The role of the media within the British political system Essay

The role of the media within the British political system - Essay Example There is a relationship between mass media and society as there is the view that the media are part of democracy since they are themselves a 'free' institution. The media assist the working of a democratic system through facilitating free speech and unrestricted public debate. However, some who believe that the media are anti-democratic argues this with their power to manipulate the way people think about politics. With these two notions in mind, I think that this demonstrates the overall power of the mass media, since they can either set people's minds against the political system or help to generate popular support for it. The mass media refers to all those forms of communication where large numbers of people are exposed to an identical message. The mass media provide the ideas and images, which help most people to understand the world they live in and their place in that world. (Coxall 2003, 1-22). Along with politicians, the public, parties and other organizations, the media play a crucial role in structuring and widening political debate in Britain so that issues such as environment, law and order, or the state of the public services receive attention and are addressed by the government. Television programmes have to compete with each other in order to gain more viewers and readers. They therefore have to make their programmes more attractive to the viewer so there is usually a tendency to make the news more attractive by treating it as entertainment rather than serious news. This may explain why some newspapers are bought more than others because the popular papers provide the public with what they want to read. In terms of a free market, these papers will thrive, while unpopular and unread papers will struggle, with perhaps valid information regarding... Television programs have to compete with each other in order to gain more viewers and readers. They, therefore, have to make their programs more attractive to the viewer so there is usually a tendency to make the news more attractive by treating it as entertainment rather than serious news. This may explain why some newspapers are bought more than others because the popular papers provide the public with what they want to read. In terms of a free market, these papers will thrive, while unpopular and unread papers will struggle, with perhaps valid information regarding communities going unread. Newspapers can be helpful, 'Children achieve more success in early reading skills if they have experience with books and other print media and were read to as preschoolers.' (Comstock, 1991). In England, we value the freedom of the press. The press is the one place where most people go to get educated on issues facing their community, city and most of all their country. Everyone knows that the media plays a major role in people's lives; however, their role of gatekeeper is not completely understood. The press decides which issues to report and how to report them. In order to improve the society and country we live in, I think that the media should present their unbiased findings to allow people to make up their own minds. However, this is not the case. The media often shows it bias. Their widespread exposure enables them to communicate their ideas to the public, regardless of the public's responsiveness.