To What Extent Do Mass Media Influence Our Political Behavior - Term Paper Example

Introduction Mass media is one of the major determinants of political behavior and involvement. One of the continuing issues about the connection between the mass media and political behavior is whether outlooks and standards like cooperation and trust that stem from media consumption exist together with social networks as components allowing a society to resolve issues (Hoffman & Thomson 2009). Several scholars have claimed that the mass media promote doubt or suspicion among media users and hence distance them from political affairs. This paper discusses the extent of the influence of mass media on political behavior. Mass Media and Political Behavior Studies show that media use does not essentially hamper the political participation of individuals. The major influence of mass media on political behavior in fact differs depending on the ‘type’ of the medium since various media forms in fact play distinct roles. For example, Internet use and television viewing have been signified as the causes of political detachment, while newspaper reading has been shown to enhance political involvement (Hoffman & Thomson 2009). Researchers like McLeod and colleagues (1999) and Smith (1986) have reported a positive relationship between political involvement and newspaper reading. Moreover, Shah and colleagues (2001) discovered this positive relationship present in every generation, as well as those teenagers and young adults who do not read newspapers. Aside from variations in the type of media, differences in media content also influence political behavior. For example, although television viewing that encourages distraction from everyday life like reality shows and science fictions have been discovered to be negatively correlated with political involvement, prolonged exposure and focus on political issues on television have in fact been reported to boost political involvement (Pinkleton, Weintraub, & Fortman 1998). Moreover, social dramas that portray issues about actual experiences were discovered to be positively correlated with political involvement (Zhang & Chia 2006). Influences of other forms of media content are indefinite and questionable. One investigation reported that comic dramas or sitcoms generated no impacts on social relations, yet other investigations showed negative impacts of viewing these television contents on local political behavior (Zhang & Chia 2006). In the same way, the Internet, even though being censured for promoting physical idleness and weakening personal social contact since it became widespread several years ago, has been reported to improve political involvement at times. Current studies on political behavior claimed that the utmost influence of the Internet rested in public and social but not governmental or electoral domain (Moy & Scheufele 2000). The World Wide Web at times functions as a vehicle for creating public communities and an integrating mechanism for political involvement. Basically, the impact of the Internet on political behavior is dependent upon how people use the World Wide Web (Hoffman & Thomson 2009). Information-directed use, like acquisition and exchange of information on the Internet, presents users with chances for public staffing and additionally promotes political involvement. In contrast, recreation-directed use such as chatting, gaming, online forums tends to build social relations of users online and estrange them from traditional interpersonal relations in the offline environment and in the long run weaken political behavior (Pinkleton et al. 1998). The influence of the mass media in current political movements and campaigns has raised much disagreement. Specifically, interest exists over present-day media coverage of elections and campaign strategies as they affect public indifference and distrust that some think endanger the capability of critical democratic procedures (Pinkleton et al. 1998). Political analysts and scholars usually held the mass media culpable, and TV news particularly, for its buzzword oriented campaign exposure that disappoints voters looking for relevant and informative content. Similarly, unconstructive political publicity is maligned for depending on misinformation or half-truths and personal assault, supposedly leading to extensive voter indifference and alienation (Zhang & Chia 2006). These charges are inclined to be too general and overlook the intricacy of public involvement in the electoral process. According to Zhang and Chia (2006), the connections among political behavior, political estrangement, and media consumption are founded on composite correlations among factors not yet definitely established by social researchers and scholars. A number of researchers, for instance, have proposed that dependence on ‘mediated campaign information’ heightens political inactivity and passivity, voter antipathy, and low political understanding (Pinkleton et al. 1998). Nevertheless, other researchers have discovered discerning TV viewing to be positively related with knowledge on political activities and issues, and to improve political behavior. Furthermore, although critics often talk about political alienation as a common attribute, an earlier study has shown that varying features of alienation have various impacts on political behavior, value, and voting purposes. One explanation for the discrepancy in empirical findings is inaccuracy with regard to the testing and treatment of major variables in the process of political decision making (Pinkleton et al. 1998). For instance, global media consumption indicators that view voters as consumers of unreceptive information have a tendency to obscure the function of dynamic individual media consumption in the process of political decision making. Furthermore, political alienation seems to be a many-sided, intricate trend, features of which can boost or discourage civic involvement in the electoral process (Moy & Scheufele 2000). As stated by the competence-based viewpoints on socialization, the process of socialization is a reciprocal mechanism by which people struggle to enhance their value as members of the community. Hence, the public is likely to take part in political activities to the degree that they believe their involvement can change things for the better. This socialization view argues that individuals interrelate with the environment instead of responding submissively to messages (McLeod et al. 1999). Taking into consideration the motivational processes of citizens, thus, becomes crucial if social scientists are to gain knowledge of how people use the media to acquire political ability and the self-assurance that their involvement can make a difference. Better understanding and precision on the subject of media use and political alienation are needed. Social scientists seem to recognize, subtly if not openly, various aspects of alienation toward political activities among voting citizens. Distrust generally is understood as a lack of self-assurance in and sense of doubt toward the political institution, including political organizations and politicians (McLeod et al. 1999). For instance, citizens may be skeptical about the capacity of the government to bring about constructive social change in relation to crime or poverty. Distrust has been held responsible for discouraging political participation, voter turnout, and politically motivated media use. Yet, pessimism generally implies feelings of antipathy toward mediated campaign exposure or political campaign strategies, in contrast to views or sentiments about political organizations and politicians (Shah et al. 2001). Scholars have constantly substantiated citizens’ aversion toward disparaging campaign strategies, particularly unconstructive political publicity (Hoffman & Thomson 2009). According to Hoffman and Thomson (2009), other scholars relate pessimism toward media content with diminished voter interest in shallow, pretentious, mediated election publicity. As discussed above, distrust implies lack of self-assurance in and a sense of doubt toward the political institution. For skeptical citizens, learned, focused media consumption is likely to be seldom and intermittent (Moy & Scheufele 2000). In effect, Crotty and Jacobson (1980) claim that these voters have basically taken a back seat in political affairs, viewing it as immaterial to their own interests. Yet, it is uncertain whether media consumption is generating distrust or whether distrust is weakening drives to dynamically use media. A number of proofs exist to show that distrust may lessen encouragement to look for political information, with media consumption more apt to raise awareness and boost involvement rather than distrust (Moy & Scheufele 2000). Distrust seems to have a negative correction with value. Skeptical citizens are predisposed to doubt political organizations and feel powerless to affect what the political system does. This absence of political value, or feeling of inability, implies citizens’ recognized inability to generate a favorable effect or consequence; hence the paradox that confidence in democracy has been weakening with voter participation (Zhang & Chia 2006). A number of scholars have claimed that voting citizens, particularly those young ones, become caught in a system where in distrust negatively affects recognized value, which consequently heightens indifference and distrust. Yet, political indifference seems connected to low recognized value but not automatically to distrust (Zhang & Chia 2006). Social scientists and journalists have expressed intense concerns about the negative effect of disparaging political campaign information, specifically disparaging TV promotion, on the democratic system and political behavior. Negative mediated publicity purportedly disgusts the electorate, generating public indifference toward political involvement (Pinkleton et al. 1998). Nevertheless, according to Hoffman and Thomson (2009), current studies have indicated a more multifaceted connection between pessimism identified in a campaign and political behavior, with pessimism not related to political indifference. In particular, pessimism seems to have both negative and positive effect, with dynamic media consumption a crucial intervening factor. With regard to disparaging campaign strategies, studies show that the voting public commonly detests unconstructive political publicity, seeing it as misleading, unprincipled, and uninformative (Zhang & Chia 2006). Unconstructive publicity may add to reduced interest in campaign information and voter criticism. In addition, scholars are troubled that pessimism mediated campaign exposure leads to lower interest in campaign messages and eventually discourages public involvement in political activities. If pessimism reduces citizens’ concern for and interest in mediated campaign exposure, this has capably detrimental consequences for political decision making due to its connection to involvement and knowledge (Zhang & Chia 2006). Increased public attention results in enhanced information-directed media use with discerning media use actively related to political attention and knowledge. Functional information hunting is focused and motivated, and stems from increased audience involvement. Pessimism toward media content, to the point it disgusts the voting public, should isolate them from the mass media, weakening involvement and reducing knowledge (Pinkleton et al. 1998). If it does isolate them, it may influence their views of content, in turn encouraging citizens to develop assumptions that can aggravate distrust. To the point the pessimism isolates the voting public from the mass media it does not seem to isolate the political system entirely. For instance, one investigation reported that pessimism, operating through third-person views, can ultimately encourage young voters to cast their ballot (Hoffman & Thomson 2009). Lau (1982), as well, has shown that voters may vote to express their dissatisfaction. Hence, pessimism seems to reduce voter opinion of their value through media consumption, but it can stimulate specific behaviors hostile voting. In general, the correlation between alienation from the political system and value is in part a function of media consumption. Citizens who have a considerable level of issue involvement have more varied information demands that inspire them to look for professional view and determinedly expand their information hunt to encompass written media. This is especially valid for voters attempting to gain knowledge of the political system (Shah et al. 2001). The attempt needed to draw on more information-loaded media can yield better understanding and the promotion of greater recognitions of value. Hence, it is sensible to suppose that citizens claiming greater degrees of information hunting will reveal greater levels of value. Lastly, studies of self-worth indicate that political alienation results in intervention among those with greater self-worth. When established ways of effecting social change appear futile and the public increase its participation instead of dumping them, the probability of intervention among those with greatest value is merged with distrust toward the political institution (Shah et al. 2001). Hence, although distrust seems to bring about a decline in recognized value of the public and political system to effectively deal with social problems, those with greater degrees of self-worth are, however, more apt to take action. For instance, an earlier investigation has discovered that distrust may ultimately heighten value through third-person influence, which is the idea that other people are influenced more than one’s own self by particular information (Pinkleton et al. 1998). Overall, studies prove pessimism toward mediated campaign messages can weaken involved media consumption and can influence how media messages are understood. Diminished media consumption and pessimism both should relate with greater degrees of pessimism, eventually influencing citizen perception of value toward the political institution and their chances of taking part in political activities (Zhang & Chia 2006). In spite of the disparaging quality of much campaign publicity, enhanced media consumption however should encourage citizens to view their involvement important, consequently resulting in actual involvement. Conclusions Generally, the findings show that even the voting public frustrated with the political system may draw on the mass media for messages that can motivate them to effect change, while the voting public frustrated with media exposure itself may continue unaware. Pessimism toward the mass media, since media consumption is related with political behavior, may influence affective, ignorant decision making by isolating citizens from the mass media as a source of information and aggravating their skepticism. The findings discussed above illustrate that it is crucial for social scientists to study various features of alienation carefully and comprehensively, and as a not entirely negative pressure. Studies on recognized self-worth report that alienation among single-minded citizens or those who are skeptical but still tall in recognized self-worth are inclined to motivate them to effect changes to the status quo. Bibliography Crotty, W.J. & G.C. Jacobson. American parties in decline. Boston: Little, brown and Company, 1980. Hoffman, L. & T. Thomson. “The Effect of Television Viewing on Adolescents’ Civic Participation: Political Efficacy as a Mediating Mechanism” Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 53.1 (2009): 3+ Lau, R.R. “Negativity in political perception” Political Behavior 4 (1982): 353-377. McLeod, J.M., D.A. Scheufele, & P. 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