Political Communication

Fake news? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQcCIzjz9_s

Communication needs in politics Politics is about collective actions Collective actions are impossible without communication between individuals Exchange of information “Knowledge is power” (Francis Bacon, 16th century) Political communication is a key tool in the exercise of power https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOlmTg8mKPk

Communication is needed by the leaders Need to establish and confirm their legitimacy (right to rule) Need to gain and maintain public support for policies Need to preserve the existing political-economic system Competition between different ruling groups (elites) makes each of them interested in building public support in their struggles for power

Communication is needed by the citizens Building social power to defend and advance their interests and to influence government policy Launching campaigns, movements and parties Communication requires: Freedom of information Freedom of expression Freedom of association

P O W E R E L I T E M E D I A C I T I Z E N S

Marshall McLuhan (1911-1980): “The medium is the message.”

Political communication is a battlefield Struggle for access to information Struggle for control of the narrative The democratic ideal – the informed citizenry The public’s right to know The rulers are always better informed than the citizenry And they have advantages in interpreting information Collisions between different versions of “the truth” – different interpretations of the facts reflecting different interests and perceptions

Is the citizenry informed? Problems: Information deficit resulting in ignorance Information glut resulting in confusion Misinformation resulting in both

Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman, Manufacturing Consent: The 5 filters of mass media 1. Size, Ownership, and Profit Orientation The dominant mass-media outlets are large companies operated for profit, and therefore they must cater to the financial interests of the owners, who are usually corporations and controlling investors. Newspaper ownership in Canada In 1990, 17.3% of daily newspapers were independently owned. In 2005 - 1%. Communications giants in Canada Bell Canada, Rogers Communications, Astral Media, Shaw, Quebecor, CBC

2. The Advertising License 2. The Advertising License. Since most of the revenue of major media outlets derives from advertising (not from sales or subscriptions), advertisers have acquired a "de facto licensing authority". Media outlets are not commercially viable without the support of advertisers. News media must therefore cater to the political prejudices and economic desires of their advertisers.

3. Access to information. “Large bureaucracies of the powerful subsidize the mass media, and gain special access [to the news], by their contribution to reducing the media’s costs of acquiring [...] and producing, news. The large entities that provide this subsidy become 'routine' news sources and have privileged access to the gates. Non-routine sources must struggle for access, and may be ignored by the arbitrary decision of the gatekeepers.” The news media is dependent upon private and government news sources. If a media organization loses access to sources, it will lose readers or viewers, and ultimately, advertisers. To minimize such financial danger, news media businesses editorially distort their reporting to favor government and corporate policies in order to stay in business.

4. Flak and the Enforcers: "Flak" refers to negative responses to a media statement or program (e.g. letters, complaints, lawsuits, or legislative actions). Flak can be expensive to the media, either due to loss of advertising revenue, or due to the costs of legal defense or defense of the media outlet's public image. Flak can be organized by powerful, private influence groups (e.g. think tanks). The prospect of eliciting flak can be a deterrent to the reporting of certain kinds of facts or opinions.

5. Ideological filters. Editors and journalists interpret facts according to their ideological orientations.

Knight Foundation study, 2018: https://knightfoundation.org/reports/indicators-of-news-media-trust

Knight Foundation study, 2018: https://knightfoundation.org/reports/indicators-of-news-media-trust

“One can fool some men, or fool all men in some places and times, but one cannot fool all men in all places and ages.” Jacques Abbadie, a French Protestant minister, 1684