Can Media Regain Public Trust?

The media contributes so much to the public. To think about it most of the information we receive is from the media. Our current events on local incidents, political views, entertainment updates etc. The list literally goes on.  Journalists do their part in finding solid information in order to compose a newspaper that will give the public information. I notice that some people may argue that journalists tend to feed the public the "wrong news" such as the election between Gore and Bush. But in my opinion I do believe that the media can be able to regain the trust of the public because of the work they do. For example, Michael Schudson makes a valid point when he mentions, "News can  do for democracy including information, investigation, analysis, creating social empathy, facilitating a public forum, mobilization, and publicizing a representative democracy," (151). Clearly news (media) provides information. As the media continues to "get in the face of power," (151), I see that it can regain the public's trust. The public wants to hear what's going on all the time. They want to hear what is happening behind doors, the election or whatever that is currently going on. And if it wasn't for journalists, the information wouldn't exist.

Governor Election

The gubernatorial election has been going on for a long time. You might think finding a president is tough, but also finding a governor who is perfect fit can be tougher. I was forced to find out what the election was about when it started in january And I’m glad I looked in to it because I’m on track with the latest updates from San Francisco Chronicle, on the election. The race starts with finding who will represent each party. There is an election to find the right fit for the republicans and the democratic. That process takes awhile since there are many candidates who run.

I noticed that the media was focusing more on the election for the republicans. And if you haven’t noticed, the representative for the republicans is a female, Meg Whitman. Television was bombarded with commercial ads about her and against her. Her opponent Steve Poizner was definitely making a name for himself throughout the media. His committee took advantage of all the opportunities they had to expose Meg Whitman as a bad choice for governor.

Fast forwarding the timeline, Sfgate has a section for politics in which it is not only news articles but a blog that is updated constantly regarding the election. I follow the updates religiously especially I’m intrigued by the way the news is written in these blogs. Currently Jerry Brown is the representative for the democratics, and the woman herself, Meg Whitman is representing the republicans side.

Both candidates are head to head with debates on what they will do for the state of California. In order to win over the people of California, Brown and Whitman spend time promoting their proposals. For example, one of the latest debates is in regard to the California Budget. Brown has an idea, that when elected he would end california’s budget gridlock. This idea is what he endorses through Prop 25. On the other hand, Whitman proposes that when she is elected she will eliminate “40,000 unspecified state jobs and create a two year cap on eligibility for welfare,” and all this according to SFGate.com.

The two candidates are still on a role to prove that he or she is the best fit to be governor. But after all the debates, promotional commercials and campaign, the results come from voters, and after the election is over we will soon find out, “who will be our next governor.”

Will evolving forms of Journalism be an improvement?

News writing takes skills in writing, reading and listening. A good writer knows good material and a good writer knows what bad material is. The entire idea of news writing is to introduce to their audience the current events happening by radio, broadcasting and most importantly to deliver an outstanding newspaper. The cost of having good writers isn’t cheap, as the article mentions “news is expensive; opinion is cheap,” (224). Which brings us to the updated changes in Journalism. Journalism now comes in different forms such as “dialogic formats” rather than being “traditional practices.” Newspapers rather pay less money for writers who can contribute a decent opinion, instead of paying more for writers who can compose a story with in depth content. Journalism is now becoming a business, rather than what it use to be.

The media is where people get their outside information, so it is important material is written well. Having to mix professionals and amateurs together when it comes to writing a newspaper, can display the lack of content within stories. Yes, journalism is evolving but it’s not evolving into an improvement, “So much for new media. But what about old media,” (220).

does fake news mislead the public?

Regular news has been around for so long, that I assume viewers don't usually tune into. Viewers are able to get their "real news" in different methods such as internet and newspaper. We tend to view news in those forms because we are able to control the amount of information we "want to know." When it comes to television in general, viewers watch tv in order to find entertainment. Usually, "the real news" would probably not be on the list of entertainment. But drama, suspense and comedy would be entertaining to watch. Such as the comedy show, "the daily show with Jon Stewart," which is confirmed a "comedy show." the shows' audience look forward to collecting information from watching it. Naturally media itself gives us information to learn from. It may or may not be information in which we can use. But as viewers we still choose to watch it because it entertains us. the daily show provides news especially references to politicians, since "most people have very little direct contact with politicians and get most of their political information from the media,"(176). But hoping that viewers understand that "the daily show" is a comedy show, the jokes that are mentioned are easy to understand that it is not "real news." Since being a audience and feeling attached to what we are watching every information will be consumed in results that fake news can mislead the public. Having to depend on a comedy show for information because it's one of the many ways to why we like watching our news, can sometimes give us a misconception of what the real news is all about.

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Does mass media influence American values?

From my view, I believe that mass media influences the Americans in general to the extreme where it can shape their own values. Thinking about it, Americans feed off of media in a daily lifestyle. For example, we use the radio, internet, and television in everyday routine. Books and newspapers have been the number one contribution to mads media and having opportunity to live in the 21st century we have a wide range of connections to mass media. Now how can mass media shape our American values? the fact that it is naturally involved within our life routines, the material and content that is used within mass media can be persuasive. Such as "manipulation and the packaged consciousness" that Herbert I. Schiller goes through. Mass media comes in different forms in which us as an audience may sometimes not notice we are being manipulated. Take the clothing lines people purchase or music we choose to buy. Mass media connects with their audience (Americans) while trying to cater to their needs. Schiller briefly explains about manipulation "it is essential, therefore, that people who are manipulated believe in the neutrality of their key social institutions," (page 6). basically Mass media influences Americans that we "need" certain things in order to live a "normal" American life. We need the latest technology, and news to feel that we are a part if what's going on.

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