Side of Mass Media

We are all aware of how the media is frequently blamed for almost everything
that goes wrong, especially in the twentieth century, when information can be
disseminated in the blink of an eye. Most of the time, politicians accuse the media
of misinterpreting them, framing them, lying, unfairly criticizing them, and failing to
do or achieve what they want the media to do or achieve. The media is frequently
accused of "pointing the wrong way" or "telling stories based on their bias." In
order to fully understand it, we need to go deeper into the main function and role of
mass media.

Key Function of Mass Media in Society

In the introduction of studying mass communication and the mass media,

scholars had been fond of deep understanding the main function of it or, ideally,
what should be its ideal role in society. Using the theories of one of the founding
fathers of Sociology, Emile Durkheim. Understanding the subject will be done
primarily within the context of functionalism, also known as structural
functionalism, which dominated the field of Sociology in the nineteenth century and
in the present time. In the bottom line functionalism is a way of thinking that
examines society on a large scale. It investigates the necessary structures that
comprise a society and how each component contributes to the stability of the
society (Carlos, 2019).

In the study of Singh and Nity (2017) the media is a projection of our general
public, depicting what and how society functions. The only medium that helps
inform people is media, whether it is printed, electronic, or on the web. It also aids
in entertaining the public, educating them, and making them aware of current
events. In line with this, the media contributes either explicitly or implicitly to
cultural growth for both individuals and society, particularly when it comes to the
media's political functions. In the Philippines, as a democratic country, media
functions are inextricably linked to the principle of pluralism; the views the co-
existence of differences in values as real, unavoidable and potentially useful and
good (Sanderson, 2006). A single piece of information, each with its own ideology
and political stance, may serve an important informative function for one institution
while failing to inform another. The ideal would be to have as many media outlets
as possible for as many people in society. Only by recognizing the diversity of
political views and tastes will the media be able to serve the needs, views, and
tastes of as many people and social institutions as possible in a given society. Only
then could it be referred to as part of democracy.
Criticism to its Function

The following are existing objections to the role and function of the media in
society: First, we often overlook the fact that the media does not always function in
the same way for different groups of people. It takes consensus for granted and
ignores it in interpersonal relationships. In other words functionalism tends to take
it for granted, that the media will have the same function for all the people in the
society. However, this is not the case. What may works for some may result in
harsh criticism and misinformation for others. What another institution's reality
maybe is not the reality of another institution. Second it neglects to provide
feedback. In the end functionalism often tends to acknowledge the importance of
context of social, political and cultural as an influence on all stages of
communication process. Finally, it fails to adequately account for social change and
transformation. In societies undergoing change, development, and transformation,
media functions in well-established democratic societies may be dysfunctional.

The Rights of the Mass Media

In the Philippines, it is known as the most free media outlet in Asia, and it is
fully protected by the Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines of 1987 (2013).
In the statement of Article III and section 4 no law shall be passed abridging the
freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people
peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances. This
stems from the oppressive policies of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, who
declared martial law in 1972. This is the darkest period in Philippine journalism;
democracy has been disrupted because the only media outlets allowed to practice
journalism are those supportive of late President Ferdinand Marcos, while those
critical of him have been forced to close. But the dark year didn`t last, after the
EDSA People Power Revolution in 1986, the media presented itself as the vanguard
of the Filipino people's basic freedoms, particularly freedom of speech and
expression. However, as with any responsibility that pertains to freedom, the news
media had its flaws. Years of relatively free-for-all coverage and unabated freedom
have revealed abuse by the mainstream media of its perceived and constitutionally
protected power as an executor of not only the government, but also of society in
general. The most visible problem with media is the issue of conflict of interest,
particularly in political bias, in which political parties use mass media to create
angled stories, present a muddled picture of political rivals, and many other issues
that contribute to the root of the problem.

From all of the dysfunction of the mass media as institution to deliver the
truth to the mass, it has been also seen as “threat”. In the study of (McCombs &
Reynolds, 2002) they mentioned that the power of the media is to control the
mind-set of its reader and audiences. The national press media has the power to
influence the prominent place of concerns on the general public. It emphasizes the
news media's ability to selectively cover certain aspects of the news and exclude
others that are not in the "public's interest" to know. Prejudices also "cut off"
certain societal issues. This is where journalists, whether on purpose or not, use
subjective judgment to decide which stories to completely ignore. This is where
journalists, whether on purpose or not, use subjective judgment to decide which
stories to completely ignore. Moreover even how we deny the truth, the mass
media having biases is really a huge threat because it has been believe that
whoever controls the media controls the truth and the mind of the mass.

This has resulted in the current difficult situation of the mass media and
journalists, who are fighting for their freedom, which has been threatened once
again, but this time this is not because of the dictatorial administrator but because
of the challenge of fighting for its ethics, norms in journalism and even in the eyes
of the masses.

Arise of Social Conflict between Politics and Mass media

The emergence of conflict between government and mass media is one of the
many social conflicts that the Philippines are facing today. To give a broader
definition to the subject, let's define social conflict using the study of Karl Marx.
Social conflict is the struggle between segments of society over valued resources.
To make a distinction between the government and the mass media, the
government is the authorities who have access to the resources and the media are
those who do not but it`s stabilizing the society. But it`s important first to
recognize the relationship of political process and the mass media. Because the
news media are much more likely to react to political events than to initiate them,
political realities quite often determine how the is using the news media to achieve
political goals, and political decisions have a strong influence on who owns the
media and how individuals operate, a society's political culture has a significant
influence on how the news media cover conflicts. However, it is also important to
recognize that this does not imply that the news media has no influence on the
political process. They help to set the political agenda, they have the ability to
accelerate and magnify political success and failure, they have the ability to
mobilize third parties into a conflict, and they are central agents in the construction
of social frames about politics.

To put it another way, the mass media has the ability to set an agenda in
political interest by developing a pattern or repeated relay of information. Over
time, issues are highlighted, some get the spotlight, and some don't get any
attention at all. It has also been assumed that the press and media filter shape the
agenda, and as a result, certain stories are pushed to the public agenda (Beltran,
2017). One of the biggest examples is during former President Marcos' dictatorship;
the media has become an integral part for basic human rights and freedom of
expression but at the same time the cronies of the late President Marcos
dictatorship created an impact that lost the trust of the public.