Normative Theory - Essay Example

? Normative Theory Normative theories follow ethical standards through a process of rational reasoning. Among the philosophies present that pertain to the media, the theories deal with one of the most critical factor – morality. After the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was put into effect, freedom of speech was guaranteed as a basic fundamental liberty (1948). Even before that President Roosevelt’s four freedoms speech spoke of a desired America where people had freedom of speech and opinion. Since then various theories have been presented regarding freedom of speech and the role of media in portraying reality. In particular, the Social Responsibility Theory takes freedom of speech as a key subject. Since the role of media in presenting the truth is enormous, a few of the postulates for my normative philosophy include: actors in media are not entirely autonomous, actors in media – as part of the society – possess the right to security and protection, and actors in media as more of citizens than media professionals and hence as citizens, they should respect the sovereignty of the country in which they operate in (UN News Centre 1948). My assumption that actors in media are not entirely autonomous refers to the fact that journalists and other media professionals may be influenced by certain authoritative bodies or institutions. Although freedom of speech and opinion has been made fundamental human right years ago, this does not mean it is strictly practiced in all the countries. There are various countries that have been identified as not adhering to human rights and the role of media professionals has been significant in exposing the truth. The documentary film by Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg is a good example of how media exposed the truth of genocide in the Darfur region in Sudan. The photographs provided in the film acts as a proof testifying the presence of genocide in the region. The reason why media professionals may not be completely independent involves various aspects of government control. In the case of Darfur war, the truth was being covered by the government of Sudan who actually used special militias and supported the Janjaweed in carrying out the killings. The documentary presented various photographs that revealed the truth about the killings and violation of the human rights. The personal experiences of a U.S. Marine Captain, Brian Steidle were important in contributing towards the film. This example illustrates the importance of the role of media professionals in revealing the truth and how they can be inhibited by local governments who try to exert influence. The assumption of restricted autonomy of the media professionals implies that the government is not always appreciative of the efforts of media and may also feel threatened. This causes them to exert influence on media professionals thereby obstructing the flow of transparent information. But there are other reasons as well why media professionals may not be completely independent. The degree to which a media professional is conscientious various widely and some professionals may be driven by personal motives and interests that can result in deviation from ethical standards. The case is not new but some media professionals may readily be influenced when given unethical monetary benefits. The influence can be exerted by any institution or individual. However, such cases are common where the government hold is not strong and regulated, and therefore, various other players have immense power to influence. Such governments are characterized by weak relationships between the media and the government due to lack of support and insecurity. The postulate that media professionals possess the right to security and protection in view of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights becomes important when media professionals are threatened due to their profession. Media professionals may be threatened due to various reasons and in most cases is due to the content of their work. The matter can sometimes become so serious that a professional threatens his or her life in bringing out the reality. As said before governments and other institutions and individuals can exert influence so as to distort information thereby negatively impacting truth. Media professionals threaten their lives when they write their works due to the influence of people whose reputation might get hurt as a result of the information. In order to avoid defamation, institutions or individuals may threaten and try to influence journalists. The state holds the responsibility of guaranteeing security and protection to these professionals as it is part of the UDHR. Failure to provide protection may lead to a bad image of the country in the world community. Such governments give an impression that media is not free to express their opinions and information. Also, it implies that the government has a great degree of control over the media thereby suppressing the freedom of expression. The postulate affects the view of mass media in the sense that governments have a significant hand in either promoting or inhibiting the freedom of media professionals. The profession of journalism involves huge amount of risk as it constantly keeps a journalist at threat of losing his or her life unless the government is transparent and provides security to them. The postulate that media professionals are citizens of a country implies that they hold responsibility to respect the sovereignty of their country. By respecting the sovereignty of the country means respecting its image in the global community. This means that journalists should produce their works in a way which exhibits professionalism and avoids exaggeration of truth. Distortion of truth can result in unintended harm that may even cause unrest and political upheaval. The professionals should understand their own rights as well the rights they have towards their country. This implies that media professionals should pursue their career as responsible professionals who work for the betterment of their country despite the fact that they might have to reveal hard truth. This notion is not an advantage for the government however it provides a guideline for media professionals that regulate their acts to keep them in accordance with morals. This assumption in the mass media will provide a code for media professionals to understand their responsibilities as media personnel without having to take advantage of their positions (Stern et al 2007; UN News Center 1948). The normative philosophy mentioned above contains several aspects of the role of government in media. The government of any particular country possesses power that can be misused in order to exert influence of media professionals. It is common how journalists are constantly presenting their critiques on the government policies. In a free and democratic country, seldom is media threatened however this is not always so. Criticism from media and other civil societies may spark a reaction from the government which may involve the use of force. The previous normative philosophies cover essential issues of morality surrounding media however this normative theory presents some aspects that need consideration. While the formal modes of government regulation media have been covered in the previous Authoritarian theory, this normative theory adds on to the role of government and the responsibilities of media professionals as equal citizens (Stern et al 2007). While media professionals should possess the fundamental liberties as guided by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights charter, my normative theory promotes accountability among actors in media. It also mentions covers some important aspects of journalism including autonomy and freedom under controlling governments. This theory compliments the other theories by presenting a realistic approach to journalism which considers the ground situation of the media arena. My theory demonstrates the responsibility that the players including the government and media have in revealing the truth. My theory does not give over-liberty to media professionals nor does it inhibit their role in exposing the reality. References The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UDHR, Declaration of Human Rights, Human Rights Declaration, Human Rights Charter. (1948). UN News Center. Retrieved October 24, 2013, from http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/history.shtml Stern, Ricki & Sundberg, Anne. (2007). The Devil Came on Horseback [Documentary Film]. United States: Break Thru Films. Read More