Mass

Media
and
Society
LESSON 5 Group 3
 Violence, Consumerism, and Mass
Media
Most people think that the mass media
especially television has a pervasive effect on
society, especially on children. Today, younger
generations are shaped more by the mass media
more than their genes. People have often blamed
the mass media for shaping the violent behavior
of children. Violent behaviors are also
commonly associated with watching movies and
television.
 McGuire noted several of the most mentioned intended
media effects:

• the effects of advertising on purchasing

• the effects of political campaigns on voting
• the effects of public announcements (PSAs) on
personal behavior and social improvement
• the effects of propaganda on ideology
• the effects of media ritual on control
One of the most important influences of
the mass media is on the socialization of
children. By providing "role models"
and stereotypes, children often adopt
these models and stereotypes as they
engage with their families and friends. 

Young people are especially in jeopardy

of the negative effects of television
violence because "many younger
children cannot discriminate between
what they see and what is real" reports
the AAP.
Three primary effects of viewing violent television
programming on children:

Ample evidence supports the argument that children can and

do learn aggressive behaviors and attitudes from viewing
violence on television.

Those who view relatively Viewers of television

high levels of televised
violence develop an
increased and exaggerated
fear of becoming a victim
of violence.
violence have shown a
tendency to become
desensitized to violence.
 Mass Media and Youth Culture

In review of literature done by Lanuza, regarding

the mediatization of the Filipino youth, he
observes that "mass media exhibits uncertain
character in relation to the formation of youth
culture."

He points out that female Gen X youth:

aggressive, expressive, unconventional, and
liberated. Males are depicted as optimistic,
independent, adventurous, and wild.
 Mass Media and Gender
Stereotypes

Stereotypes are images that can be adopted about specific types of

individuals, groups or certain ways of doing things. These thoughts or
beliefs may or may not accurately reflect reality. Stereotypes enable
each member of society to deal properly about certain individuals and
provide them with the right script on how to act properly in a certain
social situation.
Studies would also show that constant exposure to sexually
explicit materials tends to affect family values.

These results suggest a view that sexually explicit media

content raises exposure to deviance and may weaken
societal values.

Constant exposure to sexually explicit materials also

reinforce the idea among men that violence against women
is morally acceptable.
 Mass Media and Knowledge Production

Mass Media as a tool for propaganda

Mass media is also a powerful tool in

disseminating certain political ideas. In some
countries, the mass media is strictly regulated by
the government. Authoritarian states usually use
the mass media for its project of nation-
building. Hence, it constantly watches over
oppositions and protests in alternative platforms
of mass media. Mass media can also be used to
strengthen national interests.
The media act as an agent of stability, charged
with the task of helping preserve social and
political order. This function is commonly
associated with the term development
journalism.

Mass media generally has the function of

maintaining the status quo by trolling the
information that goes to the audience.
 Mass Media and the “Society of
Spectacle”
In an age of society as spectacle, a term coined by Guy
Debord (1931-1994), a French artist and social critic,
spectacle or media images dominate politics in modern
societies.
The media are complicit in the generation of spectacle
politics, redefining politics as battle for image, display, and
story in the forms of entertainment and drama.
Politicians get elected because they represent the poor and the
oppressed in their movies.
In the 1920s,Walter Lippmann described the emergence
of a new professional class of “publicists" and "press
agents" standing between US politicians and the media.
They are now called public relations consultants. They
play a big role in shaping the image of the politicians
through mass media campaigns and lobbying.
Political leaders now require qualities to be selected as
candidates--they need to be credible television
performers, be visually appealing to voters, and be able to
speak in sound bites. They must also be able to follow
scripts designed by spin-doctors. Hence, aspirant leaders
with televisual charisma, backed by good spin-doctors or
PR consultants, can land a neophyte into public office.
 Mediatization of Social Life
Mediatization refers to the pervasive effects of mass
media on how people see and interpret social events.
Mass media influences people more than their genes.
The reason being that mass media invades and
mediates all forms of social life, not just politics.
The mass media, through the influence of large
advertising companies, generate images called
"spectacle" by the French sociologist, Guy Debord.
These images or "spectacles," pre-defines and
determines the way people look at the world and
interact with other people.
Many sociologists believe that we live in a
"society of brands and logos"(Klein).The French
sociologist Jean Baudrillard even argued, quite
extremely, that today, with the proliferation of
mass media images, people cannot distinguish
anymore between the real and the copy of the
real or the simulacrum.
 The Rise of Knowledge Society
Globalization is constituted in and through networks and
causing circulation of symbols rather than things, then the
rapid and endless flow of media products are emblematic of
the process of globalization.
New age of Internet-based mass media ushers in the so-called
“information societ” or knowledge society. Unlike in the
traditional or modern societies, the people in “information
societies" rely more and more on the use and access to
information rather than on machines and human labor.
People who live in information societies are immersed
in the culture of these new technologies. These new
technologies that create virtual communities, spaces,
and identities have changed dramatically the
landscape of human life.

Glocalization, a term popularized by Roland Robertson, the

process whereby global supplies and media images are
transformed to meet local cultures.
 Cyberdemocracy and Globalization of Media

The number of mobile cellular subscriptions worldwide is approaching the

number of people on earth. The fact is almost 3 billion people (40%) of the
world’s population are using the internet
Internet promise that it will give a voice back to the people. The internet has
broadened the democratic spaces for people to engage in politics
The power of the social media network that prompted some governments to
regulate their use.
 Cyberdemocracy or Digital Divide?
Digital divide is inequalities created by the access and use of CITs. It is now
recognized as an international issue.
Manuel Castells defines the digital divide as "inequality of access to the
Internet.
Jan Van Dijk and Kenneth Hacker (2008) argue that there are four forms of
barriers to access:
• the lack of mental access
• the lack of material access
• the lack of skills access
• the lack of usage access
The digital divide is a problem of persistent poverty and inequality. In an
information society, productivity and economic growth become more
and more dependent on the access and use of latest information
technology and computer-mediated communications.

The penetration of internet in a country is heavily dependent on

telecommunications infrastructure. In 1992, the Philippines had one of
the lowest levels of telephone penetration in Asia.

According to recent statistics from The Global Web Index, the

Philippines has the fastest growing Internet population in the world,
experiencing 531% growth in the last five years.
Philippines also tops in social media use, with each of its 34 million
Internet users spending 4 hours a day engaged in some sort of digital
social media.
Internet access is necessary for democratization and civic participation in
modern society and the globalized world.
The advent of ICTs is also ironic considering that it is supposed to provide
free access and equal opportunities for all, yet it also creates new oligopolies
and corporate monopolies.
The government also has to provide affordable access to ICTs through
infrastructure and active upgrading of its basic services to the people. While
it is debatable whether access to Internet is a basic human right or not, as
countries globalize, every government has to address the problem of digital
divide.
Another challenge for government and educational sectors is to create "a
critical media literacy" that can educate young netizens of the power as well
as the sinister effects of new ICTS.
Mass
Media
and
Society
LESSON 5 Group 3