Download Special Status of the Press

Special Status of the Press
• 1st Amendment Protections
• Special laws (shield laws)
• How do we justify this status?
Role of Press in a Democracy
• Democracy can’t function without
informed, critical citizens
• The press is the main informer of the public
• Jefferson—A free nation requires a free
press
The First Amendment
• Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof; or abridging the
freedom of speech, or of the press; or the
right of the people peaceably to assemble,
and to petition the Government for a
redress of grievances.
In the modern world of
corporate press, does the press
fulfill the role that justifies its
special status?
• Is the modern press (or mass media)
more a lap dog for corporate interests
than a watchdog?
Herman and Chomsky’s
Propaganda Model
• Mass media is a tool for
communicating messages to the public
• Function includes: amuse, entertain,
inform, socialize (assimilate) people
into institutions
• In a diverse society, this requires
propaganda
Propaganda is not always
obvious
• Media are in private hands
• There appears to be competition
• Occasionally media attack government
or corporations
Key Elements of Propaganda
• Size, concentrated ownership, wealth &
power of owners of mass media
• Advertising as the primary source of
income
• A culture of ‘experts’
• ‘Flak’ as a tool of discipline
• ‘Civic religion’ of anti-communism and free
markets
Media Concentration
• The dangers of concentration (CJR)
• The Big Five, an American keiretsu
• Consolidation of service and content
providers
– Add internet access to the new mix
Advertising as the Primary
Source of Income
• The problem with advertising revenue—MS
and ‘complementary copy’
• Subscription funded media can’t compete
despite superior products and higher
customer satisfaction
• Delivering targeted audiences
• Killing stories (PEW study)
A Culture of Experts
• Talking heads and the ‘punditocracy’
• Small cadre of mediagenic quasiexperts
“Flak” as a Tool of Discipline
• Press attacks government, right attacks
press
• Conservative ‘media watchdog’ groups
The Religion of the Market
• The rhetoric of free markets is one
thing, the reality of markets is quite
another
Markets, Market Assumptions,
And The Invisible Hand
The Market Society (17th
Century)
• Emphasis of individualism (autonomy)
• The sovereign consumer
• The law of supply and demand
Supply and Demand
• Elasticity of supply and demand
• Price elasticity
• Marginal costs and marginal benefits (utility
at the margins)
The Market Society (17th
Century)
•
•
•
•
Emphasis of individualism (autonomy)
The sovereign consumer
The law of supply and demand
Markets, essentially unregulated businesses,
benefit society
Business is to be considered as an
autonomous and independent
activity because it will then serve
society
• Robert Solomon
Markets and Freedom
• Free markets are possible only within a
broader context of FREEDOM
• Freedom allows capitalism to work
Economic and Political Freedoms
• Which take priority?
Marx and Capitalists Agree on the
Importance of Freedom
• Capitalists emphasize the freedom of
individuals to pursue their own ends
through the operation of markets
• Marx emphasizes the freedom of an
individual from coercive market forces
Market Assumptions
• Perfect Information
• Perfect Competition
Competitive Markets are
Characterized By:
• Low costs of entry
• Low costs of exit
• Absence of monopolies
Market Assumptions
•
•
•
•
Perfect Information
Perfect Competition
Mobility Factors
Firms Maximize Profits, Consumers
Maximize Utility
• Consumer Preferences are Exogenous
• Few, If Any, Externalities
Markets, Market Assumptions,
And The Invisible Hand
The Invisible Hand
• Individuals, seeking their own self interest,
providing good products at a fair price, are
guided by an invisible hand to promote the
public interest
BUT, Historically markets
produce tremendous inequality
• ‘Free trade’ advocates rarely want free trade
• Markets deal poorly with values that are
hard to monetize—Richard Cory