the policies of
  the government

• The state controls the Media and press through
  intimidation, taxation, licensing, censorship,
  and prosecution under libel, sedition, or
  treason laws.

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Four Theories
Authoritarian

• The state is more important than the individual.

• Leaders control media in order to shape public
  opinion.

Plato, The Republic Machiavelli, The
Prince Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan
Modern example Nigeria
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Nigeria
Abacha Government Oct. 1993- June 1998
Television Sets 1 per 26 persons Radios 1 per
5.1 persons Telephones 1 per 275 persons
Daily Newspaper Circulation 18 per 1,000 people
Government and Media Relations
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Nigeria
Case Study
Alex Ibru and The Guardian Newspaper
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Four Theories
Libertarian Theory

• The Libertarian believes that the truth comes
  from the free marketplace of ideas

Man has an inalienable right to search for truth
The press is a partner in the search for truth
Mostly private ownership of media
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Four Theories
Libertarian Theory
Fathers of the Libertarian theory were..
John Milton Government should stay out of the
market place of ideas and truth will find light
John Stuart Mill On liberty he argued for
allowing all opinion because doing so would
strengthen the truth.
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United States
Television sets 1 per 1.2 persons Television
broadcast stations 1,092 (plus about 9,000
cable stations) Radios 1 per 0.5 persons
Radio broadcast stations AM 4,987, FM
4,932 Telephones 1 per 1.6 persons Daily
newspaper circulation 228 per 1,000 population
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Philip Morris vs ABC
Feb. 28, 1994 -- Day 1 Tobacco Story Airs
Mar. 24, 1994 -- Philip Morris sues ABC
Mar. 25, 1994 -- HEADLINES
Jun. 30, 1995 -- Wall Street Journal reports
July 31, 1995 -- Two Events
Aug. 27, 1995 -- ABC issues an apology
Jan. 4, 1996 -- Shareholders approve a merger
Feb. 3, 1996, -- Frank Rich column in NYT
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Five Concepts
All press systems exist on a continuum. Complete
controls (Authoritarianism) at one end and
relatively few controls (Libertarianism) on the
other.
Absolute freedom of expression is a myth.
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Authoritarian Concept

• Press functions from the top down.

• Truth is the monopoly for those in authority.

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Authoritarian Concept
Dr. Samuel Johnson wrote
Every society has a right to preserve public
peace and order, and therefore has a good right
to prohibit the propagation of opinions which
have a dangerous tendency. To say the magistrate
has this right is using an inadequate word it is
society for which the magistrate is the agent. He
may normally and theologically wrong in
restraining in the propagation of opinions which
he thinks dangerous but he is politically right.
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Western Concept

• A democratic deviation from traditional
  authoritarian controls

• Comparatively rare concept in todays world

• Incorporates the concept of social responsibility

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Characteristics of Western nations with a "free"
press

• A system of law that protects individual civil
  liberties

• High average levels of per capital income,
  education and literacy

• Sufficient capital or private enterprise to
  support news media

• An established tradition of independent journalism

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Communist Concept
Mass media that is controlled and directed by the
state can concentrate on the serious task of
nation-building by publishing news relating to
the entire societys polices and goals determined
by the top party leadership.
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Communist Concept
Lenin wrote
Capitalists call freedom of the press the
state of affairs when censorship is removed and
all parties are free to publish any newspapers.
In this very thing there is no freedom of the
press but freedom to deceive the oppressed and
exploited mass by the rich, the bourgeoisie.
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Revolutionary Concept
Illegal and subversive mass communications
utilizing the press and broadcasting to overthrow
a government or wrest control from alien rulers.
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Underground Press
In Nazi-occupied France during World War II

• Pravda- (edited at one time by Joseph Stalin) was
  published outside czarist Russia, and smuggled
  copies were widely distributed

samizdat (self-publishing in Russian) was passed
at great risk from hand to hand among dissidents
inside the former Soviet Union
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Developmental Concept
A variation of the Authoritarian concept
An amorphous and curious mixture of ideas,
rhetoric, influences, and grievances
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Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson could write the most ringing
support for a free press, but also condemn
journalists as a pack of liars that ought to be
thrown in prison for what they printed."
..and finally
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The End
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Thank You