Homework: Answer this exam question Describe one way in which politicians use the mass media to get their message across and explain why this media coverage might lead people to lose faith in the main political parties. (5 marks)

Times readers run the country, Telegraph readers think they run the country, Guardian readers wish they ran the country, Mirror readers would run the country if the Times readers didn't run it already, Mail readers don't know who runs the country, Express readers don't care who runs the country, and Sun readers don't give a damn who runs the country as long as her measurements exceed This was quoted as an analysis by MPs of the readerships of UK newspapers in a Guardian diary piece in the early 1980s. There have been many variants of it (including 'FT readers pay to run the country', 'Mail readers know who should be running the country' and 'Mirror readers will run the country once the revolution comes'), but all tend to agree about Sun readers (though many in cruder terms). Task Stick this into your books and annotate explaining what this tells us about different readers of newspapers. Consider social class gender and age. Task Stick this into your books and annotate explaining what this tells us about different readers of newspapers. Consider social class gender and age.

Who owns the mass media? Learning Objectives To identify how private ownership of the media gives control. To understand and explain issues such as bias, propaganda and censorship Who owns the mass media? Learning Objectives To identify how private ownership of the media gives control. To understand and explain issues such as bias, propaganda and censorship STARTER Think about Marxist theory ….. Who do Marxists believe own the media? Why do the owners of the media have power? STARTER Think about Marxist theory ….. Who do Marxists believe own the media? Why do the owners of the media have power?

Let’s see how true this is! In your group, compare your newspapers: a)Which paper contains the most celebrity stories? b)Which paper contains the most international stories? c)Which paper has the most pictures? d)Which paper is the hardest to read? e)Compare similar stories. Are they saying the same thing?

Isn’t the news just the news? A&feature=related In your own words, explain what is happening in this scene of The Newsroom

Conflict Approach The conflict approach theory states that the content of the newspapers is controlled by the powerful and wealthy owners (gatekeepers). They can decide what is said in the newspapers and how it is said. Followers of the conflict approach believe that there is no longer free press, which means that the newspapers are now controlled by few huge multimedia conglomerates such as News Corp, which is run by Rupert Murdoch, rather than lots of smaller newspapers expressing their views. Additionally, more and more it is the people who fund the media who have control. Pluralist Approach Pluralists believe that we do have free press, which means that the newspapers are not controlled by their owners, but by the people who read them. Readers use their market power to determine what is written in newspapers because if they don’t like what is written, they won’t buy the newspaper. For example, the Sun newspaper does not contain international news because it’s readers wouldn’t want to read it. The public can also express their views through writing to the newspaper editors and telling them what content they would like included. Pluralists believe that the day to day control over the content of newspapers lies with the editors and journalists, not the owners. How does the clip from The Newsroom fit in with these theories?

Are we best served by private enterprise? We are best served by allowing the market to have the maximum amount of freedom with the minimum of government control. George Monbiot, 2007 This is a neo-liberal point of view. 1)What are the benefits of a neo-liberal point of view? 2)What are the risks of a neo-liberal point of view? 3)Does this fit best with the conflict approach or pluralist approach?

“we want to work on people until they have capitulated to us, until they grasp ideologically that what is happening in Germany today not only must be accepted but also can be accepted “ Joseph Goebbels press conference, March 1933

Watch the clip and summarise the main points. Think about … how the media was controlled? What messages were they trying to portray to people Watch the clip and summarise the main points. Think about … how the media was controlled? What messages were they trying to portray to people Nazi Propaganda and censorship Joseph Goebbels served as Hitlers Minister of Propaganda Keywords Propaganda – the selection and control of information usually for political ends Censorship – preventing certain information from becoming public knowledge Write these in your books Watch the clip and summarise the main points. Think about … how the media was controlled? What messages were they trying to portray to people Watch the clip and summarise the main points. Think about … how the media was controlled? What messages were they trying to portray to people

“we want to work on people until they have capitulated to us, until they grasp ideologically that what is happening in Germany today not only must be accepted but also can be accepted “ Joseph Goebbels press conference, March 1933 Goebbels controlled the content of newspapers, radio and film. He championed issues including, dictatorship, war and genocide. Through the control of film content he was able to take a subtle approach to propaganda. His films were aimed at entertaining people and did not contain obvious political content. He encouraged films that took a sympathetic view to euthanasia( mercy killing) for those with terminal illnesses or physical disabilities. He cast villains as Jewish and they would always receive the death penalty. Task How did he get his point across to people through his choice of film content and characters? Do you think its right for a newspaper to support a particular political party? Task How did he get his point across to people through his choice of film content and characters? Do you think its right for a newspaper to support a particular political party? “we want to work on people until they have capitulated to us, until they grasp ideologically that what is happening in Germany today not only must be accepted but also can be accepted “ Joseph Goebbels press conference, March 1933

Freedom of speech and free press If the media is influenced by politicians or those with power can there really be freedom of speech and free press? Task Put together an argument either agreeing that that there is such a thing as free press or not. Include words such as bias, censorship and gatekeepers Freedom of speech and free press If the media is influenced by politicians or those with power can there really be freedom of speech and free press? Task Put together an argument either agreeing that that there is such a thing as free press or not. Include words such as bias, censorship and gatekeepers Freedom of speech – the democratic principle that protects legitimate comment regarding the actions of the government or matters of public interest Censorship – preventing certain information from becoming public knowledge Bias – not taking a neutral view but favouring one side of an argument or debate. Gatekeeper – one who has editorial control over the media content Spin – managing the message to influence the way in which events are reported