The Mass Media

The Mass Media

1. Defining the Media: Agencies of communication that transmit information, education, news and entertainment to mass audiences.

   • 3 Types
     • Print media
       • Newspapers
       • Magazines
       • Comics/Books
     • Audio-visual media
       • Terrestrial and satellite TV
       • Radio
       • Cinema
     • Cybermedia or Digital media
       • Social Networking e.g. Facebook
       • Mobile phones/Mp3 players
       • Games industry

2. Formal Controls of the Media

   • The law
     • The Laws of Libel
       • Forbid the publication of an untrue statement about a person which may bring them into contempt, ridicule,dislike or hostility in society.
     • The Official Secrets Act
       • Makes it a criminal offence to report, without authorisation, any official government activity which the government defines as an 'official secret'.
     • Defence Advisory (DA) Notices
       • Issued by the governmentas requests to journalists not to report natio.al security information which the government believes may be useful to an enemy.
     • The Racial and Religious Hatred Act
       • Forbid the expression of hatred or discrimination against people because of their ethnic group or religious beliefs.
     • The Obscene Publications Act
       • Forbids the public of anything the court deems to be obscene and indecent.
     • Contempt of Court Provisions
       • Forbids the reporting, expression of opinions or publication of materials about cases which are in process.
   • How media is controlled
     • Official government press conferences
       • press conferences with journalists and editors.
     • Leaks and off-the record briefings
       • informal through which the governmenttry to influence what is reported in the news.
     • The use of government spin doctors
       • try to manipulate the media by providing a afvourable slant to a potentially unpopular or controversial news item.
     • Refusal to issue broadcasting licenses
       • refuses to issue them to those who are deemed unfit or unsuitable.
     • Refusal to all the use of some forms of internet software
       • the use of filtering and surveillence software to block access to some internet sites.
     • The electronic surveillance of emails
       • monitoring of websites and interception of mobile calls.