The Use of Visual Medium for Television Broadcasts - Essay Example

The Effect of Media Type on the Message of Pakistan and the United s A test of Postman’s claims that media type shapes the news Section Number: Option A: “The” News Introduction The news, whether it is through television news or through print media, provides a source of information about the events that are occurring throughout the world. However, obtaining a consistent, and factual, treatment of the story can be difficult, due to different sources and the presentation of the material differently depending on the type of media. One story that has recently hit the media is that of that terrorist attacks on the US embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan and the blame that the US government has placed on Pakistani intelligence as a consequence. The story has seen widespread coverage across both newspaper and television media. This report will examine one television presentation and two newspaper presentations of the story and analyze how these differ in the way that they portray the information, the impressions they give, their focus, and the effect of the medium itself on the content. The television report was aired on CBS news, titled Terrorist cell phones link Pakistan to attacks. The two newspaper treatments were by the New York Times and USA today titled Pakistan’s spy agency is tied to attack on U.S. Embassy, and Admiral accuses Pakistani agency of backing terrorists respectively. Neil Postman was an American critic as well as being an author and media theorist. He produced a number of books, with several concerning the idea of mass communication being used to share ideas, how this has declined and the role that television plays. Finally, the results will be compared to the claims of Neil Postman, who proposed that different media had the potential to shape the news that we see. He argues that the method in which news is communicated can substantially impact what is communicated, and that television news is not an effective method of providing information, as it does not provide a complete or informative picture of what is happening. The results from my comparison agree with this, with the television news producing a more sensationalized picture that left out some key information, while the newspaper reports went in to more detail about the causes and effects of the event. The Television Perspective The CBS broadcast of the story was titled Terrorist cell phones link Pakistan to attacks, however the cell phones were mentioned only at the start of the three minute report. The attack on the US embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan was carried out by a group known as Haqqani, who have ties to the Taliban. While all those involved in the attack were killed, information from their cell phones, including calls made and times, was able to be recovered. This led to the determination by US intelligence that both before and during the attack the cell phones were used to call Pakistani intelligence. This discovery has lead to Mike Mullen claiming that the Haqqani network acts is a ‘veritable arm’ for Pakistani intelligence As a consequence of this link, the US claims that all activities of the Haqqani network, which includes a string of high profile attacks, has been connected to the Pakistani intelligence, with them both protecting and funding the group. They claim that the Haqqani network, which has several thousand fighters, operates from within Pakistan, and is involved in raids that cross into Afghanistan. Furthermore, Pakistan uses the network to sell violence in an effort to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a stable and strong country. The CBS story also has a large focus on a truck bombing attack that occurred a few days prior. The truck was involved in the injury of more than 70 American soldiers, and was known about prior to entering Afghanistan through an intercepted Haqqani transmission. The commander of US troops in Afghanistan General Allen called the commander of the Pakistani Army, General Kayani, asking him to head off the attack. Kayani promised to make a call, but the truck made its delivery nevertheless . The use of visual medium for television broadcasts gives both limitations and advantages when compared to print media. While the amount of that is presented verbally is limited compared to newspapers, this is able to be compensated for by images. For example, in the television report, a map of the territories of Pakistan and Afghanistan was shown with description of the location and activities, a description that could not be given so clearly in print media, as they are limited to mostly text. Because of the limitation of time on news broadcasts quotes are generally given in sound bites, small clips that convey only the information required. In this case, the quotes of the army generals, and of Mike Mullen were given but no information was explained as to the context of the quote or any information surrounding it. The Newspaper Perspective The USA Today newspaper focused on the accusation that the US had made along with the ramifications of it to US relations to Pakistan. They reported that evidence links that Haqqani network to both the truck bomb and the embassy attack, and that the network was directly linked to Pakistan, although no mention of what evidence the link was based on was given. The report also went into detail about the difficulty that the US would have in catching the insurgents, as previous actions had been to work with Pakistan to get them to take action against the insurgents. There is some consideration that the raid into Pakistan to kill Osama bin Ladan may have made relations between the two countries difficult, as Pakistan was told about the raid before it commenced. The country may be deciding to align itself with the insurgent group to prepare themselves in case the US withdraw their troops from Afghanistan, a mechanism of self preservation . The story posted by The New York Times focused on the comments by Admiral Mullen, and the opinions within the US government and Pakistan. The article mentions that it is a long-held belief that the Haqqani network is supported by Pakistan’s intelligence agency, however this is the first time that such a direct accusation has been made, or that the Pakistan intelligence has been linked to specific attacks. As well as the two specific attacks mentioned in the other articles, the story by The New York Times also mentions an attack on June 28th at a hotel in Kabul and makes reference to other smaller attacks. In addition the article also went into detail about the response of the Pakistan interior minister to the accusations, who categorically denied them, saying that they had no policy to aid attack or directly attack Afghanistan. However, he also said that they would not allow an American operation against the Haqqani network within a remote part of Pakistan, which they had been wanting to target . Differences and Similarities The television story on the news told a more sensationalized version. There was very brief coverage of the evidence that linked Pakistan to the Haqqani (despite this being the title of the story) and no information about why the Haqqani were thought to be behind the attack initially. Despite the link between the two being theoretical, the remainder of the report focused on Haqqani activities and how Pakistan was involved in them and reasons why. The report on television focused more on the violence, describing in detail both the embassy attack and the truck bombing. Both newspaper articles put less focus on describing the events and more on the reasons behind them and the consequences. The USA today article focused on the difficulties that would now exist for catching the insurgents, and how Pakistan may be choosing to align itself with them instead of the US as a form of insurance for the future. The article by The New York Times paid close attention to the response from the Pakistan interior minister. Effect of Media Type The fact that the television report had more violence and portrayed more detail about the attacks and the insurgents themselves is not surprising when considering the nature of television as a type of media. Television must compete for peoples divided attention as well as short attention spans, and as a consequence there is a tendency to attempt to grab people’s attention with sensation or violence. This means that often televised news must be first entertainment and second information, which often limits the amount of information that is simply told, such as facts or summaries, most information is shown through clips and reports. The newspaper reports were both more factually based, they had more information about causes and consequences of what happened, as well as some detail on the event itself, compared to the focus almost exclusively on the event by the television report. Again, this is influenced by the media type. People who are reading the news story are doing so because they are interested, there is no need to grab or hold attention, and readers are more likely to be focused on the article than television viewers will be. Conclusion The medium that a report or article is presented in has the ability to significantly alter what we see and what we understand. Reports for television must deal with the short attention span of many viewers as well as divided attention. As a consequence reports on television tend to be more focused on action, drama and violence often with little factual information given. In contrast, newspaper reports often go into considerable depth about the causes, consequences and events that occurred, regardless of whether they are sensational or not. These observations strongly match the claims of Neil Postman that the type of media has the ability to shape the news you see. References Bumiller, E., and Perlez, J. "Pakistan’s Spy Agency Is Tied to Attack on U.S. Embassy." The New York Times September 22 2011. Print. CBS News."Terrorist Cell Phones Link Pakistan to Attacks". September 23 2011. Michaels, J. "Admiral Accuses Pakistani Agency of Backing Terrorists." USA Today September 22 2011. Print.  Read More