CMNS 801
Shan Wu
CMNS 801: EXERCISE 1
Research Issue
The influence of the Internet on journalism standards and media freedom has been a cause of concern in recent years. The Internet has been touted as a powerful tool that can empower the grassroots and allow dissenting views of the masses to come through. More people are going online for their dose of uncensored, unregulated political news and information – the power of the Internet to affect public opinion cannot be undermined. This has, in turn, prompted governments to rethink their strategies for media control. Some measures put in place include setting up firewalls to block certain websites, exerting greater control on what goes out in the traditional media and monitoring online stories for opposing voices. This research project seeks to discover how the political controls exerted on the media in the Internet Age differ in countries with different levels of media freedom.
Research Question
Have political controls exerted on the media changed with the advent of the Internet in countries with different levels of media freedom?
Rationale for Research
This research area interests me tremendously because I have witnessed, as a media practitioner myself the last three years, how the evolution of the Internet has turned people away from traditional media to the Internet for political news, especially during election time. In fact, in countries like Singapore where the traditional media is heavily censored, the news industry is slowly losing its credibility among the masses. Thus, it would be interesting to do a comparative study across societies with different levels of media freedom to find out whether the rise of the Internet has prompted a loosening or tightening of political controls on the industry, especially in the dissemination of political news and information.
Relevance to Broader Constituencies
This will be a helpful study for scholars on whether the emergence of the Internet has affected the control of the press on different countries, and with what consequences. It can also provide useful information to governments on how they can tweak their own media control measures, and enlighten media personnel in heavily regulated media environments on whether the Internet may bring the possibility of more media freedom in their countries.
Proposed Methodology/ Sampling Procedure
1)To select three countries that have different levels of media regulation according to the annual Freedom House surveys on press freedom e.g. China, Singapore and the US.
2)To conduct a literature review on the types of political controls exerted on traditional and new media.
3)To conduct surveys and focus groups with journalists and editors of key national papers in those countries on the media regulations of those countries, taking note of changes to regulations and practices before the widespread use of the Internet in the late 1990s and the present.
4)To obtain statistical data of political controls that are countable e.g. number of journalists sued for libel, before the widespread use of the Internet and the present.
Variables
Independent Variables: Media freedom (free, not as free, not free), Internet use (early 1990s, the present)
Dependent Variables: Measures for political control e.g. libel suits/ criminal prosecution, prior restraints/ censorship, broadcast/ publication licenses, loss of journalistic jobs, exile/ assault/ assassination
Plausible Hypotheses
1)The greater the media freedom in a country, the less likely the advent of the Internet will have any effect on the political control of the media in that society. The media continues to be given considerable freedom.
2)The lesser the media freedom in a country, the more likely the political controls on the media will be tightened with the rise of the Internet. This is to prevent dissenting viewpoints from perpetuating in the society.
3)The lesser the media freedom in a country, the more likely the political controls on the media will be loosened with the rise of the Internet. This may be the result of the government’s inability to regulate what goes out in cyberspace. Therefore, it may loosen its control on the media to allow for more dissenting viewpoints so that the news industry continues to be credible to the masses.
Defining and Measuring Three Variables
Libel suits: Legal action taken against defamation by writing or publication; measured by counting the number of libel suits against media personnel
Censorship: The suppression or deletion of material deemed objectionable, harmful or sensitive; measured through the survey responses from media personnel
Broadcast/ publication licenses: The granting of the right to broadcast or publish; measured by counting the number of licenses granted/ withdrawn
Testable Hypotheses/ Possible Causal Relationships
1)If a country has lesser media freedom, then censorship of stories will be stricter with the rise of the Internet.
2)If a country has greater media freedom, then there will be no change to the number of libel suits involving media personnel with the rise of the Internet.
Relevant Theoretical Paradigms (Patterns/ Models)
According to studies on media dissociation, which relate to the discrepancy between media portrayals and the view of individuals, the rise of the Internet is said to promote the likelihood of dissenters speaking out and taking action. This will drive the need for countries with less tolerance for dissent to increase censorship measures to ensure that opposing views or objectionable material are kept to a minimum. Similarly, the notion of media freedom necessitates that there is little control exerted on media content. As such, under this paradigm, the rise of the Internet should not affect the extent to which the media is controlled in the society.
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