Lee Thayer, Communication Systems - Essay Example

Journalism, mass media and communication, Essay Topic: Lee Thayer Paper Explanations and do communication in ways that lend for agreement (conformity). In this way, communication becomes merely an insidious tool of conquest. U.S. foreign intervention has been happening as a matter of rule, and it impacts many countries in the world directly or indirectly. The reason cited was Cold War politics, during the era in which the world was divided into two blocks, communist and non-communist. Checking the growth of communist influence was the prime concern of U.S. Moscow, and Beijing, though they directly did not interfere in the internal affairs of any country they kept the line of communication with the countries in which their ideological interest was at stake. They sponsored arms deals and provided funds to the anti-imperialist movements. Other NATO countries followed the policy of U.S. and interfered in various countries. Embargo against Cuba after the 1959 Cuban Revolution is the case in point. The type of politics they practiced was without established political principles and suited their own interests. Though former colonists were democratic countries, they supported dictatorships in Third World countries, to prevent them from being aligned with the Communist bloc, in preference to the “Free World.” U.S. foreign intervention Styles of intervention and communication were chosen as per the demands of the international policy, but the strategies and tactics varied. For example, in Chile the CIA spent 3 million dollars to influence the outcome of the 1964 Chilean Presidential Election. The U.S. favorably disposed of to the installation of Augusto Pinochet and overthrowing of Allende. CIA played the overt and covert roles in human rights abuses and in the assassination of political opponents. U.S. intervened to change the political set up of any country that was not favorably disposed to it, on one pretext or the other. In 1983 U.S. invaded Grenada and in 1989 invaded Panama, and overthrew Manuel Noriega, stated to be a drug lord according to U.S. In Indonesia, U.S. supported Suharto’s dictatorship. Impact of colonialism and colonization Notwithstanding the hard stance of the colonial powers in relation to political developments, there are positive and negative aspects of colonialism. Attitudes of the colonial era continue to impact the present day lives of majority of the people in the world, and the old wounds have not completely healed. Mutual suspicion in communication in different areas still persists. Superiority complex of a particular race and inferiority complex attributed to the other race, are reflected in the areas of education, employment, etc. Notwithstanding the negative experiences of colonialism, technological advancements and internet revolution have contributed to cement the relations transcending the barriers. Due to trade expansion, and with the arrival of new gadgets, more people come into contact with each other. Many issues have been internationalized, and efforts are being made to find solutions at the highest level, transcending the national barriers. Advancement in Communication systems is unstoppable In societal terms progress of communication is unstoppable. At a given time, a society is at the receiving end or at the giving end. It is never stable and stationary. The impact of cultural traffic was never one way. When independent channels of communications were opened due to advancement of communication technology, many people in the West got an opportunity to make study of the deep and profound aspects of culture of Asian countries like India and China and they got an opportunity to study Sufi Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism. Many gave up Christianity and got themselves converted to other religions. Religious and social organizations contributed to the free movements of ides from the East to the West. The non-Western world benefited from absorbing, adapting and adjusting technologies to suit the local requirements and at times, improved upon them. Colonialism created global consciousness and the objective of global community turned out to be an attainable reality. Dark clouds relating to “clash of civilizations,” hover, but its threat can be overcome by the enlightened world community. The process of dialogue amongst civilizations and spirituality can contribute much to promote inter-civilizational harmony, by creating appropriate platforms of communication, and the damage being caused by religious bigotry can be undone. Complexities of communication: The communicating world of each individual is different. It depends upon one’s conditioning and demands of the situation. Due to compulsions, at times, an individual communicates what is necessarily not his conviction. He communicates just to outsmart the opponent. Lee Thayer argues, “Our minds are always a work in progress. Our minds are a product of the communication which swirls around us all our lives. Every mind is infected by the minds of those with whom we fall into communication, whether directly or indirectly (for example, with the media.)”(p.12) Every communicator wears a mask to hide his real identity. Leadership is a Performing Art of communication: The first priority of a leader is to survive in the position of leadership. Mostly, he crafts in to perfection the make-believe world for his followers. He adopts a style of communication that will appeal to their hearts. What he speaks need not be hundred percent truths. The leader has been given a role by the society and all that matters is how well he performs the role. The world is getting more and more complex, so the role of the leader too is getting more difficult. Lee Thayer argues, “True, the world we try to live in has become complex beyond comprehension. There used to be only a handful of roles to be mastered for life. Now there are thousands, and they proliferate daily.” (p.30) Through the cob-web of issues confronting the leader, he intends or has to be the author of some aspect of the future of the country; he is part of the history and he is expected to create history. In the final analysis, he will be measured by his performance within the space of years allotted to him to be the leader. He develops a style of communication which will fit into the measuring rod of time. He has his own stipulations to achieve and fulfill the expectations of his followers. Democracy—the playground to express opinions freely: Every individual, every organization, every political party is entitled to have his/their own opinion/s. When opinions clash and nothing happens at the grassroots level, it is the beginning of extinction of the present civilization. The problem for the would-be leaders is to get votes first for their ascendancy as the leader and to remain in that position. Circumstances make an ordinary leader into an extraordinary leader. Essential difference exists between the real leaders and vote-getter leaders. The perspective of the vote-getter is short term. Such a leader will not hesitate to make compromises on principles; will present a perforated agenda, if it suits one’s interest. He will on a promise making spree, and will have excuses ready when he is not in a position to fulfill them. He will name those excuses as valid reasons. Such a leader will attempt to create a world before his voters and say that the world would not have existed without his contribution. But the real leaders will bring about some changes that did not exist before. They are the agents of change. Lee Thayer claims, “Every explanation proffered and ratified by others is a trap. It may be an unavoidable trap. But it is still a trap. We have to stay on that path premised by our explanations or we will have trouble with others. We may want to change. But if that change is troublesome to others, it would have to be approved by others.”(p.16) This is applicable to personal, day to day communications but more aptly applicable to political dialogues. Not trusting each other is the hallmark of political dialogues. Let us say, at the end of the dialogue between the delegations of the two countries, a press statement is to be issued. Lots of discussions take place about each and every sentence, each word used in the statement. Substantively, what is being done is a trap. The issue is who will fall into the trap. If one has decided to fall into the trap, has he planned the escape route? What are the temporary and permanent advantages of such a communication for the two negotiating parties? Whether the terms of agreement can be explained to the peoples of the concerned nations to their satisfaction? Lee Thayer quotes, “As the humor columnist Evan Esar puts it, ‘When a politician makes an explanation, the explanation has to be explained.’ (p.24)Presently we have a system of double faults everywhere. The leader incapable of leading and the people incapable of being led! There exists a strange void in the area of leadership. This has given rise to a cultural perversity in the area of publication of books on the subject of leadership. The numbers of seminars being held on leadership are on the rise. The bottom-line is, reading the books on leadership alone will not produce capable leaders. The importance of communication: To understand the importance of communication, just observe a group of children at play. They cannot remain without communicating even for a short duration, while the play is in progress. In such playful atmosphere or while a serious discussion takes place in a seminar, communication plays an important role, to keep the atmosphere lively and makes addition to one’s knowledge. Lee Thayer argues, “We evolve individually and collectively in our patterns of communication, and in the implications of what we are exposed to there. What engage us, are our minds. And our minds are always a work in progress.”(p.21) The study of human communication is about "how we produce ourselves" "in our minding of the world." (p.3)Communication, therefore, is a unique human capacity, which translates issues in the real life. The next question is what is the good life? A theory of communication must find an answer to this question. Besides, as Lee Thayer argues, “We can add to that all kinds of dress, compartment, possessions, and every other form of so-called nonverbal behavior. Anything that a person can take into account communicatively is a form of explanation. Such understandings explain who we are, both to ourselves and to others.”(p.15) No segment of life remains untouched by communication. Problems and explanations related to communication: Without communication stillness of the graveyard will engulf the life of a human being. Reasoning out is not the end of the communication system. Reasoning does not command a respectable place in the human psyche. At the end of reasoning there is a wall that cannot be crossed. Every argument has a counter argument, and as such reasoning is not the perfect way to communicate. Spontaneity is more important in the domain of communication than analytical reasoning. Argumentative reasoning cannot please all and will raise doubts. When communication is taken over by cold logic, any agreement on that premise will be under duress, and not with willingness by the concerned party. Problems of understanding the other person: All conflicts have communication problems, the political conflicts are on the top of the agenda. Misunderstanding or the hidden agenda of the parties to the conflict can make the problem of communication worse and once the conflict begins, communication problems develop, and if not negotiated well in time, they assume dangerous dimensions. Relationships will be strained beyond repair. Relentless communication efforts are central to most conflict situations. This is the problem that U.S. faced in its relationship with Iraq. The same thing is being repeated in Afghanistan. The issue about Iran and its nuclear weapon program also suffers from problems of communication. This is not however to say that perfect communication alone will be able to solve the problems. Sometimes, proper communication needs to be followed by resolute actions. If the political philosophy of the contending parties differs, if there is a cultural gap, or if the dealing is with a country sympathetic to fundamentalist philosophy, the problem of communication aggravates further. In such a context, the role of media is crucial. Its presentation should not inflame the anger of one of the involved parties, in its enthusiasm to sell more papers. International Communication Theory is in Transition: The parameters of international communication have changed and they have posed fresh problems for the political leadership. The top leadership has immediate access to, has the direct view of events in any corner of the world. The hopes of unity within diversity are in the process of turning into reality, if we segregate certain serious issues like Muslim fundamentalism, and the issue of nuclear disarmament. Great understanding through business and sports communications is achieved and the common man has no problems in maintaining mutual cordial relations. The major credit for the emergence of such a universal culture goes to the developments that have taken place in the area of communication. International communication is however, not a new concept. As early as in the fifteenth century, traders exchanged economic notes and their mutual interaction was based on trust. The establishment of news agencies that operate on international scale was an important development. Finally internationally operating media systems like CNN and MTV have ushered a new age of global communication and they distribute programs across all over the world. Truth revealed by ancient scriptures has universal application; their holy communication is not restricted to any country or a particular geographical region. Spirituality mentioned world society thousands of years ago, and the scientific and political community is taking cue from those eternal principles. The metaphysical concepts have turned into material reality. With such rapid systems of communication, new types of dangers are hovering over the horizon of Planet Earth. Political and economic alliances are under pressure, with not much time left for lengthy debates. Advanced communication systems have resulted in democratic achievements and economic market expansion on an unprecedented scale, but at the same time, political risks have increased. The term, “Jihad” sends the intended message not in a particular country, but concerned Muslims all over the world. Its implications are not alone for a particular nation-state, but to many nations. The political leadership of all the countries is compelled to take notice of this development in their policy decisions, so that they are not trapped at the most unexpected moment. The 9/11 tragedy that stuck America is the outcome of the advancement of the communication system. The global civil society is in peril thinking about the implications, should such a tragedy strike their nation. With the advanced communication system, rumor-mongering, and its possible damaging consequences at inter-national and trans-national level for a mammoth audience, has attained new dimensions. Its repercussions, if not checked through appropriate strategies, are awesome. Political news spreads beyond the national borders in no time, and it may endanger the security of a country. The Internet, the captain of the globalized media, has many million viewers ‘online’ at a given time. Thus the diversified global culture demands innovative systems of communications. It needs encouragement and check on a vigorous scale. Communication as reflected as a legacy of colonialism One communicates to inform or conquer. Constant communication to impact every segment of the society to extend the nation’s sovereignty over the conquered territories is the method employed by the votaries of colonialism to establish and secure their political power on them. So also, economic and administrative conditions are created to beat the indigenous people, subjugate them and dominate the resources. Further, socio-cultural, religious and linguistic structures are imposed on the conquered population. Economic leverage clubbed with military control, makes the process of communication complete to the detriment of the local people, who are made to believe that morals and values of the colonizer are superior as compared to those of the colonized. The situation began to change. Colonial legacy and constant communication between people of different races and ethnicity created links between the people at the grassroots level, across the globe. It brought humankind together and the concept of ‘world is one family,’ began to take concrete shape. Colonists, unintended, played an important role to mold consciousness of an interdependent world community, where welfare and health of the people turned out to be a global issue. Internet revolution created an unprecedented situation in the sectors of economics and commerce. Communication turned out to be instant, felicitating fast decisions. Industrial giants and state bureaucracy which only thought of profit and increasing wealth of nations, even by exploiting others began to yield to a new type of understanding and welfare of humankind was listed as one of the important items in their agenda. Style of communication by the former colonial powers has changed, but their basic objectives remain the same. Colonists conquered the territories and ruled. Their rule continues now without the conquest of the territory. This is form of neocolonialism. Notwithstanding the process of decolonization in the 1960-1970s, former colonies in Asia and Africa are today under strong Western influences in more than one area. Countries that have done tremendous economic progress like Hong Kong, Singapore, India and China are exception to this rule. But western influence impacts them in other areas. Conclusion: International communication demands a broad and dedicated space from the political angle. The survival of the humankind is in peril, if the communication channels are misapplied. The perspectives of communication are different for the times of crisis and in times of peace. Political leadership will try to take advantage of such systems, when it considers that such a step is in the national interest. In the facade of national interest, several other interests also wait in the wings to take advantage of the situation. Communication systems have changed; but the instincts of the leadership in important segments that concerns humankind has not changed substantively. Vested interests still dominate the scene. Fundamentalists have established a network of communications that has the global reach. The role of journalism in the context of international communication is both helpful and harmful. Much depends upon the attitude of journalists and the organizations patronizing them. Reports are often biased, a system of reciprocal journalism, tit for tat, has emerged where objectivity is absent and the element of truth is lost track of. The need of the hour is not only great systems of communication, but noble individuals to handle them. Works Cited Thayer, Lee. Explaining Things: Inventing Ourselves and Our Worlds. Xlibris Corporation, 2011 . Read More