Suchergebnisse

Although radical solutions to the faults of the media in the UK may not exist; government has a responsibility to encourage high-quality policy reporting & civic education. The current "lifestyle reporting" is not a good substitute for background reports that explain the heart of the story. Involved citizenship will require better quality information rather than a larger quantity. The media now uses the Internet through Web sites where the reader can study the original source documents. The Internet is also a means for ordinary people to inform the government about their views. Regulation of the public broadcaster, BBC, gives direction for all media, that of providing quality, substantive information. A more active citizenship will demand responsible information from the media. L. A. Hoffman

"Demokratie und Massenmedien stellen in den gegenwärtigen europäischen Gesellschaften ein wichtiges Interaktionsfeld dar. Die Legitimation eines demokratischen Systems speist sich nicht nur aus der Beteiligung der Bürger an den regelmäßig stattfindenden Wahlen (sog. Input-Legitimation) und der unter ihnen vorhandenen Unterstützung des politischen Systems (Legitimation durch Identität). Sondern beides setzt zur Meinungsbildung wiederum die Möglichkeit eines regelmäßigen Zugangs zu Informationen über das politische Geschehen voraus (Legitimation durch Öffentlichkeit und Transparenz). Da aber die Bürger in modernen Demokratien nicht unmittelbar am politischen Prozess beteiligt sind, treten Journalisten als Vermittler von Information und damit auch als entscheidende Einflussnehmer in diesen Prozess der politischen Kommunikation ein. Ihnen obliegt die Funktion der Recherche, Selektion und Veröffentlichung relevanter politischer Informationen, für das sie ein professionelles Arbeitsfeld entwickelt haben. Im Hinblick auf die Europäische Union wird von unterschiedlicher Seite seit geraumer Zeit eine kommunikative Krisensituation diagnostiziert, was zuletzt an der Diskussion um die Ursachen der gescheiterten Verfassungsreferenden in Frankreich und den Niederlanden sichtbar wurde. Die erhobenen Vorwürfe sind mannigfaltig: Gerade über die Medien werde die EU innenpolitisch gedeutet, sie sei nach wie vor schwer kommunizierbar, da zu weit weg vom Alltag der Bürgerinnen und Bürger und noch immer sei es kaum möglich, politische Zuständigkeiten zuzurechnen. Wie aber sieht die Öffentlichkeitsorientierung der EU aus? Wie gestaltet sich der Informationszugang zu den EU-Institutionen und wie hat er sich im Laufe der zunehmenden politischen Integration entwickelt? Wie arbeiten die EU-Korrespondenten in Brüssel und wie schätzen sie die Institutionen im Hinblick auf ihre Zugänglichkeit ein? - Das Ziel des Beitrags ist die Analyse des professionellen Arbeitsfelds der EU-Korrespondenten in Brüssel unter der Prämisse von Transparenz und Öffentlichkeit als legitimatorischer Grundlage der EU. Dazu wird zunächst Skizze der Öffentlichkeitsstruktur und -aktivitäten der verschiedenen Institutionen sowie der Struktur des EU-Korrespondentencorps präsentiert. Darüber hinaus soll auf der Grundlage zahlreicher Interviews mit deutschen EU-Korrespondenten sowie Pressesprechern der jeweiligen Institutionen eine Einschätzung der gegenwärtigen Öffentlichkeitsorientierung der Europäischen Union und ihrer jeweiligen Institutionen gegeben werden." (Autorenreferat)

The author examines the role of the media in influencing public opinion. Concern about the media's focus on communicating gloom to increase the audience's emotional response is expressed before the author discusses ways the media can be used to increase citizen participation in public policy making. References. D. Miller

The author discusses the state of Ukrainian media in the years preceding the Orange Revolution, as well as the media revolution that accompanied, & furthered the victory of, the Orange Revolution. While the early 1990s witnessed a growth in the number of independent media outlets, the late 1990s & early 2000s saw a reversal of that trend. The author discusses two incidences, the Gongadze Case (2001) & the exposure of the temnyky documents (2000-2003) that reflected the resurgence of media censorship. The author then examines how censorship affected different media, including print media, television, internet, & radio, & provides a list of some of the unfair actions taken against the Ukrainian media. Finally, the author explores how journalism & the media changed during the Orange Revolution. J. Harwell

This chapter discusses the diasporic experience of Iranians living in London (ILIL) & the roles the media can play in this experience. The media can help to integrate Iranians into British culture, make feelings of dislocation worse, bind Iranians to the global Iranian diaspora, or do a little of each. While ILIL do not constitute a single community, they are a "community in action," coming together for cultural events. They are also informally bound by different forms of media, eg, newspapers, women's & film magazines, & radio. This range of media contributes to the institutionalization of Iranian diasporas in different countries. Also found was a psychological shift occurring among some participants -- from viewing themselves as exiles who were eventually going back to Iran to immigrants who were building a new life for themselves in GB. A generational gap exists; older ILIL were more likely to be nostalgic for Iran, while the younger generation was already immersed in British culture, media, & education. The issue of identity is also discussed; there are differing views on how important the preservation of Persian is in maintaining an Iranian identity. A. Lee

Examines audience beliefs related to social conflict as presented in the mass media, considering variances in these beliefs according to type of media & level of personal involvement. Survey data from 385 people, ages 19-30, in university & shopping settings in three mid-Atlantic & New England states reveal that beliefs about social conflict can be attributed to TV & newspaper coverage. Further, sets of beliefs varied according to type of media dependency & level of personal involvement. Results are consistent with Isaac Ajzen & Martin Fishbein's (1975) theory of reasoned action, ie, that people adhere to distinctive beliefs about social conflict, which themselves are shaped by past experiences with the media, & these beliefs influence their choice of information goals. 3 Tables, 1 Appendix. D. Ryfe

Traces the prevalent stereotypes of African Americans in the US media culture & discusses the antiracist responses. It is contended that the expansion of US popular culture to the global community raises moral questions regarding the spread of US racist stereotypes to the rest of the world. Antiracist activity in film is traced to the organized political pressure & protests by African Americans & progressive whites against the film The Birth of a Nation (1915). Other antiracist activity examined includes: the US government's encouragement to Hollywood to portray blacks in a dignified manner during WWII years; & the call by the American Civil Liberties Union Art Division, led by writers & producers as well as prominent actors, for a boycott of production companies that maintained policies of discrimination. The 1970s produced the advent of "blaxploitation" TV & movies, but also positive antiracist events including Roots & The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman. It is argued that the overwhelmingly biased images of African Americans being exported around the globe speaks volumes for what it says about the producers & consumers of such ideas. 87 References. M. Greenberg

Considers issues regarding the media's intermediary role in cases of international intervention, asserting that in democratic societies, when a government wants to involve itself in another country, it ought to obtain & uphold public support for its actions. Thus, the government must offer & the media must present reliable, comprehensive, & comprehendible information. In this light, four problems inhibiting the media's capacity to steer public opinion are discussed: (1) state regulation, influence, or manipulation of the media; (2) news flow imbalance; (3) stereotypical framing of certain foreign events as social conflicts; & (4) inherent cognitive difficulties in TV news production that impairs viewer comprehension. As these problems are exacerbated in relation to foreign news, the solution for producers is to domesticate the news, providing a familiar context for domestic viewers. Because TV seems to be the main source of news, & in light of the problems addressed, how the situation can be improved to make the public discourse on intervention more responsible is explored, arriving at three potential directions: (A) Demand reliable information from the government & other agencies. (B) Insist that journalists & broadcast organizations improve methods of informing the public. (C) Promote media literacy for better information processing & to generate public concern with international affairs. J. Zendejas

Examines why various institutions looked to provide Turkish-speaking services to German Turks, how such targeted media helped shape transnational cultural spaces in Germany & Turkey, the impact of these developments on the sustenance of German Turks' multiple cross-border affiliations, & their influence on the creation of cosmopolitanism in the context of the mid-1990s rise in media & advertising interest in German Turks. At issue is shedding light on the interrelationships between states, transnational groups, business interests, & cosmopolitanism. How the German Turks were determined to be a worthwhile consumer group for Turkish-speaking media is addressed, highlighting the impact of two surveys & the rapid effects of Turkish-oriented & -speaking marketing efforts. Focus turns to radio broadcasting & Metropol FM to discern the connections between the advertising sector, media, & public sphere in terms of a sort of vernacular or localized cosmopolitanism that its programming fosters. The implications for cosmopolitanism of the Turkish media's establishment in the public sphere are considered in closing. J. Zendejas

The mass media play a crucial role in modern societies. Media allows reaching with information's about current events to the broad masses of recipients, they interpret it and construct their meanings, they create a community of values, organize entertainment in leisure time and mediate in mobilizing social movements. Mass communication is also related to conduct of public debate and developing public opinion awareness about social problems. The aim of this article is to bring closer look on the results of empirical analysis of selected messages perceived by older people in the press, radio and television that are related to their image, problems and interests. Work outlines the expectations of senior citizens towards activities of mass media on local and national level.

Carl von Clausewitz's (1976) understanding of the relationship between politics & military action is used to comprehend the nature of relations between the mass media, the government, & the military during times of national security crisis. After reviewing contemporary literature that has scrutinized the role of the mass media in international conflict, an overview of Clausewitz's understanding of goverment-military relations is offered, emphasizing his contention that military action is an extension of political processes. The effects of particular social changes & technological advancements upon the military-political relationship within the modern US are then examined. Three hypotheses regarding the nature of the mass media's influence upon international military action are presented, eg, media coverage presently affects US martial strategies; indeed, examples of the media's effects upon the US's war strategies in Kosovo & Afghanistan are cited to bolster these suppositions. In addition, analysis of the UK mass media's reporting of UK operations in Afghanistan has revealed that such media influences have spread beyond North America. 69 References. J. W. Parker

Explores the contradictory role of the mass media in relation to class power & its reproduction in contemporary societies, drawing on the theories of Stuart Hall (eg, 1986) as an entry into a critique of cultural & media studies. It is argued that Hall & other critical theorists have overemphasized the importance of ideology & the function of the media in the capitalist social order. Here, it is asserted that the media play a direct role in the reproduction of capital & the perpetuation of class struggle, specifically, through control over the system of governance & through the promotion of dominant ideologies. The use of information management, secrecy, & censorship by the corporate structure & capitalist class to maintain their power is described. However, these entities also use strategies beyond & outside the media, including lobbying, private debates, withstanding hostile media coverage, & ignoring public opinion & protest. The ideas of Antonio Gramsci & Karl Marx on class struggle & ideological hegemony are reviewed, & an alternative model of the relationship between media & class power is developed. K. Hyatt Stewart