StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Mass Media and Communication in Great Britain - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
This paper 'Mass Media and Communication in Great Britain' tells us that modernization, urbanization, and industrialization as processes of social change have created the societal conditions that necessitate the development of mass media and communication and produced societies that are greatly dependent on them…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER94.5% of users find it useful
Mass Media and Communication in Great Britain
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Mass Media and Communication in Great Britain"

?How Mass Media and Communication changed Great Britain over the Last Years Modernization, urbanization and industrialization as processes of social change have created the societal conditions that necessitate the development of mass media and communication, and produced societies that are greatly dependent on them. Mass communications comprise the techniques and institutions by which specialized social groups use technological devices like the films, newspapers, magazines, television, radio, internet among others, to disseminate symbolic content to widely dispersed and large heterogeneous audiences. Apart from transmitting the culture of a society from one generation to another, the mass media is very important in collecting information on the various aspects of human life like health, education, environment, economics, politics, culture and social changes. They then communicate any changes in these and help in correlating the many parts of the society in regard to changes in the environment. Because of this, mass media has been able to bring lot of transformations in many societies including Great Britain, especially in the last 10 years. Media-mediated/media-enabled changes in Great Britain There has been considerable experience in relation to the value and role played by the mass media and communication systems in Great Britain in health promotion and bringing about changes in health policies. One of the best examples of this is the public smoking ban. Under this ban, no one is allowed to smoke in places that people visit to obtain various goods and services, especially enclosed places (Bbc.co.uk. 2010 and Opsi.gov.uk. 2010). These include shopping malls, restaurants, bars, any government premise or office among others. Many people agreed with the ideas of Mrs. Hewitt “not only will we be able to protect non-smokers and the huge majority of pub workers from the harmful effects of smoke. It will also provide smokers with an environment where it's easier to give up" (BBC News 2005, par ). This bill was, therefore, used to encourage the quitting from smoking in Great Britain. Through the use of mass media approaches, organizations dealing with health matters have been able to conduct some social advocacy which has promoted personal education. According to Catford (1995), the mass media are powerful in promoting health and bringing about responsive organizational and personal changes through the promotion of health products and discouraging the use of destructive products, introducing personal health skills and, providing information and advice on healthy living. This, in turn, has led to significant changes in personal and group behaviors in regard to issues affecting health. They have also resulted to environmental and organizational changes. Media outlets that have been important in promoting health in Great Britain include newspapers, television, radio, leaflet, posters and books. Mass media reports about the environment have led to a number of changes in regard to the treatment of the environment. Mass communications have played an important role in communicating environmental issues. Among the hot issues in this respect include global warning and pollution. In regard to this, the mass media has provided an important link between politics and formal environmental science, and the realities of how people and their various social, economic and cultural processes experience and interact with their environment. Continually, they report of the ongoing public understanding and action or engagement on with environmental issues like international conferences on the environment and their resultant declarations or resolutions (Boykoff 2009). Although the mass media and communication do not determine engagement, they have greatly increased environmental awareness and valuation by the entire Great Britain society. In essence, mass media have enabled the people of Great Britain make sense of the various complexities relating to governance and environmental science that consciously and unconsciously shape their lives. The evidence of this impact is the increased consumer preference of goods that are environmental friendly, adoption of green technologies, and the formulation of corporate social responsibility policies by many organizations as a way of ensuring their products and production processes help reduce and mitigate environmental pollution. Barker (2005) states that mass media and communication have influenced the development of public environmental policies by the government including industrial policies. Barker (2007) states that mass media are an important resource for political actors and political factions. Through the media, political actors and factions are able to influence potential members into joining their groups. This makes the mass media important channels for bringing about political change through opinion polls. This has majorly been facilitated by the fact that the agenda setting process in Great Britain and other societies forms an almost unavoidable part of the mass media coverage and news gathering. Over the past decade, mass media has greatly helped to organize public understanding of various political issues and consequently, their responses. For example, there has been an increasing public concern over the economic competence of politicians and political parties and this has been important in directing voting patterns. An evidence of this is the 1992, 1997 and 2001 campaigns and elections where the Labour Party won because of its prudence and reassurance on taxing and spending while the Conservative Party lost because through the media reports, the party was perceived have lost its economic competence. Although the electronic media in Great Britain are constrained by law to portray political balance, they are more trusted by the general public making the mass media fierce participants in the existing political climate of Great Britain. As mentioned above, this is evidenced by change in public opinions and voting behaviors. The preponderantly anti-Labour press that dominated in 1992 may have contributed to the winning of John Major’s Conservative Party against expectations. However, a more generally favorable press that existed in 1997 and the shift in support by the Sun during the same period may have led to the landslide victory of the Labour party in 1997 and 2001 (www.palgrave.com 2004). There are incidents where the mass media and communication in Great Britain have facilitated social and political changes through protests. McCarthy et al (1996) and, McLeod and Detenber (1999) explain that the mass media pays a lot of attention to social actions like protests and the works of social movements. This has made the public believe that the marketplace for ideas is diverse and free, and provides potentialities for innovative social changes (McLeod 2000). Herbst (1993, p13) observes that “these activities have become accepted as mechanisms by which social problems are communicated in the public sphere, alongside public opinion polls and elections”. They act as important means by which people can express their discontent. At the same time, social movements that want to deliver their message and gain support from a mass audience must primarily depend on the mass media and communication to publicize their cause. Even when demonstrations are peaceful, the media will always focus on the violent side of it however small. Various actors, especially political actors have taken advantage of this whenever they want to push for political, social or economic reforms in the country. This has also encouraged the freedom of expression by the public regarding their take on various national issues. This has led to the formulation of various policies or actions in response to these concerns (Shaw 2004). Generally, the mass media has been efficient in advocating for social change in Great Britain. By promoting liberal social foundations, the mass media have actively brought about progressive social change. Mass media have led to the achievement of important cultural transformations in Great Britain. One of these is in respect of the attitude towards sex. By promoting a positive picture of the girl and woman, the mass media have helped to relax the grave attitudes that disadvantaged women and girls previously were subjected to. Although gender biases have not been as pronounced as in the period before 1950s, the communication of the role of women in society and economic development has generated and fostered liberal attitudes to sex in Great Britain. This has increased awareness on the need to respect their rights. Because of this, women and girls in Britain have come to enjoy more human rights compared to women and girls in other societies like India where women and girls are victims of gender biased cultures. Media as a hindrance to change Although the mass media have become powerful tools for advocating and attaining various changes and democracy, they have also hindered these transformations to some extent. They are able to unfairly prejudice their large audience against the ideas and issues raised by protestors. For example, their focus on social demographics has led to a dismissal of the views of protests advocating for various changes. This mainly happens when a huge percentage of the protests are comprised of students, women and/or young adults (Coen 2000 and Hollar 2004). Such a hindrance also happens when the protestors are not visibly representative of the norms of the society. The media labels them as “‘deviant outsiders' whose activities are directed towards disrupting the status quo for the compliant majority” (Barker 2007, par 6). In addition, the media has also hindered the required changes through its negative coverage of some issues and which have generated dismissal attitudes by policy makers. Lastly, the media have also tended to portray their view of things more than the public view and this has led to under coverage of some critical issues that could have been powerful in pushing for important social or political changes. Conclusion Mass media performs special and critical functions for a society that utilizes complex technology to gain control of its environment. Mass media have played important roles in facilitating social, environmental, social, health, cultural, economic and political changes in Great Britain. To achieve this, the media has been collecting and disseminating important information to the public regarding various issues touching on their social, environmental, social, health, cultural, economic and political state of the society. The media has also facilitated changes by helping to organize public understanding of these issues and thus influencing public view. They have also facilitated this by acting as channels through which various actors advocate for changes. However, there needs to be institutional rearrangement to remediate the massive political misrepresentation by the media as suggested by (Halloran et al 1970). References Barker, M. 2007 Radical Mass Media Criticism: Conform or Reform? Social Movements and the Mass Media. Graffiti University. Brisbane Australia. [online] available at http://www.fifth-estate-online.co.uk/criticsm/conformorreformsocialmovements.html, accessed 25th April, 2012. Barker, M. J. 2005. “Manufacturing policies: the media's role in the policy making process”. Refereed paper presented to the Journalism Education Conference, Griffith University, 29 November - 2 December 2005. [online] available at http://live-wirez.gu.edu.au/jea.papers/Barker.doc accessed 25th April, 2012. Bbc.co.uk. 2010. "BBC News - 'No plans' for smoking ban review". [online] available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10478753, accessed 25th April, 2012. BBC News. 2005. "Health | Smoke ban bill details released"[online] available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4375478.stm, accessed 25th April, 2012. Boykoff, M. 2009. “We Speak for the Trees: Media Reporting on the Environment.” Annual Review of Environment and Resources, Vol. 34: 431-457. Catford, J. 1995. The mass media is dead: long live the multimedia. The health Promotion International, (4), pp 247-251. [online] available at http://heapro.oxfordjournals.org/content/10/4/247.extract accessed 25th April, 2012. Coen, R. 2000. 'For press, magenta hair and nose rings defined protests. [online] available at http://www.fair.org/ accessed 25th April, 2012. Halloran, J., Elliott, P. & Murdock, G. 1970. Demonstrations and communication: a case study. Penguin. Harmondsworth. Hollar, J. 2004. Muting the Women's March: media lose focus when women protest in Washington. [online] available at www.fair.org/ accessed 25th April, 2012. McCarthy, J., McPhail, C., & Smith, J. 1996. 'Images of protest: dimensions of selection bias in media coverage of Washington demonstrations, 1982 and 1991. American Sociological Review, 61,478-499. McLeod, D. & Detenber, B. 1999. “Framing effects of television news coverage of social protest.” Journal of Communication, (3), pp 3-23. McLeod, D. 2000. The protest paradigm and news coverage of the "Right to Party" movement' in D. A. Schultz (ed) It's show time! media, politics, and popular culture. P. Lang. New York. Opsi.gov.uk. 2010. ^ "The Smoke-free (Exemptions and Vehicles) Regulations 2007". [online] available at http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2007 Shaw, M. 2004. “Western wars and peace activism: social movements in global mass-mediated politics,” www.sarai.net/ accessed 25th April, 2012. www.palgrave.com. 2004. The Contemporary British Politics website. [online] available at http://www.palgrave.com/politics/coxall/chapter.htm#Chapter%2010%20The%20Mass%20Media%20and%20Politics ,accessed 25th April, 2012. Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“How Mass Media and Communication Changed Great Britain Over the Last Essay”, n.d.)
How Mass Media and Communication Changed Great Britain Over the Last Essay. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/journalism-communication/1449394-how-mass-media-and-communication-changed-great
(How Mass Media and Communication Changed Great Britain Over the Last Essay)
How Mass Media and Communication Changed Great Britain Over the Last Essay. https://studentshare.org/journalism-communication/1449394-how-mass-media-and-communication-changed-great.
“How Mass Media and Communication Changed Great Britain Over the Last Essay”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/journalism-communication/1449394-how-mass-media-and-communication-changed-great.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Mass Media and Communication in Great Britain

Social Communication through Advertising

The properly managed international events have a great effect on the economy of the country.... The event management business and the core concept of globalizing the events have given a great repute to the cultural festivals.... Marketing communication Abstract: Marketing is the presales activities in a bigger prospective which give the extra fuel to the products to get identified in the market.... However, all the marketing activities have to be supported by the proper marketing communication processes and these communications are primarily the combination of advertising, promotion and strong public relation....
12 Pages (3000 words) Essay

The Impact of IT on the Health Service in Britain

Information Technology in the British National Health Service The great britain has announced the facts and figures about rapid growth in information technology related aspects in health sector.... The Impact of IT on the Health Service in britain By Date Table of Contents Introduction Information technology (IT) is an emerging trend that is being used in every walk of life particularly in health sector.... This paper describes the impact of IT on the health service in britain....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

Post-War Britain, Media and National Identity

The author concludes that the evolution of the British national identity in the post-war era has included aspects of American culture and media, regionalism, world modernity, advertising, television, and literacy programs.... The British media became focused on uniting its own regions in strength  … In the post-war era, America played a large role in the reconstruction of European infrastructure and economy....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

The Invention of the Transistor and the British Media Landscape

This facilitated the people to listen to the radio with great digitized audio at a better frequency.... In 1960, a geostationary communication satellite was yet another innovation in radio technology, the idea which was conceived by British scientist Arthur C.... The present paper “The Invention of the Transistor and the British media Landscape” briefly documents the changes in British media after the 1950s after the invention of the transistor....
4 Pages (1000 words) Article

The Revolution of the Thirteen American States in 1775: Under Great Britain

The war that erupted after Americans' opposition to the great britain's leadership took about eight years to end with the colonized states granted their independence1.... In general, AMERICAN REVOLUTION IN THE WAKE OF FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR The revolution of the thirteen American s, which were under great britain started in 1775.... The war that erupted after Americans' opposition to the great britain's leadership took about eight years to end with the colonized states granted their independence1....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

The impacts of the Media on Various Forms of Political Activity in Britain

ritain is a part of the international media and has a great history of politics.... Therefore, in Britain media and politics are like two sides of a coin.... The paper "The impacts of the Media on Various Forms of Political Activity in britain" states that britain's history and her politics complement and supplement each other and on this ground, the media of britain plays its power game.... In keeping with this view, we will discuss the influence of media on the various forms of political activity in britain....
6 Pages (1500 words) Coursework

Murdoch's News Corp and Its impact on international media

he book explains interactive digital media and the key strategies that can be applied to explore this segment of the media.... The author looks at one of britain's most popular papers since its acquisition in 1981 by Rupert Murdoch.... Dial M for Murdoch: News Corporation and the Corruptionof britain.... The bibliography "Murdoch's News Corp and its Impact on International media" overviews background, ownership of the company, scandal whereby Paul McMullan a former editor in the media house that alluded to engaging in police corruption to obtain sensitive information touching on news stories....
5 Pages (1250 words) Annotated Bibliography

Politics and Media

"Politics and Media" paper explores different ways in which pursuit of profit by mass media corporations has impacted the ways in which politics is reported in a western democracy, the case study being the United Kingdom.... nbsp;… It has been claimed that particular mass media, mostly the women's magazines have for a long term been promoting alternative health products of no worth and consequently engaging in an effective conspiracy with this industry to defraud billions of dollars from the consumers every year (Fog, 2004, p....
9 Pages (2250 words) Case Study
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us