Week 5: Team 2 - Question 2 - Rebuttal to Team 1

Team 1 - Argument 1:

The mass media lets the society know about new television shows and fashion trends/styles to keep society update to date.

Team 2 Rebuttal:

These new television shows have increasingly depicted sex and violence as their story-lines.  There has been a 96% increase in sex, violence, and profanity between 1996 and 2005 and a 400% increase in teenage female abuse between 2004-2009. (see link).  The message is clear.  Mass media has shared responsibility for the increased deprivation of society.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/negative-influences-of-media.html


Team 1 - Argument 2:

Smaller media companies are not controlled by big companies and are not as widely viewed.


Team 2 Rebuttal:

The size of the network does not necessarily make it more autonomous.  Media is business. A big business that requires revenue streams, which are provided by advertising dollars.  I would argue that the nature of any business is to generate profits and grow the business.  Having said that, a smaller network would probably be "hungrier" than a larger competitor to grow and increase revenue so it would be even more susceptible to broadcasting whatever would generate the most revenue in both advertising and consumer programs. Size does not make the influence an less influential.  If anything it may make it more influential.



Team 1 - Argument 3:

From a cultural prospective mass media keeps people up to date.  People should do what they want regardless of mass media.


Team 2 Rebuttal:

And how does mass media keep people up to date?  By regulating or gatekeeping what they are exposed to.  Thus they are controlling the message and the content of the message as well.  Then they spread this message throughout their geographical reach.  This is called "resocialization".  This is how cultures lose their heritage and beliefs.