Introduction and Lecture One

International Communications

Introduction to IC The aim is to develop an analytical perspective on mass media with a focus on the international media environment.

AssessmentThere one two-hour written exam in this module.

Exam November 28th November = Media Systems and Globalisation, Nations, Marketing and International PR

Core ReadingsCurtin P. A. & Gaither T. K., (2007). International public relations. Negotiating culture, identity and power. USA: Sage. John Egan (2007) Marketing Communications. Routledge. Giddens, A. (2007) A Runaway World?Held, D. (2011) A Globalizing World? Culture, Economics, Politics. London: Routledge. Smith, P.R., & Taylor, J. (2004) Marketing Communications: An Integrated Approach, London: Kogan PageDaya Thussu (2012) International Communications. Routledge. London

Lecture One: Media Organisations

Aims and Learning Outcomes

The purpose of this section is to consider some basic questions about media organisations, their key characteristics, and ways of thinking about and analysing them.

Before we can analyse any particular media organisation or media firm, we need to consider the socio-political framework which shapes the organisation of media industries and media institutions.

These frameworks, in turn, reflect fundamental attitudes towards the media which are present to greater or lesser extent in all countries with mass media.

Approaches To Media Systems

To simplify the vast range of media systems that exist around the world, we need to try and broadly group systems within a straightforward framework.

One of the seminal works attempting to model media systems is Siebert, Peterson & Schramm's Four Theories of The Press (1956).

Its worldview approach was deliberately designed to try and identify key characteristics of the media in society.

Approaches To Media Systems (2)

Adapting Siebert et al somewhat, it is possible to place media systems within one of three main attitudinal and structural approaches to the media: the social responsibility approach, within which the extremely important concept of public service broadcasting emerges; the state controlled, or authoritarian approach; and the free market or libertarian approach.

Approaches (3)It is worth stressing the extent to which any particular country's media are likely to display a mixture of these different approaches, for a range of social, political and cultural reasons.

The Social Responsibility Approach

The social responsibility approach views the media as central institutions within democracy. The media are seen as having significant political influence, in terms of a potential influence on government policy, public opinion and citizens' voting behaviour. As such concerns about the potential abuse of the media by vested interests (whether political or commercial) saw the emergence of media systems in many countries which arguably reflect this attitude towards the media.

Social Responsibility (2)In many countries regulatory attitudes towards the press, incorporating the idea of the social responsibility of the media, stem from the historical relationship between newspapers and political change. In some countries newspapers played a significant role in the transition from feudal monarchies to representative democracies, such as during the American war of Independence or the French Revolution in the 18th Century.

Social Responsibility (3) In Germany, for example, current media regulation dates back to the post-War period when occupying Allied forces reorganised the media in an effort to prevent the use of the media for propaganda purposes as had been done under the Nazi administration.What is significant, despite these major historical and cultural differences between nations, is the extent to which a common perception of the media as having political as well as economic dimensions is apparent, as is the perceived need to ensure that the media operate with freedom and responsibility in the public interest.

Social Responsibility (4)The central features of a social responsibility system lie in the regulatory environment in which the media operate, particularly around issues of ownership and control. There are, for example, concerns both about state control of the media, and also of excessive market influence.

Social Responsibility (5)Another feature of this approach is the extent to which there is an attempt to strike a balance between the rights of media professionals, such as freedom of expression, and their responsibilities regarding other citizens' rights, such as privacy.

Social Responsibility (6)The issue of state or self regulation is a thorny one, reflecting very much concerns about the need to maintain ethical standards in journalism, but also concerns about the level of state influence on journalists.

Social Responsibility (7)To summarise, the social responsibility approach's key attitudes are:-The Media have political and social dimensions, therefore The Media should be free from state control, but regulated to ensure fair representation, diversity and balance, and The Media should follow agreed professional standards and ethical codes

Public Service Broadcasting (1)

Public Service Broadcasting (or PSB) has been a dominant feature of broadcasting organisations across much of Western Europe, and in other countries around the globe. Again, this is not to say that in each nation exactly the same approach to broadcasting has been evident, and as Negrine states similarities between nations cannot be taken for granted (Negrine, 1998: 224). Broadcasting emerged in the 1920s, at a time in which many nations already had well established newspaper industries, often reflecting to greater or lesser extent the tenets of the social responsibility approach.

PSB (2) Raymond Kuhn summarised the common elements of PSB philosophy as follows:- A universal service available to all irrespective of income or geographical location A commitment to a balanced output and to balanced scheduling across different programme genres A balanced and impartial political output A degree of financial independence from both governmental and commercial bodies

PSB (3)Currently, many public service broadcasting systems are being challenged by new market-driven philosophies, and the technological justification for PSB has been increasingly undermined by the emergence of new communication technologies, such as cable, satellite, and most recently digital television. Indeed, some argue that the internet is challenging the whole notion of broadcasting, in favour of narrowcasting - meeting the needs of particular audiences rather than serving the audience as one mass.

The State Controlled Approach

Many media systems began under far more authoritarian attitudes than the social responsibility or public service models. Rather than allowing either commercial involvement in the media, or trying to regulate the media without undue state influence, some media systems have been established with the media seen as an extension of political authority. Two distinct strands of state control have emerged, however, related to the ideological nature of the states involved: right wing authoritarianism and Communism.

State Controlled (2)During times of conflict or national crisis, democratic nations can equally apply more authoritarian controls on the media (as the Allied nations did during WWII).

State Controlled (3)The emergence of communism presented a new variation on the notion of state controlled media, which was not merely authoritarian but also propagandistic. Seibert et al actually separated the authoritarian approach from what they dubbed the Soviet approach (1956). The founders of the Russian revolution, like Lenin, did not actually have detailed conceptions of the role of the media, but a particular attitude did develop in the Soviet Union, which also emerged in other communist nations like Cuba and China. Essentially in the communist approach the media are seen not only as an important part of the state but a means by which the popular (communist) will of the people can be expressed to further the causes of the state.

State Control Approach (4)So rather than simply being a tool of the government, the media are perceived as reflecting the people's interests as well as those of the political authorities.

Authoritarian media systems are often depicted as simply being systems of extreme censorship, but denying oppositional viewpoints is not the only goal of the communist approach. In contrast to the arguably negative news values of the Western media, the apparent aim of the communist media is to focus more on the achievements of the society- i.e. what's going right, rather than what's going wrong.

State Controlled (5) To summarise, the state controlled approach's key attitudes are:- The Media have political and social dimensions, therefore The Media should be owned and controlled by the state, and The Media should only convey information deemed suitable by the state

The Free Market Approach

The current dominant trend in media systems, even in heavily state controlled systems like in China, is a move towards greater commercialism and less restricted media markets.In a nominal sense the free market approach regards any state involvement in the media as essentially restricting personal freedoms, such as freedom of speech. In the USA, perhaps the epitome of this approach, the constitutional right of free speech and a free press under the 1st Amendment of the Constitution is interpreted as meaning that freedom of speech, for both potential media producers and for media audiences, can only be achieved by a lack of state involvement in media organisations.

Free Market (2)Unlike other approaches to the media, the free market approach also tends to regard the media as commodities like other products, downplaying any socio-political dimensions that the media may have. The audience should be the final arbiter of what is produced.

Free Market (3)The problem with this approach, in the view of many critics is that the notion of quality and the maintenance of standards in media output go out of the window in favour of the maximising of audience reach and advertising revenue.

Free Market (4)Further complicating concerns about standards in free market media output, is the concern that the free market tends towards monopoly rather diversity in the media.

Free Market (5)There is a welter of evidence in many countries to support the notion of escalating costs and concentration of ownership. A good historical example of the problems of commercial ownership was the emergence of the Hollywood studio system in the 1920s and 1930s, in which a small number of companies (such as MGM, Warner Brothers and Paramount) established control over not only film production but film distribution and exhibition as well.

Free Market (6)Similarly, the dominance of certain satellite television companies, such as BSkyB in Britain, has led to concern over these companies' control over access technology, both for broadcasters and for audiences. In essence, critics of the free market system argue that all the market system does is replace one dominant group, the political elite, with another- the industrial elite.To summarise, the free market approach's key attitudes are:- The Media are principally commodities like any other product, therefore The Media should be as free as possible from state influence, and The media should be free to give audiences what they want

Conclusion

As stated at the beginning of this section many countries actually operate complex hybrids of these attitudinal approaches to media systems. Finally, it is important to remember that with each of these conceptual approaches to media systems come additional problems. For social responsibility systems comes the constant tension between the desire for independent media and the desire for responsible media acting in the public interest. For state controlled media the central question is one of the legitimacy of the control, particularly in the global media environment. For the free market approach there are questions about the effects of the market on quality and diversity in media output.