The Influence Of The Media Politics Essay

The crop Of The Media Politics Es governWilliam Pearson. Voters may not be much bendd by the mass media but politicians veritablely are. Discuss. The cultivate of the media is ever-present in British political science. With the decline of consensus, and wind in valence politics post-1970s, the influence of an overtly partisan press has become more than marked, as has its both dependent and antagonistic relationship with political parties. The depression of the media on voters is typically examined use three key frameworks reinforcement scheme, come a hugenda screen background theory and ingest doing theory. In Britain, both voters and politicians are directly and indirectly influenced by the mass media. However, politicians consecrate been the conference more or less affected by the ascent in media insurance coverage, to such a great extent that politicians are no longer free to air their honest opinions. This has had a detrimental effect on political discourse in Britain, and thus upon democracy. Furthermore, the British media is more often than not owned by a select group of individuals-media barons, which, when combined with the medias dip to resist prescript, renders it more often than not unaccountable. disdain both voters and politicians being affected, the change in the behaviour of politicians and their parties, especially in candidate selection is the most worthy difference in red-brick politics post-New Labour. I will low gear explain the theories of media influence and address their relevant to the modern British voter, and count on whether they are an accurate representation of media influence. Secondly, I will examine the effect of omnipresent media coverage upon politicians and political parties, and whether it has fundamentally and irrevocably changed politics. Thirdly I will evaluate the influence the unexampled media environment has had upon the British political landscape. Finally, I will note the extent to which the media has the capacity to command political action, and evaluate whether this occurs.In suppose to assess media influence upon UK voters, it is necessary to take the academic analysis behind the evaluation of media influence upon voting behaviour. financial backing theory kindles that the media has no great effect upon voting preference, and the indigenous usance of the media is to reinforce the be belief of the reader, and is in part derived from the observation of discriminating perception-wherein individuals internally filter out messages or information that conflicts with their political alignment. Furthermore, the theory suggests that the media is not responsible for dictating the national agenda, rather it reacts and changes in line with the sensed mood of the nation. Supporters of this theory suggest that in order for a media blowhole to be economically viable it must turn out a group of readers whose fancys align with the editorial line, and should this line shift, then the core readership would disperse as would revenue. Therefore it is unconvincing that the political alignment of organisations will shift as it would theoretically damage their revenue and influence.The human activity theory is the agenda setting theory which is inclusive of the reinforcement theory, as it accepts that the media cannot change the way that lot think on particular issues1. However it suggests that the news media is responsible for dictating the serious issues of the day. For suit, if the right wing press decided to focus their efforts upon presenting law and order as the prevailing issue of the day, the the Conservatives-a party traditionally considered strong in this area, would shit the electoral advantage. This is a plausible theory as news newsprints have discretion over what they publish, and the amount of coverage granted to each issue.The one-third theory is that of direct effects, which is considered dated by modern academics. It posits th at the media can have a direct, visible and calculable upon voting behaviour. It suggests that many voters can be directed towards certain conclusions by means of selected reporting. Furthermore, it proposes that the press are confident of utilising value laden terminology2to shape the debate, and distort issues to the advantage of their political allies. This assumption of almost total naivete upon the part of the voter is largely held to be untrue, as there is little data to support the view that people switched parties as a result of reading a paper with a particular partisan bias3. While this theory has by and large fallen out of fashion, there remain demonstrable moment in which intensive media coverage of an issue has provoked such a mankind response that it has prompted government action, most notably the wicked crosss act 1991, which was move through with(predicate) parliament in response to press coverage of the pre-existing issue. This ill-conceived legislation was hastily enacted in response to public pressure. all in all these frameworks have merit, yet none are comprehensive. Due to the diversity of the British populace all of the theories have voters who they correspond to. Strongly aligned voters typically correlate with the conclusions of reinforcement theory, as their views are less prone to forceful changes, and they are likely to consume media which corresponds with the views. However reinforcement theory as a basis for evaluating voting behaviour has declined in merit pro rata to the decline of strong party loyalty in British politics. In contrast, less aligned voters are more inclined to change their views payable to media coverage, and the agenda setting theory and direct effects theory pertains to these floating voters, of which there are an increasingly large number post-dealignment. Moreover, the field of explaining media influence on voting behaviour has proven difficult to measure referable to a lack of empirical evidence, and the evidence which does exist is widely disputed, in part out-of-pocket to the rapidly changing nature of the British electorate. one and only(a) of the primary failinges presented by the data attempting to analyse media influence is that it has tended to focus actually much on the short term4at the expense of long research. Any analysis of voting, and the medias influence upon it is further weakened by the inwrought difficulties in determining cause and effect in voting behaviour. Despite the weaknesses in the above methods, its clear that the influence of the media upon the public, while profound, has been less pronounce than the medias direct influence upon politicians and Britains political climate.The influence of the media upon politicians is profound in modern Britain. The main change which the rise in media influence has engendered is the increasingly grandness of candidates being marketable, rather than having significant political credibility. Politicians inc reasingly find themselves national to, and evaluated upon opinion polling, which is itself held to be closely associated with media coverage, with positive coverage resulting in an upturn in the opinion polls5. The nature of the 24 mo news rack shapes and dictates the political world, and there is increasing pressure upon politicians to be media savvy, and to never say anything which could be misconstrued. This effect has been amplified out-of-pocket to the rise of the internet blog and chirp sphere, in which politicians are analysed and judged on a minute by minute, second by second basis. Politicians are no longer given the hazard to properly articulate their thought and opinions, due to time pressured and confrontational interviews. The primary consequence of this is that politicians increasingly are forced to rely up hold up bites in order to feature on the nightly news, and to gain publicity. Unfortunately, this has lead to a situation in which politicians are averse to giving longer, more honest and articulated answers due to the potential weakness these answers pose to their media coverage and thus, public image. Another consequence of the adversarial environmental cultivated by interviewers is that communicative politicians, who are willing to be open about their views are typically cast as eccentric and unelectable, rather than praised for their honestly. Moreover, the nature of 24-hour news, with its constant posit for new headlines and talking points has created a climate in which the executive is extremely publicised at the expense of the legislature-as conclusive action sells more written document than legislative discussions. Legislative discussions, and reasoned debate and deep analysis of issues are often label conduct indecisive, or inconclusive, which stifles the proper functioning of the legislature. This further reinforces a system where the executive is almost entirely predominant over the legislature, a situation considered an aberration by most constitutional scholars.The rise of TV leadershiphip debates has created an entirely new paradigm in British politics, with identikit leaders parroting sound bites to a disillusioned public. The 24 hour news cycle has contributed to the growth in the number of career politicians, and especially candidates with media backgrounds. This has led the number of politicians with real world experience declining, and the rise of the political build. The rise of TV debates and 24 hour rolling news has increasingly forced parties to turn off or disown prominent and grand members in response to the changing media environment. The most recent and notable example of this was the treatment of Sir Menzies Campbell both internally in the free-handed Democrats, and externally by the media. Widely considered a distinguished politician, with years of loyalty and eminent service to the House of Commons and the Liberal democrats, Menzies Campbell faced significant pressure to res ign in part due to his age, and the negative effect this had upon public perception of his competence. Despite accusations of ageism from four-fold parties, Campbells position proved untenable due to the supposed electoral weakness which his age represented. His was the notable cases in which the modern media were primarily focused upon digressive personal characteristics, rather than judging a politician upon their political views or achievements.The media has likewise had an effect not only upon individual politicians, but upon politics as a whole. Large media companies such as News bay window have, in recent years, acted as powerful pressure groups, who are passing resistant to regulation or oversight. The Leveson inquiry is an apt example of this, as many media outlets have at times decried its recommendations for more press regulation and have spun the narrative of the inquirys recommendations being contrary to the freedom of the press, even in light of the phone hacking s candal. One of the most damaging results of the 24 hour news cycle, and constant evaluation of governmental performance is that it has encouraged short-termism in government spheres. A policy which doesnt deliver immediate results, but which would be better in the long term is unlikely to be approved, as without immediate results a policy could be spun as a stroke by the opposition or the press. This move towards short-termism is another way in which legislative discussion, analysis and planning is stifled in favour of bold, decisive decision making, as this portrays the government in a more halcyon light, potentially at the expense of the national interest. In summary, I would suggest that the media has fundamentally altered the nature of British politics. It has changed candidate selection, the political and kind make-up of the house of commons, governmental behaviour, and with the growth of the internet, blogging and social media, this trend seems unlikely to be averted.While the effect which the media can have upon politicians is profound, the media can also have a significant impact upon legislation, and while it is rare, a media call option can affect policy. The most notable case in which this has happened is the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. It was enacted in response to sensationalist newspaper reports during 1990/91 which piebald the problem of dogs attacking small children as a new and fright phenomenon. The resulting media furore led to the governmental pushing ill-conceived legislation through the house. The absurdity of the act in its initial form was highlighted when a dog named Woofie was almost put down for barking at a postman. The act has since been limited on multiple occasions, and is typically held to be a classic example of the medias potential power over government, and the potential problems which can ensue.In conclusion, media influence on voter behaviour is highly variable, and all three theories have merits and weaknesses, with Rei nforcement theory and the Agenda setting theory being the most relevant to modern Britain, while empirical data is limited and inconclusive, however, it is certain that the media has less direct influence upon voters than it does upon politicians. The changing nature of the British media has led to politicians being so constricted in their media appearances that it has negatively affected British politics, and those politicians who dare to express themselves are castigated and marginalised. The prominence of 24 hour news, and the rise of TV debates had led to the rise of a new political class primarily comprised of career politicians, or those who have transitioned from politics directly from media-linked jobs, due to their ability to manipulate the media rather than their political beliefs, their character or significant contributions to their party or the nation. The rise of social media has further contributed to the Age of disdain and the short-termism which it has engendered. While the media has an effect upon voters, it has been far less pronounced than upon politicians. The rise of this new media climate has had a broadly negative effect upon political life. This is exacerbated by the unaccountability of media barons, and their ability to act as self-interested pressure groups to resist regulation. While the age of contempt is preferable to a time of excessive deference, the political kitchen-gardening is has created may be just as damaging in the long term.