This blog has been set up to enable interactive learning. To really understand Communication and Media theories, they should be ideally discussed and debated and generally thrashed about. None of the theories can be discussed in isolation and their interlinks have to be explored. This blog is an experiment which hopefully will help in gaining more knowledge and understanding the theories beyond the scope of the classroom.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Democracy? Oh really!
The concept of democracy is a product of media. We live in a democracy, but not necessarily a democratic country. What do you think?
Firstly, I disagree with the statement that Democracy is a media product. However our views on ‘what a Democracy should be’ may be formed as a result of media exposure. But again even in this case, it is not directly a media product. As Lazarsfeld’s study pointed out, our political opinions are shaped more by our peers than by the media. The media has an effect on our idea of democracy, but it is a limited effect.
Further more, democracy is a public sphere construct that dates back to 508-507 BCE with the advent of Athenian democracy, an age in which there was no ‘mass media’. Modern day democracy that stems from the Magna Carta was also outlined in a largely mass media-less world. So what aspect of democracy is a media construct? The answer would simply be the discourse about which form of democracy is better.
Now to address the statement, ‘we like in a democracy but not necessarily a democratic country’, this statement is a more accurate reflection of our situation. India IS a democratic country, going by the textbook definition. But we are not a democratic nation; in fact no nation can truly be democratic. The media reinforces status quo through its communications. The mass media ‘segments’ people into Sec A, B, C, HNI etc., creating content particularly catering to those demographics, further reinforcing this status quo, which is essentially undemocratic since its primary principle is that ‘all citizens are equal’.
The media also filters news and makes certain stories more important than others by covering them more. The media does not, and cannot do equal justice to all issues thus reinforcing inequality. Further more as Noam Chomsky points out, much of media is owned by large conglomerates. The primary duty of the media is to educate the electorate, however media that has a corporate ownership would be more concerned about reinforcing business interests as opposed to political ones. In this sense the opinion building function of the media is actually a reflection of the owner’s ideology. Their opinions run public opinion discourse, not those that arise from a public sphere, thus making the whole process of public opinion formation undemocratic.
Is democracy a media construct? No. Is the media fortifying an undemocratic society in our country, yes.
Democracy means by the people, for the people and of the people. We live in a mediacratic world today. Mostly all our thoughts, habits are influenced by media. Though we live in a democratic country many a time our voice is unheard or we remain aloof from information. This is the time when media steps in and gives the base to be heard.
Media has indirect influence over audience (cognitive dissonance). It creates a need in the audience's mind and slowly this need holds strong roots in our minds (Primary Theory). Media uses primary theory to let grow this need and later this need becomes essential aspect and we accept it.
Media frames news in a way which creates negative impact against certain people or organization etc (Framing theory). Media also plays a very important role in the communication process. According to Harold Lasswell media is the channel through which news is circulated all across the globe. So Media does gives a platform for people open up.
YES we live in a democracy, but not necessarily a democratic country because the thoughts are shaped up by Media. They might not be what we think. Though we have the freedom to express those thoughts, but those thoughts are not what we have created but are cultivated within us.
BERNARD COHEN states "The media doesn't tell us what to think; it tells us what to think about." thus Media tells you what issues are important or creates importance with regards to an issue. (Agenda setting theory.)
Media is amalgamation of create public opinion, influence, raise voice etc. Democracy is not exactly a product but it is byproduct of media.
The concept of democracy is not product of the media it is a social product emerged out of mans political needs. Several thousand decades backs when there was no sign of democracy in European and American states in India we had tribes which were having their “Ganarajya” means the state run by elective candidates .However this was exits in tribes not in established monarchs. It would be not exaggeration if called media as a democratic product in ancient times kings servants used to go to villages to announce kings decision to declare important announcements and inform subjects about the tax system. These announcements were the medium between monarchial system and common subjects. This system later replaced by official documents maintained by bureaucrats’, diplomats and pandits .In religions existed in India communication has been done through texts , oral traditions of learning , these acted as mediums for devotees. Democracy was as it is but there was little representation of people in power who felt to communicate to their subjects that’s why we have caves ,temples with engraved pictures communication events of that time .The little percentage of democratic minded people in power weather it is religional or ruling wanted to show something to others which will last forever .Democracy may not always representative or elective it can be different , state can be called democratic if is represents citizens will even if they are ruled by monarch and advised by many. These people kept alive the spirit of democracy and caused consistent state or authority driven mediums. I am also disagree with second statement that is we live in a democracy, but not necessarily a democratic country. India is world’s largest democracy however it is not perfect as it suppose to be .Indian have strong impact of kingship and British rule over their mind , we can study it from Indian culture it is necessary to get this wrong ideas out of millions of Indians and ask them to live democratically .This mind set give rise to power direct index which is major communication barrier and in democracy communication of ideas , will in the form if criticism , support are necessary .That’s being democratic state is not enough but is also important to teach the democratic style of living by avoiding all kinds of communication barriers .
Let me start with saying India is a democratic country and we live in a democratic country. But there is a question “Do we”. Democracy has been in this country for decades, but we still live under few people that call themselves politician or their supporters who decide to whom to vote as their and so called our leader. Media has used democracy in many of debates wherein it has asked the leaders directly or indirectly the same question. But when a question is raised to view our points democratically we might be interrupted in some way or other. Many news channels runs the shows on the debates where it question as to whether we are living in a democratic world but never any has channel given a chance to any interviewer to express its view completely. It like the Hollywood movie “You’ve got mail” where the character Joe Fox played by Tom Hanks was surprised to see how his comments were tweeted by the journalist when he was asked to comment on his rivals. Today TV broadcasters are playing a very tactful and communicating it to the very way it is required at that time and circumstance and using the nation democratic to its benefit. Media in a way has changed it meaning of democracy. Previously democracy was meant to be “all eligible citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives”. But today it’s meant to be “few eligible and powerful individuals have an equal say in the decisions that affect others lives”. And media is playing an important role in the whole system at times good with the journalist being felicitated and at times bad by destroying the offices and rallying protests and at times neutral not hurting the egos or attitudes of any individual present in the debate.
Democratic media is a form of media organisation that strives to have the principles of democracy underlying not only theproduction of content,but also the organisation of thee entire project. Democracy means a system of government in which all the people of a country can vote to elect thier representatives. Media came into existence in 1780 with the introduction of a newspaper namely,the Bengal Gazette and since then it has matured leaps and bounds. It has been playing a very important role. Media plays a role in shaping a healthy democracy.Media is the backbone of a democracy. Media makes us aware of various social,political and economical activities happening around the world. It is like a mirror, which shows us or strives to show us the bare truth and harsh realities of life.The media had undoubtedly evolved and become more active over the years.The media also exposes loopholes in the democratic system,which ultimately helps government in filling the vacuums of loopholes and making a system more accountable, responsive and citizen friendly. A democracy without media is like a vehicle without wheels
It is true that we have a parliament. It is elected by everyone over the age of 18 at least every five years. We can choose who to vote for but once it is elected there is no means of controlling MP’s, parliament or the government until the next election. If the government breaks its promises, which it always does, we cannot get rid of it, until the next election. On a day to day basis we see how democratic our society really is. Real power lies with those who own and control the wealth of society-bankers, financiers and big businessmen who make up the capitalist class. Media say we live under the rule of the people, yes we do live under the rich part-we live in a capitalist democracy. Of course this does not mean that we have no democratic rights at all. We have the right to hold meetings and to print newspapers to get our point of view across. We can hold demonstrations to protest against things we do not agree with. Workers have the right to join a trade union. But these rights were not just granted to us from above out of the goodness of our rulers’ hearts. Every one of them, including the right to vote, had to be fought for from below. Today the government is trying to restrict our rights. They have given the police more powers to attack demonstrators and break up picket lines. They have brought in powers to censor what we can say, while we fight for the broadest possible democratic rights, we do not believe that real and lasting change can come through parliament- Therefore, yes we are living in democracy but not in a democratic country.
Democracy provides the space for alternative ideas to debate and arrive at conclusions for the betterment of society. It has already been discussed that media has been regarded as the fourth estate in democracy. This is close in essence to the concept of public sphere where rational public debate and discourse is given importance. Individuals can freely discuss issues of common concern Media plays one of the crucial roles behind the formation of public sphere. In the constitution of India the power of the legislature, executive and judiciary have been thoroughly demarcated. . The role of media in India, the largest democracy of the world is different from merely disseminating information and entertainment. Educating the masses for their social upliftment needs to be in its ambit as well. In a country where there is large scale poverty, unemployment and underdevelopment media has a responsibility towards developmental of society. Public sphere which is essential for a vibrant democracy can actually be channelized to serve vested interests rather than public good. Here Agenda Setting Theory could apply as media in democratic state doesn’t tell people or society what to think but what to think about. Media has a role to play behind formation of public opinion which can force the political parties to address the core issues haunting the country's progress. However, public opinion can be manipulated by vested interests to serve their own goals. Democracy is place where each person have a right to express his view and as we call democracy is for the people, by the people and of the people but in recent time it is not seen.
Democracy, as Winston Churchill once famously remarked, is the least bad political system.That is,if people take the trouble to participate.The US presidential campaign(Obama-McCain) produced a new phenomenon:mobilization by the Internet. Millions of Americans discovered the power of collective action. The small sums they donated added up to a fortune. These people changed American politics for ever with Obama. Lasswell's theory could not have been put to better use when the Obama campaign decided to send out a message filled promise, of change and hope - his cultural background helped diversify his portfolio and his campaign managed to subtly maximize its potential to often encourage solidarity. Message flow in a multicultural society with multiple audiences is through various channels and the power does not necessarily have to rest in the hands of few.The Obama Campaign literally equated the president's race and the concept of change to ensure that people participated in what they felt was a new beginning. It was pure manipulation. Libertarian philosophy, which most democracies profess to practice if not a socially responsible one, holds that it is not the business of anyone to tell another what they should believe or not believe. Both philosophies are behind the notion of a free marketplace of ideas.The Libertarian Theory of the press is that information is knowledge, and knowledge is power. It enables people to realize their potential, and since news is about people making the news, the press reminds us that society has not grown to an entity of greater importance than the people comprising it. Whether or not we regard free press as a natural or inalienable right depends upon how much we assume that people desire to know the truth, and will be set free by it. India is regarded as a democracy but, in reality,it is not. The urban rich and professional middle classes do not bother to vote. Indian governments are voted in by peasants,many of them illiterate. They put their fingerprint on the ballot paper and choose their own caste leaders.Workers normally vote for the boss’s favourite.The Indian urban rich and professional middle classes ignore parliamentary democracy to the point where they do not even bother to notice who is running the country. They simply bribe bureaucrats, police and other officials if they want something done or not done. This is a classic working example of the Sleep Cell Theory in action, where you see the minorities and in this case, a large part of the majority too generating a sense of apathy, a fear of isolation towards and from the system because they are too caught up with their own individual lives. The media feeds this apathy by painting politics and government as either ineffective or the media dons the cape of the solution giver and pushes forward their own political interests, thus affecting the outcome. A non-governmental organisation, Janaagraha, has linked up with Tata Tea. The latter is part of the group that owns Jaguar and Land Rover. Their slogan is Jaago Re and they challenge all Indians to unite and transform India-by voting and electing qualified leaders. It also explains to urban dwellers how to register and cast their votes. Amazingly, most of them do not know which constituency they live in. Needless to say they are ill-informed about political platforms. Democracy can only flourish with the active participation of the middle classes in the democratic process. Yes, democracy has now become a product of the media but the news doesn't need to spell doom, a balance can be struck. The difficult part is to figure out how to make it last.
As we all believe in Media, we are also greatly influenced by it. Moreover, the fact that we live in a democracy, but not necessarily a democratic country is true in some cases whereas in some; it is not! From the time India achieved freedom, it emerged as a vibrant democracy and India has been relatively more successful as compared to many Asian and African countries which got independence almost at the same time as India did. As the cognitive dissonance states, media affects us indirectly in a major way and it influences us so much that we are bound to follow what the media says and does! Media follows the Laswells Model of Communication in which he states that any form of communication should follow the questions like who said what in which channel to whom and with what effect! Democracy enables a complete value of freedom for its people but as a coin has two sides, it has certain serious drawbacks too in the imposition but the output achieved is also slow and costly. Despite the drawbacks in democracy which comprise of barriers such as linguistic and cultural, physical and psychological, etc. people find better results in adoption of this change in setup and they willingly wish to adopt it with all the lacking in it, but sometimes a question strikes my mind... Are we truly living in a democratic nation? Where there is so much of gap between the rich and the poor? Where there is no equal distribution of resources in our country... Democracy is a precious gem that a country has to develop itself in all aspects and acts as a catalyst for media which facilitates it’s growth.
I disagree with the statement that the concept of democracy is a product of media. I believe media and democracy go hand-in-hand. In India, the ultimate power lies with the people and media helps in sustaining the power. Media created such valuable citizens and has done much good to society by exposing various scams, scandals, frauds, embezzlements and many other cases of corruption. History is the witness that media played an important role and has been instrumental in putting an end to atrocities and bringing the downfall of ruthless dictators. Coming to the statement “We line in democracy, but not necessarily in a democratic country,” as the largest democracy, India is considered a role for a large number of developing countries. Mass media plays a role of acting as a bridge between the government and the people. No nation is perfect, No doubt that India is a democratic country but we definitely not live in a democratic society. Had it been democracy then there wouldn’t have been reservations, the VVIP treatment for temples, or any religious place wouldn’t have been encouraged, no difference between private schools and municipal schools, there wouldn’t have been the concept of “most powerful survives’ be it political, physical or any other. We are TOLD that we live in a democratic nation but we don’t really. We elect the parliament members, they are our representatives, but there isno means of controlling MPs, parliament or the government until the next election. But it certainly does not mean that we have no rights at all. We have the right to stand for what we fell is right. We can hold demonstrations and protest against things we do not agree with. We do not live in a democratic country but still enjoy the democracy.
Democracy means people rule. It means by the people, for the people and of the people. India is one of democratic country on the universe. In democratic country people have right to choose their Government. Countries people voted their prospective candidate by this polls Prime Minster & President being selected. Tony Blair, former British Prime Minister said, “India a shining example of democracy.” But do we live in democracy? MLA’s & MP’s that we choose by election for development of our society. Some of them/ many of them failed to do their duty. Then we also don’t ask them questions. That democracy we have. There are some good politicians are their but their organization don’t allow them to work accordingly. Yes, I think, Democracy is product of media. This is right from the pre-independence era. Media set the goal for the independence. It played vital role in making awareness among people. It defines what is ‘Swaraj and Swadeshi.’ Why we need Swaraj? Newspapers, journals & magazines these were medium of the freedom. Nowadays media has became full-fledged his arms. By technology, improvements it has become advance. All day new scams have been on our Idiot Box. . We have power of voting but we misuse this power. We enjoyed a holiday at hill station, we booze, and we play. That attitude of encourages this politicians to corrupt. Being product of media it has largely democracy & media is walking besides. They have balanced very well. Democracy is product of media earlier & now but the way you use it only that’s difference.
I believe democracy is not a product of media,infact media is a product for the concept of democracy. The power to media has been given by the people as a stage for themselves to be globally connected,to help themselves in the public sphere matters.Therefore,media is actually a medium for people to stand for their rights. Talking about public sphere theory in relation to te context,the study of the public sphere centers on the idea of participatory democracy,and how public opinion becomes political action. Though media is a democratic product nd democracy does persist,but the political power dosent make it a democratic country. The public sphere simultaneously prestructed and dominated by the Mass media,developed into an arena infiltrated by power in which,by means of topic selection and topical contributions,a battle isfought not only over influence but over the control of communication flows that affect behaviour while their strategic intentions are kept hidden as much as possible. In other words,a control has been created on people's freedom.Democracy allows us to freely express us even in the media,but the political power restricts people from coming in front and speaking for themselves.The rightful intentions therfore don't rightly come out. Hence I strongly believe,we definately live in a democracy but certainly not in a democratic country. Shalini shreedharan
Media is considered as a fourth pillar of democracy, any house would fall apart if one of the pillars is shook. Indian democracy is not a product of media but of course media plays a very crucial role in our democracy. It is because of its social responsibilities. Electronic and Print Media play a mediator role between the people of the nation and the government and in today’s world media is the most important source of connection between the people and the government. The Indian democracy is very ironic. We live under democracy but our democratic rights differ from person to person, caste to caste. For instance where few regional political parties for political mileage create havoc by not allowing Indian citizen to freely roam from one city to another for work purpose which the Indian constitution gives complete freedom for, but the government takes no strict action when a political party attacks the very basic right of an Indian citizen. Where citizens suffer for job opportunity and employment the Ministers are busy erecting statues by using whooping 1000 crores. Yes of course we live in a democracy but not in a democratic country where “Democracy is for, by and of the corrupt leaders”. We live in Democracy but not a Democratic country.
Democracy has 4 main pillars - Political System, Administration, Law Agencies (courts and police) and Media. No democracy can function properly if one of the four dysfunctions .Media plays a very important part in our democratic country. It acts as a link between the government and the masses. Media acts as a watchdog for our society. It shows the mirror to our society. And when it comes to democracy in our country, yes, we are so proud of us being the world largest democracy. Well Indian democracy comes with its special Indian flavor which is since the formation of our democratic society. The special touch of “MONEY” ”CASTE “and “CLASS” and of courses our “Political Connections”. The higher are this factors the more democratic right one enjoys. In India while all the focus has been on blaming the political system for every failure, the other 3 have by and large gone scot free. Most of the times, we pinpoint the blame on just the political system without looking at how others performed and even without realizing that this are the leaders elected by us. If we really want to live in a democratic country we need to bring the change within us by electing good candidates and taking active interest in our nation .Democracy truly means government “for the people by the people and of the people” if the masses really care for it.
We live in a democracy where most of our views are influenced by media. Most of our thoughts are set by media. We speak what media wants us to speak. Media by their 24*7 broadcast on a particular topic leads our brain to work in such order. I partially agree with the statement that concept of democracy is a product of media. Media has limited our thinking ability. It has made us a non thinker in a way that we only think on topics on which the media sets agenda.
Well, ‘we live in a democracy but not a democratic country’ is a question which could be related to our thought process in a democracy. Living in a democracy means freedom of thought and expression. We live in an era where most of our thoughts are media driven and rest are influenced by our peers. We speak on certain issues and keep our thoughts close if our views are less in number compared to the others. This is explained in the theory spiral of silence by Elizabeth Noelle Neumann in 1980.
Democracy means a free public sphere where we don’t need to hide and carryout our operations. Media too is part of it, but the representation they do of our “society” is in their terms. In a democracy it is known that the media is a platform of people or people’s voice. But if we take any media randomly, we can say that they do not represent our thought but sell product. They actually manufacture consent so that we buy their product.
Hence to say that we live in a democracy and not a democratic nation with respect to media can be concluded that our thoughts are free but our expressions are not!
Above 2 questions are separate but in a way linked with each other. One can’t be totally agrees with the one side of this topic so I am partially agree with the above statement.
Concept of Democracy is not the product of media it’s relevant from ages. It is reversed Media is the product of Democracy. Media got its freedom as it’s stated in the rule of land. Because of democracy & freedom speech media have so much of freedom to comment on each & everything. Other wise it is not possible to have such a free media is non democratic country. Media is the forth pillar of democracy so it is clear that the media is product of democracy.
& yes I do think we live in democracy but not necessarily in a democratic country. In democracy there is equal right for each & every individual. But we could not find this today, in practical life. Equal laws and Equal rights are left as mere written laws hidden in the Constitution. Today there is no equality in any field. It is hard for poor people to fight for there rights & justice. Media is showing what they want to show & fragmenting the truth according to their need.
So according to written law & if we go through history we can say that the media is product of democracy but if we watch the functioning of media today it gives us the idea that the democracy is shape according to media’s need & people now thinking democracy from medias camera lance. In a way we can say that media is forcing democracy to be a part of it’s product instead of serving the role of media’s forth pillar.
In democracy we have full right to think & comment on any public topic & fight for our right but due to heavy media content we don’t have time to think about other issues apart from what media has been showing with 24*27 news channels & fastest media internet. The content is so much that we don’t get time to think on any particular topic for long time & give our true opinion. Before start thinking next topic is ready to hammer our brain. So what ever the opinion formed about current topics are just instant & without much of thinking.
Today people served according prominence decided by media & not what is real importance. eg The story of drought is of less important for commercial news channel than the film gossips. Media is not giving equal prominence to all the topics in society. Today media is a business & in business it is good to not to expect equality in all stages. Now media is not working for social cause but for earning money. Media is not fallowing the democratic values as they are expected. They are framing the democratic principle according to their need to handle the situation as per their requirement.
Democracy is heavily based upon the concept that every individual is important and is a separate and unique being. This is probably the most important concept of democratic thought. This concept of democracy is about serving the many individuals that make up a society. People influence by the media its doesn’t mean that the concept of democracy is a product of media. The concept of democracy is not a product of media. Because current media has emerged as a huge sales corporate in the world where he thinking about himself. He only think about his benefit .Government, usually indirectly, by the popular media; often a result of democracy going awry. A system in which politicians stop thinking and begin listening exclusively to the media regarding what the important issues are and what they should do about them. But sometimes media become the power of public because it is the place where public put-up their opinion. Media is voice of public. Democracy is all about individual freedom. However, democracy never insists on the complete freedom of the individual. There is no such thing as absolute freedom under a government. This can only exist under an anarchy, where there is no established government. Individual freedom gives all individuals the freedom to do as they will as long as it does not violate the majority will. Finding the balance between the rights of one individual the rights of the other is not an easy thing. Democracy only strives to find that balance. Theoretically we live in a democratic country but not practically.
Since ages media has been following Lasswell model of communication, using particular medium. It has just informed people what they should be aware of, there was a agenda in every single message that media showed .Hence democracy is meant for the welfare of the society, and media is also considered as the fourth pillar of democracy. But today, media can manipulate any news into positive or negative. And the repercussion of that is media now a days uses their powers in a negative manner or as per their preferences. Media is meant to have a non biased attitude towards the happenings in the society .but nowdays media is democratic as well autocratic depending on the situation . Political parties also use media these days for the propaganda of their particular parties. For example, Saamna the newspaper owned by Shiv Sena follows Hinduism and often are seen framing the activities of Shiv Sena in a positive manner even if the entire country opposes it, which in a way is manipulating the society. Media is supposed to be democratic and enable the power in favour of people and society. But today with growing power in political force and manipulation of frequent content in media is believed to be controlled by political leaders and bureaucrats
आपण लोकशाही राष्ट्रात राहतो पण लोकशाहीवादी राष्ट्रात राहतो हे सांगणे कठीण आहे. प्रत्येक नागरिक हा लोकशाहीवादी आहे किंवा असेलच आपण कसे सांगू शकतो. सर्वप्रथम आपण लोकशाही राष्ट्रात राहतो हे नक्की कारण आपल्या देशात कोणीही उठतो आणि सरकारला, पंतप्रधानांना शिव्या घालतो इतर लोकशाही राष्ट्रांत हे होतं का? आणि आपल्या लोकशाही राष्ट्रात स्वातंत्र्याचा अतिरेक झाला आहे हे नक्की. लोकशाही ही संकल्पना माध्यमातून आली असावी कारण माध्यमांचे कामच मूळी अभिव्यक्तीचे आहे. १९(१) (अ) हा माध्यमांचा आत्मा म्हटला जातो. कारण हे कलम अभिव्यक्तीचे आहे. वृत्तपत्रांना/माध्यमांना लोकशाहीचा चौथा आधार स्तंभ म्हटले जाते. लोकशाही शासन व्यवस्थेत समाज हा दडपणाखाली नसतो. शासनाचा कारभार सुरळीत चालावा म्हणून लोकांकडे काही हक्क व अधिकार असतात.
"Two cheers for Democracy; one because it admits variety and second because it permits criticism."India, as we know, is the largest democratic country in the world; but that democracy is limited only up to papers. In practical life, what we find is the rule by men of money and muscle power, or we can say that the cheap politics of our country has not allowed Democracy to take its original shape. Definition of Democracy given by the former USA President, Abraham Lincoln is "Democracy is a form of Government which is elected by the people, for the people and of the people". We have indirect from of Democracy in which people elect their representatives and the foremost duty of these representatives is to work like servants of common masses. But they behave as if they are masters of the people. No one is perfect in this world and so is the media. Here I am not degrading the media, rather I would say there is still a lot of scope for improvement by which media can raise upto the aspirations of the people for which it is meant. I cannot think of a democracy without active and neutral media. Media is like a watchdog in a democracy that keeps government active. From being just an informer it has become an integral part of our daily lives. With the passage of time it has become a more matured and a more responsible entity. The present media revolution has helped people in making an informed decisions and this has led to beginning of a new era in a democracy.
Democracy is a system formed by political views and ideologies. The major reason why democracy is functioning ‘properly’ in a country like India where there are lakhs of politicians and an incredible population is media. Media is often termed as the fourth pillar of the democracy which makes its more obvious that democracy is not the byproduct of media. But media definitely has a major role to play in the existence of democratic rule in any country. The success of a strong democracy depends upon the good media in a country.
In democracy everything is directly related to common man. Media being the watchdog of the society plays a very important role in keeping an eye on the democratic rule of the country. It actually turns out to be the medium f communication between common man and the government.
But lately due to the concept of paid news and major role of revenue and advertisements in media, the concept of democracy is getting little shaky. The control of media is in hands of influential people or the rulers itself. They use the media as their mouth piece. So although technically there is democracy but we are ultimately doing things what the rulers or the government wants. We are influenced by the propaganda and the agenda they have set. We might find it amazing that there is no separate body for controlling the content of the media in India and might feel that the media has complete freedom. But according to me the government purposely does not have a body to curb the content shown in media.
So although we feel that there is democracy in India, the existence of democracy is slightly questionable, as media is controlled and owned by certain class of the society for their own benefits and agenda.
I agree to the statement that we live in democracy but, not in a democratic country. And today, even this is true that democracy is a product of media. But, this was not the case earlier. Democracy believes in freedom for everyone. Media too received its freedom from democracy. If we wouldn't have been a democratic nation, media here wouldn't have been free. India happens to be one of the largest democracy in the world. When we received freedom, both democracy and media played quite different role than what they play today. Democracy really existed where people's opinion mattered and as democracy means, people really had power in their hand, unlike today. Media too was more of informative and less of dramatic. Today, after so many years of freedom, the scenario has reversed. Democracy who gave freedom to media has become media's mere puppet. Media today is very strong and powerful enough to shape public opinion. So, it is no longer that being a democratic country people's opinions and views are counted upon instead, media shapes people's views and we live with media's projection about everything.
We generally define Democracy as being 'of the people, for the people & by the people'. But is it actually that simple to describe? Undoubtedly, Democracy is one of the best forms of government. But “Is the 'ideal' Democracy being followed?” is the real question. And when the Democracy itself has the Media as its fourth pillar, how can one expect to live in a Democracy which is not affected by the Media? Obviously, the Media plays an important role in shaping our beliefs about Democracy. In fact, whatever we know about Democracy today, it more or less, has been derived from the Media. Democracy gives us the freedom of expression which is used by the Media in the 'Agenda Setting'. Now, this surely, is not an 'ideal' form of Democracy. Also, in today's times, there is a big vacuum as far as the ‘Public Sphere’ is concerned. This vacuum results in the people relying on the Media for almost everything, as states the 'Uses & Gratification Theory'. Another thing which this vacuum does is that it brings the ‘Spiral of Silence’ into existence. Those who believe in a particular ideology prefer to stay mum just because they are outnumbered. Yes, we live in a Democracy but do we live Democratically? Our Democracy guarantees us with the Freedom of Choice but do we make the correct choices? Our thoughts & ideas are influenced from the people we interact with. They may be our peers or the ones we look up to as Opinion Leaders. And these Opinion Leaders are influenced by the Media. So, directly or indirectly, we rely too much on the Media which is clearly not the sign of a Democratic society. Ours is a country where Political Parties have their ‘mouthpieces’ which are served to the audience as ‘Newspapers’. Obviously, the news in such papers is going to be one-sided. But people still buy them which is proof that although in a Democracy, we don’t live in a Democratic country.
Firstly, I disagree with the statement that Democracy is a media product. However our views on ‘what a Democracy should be’ may be formed as a result of media exposure. But again even in this case, it is not directly a media product. As Lazarsfeld’s study pointed out, our political opinions are shaped more by our peers than by the media. The media has an effect on our idea of democracy, but it is a limited effect.
ReplyDeleteFurther more, democracy is a public sphere construct that dates back to 508-507 BCE with the advent of Athenian democracy, an age in which there was no ‘mass media’. Modern day democracy that stems from the Magna Carta was also outlined in a largely mass media-less world. So what aspect of democracy is a media construct? The answer would simply be the discourse about which form of democracy is better.
Now to address the statement, ‘we like in a democracy but not necessarily a democratic country’, this statement is a more accurate reflection of our situation. India IS a democratic country, going by the textbook definition. But we are not a democratic nation; in fact no nation can truly be democratic. The media reinforces status quo through its communications. The mass media ‘segments’ people into Sec A, B, C, HNI etc., creating content particularly catering to those demographics, further reinforcing this status quo, which is essentially undemocratic since its primary principle is that ‘all citizens are equal’.
The media also filters news and makes certain stories more important than others by covering them more. The media does not, and cannot do equal justice to all issues thus reinforcing inequality. Further more as Noam Chomsky points out, much of media is owned by large conglomerates. The primary duty of the media is to educate the electorate, however media that has a corporate ownership would be more concerned about reinforcing business interests as opposed to political ones. In this sense the opinion building function of the media is actually a reflection of the owner’s ideology. Their opinions run public opinion discourse, not those that arise from a public sphere, thus making the whole process of public opinion formation undemocratic.
Is democracy a media construct? No. Is the media fortifying an undemocratic society in our country, yes.
Democracy means by the people, for the people and of the people. We live in a mediacratic world today. Mostly all our thoughts, habits are influenced by media. Though we live in a democratic country many a time our voice is unheard or we remain aloof from information. This is the time when media steps in and gives the base to be heard.
ReplyDeleteMedia has indirect influence over audience (cognitive dissonance). It creates a need in the audience's mind and slowly this need holds strong roots in our minds (Primary Theory). Media uses primary theory to let grow this need and later this need becomes essential aspect and we accept it.
Media frames news in a way which creates negative impact against certain people or organization etc (Framing theory). Media also plays a very important role in the communication process. According to Harold Lasswell media is the channel through which news is circulated all across the globe. So Media does gives a platform for people open up.
YES we live in a democracy, but not necessarily a democratic country because the thoughts are shaped up by Media. They might not be what we think. Though we have the freedom to express those thoughts, but those thoughts are not what we have created but are cultivated within us.
BERNARD COHEN states "The media doesn't tell us what to think; it tells us what to think about." thus Media tells you what issues are important or creates importance with regards to an issue. (Agenda setting theory.)
Media is amalgamation of create public opinion, influence, raise voice etc. Democracy is not exactly a product but it is byproduct of media.
The concept of democracy is not product of the media it is a social product emerged out of mans political needs. Several thousand decades backs when there was no sign of democracy in European and American states in India we had tribes which were having their “Ganarajya” means the state run by elective candidates .However this was exits in tribes not in established monarchs.
ReplyDeleteIt would be not exaggeration if called media as a democratic product in ancient times kings servants used to go to villages to announce kings decision to declare important announcements and inform subjects about the tax system. These announcements were the medium between monarchial system and common subjects. This system later replaced by official documents maintained by bureaucrats’, diplomats and pandits .In religions existed in India communication has been done through texts , oral traditions of learning , these acted as mediums for devotees. Democracy was as it is but there was little representation of people in power who felt to communicate to their subjects that’s why we have caves ,temples with engraved pictures communication events of that time .The little percentage of democratic minded people in power weather it is religional or ruling wanted to show something to others which will last forever .Democracy may not always representative or elective it can be different , state can be called democratic if is represents citizens will even if they are ruled by monarch and advised by many. These people kept alive the spirit of democracy and caused consistent state or authority driven mediums.
I am also disagree with second statement that is we live in a democracy, but not necessarily a democratic country. India is world’s largest democracy however it is not perfect as it suppose to be .Indian have strong impact of kingship and British rule over their mind , we can study it from Indian culture it is necessary to get this wrong ideas out of millions of Indians and ask them to live democratically .This mind set give rise to power direct index which is major communication barrier and in democracy communication of ideas , will in the form if criticism , support are necessary .That’s being democratic state is not enough but is also important to teach the democratic style of living by avoiding all kinds of communication barriers .
Let me start with saying India is a democratic country and we live in a democratic country. But there is a question “Do we”. Democracy has been in this country for decades, but we still live under few people that call themselves politician or their supporters who decide to whom to vote as their and so called our leader. Media has used democracy in many of debates wherein it has asked the leaders directly or indirectly the same question. But when a question is raised to view our points democratically we might be interrupted in some way or other. Many news channels runs the shows on the debates where it question as to whether we are living in a democratic world but never any has channel given a chance to any interviewer to express its view completely. It like the Hollywood movie “You’ve got mail” where the character Joe Fox played by Tom Hanks was surprised to see how his comments were tweeted by the journalist when he was asked to comment on his rivals. Today TV broadcasters are playing a very tactful and communicating it to the very way it is required at that time and circumstance and using the nation democratic to its benefit. Media in a way has changed it meaning of democracy. Previously democracy was meant to be “all eligible citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives”. But today it’s meant to be “few eligible and powerful individuals have an equal say in the decisions that affect others lives”. And media is playing an important role in the whole system at times good with the journalist being felicitated and at times bad by destroying the offices and rallying protests and at times neutral not hurting the egos or attitudes of any individual present in the debate.
ReplyDeleteDemocratic media is a form of media organisation that strives to have the principles of democracy underlying not only theproduction of content,but also the organisation of thee entire project. Democracy means a system of government in which all the people of a country can vote to elect thier representatives. Media came into existence in 1780 with the introduction of a newspaper namely,the Bengal Gazette and since then it has matured leaps and bounds. It has been playing a very important role. Media plays a role in shaping a healthy democracy.Media is the backbone of a democracy. Media makes us aware of various social,political and economical activities happening around the world. It is like a mirror, which shows us or strives to show us the bare truth and harsh realities of life.The media had undoubtedly evolved and become more active over the years.The media also exposes loopholes in the democratic system,which ultimately helps government in filling the vacuums of loopholes and making a system more accountable, responsive and citizen friendly. A democracy without media is like a vehicle without wheels
ReplyDeleteIt is true that we have a parliament. It is elected by everyone over the age of 18 at least every five years. We can choose who to vote for but once it is elected there is no means of controlling MP’s, parliament or the government until the next election. If the government breaks its promises, which it always does, we cannot get rid of it, until the next election. On a day to day basis we see how democratic our society really is.
ReplyDeleteReal power lies with those who own and control the wealth of society-bankers, financiers and big businessmen who make up the capitalist class. Media say we live under the rule of the people, yes we do live under the rich part-we live in a capitalist democracy.
Of course this does not mean that we have no democratic rights at all. We have the right to hold meetings and to print newspapers to get our point of view across. We can hold demonstrations to protest against things we do not agree with. Workers have the right to join a trade union. But these rights were not just granted to us from above out of the goodness of our rulers’ hearts. Every one of them, including the right to vote, had to be fought for from below. Today the government is trying to restrict our rights. They have given the police more powers to attack demonstrators and break up picket lines. They have brought in powers to censor what we can say, while we fight for the broadest possible democratic rights, we do not believe that real and lasting change can come through parliament-
Therefore, yes we are living in democracy but not in a democratic country.
Democracy provides the space for alternative ideas to debate and arrive at conclusions for the betterment of society. It has already been discussed that media has been regarded as the fourth estate in democracy. This is close in essence to the concept of public sphere where rational public debate and discourse is given importance. Individuals can freely discuss issues of common concern Media plays one of the crucial roles behind the formation of public sphere. In the constitution of India the power of the legislature, executive and judiciary have been thoroughly demarcated. . The role of media in India, the largest democracy of the world is different from merely disseminating information and entertainment. Educating the masses for their social upliftment needs to be in its ambit as well. In a country where there is large scale poverty, unemployment and underdevelopment media has a responsibility towards developmental of society. Public sphere which is essential for a vibrant democracy can actually be channelized to serve vested interests rather than public good. Here Agenda Setting Theory could apply as media in democratic state doesn’t tell people or society what to think but what to think about. Media has a role to play behind formation of public opinion which can force the political parties to address the core issues haunting the country's progress. However, public opinion can be manipulated by vested interests to serve their own goals. Democracy is place where each person have a right to express his view and as we call democracy is for the people, by the people and of the people but in recent time it is not seen.
ReplyDeleteDemocracy, as Winston Churchill once famously remarked, is the least bad political system.That is,if people take the trouble to participate.The US presidential campaign(Obama-McCain) produced a new phenomenon:mobilization by the Internet. Millions of Americans discovered the power of collective action. The small sums they donated added up to a fortune. These people changed American politics for ever with Obama. Lasswell's theory could not have been put to better use when the Obama campaign decided to send out a message filled promise, of change and hope - his cultural background helped diversify his portfolio and his campaign managed to subtly maximize its potential to often encourage solidarity. Message flow in a multicultural society with multiple audiences is through various channels and the power does not necessarily have to rest in the hands of few.The Obama Campaign literally equated the president's race and the concept of change to ensure that people participated in what they felt was a new beginning. It was pure manipulation. Libertarian philosophy, which most democracies profess to practice if not a socially responsible one, holds that it is not the business of anyone to tell another what they should believe or not believe. Both philosophies are behind the notion of a free marketplace of ideas.The Libertarian Theory of the press is that information is knowledge, and knowledge is power. It enables people to realize their potential, and since news is about people making the news, the press reminds us that society has not grown to an entity of greater importance than the people comprising it. Whether or not we regard free press as a natural or inalienable right depends upon how much we assume that people desire to know the truth, and will be set free by it.
ReplyDeleteIndia is regarded as a democracy but, in reality,it is not. The urban rich and professional middle classes do not bother to vote. Indian governments are voted in by peasants,many of them illiterate. They put their fingerprint on the ballot paper and choose their own caste leaders.Workers normally vote for the boss’s favourite.The Indian urban rich and professional middle classes ignore parliamentary democracy to the point where they do not even bother to notice who is running the country. They simply bribe bureaucrats, police and other officials if they want something done or not done. This is a classic working example of the Sleep Cell Theory in action, where you see the minorities and in this case, a large part of the majority too generating a sense of apathy, a fear of isolation towards and from the system because they are too caught up with their own individual lives. The media feeds this apathy by painting politics and government as either ineffective or the media dons the cape of the solution giver and pushes forward their own political interests, thus affecting the outcome.
A non-governmental organisation, Janaagraha, has linked up with Tata Tea. The latter is part of the group that owns Jaguar and Land Rover. Their slogan is Jaago Re and they challenge all Indians to unite and transform India-by voting and electing qualified leaders. It also explains to urban dwellers how to register and cast their votes. Amazingly, most of them do not know which constituency they live in. Needless to say they are ill-informed about political platforms.
Democracy can only flourish with the active participation of the middle classes in the democratic process. Yes, democracy has now become a product of the media but the news doesn't need to spell doom, a balance can be struck. The difficult part is to figure out how to make it last.
As we all believe in Media, we are also greatly influenced by it. Moreover, the fact that we live in a democracy, but not necessarily a democratic country is true in some cases whereas in some; it is not! From the time India achieved freedom, it emerged as a vibrant democracy and India has been relatively more successful as compared to many Asian and African countries which got independence almost at the same time as India did. As the cognitive dissonance states, media affects us indirectly in a major way and it influences us so much that we are bound to follow what the media says and does! Media follows the Laswells Model of Communication in which he states that any form of communication should follow the questions like who said what in which channel to whom and with what effect! Democracy enables a complete value of freedom for its people but as a coin has two sides, it has certain serious drawbacks too in the imposition but the output achieved is also slow and costly. Despite the drawbacks in democracy which comprise of barriers such as linguistic and cultural, physical and psychological, etc. people find better results in adoption of this change in setup and they willingly wish to adopt it with all the lacking in it, but sometimes a question strikes my mind... Are we truly living in a democratic nation?
ReplyDeleteWhere there is so much of gap between the rich and the poor? Where there is no equal distribution of resources in our country... Democracy is a precious gem that a country has to develop itself in all aspects and acts as a catalyst for media which facilitates it’s growth.
I disagree with the statement that the concept of democracy is a product of media. I believe media and democracy go hand-in-hand. In India, the ultimate power lies with the people and media helps in sustaining the power. Media created such valuable citizens and has done much good to society by exposing various scams, scandals, frauds, embezzlements and many other cases of corruption. History is the witness that media played an important role and has been instrumental in putting an end to atrocities and bringing the downfall of ruthless dictators.
ReplyDeleteComing to the statement “We line in democracy, but not necessarily in a democratic country,” as the largest democracy, India is considered a role for a large number of developing countries. Mass media plays a role of acting as a bridge between the government and the people. No nation is perfect, No doubt that India is a democratic country but we definitely not live in a democratic society. Had it been democracy then there wouldn’t have been reservations, the VVIP treatment for temples, or any religious place wouldn’t have been encouraged, no difference between private schools and municipal schools, there wouldn’t have been the concept of “most powerful survives’ be it political, physical or any other. We are TOLD that we live in a democratic nation but we don’t really. We elect the parliament members, they are our representatives, but there isno means of controlling MPs, parliament or the government until the next election. But it certainly does not mean that we have no rights at all. We have the right to stand for what we fell is right. We can hold demonstrations and protest against things we do not agree with. We do not live in a democratic country but still enjoy the democracy.
Democracy means people rule. It means by the people, for the people and of the people. India is one of democratic country on the universe. In democratic country people have right to choose their Government. Countries people voted their prospective candidate by this polls Prime Minster & President being selected.
ReplyDeleteTony Blair, former British Prime Minister said, “India a shining example of democracy.” But do we live in democracy? MLA’s & MP’s that we choose by election for development of our society. Some of them/ many of them failed to do their duty. Then we also don’t ask them questions. That democracy we have. There are some good politicians are their but their organization don’t allow them to work accordingly.
Yes, I think, Democracy is product of media. This is right from the pre-independence era. Media set the goal for the independence. It played vital role in making awareness among people. It defines what is ‘Swaraj and Swadeshi.’ Why we need Swaraj? Newspapers, journals & magazines these were medium of the freedom. Nowadays media has became full-fledged his arms. By technology, improvements it has become advance. All day new scams have been on our Idiot Box. .
We have power of voting but we misuse this power. We enjoyed a holiday at hill station, we booze, and we play. That attitude of encourages this politicians to corrupt. Being product of media it has largely democracy & media is walking besides. They have balanced very well. Democracy is product of media earlier & now but the way you use it only that’s difference.
I believe democracy is not a product of media,infact media is a product for the concept of democracy.
ReplyDeleteThe power to media has been given by the people as a stage for themselves to be globally connected,to help themselves in the public sphere matters.Therefore,media is actually a medium for people to stand for their rights.
Talking about public sphere theory in relation to te context,the study of the public sphere centers on the idea of participatory democracy,and how public opinion becomes political action.
Though media is a democratic product nd democracy does persist,but the political power dosent make it a democratic country.
The public sphere simultaneously prestructed and dominated by the Mass media,developed into an arena infiltrated by power in which,by means of topic selection and topical contributions,a battle isfought not only over influence but over the control of communication flows that affect behaviour while their strategic intentions are kept hidden as much as possible.
In other words,a control has been created on people's freedom.Democracy allows us to freely express us even in the media,but the political power restricts people from coming in front and speaking for themselves.The rightful intentions therfore don't rightly come out.
Hence I strongly believe,we definately live in a democracy but certainly not in a democratic country.
Shalini shreedharan
Media is considered as a fourth pillar of democracy, any house would fall apart if one of the pillars is shook. Indian democracy is not a product of media but of course media plays a very crucial role in our democracy. It is because of its social responsibilities. Electronic and Print Media play a mediator role between the people of the nation and the government and in today’s world media is the most important source of connection between the people and the government. The Indian democracy is very ironic. We live under democracy but our democratic rights differ from person to person, caste to caste. For instance where few regional political parties for political mileage create havoc by not allowing Indian citizen to freely roam from one city to another for work purpose which the Indian constitution gives complete freedom for, but the government takes no strict action when a political party attacks the very basic right of an Indian citizen. Where citizens suffer for job opportunity and employment the Ministers are busy erecting statues by using whooping 1000 crores. Yes of course we live in a democracy but not in a democratic country where “Democracy is for, by and of the corrupt leaders”. We live in Democracy but not a Democratic country.
ReplyDeleteDemocracy has 4 main pillars - Political System, Administration, Law Agencies (courts and police) and Media. No democracy can function properly if one of the four dysfunctions .Media plays a very important part in our democratic country. It acts as a link between the government and the masses. Media acts as a watchdog for our society. It shows the mirror to our society. And when it comes to democracy in our country, yes, we are so proud of us being the world largest democracy. Well Indian democracy comes with its special Indian flavor which is since the formation of our democratic society. The special touch of “MONEY” ”CASTE “and “CLASS” and of courses our “Political Connections”. The higher are this factors the more democratic right one enjoys. In India while all the focus has been on blaming the political system for every failure, the other 3 have by and large gone scot free. Most of the times, we pinpoint the blame on just the political system without looking at how others performed and even without realizing that this are the leaders elected by us. If we really want to live in a democratic country we need to bring the change within us by electing good candidates and taking active interest in our nation .Democracy truly means government “for the people by the people and of the people” if the masses really care for it.
ReplyDeleteWe live in a democracy where most of our views are influenced by media. Most of our thoughts are set by media. We speak what media wants us to speak. Media by their 24*7 broadcast on a particular topic leads our brain to work in such order. I partially agree with the statement that concept of democracy is a product of media. Media has limited our thinking ability. It has made us a non thinker in a way that we only think on topics on which the media sets agenda.
ReplyDeleteWell, ‘we live in a democracy but not a democratic country’ is a question which could be related to our thought process in a democracy. Living in a democracy means freedom of thought and expression. We live in an era where most of our thoughts are media driven and rest are influenced by our peers. We speak on certain issues and keep our thoughts close if our views are less in number compared to the others. This is explained in the theory spiral of silence by Elizabeth Noelle Neumann in 1980.
Democracy means a free public sphere where we don’t need to hide and carryout our operations. Media too is part of it, but the representation they do of our “society” is in their terms. In a democracy it is known that the media is a platform of people or people’s voice. But if we take any media randomly, we can say that they do not represent our thought but sell product. They actually manufacture consent so that we buy their product.
Hence to say that we live in a democracy and not a democratic nation with respect to media can be concluded that our thoughts are free but our expressions are not!
Above 2 questions are separate but in a way linked with each other. One can’t be totally agrees with the one side of this topic so I am partially agree with the above statement.
ReplyDeleteConcept of Democracy is not the product of media it’s relevant from ages. It is reversed Media is the product of Democracy. Media got its freedom as it’s stated in the rule of land. Because of democracy & freedom speech media have so much of freedom to comment on each & everything. Other wise it is not possible to have such a free media is non democratic country. Media is the forth pillar of democracy so it is clear that the media is product of democracy.
& yes I do think we live in democracy but not necessarily in a democratic country. In democracy there is equal right for each & every individual. But we could not find this today, in practical life. Equal laws and Equal rights are left as mere written laws hidden in the Constitution. Today there is no equality in any field. It is hard for poor people to fight for there rights & justice. Media is showing what they want to show & fragmenting the truth according to their need.
So according to written law & if we go through history we can say that the media is product of democracy but if we watch the functioning of media today it gives us the idea that the democracy is shape according to media’s need & people now thinking democracy from medias camera lance. In a way we can say that media is forcing democracy to be a part of it’s product instead of serving the role of media’s forth pillar.
In democracy we have full right to think & comment on any public topic & fight for our right but due to heavy media content we don’t have time to think about other issues apart from what media has been showing with 24*27 news channels & fastest media internet. The content is so much that we don’t get time to think on any particular topic for long time & give our true opinion. Before start thinking next topic is ready to hammer our brain. So what ever the opinion formed about current topics are just instant & without much of thinking.
Today people served according prominence decided by media & not what is real importance. eg The story of drought is of less important for commercial news channel than the film gossips. Media is not giving equal prominence to all the topics in society. Today media is a business & in business it is good to not to expect equality in all stages. Now media is not working for social cause but for earning money. Media is not fallowing the democratic values as they are expected. They are framing the democratic principle according to their need to handle the situation as per their requirement.
Democracy is heavily based upon the concept that every individual is important and is a separate and unique being. This is probably the most important concept of democratic thought. This concept of democracy is about serving the many individuals that make up a society. People influence by the media its doesn’t mean that the concept of democracy is a product of media. The concept of democracy is not a product of media. Because current media has emerged as a huge sales corporate in the world where he thinking about himself. He only think about his benefit .Government, usually indirectly, by the popular media; often a result of democracy going awry. A system in which politicians stop thinking and begin listening exclusively to the media regarding what the important issues are and what they should do about them. But sometimes media become the power of public because it is the place where public put-up their opinion. Media is voice of public. Democracy is all about individual freedom. However, democracy never insists on the complete freedom of the individual. There is no such thing as absolute freedom under a government. This can only exist under an anarchy, where there is no established government. Individual freedom gives all individuals the freedom to do as they will as long as it does not violate the majority will. Finding the balance between the rights of one individual the rights of the other is not an easy thing. Democracy only strives to find that balance. Theoretically we live in a democratic country but not practically.
ReplyDeleteSince ages media has been following Lasswell model of communication, using particular medium. It has just informed people what they should be aware of, there was a agenda in every single message that media showed .Hence democracy is meant for the welfare of the society, and media is also considered as the fourth pillar of democracy.
ReplyDeleteBut today, media can manipulate any news into positive or negative. And the repercussion of that is media now a days uses their powers in a negative manner or as per their preferences. Media is meant to have a non biased attitude towards the happenings in the society .but nowdays media is democratic as well autocratic depending on the situation . Political parties also use media these days for the propaganda of their particular parties. For example, Saamna the newspaper owned by Shiv Sena follows Hinduism and often are seen framing the activities of Shiv Sena in a positive manner even if the entire country opposes it, which in a way is manipulating the society.
Media is supposed to be democratic and enable the power in favour of people and society. But today with growing power in political force and manipulation of frequent content in media is believed to be controlled by political leaders and bureaucrats
आपण लोकशाही राष्ट्रात राहतो पण लोकशाहीवादी राष्ट्रात राहतो हे सांगणे कठीण आहे. प्रत्येक नागरिक हा लोकशाहीवादी आहे किंवा असेलच आपण कसे सांगू शकतो. सर्वप्रथम आपण लोकशाही राष्ट्रात राहतो हे नक्की कारण आपल्या देशात कोणीही उठतो आणि सरकारला, पंतप्रधानांना शिव्या घालतो इतर लोकशाही राष्ट्रांत हे होतं का? आणि आपल्या लोकशाही राष्ट्रात स्वातंत्र्याचा अतिरेक झाला आहे हे नक्की. लोकशाही ही संकल्पना माध्यमातून आली असावी कारण माध्यमांचे कामच मूळी अभिव्यक्तीचे आहे. १९(१) (अ) हा माध्यमांचा आत्मा म्हटला जातो. कारण हे कलम अभिव्यक्तीचे आहे. वृत्तपत्रांना/माध्यमांना लोकशाहीचा चौथा आधार स्तंभ म्हटले जाते. लोकशाही शासन व्यवस्थेत समाज हा दडपणाखाली नसतो. शासनाचा कारभार सुरळीत चालावा म्हणून लोकांकडे काही हक्क व अधिकार असतात.
ReplyDelete"Two cheers for Democracy; one because it admits variety and second because it permits criticism."India, as we know, is the largest democratic country in the world; but that democracy is limited only up to papers. In practical life, what we find is the rule by men of money and muscle power, or we can say that the cheap politics of our country has not allowed Democracy to take its original shape. Definition of Democracy given by the former USA President, Abraham Lincoln is "Democracy is a form of Government which is elected by the people, for the people and of the people".
ReplyDeleteWe have indirect from of Democracy in which people elect their representatives and the foremost duty of these representatives is to work like servants of common masses. But they behave as if they are masters of the people.
No one is perfect in this world and so is the media. Here I am not degrading the media, rather I would say there is still a lot of scope for improvement by which media can raise upto the aspirations of the people for which it is meant. I cannot think of a democracy without active and neutral media. Media is like a watchdog in a democracy that keeps government active. From being just an informer it has become an integral part of our daily lives. With the passage of time it has become a more matured and a more responsible entity. The present media revolution has helped people in making an informed decisions and this has led to beginning of a new era in a democracy.
Democracy is a system formed by political views and ideologies. The major reason why democracy is functioning ‘properly’ in a country like India where there are lakhs of politicians and an incredible population is media. Media is often termed as the fourth pillar of the democracy which makes its more obvious that democracy is not the byproduct of media. But media definitely has a major role to play in the existence of democratic rule in any country. The success of a strong democracy depends upon the good media in a country.
ReplyDeleteIn democracy everything is directly related to common man. Media being the watchdog of the society plays a very important role in keeping an eye on the democratic rule of the country. It actually turns out to be the medium f communication between common man and the government.
But lately due to the concept of paid news and major role of revenue and advertisements in media, the concept of democracy is getting little shaky. The control of media is in hands of influential people or the rulers itself. They use the media as their mouth piece. So although technically there is democracy but we are ultimately doing things what the rulers or the government wants. We are influenced by the propaganda and the agenda they have set. We might find it amazing that there is no separate body for controlling the content of the media in India and might feel that the media has complete freedom. But according to me the government purposely does not have a body to curb the content shown in media.
So although we feel that there is democracy in India, the existence of democracy is slightly questionable, as media is controlled and owned by certain class of the society for their own benefits and agenda.
I agree to the statement that we live in democracy but, not in a democratic country. And today, even this is true that democracy is a product of media. But, this was not the case earlier. Democracy believes in freedom for everyone. Media too received its freedom from democracy. If we wouldn't have been a democratic nation, media here wouldn't have been free.
ReplyDeleteIndia happens to be one of the largest democracy in the world. When we received freedom, both democracy and media played quite different role than what they play today. Democracy really existed where people's opinion mattered and as democracy means, people really had power in their hand, unlike today. Media too was more of informative and less of dramatic. Today, after so many years of freedom, the scenario has reversed. Democracy who gave freedom to media has become media's mere puppet. Media today is very strong and powerful enough to shape public opinion. So, it is no longer that being a democratic country people's opinions and views are counted upon instead, media shapes people's views and we live with media's projection about everything.
We generally define Democracy as being 'of the people, for the people & by the people'. But is it actually that simple to describe? Undoubtedly, Democracy is one of the best forms of government. But “Is the 'ideal' Democracy being followed?” is the real question. And when the Democracy itself has the Media as its fourth pillar, how can one expect to live in a Democracy which is not affected by the Media? Obviously, the Media plays an important role in shaping our beliefs about Democracy. In fact, whatever we know about Democracy today, it more or less, has been derived from the Media. Democracy gives us the freedom of expression which is used by the Media in the 'Agenda Setting'. Now, this surely, is not an 'ideal' form of Democracy. Also, in today's times, there is a big vacuum as far as the ‘Public Sphere’ is concerned. This vacuum results in the people relying on the Media for almost everything, as states the 'Uses & Gratification Theory'. Another thing which this vacuum does is that it brings the ‘Spiral of Silence’ into existence. Those who believe in a particular ideology prefer to stay mum just because they are outnumbered. Yes, we live in a Democracy but do we live Democratically? Our Democracy guarantees us with the Freedom of Choice but do we make the correct choices? Our thoughts & ideas are influenced from the people we interact with. They may be our peers or the ones we look up to as Opinion Leaders. And these Opinion Leaders are influenced by the Media. So, directly or indirectly, we rely too much on the Media which is clearly not the sign of a Democratic society. Ours is a country where Political Parties have their ‘mouthpieces’ which are served to the audience as ‘Newspapers’. Obviously, the news in such papers is going to be one-sided. But people still buy them which is proof that although in a Democracy, we don’t live in a Democratic country.
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