10.1: The Role of the Media in Politics

10.1.1: Types of Media

Media in the United States has taken multiple forms and grown in power due to its for-profit nature.

Learning Objective

Evaluate the claim that press freedom is compromised by increasing consolidation in the media industry

Key Points

Media in the United States has taken several forms, including television, film, radio and blogs.
Media frequently gains power through its support from large corporations, and is often criticized by the public for such alliances.
Reporters Without Borders publishes a yearly ranking on the level of free media in each country.

Key Term

blog: A website that allows users to reflect, share opinions, and discuss various topics in the form of an online journal while readers may comment on posts. Most blogs are written in a slightly informal tone (personal journals, news, businesses, etc. ) Entries typically appear in reverse chronological order.

Media in the United States comprises several different types of widespread communication: television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based websites (especially blogs). Many of these networks are controlled by large, for-profit corporations that reap revenue from advertising, subscriptions, and the sale of copyrighted material. American media conglomerates tend to be leading global players, generating substantial revenue, not to mention fierce opposition in many parts of the world. Further deregulation and convergence are under way, suggesting more mega-mergers, greater concentration of media ownership, and the emergence of multinational media conglomerates. Critics allege that localism (local news and other content at the community level), media spending and coverage of news, and diversity of ownership and represented views have suffered as a result of such processes.

Theories on the success of such companies note a reliance on certain policies of the American federal government as well as a natural tendency to produce monopolies in the industry. Many prominent news organizations such as CBS, ABC, and Fox News are often criticized for creating political and corporate monopolies to boost popularity.

The organization Reporters Without Borders compiles and publishes an annual ranking of countries based on its assessment of their press freedom records . A smaller score on the index corresponds to greater freedom of press. Reporters Without Borders is careful to note that the index only addresses press freedom and does not measure the quality of journalism. In 2011-12 the United States was ranked 47^th out of 179 countries, which was a setback from the preceding year.

2010 Press Freedom Index Scores

These countries have been ranked on their freedom-of-press laws. A smaller score on the index correspondes to great freedom of press. The United States has a score of 47.

10.1.2: Regulation of Broadcast Media

Broadcasting media has been regulated since the 1920s to ensure balanced and fair coverage, along with coverage of relevant, local issues.

Learning Objective

Summarize key developments in the history of broadcasting law

Key Points

The FCC was created in 1934 to regulate laws about broadcasting on the public airwaves.
By 1949, the Fairness Doctrine ensured that networks had to cover opposing perspectives on controversial issues.
The Reagan Administration tried to eliminate the Fairness Doctrine, but the policy is still in effect today.

Key Term

broadcasting: transmitting, sending out messages omnidirectionally

In the United States, freedom of press does not necessarily mean an unregulated media.

Some of the more notable aspects of broadcast law include:

frequency allocation: The division of the spectrum into unlicensed frequency bands, such as ISM band and U-NII band, and licensed frequency bands, along with television channel frequencies, FM broadcast band, and amateur radio frequency.
low-power broadcasting
Fairness Doctrine
public broadcasting

Today, broadcasting rights fall under the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), but other legislations set the precedent for this modern day law.

The History of Broadcasting Law

The Radio Act of 1927 was the first major broadcasting law in the country. Among its provisions was the equal opportunity provision, which provided a foundation for the equal time rule. This provision required radio stations, television stations and cable systems, which originated their own programming, to treat legally qualified political candidates equally when it came to selling or giving away air time. This provision was a result of legislators’ growing concerns that, without mandated equal opportunity for candidates, some broadcasters might try to manipulate elections.

The Communications Act of 1934 amended the Radio Act, and the equal time provision is located in Section 315 of the Communications Act. This act was another crucial moment in broadcasting law history, because it created the Federal Communications Commission (FCC, ). The FCC’s intent was to “regulat[e] interstate and foreign commerce in communication by wire and radio so as to make available, so far as possible, to all the people of the United States, without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, or sex, a rapid, efficient, Nation wide, and world wide wire and radio communications service . . . “. (In this context, the word “radio” covers both broadcast radio and television). The FCC has the authority to “make such regulations not inconsistent with law as it may deem necessary to prevent interference between stations and to carry out the provisions of [the] Act. “

FCC Commissioners inspect the latest in television (1939).

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has promised to ensure fairness in broadcasting.

In 1949, the FCC enacted the Fairness Doctrine for the purpose of ensuring balanced and fair coverage of all controversial issues by a broadcast station. The FCC adopted the view that station licensees were “public trustees,” and therefore, had an obligation to broadcast contrasting viewpoints on controversial issues of public importance. It was later established that stations should also actively seek out issues of importance to their community and air programming about those issues. During the 1980s, the Reagan Administration pressured the FCC to eliminate the Fairness Doctrine, but was unsuccessful in its attempts.

10.1.3: Organization and Ownership of the Media

Media consolidation has resulted in fewer companies owning more media sources, thereby increasing the concentration of ownership.

Learning Objective

Discuss the recent history of media consolidation

Key Points

In the United States, movies have experienced conglomerate ownership since the early twentieth century, but just recently have news and broadcasting in the United States started to experience it.
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 allowed for cross media, and since then Clear Channel Telecommunications have acquired many radio stations.
The twentieth century has also seen many forms of media merging.

Key Term

conglomerate: A corporation formed by the combination of several smaller corporations whose activities are unrelated to the corporation’s primary activity. <!–<span style=”font-variant:small-caps;text-transform:lowercase”>example:</span> General Electric Company.–>

Concentration of media ownership, also known as media consolidation or media convergence, is a process whereby progressively fewer individuals or organizations control increasing shares of the mass media. Contemporary research demonstrates increasing levels of consolidation, with many media industries already highly concentrated and dominated by a very small number of firms. Over the years there have been many merger attempts, some successful, and others unsuccessful. Over time the amount of media merging has increased and the amount of media outlets have increased. This means that there are fewer companies owning more media sources, thereby increasing the concentration of ownership.

Examples of Media Mergers and their Potential Effect

In the United States, media consolidation has been in effect since the early twentieth century with major studios dominating movie production. Before that, there was a period in which Edison monopolized the industry. The music and television industries recently witnessed cases of media consolidation when SONY Music Entertainment’s parent company merged their music division with Bertelsmann AG’s BMG to form Sony BMG. TimeWarner’s The WB and CBS Corp’s UPN also merged to form The CW. In the case of Sony BMG, there was a “Big Five” (now “Big Four”) conglomerate of major record companies, while The CW’s creation was an attempt to consolidate ratings and stand up to the “Big Four” of American television (this was despite the fact that The CW was, in fact, partially owned by CBS, one of the “Big Four”). In television, the vast majority of broadcast and basic cable networks, over a hundred in all, are controlled by nine corporations: News Corporation (the Fox family of channels), The Walt Disney Company (which includes the ABC, ESPN and Disney brands), CBS Corporation, Viacom, Comcast (which includes the NBC brands), Time Warner, Discovery Communications, EW Scripps television, or some combination thereof (including the aforementioned The CW as well as A&E networks, which is a consortium of Comcast and Disney, ).

Walt Disney Studies

Walt Disney is a major media conglomerate.

Another example occurred in 1999, when Viacom made CBS an offer of $37 billion to buy them out. This buyout caused a lot of hype and many people were worried that this merge would decrease diversity and the quality of journalism because of the increased political influence.

There are also some large-scale owners in an industry that are not the causes of monopoly or oligopoly. For example, Clear Channel Communications, especially since the Telecommunications Act of 1996, acquired many radio stations across the United States, and came to own more than 1,200 stations. However, the radio broadcasting industry in the United States and elsewhere can be regarded as oligopolistic regardless of the existence of such a player. Because radio stations are local in reach, each station licenses a specific part of spectrum by the FCC in a certain local area, any local market is served by a limited number of stations. In most countries, this system of licensing makes many markets local oligopolies. The similar market structure exists for television broadcasting, cable systems, and newspaper industries, all of which are characterized by the existence of large-scale owners. Concentration of ownership is often found in these industries.

10.1.4: Nationalization of the News

While local news is still available, it is becoming increasingly nationalized and local outlets are being purchased larger, national networks.

Learning Objective

Describe the phenomena associated with the nationalization of the news

Key Points

Local channels are facing challenges such as the advent of new technology and a competitive market.
Bigger networks are able to use the technology needed to provide fast-paced news.
ABC News, NBC News, and CBS News are three examples that are buying out local markets.

Key Term

cable: (communications) A system for receiving television or Internet service over coaxial or fibreoptic cables

Nationalization of the news refers to the modern phenomenon of the decline of local news networks and the increase in power of national news networks. A few factors are contributing to this trend, including the pressure in generating new and fresh content and the increasing power of conglomerates.

The internet age, digital cable and satellite broadcast have prservices, comes on-demand news programming. News operations have begun to feel the burden of needing to generate news content on a 24-hour news cycle, while keeping material fresh on their regularly scheduled newscasts. This means around-the-clock coverage. Rather than having a certain deadline for scheduled newscasts to meet, reporters have to file stories as fast as they can. Producers, on the other hand, have to find more ways to keep news stories “fresh” to viewers. The larger networks like ABC News , NBC News, and CBS News are able to afford these technologies and are beginning to buy out the smaller, local networks.

ABC News

ABC News is an example of a large networks “buying out” smaller ones.

In the early days, local newscasts were seen more as a public service. The style was straightforward. For instance, a newscast was divided into three blocks: news, sports, and weather. The news block was divided into local, national and international stories. Modern day news is now seen as a competition, and the stations must compete for relevance in the local market.

10.1.5: Agenda-Setting Theory

Agenda-setting is a psychological process whereby the media continuously covers an issue so viewers think its a top-priority issue.

Learning Objective

Summarize the results of the key “Chapel Hill” study of the media and public opinion

Key Points

Drs. McCombs and Shaw did a study based on the 1968 election and discovered the correlation between what news viewers watched and their perception of important events.
Mass communication is defined as the process whereby professional communicators use technological devices to share messages over great distances to influence large audiences.
The theory of accessibility states that the more the media plays a story, the more accessible that story is to the viewer’s mind.

Key Term

agenda setting: A theory in mass-communication stating that the media have the ability to determine which issues are important to the public.

Agenda-Setting Theory

Agenda-setting theory describes the “ability [of the news media] to influence the salience of topics on the public agenda. ” That is, if a news item is covered frequently, the audience will regard the issue as more important . In reality, mass media only shows the audience what it comprehends as an important issue. Print or broadcast news will then take away the audience’s ability to think for themselves.

OJ Simpson

Media experts contend that the OJ Simpson case was a prime example of media agenda-setting. It captivated the country–and news outlets–for years.

Agenda-setting theory was formally developed by Dr. Max McCombs and Dr. Donald Shaw in a study on the 1968 presidential election. In the 1968 “Chapel Hill study,” McCombs and Shaw demonstrated a strong correlation between what 100 residents of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, thought was the most important election issue and what the local and national news media reported was the most important issue. By comparing the salience of issues in news content with the public’s perceptions of the most important election issue, McCombs and Shaw determined the degree to which the media sways public opinion.

Agenda-setting is the media’s ability to transfer salience issues through their new agenda. This way, the public agenda can form an understanding of the salience issues. Two basic assumptions underlie most research on agenda-setting: (1) the press and the media do not reflect reality; they filter and shape it; (2) media concentration on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important than other issues.

Before they attain the presidency status, Presidents are nominees for their own party. Nominees participate in nationally televised debates, and while the debates are usually restricted to the Democratic and Republican nominees, third party candidates may be invited, such as Ross Perot in the 1992 debates. Nominees campaign across the country to explain their views, convince voters and solicit contributions. Much of the modern electoral process is concerned with winning swing states through frequent visits and mass media advertising drives.

American news media are more obsessed than ever with the horse-race aspects of the presidential campaign, according to a new study. Coverage of the political campaigns have been less reflective on the issues that matter to voters, and instead have primarily focused on campaign tactics and strategy, according to a report conducted jointly by the Project for Excellence in Journalism, part of the Pew Research Center, and the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at the Kennedy School of Harvard University, which examined 1,742 stories that appeared from January through May 2007 in 48 news outlets.

Mass Communication

Mass communication plays an important role in our society. Its purpose is to inform the public about current and past events. Mass communication is defined in ” Mass Media, Mass Culture” as the process whereby professional communicators use technological devices to share messages over great distances to influence large audiences. Within this process, the media (a newspaper, book, television program, etc) takes control of the information we see or hear. The media then uses gatekeeping and agenda-setting to “control our access to news, information, and entertainment”. Gatekeeping is a series of checkpoints that the news has to go through before it gets to the public. Through this process, many people have to decide whether or not the news is to be seen or heard. Some gatekeepers include reporters, writers and editors. After gatekeeping comes agenda-setting. One of the most critical aspects in the concept of an agenda-setting role of mass communication is the time frame for this phenomenon. In addition, different media have different agenda-setting potential.

The Cognitive Effects of Agenda-Setting

Agenda-setting occurs through a cognitive process known as “accessibility. ” Accessibility implies that the more frequently and prominently the news media cover an issue, the more instances that issue becomes accessible in the audience’s memories. When respondents are asked about the most important problem facing the country, they answer with the most accessible news issue in memory, which is typically the issue the news media focus on the most. The agenda-setting effect is not the result of receiving one or a few messages, but is due to the aggregate impact of a very large number of messages all dealing with the same general issue. Mass-media coverage in general and agenda-setting in particular also have a powerful impact on what individuals think that other people are thinking, and hence tend to allocate more importance to issues that have been extensively covered by mass media.

10.1.6: The Rise of Adversarial Journalism

Adversarial journalism, or gotcha journalism, seeks to reveal wrongdoings of public officials through a variety of premeditated methods.

Learning Objective

Describe the rise of “gotcha journalism” and the legal recourse public figures have against such journalism

Key Points

Adversarial journalism includes many interview tactics, such as confronting the interviewee on a confrontational topic and switching topics mid-interview.
Editors involved in gotcha journalism often manipulate the texts of stories to their advantage.
Many modern politicians have become aware and critical of gotcha journalism, including former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

Key Term

libel: A written (notably as handbill) or pictorial statement which unjustly seeks to damage someone’s reputation.

Adversarial journalism, or gotcha journalism, is a form of journalism that seeks to uncover wrongdoings of public officials.

Gotcha journalism can include various methods such as, moving away from the agreed upon interview topic, or switching to an embarrassing subject that was agreed to be out-of-bounds. Interviewers might also confront interviewees with prepared material designed to contradict or discredit their positions. Gotcha journalism is often designed to keep the interviewee on the defensive by forcing them to explain some of their own statements taken out of context, thus effectively preventing the interviewee from clearly presenting their position.

This type of journalism is always premeditated and used to defame or discredit interviewees by portraying them as self-contradictory, malevolent, unqualified, or immoral. This effect is also achieved by replaying selected quotes from public speeches, followed by hand-picked footage or images that appear to reinforce negative images of the interviewee.

For example, a city’s mayor might give a speech in which he claims that during his tenure, employment was at a record high in his city. A news outlet may choose to replay that speech and follow it up with footage of desperate men and women at the unemployment office, and perhaps even an interview in which one of these people is asked to comment on the mayor’s speech. The interviewee, in this case, may be baited with questions that have obvious answers such as, “The mayor says unemployment is a record low; how do you respond to that? “

Other examples of gotcha journalism include misleading an interviewee about which portions of his or her statements will be aired, or misleading an audience about how an expert opinion is acquired. Take, for instance, a special feature on drug use in schools. To add sensationalism, an “expert” may be given manufactured statistics that imply that a three-fold increase in drug use is occurring in suburban schools, and asked to comment on what it might mean, if this statistic was real. The “expert” may issue a statement such as, “If this were actually happening, this trend would be alarming – thank goodness it’s not! ” To discredit this expert, upon airing, the narrator might say, “We asked Dr. John Q. Smith to comment on drug use in schools. ” Following this, would be the clip in which it appears that Dr. Smith is in denial over drugs in school. Alternatively, if Dr. Smith’s quote sides with the reporter’s case, the narrator might state, “We asked Dr. John Q. Smith what he thinks of the increase in drug use and he said, ‘this trend would be alarming. ‘”

Manipulation of quotes, images, and archival footage is typical in the editing process, especially for news magazines, and does not cross over into “gotcha” journalism until there is a deliberate attempt to mislead an interviewee, expert, or the audience. Most commonly, this manifests by finding footage of exceptions to a generalization given by a speaker or interviewee. For example, in the weeks following Hurricane Katrina public officials stated that progress was being made. A number of news outlets transmitted these statements, followed by footage of flooded homes, abandoned neighborhoods, and interviews with many people still affected by the disaster. The officials may or may not have been lying, but showing some continuing problems does not prove lack of progress in general.

In 1964, the pivotal US Supreme Court case (New York Times co. vs. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254) ended most libel protection recourse for public figures in the United States effectively clearing the way for intrusive or adversarial reportage into the public or private affairs of public figures by news media outlets whether newspapers, TV or radio. Public figures could no longer sue for libel, regardless of the bias of news media, without proof that the media had acted maliciously. An early citation indicated that “gotcha journalism” was used by Stuart K. Spencer in the Los Angeles Times in 1987. The full story is given in the book Stick It Up Your Punter by Chris Horrie. The headline was also used in a 1994 movie about the newspaper business,The Paper, which was based in part on Horrie’s book.

During the 2004 United State’s presidential election, Wall Street Journal columnist Gordon Crovitz suggested that the term “gotcha journalism” was used heavily by Republican campaign managers to diminish the credibility of journalists interviewing about the Iraq war.

Former Alaska Governor, Sarah Palin, has been especially critical of “gotcha journalism” . Her 2008 bid for Vice President was marred by numerous misstatements which she blamed on gotcha questions.

Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin was very critical of adversarial journalism during her campaign bid in 2008.

10.2: Regulation of the Media

10.2.1: Regulation of the Media

Media of the United States consists of television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based Web sites.

Learning Objective

Describe the media landscape in the United States

Key Points

Many media are controlled by large for-profit corporations that reap revenue from advertising, subscriptions and sale of copyrighted material.
Critics allege that local news, media spending and coverage have suffered as a result of media concentration.
A media conglomerate, media group or media institution is a company that owns large numbers of companies in various mass media.
Advertising regulation refers to the laws and rules defining the ways products can be advertised in a particular region. These rules can define a number of different aspects, including placement, timing and content.

Key Terms

regulation: A law or administrative rule, issued by an organization, used to guide or prescribe the conduct of members of that organization; can specifically refer to acts in which a government or state body limits the behavior of businesses.
advertising regulation: The laws and rules defining ways products can be advertised in a particular region.
media conglomerate: A company that owns large numbers of companies in various mass media including television, radio and publishing. Media conglomerates strive for policies that facilitate control of markets across the globe.

Example

The Walt Disney Company is America’s largest media conglomerate in terms of revenue. News Corporation, Time Warner, Viacom and CBS Corporation round out the top 5.

Introduction

Media of the United States consists of television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based Web sites. The U.S. also has a strong music industry. Many of the media are controlled by large for-profit corporations that reap revenue from advertising, subscriptions and sale of copyrighted material.

American media conglomerates tend to be leading global players, generating large revenues as well as large opposition. Further deregulation and convergence is under way, leading to concentration of media ownership and the emergence of multinational media conglomerates. Critics allege that local news, media spending and coverage have suffered as a result of media concentration.

A media conglomerate is a company that owns large numbers of companies in various mass media including television, radio and publishing. Media conglomerates strive for policies that facilitate control of markets across the globe. According to the 2012 Fortune 500 list, The Walt Disney Company is America’s largest media conglomerate in terms of revenue. News Corporation, Time Warner, Viacom and CBS Corporation round out the top 5. Other major players are NBCUniversal and Sony Corporation of America.

Advertising regulation refers to the laws and rules defining ways products can be advertised in a particular region . These rules can define a wide number of different aspects, including placement, timing and content. There are increasing efforts to regulate the content and influence of advertising. For example, the complete ban of advertising to children under 12 imposed by the Swedish government in 1991.

“Drink Coca-Cola 5¢”, an 1890s advertising poster showing a woman in fancy clothes drinking Coke. The card on the table says “Home Office, The Coca-Cola Co. Atlanta, Ga. Branches: Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Dallas”. Notice the cross-shaped color registration marks near the bottom center and top center. Someone crudely wrote on it at lower left (with an apparent leaking fountain pen) “Our Faovrite” [sic].The women who modeled for this artwork was Hilda Clark

Though that regulation continues for broadcasts originating within the country, it has been weakened by the European Court of Justice, which found that Sweden was obliged to accept foreign programming. Greece’s regulations are of a similar nature, “banning advertisements for children’s toys between 7 am and 10 pm and a total ban on advertisement for war toys. ” In the US, many communities believe that certain types of outdoor advertising blight the public realm. During the 1960s, there were attempts to ban billboard advertising in the open countryside.

10.2.2: Journalistic Standards

Journalism ethics and standards describe the principles of ethics and good practice journalists adopt in response to specific challenges.

Learning Objective

Summarize the key components of ethical journalism

Key Points

Codes of journalism are designed to guide journalists through numerous ethical challenges, such as conflict of interest. A conflict of interest occurs when a single individual or organization adopts multiple interests, one of which could potentially corrupt the incentive to pursue another.
According to the accuracy and standards for factual reporting, reporters are expected to be as accurate as possible given the time allotted and the space available, and to seek only reliable sources. In addition, events with a single eyewitness are to be reported with attribution.
Independent fact-checking by another employee of the publisher is desirable. A fact checker is the person who checks factual assertions in non-fictional text (usually intended for publication in a periodical) to determine their veracity and correctness.
Harm limitation addresses the question of whether all information gathered should be reported, and if so, how. This principle of limitation creates a practical and ethical dilemma by acknowledging that some attention must be given to the negative consequences of full disclosure.
News style is the prose style used for news reporting in media such as newspapers, radio and television.
News writing attempts to answer every basic question about a particular event– who, what, when, where, why, and often how– at the opening of the article. This method of composition is sometimes called the “inverted pyramid”.

Key Terms

fact checker: A fact checker is the person who checks factual assertions in non-fictional text (usually intended for publication in a periodical) to determine their veracity and correctness. The job requires general, wide-ranging knowledge and the ability to conduct quick and accurate research.
journalism ethics and standards: Journalism ethics and standards describe the principles of ethics and good practice journalists adopt in response to specific challenges.
conflict of interest: A situation in which someone in a position of trust, such as a lawyer, insurance adjuster, a politician, executive or director of a corporation or a medical research scientist or physician, has competing professional or personal interests.

Example

According to the Columbia Journalism Review, the German weekly Der Spiegel runs “most likely the world’s largest fact checking operation,” employing the equivalent of eighty full-time fact checkers as of 2010.

Introduction

Journalism ethics and standards describe the principles of ethics and good practice journalists adopt in response to specific challenges. Historically and currently, journalists consider the subset of media ethics as their professional “code of ethics” or “canons of journalism”. These basic codes and canons commonly appear in statements drafted by professional journalism associations and individual print, broadcast, and online news organizations. While various existing codes have some differences, most share common elements: notably, the principles of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness and public accountability as they apply to the acquisition of newsworthy information and its subsequent dissemination to the public.

Codes of Journalism

Codes of journalism are designed to guide journalists through numerous ethical challenges, such as conflict of interest. The codes and canons provide journalists with a framework for self-monitoring and self-correction. A conflict of interest occurs when a single individual or organization adopts multiple interests, one of which could potentially corrupt the incentive to pursue another. The United States and Europe have typically been considered pioneers in the formulation and adoption of these standards, though similar codes can be found in nearly any country that enjoys freedom of the press. While the written codes and practical standards of journalism vary somewhat from country to country and organization to organization, they tend to overlap substantially between mainstream publications and societies.

Common elements

In accordance with the accuracy and standards for factual reporting, reporters are expected to be as accurate as possible given the time allotted and the space available for story preparation, and to seek only reliable sources. In addition, events with a single eyewitness are to be reported with attribution. Events with two or more independent eyewitnesses may be reported as facts. Controversial facts are reported with attribution. Moreover, independent fact-checking by another employee of the publisher is desirable. A fact checker is the person who checks factual assertions in non-fictional text (usually intended for publication in a periodical) to determine their veracity and correctness. The job requires general, wide-ranging knowledge and the ability to conduct quick and accurate research. According to the Columbia Journalism Review, the German weekly Der Spiegel runs “most likely the world’s largest fact checking operation,” employing the equivalent of eighty full-time fact checkers as of 2010.

During the normal course of an assignment, a reporter might go about a variety of tasks– gathering facts and details, conducting interviews, doing research, background checks, taking photos, videotaping, recording sound. Harm limitation addresses the question of whether all information gathered should be reported, and if so, how. This principle of limitation creates a practical and ethical dilemma by acknowledging that some attention must be given to the negative consequences of full disclosure.

News Style

Ethical standards should not be confused with the common standards of quality of presentation. News style is the prose style used for news reporting in media such as newspapers, radio and television. News style requires not only a unique vocabulary and sentence structure, but also a particular manner of presentation– the situational importance of tone and intended audience, for instance. News writing attempts to answer every basic question about a particular event– who, what, when, where, why and often how– at the opening of the article. This method of composition is sometimes called the “inverted pyramid” , named for the decreasing importance of information in subsequent paragraphs.

Inverted Pyramid

The Inverted Pyramid. This story can be trimmed from the bottom without losing important details.

10.2.3: Government Regulations

A regulation is a legal provision that creates, limits, or constrains a right, creates or limits a duty, or allocates a responsibility.

Learning Objective

Describe several key debates in which the FCC is currently or has been recently involved

Key Points

One can consider regulation as actions of conduct imposing sanctions, such as a fine, to the extent permitted by the law of the land.
FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the media, public safety, and homeland security.
With the major demographic shifts occurring in the country in terms of the racial-ethnic composition of the population, the FCC has also been criticized for ignoring the issue of decreasing racial-ethnic diversity of the media.
Network Neutrality in the United States is a hotly debated issue subject to regulatory and judicial contention among network users and access providers.

Key Terms

federal communications commission: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States government created by Congressional statute, with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current president.
network neutrality: A principle proposed for user-access networks participating in the Internet that advocates no restrictions by ISPs or government on the content, sites, platforms, equipment, and modes of communication over the network.
regulation: A law or administrative rule, issued by an organization, used to guide or prescribe the conduct of members of that organization; can specifically refer to acts in which a government or state body limits the behavior of businesses.

Introduction

A regulation is a legal provision that creates, limits, or constrains a right, creates or limits a duty, or allocates a responsibility. Regulation can take many forms: legal restrictions promulgated by a government authority, contractual obligations that bind many parties, self-regulation by an industry such as through a trade association, social regulation, co-regulation, or market regulation. One can consider regulation as actions of conduct imposing sanctions, such as a fine, to the extent permitted by the law of the land.

The FCC and Regulation

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government . FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the media, public safety, and homeland security. The Commission is also in the process of modernizing itself. The inauguration of Ronald Reagan as President of the United States in 1981 accelerated an already ongoing shift in the FCC towards a decidedly more market-oriented stance. A number of regulations felt to be outdated were removed, most controversially the Fairness Doctrine in 1987. The FCC also took steps to increase competition to broadcasters, fostering broadcast alternatives such as cable television. In terms of indecency fines, there was no action taken by the FCC from FCC v. Pacifica until 1987, about 10 years later.

FCC Logo

An additional logo of the FCC.

The FCC’s mission is to create a purpose for national defense ad for the purpose of promoting safety of life and property through the use of wire and radio communications.

In the early 2000’s (decade), the FCC began stepping up censorship and enforcement of indecency regulations again, most notably following the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” that occurred during the halftime show of Super Bowl XXXVIII. However, the FCC’s regulatory domain with respect to indecency remains restricted to the public airwaves, notably VHF and UHF television and AM/FM radio. In other words, the FCC has a strong role in regulating public airwaves .

Press Coverage and film Crew at Barack Obama rally 2008

Media photographers and video crews, documenting the events onstage at a Barack Obama rally in Hartford, Connecticut.

Criticisms

With the major demographic shifts occurring in the country in terms of the racial-ethnic composition of the population, the FCC has also been criticized for ignoring the issue of decreasing racial-ethnic diversity of the media. This includes charges that the FCC has been watering down the limited affirmative action regulations it had on the books, including no longer requiring stations to make public their data on their minority staffing and hiring. In the second half of 2006, groups such as the National Hispanic Media Coalition, the National Latino Media Council, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the National Institute for Latino Policy, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), and others held town hall meetings in California, New York, and Texas on media diversity as its effects Latinos and minority communities. They documented widespread and deeply felt community concerns about the negative effects of media concentration and consolidation on racial-ethnic diversity in staffing and programming. At these Latino town hall meetings, the issue of the FCC’s lax monitoring of obscene and pornographic material in Spanish-language radio and the lack of racial and national-origin diversity among Latino staff in Spanish-language television were other major themes.

Network Neutrality in the United States is a hotly debated issue subject to regulatory and judicial contention among network users and access providers. As a de facto matter, there is a degree of network neutrality in the United States, meaning that telecommunications companies rarely offer different rates to broadband and dial-up Internet consumers based on Internet-based content or service type. However, there are no clear legal restrictions against these practices. Broadband providers often block common service ports, such as port 25 (SMTP) or port 80 (HTTP), preventing consumers (and botnets) from hosting web and email servers unless they upgrade to a “business” account. In recent years, advocates of network neutrality have sought to restrict such changes.

In 2005 and 2006, corporations supporting both sides of the issue spent large amounts of money lobbying Congress. In 2006, representatives from several major U.S. corporations and the federal government publicly addressed U.S. Internet services in terms of the nature of free market forces, the public interest, the physical and software infrastructure of the Internet, and new high-bandwidth technologies.

10.2.4: The Federal Communications Commission

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States government.

Learning Objective

Discuss the FCC’s mandate, structure, and enforcement powers

Key Points

In 1934, Congress passed the Communications Act, which abolished the Federal Radio Commission and transferred jurisdiction over radio licensing to a new Federal Communications Commission.
In the early 2000s, the FCC stepped up enforcement of indecency regulations, most notably following the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” that occurred during the halftime show of Super Bowl XXXVIII.
The FCC is directed by five commissioners appointed by the president, who designates one of the commissioners to serve as chairman.
The FCC regulates broadcast stations, amateur radio operators and repeater stations as well as commercial broadcasting operators. Broadcast licenses are to be renewed if the station meets the “public interest, convenience, or necessity”.

Key Terms

communications act: The Communications Act abolished the Federal Radio Commission and transferred jurisdiction over radio licensing to a new Federal Communications Commission.
federal communications commission: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States government created by Congressional statute, with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current president.

Introduction

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States government created by Congressional statute, with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current president .

FCC Seal

Seal of the United States Federal Communications Commission.

The FCC took over wire communication regulation from the Interstate Commerce Commission. The FCC’s mandated jurisdiction covers the 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. possessions. The FCC also provides varied degrees of cooperation, oversight and leadership for similar communications bodies in other countries of North America. The FCC is funded entirely by regulatory fees. It has an estimated fiscal-2011 budget of 354.2 million and 1,898 federal employees.

History

In 1934, Congress passed the Communications Act abolishing the Federal Radio Commission and transferring jurisdiction over radio licensing to a new Federal Communications Commission. Title II of the Communications Act focused on telecommunications using many concepts borrowed from railroad legislation and Title III contained provisions very similar to the Radio Act of 1927 .

FCC Commissioners inspect the latest in television (1939).

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has promised to ensure fairness in broadcasting.

In 1996, Congress enacted the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The legislation attempted to create more competition in local telephone service by requiring Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers to provide access to their facilities for Competitive Local Exchange Carriers. This policy has had limited success. The development of the Internet, cable services and wireless services has raised questions whether new legislative initiatives are needed. Congress has monitored developments, but as of 2009 has not undertaken a major revision of the regulation.

In the early 2000s, the FCC once again stepped up enforcement of indecency regulations, most notably following the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” that occurred during the halftime show of Super Bowl XXXVIII. However, the FCC’s regulatory domain with respect to indecency remains restricted to the public airwaves, notably VHF and UHF television and AM/FM radio.

Organization

The FCC is directed by five commissioners appointed by the president. The president designates one of the commissioners to serve as chairman. Only three commissioners may be members of the same political party. None may have a financial interest in any FCC-related business.

The Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB) develops and implements the FCC’s consumer policies, including disability access; The Enforcement Bureau (EB) is responsible for enforcement of provisions of the Communications Act of 1934, along with FCC rules, orders and conditions of station authorizations; The International Bureau (IB) develops international policies in telecommunications like coordination of frequency allocation; The Media Bureau (MB) develops, recommends and administers the policy and licensing programs relating to electronic media, including cable television, broadcast television, and radio in the United States and its territories; The Wireless Telecommunications Service (WCS) deals with Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) and fixed, mobile, and broadcast services on the 700 MHz Band; The Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) develops policy concerning wireline telecommunications.

Broadcast Licensing

The FCC regulates broadcast stations, amateur radio operators, and repeater stations as well as commercial broadcasting operators. Broadcast licenses are to be renewed if the station meets the “public interest, convenience, or necessity. “

The FCC’s enforcement powers include fines and broadcast license revocation. Burden of proof would be on the complainant in a petition to deny. Fewer than 1% of station renewals are not immediately granted, and only a small fraction of those are ultimately denied. While the FCC maintains control of the written and Morse testing standards, it no longer administers the exams, having delegated that function to private organizations.

10.3: The Media and Political Campaigns

10.3.1: Political Advertisements

Political advertising is a form of campaigning used by political candidates to reach and influence voters.

Learning Objective

Summarize the development of political advertisements on television and the Internet

Key Points

Unlike the campaigns of the past, advances in media technology have streamlined the process, giving candidates more options to reach even larger groups of constituents with very little physical effort.
Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson all successfully utilized the medium of television for their political advertising campaigns.
The growth of cable television networks and the Internet allowed candidates to reach new demographics, tailor their advertisements to particular audiences, and communicate directly with supporters and constituents.

Key Terms

constituent: a resident of a place represented by an elected official
narrowcasting: advertisements which are tailored to target specific audiences

Political advertising is a form of campaigning used by political candidates to reach and influence voters. It can include several different mediums and span several months over the course of a political campaign. Unlike the campaigns of the past, advances in media technology have streamlined the process, giving candidates more options to reach even larger groups of constituents with very little physical effort.

Political advertising has changed drastically over the last several decades. During the 1952 Presidential elections, Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first candidate to extensively utilize television commercials, creating forty twenty-second spots to answer questions from everyday Americans. During the 1960 elections, both candidates – Vice President Richard Nixon and Senator John F. Kennedy – utilized television, although Kennedy’s televised speech about his Catholic heritage and American religious tolerance is considered by many to be more memorable.

One of the first negative political advertisements was titled “The Daisy Girl” and was released by Lyndon Johnson’s campaign during the 1964 election. The commercial showed a young girl picking the petals off a daisy, while a voice off camera began a countdown to a nuclear explosion. The ad ended with an appeal to vote for Johnson, “because the stakes are too high for you to stay home.” Though the ad ran for under a minute and only aired once, it helped Johnson win the electoral votes of 44 states. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, political attack ads became even more prevalent, with Presidents Nixon, Carter, Reagan and George H. W. Bush all utilizing the method against their opponents .

President Lyndon B. Johnson

Lyndon B. Johnson, who successfully utilized negative political advertising in the famous “Daisy ad” during the 1964 election

The growth of cable television networks heavily influenced political advertising in the 1992 election between incumbent President George H. W. Bush and Governor Bill Clinton, particularly in reaching new target demographics such as women and young voters. The 2004 election saw yet another, and possibly the biggest, change yet in political advertising–the growth of the Internet. Web-based advertising was easily distributed by both incumbent President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry’s campaigns, and both campaigns hired firms who specialized in the accumulation of personal data. This resulted in advertisements which were tailored to target specific audiences for the first time (a process known as narrowcasting). The 2008 election was notable for Senator Barack Obama’s use of the Internet to communicate directly and personally with supporters and constituents, a tactic that would help in his eventual victory.

10.3.2: Television Debates

From 1960 onward, televised debates have become an important aspect of every presidential election.

Learning Objective

Name three key moments in the history of televised presidential debates

Key Points

The first general election presidential debate was held on September 26, 1960, between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon.
The 1976 presidential debates would lead to a victory for Jimmy Carter after a foreign policy gaffe made by incumbent Gerald Ford.
During the 1980 debates, former actor Ronald Reagan came across much better than President Jimmy Carter, a fact which would lead to Reagan’s landslide victory.

Key Term

incumbent: Being the current holder of an office or a title.

Televised debates have become an important aspect of every presidential election. The first general election presidential debate was held on September 26, 1960, between Democratic nominee U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy and Vice President Richard Nixon, the Republican nominee.

With an estimated 70 million viewers watching, the first Kennedy-Nixon debate demonstrated the impact of this new medium. During the debate, Nixon looked sickly, underweight and tired. In contrast, Kennedy appeared confident and relaxed. As a result, many of those who watched the debate unfold on television believed that Kennedy had won. For the remaining three debates, Nixon regained his lost weight, wore television makeup and appeared more forceful than his initial appearance .

Kennedy-Nixon Debate

The Kennedy-Nixon debate of 1960 was the first televised presidential debate.

It was not until 1976 that a second series of televised presidential debates was held during the general election campaign season. These debates, between Governor Jimmy Carter, the Democratic nominee, and Republican incumbent President Gerald Ford, also demonstrated their dramatic effect. Ford had already cut into Carter’s large lead in the polls, and was generally viewed as having won the first debate on domestic policy. However, in a second debate on foreign policy, Ford made what was widely viewed as a major blunder when he stated, “There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe, and there never will be under a Ford administration. ” After this, Ford’s momentum stalled, and Carter won a very close election.

Televised debates were a major factor again in 1980. Earlier in the election season, President Carter had a lead over opponent Governor Ronald Reagan. In the debates, with years of experience in front of a camera as an actor, Reagan came across much better than Carter. This would eventually help to propel Reagan to a landslide victory.

10.3.3: News Coverage

Media coverage strongly influences people’s perception of politics, society, and culture.

Learning Objective

Name some of the central critiques of American news organizations

Key Points

Perhaps the most important political function of the media is to put together a set of national priorities.
Agenda setting may be limited within a domestic political context because of the competition for audience interest.
American news media emphasizes more than ever the “horse race” aspects of the presidential campaign. This has led to criticism that audiences are not being given more substantive information about policy.

Key Term

horse race: An exciting and arduous competition (as in a political campaign).

Media coverage strongly influences people’s perception of politics, society, and culture. The political analyst and consultant Gary Wasserman attests that media institutions’ “most important political function” is to play the role of an “agenda setter,” where they “[put] together an agenda of national priorities – what should be taken seriously, what lightly, what not at all. “

Agenda-setting is somewhat limited within domestic politics. Due to the commercialized context within which they work, media institutions must compete for audience interest and can often not afford to ignore an important issue which another television station, newspaper, or radio station is willing to pick up. In regards to foreign policy, agenda-setting could take place in areas in which very few Americans have direct experience of the issues at hand. In addition, the U.S. media has been accused of prioritizing domestic news over international news, as well as focusing on U.S. military action abroad over other international stories.

American news media emphasizes more than ever the “horse race” aspects of the presidential campaign, according to a new study. Coverage of the political campaigns have been less reflective on the issues that matter to voters. Instead, the media has focused primarily on campaign tactics and strategy, according to a report conducted jointly by the Project for Excellence in Journalism, part of the Pew Research Center, and the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics, and Public Policy at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. The report examined 1,742 stories that appeared from January through May 2007 in 48 news outlets. Almost two-thirds of all stories in U.S. news media, including print, television, radio and online, focused on the political aspects of the campaign, while only one percent focused on the candidates’ public records. Only 12 percent of stories seemed relevant to voters’ decision-making. The rest of the stories focused more on tactics and strategy. Many criticize this shift in emphasis for depriving audiences of substantive information about candidates’ policy platforms .

News Coverage

Press tables at a Barack Obama rally.

10.3.4: The Internet, Blogging, and Podcasting

The growth of the Internet and its associated technologies has made a profound impact on contemporary political campaigns.

Learning Objective

Describe the various ways recent developments in technology have shaped political activity

Key Points

The internet is now a core element of modern political campaigns. Communication technologies such as e-mail, web sites, and podcasts for various forms of activism to enable faster communications by citizen movements and deliver a message to a large audience.
Political blogs, generally a series of discrete posts about political issues in which readers may submit comments (thus reinforcing its interactive nature), have become prominent method of covering politics.
The 2004 presidential election between incumbent President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry was the first to heavily utilize web-based advertising, with advertisements tailored toward different target audiences.
Internet-based activism for a wide variety of political causes has also increased due to the growth of social media technologies, such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
New media has been incredibly successful at reaching the younger population while helping all populations organize and promote action.

Key Terms

social media: Interactive forms of media that allow users to interact with and publish to each other, generally by means of the Internet.
blog: A website that allows users to reflect, share opinions, and discuss various topics in the form of an online journal while readers may comment on posts. Most blogs are written in a slightly informal tone (personal journals, news, businesses, etc. ) Entries typically appear in reverse chronological order.

Introduction

The growth of the Internet and its associated technologies has had a profound impact on contemporary political campaigns.

The 2004 presidential election between incumbent President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry was the first to heavily utilize web-based advertising, with advertisements tailored toward different target audiences. President Barack Obama’s victory in 2008 was partially attributed to his campaign’s use of direct communication through the Internet with supporters and constituents . When discussing the 2004 U.S. presidential election candidates, Carol Darr, director of the Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., said of the candidates which benefited from use of the Internet to attract supporters: “They are all charismatic, outspoken mavericks and insurgents. Given that the Internet is interactive and requires an affirmative action on the part of the users, as opposed to a passive response from TV users, it is not surprising that the candidate has to be someone people want to touch and interact with. “

Campaigns and the internet

President Obama’s campaign, depicted here, relied heavily on the use of the internet. He used the internet to connect with his constituents and win votes.

Political blogs, generally a series of discrete posts about political issues in which readers may submit comments (thus reinforcing its interactive nature), have become prominent method of covering politics. Though the medium was often originally associated with individuals operating outside the formal political and media establishment, political blogs have unquestionably shaped the actions of political leadership and voter behavior. In the United States and many other countries, the most prominent bloggers have now become an accepted fixture in the political milieu.

Podcasts, a type of digital media consisting of an episodic series of audio, video, PDF, or ePub files subscribed to and downloaded through web syndication or streamed online to a computer or mobile device, have also become a popular way to convey political messages.

The Impact of the Internet on Political Campaigns

The internet is now a core element of modern political campaigns. Communication technologies such as e-mail, web sites, and podcasts for various forms of activism to enable faster communications by citizen movements and deliver a message to a large audience. These Internet technologies are used for cause-related fundraising, lobbying, volunteering, community building, and organizing. Individual political candidates are also using the internet to promote their election campaign. In a study of Norwegian election campaigns, politicians reported they used social media for marketing and for dialogue with voters. Facebook was the primary platform for marketing and Twitter was used for more continuous dialogue. However, despite the opening of communications brought by the internet, elections have become more expensive due to the inevitable reliance on high-tech for all purposes in a campaign.

Signifying the importance of internet political campaigning, Barack Obama’s presidential campaign relied heavily on social media, and new media channels to engage voters, recruit campaign volunteers, and raise campaign funds. The campaign brought the spotlight on the importance of using internet in new-age political campaigning by utilizing various forms of social media and new media (including Facebook, YouTube and a custom generated social engine) to reach new target populations. The campaign’s social website, my.BarackObama.com, utilized a low cost and efficient method of mobilizing voters and increasing participation among various voter populations. This new media was incredibly successful at reaching the younger population while helping all populations organize and promote action.

Internet-based activism for a wide variety of political causes has also increased due to the growth of social media technologies such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. These technologies enable faster communication by grassroots citizen movements and the delivery of local information to a large audience. For example, the Internet became the catalyst for protests such as the 2011 uprisings in Arab countries and the Occupy Wall Street movement in the United States, as those involved increasingly relied on social media to organize and stay connected.

10.4: Media Bias

10.4.1: Media Bias

Media bias is the bias of journalists and news producers in the selection of events and stories that are reported, and how they are covered.

Learning Objective

Summarize the different types of bias affecting journalism and various attempts to correct them

Key Points

Political bias has been a feature of the mass media since its birth following the invention of the printing press. Historians have found that publishers often served the interests of powerful social groups.
Like newspapers, the broadcast media—radio and television—have been used as a mechanism for propaganda from their earliest days, a tendency made more pronounced by the initial ownership of the broadcast spectrum by national governments.
The most commonly discussed forms of bias occur when the media support or attack a particular political party, candidate, or ideology; however, other common forms of bias exist, including advertising bias, corporate bias, mainstream bias, sensationalism, and concision bias.
A technique used to avoid bias is the round table, an adversarial format in which representatives of opposing views comment on an issue. This approach theoretically allows diverse views to appear in the media.
Another technique used to avoid bias is disclosure of affiliations that may be considered a possible conflict of interest. This is especially apparent when a news organization is reporting a story with some relevancy to the news organization itself or to its ownership individuals or conglomerate.

Key Terms

media bias: A bias in journalistic reporting, in programming selection, etc., in mass communications media.
sensationalism: The use of sensational subject matter, style, or methods, or the sensational subject matter itself; behavior, published materials, or broadcasts that are intentionally controversial, exaggerated, lurid, loud, or attention-grabbing. Especially applied to news media in a pejorative sense that they are reporting in a manner to gain audience or notoriety at the expense of accuracy and professionalism.
round table: An adversarial format in which representatives of opposing views comment on an issue. This approach theoretically allows diverse views to appear in the media.

Example

Sensationalism is a type of editorial bias in mass media where events and topics in news stories and pieces are over-hyped to increase viewership or readership numbers. Sensationalism may include reporting about generally insignificant matters and events that don’t influence overall society and biased presentations of newsworthy topics in a sensationalist, trivial, or tabloid manner. Examples include press coverage about the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal, Casey Anthony Trial, Tonya Harding’s role in the attack of Nancy Kerrigan, the Elian Gonzalez affair, and the O.J. Simpson murder case.

Introduction

Media bias is the bias of journalists and news producers within the mass media, concerning the selection of events and stories that are reported, and how they are covered. The term “media bias” implies a pervasive or widespread bias contravening the standards of journalism, rather than the perspective of an individual journalist or article. The direction and degree of media bias in various countries is widely disputed.

Practical limitations to media neutrality include the inability of journalists to report all available stories and facts, and the requirement that selected facts be linked into a coherent narrative. Because it is impossible to report everything, selectivity is inevitable. Government influence, including overt and covert censorship, biases the media in some countries, for example North Korea and Burma. Market forces that result in a biased presentation include the ownership of the news source, concentration of media ownership, the selection of staff, the preferences of an intended audience, and pressure from advertisers.

History of Bias in Mass Media

Political bias has been a feature of the mass media since its birth following the invention of the printing press. The expense of early printing equipment restricted media production to a limited number of people. Historians have found that publishers often served the interests of powerful social groups. In the nineteenth century, journalists began to recognize the concept of unbiased reporting as an integral part of journalistic ethics. This coincided with the rise of journalism as a powerful social force. Even today, though, the most conscientiously objective journalists cannot avoid accusations of bias. Like newspapers, the broadcast media (radio and television, ) have been used as a mechanism for propaganda from their earliest days, a tendency made more pronounced by the initial ownership of the broadcast spectrum by national governments. Although a process of media deregulation has placed the majority of the Western broadcast media in private hands, there still exists a strong government presence, or even monopoly, in the broadcast media of many countries across the globe. At the same time, the concentration of media in private hands, and frequently among a comparatively small number of individuals, has also led to accusations of media bias .

Percent of Media Citations by Ideology Graph

Studies done by FAIR, a progressive media watchdog organization, argue that the majority of media citations come from conservative and centrist sources.

Ronald Reagan as Radio Announcer 1934-37

Ronald Reagan as a WHO Radio Announcer in Des Moines, Iowa. 1934-37.

Types of Bias

The most commonly discussed forms of bias occur when the media support or attack a particular political party, candidate, or ideology; however, other common forms of bias exist, including advertising bias, corporate bias, mainstream bias, sensationalism, and concision bias. Advertising bias refers to when stories are selected or slanted to please advertisers; corporate bias refers to when stories are selected or slanted to please corporate owners of media; mainstream bias refers to a tendency to report what everyone else is reporting, and to avoid stories that will offend anyone. Sensationalism is a type of editorial bias in mass media in which events and topics in news stories and pieces are over-hyped to increase viewership or readership numbers. Sensationalism may include reporting about generally insignificant matters and events that don’t influence overall society, as well as biased presentations of newsworthy topics in a sensationalist, trivial, or tabloid manner. Examples include press coverage about the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal, Casey Anthony Trial, Tonya Harding’s role in the attack of Nancy Kerrigan, the Elian Gonzalez affair, and the O.J. Simpson murder case. Finally, concision bias refers to a tendency to report views that can be summarized succinctly, crowding out more unconventional views that take time to explain.

Efforts to Correct Bias

A technique used to avoid bias is the round table, an adversarial format in which representatives of opposing views comment on an issue. This approach theoretically allows diverse views to appear in the media. However, the person organizing the report still has the responsibility to choose people who really represent the breadth of opinion, to ask them non-prejudicial questions, and to edit or arbitrate their comments fairly. When done carelessly, a point/counterpoint can be just as unfair as a simple biased report, by suggesting that the “losing” side lost on its merits.

Another technique used to avoid bias is the disclosure of affiliations that may be considered a possible conflict of interest. This is especially apparent when a news organization is reporting a story with some relevancy to the news organization itself or to its ownership individuals or conglomerate. Often this disclosure is mandated by the laws or regulations pertaining to stocks and securities. Commentators on news stories involving stocks are often required to disclose any ownership interest in those corporations or in its competitors.

10.5: News Coverage

10.5.1: Print Media

The main form of print media is the newspaper, which is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, and informative articles.

Learning Objective

Recognize the function and style of the newspaper as a format of media coverage

Key Points

The emergence of the new media branch in the 17th century has to be seen in close connection with the spread of the printing press from which the publishing press derives its name.
Advances in printing technology related to the Industrial Revolution enabled newspapers to become an even more widely circulated means of communication.
By the late 1990s, the 24-hour television channels and the Internet posed an ongoing challenge to the business model of newspapers in developed countries. Paid circulation has declined, while advertising revenue has been shifting from print to new media, resulting in a general decline of profits.
However, in the rest of the world, cheaper printing and distribution, increased literacy, the growing middle class and other factors have more than compensated for the emergence of electronic media by allowing newspapers in those regions to continue to grow.

Key Terms

print media: newspaper, magazines and other printed material that distributes news and information
Newspaper: A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features, editorials, and advertising.
Hearst Corporation: The Hearst Corporation was one of the large news media corporations of the first part of the 20th century.

Newspaper

The main form of print media is the newspaper. A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features, editorials, and advertising . It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6,580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a day. The worldwide recession of 2008, combined with the rapid growth of web-based alternatives, caused a serious decline in advertising and circulation, as many papers closed or sharply reduced operations.

The New York Times

The front page of the New York Times on Armistice Day, November 11, 1918.

General-interest newspapers typically publish stories on local and national political events and personalities, crime, business, entertainment, society and sports. Most traditional papers also feature an editorial page containing editorials written by an editor and columns that express the personal opinions of writers. The newspaper is typically funded by paid subscriptions and advertising.

The emergence of this new media branch in the 17^th century has to be seen in close connection with the spread of the printing press from which the publishing press derives its name. The German-language Relation aller Fürnemmen und gedenckwürdigen Historien, printed from 1605 on wards by Johann Carolus in Strasbourg, is often recognized as the first newspaper.

By the early 19^th century, many cities in Europe, as well as North and South America, published newspaper-type publications though content was vastly shaped by regional and cultural preferences. Advances in printing technology related to the Industrial Revolution enabled newspapers to become an even more widely circulated means of communication. In 1814, The Times (London) acquired a printing press capable of making 1,100 impressions per minute.

Soon, the printing press was adapted to print on both sides of a page at once. This innovation made newspapers cheaper and thus available to a larger part of the population. In 1830, the first penny press newspaper came to the market: Lynde M. Walter’s Boston Transcript. Penny press papers cost about one sixth the price of other newspapers and appealed to a wider audience. In France, Émile de Girardin started “La Presse” in 1836, introducing cheap, advertising-supported dailies to France.

In the early days of the newspaper business newspapers were often owned by press barons, and were used for gaining a political voice. After 1920 most major newspapers became parts of chains run by large media corporations such as Gannett, The McClatchy Company, Hearst Corporation, Cox Enterprises, Landmark Media Enterprises LLC, Morris Communications, The Tribune Company, Hollinger International, News Corporation, and Swift Communications.

However, newspapers have played an important role in the exercise of freedom of expression. Whistle-blowers and those who “leak” stories of corruption in political circles often choose to inform newspapers before other mediums of communication, relying on the reputation of newspaper editors to expose the secrets and lies that relate to the public. However, there have been many circumstances of the political autonomy of newspapers being curtailed. Recent research has examined the effects of a newspaper’s closing on the reelection of incumbents, voter turnout, and campaign spending.

By the late 1990s, the availability of news via 24-hour television channels and then the Internet posed an ongoing challenge to the business model of most newspapers in developed countries. Paid circulation has declined, while advertising revenue — which makes up the bulk of most newspapers’ income — has been shifting from print to the new media, resulting in a general decline of profits. Many newspapers around the world launched online editions in an attempt to follow or stay ahead of their audience.

The future of newspapers in countries with easy access to the Internet has been widely debated as the industry has faced soaring newsprint prices, slumping ad sales, the loss of much classified advertising, and precipitous drops in circulation. In recent years the number of newspapers slated for closure, bankruptcy or severe cutbacks has risen—especially in the United States, where the industry has shed a fifth of its journalists since 2001. Revenue has plunged while competition from media on the Internet has threatened older print publishers .

U.S. Newspaper Advertising Revenue

This graph depicts the fall of print advertising revenue and the rise of online advertising revenue.

The debate has become more urgent lately, as a deepening recession has shaved profits, and as once-explosive growth in newspaper web revenues has leveled off, forestalling what the industry hoped would become an important source of its revenue. At issue is whether the newspaper industry faces a cyclical trough, or whether new technology has rendered newspapers obsolete in their traditional format.

However, in the rest of the world, cheaper printing and distribution, increased literacy, the growing middle class and other factors have more than compensated for the emergence of electronic media by allowing newspapers in those regions to continue to grow.

Major American newspapers include: New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post. Major American news magazines include: Newsweek, TIME, and U.S. News & World Report.

10.5.2: Radio News

Stations dedicated to news will often feature newscasts, or bulletins, usually at the top of the hour, between 3 and 8 minutes in length.

Learning Objective

Explain the role of radio news in media coverage and recent trends in radio news

Key Points

Many stations brand themselves as news radio but only run continuous news during the morning and afternoon drive times. These stations are properly identified as talk radio stations.
Some National Public Radio stations brand themselves as news and information stations, which means that in addition to running the NPR news magazines like Morning Edition and All Things Considered, they run other information programs such as Fresh Air, Talk of the Nation, and the BBC World Service.
The standard format was to start each half hour with world and national news from a network, then switch to locally-anchored area news, filling out the half hour with sports, business news, and features.
In 1994, an effort similar to NIS was launched by the Associated Press. It was officially known as AP All-News Radio and had many affiliates from coast to coast. The Associated Press discontinued the all-news format in July 2005.

Key Terms

Arthur W. Arundel: Arthur W. Arundel is credited with creating the first 24-hour all-news station, radio or television, in the United States in January 1961 on his owned and operated WAVA station in Washington.
NIS: In 1975, the NBC Radio Network shut down its profitable weekend music and information service NBC Monitor to launch the News & Information Service (NIS), the first all-news radio network.
All-News Radio: All-news radio, or talk radio is a radio station where the station’s entire schedule is dedicated to newscasts.

Radio News

Radio station newscasts can range from as little as a minute to as much as the station’s entire schedule, such as the case of all-news radio, or talk radio. Stations dedicated to news or talk will often feature newscasts, or bulletins, usually at the top of the hour, usually between 3 and 8 minutes in length. They can be a mix of local, national, and international news, as well as sport, entertainment, weather, and traffic, or they may be incorporated into separate bulletins. All-news radio stations exist in some countries, primarily located in major metropolitan areas such as New York City, Toronto, and Chicago, which often broadcast local, national, and international news and feature stories on a set time schedule.

All-news radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcast of news. It is available in both local and syndicated forms, and is carried in some form on both major US satellite radio networks. Some all-news stations may carry sports, public affairs programs, simulcasts of TV news magazine, political affairs shows like 60 Minutes and Face the Nation, or national radio shows revolving around news such as the CBS News Weekend Roundup. Many stations brand themselves as news radio but only run continuous news during the morning and afternoon drive times. These stations are properly identified as talk radio stations. Also, some National Public Radio stations brand themselves as News and Information stations, which means that in addition to running the NPR news magazines like Morning Edition and All Things Considered, they run other information programs such as Fresh Air, Talk of the Nation, and the BBC World Service .

NPR

National Public Radio, one of the News and Information stations.

History

Broadcasting pioneer Arthur W. Arundel is credited with creating the first 24-hour all- news station, radio or television, in the United States in January 1961 on his owned and operated WAVA in Washington. The station’s success was largely driven by the the fact that the nation’s capital was riveted to news of the Vietnam War and the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, and Robert F. Kennedy. Arundel helped other stations in New York and Chicago also to convert to his all-news format and then met direct competition from Washington Post-owned WTOP in 1969.

All-news has for years been a top-rated radio format in New York, Washington, D.C., and other cities, but as big city traffic worsens and people work longer hours that increase the urgency of planning their day ahead, the focus of such stations has increasingly been on traffic and weather, often updated every 10 minutes. Attempts at long-form commercial all-news stations, such as Washington Post Radio, have been largely unsuccessful.

The Rise of Conservative Talk Radio

Conservative talk radio (or right talk) is a talk radio format in the United States devoted to expressing conservative viewpoints of issues, as opposed to progressive talk radio. In 1987, the FCC abolished the Fairness Doctrine, and AM radio began to make changes. The changes paved the way for syndicated personality Rush Limbaugh and others like him to rise to prominence by “offering a voice for the ‘silent majority'” that he believed had gone unheard by the mainstream media. Within the next decade, conservative talk radio schedules had developed the most listener loyalty (highest ratings) and performed particularly well when compared with most mixed or liberal/progressive talk radio. By 1991, Limbaugh had become the number one most syndicated radio host and AM radio had been revived.

The September 11, 2001 attacks brought on a wave of nationalism and a desire to rally around the United States and its government, which was led at the time by the Republican Party. This environment led to a large increase in national conservative talk radio hosts: The Glenn Beck Program, The Sean Hannity Show, The Laura Ingraham Show, Batchelor and Alexander and The Radio Factor all launched into national syndication at this time. Conservative talk radio includes personalities, both local and nationally-syndicated, such as Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, and many others. As of 2013, Limbaugh and Hannity are the most listened-to radio programs of any format in the United States, and other conservative talk shows also rank highly. [2] Conservative talk is heard almost entirely on commercial radio; public radio in the United States has historically been perceived as having a more liberal lean, and noncommercial community radio is generally very progressive in ideology.

10.5.3: Television News

A news bulletin or newscast is a television program that provides updates on world, national, or local news events.

Learning Objective

Discuss the structure, content and style of television news

Key Points

Newscasts differ in content, tone, and presentation style depending on the format of the channel on which they appear as well as their time slot. In most parts of the world, national television networks will have network bulletins featuring national and international news.
The top rating shows will often be in the evening at “prime time”, but there are also often breakfast time newscasts of two to three hours in length. Rolling news channels broadcast news 24 hours a day.
Television news is very image-based, showing video of many of the events that are reported.

Key Terms

Newscasts: Newscasts consist of several reporters or guest commentators being interviewed by an anchor, known as a “two-way. ” There may also be breaking news stories which will present live rolling coverage.
Television News: Television news refers to disseminating current events via the medium of television.

Television news

Television news refers to disseminating current events via the medium of television. A “news bulletin” or a “newscast” are television programs lasting from seconds to hours that provide updates on world, national, regional, or local news events. Television news is very image-based, showing video of many of the events that are reported. Television channels may provide news bulletins as part of a regularly scheduled news program. Less often, television shows may be interrupted or replaced by breaking news (“news flashes”) to provide news updates on current or sudden events of great importance. Walter Kronkite is one of the iconic figures in television anchoring .

Walter Cronkite

Walter Cronkite, the iconic anchor of CBS Evening News.

Structure, content and style

Newscasts, also known as bulletins or news programs, differ in content, tone, and presentation style depending on the format of the channel on which they appear as well as their timeslot. In most parts of the world, national television networks will have network bulletins featuring national and international news. The top rating shows will often be in the evening at “prime time”, but there are also often breakfast time newscasts of two to three hours in length. Rolling news channels broadcast news 24 hours a day. Local news may be presented by stand-alone local TV stations, local stations affiliated with national networks, or by local studios which “opt-out” of national network programming at specified times. Different news programming may be aimed at different audiences, depending on age, socio-economic group, or demographic. “Magazine-style” television shows may mix news coverage with topical lifestyle issues, debates, or entertainment content.

Newscasts consist of several reporters or guest commentators being interviewed by an anchor, known as a “two-way. ” There may also be breaking news stories which will present live rolling coverage.

Packages will usually be filmed at a relevant location and edited in an editing suite in a newsroom or a edit suite in a location some distance from the newsroom. They may also be edited in mobile editing trucks, or satellite trucks, and transmitted back to the newsroom. Live coverage will be broadcast from a relevant location and sent back to the newsroom via fixed cable links, microwave radio, production truck, satellite truck, or online streaming. Most news shows are broadcast live.

In the early twenty-first century news programs, especially those of commercial networks, tended to become less oriented toward hard news, and often regularly included “feel-good stories” or humorous reports as the last items on their newscasts, as opposed to news programs transmitted thirty years earlier, such as the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite. From their beginnings until around 1995, evening television news broadcasts continued featuring serious news stories right up to the end of the program, as opposed to later broadcasts with such anchors as Katie Couric, Brian Williams, and Diane Sawyer.

10.5.4: New Media

An important promise of new media is the “democratization” of the creation, publishing, distribution and consumption of media content.

Learning Objective

Explain the influence of the new media on politics and social movements

Key Points

The rise of new media has increased communication between people all over the world and the Internet. It has allowed people to express themselves through blogs, websites, pictures, and other user-generated media.
Some are also skeptical of the role of new media in social movements. Many scholars point out unequal access to new media as a hindrance to broad-based movements, sometimes even oppressing some people within a movement.
New media changes continuously because it is constantly modified and redefined by the interaction between users, emerging technologies, and cultural changes.

Key Terms

Zapatista Army of International Liberation: The Zapatista Army of International Liberation of Chiapas, Mexico were the first major movement to make widely recognized and effective use of new media for communiques and organizing in 1994.
Virtual Communities: “Virtual communities” are being established online and transcend geographical boundaries, eliminating social restrictions.
new media: New media refers to on-demand access to content any time, any where, on any digital device, as well as the interactive user feedback, creative participation, and community formation around the media content.

New media refers to on-demand access to content any time, any where, on any digital device, as well as the interactive user feedback, creative participation, and community formation around the media content. Another important promise of new media is the “democratization” of the creation, publishing, distribution, and consumption of media content. illustrates the interactive form of communication that may exist in emerging social media.

Communication Diagram

This diagram illustrates the interactive form of communication that may exist in social media.

Most technologies described as “new media” are digital, often having characteristics of being manipulated, networkable, dense, compressible, and interactive. Some examples may be the Internet, websites, computer multimedia, video games, CD-ROMS, and DVDs. Facebook is an example of the social media model, in which most users are also participants.

There is growing consensus that new media will:

Alter the meaning of geographic distance.
Allow for a huge increase in the volume of communication.
Provide the possibility of increasing the speed of communication.
Provide opportunities for interactive communication.
Allow forms of communication that were previously separate to overlap and interconnect.

Consequently it has been the contention of scholars such as Douglas Kellner and James Bohman that new media, and particularly the Internet, provide the potential for a democratic postmodern public sphere, in which citizens can participate in well informed, non-hierarchical debate. Contradicting these positive appraisals of the potential social impact of new media are scholars such as Ed Herman and Robert McChesney who have suggested that the transition to new media has seen a handful of powerful transnational telecommunications corporations achieve a level of global influence which was previously unimaginable.

The rise of new media has increased communication between people all over the world and the Internet. It has allowed people to express themselves through blogs, websites, pictures, and other user-generated media.

“Virtual communities” are being established online and transcend geographical boundaries, eliminating social restrictions. While this perspective suggests that the technology drives – and therefore is a determining factor – in the process of globalization, arguments involving technological determinism are generally frowned upon by mainstream media studies. Instead academics focus on the multiplicity of processes by which technology is funded, researched and produced, forming a feedback loop when the technologies are used and often transformed by their users, which then feeds into the process of guiding their future development.

Social movement media has a rich and storied history that has changed at a rapid rate since new media became widely used. The Zapatista Army of International Liberation of Chiapas, Mexico were the first major movement to make widely recognized and effective use of new media for communiques and organizing in 1994. Since then, new media has been used extensively by social movements to educate, organize, communicate, coalition build, share cultural products, and more. People are taking advantage of the Internet to produce a grassroots globalization, one that is anti-neoliberal and centered on people rather than the flow of capital. Of course, some are also skeptical of the role of new media in social movements. Many scholars point out unequal access to new media as a hindrance to broad-based movements, sometimes even oppressing some people within a movement.

New media has also recently become of interest to the global espionage community as it is easily accessible electronically in database format and can therefore be quickly retrieved and reverse engineered by national governments. Particularly of interest to the espionage community are Facebook and Twitter, two sites where individuals freely divulge personal information that can then be sifted through and archived for the automatic creation of dossiers on both people of interest and the average citizen.

New media changes continuously because it is constantly modified and redefined by the interaction between users, emerging technologies, and cultural changes.

10.5.5: Journalists

A journalist collects, writes, and distributes news and other information, and his or her work is referred to as journalism.

Learning Objective

Discuss the role of journalists in producing and distributing news and information

Key Points

Journalism has developed a variety of ethics and standards. While objectivity and a lack of bias are considered important, some types of journalism, such as advocacy journalism, intentionally adopt a non-objective viewpoint.
The radio industry has undergone a radical consolidation of ownership, with fewer companies owning the thousands of national stations, resulting in more “niche” formats and the sharing of resources within clusters of stations, de-emphasizing local news and information.
Convergence is the sharing and cross-promoting of content from a variety of media, which in theory might all converge and become one medium eventually. In broadcast news, the Internet is a key part of this convergence.

Key Terms

Broadcast Journalism: Broadcast journalism is journalism published through the radio, the television, or the Internet.
Journalist: A journalist collects, writes, and distributes news and other information. A journalist’s work is referred to as journalism.
Reporter: A reporter is a type of journalist who researches, writes, conducts interviews, and makes reports.

Journalist

A journalist collects, writes, and distributes news and other information. A journalist’s work is referred to as journalism. A reporter is a type of journalist who researches, writes, conducts interviews, and makes reports. Reporters may split their time between working in a newsroom and going into the field to witness events or to conduct interviews. Reporters may be assigned a specific beat or area of coverage. Depending on the context, the term journalist may include various types of editors, editorial writers, columnists, and visual journalists, such as photojournalists.

Journalism has developed a variety of ethics and standards. While objectivity and a lack of bias are often considered important, some types of journalism, such as advocacy journalism , intentionally adopt a non-objective viewpoint.

Journalists may expose themselves to danger, particularly when reporting in areas of armed conflict or in states that do not respect the freedom of the press. Organizations such as the Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters Without Borders publish reports on press freedom and advocate for journalistic freedom. As of November 2011, the Committee to Protect Journalists reports that 887 journalists have been killed worldwide since 1992. The Committee to Protect Journalists also reports that as of December 1, 2010, 145 journalists were jailed worldwide for their work. Current numbers are even higher. The five countries with the largest number of currently-imprisoned journalists are Burma (13), Eritrea (17), Iran (34), China (34), and Turkey (95).

Broadcast journalism is journalism published through the radio, the television, or the Internet. Radio was the first medium for broadcast journalism. Many of the first radio stations were co-operative non-profit community radio ventures. Eventually, radio pioneered advertising as a method to pay for its programs.

Programming can be locally produced, broadcast by a radio network, or aired by syndication. In radio news, stories include “sound bites”, which are the recorded sounds of events themselves, introduced by the anchor or host.

The radio industry has undergone a radical consolidation of ownership, with fewer companies owning the thousands of national stations. Large media conglomerates own most of the radio stations in the United States. This has resulted in more “niche” formats and the sharing of resources within clusters of stations, which de-emphasize local news, such as information pertaining to local emergencies. In addition, these conglomerates greatly narrow the range of political views expressed.

Television news is considered by many to be the most influential medium for journalism. For most of the American public, local news and national TV newscasts are their primary news sources. Television journalism viewership has become fragmented due to the emergence of 24-hour cable news channels such as Cable News Network (CNN) in 1980 and Fox News Channel as well as MSNBC in the 1990s.

Convergence is the sharing and cross-promoting of content from a variety of media, which in theory might all converge and become one medium eventually. In broadcast news, the Internet is a key part of this convergence. Frequently, broadcast journalists also write text stories for the Web, usually accompanied by the graphics and sound of the original story. Web sites also offer the audience an interactive form where they can learn more about a story, can be referred to related articles, and can offer comments on the publication.

A newscaster (short for “news broadcaster”) is a presenter of news bulletins. This person may perform electronic news gathering (ENG) as well as a compile the script for a news bulletin with a television producer.

Newsroom WHIO

The anchor delivers the news from a news desk, which is located on a news set.

Prior to the television era, radio broadcasts often mixed news with opinion and each presenter strove for a distinctive style. These presenters were referred to as commentators. The last major figure to present commentary in the news broadcast format in the US was Paul Harvey. Today, commentary is generally presented in the talk show format. The term “newscaster” came into common use to distinguish presenters of straight news broadcasts from commentators.

In the United States and Canada, news anchors present material prepared for a news program and, at times, must improvise commentary for live presentation . Many anchors are also write and edit the news for their programs. The term “anchorman” was used to describe Walter Cronkite’s role at the Democratic and Republican National conventions.

Walter Cronkite

Walter Cronkite, the iconic anchor of CBS Evening News, on location during the Vietnam War.

10.5.6: Blogs, Podcasts, and Cyberspace

Blogs and podcasts are forms of media that exist within cyberspace and encourage interactions among people.

Learning Objective

Compare and contrast blogs and podcasts as formats of new media

Key Points

An early milestone in the importance of blogs came in 2002, when bloggers focused on comments by Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott. Blogging helped to create a political crisis that forced Lott to step down as majority leader.
Podcasts, which are audio or video files, are a horizontal form of media: producers are consumers and consumers become producers and engage in conversations with each other. This allows online social interactions.
In current usage “cyberspace” stands for the global network of interdependent information technology infrastructures, telecommunications networks, and computer processing systems. The term has become a conventional means to describe anything associated with the Internet.

Key Terms

blog: A blog is a discussion or informational site published on the internet and consisting of posts typically displayed in reverse chronological order.
Podcast: A podcast is a type of digital media consisting of an episodic series of audio, video, PDF, or ePub files subscribed to and downloaded through web syndication or streamed online to a computer or mobile device.
Cyberspace: Cyberspace is the electronic medium of computer networks in which online communication takes place.

Cyberspace

Cyberspace is the electronic medium of computer networks in which online communication takes place . Now ubiquitous, in current usage the term “cyberspace” stands for the global network of interdependent information technology infrastructures, telecommunications networks, and computer processing systems. The term has become a conventional means to describe anything associated with the Internet and the diverse Internet culture, such as blogs, podcasts, or social media. The United States government recognizes the interconnected information technology and the interdependent network of information technology infrastructures operating across this medium as part of the US National Critical Infrastructure.

Cyberspace describes the flow of digital data through the network of interconnected computers. It is not “real,” since one cannot spatially locate it as a tangible object, yet “real” in its effects.

Blogs

A blog is a discussion or informational site published on the internet consisting of posts typically displayed in reverse chronological order. Until 2009, blogs were usually the work of a single individual, occasionally of a small group, and often were themed on a single subject. More recently “multi-author blogs” (MABs) have developed. MABs from newspapers, other media outlets, universities, think tanks, interest groups, and similar institutions account for an increasing quantity of blog traffic. The rise of Twitter and other “micro-blogging” systems helps integrate MABs and single-author blogs into societal news streams.

Although not a requirement, most good quality blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to leave comments and even message each other on the blogs. It is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other static websites. In that sense, blogging can be seen as a form of social networking. Indeed, bloggers do not only produce content to post on their blogs, but also build social relations with their readers and other bloggers.

Many blogs provide commentary on a particular subject, others function as personal online diaries, and still others function more as online brand advertising of a particular individual or company. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. Microblogging is another type of blogging, featuring very short posts. In education, blogs can be used as instructional resources.

Blogs and Politics

An early milestone in the importance of blogs in politics came in 2002, when bloggers focused on comments by Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott . Senator Lott, at a party honoring Senator Strom Thurmond, praised Thurmond by suggesting the United States would have been better off had Thurmond been elected president. Lott’s critics saw these comments as a tacit approval of racial segregation, a policy advocated by Thurmond’s 1948 presidential campaign. This view was reinforced by documents and recorded interviews dug up by bloggers. Though Lott’s comments were made at a public event attended by the media, no major media organizations reported on his controversial comments until after blogs broke the story. Blogging helped to create a political crisis that forced Lott to step down as majority leader.

Similarly, blogs were among the driving forces behind the “Rathergate” scandal. Dan Rather presented documents on the CBS show 60 Minutes that conflicted with accepted accounts of President Bush’s military service record. Bloggers declared the documents to be forgeries and presented evidence and arguments in support of that view. Consequently, CBS apologized for what it said were inadequate reporting techniques. More often, however, news blogs tend to react to material already published by the mainstream media. Meanwhile, an increasing number of experts began blogging, making blogs a source of in-depth analysis.

By 2004, the role of blogs became increasingly mainstream, as political consultants, news services, and candidates began using them as tools for outreach and opinion forming. Blogging was established by politicians and political candidates to express opinions on war and other issues and cemented blogs’ role as news sources.

Podcast

A podcast is a type of digital media consisting of an episodic series of audio, video, PDF, or ePub files subscribed to and downloaded through web syndication or streamed online to a computer or mobile device. Podcasting is both a converged medium bringing together audio, the web, and portable media players, and a disruptive technology that has caused some in the radio business to reconsider certain established practices and preconceptions about audiences, consumption, production, and distribution. It is very much a horizontal media form: producers are consumers and consumers become producers and engage in conversations with each other.

Senator Trent Lott

The Trent Lott-Strom Thurmond scandal was first picked up and publicized by early political blogs. It marked one of the first times in which mainstream media followed a story publicized in blogs.