The Effects of the Media on Criminal Behaviour
The Effects of the Media on Criminal Behaviour The Hypodermic Syringe Model This theory is a passive audience model, and states that the media almost 'injects' the audience with the contents of the media, which are opinions, or a message and then the audience accepts the attitudes, opinions and beliefs. In some cases, the audience responds to the message in terms of their behaviour, they may end up repeating violent behaviour that they have seen in the piece of media. If this behaviour is deemed as criminal, and members of society are repeating it, then ultimately, a criminal or violent society may be created. This means that it is individually deterministic and that we are almost being 'brainwashed' into acting in the way of the message. The audience has no active part in interpreting the message, and the theory suggests that the mass audience are like 'sheep'. We are easily led and not self-aware. However, if the message becomes corrupted, i.e. through perhaps, culture bias, then the message may be interpreted in a different way to which the sender has encoded it. E.g. If the message is about two white male criminals, then it may be internalised by white males, but not by Jamaican males, meaning that the behaviour would be repeated in certain members of society. This model was a response to the German fascists and capitalist societies, explaining how propaganda works.
Why do 'outsider groups' seek to influence or manage media coverage? How important is media coverage to such groups?
Sammy Jain- 010708192 MS3003 Essay Why do 'outsider groups' seek to influence or manage media coverage? How important is media coverage to such groups? Pressure groups in the last few years have become more widespread and important in influencing decisions on government legislation and government policy. 'A pressure group is an organization which seeks as one of its functions to influence and formulate the implementation of public policy, public policy representing a set of authoritative decisions taken by the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary, and by the local government and the European union.' (Grant, 2000:pg 14). Explaining and understanding the typologies will give a firm grounding on what environment and associations different pressure groups work in. There are literally thousands of groups that can be defined as pressure groups, and categorizing and placing these groups in an exact manner is an almost impossible task. But people have tried to come up with different classifications, which on a very general basis can place groups into various sections. One of the more familiar distinctions is between sectional and cause groups. Wyn Grant termed sectional groups as 'representing a section of the community. Their function is to look after more common interests of that section and their membership is normally restricted to that section.' These groups are
Did the BATF and the FBI attempt to cover up agents conduct at the standoff with Branch Davidians in 1993
Waco: Radicalising the Right? An enormous and alarming concentration of resources- taxpayers money, government personnel and time, not to mention many lives were expanded on the social problem allegedly taking place in Waco, Texas. According to news sources, the planned raid of the Mount Carmel Branch Davidian property by the BATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) was one of the largest civilian law enforcement actions in US history. "For years now, the disaster near Waco has been exhibit No. 1 for many who have deep distrust of the American government." From conspiracy sites on the Internet to documentary films, Waco has provided a focus for those who see the government as the enemy. And now they say there is proof the government has been lying. The initial operation involved approximately eighty federal agents, armed with semi-automatic and automatic weapons, orchestrated to execute a single search and arrest warrant. After the failed siege, in which at least six sect members and four agents died in a gun battle, and the ensuing 51 day standoff, in which an estimated 74 Davidians died, 21 of whom were children, the final toll included the tragic deaths of 84 people and cost the taxpayer 100 million dollars. By the end of the whole affair, an army in excess of 700 federal and state officials were involved in one capacity or another. The cruelest irony of all is
War on Waifs: The Enemy in the Mirror.
Susan McBride War on Waifs: The Enemy in the Mirror Flick through a magazine or turn on the television; welcome to the imaginary world of the "ideal." Nobody has a bad day, as they are too busy being perfectly happy, perfectly rich and perfectly successful. Everything is make-believe; so much for aspiration! However, walk down the street or look in the mirror and it becomes a case of welcome to the "real" world, where everyone is unique, all shapes and sizes, colours and ages. A multi-coloured, multi-cultural, fizzy cocktail of life. Things aren't always great, we have our ups and downs but at least it's our life. Welcome to inspiration. The words "eat" and "boring" are usually never found in the same sentence, but leave it to a supermodel to accomplish this task. Bodies reminiscent of the Holocaust clad only in a bathing suit, underwear, or a skimpy tank top flood popular fashion magazines today. How many times have you flipped through the pages of your favourite magazine and spotted an article about how women should have a good perception of themselves and "celebrate those curves?" However you then turn the page to find a centrefold makeover section complete with "before" and "after" pictures. The Mass media serve as a type of "normative influence" to teens, and those who are high in susceptibility to their influence are much less sceptical of advertisements. Therefore,
Does Media Violence Lead to Aggression and Societal Violence?
Man-Ju Lin Sara Talpos English 125 6 April 2006 Does Media Violence Lead to Aggression and Societal Violence? In 2003 Devin Moore, a teenager from Alabama, was caught and brought to police station on suspicion of stealing a car. In the police station, Moore said to Ace Mealer, a 911 dispatcher, "Life is a video game. You've got to die sometime" (par. 16). He suddenly grabbed the gun and shot three police officers, then drove off in a police car but was later apprehended. On October 9th 2005, he was sentenced to death by lethal injection. Moore had played the violent video game Grand Theft Auto day and night for months. This violent video game has sold more than 35 million copies, with worldwide sales approaching $2 billion. It is a game that provides the pseudo-world that is governed by the laws of depravity (Associated Press). The famous case of Devin Moore motivated by this game serves as an evidence for the "copycat" crimes, which raised the concern on the effect of media violence. The debate over the effects of media violence began in 1920s when researchers in the United States and Great Britain began studying the effect of the introduction of television. The issue of media violence did not draw much attention in the United States until the Columbine school shootings on April 20, 1999. Two teenager students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, carried weapons and killed
Following Foucault's conception of subject and power, how do you account For changes in the representations of sexuality in the media?
Alastair Stone 012930 Politics Of Representation Following Foucault's conception of subject and power, how do you account For changes in the representations of sexuality in the media? It is without doubt that the media in our society has an elevated position of power, with moguls such as Rupert Murdoch reputably having control over a distribution of information through processes of media signification. In communication terms these people in the media would be labelled the gatekeepers and their perceived power would rise from their ability to form opinion and withhold or release information. This is a relatively simple concept to come to terms with. However, media representations are formed over time often through myth and a production of truths which operate everywhere in our language. Truth can manifest itself in a number of ways and each society has its own truth regime meaning that the conditions are set for only certain discourses to function on a level of truth. In Foucault's research he looks at power in relation to the subject, and how the human subject is placed in power relations similar to those of production and signification. Representations of sexuality are a particularly interesting site of struggle and it has only been through recent (in particular) Feminist movements that many forms of representation in the media have been challenged. Foucault offers
Media and Racism: does the British media help maintain racism?
Media and Racism: does the British media help maintain racism? Racism in Britain can be traced centuries back especially to the time of the Slave Trade where Britain was regarded as a key figure in creating and maintaining racial hierarchies. This report will assess the role of the British media in maintaining racism in British society and it will focus particularly on the last forty years or so i.e. 1960's onwards. In the report, I will largely rely on the research and work done by other authors in relation to the 'media and racism' but I will also include an evaluation of media coverage of the Bradford Riots in 2001. The report will conclude with a few recommendations on how the media can overcome racism. I have discovered through my research several authors who clearly describe the media as racist and argue that the media assists in maintaining racism in society. Van Dijk (1991), states that the most original and influential early study of the Press in the reproduction of racism was done by Hartmann and Husband (1974), who argued that the media was racist and created an impression amongst readers that black people represented a problem or a threat. They were so defiant on the media being racist that they called their book 'Racism and the Mass Media' rather than 'Race and the Mass Media'. Research by Critcher et al (1977) and Troyna (1981) had similar conclusions to
The History of Censorship
Table of Contents Origin and Definition of Censorship Page 1 Ancient Greece and Rome Page 1 Early Christianity Page 2 Eastern Religion Page 3 Abstract The origin of censorship can be traced all the way back to 443 BC Rome. The first documented case of censorship took place when a Roman soldier began regulating morals while conducting a census. Herein lays the origin of and the first historically acknowledged case of the word censorship. Throughout the course of history censorship has been expanded to cover many aspects of life, and has been adapted over time by particular circumstances, governments and ruling bodies. Since then censorship has expanded rapidly and become much more focused. The censorship of religious opinions in societies could be seen in the case of prosecutions of individuals refusing to acknowledge and or accept the gods of the particular city. The kind of original type of censorship that was evident in Rome and Greece was practically paralleled in ancient Israel and other societies. However resistance to censorship was becoming much more apparent. The Roman Catholic Church and its Index Librorum Prohibitorum displayed the most drastic form of restriction and creed in the Christian religion in the development of censorship. The system of beliefs protected by works like the Index had to have been systems of thought in which certain
Censorship is a controversial word. Discuss.
Censorship Introduction In a world in which acts of heinous violence, murder or crude and shocking behaviour seem to be a normal occurrence, it may lead one to wonder what has put society onto this slippery slope. How did this type of behaviour come to be so acceptable and in some cases glorifiable? A careful study of society may lead to multi media as being the main cause in this changing of ideals. The modern world has become desensitised to the acts shown on television, movies, video games or printed in newspapers and magazines. Censorship must be employed if morals and decency are to be preserved. Censorship is a controversial word that has been with us since who knows when. Ancient dictators would burn books because they didn't like them and force people to believe what they did. The question I ask myself, though, is if censorship in Libraries and schools is justified. My answer is yes, and that is what I will try to convince you. Censorship is the act which helps keep the world from being so corrupt. One of the culprits of criminal behaviour is T.V. violence. Violent programs may have a negative influence on those individuals who are already violence-prone, or children who are living through vulnerable periods of their development. Adult violent offenders tend to have shown certain personality features as children, "one being they tended to have viewed violence on
How might a sociologist account for the high incidence of eating disorders among women?
90% of all people with eating disorders (such as Anorexia and Bulimia) are female (British Medical Association 2008) How might a sociologist account for the high incidence of eating disorders among women? Eating disorders can only be applied to people who have the option to eat, generally they live in a society with an abundance of food, such as the United Kingdom or the United States, but they choose to control their intake of food to a dangerous level. Although eating disorders are considered to be mental illnesses there are several contributing, social and cultural, factors from the external world which drives people to want to achieve a slim body. In post modern society the common appearance of an attractive woman was one of a larger woman because being slim was a sign of insufficient nutrition and poverty. The idea of a slender figure originated in the late nineteenth century within middle-class women. Anorexia was first reported in 1874 in France but it did not become prominent until the past thirty or forty years. In more recent times it has become increasingly frequent in young women. (Gibbens 2006 p253) The high incidence of eating disorders among women has many influential factors. There are pressures from the media and the developing world for women to look specific way. The modern idea of thinness as attractive and healthy which is 'so pervasive in Western