For instance Barack Obama is catapulted onto the national scene.Ron Paul get's no attention.If the media had a different point of view would it be the opposite?Mrs Clinton running for Senate.Treated as intelligent and well qualified.Just as easily couldn't she have been a 2nd rate lawyer riding her husbands coatails.Arnold the Media paints him as Actor and guilty of sexual harrasment.Couldnt he have been a good family man who became a self made millionaire?
2007-05-17 02:13:11 · 12 answers · asked by Dr. NG 7 in Politics & Government ➔ Civic Participation
I'm also going against the grain on this question. The Control word implies that we are all victims of an evil empire. Here we sit in the free-est place on earth with so many more streams of information than there are hours in the day. We each have a responsibility to use news sources that present the widest array of information in a format that requires individual thought and digestion. People who are willing to be spoon-fed will inevitably ingest the opinions of popular culture.
I don't believe that the Media is monolithic. I see journalists who struggle (and even die in the line of duty) to get information to us. I see journalists who struggle with questions about what information is responsible and what is sensational or offensive. There is news analysis from every perspective under the sun. I think the Media, in general, bought and disseminated the WMD story in Iraq and is now going through a period of self-reflection and recrimination. That story demonstrates how much power there is in "group think". That is the biggest weakness in the Media currently and it certainly begs for improvement.
As individuals, we are responsible for informing ourselves. With regard to political candidates, I can think of no better way than to watch debates and take every opportunity to read direct quotes and watch the nuances of any media appearances. We have to learn about the issues, think deeply and judge personal qualities carefully for ourselves.
I don't see how the Media in the free world could control you unless you think that the Buzz and the TV ads are the real message.
2007-05-17 10:05:36 · answer #1 · answered by Sandi Lansing 2 · 1⤊ 2⤋
The media has an agenda to get their candidates elected. That is why they squealed so much when Mr. Bush beat Mr. Gore (Yes. Bush did have a legitimate win). They created this furor over hanging chad and mentioned nothing about all the votes from the military overseas that the Democrats tried to get disallowed.
Dr. Alan Keyes was all but ignored by the media, even though he is intelligent (more so than any of the current candidates), forthright and decisive.
They ignored Patrick Mahoney when he ran in the Democrat presidential primary a couple of cycles ago because he's a minister and pro-life.
Rudy Giuliani is a darling because he is a RiNO (Republican in Name Only).
There are numerous examples.
2007-05-17 11:22:20 · answer #2 · answered by †Lawrence R† 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Let's assume for a moment that the media has no influence over how we see politicians at all.
That would mean that elections are decided by voters who cast their votes based on people they identify with, feel support their ideals and values, and will act in their best interest.
Given the empirical evidence of election results, that would mean that the majority of Americans are either morons or scoundrels.
Since I know a lot of people, I reject the conclusion that the majority are mentally or morally defective. I have no choice but to conclude that the media does, in fact, control what people think.
2007-05-17 10:34:57 · answer #3 · answered by open4one 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Certainly!! Commentators often refer to Mrs. Clinton and Senator Obama denying Mrs. Clinton her honorific. The amount of coverage affects voters. The amount of negative or positive covered does the same. Check polling results for the Clinton Dole race. Once of the most popular video clips showed Dole falling from the stage. It was shown for weeks. It reinforced a negative image.
2007-05-17 13:26:35 · answer #4 · answered by poppidad 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Even outside of politics, the media will ALWAYS show what they want to show and have an angle that suits their needs best.
This is why it is important for intelligent, critically thinking people to not rely on the media as their only source to learn things. We must do research on our own to find out the entire truth, not just bits and pieces the media provides.
2007-05-17 10:14:24 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
I am going to go against the grain and say that the media does not control how we see politicians. The word I want to emphasize is the word control. If we were citizens of Hugo Chavez's Venezuela or Putin's Russia better yet North Korea's Kim Yung ILL and we were exposed to their State Run media, I would say the media controls how we see politicians. In the cases previously mentioned, their are no other politicians according to the State Run Media. If others are seen, they are standing alongside the "Alpha male".
China is notorious for media control and any enterprising Fortune 500 company that wants to do business with China must accept Government control media. Recently, Microsoft had to agree to these terms in order to have a base of operation in China.
I think what you are getting at, is who and how is the news edited including the spinning of the news versus the straight reporting of the news by news stations. The internet, YouTube consumer access to global positioning equipment, these technological variables give us the opportunity to learn the news from more than one source, as of today, free from government control. The media as we know it is having to compete with podcasting. Barack Obama was the first to take advantage of podcasting directly to the voter, his pure message, unfiltered by the media. Howard Dean, now the DNC Chair bypassed the media by fundraising on the internet. This will be standard practice for all elections. So, I would argue that we have proven additional tributaries that we can gain the correct perception of the news. However, if we get lazy and depend on one source for the news and we base our decision on that one source, then the media's influence will move from persuasion to control.
2007-05-17 14:37:30 · answer #6 · answered by mark_hensley@sbcglobal.net 7 · 1⤊ 3⤋
Yes, it's called the good old boy system. You scratch my back, and I'll scratch yours. They show those who best represent their interests in a good light and those that they feel threatened by in a negative light.
2007-05-17 15:28:22 · answer #7 · answered by Robert L 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes. They control how we see allot of things not just politicians. They promote what they like and demonize the people who they don't.
2007-05-17 13:55:09 · answer #8 · answered by sdrew33 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Yes, they control everything we see about any politician. the media can make or break a would be candidate.
2007-05-17 10:44:44 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
Yes..they hide the fact that they are all idiots...every one of them (no exceptions)!
2007-05-17 12:44:01 · answer #10 · answered by 452 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋