Press Theories

THE THEORIES IN MASS COMMUNICATION

When we think about the process of mass communication, it is important that we consider not only the role mass communication plays in society and the effects the media have on individuals and society (so-called media effects), but also the effects society has on mass communication and the media. Remember that, the term, mass communication refers to a process of spreading messages, texts, and so on to large audiences through the use of the media. There are a number of different arrangements possible relative to the role of the government and the mass communication media.

Four Systems of Mass Communication (or communication theory)

In their classic study Four Theories of the Press, Fred Siebert, Theodore Peterson, and Wilbur Schramm suggest that there are four main systems of mass communication (or were as of 1963, when their book was published):

1. The Soviet Communist system
2. The libertarian system
3. The social responsibility system
4. The authoritarian system

In the following discussion we modify their ideas slightly, because things have changed considerably since 1963. It also should be point out that some scholars argue there are many different systems that could be set up; this list of four is used only as a means of showing some of the more important ones.

First, there is the system that used to be found in the Soviet Union and other Communist countries (and is still found, to a degree, in the People’s Republic of China). This system allowed the Communist Party to operate or control the media and to use them to indoctrinate the public with Communist principles and ideas. The government ran the media and used them to spread what we could call propaganda (Marxist-Leninist ideology), to convince people of the efficiency and legitimacy of the government.

We have to wonder how effective this media control was, given that the people in Communist countries kicked out the Communists as soon as they recognized that the Russian Army would not be invading. This, after 50 years of media indoctrination (another example supporting the theory that media have weak effects).

The Second System, the libertarian (a term with a somewhat different meaning nowadays, when we have a Libertarian Party), allows for so-called free media, in which private corporations are allowed to control channels and operate networks under the supervision of various government agencies. This is the situation found in the United States and in many Western European countries, where government-run networks no longer have a monopoly on the airwaves.

The Third System is also found in the United States and other countries with “free” media, but the focus is on the social responsibility of those who own and control the media of mass communication. In the United States there is a continual battle being waged by those supporting the libertarian view of media (corporations that would like to be completely free to maximize their profits) and those supporting the social responsibility view of media (academics and other who fear that the media are irresponsible and are not being used in the public’s interest).

The fourth group, the authoritarian, is for all intents and purposes a stronger version of the Soviet Communist model, and exists in countries where strong dictators can exercise virtually absolute control of the media; North Korea, the “hermit state” as it is sometimes called, is an example. The spread of new technologies in recent years has made it very difficult for those in power in such countries to maintain control of the media. In many areas of China, for example, viewers can pick up networks from Hong Kong and other free countries, so they can watch news shows that give them much more accurate information about what is going on in the world than their own programs deliver. They can also watch other kinds of programs broadcast from outside China. Some theorists believe that the West German television shows East Germans were able to see were a factor in the ultimate breakdown of authority in East Germany and the reunification of Germany. These programs exposed East Germans to a consumer culture in West Germany that many East Germans (and those in other Soviet Satellites) longed for.

(Berger, A. A, (1995), Essentials of Mass Communication Theory, Sage Publication, Inc. USA)