Chapter 15 Mass Media Globalization Chapter Insights Philosophical premises explain differences between countries with free and controlled mass media The principle of a free mass media is hard to keep in the crisis of war Online media have created tools for fundamental changes in human governance and commerce Governments can use mass media to reach people in other countries Generalizations about Arab mass media are hazardous Dynamics are in place to move China out of heavy handed media censorship The world s nations and media systems fall into competing philosophically irreconcilable systems Authoritarianism places confidence in political and sometimes theocratic leadership for governance In contrast libertarianism emphasizes the ability of human beings to reason their own way to right conclusions and therefore believes humans are capable of their own governance Democracy and a free mass media are in the libertarian tradition Mass Media and Nation State War as a Libertarian Test From the fog of war can come defining clarity on the irreconcilable clash between authoritarianism and libertarianism The trials of combat with national survival at issue can put even the greatest democracies to a test of their libertarian ideals Expedience can lead to contradictory policies such as censorship and suppression of dissent o In times of war even little wars like Grenada leadership consistently has declared that national survival trumps free express and a free press Online Global Reform Online global communication has evolved quickly to challenge the most powerful structures that the human species has created These structures include nation states and mega corporations and their traditional mode of operations including secrecy With online tools independent organizations like WikiLeaks are torpedoing government and corporate secrecy as contrary to the public good o The secrecy that has been a core tool in statecraft and corporate policy is under new assault by online activists o The goal of activists is to force openness transparency and accountability o Neither governments nor corporations have found ways to counter the leaks in part because the internet is global and also because the sites have mechanisms to assure the anonymity of whistleblowers o The question is whether nation states or mega corporations can keep doing business as usual Trans Border Soft Diplomacy Mass media are important in statecraft Governments have beamed radio broadcasts across borders to bypass hostile governments and reach foreign audiences directly The Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty projects of the U S government date to the Cold War More recent projects are Radio and Television Marti for Cuban audiences and Radio Farda for Arab audiences The United States also subsidizes in country media as part of its soft diplomacy in nation building o As part of its nation building programs in developing countries the United States finances start up mass media o The greatest spending is in countries deemed critical to U S interests like Afghanistan o The goal of nation building is a self sustaining national infrastructure which of course includes functional broadcasting and web systems o Trans border programming beamed into hostile countries was designed to turn people against their governments o This was a Cold War tactic from the 1940s through the implosion of the Soviet Union in the 1990s Arab Media Systems Media in Islamic regions do not fit a single mold These media operate in diverse political systems some driven by theologies that themselves are inconsistent Others are pragmatically oriented to create pan Arabic mass audiences Among the most successful is Al Jazeera o Although most nations in Islam dominated regions are authoritarian they are also diverse o Some of these countries have moved beyond religion and pragmatically sough the be part of the modern world o Media production centers notably in Lebanon and Dubai but also elsewhere are cultivating transborder and trans cultural Arab and Islamic audiences China Media The struggle between freedom and tyranny plays and replays itself out with the mass media offering case studies on broader issues Among major nations China has suppressed challenges to government authority with the most laborintensive censorship initiative in history o China s emergence as a global economic power hinges in part on its ability to tightly control mass media o Government policy is to let nothing interfere with the stability necessary for the nation s economic engine to remain in high gear o The government has created the largest pre publication censorship apparatus in human history called the Chinese Firewall to monitor and censor incoming communication o Within the country both entertainment and news media are kept in check although signs of loosening appear from time to time