The dependency between government and media is a contentious issue in contemporary times. The media, once termed the Fourth Estate due to the unique role it plays in society, is supposed to be the conscience of the First Estate, namely the government. Yet, a simple analysis of the functioning of media organizations makes obvious that…
Category: Media Studies
The influence of Hollywood on society
Toward the end of his tenure as President, Bill Clinton said “Our children are being fed a dependable daily dose of violence – and it sells”. He was referring to the genre of action movies which are targeted at male teenage adolescents. To place this statement in context,Clinton was speaking one month after the tragedy…
How does the notion of stereotype help us understand black and ethnic representation in British media?
The United Kingdom as a multicultural society has had its fair share of criticisms since the post Second World War period. The British media – both print and electronic mediums – has also been criticized for its reluctance to discuss openly issues of race and ethnicity in its programmes. The advent of new mediums of…
Affluenza by John de Graaf
In the book Affluenza, John de Graaf and his team of authors also present an analysis of other symptoms of Affluenza, such as commercial television, inhumane working and living conditions for the lower classes and the culture of living in perpetual debt. Commercialized television, for instance, has been the preferred medium for advertisers to encourage…
Why was Bob Dylan’s 16 minute performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival so controversial?
In the Newport Folk Festival of 1965, the 16 minute performance given by Bob Dylan was disapproved by certain sections of the audience. In a break away from tradition, Dylan used an electric guitar in a live folk concert for the first time, which many fans came to regard as unauthentic. This event is said…
Is Educating Rita a comedy of gender or social class?
Educating Rita, both in its version of a motion picture as well as a play, is a comedy contrived from class based differences of the lead protagonists. Rita, played by Julie Walters is a twenty six year old hairdresser, ailing from working classLiverpool. To the role of her tutor, played by Michael Caine, are associated…
The growth of Asian arts in Europe and America
The infiltration of pieces of Asian art into the museums and art houses of Europe and America goes back a long way. In spite of the obvious cultural differences between the hemispheric East and West, the exchange of artefacts across the divide is as old as international commerce. Asian art has not only found patronage…
Is the internet a tool for greater democratization in Asia?
As Asia looks forward to a progressive future, the technologies of mass communication will play an important role. At this point in time, it is the Internet, with its various forms of information dispersal. But, as this medium becomes more common place, the wielders of power will attempt to put restrictions on its use. Empirical…
A critical analysis of the role of mass media in liberal democracies based on liberal theory and political economy
Conventionally, mass media was perceived as the Fourth Estate, implying that it is separate and autonomous from the three main branches of government. While such is the idealized theoretical understanding of the definition of mass media, the reality is stark and discouraging. Far from its founding ideals, journalism here in the UK, as elsewhere in…
Do governments in the developing world censor TV and Internet?
The issue of regulating internet and television content is highly significant, given the exponential growth in the use of this medium for commercial and informational purposes across the globe. When the internet was thrown open for commercial use during the mid 1990s, most of its content originated from theUnited States of America, making English the…