What does the state of the British media tell us about society in Britain - Essay Example

?British Media Media is a main means for mass communication .British media has many medium through which they channelize news like Newspaper, Television and Internet. The country has a responsible media and people are also conscious on updating their information on currents events on regular basis. A media of a country represents how the society behaves, reflect ideas and cultural values. The realities of a community or society are presented through media and it is the only means of accessing news for public. In the world of today, media has become as necessary as food and clothing. As per Shakeel (2013) “It has played significant role in strengthening the society. Media is considered as "mirror" of the modern society, infect, it is the media which shapes our lives. The media of a certain country is a true mirror for portraying the cultural values and issue happening in a country. British media is of high standard and report on many issue which gives the public an image of British society. The sections like art, sports, entertainment, health and education. Britain being a cosmopolitan country does have a cultural and social mannerism different to other countries. British Media mostly present political and news and information on Royal family. According to Negrine(1991,pg.12-30) “The value of "political communication" in the dictionary of useful, catch-all phrases to describe the relationship between mass media and politics comes at a price in precision”. Although, the media does not reflect much on the life of common men it does give out what is British society is like. The nature of British media The British media has its own peculiarities and in Europe, Britain falls third to Germany and Estonia regarding the total number of newspaper published. Also the British Press market is the second largest in Europe with regard to newspaper circulation. The frequency of British newspaper is divided as weekly, daily and Sunday newspaper. The media of Britain greatly cover economic and political news. The media has the function of public enlightenment. The celebrity gossip and sports is a major portion in British media. The British media is also extensively interested in royal affairs. Unlike other countries, Britain has a regulated media. According to Enders(2011) “Until now, Britain has regulated commercial media far more tightly than the BBC and you argue that it is time for a change”. The British media has been a bit conservative in comparison to other media in Western countries. The country always had to keep the royal status of the country. However, the British news papers are information rich and same goes with television media. However, politics is a major topic area for British media. Apart from this entertainment and sports get lot of media attention. Crime, sex and stories of human interests are also a part of the British media. According to (Gonzalez) The British national press provides a variety of political views, interests and levels of education. The British media does give out certain ideas as follows about their society Britain as a class conscious society British media has been one which shows class segregation and it has been partial to different classes. The media always represented the royal families and celebrities as the wealthiest and influential. The upper class was shown as the well bred and cultured people. The media has consistently showcased royal families as the ideal British people. The upper class is shown to be intelligent and sophisticated. (Thorpe) “But class-warfare, whether waged by politicians or the media, merely diverts attention from those living in deprivation”. The upper class is shown to hardworking, wall mannered and decent. The media has always shown upper class people in a positive manner and hence we can see that the British society is class conscious. Class discrimination is highly visible from the fact that the media as television or newspaper is consistently publishing or broadcasting news related to royal families and celebrities. The Media has ever been representing the middle class as profession people and they are basically working class. The lives of the middle class are less projected in the media. The people get a notion that the Britain as a society is highly divisional and a case of class discrimination in the society. The poor class in Britain is always shown as criminals, drug addicts and illiterate. This shows directly that the British society is highly biased when it comes to social class. Examination of the 'chav' figure explores how social class is often represented in contemporary British media through highly caricatured portrayals, and can be seen as 'part of a larger process of "class making" which attempts to distinguish the upper and middle classes from the white poor'. British people love sports British media is relatively more interested in sports which give a notion to people that British are sports lovers. Football being the most broadcasted programme on Television, the newspapers, it does come to notice that British society spent much of their leisure time in watching sports especially foodtall. British channels showcase football leagues more than normal. The newspaper is also more often filled with news about football and cricket and other sports like cycling and rowing. As per UK Sports ( 2011) “The omnibus survey we found that some two thirds of the British population (68%) watch major sporting events on TV”. The British media suggest that the British population find sports as an ideal entertainment source. The British society spends most of their weekend time on sports especially men. Media is seen encouraging British men to indulge more in watching television and reading newspaper so that they keep a track of football and other sports. The British people love to watch television and spend much of their time gazing at the box and it is the most common leisure activity in Britain. The sports broadcasting has made men addicted to television ad this definitely shows that British love sports especially football and tennis. British are obese While watching British programmes and news one can get a notion that British are obese people. Watching television it is easy to notice that people in Britain are obese and unhealthy. It is obvious more among people who are poor and living with low standards. The women, men and children sure do cross the healthy weight standards and many of them are overly fat. It is ironical for a country which is educated and modern to have so many obese people in the society. The public when shown in news and other programmes is overweight. The television also does telecast programs which discuss obesity problems among young children and women. Most of the people seen in drama show and other reality program also show case that British people are obese. According to NHS(2013)“Most of the UK news media is covering the latest official NHS statistics on obesity, physical activity and diet in England”. The newspaper also projects news consistently about obesity hike in the country. The young generation is seemingly shown to have a sedentary lifestyle and unhealthy food habits. The government is discussing many times about the increase of obese people in the country and how it can be controlled. The obesity is a health concern which is exhibited in the British media. As per Evans (2008,pg.7)“ The UK population is now told daily that it is “ too fat”, ‘ overweight’ or ‘obese’ that measures ought to be taken to make people more thin” British society has a risky youth population A person who follows British media would definitely not have a good word to say about British youth. If one trusts British media, the youth in their society is much obnoxious and violent. According to Dulie (2011) “British youths are the most unpleasant and violent in the world" was how one Daily Mail headline reported on the spate of looting that hit London's streets this year”. If one read newspaper, listen to radio or watch television then one can witness a lot of crimes committed by teenagers. The British youth are shown to be indulging in drugs, alcohol and other petty crimes. Mostly the youth of Black and Latin origin are shown to be indulging in crime. The people definitely can understand from British media that British youth are not decent and disciplined. The gang culture and violence is all obvious in the British media. The British news has some way have news on crime done by youngsters. The media seems to reflect that the youngsters in Britain are more prone to violence and drugs than other countries. The young people in Britain seem to be lazy, risky and scary for the people of outside world. Riots, bullying, racist attitude all are part of the behavior of British young men according their media. As per Pottier (2008,pg 34-45)“The proclaimed rise in Asian criminality and violence, especially with regards to young Bangladeshis and Pakistanis, has now become one of the dominant motifs in recent reporting of race in the British media” The young people do not look well bred and are less interested in education and are active at night disturbing the public. The media gives out an idea that British youth are someone to be watched out for and the public seems to be intimidated by them. British society has more crime British media definitely does convey Britain as a society dominant by crime. “Perhaps unsurprisingly, some of the Foundation's top line findings found that the media focused disproportionately on crimes involving women, sex trafficking and UK nationals”. The British newspapers and television daily report some sort of burglary, murder or rape. The media shows that Britain is definitely not a safe country to live in. Theft and burglary is a common crime in Britain according to the media. The scarred and injured faces and body is a usual content of British media. In his book Cole (2006,pg.125) writes that “The crime and trial dominated the British media and shaped political and social attitudes to youth crime”. The British media show that there is fear of crime in the British society. The television and newspapers show that crime happens in transportation system and other public places of Britain. The news about pedophiles and horrendous crimes decorate the newspaper pages daily. The crime is a definite part of news in Britain. As per Best (2008) “The fact that readers of`broadsheet' newspapers in the UK seem to be less fearful of crime and that these newspapers present a less distorted image of crime suggests that identifying why certain groups read certain newspapers is important”. Conclusion British media is not as free as American media but still facts are represented in the right format in Britain. According to Keller(2000)“But the right to freedom of the press in Britain must always be balanced against other rights and interests. The need to protect national security and public order and the rights of individuals to privacy and reputation will often outweigh the public’s interest in knowing certain information”. Like any other media, British newspapers and television does showcase many facts about the British society. Media of any country has a significant role in portraying many values and ideas about the society of that country. Media is very powerful in today’s world as now the global community is depending highly on technology for information. As per Mwthane (2013) “Worldwide, the media has a critical role to inform, educate and entertain”. The British media definitely conveys many messages about the British society. Primarily it gives a notion that the society is divisive as the class is a major matter of concern in Britain. The upper class is shown as decent and cultured, while middle class as working people and poor as criminals and illiterate with uncultured values and habits. The media also project that the British society has more of obese people. The media also suggest that the British are more sports lovers than other Western societies. The passion for football and tennis is outwardly projected in news papers and television. The British media also convey that British youth are dangerous and risky and many crimes are daily reported about them. The media also convey that the crime rate in Britain is high. So in conclusion, the British media tell out that Britain as a society is class conscious filled with violent youth, crime and obsess people. Bibliography Best,M. 2008. If it Bleeds, it Leads: Sensational Reporting, Imperfect. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.harvardgenerator.com/references/website. [Accessed 02 January 14]. Cole, P, 2006. The Myth of Evil: Demonizing the Enemy. 1st ed. Westport: Praeger Publisher. Evans, J., 2008. Education, Disordered Eating and Obesity Discourse: Fat Fabrications. 1st ed. New York: Routledge. Enders. 2011. Murdoch media to control over a fifth of UK news consumption. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/media/organgrinder/2010/dec/30/murdoch-to-control-22percent. [Accessed 01 January 14]. Keller,P. 2000. Media Law in Britain. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.britishcouncil.org/china-society-publications-media.pdf. [Accessed 02 January 14]. Dulie,R. 2011. Stop blaming all British youth for the crimes committed by a few. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/society/joepublic/2011/dec/13/blaming-british-youth-crimes-kayav. [Accessed 02 January 14]. Frampton, H, 2010. Exploring Teenage Pregnancy and Media Representations of 'Chavs' . International Journal of Undergraduate Research, 3/1, 56-63. Gonzalez, M.J, 2006. Tracing Context in the Discourse of the Media:. Revista Alicantina de Estudios Ingleses, 19, 149-168. Mwathane,I. 2013. Media’s role in society very crucial. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Opinion-and-Analysis/Media-role-in-society-very-crucial/-/539548/1670426/-/3elx2o/-/index.html. [Accessed 02 January 14]. NHS. 2013. Latest obesity stats for England are alarming . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.nhs.uk/news/2013/02February/Pages/Latest-obesity-stats-for-England-are-alarming-reading.aspx. [Accessed 01 January 14]. Negrine, Ralph, 1991. Politics and Mass Media in Britain. Canadian Journal of Communication, 16/3, 12-30. Pottier, R.S, 2008. A modern moral panic: the representation of British Bangladeshi and Pakistani youth in relation to violence and religion. Anthropology Matters, 10/1, 34-45 Shakeel,M. 2013. The role of media in today's world. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.hamariweb.com/articles/article.aspx?id=10166. [Accessed 01 January 14]. Thorpe,A. 2012. Classism: A distraction from the pinch of poverty. [ONLINE] Available at: http://thebackbencher.co.uk/classism-a-distraction-from-the-pinch-of-poverty/. [Accessed 01 January 14]. UK Sport. 2011. THE INSPIRATIONAL EFFECT OF. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.eventimpacts.com/pdfs/the_inspirational_impact_of_major_sporting_events.pdf. [Accessed 01 January 14]. Read More