Mass Media and the Development of Citizenship Orientations
Diana Owen
Georgetown University
Evidence supports the contention that the mass media have assumed powerful roles in the American civic education process, especially in the current era. For many citizens, much of their experience with the political realm is orchestrated through mass media. Media provide knowledge of political institutions, actors, and processes that creates the foundation for citizenship orientations. Individuals form opinions about politics and evaluate their government and its officials based upon media messages and images. In addition, mass media depict authority relationships, impart political rules and conventions, convey ideology, and reinforce the values of the existing regime. The media supply blueprints for political engagement by showcasing political role models, and by portraying politicians, public servants, and average citizens in action.
Yet, influence of mass media in the political socialization and learning processes traditionally has been understudied, and thus, largely underestimated. Classic works on political socialization generally focused heavily on the role of the family, according less attention to other important agents, including the school and peer group, with notable exceptions. The mass media's role often was characterized as reinforcing politicization that had been initiated via other agents, a byproduct of the "limited effects" perspective that pervaded communications research during the heyday of socialization scholarship. The limited evaluation of media-related socialization occurred in spite of the fact that pioneers in the area of civic education and political socialization, including Charles Merriam, observed early in this century that the print press, radio, and film were agencies of prime importance. Reanalysis and reinterpretation of data from major political socialization studies, especially survey data, reveals that the media's role in the socialization process has been somewhat understated over time. Further, data from more recent studies of young people indicate that discussions with family members, including coverage of political topics, has declined radically, while reliance on mass media has increased. In effect, mass media's political socializing potential has accelerated periodically as new communications technologies have been introduced into society.
The characteristics of the mass media acting as socializing agents are not especially conducive to effective civic education as currently constituted. Generally speaking, media often serve as civic educators by default, not design. As a result, socialization that occurs largely through mass media is detached, remote, fragmented, and unspecialized. A media socialization system lacks a formal authority structure to which citizens can relate. The media industry does not have the capacity nor the inclination to oversee or regulate the socialization of individual citizens directly as can face-to-face agents. Further, the media are largely unpopular educators- citizens today, including young people, have little respect for political media, especially. In addition, citizens perceive that the media have little respect for them.
While the current, largely haphazard media/socialization process raises some cause for concern, the possibilities for using mass media effectively for civic education are monumental. For example, the careful integration of media into educational curricula specifically designed to involve students in politically relevant activities can have significant positive socializing effects.
The ability to link media information with real world experiences can enhance learning.
