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CHAPTER FIFTEEN Study Chapter Summary ·
Mass media are forms of communication—such
as television, radio, the Internet, newspapers, and magazines—that reach large
public audiences. More media outlets and more information mean that Americans
must devote ever-increasing time, effort, and money to sort out what is
relevant to them. ·
Media ownership can influence the kind of
news we get. Early political parties and candidates created newspapers to
advocate their issues. When newspapers suddenly became cheap and thus
accessible to the general public in the 1830s, papers aimed for objectivity as
a way to attract more readers. Later, newspaper owners used sensationalist
reporting to sell more newspapers and gain independence from political
interests. Today's media, still profit driven, are now owned by a few large
corporate interests. ·
The 1934 Federal Communications Act, which
created the Federal Communications Commission, imposed order on multiple media
outlets and attempted to serve the public interest through three provisions:
the equal time rule, the fairness doctrine, and the right of rebuttal. ·
Journalists, playing four roles, have great
influence over news content and presentation. Gatekeepers decide what is news
and what is not. Disseminators determine relevant news and get it out to the
public quickly. The investigator role involves verifying the truth of various
claims or analyzing particular policies. Finally, as public mobilizers,
journalists try to report the peoples' interests rather than their own. ·
Public skepticism of the media has increased
in recent decades. Some critics believe the homogeneous background of
journalists—mostly male, white, well educated, with northeastern roots—biases
the press, as does their predominantly liberal ideology. Others claim that the
revolving door, the practice of journalists taking government positions but
later returning to reporting, severely damages news objectivity. ·
Citizen access to the media has been
primarily passive, but the rise of new, interactive media and the growth of the
civic journalism movement may help to transform citizens into more active media
participants. Learning Objectives
After
reading this chapter, you should understand ·
the sources of our news ·
the historical development of the ownership
of the American media and its implications for the political news we get ·
the role of journalists themselves—who they
are and what they believe ·
the link between the media and politics ·
the relationship of citizens to the media |
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