The Agenda Setting And Spiral Of Silence Media Essay

The Agenda Setting And Spiral Of Silence Media Essay Alan Crosbie, who is the Chairman of Thomas Crosbie Holdings, a large Irish media player said in his speech  commented on new media there is a tsunami of information coming from new media some of which has the capacity to destroy civil society and cause unimaginable suffering. Let us try and understand why Media holds so much power. Significantly Media has had a dominating influence over peoples lives and opinions since time immemorial. A classic example of convincing people of ones beliefs was during the Nazi Regime. The entire nation was convinced of the Nazi ideologies through getting the entire media channels either under the governments control or having censorship rights over the privately owned ones. This resulted in patriotic and nationalistic sentiments being instilled in songs, movies and even the news was censored to suit the ideology of the Nazis. The world as we see and know of around us is through the media and is hence is a second-hand reality portrayed to us by the media owners of the society. This becomes highly ominous in face of the fact that the entire world media is owned by about 9 Conglomerates only. Hence when there is a plethora of news bytes available, the news that reaches us is what the Media channels think newsworthy. And this is just a percentage of the world news that is present around us. This ability to influence which issues, persons and topics are perceived as the most important of the day is called the agenda-setting role of the mass media McCombs, 2004. The origin of the Agenda Setting Theory happened when Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw (1972), professors at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill used the presidential elections of the United States of America in 1968 as a live study to investigate the relationship if existed between the important issues of the public and that between the priority issues of the mass media.   McCombs and Shaw were able to determine the degree to which the media, in Bernard Cohens words, tell us [(the public)] what to think about. Agenda setting theory has two levels to it. The magnitude of media coverage the particular article gets How the article or object in question has been covered First Level Agenda deals with the issues present on the public, political and media domain. This is the most important area of the agenda setting research where media is seen as a highly influencing factor to the public and political issues. Second level agenda setting is more closer to framing. McCombs in his study discussed how second level agenda setting is more specific to the attributes that define the object in question. Balmas and Sheafer (2010) argued that the focus at the first level agenda-setting which emphasizes medias role in telling us what to think about is shifted to medias function of telling us how to think about at the second level agenda-setting. The similarity between second level agenda setting and framing is that they both are related with how a particular issue is portrayed, with mildness or with sensationalization. They are generic and not the issue or object specific. However they differ on the account of intensity, since framing is a higher degree or an ext ension of second level agenda setting. Spiral of Silence Spiral of Silence originates from understanding the Asch experiment (1958) and the Milgram experiment (1963). Asch experiment was a study on conformity. This basically measures how much other people get pressurized into changing their opinion or falling in line when people more powerful or in more volume than them do so. Other reasons for conforming are to not be isolated from the mass and be liked by their peer groups. The Milgram experiment tested the effects of punishment and hence understood the concepts of Obedience and Authority. These experiments prove that mass or volume opinions have a huge impact on individual opinions. The Spiral of Silence theory was created by Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann (1974). Public opinion is the dominant opinion which compels compliance of attitude and behavior in that it threatens the dissenting individual with isolation and the politician with loss of support. In the words of  its  originator  Elisabeth  Noelle-Neumann: observations  made  in one context the  mass  media spread to  another  and  encouraged  people  either  to proclaim  their  views  or to  swallow  them  and  keep  quite  until ,in a  spiraling  process,  the one  view dominated  the  public  scene  and  the  other  disappeared  from  public  awareness as  its  adherents  became mute  ,  this  is the  process  that  can be  called  a  spiral  of  silence. This basically emphasizes on how when an individual feels they are in a minority, out of numerous fears and insecurities, they feel it better to be a part of the popular and mass opinion and hence an issue even if relevant if doesnt have anything to do with the majority will spiral into silence. The silence of a person, who differs from the majority, spirals upwards thus forcing other people to stay silent. theory09a-789436.gif Strengths Explains why the people remain silent when they find themselves to be the minority. Explains the influence created by media over the crucial issues. Explains why people prefer to withhold their true feelings. Rather than take the risk of being isolated Explains how the spirals of silence solve the societal conflicts. Limitations Does not apply completely to the field of media as the aspects of fear of isolation reprisal does not hold true in the virtual world. Questions the transparency in quantifying the majority the minority. Co-relation between Agenda Setting and Spiral of Silence According to Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann, the spiral of silence and the agenda setting theory go hand in hand. She believed that media plays a major role in forming public opinions. Therefore the masses shape their opinions in accordance with the media and according to her, media is the strongest bridge between these two theories. We can support the above point with the help of an example. During the Nazi period, Hitler was convinced that German race is far superior than anyone else on this planet. He made an extensive use of the media tools available at that time to convince the people about the same. Some people believed this but there were a lot of them who did not believe in this concept of German superiority. Although they did not believe, none of them raised their voice because of the fear of the Nazi regime and the fear of isolation. They convinced this case. Examples of Agenda Setting Theory The role of media in shaping public opinion about The Iraq War The marketing effort by the Bush administration to gain support for the invasion of Iraq began to get into full swing by the fall of 2002. When Condolezza Rice, then National Security Advisor to the President, was asked a question on the case of preemptive war in a CNN interview, she said- We know that he [Saddam] has the infrastructure, nuclear scientists to make a nuclear weapon. And we know that when the inspectors assessed this after the Gulf War, he was far, far closer to a crude nuclear device than anybody thought, maybe six months from a crude nuclear deviceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦There will always be some uncertainty about how quickly he can acquire nuclear weapons. But we dont want the smoking gun to be a mushroom cloud. Even the President made similar remarks about Saddams WMD program less than a month later on 7th October, 2002, America must not ignore the threat gathering against us. Facing clear evidence of peril, we cannot wait for the final proof-the smoking gun-that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud. These and other such statements marked the beginning of what the Center for Public Integrity called, false statements, in their 2008 report titled, Iraq-The War Card: Orchestrated Deception on the Path to War. The number of false reports increased tremendously towards the end of 2002 and the beginning of 2003, so did the general perception about Saddams nuclear program, suggesting a strong case for media agenda-setting. Future of Agenda Setting Theory With the introduction of the horizontal media and the internet, people have the option of following what they want without anyone forcing an opinion on them. The change in the technology and media has led to several changes in the agenda setting theory. This change is called as Agenda Mending which talks about the personal agendas of individuals vis-à  -vis their community and group affiliations  . This means that individuals join groups and blend their agendas with the agendas of the group.   Criticisms Agenda Setting Theory does not take into account the personal interests of an individual. Any issue considered salient by the media does not necessarily has to be important for the people. This theory uses a very scientific approach, therefore its not able to stand the test of scrutiny as humans are very unpredictable.

Business Strategy Game

Overview Looking back over the last 5 weeks of the Business Strategy Game there were several areas where Company Emergent could have improved and did very well. This paper will provide an in-depth analysis of Emergent’s approach to managing their Emergent footwear company, the growth experienced through the process, and lessons learned. In addition, recommendations for improvement are provided should the game be played again. Strategic vision of Emergent â€Å"Always move forward â€Å". Emergent exists to create value for our shareowners on a long term basis by building a business that enhances Emergent footprints.Usability The first week of the simulation game was the first point where Emergent suffered in comparison to the competition. From a human factors perspective, the game presents a significant amount of information overload that is difficult for any human to process all at once with minimal to no training. The fact that the game comes with a 34 page manual speaks v olumes to this point, and it is difficult to absorb all of the complex information presented in this manual. There should have been a quick tips and key points of interest to get the students started and that was nowhere to be found.In addition, it was not obvious that there were video tours for each and every page of decision points; this wasn’t realized until week 2. Again, this is a symptom of too much information bombarding a new user. This analysis is not provided to place blame on the game for some of Emergent’s issues, but rather to provide a human factors analysis of usability considerations (one group member is a certified human factors professional) to help improve future uses of this game and help provide students with the tools to succeed given the design drawbacks of the game interface and the human error impacts associated with the design.Recommendation: Create a quick tips and facts sheet to assist the first time user with functionality. Consider a more comprehensive overview of the site and a more representative demo of a few years of mock operation to illustrate how the software works. In addition, understanding the value of the video tours and the industry reports earlier in the process is critical for a team to be able to fully utilize the industry reports effectively from the start. Learning CurveIt took 3 years of decision entries, Y11-Y13, to fully understand how all of the decision elements interacted with one another to drive or negatively impact profits, which caused some decrements in company performance initially. In addition, it also took 3 years to fully understand what the industry and the counterintelligence data was indicating and how to effectively apply it to Emergent’s competitive advantage. However, once the data was better understood and applied effectively the company was able to be turned around from a negative profit and credit rating situation.Recommendation: Understanding that some of the importanc e of the game is learning how things work and how decisions impact a company’s bottom line, it would be beneficial to have a few practice trials to initially understand the game better than just trial and error. Capacity After consulting the players guide, the decision in year 3 was made to invest in increased capacity to meet the projected future growth demand in the Asia Pacific and Latin American region. This decision early in the game, without sufficient equity available from profits, caused Emergent to temporarily plunge in credit rating and profitability.Recommendation: Ensure current capacity is utilized effectively and earning sufficient revenue to justify purchase of additional capacity based on projected growth data. Demand, Production and Inventory Understanding the interplay between the sales forecast for the coming year, warehouse costs for inventory, required production distribution and impact of reject costs was critical for ensuring that the company was able t o deliver and meet the market demands and achieve profitability.Unfortunately, it took several years before it was clear how to manage distribution effectively and more time should have been spent entering decisions more carefully for the first 3 years. In addition, more aggressive investment in facility upgrades would have improved costs incurred with facility inefficiencies, worker productivity and rejected product costs. Recommendation: Invest more time in the analysis of the market and the decision making process to ensure decisions are complimentary.This is critical in order to attain adequate production levels to meet market demands, achieve minimum surplus and no inventory shortfalls to reduce costs incurred from inefficient warehouse usage, and invest in facility upgrades early on to reduce reject costs and increase net revenues with more sellable products for increased long term earning potential. Pricing, Model Availability, and S/Q rating The ability to effectively price the product at a level to reach the widest possible market is heavily dependent of differentiation from the market with quality and model availability.Initially, the team favored focusing on fewer model generated in favor of differentiating via higher quality models and creating a niche market. This tactic worked initially, however it allowed the competition to gain a competitive advantage through larger variation of product offerings at lower quality. Recommendation: Invest early on in product model availability to increase competitive edge. The ability to offer more product choices coupled with Emergent’s focused on higher quality products could have increased the return on equity achievable in the later years.Advertising and Celebrity Appeal Emergent’s initial investments in advertising and celebrity contracts were very conservative and minimal in terms of celebrity contracts for the first few years. It took several years of activity to fully appreciate the gains re alized by competitors from more aggressive advertising tactics and celebrity endorsements. More aggressive contract biding and advertising was attempted for years 15-18, but the profit potential was not as great had this been a strategy used from the very beginning.In many cases, Emergent lost out on a number of contracts for low bids. Recommendation: To increase Emergent’s market share and selling point of its product lines, Emergent should increase the number of celebrity contract bids and the associated bid amounts to attain a larger market share and increased revenues. Summary Successful and innovative businesses are built on strong and cohesive teams, effective strategies and the ability to recognize and seize opportunities before the competition. Emergent could have benefitted from stronger team interaction and communication.The inability to work cohesively as a team decreased Emergent’s ability to maximize the company’s performance profits by leveraging t he skills of each player effectively and strategically. The more eyes on the problem the better and more innovative the solution and the higher the likelihood you will identify strategic opportunities to increase performance and long term success. Had there been stronger and greater team interaction, certain opportunities for Emergent may have been more obvious or recognized earlier in the game simulation helping to create a greater competitive edge.

A Deadly Mistake Uncovered on Extended Essay Maths Topics and How to Avoid It

A Deadly Mistake Uncovered on Extended Essay Maths Topics and How to Avoid It The conclusion is the overview of your complete research. The research question has to be explicitly mentioned in the introduction. Even when you could locate a lot of information, there's probably a means to use a proxy to strengthen your analysis. On the flip side, you may be writing a thesis on computer science. Using Extended Essay Maths Topics If you are attempting to determine what you will write about in your essay, these suggestions are what you will need. Whether there are only two books that have any connection to your topic, it might be too narrow. Opt for a carefully focused topic where it is possible to use two different practical tactics to address it. Since selecting a topic isn't a kid's play, it is going to be useful if you're likely to think about a number of the next topics you may rather research on. Writing a protracted essay can be really demanding, and picking a topic that doesn't align with your interests is certain to intensify the strain that accompanies the approach. When you have researched your subject, you should shell out a whole lot of time structuring and organizing your essay. Be that as it could, the topic for your essay is a vital thing that has to be chosen carefully and with higher precision. Besides having an intriguing essay topic, you must use develop it in a perfect way. The Extended Essay Maths Topics Game You may subsequently make a great argument by comparing the merits and pitfalls of both methods. Our payment methods are extremely safe. An elongated essay is a kind of academic writing assignment, which success rides on the structure. All kinds of essays that are given on several subjects can easily be completed by the experts because of a long experience in the area. The Most Popular Extended Essay Maths Topics Occasionally it's easiest to beg in at the start and compose the introduction first. Since the introduction has to be in tandem with the remainder of your essay, it's not unusual for writers to finish the introduction as soon as they have written the conclusion. Offer some examples and think about why it may be important to get some consensus concerning how we understand the idea. The perfect way to discover the structure that is appropriate for your style of writing is to check through some fantastic extended essay examples. Everyone would like to compose a fantastic Extended Essay, but just don't forget that it's really much less overwhelming as it sounds. Choice of topic is the initial step towards writing the IB essay. Choosing the topic has become the most important aspect. Make certain you are conversant with the topic. Save all the topics and research papers that are directly or indirectly related to your topic. The topic has to be related to your subject in the school. These topics will be able to help you accomplish that. There is an extensive array of definition essay ideas a student could utilize to compose an essay about. The body of your EE should compose the majority of the essay. Each grade of the essay is going to be written by means of a writer who's qualified to that level maths for wa two homework book or higher, to make sure you have the degree of content that is needed. Many students even start looking for lengthy essay help in the beginning as they don't have a clue on how best to begin writing the essay. If you would like enable more quickly you could always use our custom composing service. A number of the things are linked to example essays to provide you with even more inspiration. The very best method is to check through some fantastic extended essay examples. New Ideas Into Extended Essay Maths Topics Never Before Revealed To have a diploma, you must finish the TOK Essay and the Extended Essay. Like your History IA, it's vital that you keep the reach of your EE narrow to keep within the 4000 word limit. In the event you want a bit more guidance on how to acquire an A EE. It is normal for students like you to seek out expert guidance in writing an elongated essay for International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. If you're not certain of who you'd like to be your advisor, I would start by making a list of your top few choices. You've already found the region that interests you, that's step one for virtually any research if you've got a decision. Don't hesitate or look further because you're in the most suitable spot. High school students who complete the programme receive a chance to earn their college application appear more attractive for the committee, and obtain some distinctive interdisciplinary understanding.

Splice The Movie - 959 Words

Genetically modified organisms (GMO) are the central subject of the movie Splice. A couple of brilliant but rebellious scientists combine genes from different plant and animal species to create a new life form. While this is a fictional film, GMOs are very real. The use of GMOs is currently under serious scrutiny and debate. Our foods and some animals are already being genetically modified, are humans the next step? Splice performs this ultimate experiment, and then suffers the ethical challenges and consequences the decision triggers. By making one catastrophic moral choice the scientists compromise themselves both morally and ethically, paving the way for further moral degradation. Does one bad ethical choice make it easier†¦show more content†¦Death tends to end the evaluative process. (Purtilo, 2005, pp.76-92) Genetic modification has been around for quite some time. According to Lemaux (2006), it started when people first chose to plant hardier varieties of plants which were able to resist extreme temperatures and pests. What started as gene selection has advanced to gene modification with the discovery of DNA mapping. DNA mapping has given us the technology needed to make GMOs a reality. This is a hotly debated topic as the long term consequences of genetically modified food and medicines have yet to be established. Some countries have banned genetically modified food sources, while others, like the United States mostly embrace it. We lead the world with the highest percentage of genetically modified crops (U.S. Department of Energy Genome Programs, 2008). As this technology continues to evolve and more areas for its use expand, additional ethical questions will be raised. Splice takes a peak into our future and attempts to tackle those ethical dilemmas. At every turn, the characte rs in this film make yet another poor ethical choice and endure the consequences of their actions. This film could be taken as a worst case scenario of human gene modification. As the technology continues to evolve, we can only hope that the leading scientists have a higher ethical standard than those portrayed in the movie Splice. References Hoban, S. (Producer), Natalie, V.Show MoreRelatedSale - Pro Plans Are 20% Off Today View Plans. Gradeproof1164 Words   |  5 Pages Plagiarism PRO Scroll Automatically Word Count: 557 Sentence Count: 28 Readability: 11.52 % Grade Level: 16.59 years Reading Time: 2 minutes Speaking Time: 4 minutes Type your title here... Genetic Engineering is a common theme of Gattaca, Splice, and Blade Runner. Gattaca takes place in a future where the best opportunities are given people that have the best genes, as a result from Genetic Engineering (cite). 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