Social Change - Assignment Example

Communication Question One: Communication and social change in developing countries is linked to the colonial system of information control and diffusion. Discuss the reasons why diffusion continues to play major roles in the communication system of developing nations. The colonial system of information control and diffusion is hard to let go off. The reason is because that developing nations are going through tough times as per their developmental regimes and hence they do not have the required resources available at their disposal. They cannot fathom things which are not of their own making. They are still trying their best to recuperate in the wake of the troubles times that they have gone through and are still passing to this day. The information control and diffusion is an important aspect which must be understood from the social change perspectives, more so because the society on the whole has not improved drastically to counter any apprehensions which it had in the times of the colonial rule. Social change has to come from within the people themselves but the fact that change is difficult to assess under such settings compounds the whole dilemma that these developing nations face. Thus information control and diffusion seems difficult to be attained in the true sense of the word and any form of control that has been achieved thus far is due to the hard work and commitment of the people who are directly or indirectly involved with the social change processes, activities and tenets. Communication in such nations is hard to reach towards the benchmark levels because there are other problems which must be addressed first and the governmental regimes are trying their best to allocate more resources towards such issues and matters. Hence the aspect of information control and diffusion in a proper and adequate manner takes a back seat since the more pertinent issues are discussed in a thorough fashion. The colonial system has not helped much in the understanding basis of the information control mechanisms and the phenomenon of diffusion as well. This is because the colonial system did its trick when it was present in the olden times. But with the changing epoch, the perspectives have taken a U-turn and there is more room for comprehending the different facets, aspects and sides of a particular issue that comes from the domains of the communication tenets. This warrants attention on the part of the diffusion circles and information control hierarchies and hence the need to discern and comprehend the growth mechanisms which are present within any society so to speak. Social change needs to come right from the top so that people feel empowered concerning their very rights and hence the understanding will develop as to what they should know and what they must not, courtesy the communicative channels and the like. Thus proper emphasis must be laid on the underlying issues and topics related with the information control and diffusion regimes so that there are no shortcomings as such and adequate policies would only enact these control bases in a very better way. This mannerism must be somewhat close to what the developed nations have already adopted upon and hence the divide between the developing and the developed nations will be lesser, more so when the talk goes out loud concerning the information control and diffusion basis. Question Two: What is development communication? Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of this strategy in improving communication in developing countries. Development communication is the communication that bolsters developmental processes, strategies and actions. In essence, it systematically links social change with the development that happens on the national front. The different practices, strategies, processes and tactics play a vital role at increasing the comprehension related with this development and the role is significant right from the onset of development and growth. The strengths related with development communication are immense since this form of development supplements the communication hierarchies which are present at a particular stage within a nation’s existence. It aims to discern the strong points which are available within the communication aspects and links the same with progress and growth to multiple levels. Also development communication explores areas where communication could be made easier and associates people of importance with the ones who have more resources available at their disposal. The ultimate aim is to smoothen up the communication mechanisms in the long run and remove any obstacles which are present in the related course of action. The strengths of development communication come out apparently enough when there are differences amongst developing nations, however when compared solely in terms of communication hierarchies. The manner in which communication comes naturally towards the recipients is a significant barometer of discerning its strength or the lack thereof. The strengths of development communication outnumber the weaknesses and this is due to the fact that social change is dependent a great deal on the former rather than the shortcomings that arise from its non-incorporation within any nation, be it a developing one or an already developed one. The weaknesses similarly are also present within the development communication regimes. The community participation is an aspect that requires stiff importance. What this means is that within the developing nations, the publics might not want to understand the essence behind having development communication within their own ranks and hence the whole mechanism would never be adopted and the related funding would be spent elsewhere. This would thwart the process of growth and expansion within the communication systems and mechanisms which are so very important in the modern times of today. Also the weaknesses arise when there are problems related with the practice of development communication in the real sense of the word. The complications hinder the smooth flowing of communicative abilities and facets and thus the whole process of development communication suffers as a result of the same. Also within the heading of bringing about a social change and one that comes directly from the development communication hierarchies, the aspect of sustainable development becomes all the more quintessential. This is because sustainable development would maximize the very use of the resources that are available and the long term, strategic wellbeing of the beneficiaries would be ensured. Thus the strengths and weaknesses of development communication need to be weighed in properly before one could comment on their incorporation within the communication regimes of the developing countries. What this will do is to bolster its economy, tourism and the overall image of the nation, both from the short term perspective as well as in the longer scheme of things. Question three: What is media democracy? In what ways do big media corporations support or weaken media democracy? Within the changing business and political domains, media diplomacy has literally been left at the mercy of the Information Technology tangents. There is a lot of say in the way facts are now being reported courtesy the media channels, the vast avenues with which media reports and news are proliferated and thus the whole ballgame of reaching the masses has become such an easy job that the diplomats have taken a back seat in all fairness. The role of media and that too in abundant proportions have made the diplomats somewhat redundant in their jobs and they have started to feel alienated in the world of diplomacy, which by all counts has gone out of the window. This has happened because political leaders have been able to reach the masses in a very direct manner and thus have been able to avoid the angle of diplomacy whilst reaching the masses, for which they got elected and for who their services would be in place. The political actors have started to feel that their voices are being heard in a better manner whilst communicating through the media channels than they would had they adopted the diplomats’ facilitation in the wake of different issues, events and subjects of political interest. It is a fact that real world media diplomatic negotiations are pretty distinctive from the intellectual debates and discussions. The debates are usually based on the thoughts and perceptions as well as the arguments which are raised for and against the subject that comes under debate in the first place. However the real world media diplomatic negotiations are based on the premise you scratch my back, I scratch your back, which essentially means that there is a trade-off at all times within the media diplomatic negotiation that is taking place. Now this is a very pertinent topic that needs a lot of understanding to have and more so for a student of media diplomatic studies. It is also a harsh reality and one that demands a great of factual backing where the hard powers have been able to manipulate and at times sabotage the process coming on the negotiation table to diplomatically angle the related manifestos of the parties that have not been able to hold solid ground and basis within the agreement domains. Thus these negotiations have more or less been won by the hard powers – powers which have shook the basis of the other parties that are involved in a diplomatic fold nonetheless. On the same token, media has been able to play its decisive part in the breaking up of democratic institutions, parties and individuals in a head on manner. Diplomacy has thus been overtaken by media outlets – big corporations, channels and print houses when the latter have literally played havoc with the aims and objectives that diplomats had since they understood an idea and decided to maneuver for their own good. This is the change that the 21st century has brought upon the media diplomatic regimes. Bibliography Eban, Abba. Diplomacy for the Next Century. Yale University Press, 1998 Herzog, William. Issues for Development Communication Ethics. Journal of Mass Media Ethics, Vol. 6, 1991 Lauer, Robert H. Perspectives on Social Change. Allyn and Bacon, 1977 Moore, Wilbert E. Social Change. Prentice-Hall, 1963 Powell, Colin L. The Craft of Diplomacy. The Wilson Quarterly, Vol. 28, 2004 Word Count: 1,610 Read More