Definitions

 Fake news – deliberately false and often sensational news

created to influence political views or to be a joke.
 It can also be clickbait, controversial titles designed to get
people to access websites in order for them to make profit.
 Post-truth - objective facts are less influential in shaping public
opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief (this is why
controversial headlines are used) . We are currently living in a
post-truth era where words are used not to inform but to engage.
 Populism - the quality of appealing to or being aimed at ordinary
people to gain support and power .
There are even websites where you can create your own
‘fake news’, here is one made on the website
http://www.classtools.net/breakingnews/ .
WOMEN AND SENSATIONAL NEWS

 Some news isn’t fake but is simply sensational, The Daily Mail is a
huge culprit of oversexualising women in order to make cheap
stories.
 As seen on the next page, the headlines are ridiculous, using
perverse or suggestive words to describe women who are simply
living their lives.
 The articles are un-informative and do not release any
information, many see them as clickbait as they are using
women's bodies to get people to view their articles and website.
semi-famous model posts picture in bikini
whilst on holiday.
Personal news choices
 Our choice of newsfeed is wide, appealing to
different people’s cultures, interests and needs.
 I use buzzfeed news as my source of information,
they manage to publish both serious news stories
and light-hearted funny articles.
 Their twitter page is constantly updated with serious
breaking news, often being one of the first media
outlets to post. On the other hand, their website and
app have funny and happy content that you can
read with ease.
CULTIVATION THEORY - GEORGE GERBENER
• The idea is that mass media has gradual long-term effects
which are small and occur over a long time.
• Rather than a change in opinion, the theory says that it is a
reinforcement to norms.
• It is said that people who watch lots of television are more
likely to be influenced or those who consume more media
are likely to be affected.
• It is a reinforcement of opinions rather than a change.
• E.g. if you have strong opinions on immigration, you will buy
the Daily Mail who publish lots of stories on immigration and
your views on immigration will be reinforced by what you
read.
• The glamorisation of the use of guns creates a sense of
normality, meaning we are no longer shocked by it but
predict it.
• Mean world syndrome - the changed perception of those
who consume a lot of media and are therefore fearful of
things in life that may not be so common. They feel that they
have a heightened awareness however it is just the influence
of the media and not an apparent or proportionate fear.
Research evidence
 An experiment into the theory got one group of college students watch a
lot of TV and another to watch a little, those that watched more
particularly action or intense programmes were found to be more fearful
of daily life. This shows that exposure to the media creates anxiety.
 A second study of American college students found that those who watch
a lot of soap operas overestimate the amount of abortions and divorces
that occur in real-life.
 The theory has been accused of being simplistic, not taking into account
cultural differences. It also assumes that the audience is passive which is
disbelieved by most.
 Violence is shown with the stories of 50% of television characters in
America however in actuality only 1% of people experience this.
 2 ORDER EFFECTS

 First order effects – general beliefs about the world.

 Second order effects – specific attitudes and judgements. The way a
person acts or their personality can be changed from exposure to the
media, e.g. In the 1970’s Americanisation was prominent with many
American terms being used due to American television shows.
 The order effects divide viewers into two categories, light and heavy.;
 Heavy viewer demographics – young people, low socio-economic
groups or those watching more than 4 hours of TV.
 Light viewer demographics – older, richer people and those that do not
consume excessive amounts of media, tend to have stronger views and
will for them not to change.
THE GUARDIAN AND DAILY
MAIL HEADLINES OVER THE
YEARS – CULTIVATION
THEORY AND MEAN WORLD
SYNDROME
OUTBREAK OF WW2 - 1939
ASSASSINATION OF JFK - 1963
1ST MAN ON THE MOON - 1969
AIDS – MID 1980’S
PCC – PRESS COMPLAINT COMMISSION AND THE
NEWS OF THE WORLD SCANDAL
 The PCC was a voluntary body created to investigate abuses of the press and ensure the rights
of the reader and press are treated fairly.
 The editor of the News of the World, Andy Coulson was promoted to Head of Communications
within the government under David Cameron amongst rumours but was eventually arrested
and spent 5 months in jail.
 The PCC was closed in 2012 after its lack of action on the News of the World phone hacking
scandal.
 The News of the World was closed by Rupert Murdoch in 2012 alongside this due to the
scandal, the paper had been around for 120 years and was the UK’s biggest Sunday
newspaper.
 Covert observation techniques such as phone tapping were used by the newspaper to gather
information.
 The phone of a murdered British school girl had been hacked by the newspaper in order to
gather information. Whilst it was not confirmed that she had been murdered and was
supposedly missing, the newspaper deleted personal messages and voicemails from her phone
in order to make room for more. The family were given false hope as they could see this activity
on her phone, their phones were also targeted too.
 There was evidence of phone hacking for up to 10 years before this scandal but it was found
that the MET chose not to follow these leads.
LEVESON INQUIRY 2011/2012
 A judicial public inquiry into the culture, practises and ethics of the British Press set up by
David Cameron in the wake of the phone-hacking scandal of News of the World.
 There were a series of public hearing held throughout 2011 and 2012 and as a result of
these the Leveson Report was published.
 The report recommended a new independent body to replace the Press Complaints
Commission which should be recognised by the state through law.
 Leveson also made recommendations regarding the Data Protection Act and powers
and duties of the Information Commissioner, and about conduct of relations between
the press, the police, and politicians. He praised the satirical magazine Private Eye for
previously having refused to join the Press Complaints Commission, saying it was an
'understandable consequence' of the perceived closeness between the Commission
and 'those so often held to account by that publication‘.
 The controversy surrounding the proposals given by Leveson was due to the apparent
infringement of The Freedom of the Press and Freedom of Speech. Many politicians
would also oppose further restrictions to the press as damaging the image of their
opponents in the media benefits them and using the press as a means of propaganda
is something that many do.
INDEPENDENT PRESS STANDARDS
ORGANISATION
 “We are IPSO, the independent regulator of most of the UK’s
newspapers and magazines. We protect people’s rights, uphold
high standards of journalism and help to maintain freedom of
expression.”
 The website displays its code of practise, stating that they
investigate into complaints of; accuracy, privacy, harassment,
intrusion into grief or shock, children, children in sex cases,
hospitals, reporting of crime, victims of sexual assault,
discrimination, financial journalism, confidential sources, witness
payment in criminal trials and payment to criminals.
IMPRESS
 “IMPRESS is a regulator designed for the future of media, building on the core
principles of the past, protecting journalism, while innovating to deal with the
challenges of the digital age.”
 IMPRESS is built upon the mistakes of the Leveson inquiry, trying to create an
independent review of the UK press as Leveson suggested.
 Members of the publishers association have shunned IMPRESS for scrutinising
the press in the way Leveson recommended and went to court in an
attempt to remove the organisation as they claimed that IPSO already
existed and was doing a suitable job. The High Court rejected this idea and
IMPRESS took this as validation that they in fact should exist as a higher form
of scrutiny of the UK press than ISPO.
 The IPSO website claims that they are there to uphold the publics priorities of
accuracy, privacy and protecting children.
 What is meant by a free press?
 The UK’s newspapers, magazines, television and radio stations
should be able to express any opinion they wish, whether it
criticizes the government or other important organisations without
interference and restriction from the government.
 Do we need to regulate it?
 What are the dangers of too much or too little regulation?