Suchergebnisse

The frame of reference of the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Bicul‐turalism postulates that both French‐speaking and English‐speaking Canadians have within their reach mass media that allow for their cultural development. This study examines the validity of this assertion by comparing it with observations related to mass media consumption among Montrealers. Diffusion techniques, even though unilingual, could be bicultural in their content and thus serve as instruments for reciprocal knowledge for anglophones and francophones. This does not seem to be the case. The objective of knowing one another could also rest upon the bilingualism of individuals and the consumption of media in both languages. A unilingualism‐bilingualism scale was constructed to evaluate this possibility. Among all linguistic groups, even the equilingual ones, there are very few who watch TV programmes and read newspapers in both languages. Unilin‐guals and bilinguals other than equilinguals mostly consume mass media products in the language they know best. The linguistic factor alone is incapable of explaining the attraction of the francophones for the English‐speaking media, nor does it offer satisfactory explanations for the behaviour of the equilinguals.Le cadre de référence de la Commission d'enquête sur le bilinguisme et le biculturalisme prétend que les Canadiens anglophones et francophones disposent des mass media qui leur permettent de se développer culturellement. La présente étude essaie d'en mesurer l'adéquation avec certains faits relatifs à la consommation des mass media chez les Montréalais. Les techniques de diffusion, tout en étant unilingues, pourraient être biculturelles dans leur contenu et ainsi servir d'instruments de connaissance réciproque pour les Canadiens anglophones et francophones. Telle ne semble pas être la situation. L'objectif de connaissance réciproque pourrait aussi reposer sur le bilinguisme des individus et la consommation des media dans les deux langues. Une échelle d'unilinguisme‐bilinguisme a été constituée. Chez tous les groupes linguistiques, même les équilingues, il y a peu de consommateurs de la télévision et des journaux dans les deux langues. Les unilingues et les bilingues autres que les équilingues consomment surtout dans les langues qu'ils comprennent le mieux, mais le f acteur linguistique reste inadéquat pour expliquer l'attrait des médiums de langue anglaise sur les francophones de même que le comportement des équilingues.

Independent media constitute a crucial component of a liberal democracy, especially for the critical role they can play in advancing the pace of democratization. In the late Soviet era, after Gorbachev lifted state control of the media as part of his glasnost policy, they helped release the hold of communist ideology on society & then went on in the 1990s to mobilize public support for democratic development. Essentially the media constituted the "engine for democratization." More recently, however, the media have become less influential. This chapter focuses on why this has happened & what its implications are for the future of democracy in Russia. J. Stanton

Franco Ferrarotti's book, The End of Conversation: The Impact of Mass Media on Modern Society (see IRPS No. 38/87c00823), is contrasted briefly with works by David L. Altheide, Robert P. Snow, Joshua Meyrowitz, & others (eg, Altheide's Media Power [see IRPS No. 30/85c00539]), who agree that the major effect of the mass media on our lives is not their content per se, but rather, their logic, styles, & formats, which influence other domains of everyday life. Ferrarotti argues that the impact of the logic & form of the mass media has changed the spatial-temporal logic that underscored earlier communication patterns -- eg, those involved with conversation -- & the future of Western civilization is in jeopardy because of it. His critiques of TV & other visual media stress, ironically, that it is the sound of these media that has influenced our "ear" & that cultures are now more attuned to how things sound. It is concluded that social interaction & social order are joined through communication forms as product & producer of everyday life. AA

TRADITIONALLY, POLITICAL COMMUNICATION HAS BEEN DIVIDED INTO TWO COMPONENT AREAS OF RESEARCH, THE PRODUCTION OF CAMPAIGN MESSAGES, AND THE IMPACT OF THIS MESSAGES ON VOTERS' PREDISPOSITIONS AND ACTIONS. IN THE BROAD SUBFIELDS AUTHORS SUMMARIZE AND SYNTHESIZE STUDIES REPRESENTING THESE SUBFIELDS. BECAUSE THE PRODUCTIONS OF CAMPAIGN INFORMATION IS A CRITICAL DETERMINANT OF THE RANGE OF VOTER RESPONSES, AND BECAUSE VOTER RESPONSE ITSELF IS A CRUCIAL DETITICAL COMMUNICATION RESEARCH MUST CONVERGE FOR THE FIELD TO ADVANCE. POL