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Draft #2 Media and Bureaucracy in the United States

How Bureaucracy Uses the Media

• Enhance image/ build support

In order to foster public opinion in support for an agency or its policies, the bureaucracy can use the media to show the public what it is doing to make their lives better. When individuals are able to see the positive work that an agency is doing, they will likely favor that agency over one they have little to no information about. It is more than just news media, films and television shows that wish to use military equipment, and therefore must cooperate with the Department of Defense, they often must depict the DOD in a positive manner in order to get the cooperation they need.

• Justify budget and necessity

Bureaucratic agencies can also use the media to help show congress that it is doing its job well. Thus, the budget that it receives is justified. When the agency is performing well, congress and the President need not interfere. For the most part, agencies wanted as much autonomy as possible. Therefore, the fact that they can show how well they are doing, without ever directly contacting the politicians in charge of them, is a huge plus.

• Educate public about policy

Members of the bureaucracy will use media outlets to inform the public about new policies. Furthermore, information will be given on how the policy will help them, and what they need to do in order to comply with the changes.

How the Media Uses Bureaucracy

• Get headline stories

Media outlets are always competing against one another to get news to the public first, and to have the biggest and best story so they will land the front page. This usually means having the most access to high ranking individuals in agencies. The media has to cooperate with the bureaucracy in order to get this information.

• Get insight into new policy

Another large part of media's job on reporting about bureaucracy is policy. The reporters gain important vital information on any new policy changes and or on new policies. Some form of media is the first to report on policy. Thus making it necessary for them to provide reliable information as well as to "beat" each other out in order to release the first update. As much as media helps to inform its' viewers of policy changes, it also helps to breakdown the policy in order to be understood. With all the different forms of media out there, there are as many view points on a policy.

When the Media Exposes Bureaucracy

• Expose fraud, waste, and abuse by agencies
• Scandals involving bureaucrats-

The pentagon papers is a top secret study conducted by the pentagon concerning the decision-making during the Vietnam war. The papers were leaked to eighteen publications by Daniel Ellsberg, an employee working for the RAND Corporation, and on June 13, 1971 the Times published 9 excerpts of 7,000 pages collection. Nixon's Attorney General John Mitchell demanded that the Times halt its publication, when the Times refused the government filed a suit against the publication. New York Times Co. v. United States made its way to the supreme court, but in the appellate court the Times was ordered to temporarily halt its publication, this was first time since Abraham Lincoln's administration that a major newspaper was restrained. The Supreme court ruled in favor of the New York Times, citing the first Amendment's freedom of the press. Ellsberg got the attention of two sympathetic US senators J. William Fulbright and George McGovern, urging them to release the documents on the senate floor, as Article I, Section 6 of the US Constitution states that a representative can't be prosecuted for anything said on the debate floor. On June 29, 1971, U.S. Senator Mike Gravel of Alaska received the papers from Ben Bagdikian an editor at the Washington Post and entered 4,100 pages of the pentagon paper into the record to his subcommittee on Public Buildings and Grounds. The papers release was "politically embarrassing" to the Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon administrations. The documents showed Presidents lying to the American people and congress, the U.S. secretly expanded the bombing to Cambodia, Laos and the coast of North Vietnam, all without media reports. Furthermore John F. Kennedy planned to overthrow Ngô Đình Diệm (the unpopular leader of South Vietnam) in November 1963 a military coup lead by General Dương Văn Minh resulted in the capture then execution of President Ngô Diệmalong with his brother and adviser Ngô Đình Nhu. President Johnson further expanded war while in his 1964 presidential campaign stating "we seek no wider war". In a message to the Defense Department Johnson laid out the reasons for continuing the war in Vietnam, 70 percent avoid U.S. suffering humiliating defeat, 20 percent keep China contained, 10 percent so the people of South Vietnam can live better free lives, but as Johnson states "not to help a friend" The white house plumbers was a special investigations unit created in July 24, 1971 to stop further leaks of classified information. Their first task was to burglarize the office of Lewis J. Fielding, Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist in an attempt to discredit him, the investigators failed after not finding his file. Another operation conducted in 1972 was Watergate, the plumbers failed to infiltrate the Democratic National Committee's (DNC) headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Nixon administration attempted to cover-up its involvement and resisted the U.S. Congress' investigation. Congress issued articles of impeachment once congress discovered Nixon's abuse of power, which included bugging the offices political opponents and harassing political figure and groups with federal government agencies. Facing removal Richard Nixon became the fist president to ever resign from office on August 9, 1974.

• Extensively covers accidents cause by bureaucratic failure

When an agency does not do its job correctly, for example FEMA during Hurricane Katrina, congress can see what needs to be changed in order to help the agency perform better in future situations.

Outcomes of Exposure

• It is possible the media overemphasized the problem to gain news coverage(Flight 370 (CNN),benghazi (Fox), Ebola (ALL)

Most news organizations are for-profit this can lead to "yellow journalism." This is when the organization runs sensationalistic headlines to catch the attention of the viewer and improve ratings. Many times it involves exaggerations, scandals, fear, or sexual imagery. This type of journalism can contain little to no well-researched information and some even consider it unprofessional and unethical.

• Informs public on how agencies are performing
• Causes public hysteria
• Allows bureaucracy to make changes to meet citizens expectations

Media and Foreign Policy: CNN effect

Media’s effect on foreign policy began gaining notice during the Cold War and has continued on since. From reporting on how well the government is doing to putting down the government for its' actions. What the media reported, the people of the United States ate up and formed their opinion. The government also heavily relied on such information in order to come up with decisions. This influence became known as the "CNN Effect". This term was chosen due to the network channel and how it brought important news on what was happening to the people of the United States as well as how it impacted government decisions which helped our politicians make decisions on policy changes dealing with Foreign Policy and other areas of need, in order to be considered on "top of the situation". With all the new ways of getting information out to the public, it forces the increase of deciding on a policy and putting it into action. Though this can be viewed as a good thing, it can also be hindering to the government in that it forces them to take action. Another negative effect of such thorough "live time" coverage is that if governments do not act, they are seen as not taking care of the situation, or being lax on a certain topic. According to the “CNN Effect” article this theory also plays a huge role in how the government is viewed during times of natural disasters. This can easily be seen through the coverage of Hurricane Katrina. There was much news coverage over what was going on, who was doing what, and on who wasn't doing what they should have been. Causing a uproar from everyone in the United States against the government, as they decided on what to do in order to help the people in Louisiana as well as who should do it. The blame was put on the government for its inactivity.

In he states that the CNN effect played a pivotal role in humanitarian intervention internationally. There were two main instances in which media was used to incite a reaction from the United States. Media coverage encouraged the U.S. to take action despite other view points on the situation causing some strife between critics.

As time moves on, new technology appears and is used to provide information on the ins' and outs' of the government. Media is able to provide real time information, as it is occurring, whether it be in the United States or in another country. The time for censuring what and how it is being released is progressively changing.

Possible Negatives

• Demands instant analysis from the government

The media and the public demand information as soon as possible, so bureaucrats have less time to analyze situations and make decisions than ever before. This can be seen as a positive or negative phenomenon. On one hand, the government has less time to think, which could lead to a hasty decision without reading and processing all the information at hand. However, the media cuts out the lag time between communication with governments that are far away physically. These leaders are able to instantaneously get their message out and receive a response within hours, as opposed to days.

• Causes public hysteria/ Emotional Inhibitor

It is possible that the media influences the public's opinion of national affairs because they bring situations that are happening a far right into a family's living room. Where someone would have previously heard about the terrors that occur overseas, they now get a graphic, up-close image of what is going on at that moment. People are also more exposed to the harsh realities of war than they have been in the past. The government must justify conflict in such a way that the public will still support it even after seeing its impact on live television.

• Operational security threat

The majority of individuals in the media are not trained on how military operations are carried out and do not know the potential risks of exposing certain information. The media often asks questions about details for a military strike, that would pose a huge security risk if an officer were to answer these questions directly. Also, just by filming and photographing areas where military bases and equipment is located, the media is potentially giving the enemy a heads up on where to attack.

• Government acts to control information

The Alien and Sedition acts was passed in 1798 by the federalist party and signed by President John Adams, as a result of the a Quasi-war with France shortly after the French Revolution. Three of the laws dealt with immigration, imprisonment and deportation of aliens considered "dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States". The fourth law is the Sedition Act, arguably the most controversial one as it restricted and speech that was critical of the federal government. The acts have yet to be repealed, however are considered invalid as the supreme court would likely deem it unconstitutional. The Espionage Act of 1917 was pass just after the U.S. entered WWI, to bar anyone from interfering with military recruitment or operations. In 1918 the Sedition Act (Espionage Act) was expanded further to restrict any expression that might shed a negative light on the flag, armed forces, and government. This was a temporary measure only effective when the U.S. is at war, the act was repealed on December 13, 1920, but the 1917 version remains in effect. The Supreme court unanimously ruled in 1919 with the case Schenck v. United States that the act did not violate freedom of speech. Whistleblower Most notably Daniel Ellsberg of the pentagon papers, Chelsea Manning a former U.S. soldier, and Edward Snowden an NSA contractor are some of the most high-profile American to be charged under the Espionage Act.

• No guarantee the media is showing 100% of story

Bias is always present in the stories that are covered. Every individual reporter or news outlet has an opinion about a conflict that is occurring. That bias can be used to influence the public's opinion about the situation to varying degrees. During the Iraq invasion of 2003 and new outlets were accused having a pro-war bias, particularly Fox News and CBS. In 2003 Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) conducted a study of the pro-war and antiwar commentators on the major networks, they found that pro-war views appeared overwhelmingly more frequent, with CBS and Fox the least likely to provide critical commentary. According to a university of Maryland study 57% of mainstream media views believed Iraq was directly involved in 9/11 or had funded Al-Qaeda. 69% believed Saddam Hussein planned 9/11. 22% believed weapons of mass destruction had been found in Iraq. A PIPA study further explained that 80% of Fox News viewers had one or more of the beliefs, 71% of viewers for CBS and 27% watching NPR/PBS. The mainstream media has been criticized for focusing on optimistic events like toppling of a Saddam Hussein statue in Firdos Square, and under-reporting less favourable news like the 4,425 U.S. soldiers kills with 32,223 wounded, or the Iraqi civilian casualties which range from 112,000-123,000, with some estimates being much higher. President Bush had issued bans on flag-draped coffins containing deceased military personnel, it remained so until 2009 when newly elected President Barack Obama asked Robert Gates the defense Secretary to review the government's policy that ban the media ban from covering coffins returning home, in February Gates stated the ban will be lifted and each soldiers' next of kin will be able to give the media permission. The New York Times' investigation discovered the pentagon gave special information to some new analysts and persuaded them to speak favorably of the Iraq War.

Possible Positives

• Get message out immediately
• Communication between governments that have no diplomatic relations
• Holds government accountable to citizens

Ekraft14 (talk) 14:48, 19 March 2015 (UTC)

Sources

• Mass Media, Information and the Size of Bureaucracy

Antonelli, M. A. (2013). Mass Media, Information and the Size of Bureaucracy. Procedia - Social And Behavioral Sciences,81(World Congress on Administrative and Political Sciences), 562-569. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.06.477

• Media, Bureaucracy, and the Success of Social Protest: Newspaper Coverage of Environmental Movement Groups

Corbett, J. B. (1998). Media, Bureaucracy, and the Success of Social Protest: Newspaper Coverage of Environmental Movement Groups. Mass Communication & Society, 1(1/2), 41.

• Mediatization in public bureaucracies: A typology.

Thorbjornsrud, K., Figenschou, T. U., & Ihlen, Ø. (2014). Mediatization in public bureaucracies: A typology. Communications: The European Journal Of Communication Research, 39(1), 3-22. doi:10.1515/commun-2014-0002

• Corruption in the Media's Gaze

Vaidya, S. (2005). Corruption in the Media's Gaze. European Journal Of Political Economy, 21(3), 667-687. doi:http://dx.doi.org.libproxy.txstate.edu/10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2005.03.001

• Can Bureaucracies Change Policy?

Lowry, W. R. (2008). Can Bureaucracies Change Policy?. Journal Of Policy History, 20(2), 287-306.

• The Federal Bureaucracy in the Information Age

"The Federal Bureaucracy in the Information Age." 21st Century American Government and Politics. Comp. Andy Schmitz. N.p.: Unnamed, n.d. N. pag. Creative Commons. Creative Commons Project. Web. 08 Mar. 2015. <http://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/21st-century-american-government-and-politics/s18-03-the-federal-bureaucracy-in-the.html>.

Ekraft14 (talk) 01:01, 11 March 2015 (UTC)

• Clarifying the CNN effect: An examination of media effects according to type of military intervention

Livingston, S. (1997). Clarifying the CNN effect: An examination of media effects according to type of military intervention

<ref name="Clarifying the CNN effect">http://www.genocide-watch.org/images/1997ClarifyingtheCNNEffect-Livingston.pdf