Does your case study suggest that new and digital media have had a positive impact by offering audiences a more diverse range of values and ideologies? (48 marks)
Over the course of studying the new and digital media case study and researching film viewing and distribution specifically focusing on Lionsgate, many viewpoints both positive and negative have presented themselves in regards to this question; on whether NDM has had a positive impact by offering audiences a more diverse range of values and ideologies.
NDM has brought dramatic changes to the world and has had a positive impact by offering audiences a more diverse range of values and ideologies a pluralist perspective would argue that NDM has led to media producers/institutions involving their audiences a lot more than they previously did. Producers and institutions have involved their audiences more as they encourage their audiences to share their views and opinions via social media platforms such as Twitter more and during live broadcasts of programmes on TV. An example, of producers getting their audiences more involved in discussions on social media, would be with the recent broadcasting of a BBC Panorama report on the disappearance of Madeline McCann entitled ‘Madeline McCann: 10 years on’. Producers got their audiences involved by publishing information about the broadcast on their Panorama Twitter page with ‘#MadelineMcCann’ encouraging viewers to share their views and opinions on such a widely known story. Some of the views were positive offering messages of support to Madeline’s parents 10 years on while others were negative for example “When will they accept they are to blame for leaving those beautiful small children alone to go drinking!?! #MadelineMcCann #BBC Panorama”. Getting the viewers involved meant that they were engaged with the story and able to question one another’s views on the issue. Audiences were able to question each other and challenge the status quo (existing state of affairs) that is presented to us by the ruling class elites.
On the other hand, a Marxist perspective would argue that NDM has had a negative impact by offering us a more diverse range of values and ideologies because complete power doesn’t remain with the ruling classes (institutions). The loss of power amongst the ruling classes has meant that they have been unable to maintain hegemonic control in society as the more diverse range of values and ideologies means that they are constantly being challenged. One way in which the ruling class have lost power over society would be through the rise of user-generated content. User generated content has presented a diverse range of values and ideologies because content is not mediated by gatekeepers, who are deciding what information we should be consuming. An example, of a user generated content campaign would be ‘#blacklivesmatter’ created in 2012 after Trayvon Martin’s murderer was acquitted for his crime. This campaign presented us with a more diverse range of values and ideologies or greater variety of views as it gave us the opportunity to understand how black people in society were being treated directly from the community. As opposed to opinion leaders passing on their interpretation of events, such as Deandre Joshua’s shooting (Deandre Joshua (20) was shot once in the head and then set on fire inside his car. He had just testified to a grand jury. #BlackLivesMatter ‘Tweet about Joshua’s shooting on the black lives matter campaign’) to the masses, (two-step flow). Having a greater understand of the black community has meant that society no longer just instantly believes the dominant ideologies that they are drip-fed.
However, it could further be argued that NDM has had a positive impact by offering audiences a more diverse range of values and ideologies as a result of the continuously increasing use of social media. Social media has allowed us to develop a shared culture. With social media presenting us with these more diverse ranges of values and ideologies we have been able to connect with others that we can relate too. We no longer live in an ‘echo chamber’ or ‘filter bubble’; we are no longer denying certain things exist in society such as the LGBT community as a result of the more diverse range of values and ideologies presented to us via social media. For example, the Twitter page ‘@LGBTfdn’ promotes the LGBT community through a series of events such as conferences which are said to be incredibly influential evident from tweets such as ‘truly an inspirational day at @LGBTfdn conference learning about co-production model of working for better #transoutcomes’.
Though, a negative standpoint could still be taken as to whether NDM has had a positive impact by offering audiences a more diverse range of values and ideologies because many industries have suffered financially as a result, for instance film viewing and distribution companies like Lionsgate. The greater access to a more diverse range of values and ideologies has meant that less people are watching certain films at the cinema for fear that societies ideals are being used in films and could be passed on to their children for example. Many parents are worried that their children might believe society values, see the world in the same way that the film presents, and thus translate what they see into society or believe society is the same (Gerbner – Cultivation). Instead, many people are opting for using streaming services such as Netflix where they themselves can better mediate what their children are seeing; through parental controls, stopping children from watching certain films and separate profiles. As a result, of large masses of people opting away from the cinema for film viewing the films overall are not doing as well as anticipated at the box office, particularly if they are un-established films such as franchises like Fast and Furious. Consequently, the production/distribution companies that have backed the films such as Lionsgate are not getting the monetary return on the film that they would have hoped for.
In conclusion, NDM has had a negative impact by offering audiences a more diverse range of values and ideologies because as Keen suggested ‘webpage’s and blogs are like a million monkeys typing nonsense’. Therefore questioning the accuracy of the information we are seeing due to fewer gatekeepers of the information being spread across social media and in some instances in the newspapers. The most prominent example of when accuracy of information has been questioned would be with the rise of fake news particularly during the US Presidential elections. For instance, one fake story that was published which consequently led to the spread of a diverse range of values and ideologies would be “Trump Offering Free One – Way Tickets to Africa & Mexico for Those Who Wanna Leave America”. The web page from which this story originated (tmzhiphop.com) was as Keen said ...’a million monkeys typing nonsense’ due to the vast offering of a more diverse range of values and ideologies due to new and digital media.
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