Media and Politics: Has the media positively or negatively affected the Trudeau government?
Introduction
Has the media positively or negatively affected the Trudeau government?
Social media use during the past decade has become prevalent in Canada, and its purpose has been more and more politicized. Globally, Canada possesses one of the best media sectors. The growth of social medias political impact clearly increased during Trudeau’s campaign for presidency in the 2015 presidential election. The conversation around how social media is impacting our political environment focuses on the effects on electorates. This review intends to examine how using social media politically affects the ones political preference. I conducted a qualitative research interview consisting fifty individuals. Also, the look at several media platforms in Canada to analyze potential effects on politics. The never-ending debate on media bias in Canada’s politics is very important and does not receive the attention it deserves. This study aims to figure out how the influence of media has impacted the Trudeau government.
Research Foundations
Background
Social media is playing a bigger role in the election campaign than ever before and that has forced Canadian federal party leaders to change the way they interact with voters. Media bias in politics occur when the media in systematically emphasizes one particular point of view, party in a manner that contravenes the standards of professional journalism. This almost always favors the party they are leaning towards. Newspapers are potentially biased to the advantage of one party and voters rationally account for the credibility of endorsements. The media provides many opportunities for political exposure, as well as the opportunity to follow politicians, government officials, news organizations to increase level of political knowledge. Some studies have shown left leaning networks and right-leaning network therefore the possibility that right- wingers do not watch some networks as much and vice versa because there are alternative networks whose positions are closer to theirs.
Media Transparency
The media could be considered the fourth arm of government due to its role in a state. It serves as a middleman between government and the people must be free from internal and external influence and be non-biased. Media freedom and transparency is vital in a democratic state. The media has the power to tell stories which influence thinking and behavior. According to Wikipedia, media transparency deals with the openness and accountability of the media and can be defined as a transparent exchange of information subsidies based on the ideas of newsworthiness.
Ethical Complications
As the research does not disclose the participants involved and only examines their data, there will be no ethical complications.
Literature Review
While much literature exists about media bias in politics, unfortunately very few scholars focus on the media bias in Canadian politics.
Media Influence
According to Bray and Kreps(1987), if voters are rational and media reports are continuous, average voters can filter out bias without being persuaded.
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Through empirical research,DellaVigna and Kaplan(2009) identified the effect of Fox News on voting behavior, convincing 3-24% of its viewers to vote Republican.
Some empirical research shows that media coverage of candidates indeed affects their electoral success (Bartels 1988; Zaller 1992),
In the 1988 federal election Mendelsohn(1994,1996) argues that the media primed respondents to cast their ballots on the basis of leader characteristics rather than on the basis of partisanship or attitudes toward the key issue of the campaign, free trade.
Reviewing the literature leads back to the question: how are has this benefited or not benefitted the Trudeau government? Analyzing the controversies surrounding the current Prime Minister and the controversies surrounding his opponents is essential to notice who got the most media coverage..
Methodology
Social media is currently the convenient, and accessible ways for people to become more politically informed and increase participation. Research suggests that people who are more politically knowledgeable are more likely to vote (Carpini). The question is does the type of information shape the voter’s political preference. After a survey by 30 random citizens, 75% identified as liberals, whereas 25% identified as conservatives. Each were asked
- The reason for their preference/ influence
- Their preferred media platform
- Their thoughts on the opposition party
Majority believed their ideologies aligned with theirs and a few had no reason. All preferred attaining information online through the respective biased networks. The primary empirical finding is the influence of endorsements, voters are more likely to support the candidate recommended after the endorsement. The result of this influence, depends upon the credibility of the endorsement. For example, endorsements for the Democratic candidate from left-leaning newspapers are less influential than are endorsements from neutral or right-leaning newspapers. Also, such endorsements are influential among moderate voters and those more likely to be exposed it. In conclusion, these findings suggest that voters rely on the media for information during campaigns but the extent of this reliance depends on the direction of any bias. For years, many newspapers openly leaned left or right.(Globe newspaper) or right (Empire newspaper).
Conclusion
This research proposal will look to examine the relationship between media bias and politics and its impact to the Trudeau government. It will do so by using a content analysis and the effects on party preference. These measures explain how media bias has shaped peoples party preference. It is argued that the less bias in media can actually earn back the trust of the electorate. Literature covered in this review included media influence, the effects of media bias, media and democracy. As stated in the review, a country’s media platforms is arguably a direct link between citizens and the government. It is therefore important to know how media bias affects the country and its people.
Reference
- Kolpinskaya, E.Katz, G.Banducci, S.Stevens, D. Coan, T. (2019) Mandates matter: how decisive victories enhance expectations about government performance. Journal of Elections, Public Opinion and Parties 0:0, pages 1-20.
- Cutler, F. (2010) The Space between Worlds: Federalism, Public Issues and Election Issues. Regional & Federal Studies 20:4-5, pages 487-514.
- Shamir, M. ,Shamir, J. , Sheafer, T. (2008) The Political Communication of Mandate Elections. Political Communication 25:1, pages 47-66.
- Baron, D. (2006), 'Persistent Media Bias', Journal of Public Economics, 90, 1-36.
- Bray, M. and Kreps, D. M. (1987), 'Rational Learning and Rational Expectations', in Feiwel, G. R. (ed) Arrow and the Ascent of Modern Economic Theory (New York: New York University Press) 597-625.
- Dellavigna, S. and Kaplan, E. (2007), 'The Fox News Effect: Media Bias and Voting', Quarterly Journal of Economics, 122, 1187-1234.
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