Dorothy J Burk3/23/09

UMS 6184/6 Wilder/Gannaway

Abstract: Radio and Modernity: Time, Place and "Communicative Capacity" by David Hendy

The conception of time and space instilled by radio has several effects on our own experience of space

and time in the physical sphere, and on our sense of identity. Hendy argues that two important effects of radio

that must be studied are on "sense of place" and "sense of space." The essential contradiction to be taken up in

the article is that of the ability of radio to cause social alienation while also having potential for rekindling of

social life. Hendy refers in this respect to "radio's communicative capacity."

The first section of the article deals with time in radio. Because radio broadcasts have no visual

component, they exist and develop only in time. This existence in time is dependent upon constantly

reinforcing what is being listened to and who is talking. Hendy argues that ultimately the well-constructed

notion of time in radio leads to a "thematizing" of daily life. The ability of radio to become a part of routine,

daily life is reflected in the fact that radio itself has come to be seen as ordinary and routine (261).

The second section of the article deals with the dimension of place in radio. Hendy argues that while

radio might construct a public forum, the limits of that forum are much more dependent on broadcasters than

listeners. He discusses several devices used to build community via the radio, one of the most important of

which is advertising; ads tie listeners into a consumer culture to which they feel belonging. Radio must work to

have a sense of locality despite the fact that it is quite place-less, and this sense of locality is used to re-present

the audience to themselves, as the community.

The final section of the article deals with Hendy's original assertion that radio has intense

"communicative capacity," the embodiment of the paradox between social alienation and the rekindling of

social life that is accredited to radio. Hendy argues that radio has an ability to communicate which is not

always realized, so that often nothing is said even when something is being said. He points particularly to DJs

and hourly news updates, which go on whether or not they have anything notable to say. Hendy argues that the

effects of radio might not be entirely negative, but that intellectuals must do the work of identifying what sort

of cultures radio constructs or reproduces, and how radio defines the dimensions of our social lives.

Article referenced

Hendy, D. (2009). Radio and Modernity: Time, Place and "Communicative Capacity." In B.E. Duffy and J. Turow (Eds.), Key Readings in Media Today: Mass Communication in Contexts (pp. 256-277). New York: Routledge.

Dorothy J Burk3/23/09

UMS 6184/6Wilder/Gannaway

Abstract: Political Problem, Political Solution by Robert McChesney

The popular conception that free-market competition is the best framework for media in the United

States is challenged by McChesney, who argues that the solution which is best for capitalism might not be the

solution which is best for democracy. The first section of the article examines contemporary debates about

whether or not the media is in the purvey of the market. McChesney finds that both liberals and conservatives

believe that the media essentially occupies space in the market, and that the question that follows is whether

the market is actually the best way to organize the media. The history of deregulation in media is traced, with

an emphasis on how deregulation most benefitted the private interests of media players, not the citizenry.

In the second and third sections, McChesney introduces a historical perspective on the media, flowing

back to the early Republic and subsidies for newspapers and the post office. The history of copyright as an

incentive for cultural producers is also discussed; the way in which copyright, subsidies, and the First

Amendment effected and were affected by "newspaper politics" points towards the conclusion that media is not

best served under the free-market, but under political regulation.

McChesney moves to the history of radio enterprise in the fourth section as a means to understand the

key problem he recognizes, which is that the media has turned from serving the public interest first to serving

the public interest only after the corporate/private interest is served. He points to the FCC and to its function as

an essentially non-functioning regulatory agency which almost always answers to corporate interests.

The final section discusses Neoliberal theory. McChesney argues that Neoliberalism is at the heart of

the problem with media. In his conclusion he argues that rather than obscuring the policy-setting practices of

the FCC and other bodies so that the public feels they have free media, the media should report widely on

policy practices so that citizens can participate. The article builds to the crux that democratic citizens are those

citizens who are well-informed by largely unbiased interests, not those informed by corporate interests.

Article referenced

McChesney, R. (2009). Political Problem, Political Solutions. In B.E. Duffy and J. Turow (Eds.), Key Readings in Media Today: Mass Communication in Contexts (pp. 60-89). New York: Routledge.

Hendy abstract Dorothy BurkMcChesney abstract Dorothy Burk