The Silver Bullet
First off, sorry I've been delinquent in posting. Acting and Designing a show right now and tech starts Tuesday.
The last post started a disscussion so I'll keep riding that pony till it bucks. We're all human so "point of view" is something we will never escape. But education opens you up to seeing a bigger picture. I myself went through a startling transfermation during high school (ha, ha.) At the age of 14 I was what we would call a neo-con (yep, thats all the education you need.) Probably since it was the Reagan era and as a young boy I like guns and war - hey in the woods behind your house it's all fun and games.
But the more that I learned (math, science, literature, and history) the more of a "liberal" I became. My teachers all had different points of view and I think that helped me to discover mine. I didn't even know I was a liberal until my AP Government teacher called on me in class as "the Liberals Liberal." Really, I thought I was an independant (and yes I voted for Perot in '92.) I din't find out for years later (when my brother was taking his class) that he was a liberatarian. But he was one of my favorite teachers (the subject helped.)
I guess the point is, doesn't the media have a reponcibility to inform? If that is what they are doing then they are part of the teaching process, on a larger scale. Media has given up it's responcibilities in that respect and started to just entertain. That is what needs to stop, and when it does we will see the kind of objective journalism that helped strengthen the country during the Twentith Century.
As for access to media. It does sadden me to see vast parts of our country saddled with one soource media - newspapers or airwave (we haven't even hit on radio yet.) But think about this, Ruport Murdock controls 80% of the asian market - now that is being isolated.
No one wants to talk about it, but reinstituting the regualtions on corprate media ownership is the only way I see to fix this problem, and increase competion (if not profits.) But I think we're gonna need a Progressive Revolution in not only the politicians of this country, but the people themselves. Education always polls well, but it rarely wins anyone an election.
posted by Thehairyape @ 5:52 PM
3 Comments:
I have a bunch of thoughts about this, which I will try to articulate in a cohesive way a little later, but for now, just one question.
Are you saying that you want the government to regulate the media?
I know that, to an extent they already do. But do we want more of it? I am extremely wary of this. I whole heartedly believe in the separation of church and state and feel that the marrying of government and media could be just as detrimental.
Good question. No, I want the government to reinstate the regulations regarding corporate ownership of media.
Consolidation of media outlets has contributed to the disentigration of journalism. If one company owns 12 nespapers, 40 radio stations, and 25 televison stations - accross 4 markets - well then, those markets are not getting a well informed opinoin, just that corporations opinion.
Personally, I would like it if the government:
1) Restrict ownership of media outlets to one source per market (tv, radio, or print.)
2) Restrict corprate ownership of media from companies with government contracts (GE it the best example, they make all our war plane engines, and own NBC - think they had a vested intrest in going to war in Iraq?)
3) Develop a FCC doctrine that focus's on fairness and accuracy instead of violence and sexuality. Many worry about tv's influnce on children, but no one says a peep about it's influence on adults.
I agree that the government should not (and can not under the constitution) restrict the press. But there is nothing, in that document, that says they cn't regulate the ownership. We did it in 1906 and it workrd well, so well it took the conservative movement 30 years to break it down.
I completely agree!
No matter how much I hate what is spewed on TV, I cannot flirt with the idea of censorship. You know that in saying the FCC should have a doctrine about sex and violence it is a license to inhibit freedom of speech. I would rather the FCC have a doctrine about editing and fact finding. About using quotes in context and justifying reporting with evidence. If the media had to support everything it put forth in a more demanding way, then maybe...
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