Are American Values Shaped by
the Mass Media?
Yes - Herbert Schiller
• The Media manipulates and controls the
general population –
• It is the new Religion
• The Mass Media is owned and controlled by
the rich and powerful
Yes - Herbert Schiller
• Mass media creates the myth of personal
choice and individualism
• Expectations are created that you have a
successful life if you have achieved some
material success
Yes - Herbert Schiller
• The Mass Media creates the illusion of
neutrality
• Institutions – especially government and
education, and including the Mass Media
itself, – are portrayed as neutral and working
in the best interests of the public at all times
Yes - Herbert Schiller
• The Mass Media creates a myth about
unchanging human nature.
• Humans are aggressive and self-centered, and
most humans are not very intelligent, and that
will never change
• (Justification for violence and low-brow
entertainment on TV)
Yes - Herbert Schiller
• The mass media perpetuates the idea that
there is no social conflict.
• Violence stems from individual conflict and
not from underlying social issues
Yes - Herbert Schiller
• The Mass Media perpetuates a myth that
there is choice and diversity in the flow of
information
No – Newcomb & Hirsch
• The “Bardic Function”
• Television and entertainment are a form of
story telling to reflect what is happening in
society
• Television as a cultural forum
No – Newcomb & Hirsch
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Television allows us to look at cultural changes
Father Knows Best
Schiller – reinforces stereotypes
Newcomb & Hirsh – pries open the door
No – Newcomb & Hirsch
• Father Knows Best – Betty the Engineer
No – Newcomb & Hirsch
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All In The Family
M*A*S*H
The Bill Cosby Show
US TV and its influence on Rural India
• (An opposing view – Friends)
No – Newcomb & Hirsch
• A postscript –
• Question – Have both these arguments
changes in the past few years as media has
diversified (cable channels, the Internet,
broadband)?