Research Korner: Media Essay

Media Reaction: Portrayal of diversity in the media

Media Reaction: Portrayal of diversity in the media The article refers to ‘Minority Journalists Push Media to Maintain Diversity Commitment’ as written by Michelle D. Anderson (2008), it was related to a media advisory released, the National Association of Black Journalists had an urgent message for the newspaper industry, quoted “Diversity should not be treated like a passing fad and it should continue to be a top priority”. Showing diversity landscape of the US, upon exposure to such American Black print journalists, warned that it would hold the industry accountable if managers did not consider diversity in recruiting and hiring practices. To the extent that stereotyping issues can be evident as for instance, Anderson point out shocking number of layoffs and buyout packages, leaving many concerned journalists questioning whether diversity will become the "sacrificial lamb" as newsroom managers and recruiters focus on the economy's impact on newsrooms. For instance, Tribune Company hosts the highly competitive program, which is two-year diversity initiative designed to help beginning journalists launch careers in Tribune newsrooms, including the Chicago Tribune and the Baltimore Sun. Fostered better understanding of diversity and multiculturalism since, there has been audience aggregation, an attempt on the part of news executives to identify which audiences to target and the products that will be suited to each target group based on specific set of criteria," says Lloyd, who was the founding executive director of the Freedom Forum Diversity Institute, housed at Vanderbilt University, the institute ran a now-defunct program responsible for training dozens of second-career journalists of color (2008, p. 16). Anderson also noted that, “advertisers often focus on women because they make key buying decisions in their families, people of color and immigrants have often been ignored as key target audiences”. The concrete understanding is related to the state of diversity wherein the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE) released its annual Newsroom Employment Census, revealing that newsroom staffs decreased by 4.4 percent and that the number of minority journalists in the industry went up just barely from 13.4 percent to 13.5 percent.  According to a 2008 survey, the Los Angeles Times newsroom consisted of 19.1 percent minorities - 8.7 percent Asian American; 3.1 percent Black; 7.1 percent Hispanic and 0.2 percent American Indian (Anderson 2008, p. 16).  Furthermore, ASNE began conducting the annual survey in 1978 in an effort to measure the industry's success in recruiting and retaining journalists of color so that the percent of minorities in newsrooms would be representative of the general population and the communities that newspapers cover. ASNE's decision to conduct the survey came on the 10th anniversary of the well-known federal Kerner Commission declaration, which stated that the poor coverage of inner-city communities facing riots and upheaval at the time was because of a shortage of minority journalists in newsrooms across the nation. The situation is ideally something many journalists of color had been saying for some time. Thus, agreeing that there is ample need of journalists from all backgrounds to ensure that US media has been fulfilling an effective yet credible public service role and to accurately reflect what's going on among individual lives of the people. There leads to policies in the US as it aims to integrate media people and ethnic minorities within the media assumption, as print media is also essential for the creation of multi-culture based schemes which integrate journalists to be aware of increasingly diverse US society. There has been issues in order to achieve newsroom diversity within the media with policies to increase the diversity in the print media. The development for media diversity can account to problems of integration of ethnic minorities as being obvious, along with diversity known pressures for example, the finding of political solutions for the situation has been rising. The situation on media markets is favouring 'mainstream' content, reflecting diversity only insufficiently as addressing of positive possibility of diverse public sphere, which have active part in the realisation of US democracy and its social relationships to other cultures. In addition, aspect of the diversity discourse as focus on media commitment such as certain attempts to bring closure to the political contestation in the name of empirical objectivity or expert knowledge. With increasing inclination to develop empirical indicators to measure media diversity, the scholarly and policy discourse on media diversity has arguably shifted to more instrumental considerations and practices that link with the general trends of technocratisation and instrumental rationality in public policy as there alludes to objectivity and neutrality that seem to transcend the dilemmas inherent in terms such as quality or social responsibility in assessing media performance.             ________________ Anderson, M.D. (2008). Minority Journalists Push Media to Maintain Diversity Commitment. Diverse Issues in Higher Education. Volume: 25. Issue: 12, July 24, 2008, p. 16+. Cox, Matthews & Associates, Inc. by ProQuest LLC

Media Reaction: Portrayal of diversity in the media

Media Reaction: Portrayal of diversity in the media The article refers to ‘Minority Journalists Push Media to Maintain Diversity Commit...

Media and International Politics

Media and International Politics   Preliminary Remarks               We are told that this generation is far more complicated in terms of people’s lifestyle and behavior compared to the 60’s and 70’s generation. Indeed, there is a great gap between our generation and the generation of our parents. In fact, we are no longer adheres to their beliefs, myths, fables, and tradition. We have our own beliefs, myths, and tradition in which in turn our parents can hardly understand.             This reality seems so naive to them, yet, it is very clear. The emergence of technology and complex phenomena happened to be the primary factor in which we, the new generation, become detached from the previous generation and tradition. Moreover, we are not only detached to them but gradually become more and more independent in terms of how to define our life.             By and large, media become one of the many instruments in which influences our way of life. We look at media in different perspectives and in different ways. We become witnesses of the transformation and evolution of media. From standing as a paragon of peace, freedom and equality, to deterioration and ratification of reality, media seem to stand on its own, independent to the branching institutions. However, media become naive in some ways because it somehow caught unguarded with the lure of globalization. Here, we come to analyze how the trend of globalization comes to influence the media sphere.        The New Trend: Globalization               This construct renders a vast meanings and definition derived from various scholars of various disciplines.    The vast definitions of globalization make us puzzled and logically inferred that absolute is non-existent insofar as a definitive meaning of globalization cannot be comprehended and capsulated.  In the book, Articulating the Global and the Local: Globalization and Cultural Studies, Ann Svetkovich and Douglas Kellner defined globalization as “a code word that stands for a tremendous diversity of issues and problems and that serves as a front for a variety of theoretical and political positions (1997).” This in a way served as a substitute term for modernization and continues as a legitimating ideology for the westernization of the world, cultural differences, and struggles.             Svetkovich and Kellner (1997), think that this phenomenon gradually replacing concepts such as imperialism, thus displacing focus on domination of developing countries by overdeveloped ones  or on national and local economies by transnational corporations. In this discourse globalization functions and concepts are important in understanding the phenomenon which in nature a theoretical construct which varies according to the assumptions and perspectives in question. In this context, the authors would like to treat globalization as a term used to describe the ways global economic, political, cultural forces are rapidly penetrating the world in the creation of the “new world market, new transnational political organizations, and a new global culture.”  Furthermore, globalization involves a dissemination of new technologies that have tremendous influence and impact on polity, economics, culture, society and in our daily life. New technologies such as communication instruments become the primal tool in creating a world, though, has frontiers, tremors to collapsed borders, inflicting and creating global cultural village wherein everyone defined his culture as universal and homogenuis. The diversity of culture, on the other hand, is neither protected nor preserved, rather the fundamental project of globalization is to collapse all barriers in order to form one single unit of culture—a new global culture.             Hence, globalization brings forth the consciousness of reconstruction, deconstruction and rehabilitation of what was present in civilizations long ago. The Old and New Media             When we speak of old media, we immediately think of the three fundamental mediums namely: print, radio and television. These instruments that comprise the traditional concept of media are still present and powerful. Yet, it can be thought that each instrument occupies a certain level of power measured in terms of its effect to the producers or receivers. While print became the first medium invented, radio and television was the offshoot of reasonable guesses by its inventors, the three has its own inherent power to influence its audience.             On the other hand, theoretically speaking, when we thought of media models and theories we are immediately thinking about the linearity of communication popularized by Schramm and later on refuted, remodeled, revised, and modified by other media theorists and scholars. The historical pedigree of media is not exclusive only to those who theorizes communication and exploits the mediums, but became open to other critiques in different fields of academic pursuits. For instance, one of the most popular in terms of understanding the political economy of media was Karl Marx which thought that the ideological role of media always in favor to the capitalist ideologies since they have the power to manipulate and exploit using their capital in order to enable them to diffuse and proliferate their ‘believed’ ideologies to the public.  Moreover, media serve to be instrumental in the propagation of national identity and unity among the people within a community. The best to describe these qualities of the media is directly found on the journalistic doctrine in which media assumed a principal role being a fourth estate in a democratic society. Media help stabilize states’ three democratic branches: judiciary, legislative and executive, more so, to protect the democratic ideals of the society.  This is very much related to Joseph Man Chan’s article Media, Democracy and Globalization: A Comparative Perspective, in which he believed that, the “the roles of media in a society are very much defined by its mode of media control which varies mainly with its power structure. In general, when power is concentrated, media tend to serve as an extension of the state and support the status quo.” The existing journalistic archetype is adherent and administrative in nature. Yet, when power is more spread, media can maintain greater relative autonomy and serve as a forum for a wider sector of the public.   The role of media practitioners is to carry out the cardinal values of their journalistic archetype which is to observe an objective, impartial, and true reporting of information to the public. This is true in the field of the old media, but I am not telling an absolute truth about the practice or the use of media instruments. What I am saying is that, these principles is somehow been practiced in the old times, yet, not all necessarily observed such practice. Hence, due to the emerging trend set by technology and globalization, media became the foremost sphere which is being victimized and attacked. Globalization and technological innovation become primary factors in which emergence of new media put forth dramatically in order to serve a specific purpose. New media is described to be a phenomenon of ‘convergence’. This concept refers to “all forms of communications written text, statistical data, still and moving images, music and the human voice that now can be coded, stored and relayed in digital form, and made accessible and convertible through the end-used technology of the computer and/or television screen” (Golding and Murdoch, 1996). Moreover, Slaatta (1998) conjures that “changes in media and communications technology are simultaneously changes in the structuration of the social and cultural spaces for social interaction and integration.” Indeed, the structural and cultural formation of one’s behavior reflects the effects of the new media. The emergence of internet, ipod’s, mp4’s, sophisticated mobile phones, and other new gadgets presents an alarming mood for us. To examine the effects of these new media technologies in a wider perspective, we can say that these are purposively made and proliferated for economic gain. The economic value of these is transcendental. In this sense, the value becomes transcendental because it contributes to the constant violence among individuals and disparities of principles among nations. Moreover, new media provide us a wider time and compressed space in which we can easily participate in a wider arena of socialization and political activities. It indeed brings a new paradigm to the civil society in terms of its role in opening a more accessible public spheres. Yet, these are still controlled and manipulated by the capitalist institutions. And as Slaatta argued, “the new media and information technology give an imperative towards scrutinizing the changes in the political economy of the international media industry.” Media Globalization               Arjun Appadurai popularized the idea of scape that fundamentally described the central concept of sometimes ambiguously interpreted term globalization. In this context, we are introduced to terms like ethnoscapes, mediascapes, technoscapes, finanscapes, and idioscapes. These terms illustrate the ideological, empirical, and structural dimensions of globalization in which variably affect the complex system of the society. What seems a basic knowledge and assumption about globalization in a theoretical debate, framing our thought on Marxism, is the idea of cultural homogenization. Moreover, in the discourse of Sinclair (2004), postmodern theorists see the trend as being much more in tension with its opposite, heterogenization—that is the proliferation of cultural fusion or ‘hybridity’ which occurs as global influences become absorbed and adapted in a host of local settings. Other globalization theorists would simply define the phenomenon as “the compression of the world”, “the intensification of consciousness of the world as a whole”, “annihilation of space by time”, and ‘time-space compression.” However, these theorists have different highly qualified definition on globalization it could be nice to find the neutral between their dissimilarities. These theorists, though, aware of being in disagreement regarding such matter, “all identified the control of space and time as a defining abstract principle behind globalization” (Sinclair, 2004).             Given these descriptive and theoretical definition of globalization offered by different theorists, it can be argued that the presence of media globalization continuously penetrates the cultural virginity of some societies that tried to keep their socio-cultural identity distinct, yet, with the emergence of new media flourishing in every corner of the globe, social theories dictate that it is inevitable to maintain the cultural virginity due to new media emergence. It reflects on the idea that globalization primarily caters to the homogenization of culture, by trying to use effective means like media. David Held argues that “the growth of global communications above all of television, video and film, gives people new ways of seeing and participating in global development which opens up the possibility of new mechanisms of identification at a global or even a local level” (Held, 1995:124) Slaatta’s melancholic description of new media reflects the trending effect of globalization by stating that: “The coming of the internet and the convergence technology, the traditional link between the cultural and the political space for social organization within the nation-state, and the organizational logic of the media and communication industry, is once more disconnected. This time is potentially into an almost anarchic disorder. The television screen, in its commodified, household form is presently turned into a veritable battle field or perhaps a battle screen where a formidable race is taking place between competing formats of software, operative systems, processors, sockets, hardware, cables and networks (1998: 6). One concrete example that manifests a global media is found in Beverley Yu’s article Critical Analysis of Readings: Global Television which she cited the  analysis made by Sowards in her article MTV Asia: Localizing the Global Media which contends that MTV Asia “repackages and disguises Western narratives of class, culture, values and consumerism which in effect helps construct a globalized, consumerist culture for middle-class Asians based on their consent and participation of MTV’s cultural hegemony. The new media is characterized by the convergence phenomenon in which Slaatta (1998) articulates that due to convergence, “the present structure of the media industry will become increasingly blurred, as the boundaries between media technologies and their respective audience markets will collapse.” This phenomenon becomes a concrete picture of what media globalization is. Moreover, to look further into the significance of media globalization, we should take a simple act of analyzing certain offshoot of media globalization by bringing into the light the issue on media trends.  Critique on Media Globalization               Is media globalization helpful or does it misleads us to think that it is beneficial to our development?             The question posits differently answers coming from different theoretical and empirical perspectives. The advancement of media due to globalization in one hand is beneficial and helpful. On the other hand, it becomes alarming and misleading us. To speak of media globalization as beneficial and helpful is to speak of the globalized democratic system. Today, democracy becomes the global political system. Although, there are remnants of communism and socialism, majority of countries nowadays is democratized. The role of media in democratization is essential. Say for example, the well-known People Power Revolution in the Philippines that toppled down the dictatorial leadership of their former President Marcos was became successful not only because of the collective power of the masses but also because through the media in which people are gathered together to bring down the dictator to its presidency.             On the other hand, the ideological of media may have a negative and alarming state. Global media corporations are blinded by the pursuit of economic gain, oftentimes at the expense of quality and the interest of the public. This is always the critique under the Marxist doctrine. The media globalization misleads us to think of its primary purpose. The ideology in which it propagates can be a “false” ideology due to what the global media demonstrates is its noble task of bringing countries out of political oppression and authoritarian ruling system. Yet, the political economy of media still adheres to the idea that the main purpose of globalizing media is the political interest of those powerful countries like the United States to gain control over other regions and nation-states.     Further, media globalization brings significant effects like a compromise of journalistic integrity in favor of a commercially profitable global product and cultural identity in the case of MTV. Globalization implicitly promotes certain ideologies to foreign cultures by means of a mass medium and hence creating a state of hegemony. Conclusion               The emergence of globalization is undoubtedly shatters our way of life. The cultural and anthropological relevance of the phenomenon came into existence through our recognition of the effects of media. In one way, through media we knew something about globalization like the emergence of scapes popularized by Appadurai. Moreover, we should treat this phenomenon in a balance platform in order to see both edges of it. In one hand, media globalization significantly brings easy access to the events of the world and promotes democratization. On the other had, media globalization may only be a trap of the main purpose of powerful international media outfits. Media globalization supports on the noble act of helping the world to cope with problems related to freedom, equality, and peace, may only be a pretense to the real socio-political interest which is to gain control of other countries.             The issue on media globalization is complex. It needs to be examined well and trying to make a more objective and empirical analysis. Although, media theorists and sociologist may already provide ample discussions and theories in order to bring media globalization in the litmus-test, it can again be argued that constant update and assessment should be put forth.       References Adesoji, A. (2006). Globalization of the media and the challenges of democratization in Nigeria. http://www.nobleworld.biz/images/Adesoji.pdf Chan, J. (n. d.) Media, Democracy and Globalization: A Comparative Perspective. http://www.waccglobal.org/index.php/wacc/content/pdf/680 Golding, P. & Murdoch, G. (1996). Culture, Communications and Political Economy, in Curran, J. & Gurevitch, M (1996)             Mass Media and Society. London: Arnold Held, D (1995). Democracy and the Global Order. Cambridge: Polity Press Sinclair, J. (2004). Globalization, Supranational Institutions, and Media. http://www.sagepub.co.uk/mcquail5/downloads/Handbookchaps/ch3%20Downing%20HB.pdf Slaatta, T. (1998). Media and Politics: Research Strategies in a Crossdisciplinary Field. http://www.nordicom.gu.se/common/publ_pdf/30_slaatta.pdf Yu, B. (n. d). Critical Analysis of Readings: Global Television. http://beverleyyu.com/Documents/criticalanalysis.pdf

Media and International Politics

Media and International Politics Preliminary Remarks We are told that this generation is far more complicated in...

Media Studies Essay

Media Studies Essay   To what extend have Hindu values and ideologies dominated the representational agenda of Indian cinema?               Cinema was first introduced in India in July 7, 1896, when the Lumiere Brother’s Cinematographe showed six soundless short films in the Watson Hotel in Bombay.             Indian cinema is named Bollywood. This name is conflation of Bombay, the old name of Mumbai, and Hollywood, the center of the United State film industry. Bollywood is also commonly referred to as Hindi cinema. The Bollywood industry is usually tha largest in terms of films produced and office receipts.             The first Indian film concerned with honor, sacrifice and mighty deeds. For in that period many "mythologicals" were made and took India by storm.             In the 1930’s, Indian films adopted a modernist outlook essentially converging of society, addressing social differences of caste, class and the relations between the sexes. The most important film in the period, (1935), the director created a tale of love frustrated by social distinction and masculine ineffectuality. This film focused on indecision, frustration and a focus on failure and longing rather than on achievement.             Indian cinema has made a unique contribution towards evolving a new popular culture by reconstructing the traditional performative themes and idioms, using western narrative forms and positioning implicitly in the narrative many contemporary tensions and encoded messages of social change. It provided an intimate cinematic interpretation of Indian identity in its sentiments, outlook and diversity. Indian Cinema has built its narrative around the notion of enlightenment, taking up a well-informed discourse on the human connection with the metaphysical, at the same time presenting a sound critique of the orthodox worldview, age-old social hierarchy and the social tensions and suffering. Some of the major concerns of Indian literature were also incorporated in their films. During the classical period when film-making was at its highest artistic peak, it fulfilled an important social function by translating the main agenda of Indian society at that time by interpreting human suffering in an inequitable society, and to release and reinstate the cultural traditions from the influences of the recent colonial past. The basic emotional basis or structure of Indian films has its roots in living a life in the puritan, sublime love through a cycle of union and separation. The protagonist was presented essentially as an introvert, a restless soul in search of his identity in love and suffering. But the large part of the cinema is characterized by the reflection of internal suffering of a nation at large. The film-makers submerge the nation’s pain in highly appealing story-telling, which interpreted the uprootment and loss in different ways and help people incoming terms with it. Hindu films act as the interface between the traditions of Indian society and of the disturbing Western intrusions. The function of Hindu film is to externalize an inner psychological conflict and handle the inner passion generated by social and political processes as problems created by events and persons.

Media Studies Essay

Media Studies Essay To what extend have Hindu values and ideologies dominated the representational agenda of Indian cinema? ...

PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING

Public Service Broadcasting “The broadcast media is important as a milestone in the struggle for free, independent and pluralistic print in all regions of the world”. Broadcasting has been part of everyday life in all of us. It is there to keep the people informed and yet as the media men and everyone who is involved in the broadcasting field dealt with danger as they try to decipher issues to keep the society aware.  The Broadcasting The best practice in an informed society requires transparency around the media broadcasting institutions. The constitution, function, appointment procedures and allocation processes for companies in the broadcasting field are the important foun (  , 2005). The broadcasting or news media is primary concerned for the human development, since they intentionally touched people’s lives. Communication is the lifeblood of economic markets; it facilitates trade, transmits ideas, and diffuses innovations, thus promoting growth. Information can improve the delivery of public services, forewarn against natural disasters, spread education and knowledge, and reduce preventable health risks. News helps inform the general public, donor agencies, and the international development community about severe challenges facing low‐income states and the urgent humanitarian crisis arising from natural and man‐made disasters ( and , 2008). The global flow of information across national borders is also essential for international understanding and peace; lack of information and awareness about other communities, cultures and viewpoints can fuel social intolerance, erode trust, and lead towards conflict ( and , 2008).  The Evolution The public service broadcasting stems from the radio to television to different communicating devices that have the ability to contain market mechanisms and fulfill certain goals. The objectives applied to public broadcasting have its broad expectations to inform, educate, and entertain. The role and importance of public broadcasting requires a public organization at the service of citizens, culture and democracy (, 2005). The media or the broadcasting field used the opportunity to create a noise among creative people in advertising agencies, and get the best minds in the industry to work on a public service television spot that will get the people informed and persuade. As a responsible news broadcaster, it is better to prompt or create educational information towards the viewers and let him exercise what he learned (, 2005).    The Challenge The information broadcast by public broadcasting must be treated with a concern for in-depth explanation and examination to enlighten citizens on the issues at hand and, in so doing, enrich democratic life. It is often this ability to act as a reference in the area of information that brings the public to recognize the importance and role of public broadcasting, and identify with it (, 2000). More than any other broadcasting programs that of the public broadcaster must be national in content. It means that public broadcasters must first promote the expression of ideas, opinions and values current in the society where they operate. In this regard, it is of foremost importance to give priority to national programs. The challenge of the years to come, for public broadcasting, is to evolve and to adapt to the digital era the principles underlying its existence. Thus, the vast majority of public broadcasters already have a foothold in the world of specialty channels and Internet. What they need to do is to use these new technologies to improve and complement their public-service mission (, 2000). The Global World Public broadcasting has been used to many political nature and agenda. It is clear that the media has influenced the society and the danger among the broadcaster or reporters are always on behind. In a global perspective, public broadcasting has been a marginal; enterprise, it has tended to be a dominant factor and component of the media landscapes in many other nations (, 1995). The important contribution is that reporting conveys diplomatic signals between nations and shapes domestic perceptions about foreign countries. Countries with both widespread media access and an independent free press have been found to experience lower corruption, greater administrative efficiency, higher political stability and more effective rule of law, as well as better developmental outcomes, such as lower infant mortality rates and greater literacy ( and , 2008). Because of the status of public broadcasting, because it is financed by the public and intended to be at its service, expectations in the area of information are high and so are the requirements. Public broadcasters must provide information enabling listeners to form the fairest possible idea of events; if not objective, the information should at least be unbiased. Such information will allow the different viewpoints to be expressed and foster an enlightened understanding of current events (, 2000). References:

PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING

Public Service Broadcasting “The broadcast media is important as a milestone in the struggle for free, independent and pluralistic print...

The Role of Media in Creating an Imagined Community: CHINA

China   The Role of Media in Creating an Imagined Community:                         According to , an imagined nation is a community socially constructed and ultimately imagined by the people who perceived themselves as part of that group (). In an imagined community or nation a person does not see face to face the other members of the nation. Instead, he holds in his mind a mental image of his affinity. The media has an important role in fostering national imagination. According to “ a nation is imagined because the members of even the smallest nation will never know most of their fellow-members, meet them, or even hear of them, yet in the minds of each lives the image of their communion". Because of what Anderson calss as “print – capitalism” imagined communities are formed. The local and public bvroadcasting models construct imagined communities by broadcasting in the vernacular in order for the people who speak various local dialects to understand each other. The loacl and the public broadcasting models construct imagined communities by  creating a unified field of exchange and communications. People of the same dialect are able to understand one another and they become aware of the hundreds of thousands or even millions of people in their particular language field. They are connected to their fellow speakers through media. They are able to form, in their secular, particular, visible invisibility, the embryo of the nationally-imagined community. In China, the only television allowed is state owned. The state is restricting private television ownership and no foreign television ownership is permitted. , the founder and the late chairman of the Chinese Communist Party controlled the media and stressed that the media must be run by the Party and become the Party’s “loyal eyes, ears, and toungue”. Television was primarily used by the Party as the mouthpiece of the leadership. It was regarded as both a political institution and an ideological apparatus. The television was used by the Party to promote its Statist Objectives. It was used to popularize the Party’s policies and directions and motivate the masses in the construction of communism. It was used to encourage a national imagination based on the principle of communism. There was no freedom of expression, the Party was the sole owner of the stations (The Museum of Broadcast Communications). The Party leader used media to the full extent. He used every form of media to foster his ideologies and to promote communism.  used wall posters as his first line of artificial charismatization. Huge color posters of Mao were put up everywhere. Chairman  was omnipresent in the people's view. Then Mao disseminated his "little red book" of wise sayings and sage advice and the Maoist view of history. " thought" was now held to be hallowed like that of and , and sanctified like that of Confucius. The little red book was given out everywhere. Everyone had a copy. But, the young people (the Red Guards) especially were inculcated with  thought, and were sent on their mission of cultural rectification with the little red book in their hands, as if it had magical qualities.  used every dramatic and media device at his disposal to expand his deified aura. For instance, he initiated the young people into the Red Guards by assembling millions of them in Beijing. Standing on the Heavenly Gate, high above them, he donned the red arm band of the Red Guards, letting them know that he was their personal supreme leader--their heavenly guide to a magical utopian future of pure socialism. Mao's genuine charisma became manufactured pseudocharisma, his genuine charismatic unification of China became a media-enhanced magic show ()   Media: Shaping and Representing National Interest               Now the Mass Media is playing a pivotal role in shaping and representing the National Interest. China’s media is prevented from criticizing the country’s leaders. The media is used as an instrument to praise the Chinese government by criticizing the outside world especially countries like Japan and United States. China remains sensitive to any foreign challenge even if its position in the world continues to rise and its citizens are becoming more self-confident. The people seem to support criticisms against Japan, United States and Taiwan. Publishing anti-foreign articles plays to national sensitivities that always simmer, and thus can be brought to a boil, with obvious benefits for the bottom line. The media caters to the nationalist sentiments of the citizens and can attract large numbers of readers, viewers and listeners. However, too much jingoism can damage the nation’s interest and international standing (Marketing Nationalism in China).  The lack of press freedom in China and self-centered coverage allowed room for extremist views. The biased reports in China are breeding misunderstanding and hatred. The media in China are influenced by commercialism and the tabloids are using provocative reports to sell newspapers. China’s national interest is being represented in a biased and self-centered way. The Government is using the media to divert the people’s attention. The media is damaging China’s international standing by being selective in what they talk about. The Chinese mass media represents the national interest in a one-sided way. The media is able to present the nationalistic view of the citizens but fails to educate the people about the flaws of the government and make them aware of sensitive domestic issues. The misinformation coming from the state-controlled media fuel the ultra-nationalist citizens’ anger and animosity against other countries particularly Japan and United States.   International and National Media and National Identity:               Communications Media can be viewed as industries that commercialize and standardize the production of culture. There are two equally important characteristics of media, one is it being a product that produces, distributes and sells marketable products. The other is its being cultural. Media as a cultural product reflects the cultural values of their producers and the social reality in which they are produced.               China is experiencing gradual liberalization of mass communication. This includes expansion enormous expansion in television and other mass media and importation of western mass media. The government in Beijing controls the preparation and dissemination of domestic news under the principle of propagating the Party’s policies. In the 1980’s news from the western world started to appear in official Chinese media. Various semi-official set of media started to flourish in the 1980’s. These media, mainly tabloids and periodicals covered a wide range of stories from Western nations including feuds in the British Royal family, U.S. election campaign strategies, and popular personalities from the west. Movies and televisions from the United Kingdom, United States, Hong Kong, Japan and Taiwan, started to appear in local theaters and TV networks. These alternative new media sources imply sharply contrasting cultural values. The importation of western media to China is controversial. China is a developing country and one of the chief critical themes regarding international communication is that Western cultural values tend to be imposed on traditional and developing societies; this can undermine Chinas indigenous culture. The importation of western media has a negative effect on the cultural identity of a developing society like China. Western media present an entirely different culture and value. Western media can lead to cultural deterioration. The emergence of western media has an effect to national identity. More educated and internationally exposed Chinese seem to embrace the western way of life. They seem to hold ideologies and beliefs that are similar to the western people. China, like most developing countries is losing its national identity, a dear price to pay for globalization.        Disneyland Resort Paris and Parc Asterix               Disneyland Resort Paris is a holiday and recreation resort located in Marne-la-Vallee, 32 kilometers east of Paris France. It has two theme parks, an entertainment district and seven resort hotels. It was the second Disney Resort to open outside the United States (the first was Tokyo Disney Resort). It is one of Europe’s Top Tourist Destinations. The complex was a subject of controversies and protests among some prominent French figures and labor unions. Some critics think that the prospect of opening a Disney Theme Park in France would encourage an unhealthy American type of consumerism. It was considered as cultural imperialism or neoproivincialism. For others it became a symbol of America within France. According to  (2004) Cultural imperialism is rooted in a common-sense notion many of us understand: It is the reduction in cultural differences around the world” (). It is seen as a distribution by global corporations of commodified Western culture. A process which has worked to the advantage of the USA and Western nations. Cultural Imperialism is the practice of promoting, distinguishing, separating, and artificially injecting of the culture or language of one nation to another. Many prominent French figures oppose the opening of Walt Disney Resort Paris because they see it as an American invasion of French Culture. They fear that it will influence and promote an unhealthy type consumerism in France. Cultural Imperialism often involves a large, economically or militarily powerful nation influencing a smaller, less affluent one. Its opening was greeted by unfavorable response. The park opened on 12 April 1992. Its structure is very much the same as the American parks. Unlike Tokyo Disneyland, Euro Disneyland does have a Main Street, USA, but its Tomorrowland is called Discoveryland. Most of the attractions are versions of those found at the US parks. As with Tokyo Disneyland, there are subtle concessions to the local culture and conditions. There are more covered areas than in the US, because of the less reliable climate of northern Europe, while small Gallic touches were introduced. However, these concessions to French taste were not sufficient to quell dismay about Mickey's arrival. It was branded by some as a 'cultural Chernobyl' and was greeted with near-universal derision by French intellectuals. The French unions railed against the 'fascism' of the company's recruitment policy, with its stress on a certain 'look' (1992).  (2004) defines Interdependence as “two more or less equal partners willingly agree to contribute and extract from their relationship in approximately equal amounts” (p. 5). Of course, this is an ideal state that may approach reality in some instances, but the prevalent pattern in binational regions throughout the world has been one of asymmetrical interdependence, where one nation is stronger than its neighbour and consequently plays the dominant role. In the case of two substantially unequal economies, the productive capacity of the wealthier countries is often matched with the raw materials and cheap labour in the poorer nation to create complementarity which, while asymmetrical in nature, none the less yields proportional benefits to each side. The French Government and Euro Disney agreed that the theme park concentrate on tapping the local French labor market. The employees of Euro Disney would be permanent cast members on the Euro Disney stage. The company made an effort to reflect the multicountry aspect of Euro Disney’s visitors. Disney requires employees who possess sufficient communication skills, can speak at least two European languages (French and others). They are also looking for people who are social and extroverted. Regionalization can be defined process on the regional level with the help of governments. These regional arrangements appear to be the direct result of governmental actions instituting regional trade regimes and creating deeper integration of separate economies on the regional level. Regionalization is a recent phenomenon. After the sharp reduction in world trade flows in the 1930s and 1940s, and the slowness with which the governments reopened their markets to global trade in the 1950s and 1960s, regionalization was the result of US multinational firms investing in production units overseas. These multinationals shifted a good part of their production units into relatively closed markets and sometimes they integrated their operations globally. None the less, regionalization refers to the development of intra-regional trade and investment, each inducing a process of ‘deeper’ behind-the-border industrial integration. Within this process of regionalizing economies liberalization is seen as a force that helps channel the resources of economies and people into activities where they are most likely to excel. Regionalization appears as a force that softens the effects of globalization by pooling governmental policies and also compensates for the loss of national policy sovereignty (1998). Glocalization in its business sense represents a direct acknowledgment by corporate actors of the necessity to cater to -and, indeed, invent -- local conditions, producing and transforming commercial items so they become marketable in different regions and cultures. Glocalization is essentially a refinement of the older concept of globalization (which has become increasingly problematic as it has become more and more identified with economically driven globe-wide homogenization). Glocalization refers directly to the ways in which globalization necessarily involves the adaptation of global processes to local circumstances ( 1998). The initial problems of Euro Disneyland illustrated not only the difficulties of exporting a commodity inextricably associated with American culture to Europe, but also the sorts of changes Disney officials had to make to survive in an unfamiliar and occasionally hostile environment. That Disneyland had such trouble establishing itself in Europe was ironic, since amusement parks were as much a European as an American invention. Indeed, they exemplified the cultural cross-breeding that had always marked the relationship between the two continents. Parc Asterix is a French Amusement Park based on the famed comic book character created by Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo. The creators wanted to build a theme park, patterned after the Disney Maodel. However, the French market, where amusement parks were readily associated with small, often shoddy travelling carnivals, appered unready for a theme park. When Disney announced its intention to open a Disneyland in France a new interest in the sector emerged. In April 1989, Parc Asterix opened. The opening was accompanied by the creation of a company that will operate the theme park – Parc Asterix SA. The opening of Disneyland Resort Paris had a negative impact on the French Theme Park. Disney attracted most of Parc Asterix Clientele dispite the country’s much-trumpeted disdain for American culture. Many local Theme Parks were forced to close because of bankruptcy. Although draining Parc Asterix initially, Disneyland Resort Paris proved to have certain beneficial side effects for the company. Disney’s heavy marketing helped educate the French public about theme parks and amusement parks in general, helping overcome reluctance from many potential Asterix customers as well. The popularity of both has increased as a result, exhibiting a synergistic effect seen in other places with multiple theme parks.   Cultural Imperialism and Protectionism:             From the late 1960s to the early 1990s, a growing number of European politicians and social critics referred almost automatically to America's cultural and linguistic "imperialism" whenever they wanted to describe the effects of Europe's subservience to the American entertainment industry. They worried more than ever about the disappearance of European cultural traditions and the diminished sense of national "identity." And in their most far-reaching attempt yet to impose continent-wide restrictions on America's cultural exports, they succeeded in excluding audiovisual products from the antiprotectionist provisions of the 1993 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, known colloquially as GATT. The French, as always, were more hyperbolic than anyone else in describing the disastrous effects of American culture on their national heritage. In (1967), had been distressed not only by America's economic superiority but by the implications of its cultural dominance. If the French allowed their movie and television studios, as well as their magazines and publishing houses, to be taken over by American companies, he argued, "our system of education--in the large sense of channels of communication by which customs are transmitted and ways of life and thought [are] formulated--would be controlled from the outside." For nearly a century, European governments had been trying, in a variety of ways, to protect their cultural industries from American domination. Repeatedly, the Europeans claimed that first their films and then their television programs were artistically ambitious and socially uplifting whereas American moviemakers and TV producers--compelled to maximize profits--catered to, rather than challenged, their audiences. However familiar these arguments were, at no point did European politicians or intellectuals sound as antagonistic to the American media or as apprehensive about the survival of their own cultural institutions as in the last two decades of the twentieth century. Although their rhetoric during the GATT discussions was often overheated, European (and especially French) officials were wrestling with an issue that none of their predecessors had been able to resolve ( 1997).

The Role of Media in Creating an Imagined Community: CHINA

China The Role of Media in Creating an Imagined Community: According to , an imagined nation is a community...

Media Systems in Africa and Middle East Before, During and After the European Colonization

Media Systems in Developing Regions Before, During and After the European Colonization   This paper discusses how the history of European colonization developed media systems in developing countries particularly, in the African and Arab regions. The first part of this paper looks at the traditional media in Africa before the arrival of Europeans. A discussion of the arrival of European colonists, their treatment of the indigenous people and some of the culture change brought about by colonization, and the introduction to mass media in Africa follows. The second part tackles the role and perceived duty of media in Africa, as well as in the Middle East. Here, the impact of media to the two regions’ society is examined.   Media System in Africa Before the European Colonialism Prior to the colonization by Europeans, Africans had effective and complex systems of interpersonal and mass communication (Moody, 2001). Messages were usually passed from person to person until the information became widely diffuse; Moreover, messages also went out to general audiences through callers, criers, bards and drummers (Doob, 1961). Communication media were the tools employed by Africans to facilitate conveyance of the messages. Callers, criers and bards frequently used whistles, bells, gongs or horns to attract audiences. The callers, criers and bards were actually the media because they acted as the instruments of message conveyance. After choosing a time, usually in the evening, when people would have returned home from the fields, these messengers would sound the attention-getting tool to call people to assembly. At this point, they would announce their news, which often emanated from tribal chiefs or elders. (Doob, 1961). Marketplaces also served as important settings for the development of talking drums as a communication medium (Bohannon, 1964). Unlike town criers, drummers usually did not have the undivided, simultaneous attention of the entire intended audience. Rather, message recipients were passers-by who happened to be within earshot of the drums. To try to attract attention and guarantee comprehension, messages were drummed repeatedly. Established, easily recognizable drum patterns enabled listeners to decipher messages. Other instruments that could carry messages include whistles, horns, reeds, and wood cylinders called tom toms (Doob, 1971). Media that carried messages independent of a human purveyor were functional objects, such as tools, or religious items, such as statues, that had been associated with meanings (Doob, 1961). These permanently encoded media, similar to today's newspapers and magazines, took second seat to auditory communication in early Africans' communication repertoire. Spoken communication, often referred to as the oral tradition, was the predominant method for conveying messages, both for immediate consumption as well as for posterity.   In both silent and oral communications, facial expressions, non-verbal sounds, gestures and physical attributes carried a great deal of meaning, not only about the message purveyor, but also about the message itself (Doob, 1961). Bohannon (1964) states the nomadic tendency of Africans coupled with the power of silent communication to overcome language barriers enabled effective diffusion of information across geographically large and culturally diverse regions. As only two societies (the Vai and the Mum) in Africa developed scripts, permanent media in the form of written works were uncommon in the entire continent. Permanent media instead were in the form of masks, statues, and other objects that had a functional attribute in addition to carrying a message (Doob, 1961). Because of lack of Western experience, Africans had difficulties interpreting the flat media such as paper and photography introduced by European colonists Doob (1961). According to Hachten (1971), researchers have had difficulty studying the array of communication media available to Africans prior to the introduction of European technologies; because the informal mechanisms of distributing information are difficult to locate. This does not suggest a lack in a structure, but because Africans’ informality makes them less conspicuous and hence less amenable to research (Hachten, 1971). Contributing to the difficulty of interpreting traditional modes of communication is the Western bias with which many researchers approach the topic (Moody, 2001). Because they were not raised within Africa's social, cultural, political, or communication tradition frameworks, they are unable to easily or thoroughly interpret them, especially those modes that are subtler. However, within the last few decades, African researchers have contributed to the study of traditional communication systems (Moody, 2001). Earlier, Ugboajah (1985) addresses the issue of cultural bias in the study of African communication systems, and he offers his analyses of traditional, or folk, media. According to Ugboajah (1985), Africans take on many forms and are rich in symbolism, therefore, folk media cannot be conveniently separated from folk cultures. Although these traditional forms of communication fell from the ranks of mainstream media when colonialists arrived and installed their own communication systems, Ugboajah (1985) asserts that folk media, retained their significance to the indigenous masses.   Media System in Africa Under the European Colonialism European colonialism has massively changed Africa's traditional social, economic, cultural and political organization. It has introduced modernization that continues to shape the continent, especially after Africans regained their political sovereignty. The communication technologies introduced by the European colonists were undoubtedly major agents for change. The introduction of mass media by the European colonists came in later, after pioneering developments in mining and farming industries and established colonial bureaucracies intended to support these industries (Bourgault, 1995). Colonial administrators greased the wheels of industry. Under the colony, civil engineers built transportation infrastructure to facilitate industrial activities; Schools provided Africans with just enough math and literacy training to equip them for low-level administrative jobs within the colonial government (Bourgault, 1995). European Colonists said they intended simply to help get African countries on track for modernization and self rule, however colonists' exploitation of natural resources and their reluctance to leave suggest that philanthropic intentions were overstated (Moody, 2003). Colonists' administrative practices had extensive effects on Africa's social, economic, cultural and political traditions. As a result, Africa shifted from a barter economy to a Western-style cash economy (Bourgault, 1995). Among the imported commodities on which Africa would later depend is Western radio and television programs (Moody, 2003). The division between the urban, administrative class and the rural/proletariat classes is the most profound effect of colonialism on modern Africa and its media systems (Moody, 2003). Colonists' education programs focused Africans students' attention toward the West, rather than toward their family's cultural heritage. Schooling required students to leave home, so traditional roles and rituals were forgotten or never learned. Africans educated in the Western tradition also were taught to think in the linear style that evolved in Europe after development of the printing press by Guggenheim in 1490 AD (Moody, 2003). This further put them at odds with their rural brethren who were still accustomed to non-linear way of thinking that grew out of Africa's oral heritage. Also, native languages lost their saliency for Western-educated Africans. The defection of the urban African elite from traditional lifestyles and value systems is important because in controlling governance of the new African nations, it also controlled the growing mass media. Because the Europeans did not have enough manpower to control the vast territories and populations they were taking over in Africa and Asia, they began to use the media as a form of mind control, colonizing people around the world, just as they also colonized information about the world (Clarke, cited in Moody, 2003). Today the mass media includes every visual object that influences the mind—billboard advertisements, commercials and more, especially movies and television. Print and radio, in particular, played important parts in the push for independence and, later, in nation-building and development campaigns. But before discussing the effects of these media, it is important to address the cultural environment into which they were introduced. Over time, a linguistic, social, cultural, and economic chasm grew between Africa's urban elite and its rural and proletariat masses. After independence, Western-educated Africans occupying low level administrative posts in the cities automatically assumed the higher level jobs and lifestyles left vacant by their departed European bosses. As a result, a political gulf also positioned itself between the groups. Interpersonal media such as telephone, post, and telegraph allowed European administrators and expatriates to stay in touch with their families, friends, and colleagues, both on the African continent and in Europe. When mass media finally came on the scene, it was (again) used to serve the interests of white colonists, not black natives (Bourgault, 1995). European-style printing presses came on the scene in Africa in the late 18th Century. Sierra Leone gained a press in 1794, however a French raiding party looted the town soon after delivery, which delayed press operation until after the turn of the 19th Century. By that time, printing presses had begun operating in Egypt and South Africa (Moody, 2003). At that time, newspapers were considered the most effective means of reaching the masses. Ziegler and Asante (cited in Moody, 2003) state that early indigenous African papers were political and outspoken on the rights of Africans around the world. Because of the strong role of the media in moving toward independence, the proper role of the press in Africa came under debate during the 20th Century. Some African leaders argued that the press must present and carry forward revolutionary purpose; to establish a progressive political and economic system upon Africa that will free men from want and every form of injustice. This would enable them to work out their social and cultural destinies in peace and at ease (Ainslie, 1967). In the revolutionary press paradigm, the African press was a direct instrument of revolutionary efforts. According to Ainslie (1967), media coverage should explain and inspire revolution rather than criticize revolutionary agents or activities. This is a view that shaped press systems in Algeria, Guinea, and Mali. Government control of media, however, became a standard in Africa, especially for radio stations, because the government was the only entity with enough money and educated personnel necessary to operate media outlets (Hachten, 1971). Radio broadcast systems were introduced in South Africa, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Kenya the 1920s; Zambia, Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia, and Nigeria, in the 1940s; Burundi, Gambia, Swaziland, Rwanda, and Tanzania, in the 1960s (Ziegler & Asante, 1992). Adoption dates do not necessarily parallel those of printing technology. Sierra Leone had one of the first printing presses but it did not have a radio system until the 1950s. Egypt and South Africa, on the other hand, held their position as early adopters of communication technologies by adopting radio in the 1920s, not long after it became widely adopted by Western audiences (Ziegler & Asante, cited in Moody, 2003). Although South Africa was quick to adopt print and radio technology, it was slow to establish a television system, something it did not do until 1972 (Ziegler & Asante, cited in Moody, 2003). On the other hand, Egypt was consistent in adopting communication technologies: it was among the first African countries to adopt print, radio and television. National leaders in Africa were reluctant to adopt television because of concern that the medium would permit hegemonic influence from American and Britain programming and potentially unleash social conflict over policies of apartheid (Hachten, 1971).   The Impact of Media: The Arab Region Experience There is a considerable body of knowledge, at a general level, relating to media impacts in a foreign context (McQueen, 2003). However, actual investigation of media use amongst non-western audiences seldom occurs, with anecdotal or circumstantial evidence usually offered (Lealand, 1984). This is particularly the case in the Arab countries, and is as much a concern to media industries as it is to mass communication scholarship. Sreberny (1999) states that the region is undergoing profound and rapid change in its media environment and in popular access to information technologies. New communications technologies and means of distribution, new producers and new audiences make the region one of the liveliest mediated cultures around, with profound implications for its politics and culture. Mowlana (1995) describes the impact of European media on the Middle East in terms of technology and content. A large number of cultural and media imperialism studies referred to by Sreberny-Mohammadi (1996) have shown, not only a continuing imbalance in information flows from the west to developing countries, but domination and influence on domestic product in terms of production values, genres, formats, ideologies, languages, national focus and cultural values. Evidence of domination has been found in relation to the west’s trade with the Middle East. Objective, empirical evidence of actual cultural erosion, or skewing of domestic media production as a result of western media flows is more difficult to provide (McQueen, 2003). A political economy analysis of media influence brought about by the European colonialism in the Gulf will take into consideration developments in both Arab and non-Arab terrestrial and satellite television, arguably, the most important delivery vehicle for western TV programs (McQueen, 2003). Furthermore, relevant information regarding local developments in video and cinema distribution must also be considered. According to Forrester (1999) the Middle East is considered a growing market, as well as an important center of production of Arabic language broadcasts and film, amongst media industry personnel. Contradictory forces, however, are also at work. Showtime, a major satellite boasts that it offers the best in western entertainment. Faisal Al-Ayyar, CEO of the Kuwaiti Investments Projects Company (Kipco) explains why Showtime has deliberately ‘steered clear’ of Arabic programming (Forrester, 2000). Al-Ayyar states that they stay with western programming where there are plenty high-quality. Accurate figures for the expansion of media organisations in the region are difficult to come by, but it is estimated that there were 6.96 million TV households in the Gulf in 1999, compared to 4.77 million only four years ago (Baskerville Communications Corp., 1999). Cinema complexes are another booming media phenomenon in the Gulf. Aloofy’s (1998) content study shows that only 7% of the total broadcasts on Gulf stations had a non-Arab source of production. Of entertainment programs only around 5% were non-Arab productions. This figure undermines the cruder versions of the cultural imperialism thesis, which claim that western entertainment dominates international television screens. As a result of western media flows, the change in Arab culture and identity is taking place. Man Chan’s (1994) analysis of Star TV’s impact on the wider Asian region notes that in addition to western broadcasts, the blending of western program formats with regional elements is resulting in a degree of cultural homogenization, at a global and regional level. Rampant consumerism is widely regarded as one effect of western media influence in this region, a belief in line with the media imperialism arguments (McQueen, 2000). The media are frequently accused of promoting materialism and values that are alien to Islamic culture (McQueen, 2000). Further evidence of growing consumerism in the Gulf area is provided by local-based marketing and advertising firms, who celebrate this phenomenon in various commercial publications. Western media, particularly satellite television and films, are often described as hostile to Islamic and Arab society (Al Harib, 1998). According to the Gulf News in the UAE there have been growing calls for a firmer political counter to the negative fallout of satellite TV’ (Oct 21st). In particular, the constant stream of western films that stereotype Arab and Islamic people have united academics, journalists and viewers in dismay. The European Colonialism Continues: Media as an Imperialism Tool Although countries in Africa and the Middle East have gained their independence from the European colonists, it is very evident that they are still under a form of colonization. This is manifested in one of Europe’s greatest legacies to Africa and the Arab region: the media. European introduced media systems for their business and personal convenience. Moreover, they developed media systems to acquire good reputation from the colony. But it seems that the end of introducing and developing media systems is to keep the colony clinging to European culture and tradition even after the colonization. Thus, neo-colonialism occurs, manifested mainly in media.   The idea of cultural and media imperialism implies that modem world media systems have provided an important and strategic means whereby dominant nations have attempted to extend and develop their economic, political and cultural forms of control and power in the global arena. (O’Sullivan & Jewkes, 1997). Hamelink (1995) argues that integrating the communications systems of the developing and developed world eliminates the spaces in which people in developing countries can imagine or construct alternative paths to development, and thus contributes to a pattern of cultural synchronization. As a result, there is a loss of autonomy and cultural difference, and a hierarchical ordering of the world into dependent and exploitative relations (Hamelink, 1995). According to Tracey (1985), cultural and media imperialism theories are closely linked to the promotion of global consumerism and the generation of a culture conducive to wider western corporate interests. Transborder broadcasting, especially direct satellite broadcasting, has been challenged as a form of cultural imperialism (Xiaoming, 2000). Western broadcasters are often accused of creating social instability, destroying local industries and eroding local culture by beaming programs to other countries without permission (Xiaoming, 2000). This is due to the fact that television is not simply an entertainment medium; it has the ability to communicate the norms, rules, and values of a society. Gerbner et al. (1986) state that the major social function of television lies in the continual repetition of patterns (myths, ideologies, facts, relationships, etc.), which serve to define the world, legitimize the social order, and cultivate cultural values. Similarly, Ball-Rokeach and DeFleur (1990) state that mass communication can play an important part in creating the conditions for development of values and value priorities. Moreover, multi-channel cable environment have transformed television viewing. Nowadays, TV programming in Africa and the Middle East is geared towards entertainment, and have served to move the television viewing experience from programming per se to a more control-based consumption experience that involves an active audience.   Conclusion The effects of mass media on Africa are intertwined with the effects of the European colonization on the continent. In examining the general themes that arise on pre-colonial, colonial and revolutionary periods of Africa's history gives one an insight. Africa’s European colonial history shows that the introduction of media systems resulted to a massive change in Africa’s culture and tradition. On the other hand, in the Middle East, the European colonialism has left a legacy that is difficult to let go. As media in this region has been introduced and developed by European colonists, it is inevitable for people in this region not to be hegemonized by the European tradition and culture present in media.             References Ainslie, R. (1967). The press in Africa: Communications past and present. New York: Walker. Al Harbi, K. (1998) Five challenges for the Saudi Media Al – Eqtisadiah  in Arab View. Available at [www.arab.net/arabview/articles]. Accessed [13/10/03]. Aloofy, A. (1998) What makes Arabian Gulf satellite TV programs? A comparative analysis of the volume, origin, and type of program. Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research, ‘The Information Revolution and the Arab World’ ECSSR Ball-Rokeach, S., & DeFleur, M. (1990). Theories of communication (5th ed.). New York: Longman. Baskerville Communications Corp. (1999) quoted in Forrester, C. January 2000, Gulf Marketing Review. Bohannon, P. (1964). Africa and Africans. Garden City, NY: The Natural History Press.   Bourgault, L. M. (1995). Mass media in sub-Saharan Africa. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.   Doob, L. W. (1961). Communication in Africa. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. Forrester, C. (1999) Cairo and Beyond Capital Cities Media, Inc. Multichannel News International Supplement March. Gerbner, G., Gross, L., Morgan, M., & Signorielli, N. (1986). Living with television: The dynamics of the cultivation process. In J. Bryant & D. Zillmann (Eds.), Perspectives on media effects (pp. 17-40). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.   Hachten, W. A. (1971). Muffled drums: The news media in Africa. Ames, IA: The Iowa State University Press. Hamelink, C. (1995) Trends in world communication, Unit 13 for the MA in Mass Communication (by Distance Learning). Centre for Mass Communication Research, University of Leicester, United Kingdom. Lealand, G. (1984) American television programmes on British screen. Broadcasting Research Unit quoted in O'Sullivan et al. (1994) 'Studying the Media' Edward Arnold. Man Chan, J. (1994) National responses and accessibility to Star TV in Asia’ in Sreberny-Mohammadi, A. et al (Eds) (1997) ‘Media in Global Context: A Reader’ Arnold McQueen, D. (2003) Hollywood and Arab identity in the Arabian Gulf. Dissertation for MA in Mass Communications. Available at [members.tripod.com]. Accessed [13/10/03]. Moody, A. (2001) Electronic media in Africa. Media Technologies and Society, Fall.  Mowlana, H. (1995) Mass media systems and communication in the Middle East, Unit 16(a) for the MA in Mass Communication (by Distance Learning). Centre for mass Communication Research, University of Leicester, United Kingdom. Sreberny, A. (1999) MCDL listserve 28th September 1999 call for papers Sreberny-Mohammadi, A (1996) in Curran, J. and Gurevitch, M (eds) (1996) Mass Media and Society Arnold. Ugboajah, F. O. (ed.). (1985). Mass communication, culture and society in West Africa. Oxford: K.G. Saur.   Xiaoming, H. (April 2000) Party Dominance vs. Cultural Imperialism: China's Strategies to Regulate Satellite Broadcasting. Communication Law and Policy. Vol. 5, No. 2: 155-182(28).

Media Systems in Africa and Middle East Before, During and After the European Colonization

Media Systems in Developing Regions Before, During and After the European Colonization This paper discusses how the history of Eu...