social media essay

媒体中的超现实-Hyper-realities in media

 

Media always create impacts on audiences just like what 'uses and gratifications theory' is all about. This theory claims to suggest that audiences are in their own mindset/position in choosing the media to fulfil their goal and needs. 'It places much emphasis on the active role of the audience in making choices and being goal-directed in its media use behaviour.' (Blumler & Katz 1974, p.58) There are many events and scenes that we can relate to in our daily life. For example, a war-themed movie will generate audience groups that hold different goals. The experience that they hold can be of different aspect from someone who sympathises the victims to someone who is more into the suspense of the plot. In another word, audiences hold the freedom in deciding how they view the media and also how it will affect them.

 

Baudrillard (1995) once mentioned that the Gulf War in 1990 did not take place and has caused many arguments in this debatable topic over the years. He argues that the available evidences (absence of images and commentaries) have failed to prove the present of the war. 'The war is pure and speculative, to the extent that we do not see the real event that it could be or that it would signify'. (Baudrillard 1995, p.29) In another word, the news coverage (after putting aside censored news) in this gulf war is very minimal as compared to the Iraq war during 2003 and on the 'war of terror' which happens after 11 September 2001. Besides, Baudrillard claims that Gulf war is actually a promotion tactic which includes 'use of hostages transformed into marketing ploys and in the absence of any clarification of plans, balance sheets, losses or operation' (Baudrillard 1995, p.29) where profits are seen during weapon dealings and also between the media industries.

 

Basically, what Baudrillard is trying to say is that Gulf war is full of suspense, resonant, and emotions which seems more like a drama created by media which generates high ratings among the viewers; a war drama which is painless, exciting and successfully done with solidarity effects.

 

According to Woodward (1993), Journalists are divided into several pools during the war where some of them fall on radio, television, print and photography respectively. Pool in this sense refers to a group of limited participants representing large number of news media whom gather news and resources together which is usually used when the event could not involve large number of journalists (Woodward 1993). However, Gulf war has changed the history. There are 1600 journalists and media crews allocated in the war, and 400 out of them are assigned to standby during the fight which is much unexpected due to 'zero' foreign journalist Saudi Arabia had since Kuwait invasion. But United States in this case has somehow got its chance to persuade Saudi Arabia in letting their press to cover the military action.

 

However, all pool reports that the pool participants collected are to be analysed, read and go through a censorship process by Saudi Arabia representatives and the United States government before being able to distribute to other news media. Much information are not allowed to be told through the media, for example the specific numbers of troops, planes and supplies; future plans, locations of units, operations, tactics, activities, all sorts of military-related information, and even the reports of missing ships and aircrafts. (Fialka 1992)

 

Most of the part, broadcast company like CNN holds a big role in this war as they're the one who updates viewers daily, or even hourly. Aside from being considered one of the most creditable news reporting in the world, it has the ability to outsource many media companies in bringing the latest news updates. On the second day of the Gulf war, CNN runs a self-promotional spot during a commercial break to promote its self-conscious presentation of news, and that is the time when the whole world tune to one 'twenty four/ seven' source and give their trust to this source. CNN broadcasts the news right after the start of the war on 16th January 1991 evening without any commercial breaks in between. (Jeffords & Rabinovitz 1994)

 

This Gulf war has been the first war to be aired 'live' on television, and even though it has similar broadcast perspective as Vietnam War, it is of total different approach, where Vietnam War is on news film and Gulf war is aired live. This 'live' television event has certainly brings Americans and other countries' viewers into the current war situation but as what mentioned earlier, it is all managed and censored by the United States government and Saudi Arabia representatives. Question has been raised whether the live telecast we seen on television will be exactly the same on what has happened in Iraq, which will then lead to an absolute 'no' answer. Therefore, there is no single opportunity available for viewers to see the real footage on television unless for sirens played in the off-screen background along with the reporter.

 

However, CNN is seen to be promoting a version of war which is very much compatible with American government's aims and in a way that they 'did little to interrogate the legitimacy of the invasion or the concerns of those opposed to the conflict.' (Vincent 1994, pg. 199) This can be seen in their news reporting, which are more likely to promote propaganda flow from government. In Britain, Philo & McLaughlin (1993) states that the war broadcasting is being used as a tool to influence public's opinion towards the war which in a short time has changed their mind from being resistance to being convinced about the need for war, meanwhile presents armed invention as the only effective policy.

 

More likely, the telecast of gulf war on the surface, is seen as a medium to update viewers on the latest updates of the event, but little do they know that there are many other aspects which has been hidden underneath, which include: Firstly, the use of public relations by the government sector to mould the public opinion; secondly, the limited coverage of war which results in limited alternative views; and lastly, the dehumanization and demonization of stereotyped enemy.

 

During the live telecast, voices and images of reporters will be the icon of the entire news presentation because there are no war images and videos available, therefore viewers will have to imagine the situation by observing the reporters' emotions and agitations. According to the examination by Jeffords & Rabinovitz (1994) on the first few days of war, CNN provides ample of information with their self-acclaimed 'extreme scale and scope of coverage' which leads to continuous news coverage even though news has gone through censorship process and the war event has just started. This situation is seen as not genuine because information is presented in such a manner that all sorts of information, whether it is made up or not, is presented to fulfil the 'twenty four/ seven' policy that CNN has made.

 

For example, during the second night of the war, when Iraq launches Scud missiles at Israel, a number of CNN reporters in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem reports on the event. But anchors based in United States will interrupt from time to time, quoting similar reports about the launches of Scuds at Israel. These interruptions show that the on-site reporters are not fully in position to know what is actually going on immediately around them because the United States based anchors are yet to confirm what is already being reported by the Israeli-based reporters.

 

On the other hand, Jeffords & Rabinovitz (1994) mentions that, reporters tell stories of the war from their own perspective like what time the bombing starts, how is the city's environment and so on. Due to restriction and lack of information access, they can only report on what they hear and see using their own words, which in a way has neglect the sequel of video images would otherwise provide. The reporters claim that they stick the telephone out the window during the attack just to let the viewers hear and experience the attack especially the bomb explosion.#p#分页标题#e#

 

'Once the U.S attack started, all communications would be shut off. I don't know why we can talk to you.' (Jeffords & Rabinovitz 1994, pg.124) There is of no explanation on why CNN's reporters in the war can still connect with the reporters in United States. But, following by an hour and half later, each of the reporters has their own view on this issue.

 

'CNN reporter 1: Did it occur to you it is not accidental that we are still reporting to the world?

 

CNN reporter 2: it may not be. I'm sure the Iraqis could pull the plug on us. I'm sure the Americans could pull the plug on us, and it's useful I hope, to our viewers around the world, to be able to hear what we have to report.

 

CNN reporter 3: My pint is this government wants word put out.

 

CNN reporter 4: The government has told us frequently that he wants the Press to stay here. ' (Jeffords & Rabinovitz 1994, pg.124)

 

Not only that, the media has created an impression that the Gulf war is clean and that civilians are not killed, in which Baudrillard (1995) considered them as to caught up with the 'logic of stimulation'. He thinks that as reporters report about the proclivity of news to construct the war through a 'film' narrative way with American ideals and myth, the war is instant history, in the sense that the selected images which are telecasted worldwide 'provoked immediate and then becomes frozen into the accepted story of the war'. (Baudrillard 1995, pg. 70)

 

Besides, the media has never mention about the real reasons behind this war and every move of the media has made the Gulf war a 'hyperreality' event as it is highly in emotions and drama but, low in critical interrogation. Baudrillard (1995) believes that it is not surprising to see this happening because he believes that the Bush administration carries out 'the most successful public relations campaigns in the history of modern politics in its use of the media to mobilize public support for war'. (Baudrillard 1995, pg. 71)

 

In addition, 'The linkage of Saddam Hussein to Hilter helped to eradicate resistance to war'. (Philo & McLaughlin 1993, pg. 146) This is because, by focusing on Saddam Hussein in this particular way, it helps to divert the media's attention from the injuries and deaths; social consequences that the war has caused. But, makes them focus more on the moral values, character and individualization that Saddam Hussein holds. Baudrillard (1995) also argues that it is the media's obsession with military procedures and visual technologies which help to ensure that the efforts of this war drama. He thinks that CNN has also successfully built a 'total media' environment which serves to build and sustain popular support for the policy of war.

 

In conclusion, there are not enough prove to argue that the Gulf war actually happens. It might only be a drama narrated by the United States or so. Despite whether the war really happens, what viewers can see is that Gulf war is trying to put politics on screen where the relationship between politics and media is prioritized over the media's relationship with the public. Media as a wide medium to the public has always been twisting stories instead of revealing the truth. 'The media's enthusiasm for the war to take place and its supine reaction to opposing discourses which sought to articulate the effectiveness of sanctions against Iraq, or other alternatives to the killing, not only negate any idea of objectivity and balance in coverage, but, more seriously, have moral consequences for dealing with foreign crises and public understanding about how such crises might be dealt with.' (Woodward 1993, pg.103) This is very true as media in today's world is controlled by greed which can be 'bribed' using power, status and money which has no longer holds it value to serve the public with truth. Gulf war, in particular has shown the true colours of media regardless of its biasness towards their enemies involved in the war or the twist and turns in their stories.

 

引用-References

 

Baudrillard, J 1995, The Gulf War did not take place, Indiana University Press, USA.

Blumler, J & Katz, E 1974, The Uses of Mass Communications, Sage Publications Beverly Hills, USA.

Fialka, J 1992, Hotel Warriors: Covering the Gulf War, Woodrow Wilson Center Press, Washington.

Harris, R 2004, A Cognitive psychology of Mass Communication, 4th edn, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., New Jersey.

Jeffords,S & Rabinovitz,L 1994, Seeing Through the Media: The Persian Gulf War, Rutgers University Press, USA .

Philo, G & McLaughlin, G 1993, The British media and the Gulf War, Glasgow University Media Group, UK.

Woodward, G 1993, The Media and the Persian Gulf War, Praeger Publishing, USA.