The Relationship between Politicians and Journalists - Essay Example

Short Articles Politicians and Journalists Politicians and journalists have a history ofcontentious relations between each other, especially in the US. The right of the journalists to speak and give their opinions about the politicians has created a war like environment in the media. The politicians take advantage of their right to voice against the politicians, while the politicians do not like this at all as their public image is shattered because of the comments of the journalists (Ladd 2003). We know that media is the only source of information for the public and it is also the only medium the journalists can use to voice their opinions about the politicians. Therefore the media is the source from where the public can make up their perceptions about the politicians. Hence, the politicians have a power to shatter or enhance the public perception of the politicians. However, there are several examples in the past which show us that after receiving media attention and criticism from the journalists, significant problems have been taken seriously by the government. An example is the inquiry of the corruption that was taking place in Queensland Police which was publicized by the ABC’s Hour Corners team. Another example is the review of airport security after the media presented a report based on the documents by Customs Service officer (Ryan 2009). Some of the whistleblowers, who report to the media, can also act as traitors in a country by giving wrong comments about the politicians and converting personal opinions into facts without any strong backing. Looking Back: A Brief History of Journalism Journalism in India, more specifically the press, functioned as the crusader for the freedom of the country prior to Independence which was before 1947. The freedom struggle had immense contribution from journalism. However, journalism in India suffered from a setback in 1975 when three ordinances were promulgated making the publications which excite hatred against the government liable to stringent action. Also those publications were liable of the same punishment which aimed at creating disharmony in the society, affected the supply or demand of essential commodities or indulged in explicit or indecent writing (S. and Qur 2005). The next government which came in 1977 abolished such proceedings and laws and the press again came on its own. However, the role of press was not as widespread as it is today in India. This is because of the small percentage of literate people who again had the power to circulate altered news amongst those who are illiterate. The press of India has witnessed a steady growth over the period of time. The number of individual papers circulated over India rose to around 23,000 at the end on 1985. Total copies being circulated were around 62 million at the same time of 1985. Around 1,800 distinct newspapers were circulated daily in India. The papers were published in 92 different languages which included English, Urdu and Hindi (S. and Qur 2005). Journalism has been owned and circulated by a group of owners in India. Only 37% of the largest share was in circulation by the newspapers owned by individuals. However, there were 106 ownership units which circulated the rest of the remaining percentage of newspapers in India (S. and Qur 2005). Political Economy of News: Are Journalists “Cogs in a Wheel”? Political economy has been identified by the scholars as one of the longest and the strongest traditions in the study of journalism. The media owners are influenced by the politicians to alter the news and present news which is in favor of some party (Cunningham and Turner 2002). An interesting example to demonstrate this power of the political economy is when the Hawke Labor government in 1985 and 1986 was debating the media policy. The advisor to the prime minister, Peter Barron is known to have walked into Duffy’s office, the Communication Minister, and handing over a fax indicating what the prime minister wants. The power of Packer can also be demonstrated using an example from the past. In 1994, when Packer wanted to control the opening soon Sydney Casino, he called the Liberal MPs of the state saying that he had a message from the prime minister that if we did not get the license of the casino, you are screwed (Cunningham and Turner 2002). According to the theory, the situations in which actions are performed remain unattended or invisible whereas the individual actions only are visible. The programs in the news channels are designed in order to attract the most advertisements which is higher when the number of audience is higher. Therefore is can be concluded that the media has become very commercial especially the channels representing journalism and hence they broadcast programs designed to please the audience and the political economy (Cunningham and Turner 2002). The Power of Truth in Defining Journalism The general public gathers most of the information on issues from the mass media. The US Prestige Press, which includes New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, in significant ways, has contributed to failed discursive translations of global warming. In 2002, the Washington Post cited that there are numerous uncertainties that global warming is caused by carbon dioxide or the greenhouse gases, though in 2001, George Bush stated that US$ 18 billion has been spent by the US government to research on global warming and the climate change around the world has been caused by the release of excess greenhouse gases in the atmosphere (Boykoff 2003). The mass media is not just new reports and publishing daily updates, it is responsible for the political and economical norm. In fact, the media forms the knowledge of the humans viewing the channels and reading newspapers. This is because the people have built trust on the media, not knowing that there are other factors too because of which the media can represent inaccurate information or insufficient coverage. The literature however tells us that the journalists should aim for neutrality and such conflicting issues should be presented with both sides giving them equal attention. The media has only achieved political balance through presenting only the most vocal and widespread views rather than presenting both the sides on conflicting issues (Boykoff 2003). Works Cited Boykoff, M. T. & Boykoff, J. M. "Balance as bias: global warming andthe US prestige press." Global Environmental Change, 2003: 125-136. Cunningham, Stuart, and Graeme Turner. The Media and Communications in Australia. Netley: Griffin Press, 2002. Ladd, Jonathan. "The Historical Development of Conflict between Politicians and Journalists in the U.S." Midwest Political Science Association 67th Annual National Conference. Chicago: The Palmer House Hilton, 2003. Ryan, Inez. "Whistleblower protections - narrow, unworkable and unhelpful." Gazette of Law and Juornalism, March 6, 2009. S., Zaidi, and Muniruddin Qur. History of Joiurnalism. Delhi: Mehra Offset Press, 2005. Read More