‘Habermas argues that the development of early modern capitalism brought into being an autonomous arena of public debate.’
Where and how news is discussed about in the public
Public sphere- an area in social life where individuals come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems and through that discussion influence political action.
- the mass media has resulted in reduction of plurality (fewer voices discussing the news)
- public sphere is strengthened by new media as there is more opportunity for communication but weakens it as the quality of discussion is less and there is an impact of anonymity
- twitter is used for public debate
- people can discuss what they read on the newspaper with colleagues
The private sphere– is the realm of family life
The watch dog- overseeing the state by revealing abuses in the exercise of state authority
- Curran and Seaton– their book helps us understand the relationship between who owns the mass media and their output
- relationship between media conglomerates and politicians
- media industries are dominated by a small number of giant conglomerates
- media industries are about profit and power
- concentrated ownership results in lack of choice
- independent diverse ownership results in more choice, creativity and diversity of products
- Livingstone and Lunt– think the needs of a citizen are in conflict with the needs of the consumer, because protection can limit freedom
- regualation of media products is hard because rules are often hard to decide
- rules include protecting the audience from harm
- regulators have to try and balance protecting people by offering them with choice
- technology has made it hard for media products to be regulated