Consider the people around you. Most of them are informed adults who keep up with the current events and state of their nation. How they do this, is, of course, by watching the 7oclock news with their family, or maybe reading CNN on their mobile phone on their morning bus ride to work. Even listening to the radio as they drove in their car for 5 minutes could have given them some idea as to how their government is doing. And what matters the most is how it's presented. The media has this immense power, this way of showing things how their network wants, and influencing how citizens might look at the actions of their government. I do agree with the notion that the media is the unofficial fourth branch of government, because in a democratic country such as ours, the view that the public has is the most important aspect; the media has the power to support, the power to destroy, and most importantly the power to inform. The legislative branch may be voting on laws, but one scandal about a senator, and it could be the difference between legislation being passed or not. Scholars recognize this power and recognize that it can make a big enough difference to affect the other branches. Firstly, the media has the power to support. Who the media supports is often having a bit of an easier time than the unsupported party. The popular broadcasting station, Fox News, is known for being extremely rightswinging, and viewers who watch this channel are presented with information that reviles President Obama and supports Governor Christie after his recent “Bridgegate” scandal. The media's decisions on who to support and who to criticize reach every single one of their viewers,... ... middle of paper ... ...ts own right, and some citizens do indeed look to this authority over their senator's own words. The media has its own special brand of power, and these powers can make or break citizens' political participation. The media, with its powers to inform, destroy and support can affect more people than some legislation even will, and with millions of viewers, their follower pool is much larger than a state representative. One fact left out, one fact presented strongly this can affect the public's perception of political events and government. In a democratic nation such as ours, where the government only runs smoothly if its citizens participate actively in its systems, this kind of influence can hold its own against the three branches. Scholars would likely recognize this power, and this is why the media is such an extreme, and powerful tool.
Special rules and new floor procedures have been institutionalized. Although the external political environment of the House is as electrifying as that of the Senate, it is based on a very different body of basic rules. The individualist Senate, a body in which senators aggressively exploited the great Congressional privileges these rules gave them, as she argues, to further their own individual ends. In fact, nowadays, the process of lawmaking in a chamber with non-majoritarian rules and with members so accustomed to exploiting those rules fully is reasonably expected to drag on for months, if not
...cy. For this reason, it is clear that the media should not engage in any activity aimed at taking sides when dealing with the policy at hand. Journalists should always monitor all the policies and arguments from the foundation so as to ensure that they have left an opportunity of judgment from the public. This will ensure that public policy has been promoted without any form of discrimination or support (Abelson, 2006).
The news media rejects the fact that they are biased. They claim that they are the “middle of the road,” and are neutral on the stories that they cover. Publishers also claim that they are the watchdog for the political system, and they make sure that the system is free of any corruption, or wrongdoing. Th...
398).It is also stated that news divisions reduced their costs, and raised the entertainment factor of the broadcasts put on air. (p. 400). Secondly, the media determines its sources for stories by putting the best journalists on the case and assign them to areas where news worthy stories just emanates. (p.400). Third, the media decides how to present the news by taking the most controversial or relevant events and compressing them into 30 second sound-bites. (p.402). finally, the authors also explain how the media affects the general public. The authors’ state “The effect of one news story on public opinion may be trivial but the cumulative effect of dozens of news stories may be important. This shows a direct correlation between public opinions and what the media may find “relevant”. (Edwards, Wattenberg, Lineberry, 2015, p.
citizens involved in politics. That is a important aspect that it brings, especially when it
The United States government braces its power among three powerful branches, legislative, executive and judicial. These branches interact with one another to establish authority that is strong, yet equal to have power over the country. Each branch pursues certain responsibilities and duties to operate in an efficient and effective manner in which society upholds. The executive, legislative and judicial branches all interact amid each other to validate accuracy of the nation’s most powerful law of the land, the Constitution. It is important to know how these branches interact with each other to learn how a bill becomes a law. Reflecting on how the three branches promote a balance of power that is constructive to include the agendas and electoral roles that also plays a vast part in the government’s operation.
The Hidden Relationship Between Government and Media Rather than being a neutral conduit for the communication of information, the U.S. media plays an intricate role in shaping and controlling political opinions. Media is extremely powerful in the sense that without an adequate functioning media, it is virtually impossible for a sophisticated social structure like the U.S. Government to exist. Henceforth, all known sophisticated social structures, have always been dependent upon the media’s ability to socialize. The U.S. government generally exploits the media, often times manipulating the enormous power of the printed word. Ultimately empowering the U.S. government, strengthening it with the ability to determine and control the popular perception of reality.
The changes in social media implied that many people got in touch with the political candidates either directly or indirectly. The people watched their potential leaders of the nation and were able to question them (Mutz 2001).
... small media reforms (like public journalism) will be enough to reduce the commercial and corporate imperatives driving our existing media systems (Hackett and Zhao, 1998, p. 235). Instead, a fundamental reform of the entire system is needed, together with a wider institutional reform of the very structures the media systems work within, our democracies. This will be a difficult task, due to powerful vested interests benefiting from the status quo, including media, political and economic elites. Reforms will need to be driven by campaigns mobilising public support across the political spectrum, to enable the citizens of the world to have a media system that works to strengthen democratic principles as opposed to undermining them. This task is challenging, but it will become easier once people begin to understand the media’s role in policymaking within our democracies.
Americans look to the press to provide the information they need to make informed political choices. How well the press lives up to its responsibility to provide this information has a direct impact upon Americans: how they think about and act upon the issues that confront them.
has come to have an adversarial press—the tendency of the national media to be suspicious of officials and eager to reveal unflattering stories about them. This cynicism and distrust of government and elected officials have led to an era of attack journalism—seizing upon any bit of information or rumor that might cast a shadow on the qualifications or character of a public official. Media coverage of gaffes—misspoken words, misstated ideas, clumsy moves—has become a staple of political journalism (WDB 294).
power, and also media supervise. And the function to prevent autocracy is the separation of
Politics is the means for attaining valued things. Although, valued things are different in every society, the means of securing those things has never changed. The competition for power, authority and influence will always be the backbone of politics. Applying power, authority and influence to the valued things that support the public good, will produce the quality of life a society desires. In the present day, citizens in the United States demand certain valued things such as welfare, education, safe streets and healthcare. Through politics, citizens can apply their power in many different ways to get the things they want. Power is the ability to get someone to do something they may or may not want to do. Through the use of or the application of coercion, persuasion, manipulation and negotiation, power is used to influence the system.
...r attention on selected issues on which the public will form opinions on (McCombs). Framing is an important factor by allowing the media to select certain aspects about the problem and then make them appear more important in the text, which results in enhancing the meaning or interpretation of the situation (Scheufele). Last, but not least, priming also played an important role in shaping public opinion. Priming works as the media repeatedly exposed certain issues in the public viewers. The more exposure an issue gets, the more likely an individual will recall or retain the information in their minds. With these three factors played out systemically the media, our opinions are constantly being influence and shape by them. As quoted by Walter Lippman, “what we know about the world is largely based on what the media decide to tell us” (McCombs).
Hence, the power of media has touched its apex in today’s age. Its societal, political and economic functions reflect its unparallel capacity to affect the human life in all spheres.