The characteristics of media institutions
- Lots of people on a global scale
- require technical and creative people to travel freely
- massive employers
- clearly defined roles for people
- a shared internal ideology
- operate in competitive global markets
- want to increase audiences (leading to profit or more funding)
- regulate production highly.
Counter-tendencies
- Require creativity
- workers require the freedom to experiment and be creative
- trying to break the 'norm'
- internal power-struggles e.g. George Michael at Sony
- alternative and independent production comes from these highly regulated organisations.
Critical theory:
Institutions as a Cultural Industry
Adorno & Horkheimer -
- the media is organised to:
- make similar products
- maximise profit
- be a capitalist industry
- the media:
- makes us feel like we need them
- try to sell us goods and services
- shapes our consciousness
- produces a mass, passive and obedient audience
- have a dominant ideology (i.e. are capitalist).
- the media is low quality and harmful.
Institutional gatekeeping
Institutional gatekeeping ensures published media is inline with the institution's values. It affects decisions about:
- news worthiness
- evidence availability
- photographic and cinematic support
The gatekeeping is shaped by the values and beliefs of the people making the decisions, and by legal and regulatory issues.
Censorship = Control
A Wal-Mart mini-story
Wal-Mart, a US shop similar to Tesco, banned an anti-Wal-Mart song by Sheryl Crow. This badly affected her sales. However, because of the ban it became more popular and people started selling copies of it in Wal-Mark car parks. This is a good example of the power of the media, and how meaning can change in context.