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LESSON 3

The Power of the Written Word

Newspapers have ruled to roost unopposed when it came to

communicating news and information for most of the 200 or

so years. But, Not Now

Radio, television and now the ubiquitous personal computerand the internet have arise to challenge newspapers for

their pre-eminent role

Despite the obvious advantages in many fields that the

electronic media have over newspapers, the written wordhas managed to not only survive, but to prosper.

Why is that?

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LESSON 3

The written word hasthe ability to transmitmost effectively thatwhich the electronic

media cannot -Ideas.

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Ideas vs Emotions

Electronic media

LESSON 3

Unsurpassed at transmitting images that appeal

to our emotions such as scenes of human

suffering or triumph. However, it is far less successful in

effectively transmitting complex ideas.

Reason for the electronic medias failure in the

field of ideas and the reason for its success inthe field of emotions: The flood of

information that it delivers on many

levels, all simultaneously.

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LESSON 3

ELECTRONIC MEDIA

VS PRINT MEDIA

Example:

The moving image of a child crying triggers awide range of responses in the viewer, most of

them subliminal - that is, messages that are not

received and processed logically, but messages

that are swallowed whole in the same way a

thirsty man gulps down a drink without

savouring or appreciating the different tastes.

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LESSON 3

Electronic Media Print MediaIf questioned some time afterviewing such images:y Most people will find it difficult

to describe most of what theyactually saw.

y They may not remember whatthe child was wearing or thecontents of the room the childwas in.

y They will struggle to recall whatwas said in the scene, either bythe child or others in thesegment.

y However they will probably beable to recall exactly how thesegment made them feel.

If a person were to ready A well-written and informative

description of the same sceneand read the exact words thechild spoke, chances are thesame person will be able torecall those details and wordslater on.

y They will have becomeembedded in their mind, perhapsbecause the reader was single-mindedly concentrating on thewords they will have logicallyassimilated and stored theinformation, ready for instantrecall.

Reactions:

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LESSON 3

First there was the word

The unassailable advantage of the written word:When the written word is used to transmit abstract concepts such as ideas,

rationales, connections between ideas and logic and so on, those words are

logically processed and, if understood, are ready to be both recalled and used

to aid in the understanding and assimilation of other ideas.

Radio/Television Broadcast vs. Print Media

Situation: Imagine trying to learn a difficult subject not by reading a text book,

but by listening to people speak in a radio broadcast or on television.

Outcomes:

Radio/Television Broadcast: Not only will most of the words have become

blurred in your memory shortly after you heard them, but there is no easy way

for you to re-listen to a word if you missed it or misunderstood it.

Print Media: Compare that to the words printed in your mind by reading them,

words that can be replayed instantly simply my moving your eye

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LESSON 3

Media Synergy

The astute student will of course perceive that there is a fertile field forjust the right amount of co-operation between the written word and

the broadcast image. If they can be made to complement each other

and thus double the impact, fortunes wait to be made.

So far, no one has found the magic formula for this interface between

the written word and the broadcast, although it is occupying manyminds across the world at present that is better than thehumble

newspapers text and pictures.

The point to appreciate and understand however, is that it is the very

differences between the two forms of communication and their

respective strengths that go toward guaranteeing that bothelectronicand paper medias will survive in the future.

While theadvantages of immediacy and emotion will give the

electronic media advantages in the initial delivery ofnews and

information, when it comes to people wanting to fully understand that

news and information, thewritten word will have the advantage.

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LESSON 3

Get it while its HOT

Advantages of the newspaper in terms of storage and retrieval:

Once you have possession of a newspaper or a book, you have all

the information it contains at your almost instant disposal, available

for study or further transmission in an accurate and effective way.

Once you have listened to or watched an electronic transmission, itis instantly lost without the aid of sophisticated, expensive and

energy-using technology.

The printed word is can be stored almost indefinitely, almost

anywhere, without special equipment and still be available for

instant retrieval. This easy accessibility is a vital component of data

retrieval in developing countries where electronic data banks are not

readily accessible.

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LESSON 3

Watchdogs

Vital Function of Media: THE

WATCHDOG

FUN

CTION

A vital function of all forms of media is to maintain a watch over people in

positions of power over the common people this is called the watchdog

function and has been inherent in the press from its beginnings.

Historically

The press survived financially by catering to themass market the so-

called penny press.

The obvious target of the press was those in charge royalty, the

government, businesses and so on those individuals andinstitutions the average person perceived to be oppressing or

exploiting them.

Nothing muchhas changed.

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LESSON 3

Watching the Watchdogs

Situation:

Since the advent of newspapers, there has been a risk that the

owners/controllers will be seduced by the prospect of attaining so

much power by taming the powerful, that they become part and

parcel of the power structure.

This danger is perhaps even more prevalent with corporateownership of much of the press.

Solution:In the developed world this problem was addressed capitalism, by

and by more and more newspapers being founded to criticise not

only those in power, but also those sections of the press that didnot fulfill their watchdog duty.

This came to be called truth through diversity, the premise being

that the more papers there were, each providing a different view of

events, the resultant sum of all newspaper reports would be close

to the truth.

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LESSON 3

The more dogs the better

Situation:

Different reporters of the same event may write differing stories about what happened;

Different papers may also print differing accounts;

Some papers come to support different political factions or parties;

Some journalists view events through eyes shaped by different life experiences.

Question:

How can members of a society establish the facts of an event in order to make up their

minds as to how the event will affect their lives? (The reason we all read newspapers tofind out about the things that affect our lives.)

Solution:

In developed countries this search for the elusive truth is achieved through diversity the theory

being that if there are many competing sources of information from many newspapers, each with

their own bias and prejudices, the truth will lie somewhere in the middle. All the news consumer has

to do is read a lot of different newspapers.While in practice that does not work too well in the developed world and usually not at all in the

developing world the sad fact is that no one has come up with a better solution.

Many countries have tried to legislate to force the press to be responsible or supportive through

control boards or other self-governing media organisations, but with little success. These

organisations almost inevitably become vehicles for censoring ideas and information rather than

fostering them, leaving the public worse off.

As many observers have noted: a free and unfettered press may not be the perfect method, or even

a very good method, of ensuring freedom and democracy its just the best one anyone has beenable to come up with so far.

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LESSON 3

Do sleeping watchdog lie

Truth through Diversitythe problem

The obvious problem with the truth through diversity theory of the

press is that it may fall apart in those parts of the world where there

is not a diversity of press and press ownership when there is no

one to watch the watchdogs.

Ironically this usually happens in those parts of the world which

most need a watchdog, the developing world.

How can this problem be averted?

Perhaps the answer is that instead of newspapers becomingwatchdogs, journalists must become the watchdogs what do you

think?

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B R E A K