Mass media, in modern times is one of the main agents of
political socialization. There are four different models that help explain the
impact of mass media, namely: Pluralist, Market, Elite-values and Dominant-ideology.
The importance of mass media in contributing to the
political culture can be seen in recent times in how the media portrays Islam
in the west. Media has created a stereotypical image of “Islam = Terrorism” which is far from the
truth. The general population of America for instance, upon seeing a woman in a
veil or a man with a beard will be extremely quick to label them as a
terrorist. Even the events that recently happened in France. The ‘Charlie Hebdo’
incident (let me clarify I’m not at all suggesting what happened was correct
and muslims should go killing people) but injustice was done to the muslims in
the name of ‘freedom of speech’, the same freedom of speech if the muslims
exercise they get labeled as terrorists. Majority of the world was against the
muslims for the killing of Charlie Hebdo, however, and im just pointing out the
double standards here. When another incident that took place in America when
three muslims were shot which was quite obviously a hate crime. The media was
quick to cover it up. If a non muslim killed muslims, it is not terrorism. This
only works one way.
I have narrated events that have occurred recently to show
how what an important role media plays in influencing political culture. It
actually clouds the judgment of an individual as the influence of media is so
strong.
“If you're not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the
people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the
oppressing.” –Malcolm X
The media as an institution, in recent times has become
nothing but a propaganda tool used by the west to feed the people what ever
form of truth they want. The evidence for this lies in the incidents I have
mentioned above and a lot more exist in the recent history. In my opinion, MEDIA
as an institute contributes far more in shaping political culture of a nation
than family, education, religion or government.
1 comment:
Even though I too believe that the media has a large role to play in shaping political beliefs, I disagree with your claim that it contributes more than the government.
The government has a variety of roles to play in this context, firstly, it has the power and authority to determine the curriculum for public schools. This includes what books students will read and the way they will be taught, so the government can manipulate this power to shape specific political values. Secondly, the government also regulates the media, the agent you mentioned as the most powerful. So if you look at it this way, the government has the ability to control the content projected by the media.
In authoritarian and totalitarian regimes, the government often takes active measures to instill loyalty. For example, the Nazis created the Hitler Youth. Hence, I believe the government contributes more towards shaping political values than the media.
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