Media Representation of Hong Kong Protest in 2014 - Research Proposal Example

Media Representation of Hong Kong Protest al Affiliation: Media Representation of Hong Kong Protest Rationale In recent years, there have been instances in several parts of the world where the public have expressed their dissatisfaction on various issues by coming out in large numbers to take part in public protests. However, participation of the media in such protest has been under tight scrutiny especially in countries with stringent laws governing freedom of speech and media rights. There is no doubt that media has been playing a critical role in enlightening people about a number of aspects during public protest but it is unfortunate that in certain cases media representation has never been given the needed attention (Wautischer 2008, 23). Even though, most of the people agree that public protest is the only way that the public can express dissatisfaction, some think that consensus is the best way to deal with such issues. Public protest has been used to force leaders out of power as in the case of Egypt. Some protests have managed to “change” the minds of leaders on certain issues (Iwabuchi 2002, 27). Media has been such a powerful tool in influencing what happens before, during and after mass public protest and in that respect media representation must be accorded the necessary attention that it deserve in order to allow key stakeholders assess the role and impact of the media in the event of such public protest. Aims and objectives of the research Realizing that public protests are not limited to one particular part of the world, this research on the Hong Kong protests aims to find out the following: To gain a deeper understanding of the role of the press during the protest To understand the relationship between the local media and government agencies  To explore if the media was biased in presenting the facts relating to the protest To find out if the media is responsible for influencing protests either positive or negatively To find out if the reports from the media can be trusted To find out what needs to be done to stop the media from exhibiting biased reports Research questions To what extent was media bias evident between local and international media houses based in representation of facts? To what extent are the different media houses willing to go in order to be heard? Do people recognize the importance of media as one of the most powerful source of information How do members of the press account for their reports during protest? Can the media choose to be biased when reporting incidences during protest? Literature review On September 26th, a protest erupted in Hong Kong and all of a sudden all the local and international media attention was turned to the city. Within a few minutes, almost all the media houses around the globe started giving reports on all the events taking place during the protest. The Hong Kong 2014 public protest is not an isolated incident where media has had huge representation (Fang & Moro 2010, 86). According to most media houses both local and international, the reason for the protest was due to a decision made by Beijing in regards elections. The suggestion were based on the procedure of events during the electioneering period were to be carried in the Chinese regions. The international media also reported that the protestors were also calling for the resignation of Hong Kongs top leader C.Y Leung whom they perceive to be a dummy of Beijing (LEE, etal 2002, 75). Majority of media houses across the globe especially those in the United States and across Europe paid a lot of interest on election and democracy issues in Hong Kong, however this was not the case with the vast number of Chinese media. Thus, it brings out the question of how the media has been representing facts about protest. The local media in Beijing on the other hand give a completely different picture of the happenings in Hong Kong. For instance, the local media does not approve of the protest and they are term the protests as illegal, which is completely different from what the international media is reporting (Vanhuysse 2006, 43). As much as the international media houses such as BBC and CNN are focusing on the prodemocracy issues raised during the unrest the local media does not approve of such claims. Such conflicting reports on the same issue thus bring some doubt to the public as it makes it difficult to ascertain which media house is issuing biased reports. Within minutes, the whole world was aware of the unrest in Hong Kong, but the reasons for the unrest were unclear (Erni & Leung 2014, 88). The citizens of Beijing could not even ascertain what was really taking place as the report from the local media based in Hong Kong was very different from what the international media who also had correspondents in the city reported. When the protests began on 26th of September, the protestors managed to clog all the entrances to the chief executive office building, thus stopping about 3,000 government employees from reporting to work. The government did not take this turn of events lightly hence setting a deadline for the protestors to clear the streets by Monday 29th. Just to prove how serious the government was, regarding the issue of employees not being able to access the various work places, the City’s chief executive held a televised address. In the address he said, “The government and the police have the responsibilities and determination to take all necessary actions to restore social order," (Beveridge, etal 2003, 98). Currently most of the information on what is going on in Hong Kong is mostly from media houses. Not all the information from the media houses can be perceived to be true because Beijing heavily restricted the flow of information on the Chinese mainland concerning the protest movement (Shi-xu 2005, 101). Due to the restricted flow of information, many media houses have put up pages where the local people in Hong Kong can post their reports. Unfortunately, most of the people posting the happenings are the protestors who might give biased information. Blames According CNN, some violent confrontations have been witnessed in several parts of the city, where the police have been accused of using excessive force, but on the other hand the police accused the protestors of sparking off the clashes. The clashes associated with the protests have lead to numerous injuries and arrests of some protestors (Bodeen, etal 2004, 34). Research methodology and design Faced with such limited avenues for information, the only viable way of collecting data that is not biased is by visiting some of the personalities from the media houses such as the Guardian VH1, BBC, DW-TV, Fox News, BBC, MTV and Nickelodeon. Interviewing, of reporters that took part in covering the protests (Lee 2007, 66). Interviewing all the reporters who covered the protest is not possible, thus I will have to scale down the sample group to a few media houses and reporters. The leading media houses in the world, local media houses in the U.K, local media houses based in Hong Kong and the authors of the reports by both the local and international media will make up the sample group. Working with such a small sample group who are all at the centre of the protest will help in finding out the major reasons behind the protest (Weisenhaus 2014, 202). Ethical issues The media should practice all the etiquette that is required of any professional media house. However some reports from the different media houses are bringing about some ethical issues. All the media houses with correspondents and reporters in Hong Kong are all reporting different occurrences with each media house giving its own opinion, rather than what is really happening. In a televised address to the people of Hong Kong (which is on the internet), Leung’s statement gave a perception that there were some ethical problems that needed to be looked into. He said “"There are numerous social problems to be solved," Leung added, "but the proper way is through rational communication, finding commonalities and preserving differences -- not through resistance on (the) street that worsens the problem." The protestors on the other hand believe that they have the right to assemble (Wan 2014, 56)). Some other international media houses on the other hand are reporting that the chief executive of Hong Kong is not willing to negotiate with the protestors. Such wide difference in reporting raises a lot of question on the ethical values of the media houses. In the address to the nation, the chief executive of Hong Kong accuses the protestors of preventing people from going to their places of work (Pullen 2012, 44). Shops around the area where the protests is being carried out remain closed thus denying the shop owners the chance of earning revenue from their shops Data collection Data will be collected through one on one interview, this will be appropriate because people will be able to ask questions and get clarifications. In order to store the data, tape recorders will be used, this will ensure that one is able to get the facts right and not through assumptions (Simonson 2006, 34). I will also scrutinize the reports exhibited by the different media houses to ascertain the authenticity. Project limitations Some of the limitations that are likely to face the research project are the lack of funds to purchase some of the materials that needed to ensure that the research is a success (Publishers Association 2012, 22). Getting the people who will take part in the research might also be a problem, as they might not avail themselves for the interviews as required due to various commitments. Cost For the research to be successful, and be able to get a credible result, some finances will have to be availed. Transportation, materials, accommodation will have to cost some money (Foer 2009, 31). Movement from one place to another will be frequent, as the people involved in the research are not found in one place. The reporters work for different media houses, thus gaining access to them will require travelling to places within U.K where they are based. There are a number of International houses operating in the U.K such as CNN, Discovery, DW-TV, Fox News, BBC, MTV, Nickelodeon, TCM and VH1. The media houses are not based in one city and for even those based in one city are far apart that one has to use some means of transport. Travelling will be vital as it will enable the access to some of the reporters, and find out from them what really took place. The research will rely heavily on the data got from the internet; so as to facilitate this laptop is very essential to ensure that accessing the data can be done at any time and anywhere. Total cost; Digital recorder 600 British pounds Transportation 300 British pounds Laptop 500 British Pounds The total estimate comes to about 1, 300, which is not a such colossal amount of money that I can be able to afford. The estimate is of the necessities that might rise at any time, raising the estimate slightly. Users and beneficiaries Public protests have become very common in almost every part of the world, many lives have been lost in various protests across the globe (Wautischer 2008, 23). There are instances where people have received injuries that have incapacitated them for the rest of their lives because of protests. There have been cases where the economies of different countries are affected negatively because of protests. Some countries that have used mass protests oust leaders from power. Such countries have ended up worse than their previous status before the protest. Most people all are known to have lost their source of livelihood because of hooliganism and looting triggered by mass protests (Siapera 2010, 52). This research will give some suggestions on what role the media should play in ensuring that the reports they give are viable. A big number of people will benefit from the report hence mass protests will come to halt or reduce helping warring and unstable economies. The research will also help the media houses on the best way to disseminate information under such incidences. The research will be beneficial to the ordinary laymen who will be able to receive the right and unbiased report on the happenings even if they cannot be able to go to such places to ascertain the authenticity of the report. In summary, the research will promote better practices thus instilling confidence among the public on issues reported by the media. Bibliographies Wan, William. (2014). "Hong Kong Protest Draws Biggest Crowds Yet on Holiday Celebrating Communist Party." The Washington Post (washington). Bodeen, Associated Press Writer. (2004). "Chinas Media Reports Hong Kong Protest." AP Online (China). Beveridge, Associated Press Writer. (2003). "Thousands in Hong Kong Protest New Law." AP Online. Lee, Associated Press Writer. (2002). "Thousands in Hong Kong protest proposed anti-subversion law." AP Worldstream. Fang, Hanming, and Andrea Moro. (2010) Theories of statistical discrimination and affirmative action a survey. Cambridge, Mass.: National Bureau of Economic Research. Wautischer, Helmut. (2008).Ontology of consciousness: percipient action. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. Simonson, Peter. 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