Unit 6. Media issues

“Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate to prefer the latter."

Thomas Jefferson, American president (1801-1809)

Theories of the Press

Since the 16^th century, scholars and philosophers have attempted to describe the relationship between the government and the mass media and its implications with the regard to freedom and control. Over the years, various theories of the press have developed to articulate and explain this relationship. All theories, however, fall somewhere between two “isms” that reflect polar opposites in the amount of control the government exerts over the media – authoritarianism and libertarianism. Current theories of the press represent modifications of these two fundamental principles.

The authoritarian theory arose in 16^th century England about the same time as the introduction of the printing press in that country. Under the authoritarian theory, the prevailing belief was that the ruling elite should guide the masses, whose intellectual ability was held in low esteem. Public dissent and criticism were considered harmful to both the government and the people and were not tolerated. Authoritarians used various devices to force compliance of the press, including licensing, censorship of material before publication, the granting of exclusive printing rights to favoured elements of the press, and the swift, harsh punishment of government critics.

The libertarian theory is directly opposed to authoritarianism. Libertarians assume that human being are rational and capable of making their own decisions and that governments exist to serve the individual. Libertarians believe that the common citizen has a right to hear all sides of an issue to distinguish truth from falsehood. Since any government restriction on the expression of ideas infringes upon the rights of a citizen, the government can best serve the people by not interfering with the media. In short, the press must be free from control.

The libertarian theory fit well with the freewheeling political climate and rugged individualism of the early America. By the mid-20^th century, however, two world wars and a depression had changed world politics, media industries had become big businesses, and broadcasting had made it possible to reach millions of people instantaneously. As a result, new theories of the press emerged. The social responsibility theory (also referred to as the Western concept) incorporates part of the original libertarian approach but introduces some new elements as well. This approach holds that the press has a right to criticize government and other institutions, but it also has a responsibility to society’s needs and interests. The press does not have the freedom to do as it pleases; it is obligated to respond to society’s requirements. The government may involve itself in media operations by issuing regulations if the public interest is not being adequately served. The United States, Japan, Britain, and many other European countries are examples of countries that subscribe to the theory.

The communist theory suggests that the media are “owned” by the people as represented by the state. Their purpose is to support the Marxist system and to achieve the goals of the state as expressed through the Communist Party. Recent history has shown the communist approach to the press works best in a closed society where information is tightly controlled by the government. Once information is available from competing source, people give little credibility to the official media. This fact was illustrated by the events in Russia and Eastern Europe at the end of the 1980s when the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Voice of America, CNN, Radio Liberty, and Radio Free Europe unraveled the Communist Party’s media monopoly. This theory has few proponents today. China, Cuba, and North Korea are about the only places where it can be found, and even in those countries the official version of the theory often bears little resemblance to the actual practices of the media. The communist theory has been rendered obsolete by the events.

A more recent formulation is the developmental theory, which would fall more toward the authoritarian side of the spectrum. In this ideology, the government mobilizes the media to serve national goals in economic and social development. Information is considered a scarce natural resource and must be carefully managed by the government to achieve national goals. Some of the goals the media are expected to help achieve include political integration, literacy, economic self-sufficiency, and the eradication of disease. Until recently , many Third World countries espoused the developmental approach, but changing economic and political conditions have made it less prevalent. Many Third World countries, such as Brazil, Chile, and Pakistan have replaced dictatorships with democracies, and democracies typically look with disfavour upon governmental control over the media. In addition, even in those countries where democracy has yet to appear, such as Kenya, the government has either privatized the formerly state-run media or allowed competition from independent channels. Consequently, the government has less control over the flow of information and is less able to promote the developmental approach. All in all, the growth of democracy and the growing popularity of free marketplace economics have resulted in more countries endorsing the social responsibility approach.

(From The Dynamics of Mass Communication by Joseph R. Dominick)

GLOSSARY

Theory of the press - теория прессы

Developmental theory – теория развития

Censorship- цензура

Licensing – лицензирование

Media operations – деятельность СМИ

Competing source – альтернативный источник

State-run media - государственные СМИ

Credibility – авторитетность

Proponent – сторонник

Self-sufficiency – самообеспеченность

ACTIVE VOCABULARY

Imply (v) – подразумевать, значить,

to ~ criticism, conflict– подразумевать критику, конфликт

Implication (n) – значение, последствие, скрытый смысл

the ~ of events – значение событий

to take ~s into account – принимать во внимание последствия

harrowing ~s – горестные последствия

by ~ - косвенно

Relationship (n) – взаимоотношение, связь, зависимость

to damage a ~ - наносить ущерб отношениям

to form a ~ - строить взаимоотношения

to jeopardize a ~ - подвергать риску отношения

to establish a ~ between smth – установить взаимосвязь между чем-л.

balanced ~ - гармоничные отношения

burgeoning ~ быстро развивающиеся отношения

fragile ~ - неустойчивые отношения

tone of ~ - характер отношений

Relate (v) – устанавливать связь (to, with - между),

~ two events – установить связь между двумя событиями

Prevail (v) – преобладать, превалировать (over), быть распространенным

to ~ over emotion - превалировать над эмоциями

to ~ among scholars – быть распространенным среди ученых

Prevailing (a) – преобладающий, господствующий, широко распространенный

~ attitudes – господствующие настроения

~ economic conditions – распространенные экономические условия

Dissent (n) – разногласие, расхождение во взглядах, инакомыслие

to create ~ - вызывать разногласия

to crush ~ - подавлять инакомыслие

to fuel ~ - разжигать разногласия

domestic ~ - разногласия внутри страны

parliamentary ~ - разногласия в парламенте

wide ~ - глубокие разногласия

~ among ethnic minorities – разногласия среди этнических меньшинств

Dissent (v) – расходиться во мнениях, взглядах

~ from this view – не согласиться с этим мнением

Compliance (n) – согласие, уступчивость, соответствие

to bring into ~ - привести в соответствие с

to force ~ - принудить к согласию

in ~ with regulations – в соответствии с установленными требованиями

in ~ with your wish – в соответствии с вашим желанием

Compliant (a) – податливый, уступчивый, соответствующий

~ partner – уступчивый партнер

~ with standards – соответствующий стандартам

Oppose (v) – противопоставлять (with, against), оказывать сопротивление, сопротивляться, выступать против

~ a bill – выступать против законопроекта

~ membership – выступать против членства

~ the government – находиться в оппозиции к правительству

~ vigorously – решительно противиться

be ~ed to – быть против

Opposite (a) – находящийся напротив, противоположный, обратный

be at ~ ends of the political spectrum – находиться на противоположных концах политического спектра

to have an ~ effect – иметь обратный эффект

Opposite (n) – противоположность

Complete / polar ~s – полные противоположности

Opposition (n) – сопротивление, противодействие, оппозиция

to choke off ~ - задушить оппозицию

to defect to ~ - перейти на сторону оппозиции

to form ~ - формировать оппозицию

to lead ~ - возглавить оппозицию

to soften ~ - уменьшить сопротивление

crackdown on ~ - крутые меры против оппозиции

Assume (v) – принимать на себя, предполагать, допускать

to ~ responsibility, control – брать на себя ответственность, управление

to ~ command – принимать командование

let us ~ that - допустим, что ...

Assumption (n) – принятие на себя, предположение

challenge ~ - оспорить предположение

erroneous ~ - ошибочное предположение

unspoken ~ - негласное предположение

~ of powers – присвоение власти

based on the ~ that – исходя из того, что

Serve (v) – служить, быть полезным, обслуживать

to ~ as – служить в качестве кого-л., чего-л.

to ~ as guidelines – служить в качестве отправных положений

to ~ one’s interests – служить чьим-то интересам

to ~ the purpose – отвечать цели

Service (n) – служба, обслуживание, услуга

civil/ public ~ - государственная служба

intelligence ~ - служба разведки

to provide a ~ - предоставлять услугу

to run down public ~s – сокращать финансирование государственных услуг

to do military ~ - служить в армии

quality ~ - качественная услуга

Interfere (v) – вмешиваться (in), служить препятствием, мешать

to ~ in a conflict – вмешаться в конфликт

to ~ into internal affairs – вмешаться во внутренние дела

to ~ with smb’s independence – покушаться на чью-л. независимость

to ~ with trade – наносить ущерб торговле

Interference (n) – вмешательство

to deter ~ - сдерживать вмешательство

to end ~ - прекратить вмешательство

to oppose ~ - выступать против вмешательства

blatant, heavy-handed ~ - возмутительное, грубое вмешательство

Promote (v) продвигать, способствовать, поддерживать

to ~ general welfare – способствовать обеспечению общего благосостояния

to ~ a bill – поддержать законопроект

to ~ cooperation – содействовать сотрудничеству

Promotion (v) – продвижение, поощрение, содействие

~ programme – программа содействия

~ of human rights – содействие развитию прав человека

LANGUAGE STUDY

Task 1. Answer the questions.

1. What are the two fundamental principles behind the modern theories of the press?

2. Why was public dissent considered harmful under the authoritarian theory?

3. What were the methods used by authoritarian governments to ensure the loyalty of the press?

4. Which assumption underlies the libertarian theory?

5. What historical and cultural circumstances let the libertarian theory develop in the USA?

6. Which developments of the XX century were the major influences for the social responsibility theory to appear?

7. How does the social responsibility theory differ from the libertarian theory?

8. What is the necessary condition to ensure credibility to the official media, under the communist theory?

9. Why, according to the developmental theory, should information be carefully managed by the government?

10. What makes the social responsibility theory more and more popular?

Task 2. Using a monolingual dictionary, explain the difference between the pairs of words.

theory - approach	to gather - to infer
argument - assumption	to suggest - to assume
hypothesis - speculation	to surmise - to advocate
thesis - conjecture	to espouse - to endorse

Task 3. The underlined parts of the text contain useful collocations to describe theories and approaches. Continue the list below with at least 10 expressions.

the theory has developed to articulate the relationship between….

this approach holds that

more countries are endorsing this approach

Using the list from above to give an oral overview of the theories presented.

Task 4. Explain the difference between the following words. Use a monolingual dictionary, if necessary.

a) to publish - to publicize

publicity - publication

a publisher - a publicist - a publican

b) to be in the air - to be on the air - to be up in the air

c) a pressman - a press secretary - a press officer

d) an announcer - an anchor - a host

e) printer - printmaker - printing press

f) to keep on record - to go on the record - to say off the record

Fill in the gaps with words and expressions from above.

1. There has been a great deal of _________ surrounding the tycoon’s disappearance.

2. As soon as the war started, any broadcasts with a military theme were taken _________.

3. The whole future of the project is still ___________.

4. The ______________'s job is to present the president's positions and thoughts in a manner that helps him advance his agenda, while also helping the press learn what the government is doing

5. She made it clear that her comments were strictly _____________.

6. The late-night current affairs programme has a new ____________.

7. Becoming a _________ usually requires prior knowledge and experience of pub and bar work, and many people start out as bar staff.

Task 5. Put the following words under the correct heading according to the type of the media they refer to. Some can go under several headings

Readership all-news format circulation to be printed in colour on-line edition subscription live drama network newsprint & ink costs primary audience to be aired seachable archives to be continuously updated editorial columnist the masthead pass-along audience live broadcast talk format rating the format wheel the cable a pilot prime-time headlines streaming video banner advertising

1. Newspapers

2. Radio

3. Television

4. On-line media

Task 6. Read the extract below and circle the correct word. Use a monolingual dictionary, if necessary.