The Power of Media on Politics

[Da Skinna]

If a gunman with a shotgun walked into your church, on a brisk, bright Sunday morning, and opened fire, killing one of your fellow church-goers, how scared would you be? And if you were scared, this gets scarier.

This is probably the most important news piece this year. Not until the elections will we see something as ominous as the piece by Bill Moyers, titled "Rage on the Radio."

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/09122008/watch.html

For a long time I've been trying to articulate how exactly it is that people can become so irrational in their behaviour, and decided it was the fault, largely, of the media. What media leaves people with, the lasting impression, the effect, and ultimately, what bearing that has on their outlook of others.

I call it demagoguery, for that surely is what it is. It is playing on a person's prejudices, fears, emotions to manipulate a particular outcome, usually expressed through some emotion.

Watch the episode, which I can't praise highly enough. Watch it again, and decide for yourselves, just how powerful words can be on our daily lives, our outlooks, our perceptions, and our relations with others.

I will proclaim it again, not until the elections, not until some stupendously unexpected tragedy, will there be a journalist piece as important as this one.

[Oglethorpe1983]

Of course blame the "right wing media".... Its not the madman's fault.... it couldnt be...I mean if someone does something whatever it is they arent responsible...it has to be someone else's fault.

Listen personal responsibility goes both ways....

Ive read your posts before...its safe to say you are a liberal.... So I can see why you would think that its the fault of conservative media personalities that someone would respond violently and terribly.

But let me tell you something...there are some people on the right like that first guy Michael Savage...who are despicible...(BUT and I hate you tell you this there are equally discipible people on the left)

IT DOESNT MATTER!.... people choose thier own actions.... God forbid you blame the shooter.... I listen to Rush Limbuagh... does that mean Im gonna go shoot up a church... I guess so....

Why cant you blame the person...the nutjob who killed those innocent people. I wonder will you blame the liberal media for the bombing of military recruiting stations in New York this past summer.... if you dont then you are a giant hypocryt.... I mean its not that those people are just crazy radicals right...not like they were influenced by the media...thats just silly....

Dont blame the right wing media just becuase you disagree with them...its just petty....and takes the focus away from the actual tragedy that innocents lost thier lives

[HorseArcher]

Of course blame the "right wing media".... Its not the madman's fault.... it couldnt be...I mean if someone does something whatever it is they arent responsible...it has to be someone else's fault.

Listen personal responsibility goes both ways....

Ive read your posts before...its safe to say you are a liberal.... So I can see why you would think that its the fault of conservative media personalities that someone would respond violently and terribly.

But let me tell you something...there are some people on the right like that first guy Michael Savage...who are despicible...(BUT and I hate you tell you this there are equally discipible people on the left)

IT DOESNT MATTER!.... people choose thier own actions.... God forbid you blame the shooter.... I listen to Rush Limbuagh... does that mean Im gonna go shoot up a church... I guess so....

Why cant you blame the person...the nutjob who killed those innocent people. I wonder will you blame the liberal media for the bombing of military recruiting stations in New York this past summer.... if you dont then you are a giant hypocryt.... I mean its not that those people are just crazy radicals right...not like they were influenced by the media...thats just silly....

Dont blame the right wing media just becuase you disagree with them...its just petty....and takes the focus away from the actual tragedy that innocents lost thier lives

You have completely misunderstood the entire post of the thread starter, misunderstood the article and the topic.

[Viking Prince]

You have completely misunderstood the entire post of the thread starter, misunderstood the article and the topic.

I guess that I also must completely misunderstand. Help us.

The guy was insane and did an insane thing. No media drove him to it. No media coverage changed the facts.

This is like saying the media changes how people dress for the next day's weather by trying to make the report entertaining and thus not making the predictions clearer. Viewers are smarter than this.

[Arthum]

"Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?"

Excellent find,I'd give you +rep, but I already handed out too much today(see this as an I O U).

I've followed the political discourse in US for years quite closely and I've discussed it alot with a friend of mine who happens to be a psychiatrist, even though she's not very interested in politics.
For me the political communication is one of the greatest challenges that democracy (not only) in the US faces today and I'm interested to see,how much this will influence this election.

I always thought it to be quite scary, how much of this filth was repeated without reflection of any kind in the various internet fora, by kids or those of a rather more "impressionable disposition" and I fear it will change those people for years to come and the most scary thing is, that in this day in age the power of the media is so immense, that public oppinion is able to influence, if not dictate policy and its makers (or vice versa) almost in real-time and without any restraint of reason...

[Erik]

The guy was insane and did an insane thing. No media drove him to it. No media coverage changed the facts.

Couldn't it have been a combination of the two?

Guns can't kill people.
And neither can bullets.
But put them together....

This is like saying the media changes how people dress for the next day's weather by trying to make the report entertaining and thus not making the predictions clearer. Viewers are smarter than this.

It doesn't say the media is actively TRYING to turn people into killers.
But it could be an unwanted side effect, which might be avoidable if they consider the possible consequences of what they say.

To me there is no doubt that people are influenced by the media, for the good and the bad.
If this weren't possible, then why do almost all oppressive regimes put such a huge emphasis on propaganda?
And why are companies paying so much money on advertising?

I'm glad my country has restrictions that prevent people from inciting hatred towards groups or individuals.
I respect America's choice to put freedom of speech above inciting of violence, but it's not the choice I would make myself.

[Arthum]

I'm glad my country has restrictions that prevent people from inciting hatred towards groups or individuals.
I respect America's choice to put freedom of speech above inciting of violence, but it's not the choice I would make myself.

Yes,my thoughts exactly, isn't the irony, that they are using their "liberty" to undermine and destroy exactly this very value and all the "liberals" standing up for it ?How many people in the US still dare to stand up and say they are "liberals" ?

[Каие]

I call it demagoguery, for that surely is what it is. It is playing on a person's prejudices, fears, emotions to manipulate a particular outcome, usually expressed through some emotion.

All for profit, ratings and the assurance of further future events to exploit, brother. Lets take the British 'knife' epidemic, everyone is running around like headless chickens, the media is in a frenzy with daily 'Armageddon' headlines...but all statistics show that Crime, violent crime, has gone down a massive amount in the last ten years. There is no epidemic, the only thing to fear is fear itself, something the Media feeds on. Blood sucking parasites.

That's just fear, never mind the ignorance they feed on to feel social and other tension in order to get a big riot or murder story...this all reminds me of a Doctor Who episode in Series 1 2005, where the media controls the world and government. Dire scene.

[Valiant Champion]

The media is bunch of privately owned companies. They are in their business for money rather than to tell the truth.

If you can fork them out a little money, you can persuade them to tell a slanted version of the truth to benefit one entity over another entity.

Seems pretty simple.

[Каие]

He's not saying the media made him do it, but how the media reports it affects peoples minds negatively.

[Da Skinna]

I'm a pragmatist, guys. I see what works, and I see what doesn't, I judge accordingly.

Conservatism has its uses, and so does liberalism. I do not attach rhetoric because... obviously, those words DO have consequences, subconscious and not.

Those that attack this thread.... just watch the damn thing, because if you actually watch it from a journalistic point, it can't fail. This is about truth-seeking, not politically bashing one another.

[Arthum]

Just a suggestion then, maybe this thread should be moved to the academy.

For me the mudpit is more for the callows of day to day politics and you're right to point out, that it would be a wasted on that.