Function and operation of mass media and their role in national development

Function and operation of mass media and their role in national development

Mass media helps to create public agenda in the favor of national development by dissemination of the news, views, editorial, feature etc. After the dissemination of information, people will get awareness, motivation and knowledge regarding contemporary developmental issues. After getting information, people will form their own public agenda as per their necessity after the recognition of collective feedback, which is public opinion of the nation formed for collective interest. The issue of the development is related to right to life which seeks facilities and other subsidiary developmental needs. Such needs supports for the creation of infrastructure for the development of society and quality of life. However, the concept of development is different from static society to dynamic society.

Static society reflects traditional society which is also called organic society with unilateral domination of certain people, where as, dynamic society reflects mechanical solidarity because of the complex technological innovation and invention. The degree of development also depends on cultural background, ethnicity, geographical boundaries, individual behaviors etc.

Broadly the concept of development reflects not only the economical development but also the social, political, cultural, educational development with good life style of the people. All these issues are used to be covered by media which inherently supports the new issues of the development as it is desired by specific society.

Normative theories of the press

Four theories of the press; Authoritarian theory, Soviet communist theory, Libertarian theory and Social responsibility theory are taken as the normative theory because of their basis of norms and values of given society which is different from place to place and from nation to nation.

 The theories related to the press laws are very wide and dispersed. Various experts of the press have been exploring the press theory according to their socio-economic background, practices of journalism, its role and function that is responsible to the society. So the concept of the theories of the press is not compatible, same and widely accepted for all scholars and experts. The concepts of press theories are also vary with geographical area, educational status, social structure, treaty, custom and tradition of the nation ands its usages. However, we can classify the theories related to the press from the point of view of the philosophical aspect of the political system, contextual aspect of practices of journalism, rights and duties of press and reasonable restriction that is usually imposed by various nations.

Authoritarian theory

                This theory is groomed and nestled with the concept of the Plato, Hobbes, Hegel, and Nacio that was widely accepted and used before the early 18nth century from 16 ^th century. This theory is a description of press control system by various repressive regimes in the name of public peace, order which prohibit the propagation of opinion which is dangerous tendency toward established government.   This theory views that the government is all thing, nothing is essential except the government decision. A press should follow all order, policy, plan, programs and regulation of the government according to the will of the executive member of the state. According to this theory, state is almighty from the point view of national governance. A people should contribute to develop the nation taking the assistance of press world. Therefore mass communication should support the state. By the supporting, the power holder or the government can give the right path to the society. It is assumed that so-called wise class governs the Nation as ruling class. In this way the press can't disseminate anything against the directives and the political decision of the state or executive board. According to this theory the authority bribes the journalist, so, the press cannot work as a watchdog of society but only play the role of lap dog of the government. The professor of University of Illinois press explained and developed this theory with the transition period of renaissance. By the 16^th and 17^th century, Britain accepted this theory badly to operate press system. This theory has the somehow little or more effect on the press system and world throughout the universe in contemporary world too.

Liberation theory

John Milton, Voltaire, Jefferson, Adam Smith, Robert Nozck were conceptualized this theory. Liberation theory is described both in terms of classic struggle for freedom and democracy against various forms of tyranny but also in terms of constitutional basis and operation of American media system which focuses on complete freedom or absolute power of media. The main principle apart from the supreme importance of the negative freedom of absence of government control is the appeal to the self-righting process. According to this theory, truth triumph over error in the end and leads to the free market place of idea, which seems to bless private ownership and free market system. This theory believes that individual can publish or disseminate whatever they want without any restrictions.

This theory was influenced the colonized country until 19^th century. However it was experimented since 17^th century. This theory views that all human being are independent and conscious by the nature, as inherent gift or they can know themselves about what is their right and duty or what to do and what not to do. Right to know the truth is also the one of the important fundamental right of common people but press should not give false and image tarnish news taking it as a responsibility but this theory doesn't view that kinds of obligatory muzzle because each and everything, whatever one think can express his or her views using press. So in this theory people should select and find what is wrong and what is right. This theory believes that press should reveal the truth that is the duty of the press. So, press must be independent from the control of political and economical subject matter.   However, this is the optimum theory which has no formal application around the world because absolute freedom is no possible anywhere, anytime.

Communist theory

Carl Marx, Lenin, Stalin, Mao, Hegel, Frederic Angels were conceptualized this theory. This theory formally started to be analyzed only after the revolution of USSR in 1917. Soviet communist theory is described as an example of a positive theory of the media in the sense that the media had as their goal the spread and reinforcement of Marxist truth and the attainment of classless society, after withering away of proletarian state. Apart from the state controlled and not privately owned media, this theory has emphasized on role of society, not in individual.

Fundamental assumption of Communist theory is as follows.

1. Private media are strongly restricted.

2. Media serves the interest of the working class.

3. Government is superior to media institution.

4. Media have expected self regulatory.

                Many western theorists are used to claim communist theory as an authoritarian theory. However, media organization has a certain responsibility to meet the wishes of their large number of people who represent the proletarian class but it is more than authoritarian to those who represent the bourgeois class. In their point of view, they aren't authoritarian. This theory believes that, mass media owned by bourgeois class is used to operate media for their class interest and to exploit poor proletarian to get profit by disseminating false consciousness. According to this theory, media should be captured by state representing proletarian by both armed and civil fighting against those exploiter which is possible only after the overthrow of bourgeois government. Within the communist system, media are the means of government mechanism to support party and government activities where media should follow the interest of government. Otherwise, these media can't be operated. The violation of party code is little because there is no private media, only the government media in this system.

Social responsibility theory

This theory involved a view of ownership as a form of public trust or stewardship, rather than as an unlimited private franchise which was conceptualized by Hutchins commission established in 1942 and gave its report in 1947 in America to evaluate the status of American media. After this, theory of social responsibility was started to be discussed. Media should focus more on social responsibility than a business profit but one member of commission who is the main interpreter of this theory, William Hocking, wrote as "inseparable from right of the press to be free has been the right of the people to have a free press'. However, it is believed that social responsibility will be occurred with self control, not by government intervention. According to this theory, the media have obligation to society and media ownership is a public trust. In that sense, media always should support society and its norms and values. However, this theory believes that there is no social responsibility with the lack of truthful, accurate, fair, objective and relevant news and information. For this, media should follow agreed code of ethics and professional standard. Media should be free but self regulated but under some circumstances, government may intervene to safeguard the public interest.

However, there is many more theory of press coined by various theorist like Mixed theory, Bullet theory, Egalitarianism theory, Fascist theory etc.

Media Content

Mass media has variety of contents like news, views, opinion, commentary, advertisement and other. These all subject matter published or broadcasted from mass media are media content. The style of presentation of content in each media has different as print, electronic and other folk media. Media contents are changed as per the demand of people, time, place and other circumstances.

Contents targeted for urban area is different as content targeted for rural area. Contents represent the overall culture and other social reality of given society and place. In the context of the Nepal, political subject matter has dominated overall contents of media which usually focused on urban audience. News desk of media selects contents on the basis of news value and its ingredients to attract mass of the people. Generally news content is collected by various reporters and edited by editors. After only, lay out or design is made and this final prepared information is broadcasted or published in given specified media.

However, there are two kinds of contents which are manifest content and latent content according to the intrinsic meaning. All contents as it appeared in media are manifest content whereas their intrinsic meaning decoded by receiver is latent content. The meaning of latent content is predetermined by source or sometime it is different in meaning as it is presented by sources in given media.

All film, serial, vox pop, songs, comic, gossip etc all are media content where as news, feature, column, editorial, article, letter to the editor, other feedback are also media content in terms of newspaper.

In the context of Nepal, the majority of media are concentrated in capital and some other major city. Majority of the rural area are far from the access to media, though large numbers of people have been residing in rural area. It shows the clear information gap occurred between urban area and rural area. Large portions of space and time of media are dominated by political issues. Developmental issues have got least priority which makes adverse effect in the development of nations. However, media should operate for peace, order, development, justice equality. Positive effect and social change are the main goals of media.

Media contents are disseminated to generate certain positive effect on audience. There should be configuration between manifest and latent content in which latent content refers to meaning and understanding whereas, manifest content refers to all physical content as it appeared in media. Level of feedback can be understood by analyzing the feedback. If there is dysfunction, then source should improve their content on the basis of feedback analysis.

Media content analysis

Content analysis is an efficient way to investigate the media content, such as the number and types of commercial or advertisement in print and electronic media, qualities of news, weakness of news and feature, target area of content etc.

1.                  Content analysis is a systematic procedure devised to examine the content of recorded information. (Walizer and Wienir – 1978)

2.                  Content analysis is a method of studying and analyzing communication in a systematic, objective and a quantitative manner for the purpose of measuring variables. ( Kerlinger)

Content of mass media can be also studied using the scientific method of research, both quantitative and qualitative. However, content of media generally represents the qualitative study because of it nature of subjective and diverse content. Little bit, we can quantify it but not for all. 

In the content of various media, we can analyze the latent and manifest content to make it effective to general audience. Media content produces dysfunction too. So to reduce dysfunction and improve the quality of content of media, content analysis is made. If there is mistake, they have to improve it after its evaluation because media want to make intended effect but it’s not always; sometimes unintended too. This is occurred because of the difference in encoding and decoding process. In fact, media should prepare and select content according to the will of audience or target group. They should feel easy to understand and grasp these contents of media. Media house can improve its content on the basis of content analysis and feedback of audience too.

Unit of media content analysis

a.       Words: The selection of words in media content should be clear and understandable to audience. Otherwise, the effort of the media will be vain to make certain kinds of positive effect over them. To analyze the use of words, we can analyze the words used in media contents.

b.      Sentence: Complex sentence is hard to understand to audience because there are diverse audiences who have different attitude, skills, knowledge, behavior, culture etc. So, sentence should be simple and easy to understand them. To analyze it, content analysis in sentence should be produced.

c.       Paragraph: Long paragraph in newspaper is boring to read. Audience always wants to read short news with short paragraph. To change and evaluate it, paragraph and its uses can be analyzed.

d.      Protagonist or antagonist:

e.       Source and quote:

f.       Place and environment:

g.      Presentation style:

h.      Credibility and balance:

i.        Coverage area:

j.        Subject area:

k.      Subject and pluralism

l.        Content and diversity

m.    Content and freedom

n.      Content and social change

o.      Content and column or size

News analysis

News analysis is a report of contemporary news of current affairs program which seems some extent in-depth and prepared after analyzing and evaluating detail of disseminated news information from various news media. So it is a news commentary which is used to prepare by analyzing the angle, opinion perspective made on same issues by various news media. In fact, there are a lot of event happened day by day in our own society. Same event may have also different angle which is presented by different media differently.

·         Series of event (all media coverage on certain issues) ·         Different mode or news angle or façade ·         Analytical ·         Detail from beginning to last ·         Critical balance evaluation ·         Factual evidence ·         Upcoming trend ·         Not only the problem but solution ·         Final conclusion of reporters

So, audience may not have detail information from beginning to last. As this cause, journalist is used to analyze detail news which is presented all recent development and origin of this news story very concisely and consecutively. While analyzing the news, journalist should choose very important issues of public on which people want to know more and make them curious which should be published or broadcasted from various media like newspapers, radio, TV and other. Then, journalist evaluates the
quote and opinion of different sources made on same case. There shouldn't be lack of factual data, figure and other evident to make balance analysis but analyst should have detail good knowledge of subject matter. News analysis doesn't pose only the problem of something but should show the way of solution and its consequences too. As a whole news analysis is conclusion of event happened from beginning to last. In the newspapers, news analysis is used to be published in the bottom of newspapers. It is placed giving high place value because news analysis is critical evaluation and interpretation of news which doesn't cover only recent development of news but also explains significance of event historically, socially, economically, culturally by quoting facts and figures. To analyze the news, following tips shouldn't be forgotten.

• Selection of analyzing event should be published in news media.
• Analyst should have detail background of published news.
• Analyst should comment on the consequences of event and incident.
• Analysis should be made only on factual evident and opinion.
• Balance evaluation is necessary while analyzing.
• Analyst can put their own opinion but should be as per the context and relevance.
• Analyst shouldn't forget to give conclusion at the end of analysis.

Media audiences

People who receive information from media are audience for given media. So, the receiver is the target of the message. The collective forms of the receiver are audience. Herbert Blumer emphasized on social audience who distinguished audience from group, crowd and public. Those audiences who share feeling each other and establish especial relationship by interaction is stable over time. Temporary uncertain group having same composition larger than group but restricted in some observable place is also crowd. They are also the audience.  Like this, Public are relatively larger, widely dispersed and enduring. This categorization of audience doesn’t touch the social formation of mass audience.

Mass audience is also large, heterogeneous and anonymous in the context of mass media which is completely social formation. All mass media have very large access to its target group which is really very large and diverse. So, not only the group, crowd, public but also the mass are audience if the message is reached over them. All target groups of media are potential audience if they are not receiving message in certain period but possibility to make them audience.  Active and passive audience

So we can classify audience as follows.

1. Pay audience: those audiences, who receive information only after payment, are pay audience. For example; newspaper buyer, Dish cable receiver etc.
2. Attentive audience: Those audiences who pay their attention on particular program or issues are attentive audiences. For example; receiver of bitter truth, Hari B. and Madan Bahadur etc.
3. Potential audience: All the citizen of nation may not have direct access to particular media. Those audiences who may use particular media in near future are potential audiences. So, all the people outside the access to media are potential audiences.
4. Cumulative audience: Total number of the receiver of all the media are cumulative audiences. These types of audiences are used to be increased day by day with the accretion of potential audiences.
5. Target audience: Target audiences are usually determined by media operator themselves. So, target audiences are those to whom media contents are focused.
6. Channel audience: The audiences who are receiver of particular media like KTV, NTV, Rajdhani Daily etc are channel audiences.  

However, there are broad two categories of audiences which are active and passive audience. Active audiences are those audiences who regularly receive information from particular media and send the feedback whereas, passive audiences are those who receive information only from primary receiver and who do not have access to media directly. There is a two-way relationship between media and audiences. If there is no media, there is no audience at all and vice versa.

Traditional media of Nepal

·         Drum beating

·         Use of musical instrument

·         Street crier

·         Smoke signal

·         Religious ceremony

·         Religious preach

·         16 duty of Hindu, Muslim or Christian etc

             For a long time, traditional media were ignored after the appearance of modern mass media. However, traditional media played special role to develop modern mass media. Before the innovation of mass media, traditional media were used to communicate each other.  In fact, there was no conducive and proper environment for other mass media and no proper required infrastructure was therein that time in the world and these media were used for communication. As the history of the world, there was the system of cave painting, recording the history in fine art, beating the drum, making the sound of Panche Baza, crying from the height of the mountain etc, making the sound of Jhali etc in Nepal in those times.

            Traditional media consists of a variety of forms like folk theatre, puppetry, story telling, folk songs, folk dances, ballads, mime and more. Even in the various religious ceremonies like Puja , Jatra  , party etc used to be organized for communication. For example, the unitary sound of Shankha is still using to inform about the death of somebody whereas dual sound is used to show other religious ceremony here in Nepal.  To give the information about marriage ceremony, Panche Baja is still used.  Temple is using Ghanta to give the important information about the temple and its worship in different time by ringing the Ghanta (Big bell of temple). There is the system to distribute Supari to invite in the marriage and Bratabanda in rural area but it is replaced by invitation card in urban area in the context of Nepal. Conjurers are still used to give the information about the illness which is in fact, superstition but if we can use it properly, it can help to change and develop thee society very well.

Role of traditional media

            So, various traditional media are still serving as vehicle of communication and entertainment in developing countries in their own context. However, means of traditional media is different from nation to nation and culture to culture. So, traditional media are those folk media which embedded in communication system in culture which existed before the arrival of mass media, and still existed as vital mode of communication in many parts of the world, presenting the certain degree of continuity, despite changes.

(Wang and Dissanayak) . Traditional media are living expressions of the lifestyle and culture of the people, evolved through the years. (Ranganath)

            Traditional media are used primarily for entertainment, social communion and religious activity. Newer concept of self help, grassroots participation, two-way communication is possible with effective uses of those media even in this contemporary world too. Though these media are the part of rural social environment, it can be credible sources of information to the people. These media are relatively cheap and almost in all cultures. Live performance and interpersonal communication between performer and audience is key feature of this type of communication. So, properly utilization of these media can be means of development of nation.

            However, we shouldn’t forget that these channels are also rigid, semi flexible and flexible. All religious ceremony is quite rigid. No any person can add any other foreign or alien information. If so, religious extremist can make protest. The cartoon of the prophet Mohamed is example in this world. Semi-flexible traditional media allows limited assertion of any foreign or alien information. For example, Jatra and various other social ceremony of different religion. Other flexible traditional media allows and permits completely new or foreign information. Using these media, societal system can be changed as the wide opportunity to add certain kinds of manipulation. Various drama, songs are categorized in flexible traditional media.

            On the one hand, these media helps to develop the nation if it is properly used in given context of nation.  On the other hand, there is the possibility to use traditional media as the support of mass media. Integrity of mass media and interpersonal media can help to make mass communication effective. If it is not done properly, social chaos and disorder may be aroused. Some extent, these traditional media will be disappeared. So, it is strongly necessary to preserve various forms of traditional media and effective use it for development. It is used as alternative media of given nation.

·         Alternative media

·         Reduction of information gap

·         Supportive media for developmental activities

·         Two way communication

·         Management and utilization of local resources

·         Flexible media

·         Cheap and easy to access

·         Promotion of local culture, tradition and system

·         Living expression of life style

Paradigm Shift

·         Early dominant model of communication rejected the role of traditional media

·         Mass media couldn't cover the needs of people and necessity of traditional media realized

·         As a result, nonlinear or convergence model of communication appeared after the integration of traditional media and mode mass media.

Paradigm is the sources of knowledge, model and communication behavior. Before the invention of modern technology, traditional media were widely used but such media were replaced by mass media with the development of science and technology that reflected modernism which started to reject all traditional practices, tools and life style. As a result, linear mo0del of communication appeared which represented dominant paradigm of communication process under the culmination of mass media. So, all M-S-C-R-E models are the representative of dominant paradigm. Gradually, communication expert raised the question marks on the effectiveness of mass media because it emphasized only on one way flow of communication from source3 to receiver and not from receiver to sources. As a result, majority of the geographical location became far from access to communication media.

            Communication expert realized the role of traditional media to bridge the gap of information especially to geographically disadvantaged area. When communication of local people started to be guided by traditional media, the concept of communication model also changed. This subsidiary model of communication was taken as alternative paradigm in communication behavior. Alternative paradigm is appeared not to replace dominant paradigm, rather it supports mass media in presence to traditional media in integration or convergence from. So, this process of changing from dominant concept of model to alternative concept of model is called paradigm shift.

Behavioral change and media

Contemporary society is shifting from dominant paradigm to alternative paradigm, in which alternative paradigm accepts the all traditional media for developmental purpose. Communication expert believes that dominant paradigm can not be effective until the application of traditional media to change behavior of people because the psychology of individual is deeply rooted in tradition and habit.

Application of modern convergence media helps to change the psychology or personal perception of individual. All emotional matter like happiness, anger including sympathy depends completely on individual way of thinking which is entirely shaped by existing media both; traditional and modern. New paradigm of communication model has established new way of thinking in communication behavior of people. Basically, such communication changes cognitive, behavior and affective dimension of audience's attitude. Traditional media has created alternative way of solution created by mass communication process. It has reduced communication gap between urban and rural audiences or have and have not audiences with the focus of different communication pattern.

New technology has also established same thinking like pod-casting and internet culture along with chatting and mail. However, computer assisted media are hybrid media because it integrates all mass media, interpersonal media. Multimedia system is also established with the assistance of computer and internet which has integrated Radio, TV, Newspaper, Magazine, telephone, Chatting in a single places. This communication technology has been making audience more introverts, reclusive, individualistic. A socialization and friendship concept has also been changed. Those audience who are using this media for a long run will be psychologically retarded and affective dimension will be appeared which is pointed out by critic of this media.