Media in the United Kingdom

 

    There is no doubt about it that the UK has taken part in housing many of the world's greatest news and media outlets, the BBC being just one of them. The United Kingdom has a rich history in news reporting and have had news outlets that have been very reliable and nonbiased in times of need. The UK is extremely open when it comes to the reporting of news and the media is, "free and able to report on all aspects of British life," (BBC). The citizens of the UK also have a, "variety of publications," that reflect, "the full spectrum of political opinion," that allows for citizens to hear several different points of view and thoughts on matters (BBC). The ability for news companies to be able to publish openly and freely as they please are very important and stands strong throughout the United Kingdom.

    There are, "hundreds of privately-owned radio and TV stations," that, "compete with the BBC for listeners and viewers," creating a fierce competition to provide the best news coverage as possible (BBC). In addition to radio and TV stations, a majority of UK citizens are online in some way, shape, or form. As of July 2022, "there were 65 million internet users," within the UK, which is a drastic, "95% of the population," (BBC). On top of those numbers, as of February 2022, over, "84%," of the UK's population were active on social media (BBC). This large percentage of people actively online allows for a freer and more often flow of news and information as people are able to read and send anything they would like to others.

    There was one instance back in 2012, where a new system was recommended that emphasized self-regulation for the press after there was a hacking scandal. While many politicians agreed to create a system that would distribute large fines and enforce for newspapers to publish any corrections, the industry objected it overall as they felt that it, "would give politicians too much power," (BBC). This goes to show though that the media and news outlets do have power and say apart from the government and politics in order to hold one another accountable and to share proper facts and news findings. The BBC is one of the world's most reliable news outlets and is, "Britain's most popular online news destination," which speaks volume to the pride and trust that UK citizens have in the news outlet as well as the rest of the world (BBC). It is great to see that the United Kingdom is holding standards high as to the freedom of press and speech and that its citizens have such freedom to gather any and all information to be able to openly share it as well.

BBC. (2023a, May 22). United Kingdom Media Guide. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-18027956

Media in Italy

 

    Recent blogs have mostly reflected more reserved and restricted countries and regions throughout the world when it comes to media usage and its relationship to politics; however, this week we are going to take a shift and look at the relationship that Italy has between media and politics. Italy has an interesting relationship between the two as, "Italian press is highly regionalized, reflecting Italy's strongly regional history and character" (BBC). Italy has a rich past of the majority of newspapers and news channels being privately-owned, which often creates an uneven and unfair partnership between the two as news is supposed to be there to hold the government and politicians accountable and to spread factual information; however, when privately owned they are for the majority, "linked to a political party or run by a large media group," that compromises the authenticity of news by sharing biases and targeted articles in favor of one party over another (BBC).

    While Italy's media certainly covers all sides of the story and provides helpful information to its citizens, "Italy's heady blend of politics and media has sometimes led to concerns about the concentration of media ownership in the hands of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi," (BBC). This is very interesting as often times, a former Prime Minister or any politician privately owning news outlets is not the most promising for an open and democratic relationship between media and politics. When someone in power also owns media outlets, they often have a say and can dictate what is produced and shared with the public, and more times than not they will make sure it favors themselves to make them look good. Berlusconi's company, Mediaset, "owns Italy's top private TV stations, and the public broadcaster, Rai," which have typically been, "subject to political influence," (BBC). By Berlusconi having ownership of such media outlets, " he was able to exert tight control over both public and private broadcasting," which drastically counteracts the purpose of media to inform the public in a nonbiased, factual manner.

    Within Italy, just a few companies have a vast dominance over the TV market which has the ability to be used as a, "powerful political tool," as approximately, "80% of the population is said to rely on the TV for daily news (BBC). This large percentage of people who gain their knowledge from the TV coupled with the monopolized mass media broadcasting throughout the state creates an interesting dynamic that walks an extremely fine line between the media being able to provide to the citizens what it is truly supposed to deliver on. People will have to stay vigilant to these statistics as they consume a lot of the news in Italy in order fact check and make sure that the coverage they are receiving is honest and not in favor of the person or group that owns that certain news outlet. This is certainly a very interesting find as it has the ability to turn into a state that spreads false information without the ability to be fact checked or balanced out as the majority of media and news outlets are privately owned.  

BBC. (2023, July 3). Italy Media Guide. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17433146#:~:text=The%20Italian%20press%20is%20highly%20regionalised%2C%20reflecting%20Italy%27s,figures%20are%20low%20compared%20to%20other%20European%20countries.

Media and Politics Throughout Africa

 

    Africa has a unique case when it comes to the usage of social media throughout the continent as each state has such an individual stance and take on the government, social standards, culture, etc... Media plays a different aspect in each state by challenging, "either full democracies, flawed democracies, hybrid regimes, or authoritarian regimes," (Okocha). This vast influx in different government structures certainly plays a role into the level of mass media freedoms that each society has. Media is certainly an important factor in promoting the discussion and education of politics throughout Africa as it encourages communities to connect and communicate, as well as giving the public the ability to get information from news sources. Mass media has the ability to create change in societies as it can spark people to speak up for what they believe is right and is a place that allows for the people to hold the government accountable for their actions and behaviors. 

    Currently in many states throughout Africa, mass media repression is still extremely present. Especially when looking at the more authoritarian regimes and governments that restrict the usage of social media in order to monitor and patrol what people are posting and what they are seeing in order to mitigate the spread of their human rights violations. The restrictions and repression also allow for the government to share their views without any opposition. The, "internet and social media have new roles in liberalizing freedom of speech," and the lack in ability to post and spread awareness throughout these states is a clear violation of such freedom of speech and freedom of the press, which plays into the overall level of democracy that a state has (Okocha). Mass media's, "principal role," in terms of politics is the consolidation of democracy (Okocha). This is extremely important as many African states and people feel that mass media is an opening gateway to becoming more democratic and increasing the human rights levels and living conditions throughout many regions of Africa.

    Mass media is capable of holding undemocratic leaders and governments accountable for their actions by spreading awareness throughout the country and throughout the world. Experts have expressed the importance of this and have mentioned that "international aid agencies should assist media outlets, particularly in hybrid regimes or authoritarian regimes," in order to, "overcome their challenges and ensure they effectively play their roles in promoting politics in Africa," in order to ensure a more democratic future for Africa as a whole (Okocha). They have also identified and recommended that the undemocratic legislation currently enacted against freedom of expression through mass media, including for journalists, "should align with Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Right," in order to secure a more balanced, democratic, and free region. The future for African mass media is quite important in the overall understanding and educating of a larger population in order to be able to be able to spread awareness and information concerning politics and to hold their states responsible as well as display the undemocratic behaviors to the rest of the world.

Okocha, D. O., & Dapoet, B. A. (1970, January 1). Mass Media and Politics in Africa: A Qualitative Appraisal. SpringerLink. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-48431-5_3

   

How Media Plays Into Democracy

 

    There is no question about it, much more plays into media than what meets the eye. Upon first glance, one might feel that media is just a place for the youth to post their selfies, for families to post their vacation pictures, and for parents to share unflattering pictures of their children to distant relatives. However, media provides so much more that allows for societies and the population to post openly and freely whatever they would like. They are able to share their thoughts and opinions on things as small as football game outcomes, to as large as criticizing the government and politicians. That being said, this often goes unnoticed or unappreciated especially for people living in America; however, this is certainly not the case for other countries and cultures throughout the world. The ability to post whatever, whenever and however on social media is considered to be directly linked to a state's level of democracy as it speaks highly to their freedom of speech and freedom of press. This week, we will be discussing the role media has in democracies and how it plays into the political ideologies and behaviors of a state.

    When taking a look at how a democracy is ran, the media's job is to educate, inform and entertain, through the use of, "news, opinions, analysis, satire, and drama," (Farrell). Open media directly correlates to the ability to share one's thoughts, opinions, and views of the government and politicians with others. This ability allows for conversations to take place and possible collective action to be taken. Authoritarian regimes often regulate and restrict media in order to stop the spread of information that looks down on what they are doing. By restricting their public, they are allowed to regulate all the information on the media in order to sway in their direction and to only post and share false information that makes them look good. Restricting the people also restricts their ability to talk online and to be able to gather to fight against restrictions and unfair practices. 

    Media provides a, "key route," for the public to hear, "about politics," which, "plays an important role in shaping the public agenda and forming public opinion," (Farrell). This is extremely important as being able to access honest and truthful information regarding the government and political actions allows for people to form their own opinion and judgement on what is taking place around them. Media provides a space for everyone to have an equal playing field to find information and to spread information, increasing the chances of more people learning about what is taking place around them. Media also holds a space for accountability as people are able to speak openly and freely against the actions the government and politicians are taking. It is also a space that allows for politicians to communicate directly with the public, which provides a closer relationship. Overall, media provides ample opportunities to increase and practice democracy throughout a state and plays a crucial role in the overall democratic behavior and practices of a state.

Farrell, C., & James, L. (2024, January). UCL. The Constitution Unit. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit/sites/constitution_unit/files/the_role_of_the_media_in_democracies.pdf