Americans focus on what the media frequently shows us rather than the little heard of issues of greater importance. A large nu... ... middle of paper ... ...what they are running for. However, the media has many bad influences on politics ranging from, ads that promote uninformed voting, all the way to only informing the public about what they believe to be important. I do believe that the media does exercise too much power in America. They should not be allowed to present biased news to the public and should let the people make up their own minds on what they want to believe.
Examining these undecided voters is extremely important in light of their potential impact on American politics. In conclusion, the media’s role in the presidential election process is basically to communicate reasonable information both through reporting and paid advertising. This is crucial to the voters because the majority of them receive their information via the media, so in the overall picture, the media can greatly influence the outcome of an election.Bibliography 1.USIA Worldnet. Robert Fullerton, staff writer. http://www.usis-israel.org11/pubhsh/elections/wimedia.ntm 2.USIA Worldnet.
They are a chance for the public to see the candidates speak about vital current issues and their stance on political subjects. They are also a major deciding factor for voters. For example we can contrast the election between Kennedy and Nixon in 1960 and the election between Gore and Bus... ... middle of paper ... ...rivial just to attract viewers. They have digressed from debating about pressing issues in today’s world to speaking about subjects that are relatively unimportant. At points the debates have even become an arena for the candidates to criticize each other rather than the positions the other candidates hold.
This essay will show, unfortunately, that our democracy is not as healthy as it potentially could be because of television and print’s inadequate coverage of politics and the public’s resultant frustration and lack of knowledge. The reason this occurs is not because the media is trying to restrict our role in the government, but because it has other agendas to consider, such as producing maximum profits. Also, the media can take its obligatory role, often referred to as the “fourth estate,” to an extreme. John McManus, a former newspaper reporter and current professor at Santa Clara University researching the social responsibility of news media, specifically uses this term in his book Market-Driven Journalism: Let the Citizen Beware? to explain the media’s ideal role as the fourth branch of the government.
Reputation plays a significant role in who you turn to for the latest news and current events. Consumers value content that matches their opinion which incentivizes media firms to slant their reports by omitting certain facts. Media firms report on things they believe the consumer want to hear and sometimes they leave out key facts that others wise would have been reported. In recent years some of the biggest news anchors honesty and integrity have been called into question because of their opinion based reporting. Bias can be found in news even if it isn’t always helpful, a model created by Matthew Gentezhow and Jesse Shapiro found that bias would be less extreme if the consumer received independent evidence on the actual state of world affairs and if the competition between news outlets would decrease.
How do I prove them? Most likely, it is due to the biased portrayal of issues in the media and the politicization that accompanies what we consume. Now, compare your views to your preferred news reporting entity. More than likely, they are the same. “Power is the ability to define reality and to have other people respond to your definition as if it were their own (Nobles).” People fail to see responsible journalism as a crisis because it is so convenient to have news media make up your mind for you.
Nelson explains that “deception requires not only misleading information but also someone to be mislead” (156). Deception can be found often in advertising yet it is mostly used to exaggerate and not taken for fact. By allowing more government regulations it would only cause more confusion. Nelson claims, “Short of eliminating all advertising, such government roles would be self-defeating” (156). Customers would see that the creditability of the advertiser rises with the increase of regulation causing more readiness to believe what is being advertised causing customers to in turn believe all advertisements were not deceptive.
Opinion is subject to change, but the facts do not. In order to establish a more reliable and credible news source, cable news should have a higher percentage of factual reporting and try to abstain from tabloid journalism. The shift from entertainment to credible information maybe a slow shift, but definitely one that we would benefit from as a society.
For this reason we, as Americans, are more ignorant than ever, but this is not our fault. It is the fault of higher powered parties placing censorships on what television channels are allowed to convey of both our country and that of others. Some people may point to the costs of overseas coverage being more expensive than that of local coverage, but this is not necessarily true. While this may be a concern, my paper will focus on how th... ... middle of paper ... ... Where American media outlets would be hesitant to allow levels of nudity and violence be exposed in public, European media outlets are much more lax and welcome this level of explicit material. Denying somebody of a constitutionally given right (in this case freedom of speech) is not only wrong, but is the core reason for the differences we see in the censorship of media in both regions.
The media contributes to this, portraying a narrow-minded view of the world, showing only portions of what could impact life in the States. Without complete information of outside nations, the democracy in America is flawed and elections are based more on favoritism and who can make the other look worst. This can lead citizens to favor the more socially appealing contender even if he/she is not the right person to lead. In the article “Plato’s Republic vs. Democracy” the author Ogochukwu Okpala stresses that, “to allow the public to vote based on emotions rather than an informed decision could be detrimental to the structure of a society.” The logical alternative is to educate the public that way they may vote for only the truly wise to determine what is best for the nation