3.The mass media INTRODUCTION The focus of this opening section is an examination of different explanations of the relationship between ownership and control of the mass media and, in order to do this, we need to begin by thinking about how the mass media can be defined. person (the author of a book, for example), Defining mass communicates to many people (their readers) at the same time. This deceptively media simple definition does, of course, hide a number of complexities – such as, how large Preparing the does an audience have to be before it qualifies as ‘mass’? ground In addition to thinking about a basic We can start by breaking down the concept definition of the term, we can note how of a ‘mass media’ into its constituent parts. Dutton et al (Studying the Media, 1998) A medium, is a ‘channel of communication’ suggests that, traditionally (an important – a means through which people send and qualification I will develop in a moment), receive information. The printed word, for the mass media has been differentiated from example, is a medium; when we read a other types of communication (such as newspaper or magazine, something is interpersonal communication that occurs on communicated to us in some way. Similarly, a one-to-one basis) in terms of four essential electronic forms of communication – characteristics. television, telephones, film and such like – • Distance: Communication between those are media (the plural of medium). Mass who send and receive messages (media- means ‘many’ and what we are interested in speak for information) is impersonal, here is how and why different forms of lacks immediacy and is one way (from the media are used to transmit to – and be producer/creator of the information to the received by – large numbers of people (the consumer/audience). When I watch a audience). film, for example, no matter how Mass media, therefore, refers to channels emotionally involved I become in the involving communication with large action, I can’t directly affect what’s numbers of people. This is traditionally seen unfolding on the screen. as ‘one-to-many’ communication – ‘one’ 129 AS Sociology for AQA • Technology: Mass communication requires a vehicle, such as a television Digging deeper receiver, a method of printing and so In the above exercise, you will have found it forth, that allows messages to be sent and reasonably easy to identify a range of mass received. media. However, I suspect you will have • Scale: One feature of a mass medium, as identified some forms of communication we’ve noted, is it involves simultaneous (such as mobile phones and email) that communication with many people; for don’t fit easily (if at all) into traditional example, as I sit in my living room definitions, mainly because they have the watching Chelsea play Manchester capacity to be both: United on TV, the same behaviour is • interpersonal (‘one-to-one’) being reproduced in thousands of other communication and living rooms across the country. • mass (‘one-to-many’) communication. • Commodity: An interesting feature of mass communication – in our society at Depending on how it is used, for example, least – is that it comes at a price. I can email can involve exchanging interpersonal watch football on TV, for example, if I messages with friends and family (‘Hi, how can afford a television, a license fee (to are you?’) or sending one message to many watch BBC or ITV) or a subscription to thousands – potentially millions – of people; something like Sky Sports if it’s on customers of on-line retailers, such as satellite or cable. Amazon (www.amazon.co.uk), for example, WARM UP: IDENTIFYING MASS MEDIA can request email notification of special offers and so forth. Unrequested mass emails Using the following table as a guide, in – commonly known as ‘Spam’ – also come pairs or small groups, identify as many into this category. media as possible and decide (by ticking In defining the mass media, therefore, we (✓) or crossing (✕) the appropriate box) have hit upon something that, as recently as whether or not they qualify as a mass 25 years ago, wouldn’t have been a problem; medium (of the ones I have identified, namely, the development of computer television does qualify but the telephone, networks. The ability to link computer for example, doesn’t). technology (to create something like the Medium Distance Technology Scale Commodity Television ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ Telephone ✗ ✓ ✗ ✓ Daily newspaper ✓ ✓ Mobile telephone ✓ ✓ Further media? 130 The mass media Internet or mobile phone networks) has created a subtle – but incredibly important – Producer change in the way we both define and conceptualise the mass media. To make matters even more complicated, computer networks open up the potential for ‘many- to-many’ communication, where a mass audience can, simultaneously, interact and communicate with each other. In other Consumers words, a mass medium based on interpersonal communication. To clarify this idea, think about things ‘Old’ forms of mass media like: involve one-way communication between a producer and a mass • Internet chatrooms. These conform to audience. three of the components of a ‘mass medium’ identified above (technology, way process of producers creating scale and commodity). However, the information that is transmitted to large ‘distance’ component is a problem. This is numbers of consumers, and because, rather confusingly, a chatroom can, simultaneously, involve one-to-one, • new mass media, such as peer-to-peer one-to-many and many-to-many networks, involving ‘many-to-many’ communication. communication based on two-way communication with participants as • Peer-to-peer networks involve using both producers and consumers of software to link individual computers, information. such that anyone connected to the network can exchange information directly with anyone else. In the workplace, for example, this can mean any number of people can contribute to the same piece of work at the same time. We can also note, however, this type of network can also be used to breech copyright laws through the (illegal) sharing of music and films. In the light of these developments, therefore, we need to redefine the concept of mass media by creating a distinction between: • old mass media, such as television, books ‘New’ forms of mass media can involve two- and magazines, that involve ‘one-to- way communication within a mass audience many’ communication, based on a one- who are both producers and consumers. 131 AS Sociology for AQA Crosbie (‘What Is New Media?’, 2002) argues that new (mass) media have Ownership and characteristics that, when combined, make them very different to other forms of mass control media. These include: • Technology: They cannot exist Preparing the without the appropriate (computer) ground technology. The distinction just drawn between old and • Personalisation: Individualised messages new media forms is important when (either tailored to the particular needs of considering the relationship between media those receiving them or having the ownership and control, since the old and new appearance of being so constructed) can media involve potentially different be simultaneously delivered to vast relationships between owners, controllers, numbers of people. producers and consumers. To understand this, • Collective control: Each person in a we need, initially, to define what we mean by network has, potentially, the ability owners These, as you might expect, are the to share, shape and change the people who own whatever medium in being content of the information being used to communicate information. We can exchanged. identify two basic types of media ownership. Crosbie uses the following example to • Private ownership, where companies are illustrate this idea: owned by individuals, families, Imagine visiting a newspaper website and shareholders and so forth. Rupert seeing not just the bulletins and major Murdoch, for example, owns a controlling stories you wouldn’t have known about, but interest in News Corporation, a company also the rest of that edition customized to that publishes books, films and magazines your unique needs and interests. Rather and broadcasts satellite TV programmes, than every reader seeing the same edition, among many other things. each reader sees an edition simultaneously individualized to their interests and • State ownership: The BBC, for example, generalized to their needs. is state owned – it is funded by the taxpayer and doesn’t have private owners or shareholders. As an aside, however, we can note there are different types of state ownership around the world. In somewhere like China, for example, the government directly controls media content (the media is, in effect, state- run); the BBC, on the other hand, is overseen by a Board of Governors who, although directly appointed by the government, have a degree of 132 The mass media independence from both the state and significant are suggesting this creates a direct political control. diversity of media involving different forms and sources of information, such that Ownership is significant here because owners audiences are able to pick and choose have the potential to decide what sort of information to suit their own particular information an audience will be allowed to tastes and, indeed, prejudices. receive. For example, private owners may decide not to publish a book critical of their company, whereas state-owned companies Digging deeper may be subject to political control and We can dig a little deeper into the censorship over what they can broadcast or background to this debate, prior to publish. examining some sociological explanations of Controllers are the people who actually the relationship between ownership and run (or manage) a company on a day-to-day control, by identifying and explaining a basis – the editor of a newspaper or the head number of significant ideas. of a film studio, for example. Usually – Concentration of ownership refers to the especially when talking about very large idea that the ownership of various media media companies – managers are not (television, books and newspapers for outright owners of the company for which example) is increasingly restricted to a they work (although they may own shares in relatively small number of companies.