Does the Media in Britain Bias? Does it matter that the media is bias?
...ce of the media market. For instant, only big three like W.H. Smith, John Menzies and Surridge Dawson control nearly 75% of this market. While Murdoch who owns the Times ( sold 619,682 copies in 2002) and ever best selling newspaper like The Sun (3,541,002 copies in 2002 and about 3,720,000 copies in 2003) control more than 17% of the market. Another crucial fact is that since most of the medias are owned by the business people who hardly know anything besides making profits out of everything, they are the one who make a decision and influence how the news should be presented. Trowler who investigate the Media gives an important evidence to suggest the attempt of how the owner of London Daily News, Robert Maxwell, who was trying to explain his non interference role to new editor, while the editor of the Daily Mirror entered with a proof the front page to ask for his approval. As such, by the natural of business people who think more about maximizing profit not the journalism ethic, they will use what so called “tabloid” kind of news in order to gain public attention. This strategy seems to be successful in a way as it can be seen by the sale number of these newspaper. Their opinion is so strong that it leads to the winning of the Labour Party in 1997. As the table below shows the presses had been supported Conservative from 1945 until 1992. During that period of time, people read Conservative paper, even working class people who were main supporter of the Labour Party read very Conservative tabloid newspaper like Sun, Mail, and Express. During the time, the Conservative got a majority vote from people, while Labour got fewer votes than expecting. According to this table, it seems that the self –selection argument seems to be very useless. The tabloid newspaper like ‘The Sun’ has almost 3.5 million readers, and together with other tabloid newspaper like BskyB, The Times, Today and Sunday, have a circulation of the paper equating to a 37% share of newspaper sales in the country. Obviously, the bestselling newspaper like The Sun had kept their right position until 1997, when it was the first time within many years of Conservative reign. Srisuda Ittiwameethum 4406640757 This example leads to another direct influence. The people who deliver news ,themselves, can become the source of bias by intentionally or unintentionally. It is true that the medium press like newspapers are more likely to take a political stand point, since they do not require by the law to be impartial. This, however, does not mean that broadcasting media like T.V. and Radio are non bias kind of media. The evidence from the “the Observer” gives an example of a BBC’s Middle East news correspondent, Tim Llewellyn. He accused BBC of “systemic bias in covering the Arab-Israel conflict.” Llewellyn, who has been working with the station for about 10 years, Claimed that : “… Bad news from Israel makes the scientifically based case that the main news and current affair programmes- with the rare exception- are failing to tell us the real story and the reason behind it. They use a distort lens. The result is that the Israel have identity, existence ,a story the viewer understands. The Palestinians are anonymous, alien, their personalities and their views buried under their burden of plight and the vernacular of ‘terror’…” The Observer ( Sunday June 20,2004) In the other words, even the BBC, one of the most reliable media of Britain, is considered as a side taking and bias. Instead of having people seeing all the truth from all perspective, BBC acts as if they are not the story teller but soothsayer and the judge of the event. Looking at the press perspective, however, the bias and side taking sometimes can me forgivable. No one can deny that in the world of news, everything has to be fast. Sometimes, even though they do not have enough information, the Srisuda Ittiwameethum 4406640757 news has to be there in order to keep the situation freshest and most up to date. The lack of information, therefore, can cause bias by the news reporters, especially in a very emotional situation like war in Arab-Israel war. Furthermore, news reporters as well as the news writers are human being, it is hard for them to become so mechanic liked. Once the first impression is formed, it is also very hard for them to change it. The last direct reason is the fact that both kind of medias, broadcasting and published media, depend heavily upon advertisement income. In order to maintain their benefit, they need to keep their advertiser sweet by allying on the businessmen side. British news, therefore, are dominated by outside interests. One of the obvious example is ‘The Telegraph’, owned by Conrad Black, Chair Of the Hollinger Group, the largest Canadian Newspaper holding, and it consistently reflects the opinion of the US. and Israeli right wing, funds the publishing of the Daily telegraph (970,000 copies) and Sunday Telegraph (775,000 copies) which representing about 7.5% of national circulation. This leads to the bias toward representing the news in Middle East in order to keep sugary relationship with their supporter. On the other hand, they need to make their programme or their news as interesting as possible so they can draw more attention from their audiences. Similar to the law of demand and supply, the more the number of consumers increase, the more money they can gain from advertisement and commercial brake investors. The second major bias is so called “indirect influence” which comes from government intervention and the D notice. In theory, any one can form their own newspaper and magazine in order to keep the competition of the market. In theory, the state are not allow to interfere freedom of press and speech in order to maintain Srisuda Ittiwameethum 4406640757 moderation and the truthful in the media. This is the most important rules in the democracy world. In practice, however, is another story. The official Secret Act provides the rights for the government to decide what information should be classified as a secret. Furthermore, the government has a power to punish and put the people who violate the law in prison. In addition, the government has another instrument which called as “the Defense Notices.” (D Notices) The notice is a combination of The Official Secrets Act and the further non classified information which concerning about the armed forces. Government can use the power from the D Notice to advice a newspaper which might put the article of how to do the home-made bomb as well as censor publication. The good excuse of this censorship is such publication would be potentially harmful to public in general. The government interference also intrudes, indirectly, in the world of broadcasting media. Within a recent years, British government claim the problems of declining in standard of moderate journalism as a main concerning for the government. Media bias, inaccuracy, invasion of privacy, along with sensational opinion indicates the need for new form of regulation. Unwillingly to impose a direct law, the government proposes the media society with self- regulating implement. In television, the formation of “Qua...