Globalization and development of the information society

mass globalization edition communication

Many researchers without hesitation associate the concepts of “means mass media"(mass media) and "mass communication" (MSC) with the concept of "globalization". The media are an integral part of mass communication. Although the concept of “globalization” has become one of the symbols of the changes taking place in the modern world, it is difficult to give it a clear definition. The concept of “global” in the modern context has replaced the traditional concepts of international, world and planetary means of mass communication.

The global communication space is closely connected with the development of philosophy, sociology, cultural studies and technical sciences in the world. The nature and consequences of the “information explosion” give rise to conflicting opinions. Some believe that thanks to information, the new century can be a time of amazing insights and wonderful victories. Others see the danger of information totalitarianism.

Currently, in science there are two approaches to defining media globalization. Proponents of the first approach argue that globalization is not a new phenomenon. It manifested itself in different forms at different stages of human history. According to another position, globalization means drawing the whole world into an open system of financial, economic, socio-political and cultural relations based on new communication and information technologies. The second point of view seems more justified, since it involves a transition from the traditional form of economic, political, technological society, formed on the basis of national unity and centuries-old cultural traditions, to a global Megasociety.

Globalization is currently seen as a process and as a goal leading humanity to unite into a single whole and to realize its common destiny.

In the field of economics, globalization is associated primarily with the idea of ​​a free world market, global mass culture and the global information community.

For media researchers, many manifestations of globalization lie on the surface. The same type of advertising in magazines of different countries and in different languages, the same TV shows, broadcast although in different languages, but showing identically designed studios and similar presenters, instant access to news from anywhere in the world, the same news on different TV channels, music and cinema, common in all countries.

Phenomena of a different order, but of the same nature, force us to comprehend the manifestations of globalization in the media, perceiving the mass media both as a sphere clearly exposed to the influence of these processes, and as “agents of globalization,” and as the main driving forces of globalization, i.e. accept that the globalization of social and cultural life becomes possible in the conditions of the most developed media systems.

Globalization is a multidimensional process occurring simultaneously at several levels. This is the globalization of the market, production, finance, and, of course, communications. Globalization has had a significant impact on the development of the media. The concept of “information” in this context is used in the broadest sense and includes both information about markets, consumers, tax systems, and symbols, images, concepts that are common to all humanity. The general availability of this symbolic environment in a geographical and conceptual sense is globalization in the sphere of media and mass culture.

With the rapid development of new information and communication technologies, significant changes are taking place in traditional media - print, radio, television, access to them, delivery methods and, of course, content. Communicative influence is especially easy on the Internet.

With the advent of the global network, fundamentally new media emerged - electronic newspapers, which have a number of features. One of them is that this newspaper is constantly updated, often well illustrated.

Modern media are no longer mass media in the traditional sense of the word, meaning that a limited number of messages are sent to a homogeneous mass audience. Due to the multiplicity of messages and sources, the tendency of the audience to independent choice programs is increasing. The audience targeted by the program tends to select the “right, targeted” messages, deepening their segmentation and enriching the individual relationship between the sender and recipient of information.

New technologies are forcing journalists to learn skills that were previously used by other workers. Radio and television journalists may arbitrarily manipulate words, images and sounds in their reports. The print press opens up to digital manipulation of photographs.

Introduction

Despite the very serious national characteristics of the functioning of the media and communications, there are general, global trends in the development of journalism.

IN modern conditions become important:

• · taking into account the consequences of globalization of information and the possibility of combining it with regional interest;
• · the relationship and interdependence of journalism and economics both at the level of media enterprises and at the macro level;
• · new forms of concentration of capital and monopolization of the media;
• · further differentiation and specialization of the media;
• · significant changes in practical journalism abroad that have occurred in recent decades;
• · the influence of state innovation policies and national priorities in science and technology on the technical support of the media and many others.

Taking into account the main trends in the development of modern foreign journalism will allow us to correctly adjust national policy in the field of media.

Globalization of information

The latest achievements in the production of magazines, newspapers, the functioning of radio and television, and the computerization of technological, information and communication processes make it possible to assert with a fairly high degree of probability that we are entering a new information society.

As futurologists predicted, the scientific and technological revolution did not bypass the means of mass communication, which are now undergoing profound changes.

Recent years have been marked by rapidly occurring and controversial processes, which are called the globalization of the information space. This phenomenon is primarily due to the latest advances in communication technology and electronics. Almost instantaneous delivery of information to viewers, listeners and readers allows millions of people to become witnesses and participants in events. Moreover, we become unwitting participants in events taking place thousands of miles away from us. In this regard, the question arises: what social consequences can this lead to?

Already now, computer networks cover the whole world, and there is a real opportunity for the user to obtain the necessary information from the agency or source you have chosen from any country, from anywhere in the world.

The invasion of scientific and technological progress into journalism and publishing has led to irreversible consequences, the depth and significance of which can hardly be overestimated. The widespread introduction of electronic computing technology, cross-border data transfer, the formation of a global computer network - all this and much more predetermines a new technology of journalistic work, new trends in the collection, analysis and dissemination of information.

For example, let's take the American NEXIS database, which serves banks, commercial enterprises and journalists. It contains full texts 8 million articles from 125 newspapers, magazines and other sources. Her journalistic files include texts of articles published on the pages of four major US daily newspapers, current reviews of the Russian press and reports from wire services in the United States, Great Britain, Japan, and China. These files are updated weekly with approximately forty thousand articles.

The globalization of the information space also has a number of social consequences. How long ago have we welcomed the so-called new information order? The heads of state and government of non-aligned countries who gathered in 1976 spoke in favor of expanding cooperation and strengthening international security, creating national and regional systems for training journalists, developing exchanges between non-aligned countries in order to increase the share of their participation in the international exchange of information, and limiting the activities of print monopolies.

It would seem that there is nothing unusual. It’s just that developing countries are concerned about a situation in which they are pushed to the margins of the information environment and are forced to be content with the crumbs of information that world agencies transmit to them.

But in 1981, another conference took place in Talloires, which issued the so-called “Talloires Anti-Declaration”. The fact is that the complex processes taking place in the mass media were considered here from the point of view of “Western pluralism,” the meaning of which boils down to a simple formula: information is distributed by those who have it and who have the money to disseminate it.

Naturally, a lot has happened in the world in recent years, seriously changing the information picture of the planet.

As noted by Professor of St. Petersburg State University S.M. Vinogradov, among the many studies in the field of information, a special place belongs to the report of the Sean McBride Commission “Many Voices - One World”, published in 1980. The report presented the information and communication picture that emerged in the 1970s. This report received global resonance. In the early 90s, many authors were again interested in how well the conclusions and forecasts contained in the McBride report “worked” in the context of events characteristic of mass communication processes that unfolded in the 80s of our century. Exploring the “McBride movement,” L. Zassman (USA) examines the “Hegelian dialectic” inherent in this movement. According to the dialectics of Zassman himself, the opposites - the “old order” with its inherent hegemony of the West (1946-1976) and the “new order”, which reflected the aspirations of the “third world” and the USSR (1976-1981), are “removed” in the new “new” order”, within the framework of which the terms of the game are dictated by technology that combines telephone, telefax, personal computer with satellite, fiber-optic and computer networks. A unique mechanism of self-regulation emerges: the state and competition restrain private commercial interests, and individual “small” media, in turn, prevent the formation of a state monopoly; Communication technologies provide everyone with access to information and expand the possibilities of cross-cultural interaction on a global scale.

S. Beam (USA) provides a large amount of statistical data that allows us to find out whether the information inequality recorded by the McBride report has remained. The study demonstrates that, in general, the information and communication equipment of previously backward regions has improved: the number of newspapers has increased, albeit slightly, and the number of radios and televisions has increased. But these shifts are, as a rule, catching up in nature: the industrial powers continue to remain far ahead (although there were some surprises here: in 1988, Bermuda had 904 television sets per 100 people, while in the United States there were 812).

At one time, the founders of UNESCO proposed that “the free flow of ideas through words and images” be considered an essential factor in the development of cooperation between peoples. But, unfortunately, this principle was not feasible in the conditions of the Cold War.

In response to the changes in the international arena that occurred in the 1980s, UNESCO developed a new approach to the media that meets the needs of the modern world and new democracies. In November 1989, the General Conference of UNESCO unanimously adopted a “new communication strategy”, the goal of which is “to ensure the free flow of information at the international as well as national levels and its wider and more balanced dissemination without any interference with freedom of expression.”

UNESCO actively supports the actions of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations involved in the defense of fundamental freedoms: freedom of speech and freedom of the press. In 1990, UNESCO created the Culture and Communication Sector, which began work on 42 projects for developing countries, including professional training of journalists, assistance to young democracies in creating their own programs, publishing newspapers and magazines. The "New Communication Strategy" is to increase communication in democracies and developing countries.

With the emerging “multimedia era”, UNESCO provides the international community with an arena in which the capabilities and effectiveness of new means of communication and new information technologies can be tested. The goals that UNESCO sets in the field of distance learning and lifelong learning are very high: education and training in the spirit of non-violence, tolerance, respect for human rights and international understanding. UNESCO and the International Telecommunication Union conducted a study of telecommunications tariffs - an important factor in organizing the free exchange of information, because If tariffs are high, today's information superhighways may become blocked. UNESCO contributed to the creation of the International Network for the Exchange of Information on Freedom of Expression, which enables Internet users to receive daily information about violations of press freedom and attacks on journalists.

There are other key issues regarding communication issues in UNESCO's activities. These are free access of information to markets, copyright protection, guarantees of independence that many publishers of electronic networks would like to have, forms of financing for the transfer of press archives to a digital system, etc.

The dissemination of information is always associated with the democratization of society. It is UNESCO, called upon to promote freedom of information, that makes every effort to ensure that this freedom finds its practical embodiment.

At the same time, there are obstacles to the full and comprehensive provision of freedom of speech and freedom of the press caused by modern political realities. The agenda of scientific and practical tasks, in particular, included the issue of regulating information flows. This regulation in a number of cases is replaced by giving information a certain ideological and political character, which happens “always when the supreme imperative is not the interest of truth, but of individual party-political formations, states, blocs and groups of countries, whose interests are presented as the interests of the supposedly entire international community ".

The collapse of the Soviet Union and the entire system of socialism set in motion the mechanism for restructuring information relations. Information has become a commodity with all the ensuing consequences. A sharp turn began from support for the “new international information and communication order” to the concept of the “free flow of information”.

This, in turn, led to the active expansion of powerful information monopolies of Western countries and the United States into developing countries, countries of Eastern and Central Europe, and the former republics of the USSR. Information expansion has different forms depending on the political and economic situation and the characteristics of the country. Large Western publications were the first to appear on newsstands. Then overseas footage flashed on television screens. True, in different ways and in different volumes.

In Poland, under the government of Prime Minister Suchocka, the Sejm adopted the Radio and Television Law, signed by President Walesa. This law demonopolized the Polish broadcasting system. The highest control body for Polish radio and television is the National Radio and Television Council, which somewhat resembles the French model. It consists of nine members, two of whom are appointed by the president, four are elected by the Sejm, and three are appointed by the Senate. This radio and television control system has shown its viability.

The law was similar in the Czechoslovak Republic “before the divorce”, i.e. before the collapse of the federation. In the Czech Republic, the main direction of change in the Republic of Tatarstan was privatization. In January 1993, the first all-Czech television network was sold to the joint venture Central European Television for the 21st Century. 70% of the shares belong to the Organization of Central European Economic Development, created with funds from American and Canadian capital.

A second television channel has been privatized in Romania. In the joint venture that owns the channel, 25% is the share of state television and 75% of the British-Canadian consortium Atlantic Television.

In many countries, control over information flows has been seized by global news agencies and international press monopolies. Many joint ventures have emerged in which foreign capital plays the leading role.

In light of the above facts, the following question can be posed (still theoretically, but quite harshly): is it possible to seriously talk about the sovereignty of a country whose media are under foreign control?

The transformation of the media in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe took place in difficult conditions of restructuring economic and political relations in society. Let's take the media of Slovakia and the media of Poland as an example.

In Slovakia, in March 1990, registration replaced the publishing license (Law 175/90 Coll.), and in 1993 the legal deposit law came into force (Law 93/93 Coll.).

Since 1989, a quantitative increase in periodical titles began. At that time, 326 central, regional and local publications were published, and in 1995 their number increased by 167%.

Daily newspapers are read by about half of the country's residents over 14 years of age. If in 1989 there were 12 daily newspapers published, then in 1993 there were already 20. Of the existing newspapers, only seven have been published since 1989. Four arose from pre-existing newspapers. Nine Slovak newspapers appeared after 1990. In the five years from 1990 to 1995, 10 newspapers appeared and ceased to exist, but the number of readers did not increase, i.e. circulations have decreased. The average daily circulation of one newspaper in 1989 reached 155 thousand copies, in 1990 - 104 thousand, in 1992 - 89 thousand, in 1995 - 79 thousand copies. However, according to the Institute for the Study of Journalism, daily newspaper circulation is 20% lower when unsold copies are taken into account.

Regional and local press changed as follows. According to data for 1989, 122 regional and local newspapers were published, and in 1995 there were already 353 of them. Often these publications are published irregularly, at a low professional level, and are essentially newsletters. “Advertisement sheets” appeared. The number of district and factory newspapers doubled from 1990 to 1995, but their circulation dropped significantly.

Radio and television in Slovakia are social and legal. Television broadcasts on two channels - STV-1 and STV-2. Based on the license, programs are broadcast on the third channel - VTV (Your Television Broadcasting), whose programs are broadcast via satellite. The Radio and Television Council issued 60 licenses to regional and local companies. Markiz's company will cover 60% of Slovakia through the distribution of cable programs.

Slovak radio broadcasts on five programs. The first program is informational and journalistic. The second program broadcasts literature and art, and is also dedicated to regional and foreign language broadcasting, youth broadcasting in cooperation with the Rock-FM Society and Radio CDI, which is a Slovak program in German for Austrian radio listeners.

During the period of socio-economic transformation in Poland (1989-1999), the press underwent rapid transformation. Just as in Slovakia, the number of newspaper titles has increased, differentiation and specialization have intensified. Women's printing has undergone the greatest changes. Not only the number of women's publications has increased, but also their circulation. In socialist Poland there were 48 women's publications. Among the oldest Polish magazines published after 1945 is Kobeta i Žiče. The women's press in Poland, as elsewhere, in addition to information materials, contained sections and headings devoted to fashion, housekeeping, raising children, family problems, etc. Another feature of the socialist press was the desire to expand the practical skills and raise the cultural level of women, as well as to attract them to participate in public life. In addition, the women's press was supposed to inform, educate, advise and teach.

The female audience was underestimated in the years 1945-1989. Research shows that the number of publications offered to female audiences was half the actual demand for them. The dynamics of the development of the women's press in Poland stopped in 1990. Of the 16 women's magazines published after 1959, by the beginning of 1997, only 10 withstood the competition. Only two of them - “Problems of the Family” and “Household Economy” - were published thanks to government assistance with a symbolic circulation of 1-2 thousand copies. The oldest women's publication of the Polish press, Kobeta i Zhiche, was transferred to the cooperative of journalists by the decision of the Liquidation Commission of the RIC on April 21, 1991. Other women's publications also changed hands.

The change in publishers led to an expansion in the number of quality women's magazines and, above all, to a significant transformation in content. These transformations took place under the influence of pressure from foreign investors, who after 1989 entered the Polish market and began publishing their own publications. They were, as a rule, versions of German and American magazines, which had practically nothing in common with the original Polish publications. Among the magazines financed by foreign investors, the first place is occupied by Claudia, owned by the German company Gruner und Jahr. The same concern owned inexpensive magazines “Nai”, “Pani Domu”, “Sandra”, “Kitchen Secrets”. Other publishing houses operating on the Polish market: German - “Heinrich Bauer” (magazines “Tina”, “Hvilya for yourself”, “Light of Kobeta”), “Anna-Burda” (“Burda”, “Miss Be”, “Verena” , “Vera”), “Phoenix Intermedia” (“Divchina”, “Ela”), “Axel Springer” (“Pani Dom”), etc.; the Norwegian publishing house "Orkla Media" ("Filipina", "Pshekroy"), the Swiss publishing house "Jurg Markard" shares shares with "Phoenix Intermedia" ("Divchina").

Monthly “Surname. The Catholic Family" was created on the model of Western European publications. The lives of saints, public feuilletons, the authors of which were clergy, and correspondence about the visits of the Pope were published.

The only purely Polish publishing house that emerged after 1989 and challenged foreign investors was the Pruszynski Limited concern, which published the popular monthly Domestic Advisor - a magazine that, although addressed to the whole family, was most often purchased by women. In 1994, the circulation of this publication reached 3 million copies. Another Polish publication that achieved success on the market was the monthly “Your Style” with a circulation of 450 thousand copies.

The largest number of Polish publications for women (37) appeared in 1991, in 1990 - 14, and in 1992 and 1993 - 17 each.

The enormous success of the women's press in Poland had several reasons. Supply matched demand. Women's publications were addressed to all age, social and professional groups. They differed not only in profile, but also in price. The type and addressee determined the content of the publication.

Before the start of the transformation, Polish state radio and television existed on the principle of self-financing, also having the right to subsidies from the state budget. With the introduction of the levers of a market economy in January 1990, radio and television were actually deprived of subsidies from the state. Revenue from subscription fees has sharply decreased due to the rapid decline in the level of income of the population.

Polish television was forced to take the path of commercialization. Ineffective advertising policy and low subscription fees could not cover all the expenses necessary for the existence of television itself. The need to finance expenses to carry out socio-political tasks prompted the management of Polish radio and television to look for other ways, including attracting foreign capital.

In the field of electronic media, the participation of foreign capital from the very beginning of their restructuring in Poland was limited. This restriction was subsequently formalized in law: Art. 33 of the new Charter on Radio Broadcasting and Television allows for the participation of foreign capital in electronic media of no more than 33%. According to Polish analysts, this limitation will eventually be broken, since the development of RTV requires huge investments.

The transformation of Polish TV was accompanied by the expansion of satellite television, the emergence and establishment of private television channels, including with the involvement of foreign capital, which was due to the legislative transition from the state model of television to the public one.

The first non-state TV appeared in Poland in 1990, and by the time broadcasting licenses began to be issued (in accordance with the Regulations on Radio Broadcasting and Television, adopted at the beginning of 1994), there were already 19 private television broadcasting centers operating in a “pirate” manner.

The development of the information space of the former socialist countries is also being carried out by unifying personnel training programs according to Western standards. Whether this is good or bad, time will tell. However, today it is necessary to agree that, for example, the Russian system of training specialists has a high rating. As noted by Doctor of Biological Sciences, Corresponding Member of the Petrovsky Academy of Sciences and Arts V.B. Sapunov, “we still have the best technology in the world for such high-tech production as aircraft construction. Aircraft are built in about 10 countries of the world, and all types are built by only two (Russia and the USA). It is recognized that the theoretical developments of our scientists in the field of aerodynamics are the best in the world.

Applied mathematics, geological exploration, seismology, population genetics - this is not a complete list of disciplines in which we are leaders.

Let's try to quantify the place of Russian fundamental science in the world. Upon analysis, it immediately strikes the eye that the share of works performed by Russian authors is high - about 10%. This corresponds to second place in the world and does not in any way allow us to be considered an underdeveloped country. The US share is 40%. The largest percentage of works by Russian authors is in the theoretical sections of natural science...” So the unification of education cannot always lead to positive changes.

Among the social consequences of the analyzed processes, it is necessary to take into account this one. Radio and television, newspapers and magazines can either politicize the population to the limit and make it obedient and submissive to the will of leading political figures, or take it into the realm of dreams and daydreams, tearing it away from vital and pressing concerns. Under these conditions, the ethics of a journalist moved from a visual-abstract category to the plane of practical interests of scientists, politicians, and all participants in communication processes.

There are other consequences of the globalization of the information space. Among them is a sharp decline in interest in the press of Eastern European countries, even in neighboring countries. In Russia, for example, newspapers and magazines from Eastern European countries have not been distributed for a long time, since this is considered unprofitable.

Since access to information anywhere in the world has become equally simple, world news began to be supplemented in the regions with local news, again in accordance with the forecasts of futurologists. This is how the phenomenon of regionalization of information arose in the presence of a global information space. This is facilitated by the boom of the “small press”, which became possible thanks to the advent of laser printing devices and desktop publishing systems.

The wide information flow, in fact, does not respect state borders or censorship restrictions. In Egypt, for example, it is prohibited in cinema and television to film and show footage where Allah is presented in the form of a man, because it is not possible for a mortal to know the essence of God. In the West, naturally, there are no such restrictions. Egyptian TV viewers can easily watch programs from Western TV stations. What to do with the ban?

Or this example. Russian legislation prohibits the use of footage in cinema and television that solely influences the viewer’s subconscious. In a number of foreign countries such restrictions do not exist. There is no prohibition on the use of subliminal stimulation in computer networks. The result is this: a computer virus “666” was created, which, influencing the subconscious, can cause illness and even death of the computer user.

The death of an operator in Voronezh from a cerebral hemorrhage right at the computer console caused a heated discussion among programmers. Some experts doubt the possibility of creating a killer virus, citing well-reasoned arguments, while others argue no less convincingly that humanity has created the conditions for a “computer epidemic” with its own hands, which may turn out to be much worse than the medieval plague. Thus, Voronezh programmer Igor Belyakov said that he confidently identified the killer virus “666”, the length of which is exactly 666 bytes. According to him, this virus displays a special color combination on the screen that changes the life activity of the observer. Subconscious perception of changing patterns leads to changes in cardiac activity, which can cause death.

Some computer scientists believe that this is far from true. “Viruses are the simplest and stupidest of all programs,” famous specialist Dmitry Lozinsky categorically stated. - These are the products of dirty tricks, and low-skilled ones at that. When a person has learned to write programs a little, but does not know how to set a task, does not know how to algorithmize, he begins to write viruses. It's very simple. After all, a computer is just a tool. By himself he cannot do anything. He just stupidly does what he is ordered.”

A special anti-virus department has been created at the Russian Academy of Sciences. Its leader, Yuri Lyashchenko, referring to the events of the Voronezh tragedy, noted: “We discussed this case a lot and decided that something was wrong there. Not the direct effect of the virus on the body. Yes, it is not required. The virus may well kill indirectly. Imagine that you are writing a dissertation. We collected materials for several years, and suddenly an evil virus ate everything. If you have a weak heart, you will have a heart attack. And the virus will kill you and spread to someone else. The worst thing about it is its ability to self-reproduce. And even mutate at the same time. And often each mutant becomes more and more evil..."

The idea arose of introducing an article into the Criminal Code providing for severe punishment for the creation of virus programs. At a meeting of system programmers in Voronezh, it was decided to contact the Russian Prosecutor’s Office with a demand “to take the most extreme measures against virus manufacturers, equating their writing to the illegal manufacture of weapons.”

Experts from Sophos (Abington, Oxfordshire) estimated that the damage caused by computer viruses in the UK in 1994 was estimated at £128 million, including the consequences of data loss, downtime and the cost of restoring damaged systems.

It is obvious that we are faced with an urgent need to unify media legislation on an international scale.

The globalization of the information space has made participation in the creation of the so-called Global Information Infrastructure (GII) a national priority for the United States. Despite the fact that the United States actually dominates the global information market, modern trends in the development of mass media make it necessary to keep up with the times and actively seek its leading role in such a promising direction as the use of modern technology in disseminating information.

A special role in the plans of the US administration is given to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the international Internet network. It is not surprising that the regularly held MST conferences attract the closest attention of senior leaders in the Washington administration. Thus, US Vice President Al Gore spoke to the participants of the MST conference in March 1994 in Buenos Aires, in September of the same year - to the participants of the conference in Kyoto, and sent greetings to the participants of the Internet conference in March 1995 in Minsk.

In particular, in his address to the Kyoto conference, Gore noted: “The efforts to create the GII give us the opportunity to move beyond ideology and set ourselves the common goal of creating infrastructure that will benefit all the citizens of our countries. We will use this infrastructure to promote economic development, health care, education, environmental programs and democracy.

The government plays an undeniable role in the development of the GII. By reducing regulatory barriers and promoting private sector participation, identifying the public interests that need to be served through information sharing, and actively using GII for education, health, and other government purposes, governments can play a key role in developing GII in collaboration with industry and the private sector. .

At the conference in Buenos Aires, you adopted five principles of the GII, which are implemented in practice by countries of the world community: private investment, market competition, a flexible regulatory framework, non-discriminatory access and universal services.”

As for Russia, as Gore noted, there are already privatized telecommunications companies operating in 86 regions. There are also independent operator companies providing international telephone and data services. This not only serves the purpose of attracting investment, increasing competition and improving access to information services, but also ensures the vital conditions of democracy itself - freedom of communication and exchange of information.

If we talk about the Internet, then the situation is somewhat more complicated. Any computer network or any computer can obtain a so-called IP (Internet Protocol) address and connect to the entire Internet system. Formally, the Internet is a self-governing community, which is a huge and rapidly growing computer network consisting of hundreds of smaller networks. Every 30 seconds a new network is connected to the Internet. More than two million files, as well as other data and programs are open to users.

The most common ways to use the network are:

• · communication via email;
• · participation in electronic conferences and discussions;
• · search for information and data stored on remote computers;
• · copying files from a remote computer to a local computer;
• · execution of programs on remote computers;
• · also executing programs on a local computer using data from a remote computer.

The Internet was created in the United States in 1969 under the name ARPANET by specialists from the US Department of Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, who connected four computers together to demonstrate the possibility of creating a wide computer network. These computers were installed at the University of Utah, the University of California at Santa Barbara, the University of California Los Angeles and the Stanford Research Institute. The design of the system made it easy to connect additional computers, so by 1972, the ARPANET system already included more than 50 universities and military research institutions. Other networks, both government and private, were created in the 70s and early 80s. To provide information support for unclassified military programs, the MILNET network was created and connected to ARPANET. These interconnected networks formed the basis for DARPANET, which eventually came to be simply called the Internet (from the English word interconnected).

This fact speaks eloquently about the possibilities of using the Internet in mass media and politics. During the August 1991 events in Moscow, a tiny Internet network called RELCOM, which was connected to Finland, and through it to the whole world, turned out to be the most reliable channel for receiving information and sending messages from Moscow. RELCOM participants sent messages, which were then published in foreign newspapers, statements by Boris Yeltsin (which were brought to RELCOM operators by friends) and personal observations regarding developments in Moscow.

In the United States, there is the Internet Society (ISOC), the Internet Architecture Board (IAB), and the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), made up of volunteers who hold public conferences where operating standards are developed and various problems are resolved.

Computer networks and databases are becoming one of the most important channels for disseminating information. They are actively used not only by enterprises and organizations, but also by individuals.

Using the capabilities of the Global Information Infrastructure has allowed developed Western countries and the United States to move to the so-called network economy, when an extensive system of modern communication lines ensures a quick search for business partners, buyers and sellers, concluding transactions without intermediaries, conducting electronic payments, etc. Unfortunately, Russia’s information infrastructure was created during a crisis, which often forced it to turn to foreign capital for help. As a result, control over information flows may end up in the hands of foreigners. This trend is clearly visible in Moscow, St. Petersburg and important hubs of information highways.

The governments of the United States and the European Community are seeking to bring the global network under state control. Leading scientists in these countries have developed the concept of Intranet, which is essentially a new stage in the development of the Internet. State participation in the Intranet program will allow countries that have adopted this concept to make a noticeable breakthrough in the development of economics and science, in the implementation of priority innovations in domestic and foreign policy.

The fashionable concept of a “unipolar world,” where the United States should play a leading role, fits very well into the current state of global communication processes. The United States is now the only country that can dictate its terms to other countries in the area of ​​information dissemination. And not only because the United States produces the bulk of the information product. It is this country that has taken key positions on the information highways; it is the country that is purposefully and persistently promoting the idea of ​​a Global Information Infrastructure, where it intends to take control of the dissemination of information on a global scale.

In this regard, other countries are clearly faced with the question of their information security. The new information order, which non-aligned countries dreamed of in the recent past, already seems unrealistic. Cross-border transmission of information (satellite communications, live television broadcasting, computer networks, etc.) reduces the jurisdiction of states to almost zero, even within their own information space. Indeed, it is difficult to prohibit watching satellite television or using the Internet.

At the same time, attempts by individual states to once again fence themselves off with an “Iron Curtain” have become more frequent. This seems entirely justified: the formation of public opinion cannot be left to foreigners. Inconsistency of national media legislation can lead to paradoxical phenomena. For example, in the cross-border transfer of data requested by a citizen of another state, a journalist or owner of information may unwittingly become a criminal, because what is permitted in one country may be strictly prohibited in another. Harmonization of national laws on media, information and informatization is required.

Information security is a multifaceted concept. It includes information security of the individual, society, state and planet as a whole. Information security is also an integral part of information support. When we talk about the right to information, we must also remember information security. Unfortunately, many issues of production, processing, storage and dissemination of information have not yet received not only their legal regulation, but do not even have a sufficiently clear definition.

For example, the Internet. Is this global network a mass media?

Different countries have different answers to this seemingly simple question. Thus, in the United States, two trials took place in which the Internet was viewed differently. In the first case, the court ruled that the computer network is not responsible for the published information, since by its status it is only a distributor of information and does not control its content. In the second case, the court imposed responsibility for the dissemination of information discrediting the honor of the plaintiff, because this network exercises partial control over the content of information.

True, publications and other media distributed over the Internet must be registered in a number of countries, since a new method of distribution is used. But if this is a regular updated data bank, registration is not required. Doesn't a public data bank disseminate information?

The importance of information security for the whole world can be clearly demonstrated by the case of the secret Pentagon documents. Three teenagers from the Croatian city of Zadar, who are interested in computers, managed to read several secret Pentagon and NASA documents via the Internet. Zadar hackers alarmed the US secret services, which immediately requested help from Interpol and the Croatian Ministry of Internal Affairs. Naturally, this case received publicity. The Americans were forced to report that in 1996 there were about 200 thousand cases of pirate penetration into the computer database of the US Department of Defense.

An analysis of 38 cases of unauthorized entry into the “holy of holies” of the Pentagon showed that it is not always possible to determine the consumer of information - some hackers do not leave any traces behind. And this teaches impunity. As a result, programmers agree to work for any government for good money. The case of the three famous 14-year-olds from Zadar is not unique.

Concerns about information security sometimes lead to deliberate isolationism: some companies prefer not to connect to the Internet, fearing hacker invasion.

Information security can be viewed from many points of view, say, as one of the aspects of information warfare. There are reasons for this: in the United States, there are structures of psychological warfare and psychological operations. Their effectiveness was tested during conflicts in Grenada, Panama, and the Gulf War.

News agencies play a major role in creating a global information space. The bulk of information is disseminated by world agencies, primarily American ones.

Let's look at some of them.

Associated Press-AP (Associated Press-AR). The largest US news agency. One of the world's agencies. Founded in 1848. Located in New York. It is a cooperative association of newspaper publishers and owners of radio and television stations. Its members include 1,700 newspapers and 5,000 radio and television stations. It has about 8,500 subscribers in 121 countries.

AP covers its expenses through deductions established according to a strict tariff system, which shifts all the financial burdens of the information business onto its clients. AP is considered the most powerful, knowledgeable and reliable news agency.

Transmits 20 million words of information daily in English and Spanish, 1000 photo illustrations. It has three major press syndicates: Associated Press Illustrated News Features, WirePhotos and Wide World, distributing photographs, articles and other printed products to a large number of press outlets in the United States and abroad.

Equipped with electronic computer technology. The main computer is located in New York. It also has a computer in London for collecting and automatically transmitting information via satellite and other communication channels to New York. To transmit information to European subscribers, an intermediate computer is used in Frankfurt am Main.

It has a special economic and commercial service "AP-Dow Jones" (which in 1982 was introduced into the information markets of Australia, England, Italy, Taiwan and Hong Kong and began regularly supplying subscribers with information on the situation on world oil markets), as well as the largest in world photography service with offices in New York and London.

To cover election campaigns, a special information service using computers has been created.

AP is represented in the information markets of almost all countries of the world. The share of AP materials in the press of a number of countries reaches 75-90%.

The governing body is the Board of Directors, elected for a three-year term.

United Press International-UPI (United Press International). The second largest news agency in the United States. One of the world's agencies. It was created on June 21, 1907 by E.U. Scripps under the name United Press Associations, Inc. On May 24, 1958, it merged with the International News Service agency, owned by the Hearst publishing trust.

United Press was the first to provide information to major radio corporations; in the 30s, Richard Helms, the future director of the US Central Intelligence Agency, worked under his “roof”; In 1936, UPI products were widely used by the then unknown commentator on the Who radio station, Ronald Reagan, who later became President of the United States.

In the 60s, UPI began to lag behind its main global competitors, because The "family business" form is hopelessly outdated in the United States. In addition, competition with the AP also played a role.

UPI headquarters is located in Washington, with a number of services in New York, Nashville, and Dallas. Until 1982, the controlling stake belonged to E.U. The Scripps Company and the Hearst Trust, since June 1982, the Media News Corporation, created by a group of owners of American agencies and television stations. In 1985, UPI was bought by the little-known owners of the Media News Corporation, Douglas Ruhe and William Geissler. This message caused a wide resonance among journalists - where did these relatively young people (37 and 36 years old) freely find and shell out an amount “inappropriate for their age” of 20 million dollars? Also in 1985, on March 6, the owners of the company undertook to transfer 90% of the shares to creditors (among which were Foothill Capital Corporation of Los Angeles, ATT, RCA, American Express, Equatorial Communications Company). in payment for debts. But on March 26 of the same year, UPI was unable to make ends meet, and its holdings were frozen.

Since June 1986, the owner of the agency is the New UPI corporation, headed by Mexican newspaper magnate Mario Vazquez Ranya.

United Press International serves 1,000 American newspapers, 3,600 radio and 550 television stations in the United States, 800 foreign newspapers, 300 radio stations in more than 100 countries.

UPI transmits 13 million words of information daily in English, Spanish and Portuguese. Together with Spain's leading news agency, Agenda EFE, it has created a worldwide radio service in Spanish.

Has the world's most powerful photo service, services economic information and information for cable television networks. Well equipped with electronic computer technology. The main computer center is located in Dallas. Information is transmitted via communication satellites.

US Information Agency-USIA (United States Information Agency) formally created by the American Congress on August 1, 1953. Its origins are in psychological warfare services. To study the effectiveness of American foreign policy propaganda in 1947, a delegation of the US Congress was sent abroad, as a result of which Law No. 402 was adopted, which laid the foundations for the reorganization of the propaganda apparatus. Previously, there was a Department of Psychological Warfare, which was engaged in foreign policy propaganda.

During the presidency of Harry Truman (reorganization plan No. 8), it was replaced by the Office of Operations Coordination, which became the basis for the soon-to-be established US Information Agency. In particular, the American researcher T. Sorensen recognized that USIA was born in the wake of the Cold War.

Another reorganization took place under President Carter, when USIA was reorganized into the Office of international relations- UMS, while some divisions of the State Department were transferred to it, and the budget was sharply increased. Another American president, Ronald Reagan, returned this foreign propaganda department to its former name.

USIA works closely with the National Security Council (NSC).

The Foreign Information Service - USIS - has information posts, centers and information offices abroad. The activities of all USIS employees are determined by a secret “country plan” and are controlled by the ambassador.

USIA publishes a number of magazines in foreign languages, disseminates thematic information, prepares radio and television programs, distributes information over computer networks, and supplies it to news agencies.

Reuters- is one of the world's agencies. The main English news agency, specializing mainly in the dissemination of foreign information.

It was founded in 1851 in London. The founder of the agency was the German Paul Julius Reiter. In 1941, the agency was taken over by several news agencies and private associations, which stated that Reuters would never be taken over by any one group.

The main shareholders are: the Newspaper Publishers Association (19 daily and Sunday newspapers, 40.5% of shares), the Press Association agency (owned by publishers of about 120 small British and Irish newspapers, 40.5%), the Australian Australian Press, New Zealand Press Association, Reuters Staff.

In fact, Reuters is the official news agency of Great Britain.

Reuters supplies over 15 thousand newspapers, news agencies, television and radio stations, government agencies, and embassies in the UK and 158 other countries with foreign information.

Transmits 5 million 500 thousand words of information daily in English, French, German, Spanish and Arabic. The agency has created an electronic information system “Monitor” for processing and transmitting financial and economic information to consumers (has 15 thousand subscribers in 112 countries). Almost 90% of the agency's cash receipts come from the dissemination of financial and economic information, including via the Internet.

Reuters has its strongest position in Africa and the Middle East, where it maintains an extensive network of correspondents.

Agence France Presse-AFP (Agence France-Presse-AFP) is also one of the world's news agencies. This is a commercial enterprise that is also subsidized by the French government. Subsidies are provided in the form of a subscription fee.

The connection with the government is confirmed by the fact that the director of France Press was previously appointed by the French Council of Ministers. Since 1957, it has been a formally independent agency, but its administrative board includes representatives from government circles.

The agency was created in 1944 as a result of the merger of the de-Gaulle agency in London that existed during the war and the France Afrique agency, which was located in the territory of North Africa controlled by French patriots. The basis for the creation of France Press was the Havas agency that existed before the war, whose activities were banned for collaboration with the Nazi occupiers.

AFP provides subscribers (including the French government and government agencies, 12 thousand newspapers and magazines, hundreds of radio and television stations, industrial firms, tourism organizations, etc.) with political, economic, sports, religious, cultural, trade, and financial information.

Through its communication channels, France Presse transmits over 600 thousand words of information daily in six languages: French, English, Spanish, German, Portuguese, Arabic. The agency is fully equipped with computers and uses satellite communications. Exchanges information with all global agencies. It has a network of correspondents in 165 countries and 110 bureaus in France. Regional European offices are located in Paris.

On June 1, 1980, the world's first international 24-hour television news service began operating. CNN (CNN), owned by Robert Edward Turner. As the vice president of this corporation, Steve Haworth, noted, evidence of its success, among other things, is that the monitors in many offices in the White House are constantly on the channel of this station. CNN news programs are watched by heads of state and government of many countries around the world.

Turner didn't start out of nowhere. Since 1963, he has been president and chief executive officer of the Turner Advertising Company, which expanded into a system of radio and television companies. He was also chairman of the board of directors and president of Turner Broadcasting Systems (TBS).

At the very beginning of CNN's work, this channel could receive only 1.7 million. American houses. At that time, the corporation had a $30 million annual budget and several hundred young, unknown journalists. CNN now employs 1,700 people, has offices in 27 countries, and has an annual budget of $130 million.

CNN's headquarters is located in Atlanta, which has become one of the world's major information centers. The video news channel is reached by subscribers in 55 million American homes, and its international service, CNN International, is received via satellite in 92 countries.

In the first five years of its existence, the company suffered losses of $77 million. A total of 250 million was invested in it before it began to make a profit. Now CNN's assets are estimated at $2 billion and it is rightfully considered the leader in Turner's information empire. The entire syndicate generates annual revenue of $224.2 million, 60% of which comes from CNN. A special type of reporting introduced into CNN practice was live broadcasts during major political events, tragedies and disasters. The company's motto is efficiency and reliability.

CNN's immediate task is to gain a foothold in the global news market and expand its sphere of influence. Therefore, in 1995, it merged with the Time Warner group, the most powerful information empire in the world in terms of its budget.

All world news agencies, including ITAR-TASS, actively participate in international information exchange and, to one degree or another, are engaged in foreign policy propaganda.

The globalization of information has generated a number of consequences associated with the modernization of the world community's strategy for its dissemination. If the new international information and communication order assumed a certain counteraction to international press monopolies on the territory of a single country, now this is extremely difficult to implement technically, since satellite television, radio, the Internet and other new technologies make it possible to exert an information impact on recipients regardless of their distance from source of information dissemination. The combination of global information and “regional interest” makes media speech more effective and efficient in terms of shaping and manipulating public opinion.

The active expansion of informationally developed countries in the media of Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet republics and developing countries is deepening the gap between “rich” and “poor” states, creating a real threat to freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

“St. Petersburg State University Faculty of Journalism Department of International Journalism MODERN FOREIGN MEDIA IN CONDITIONS OF GLOBALIZATION...”

-- [ Page 1 ] --

St. Petersburg State University

Faculty of Journalism

Department of International Journalism

MODERN FOREIGN MEDIA

UNDER GLOBALIZATION

Digest of articles

Scientific editor A. Yu. Bykov

Saint Petersburg

REVIEWERS:

Dr. Polit. Sciences N. S. Labush (St. Petersburg State University),

Doctor of Philosophy Sciences I. P. Yakovlev (St. Petersburg State University)

Published according to the resolution of the Editorial and Publishing Council of the Faculty of Journalism of St. Petersburg State University

Modern foreign media in the context of globalization:

B89 Sat. articles / scientific ed. A. Yu. Bykov. - St. Petersburg: Art Express, 2011. - 161 p.

ISBN 978-5-4391-0005-7 The collection includes scientific articles on the current situation and development trends of foreign media in the context of globalization. The authors - media researchers from Russia, Sweden, Turkey, Western Sahara, Pakistan, Poland - are trying to understand the general theoretical problems of media development in the global world, the national uniqueness of the media market of individual countries and regions, as well as the specifics of the impact of globalization on the work of the editorial team.

The book is intended for researchers of modern foreign media and global problems of our time, all those interested in these issues.

BBK Ch612.3 © Department of International Journalism of St. Petersburg State University, 2011 © Authors of the collection, 2011 ISBN 978-5-4391-0005-7 © Art-Express, 2011 SSSSSSSSSS Preface

SECTION I. MEDIA IN THE GLOBAL INFORMATION ENVIRONMENT

SPACE: PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

Bykov A. Yu. (Russia, St. Petersburg) Modern media in a global world

Greg Simons (Sweden, Uppsala) Media and the struggle for public opinion in the global war on terrorism: the experience of Iraq

SECTION II. NATIONAL IDENTITY OF MASS MEDIA

FOREIGN COUNTRIES

Batmaz Veyzel (Türkiye, Istanbul) Turkish mass media: history and modernity

Mikhailov S. A. (Russia, St. Petersburg) Problems of modern Arab journalism

Mohamed Fadel Ali Salem (Western Sahara) The emergence of media in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Nikonov S. B. (Russia, St. Petersburg) Legislative regulation of the media in Jordan

Muhammad Ali Sheikh (Pakistan, Karachi) Current state of media in Pakistan

Gerula Marian (Poland, Katowice) Media system of Poland at the present stage

SECTION III. THEORY AND PRACTICE OF WORK

FOREIGN EDITION

Litvinenko A. A. (Russia, St. Petersburg) Modernization of the editorial management of German newspapers............ 110 Luchinsky Yu. V. (Russia, Krasnodar) The British segment of Rupert Murdoch's newspaper empire.... .............. 124 Nazamutdinova M. Kh. (Russia, Yekaterinburg) Transformation of the UK quality publication model (using the example of the Times newspaper)

Application

PREFACE

Globalization is the process of becoming a single interconnected world. Some time ago, when describing this phenomenon, it was customary to be guided primarily by an economic approach and talk about the merging of disparate economies into an integral global system. There were even several stages of this process. The beginning of one of them dates back to the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, when trade and investment spread on a global scale thanks to the steamship, the telephone and the conveyor belt. The chronological framework of another stage coincides with the end of the 1970s. It was characterized by a revolution in computer science, telecommunications and digitalization1.

At the same time, experts also pointed to the fact that globalization is also inherent in political processes, and we are witnessing the formation of a model of some kind of global power. This power uses new techniques based on information technology to control peoples.

Another approach to explaining globalization is related to the development of information and communication processes. His followers link the development of computer technology with the formation of a single global information space2.

In this case, global television, the Internet, global news agencies, and media conglomerates can be considered attributes of globalization. The emergence of the listed media became possible due to the reduction in cost and acceleration of the process of collecting, processing and transmitting data, and the emergence of new platforms for disseminating information.

Preface The development of information globalization has important consequences for the way of life of the population of the entire planet: good information, the ability to instantly transmit information anywhere in the world, and always stay in touch with your respondents. However, not all consequences can be regarded as positive. For example, in the modern world, the technological and information gap between developed and developing countries is widening, new techniques of information-psychological warfare are being improved and tested in practice, and standards of base mass culture are being spread and approved on a global scale.

The media are directly involved in the processes of information globalization. They become the media that control the public consciousness of residents of cities, countries, continents, and the whole world. But the media themselves are also influenced by global trends. The employment structure is changing: journalists can afford to spend less time in editorial offices and work remotely, and more “freelancers” are appearing. New methods of managing editorial teams are being introduced, and models of print and electronic media are being modernized.

The materials in the collection are thematically divided into three parts. The first section - “Media in the global information space” - examines general theoretical issues related to trends in the development of media in the global world and the functions of modern global media. It also analyzes the specifics of the influence of the media on public opinion in the global fight against terrorism.

The second section - “National identity of the mass media of foreign countries” - is devoted to the characteristics of the media market and the work of journalists in certain regions and countries of the world. Among the states that receive attention are Türkiye, Pakistan, Poland, Jordan and many others. The processes of transformation of the national media systems of these countries are quite active and require study.

6 Preface The final, third section of the collection - “Theory and practice of foreign publications” - is an attempt to understand how globalization affects the work of the journalist and the publication itself, and what principles media owners adhere to when developing their business. It examines the problems of modernizing the editorial management of German newspapers, the transformation of the British segment of Rupert Murdoch's newspaper empire and the Times newspaper model.

The appendix to the collection contains a brief overview of Internet resources useful for independent study of modern foreign media.

Perhaps the provisions of some articles may seem controversial to the discerning reader, and some statistical data may not entirely correspond to the present moment (this is not at all surprising given the dynamic development of the media market and the constantly changing situation in the information sphere).

If the information given in the book really interests you, you have a need to express your point of view, share information you know, or discuss, you can contact the authors by e-mail. Email addresses are on the pages of the collection.

I would like to believe that the materials in the book will allow us to better understand the processes taking place in the global world and will be an incentive for further research.

–  –  –

Modern media in a global world Not only for specialists in the field of mass communications, but also for people who have little interest in media processes, today it is obvious that the media involved in global processes are capable of changing the world.

The media have become a channel for instant dissemination of information and a tool for influencing public opinion on a global scale. New information technologies have a significant impact on almost all areas of human activity. The functioning of the media themselves in the global world is characterized by monopolization, the merger of media enterprises, the unification of media activities (forms of presentation and dissemination of information), the introduction of scientific and technical achievements and Internet technologies, and convergence. All this has already been described in detail in the research literature.

The identified processes lead to a radical transformation of the usual way of life. Information comes to the fore and becomes the main product of production. Economic and political life is moving into the information sphere, and the so-called mediatization of social relations is taking place. It is information that turns into an important factor, 8 Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions, influencing interaction between countries, the way to achieve political, economic and other goals in international relations. Under these conditions, the media act as a management tool and become involved in geopolitical processes.

These global “trends” may determine the development of the media and information and communications industry in the near future. Let's look at them in more detail.

Using the media as a management tool Among the many functions of the media - entertainment, education, enlightenment, etc. - the management function occupies a special place. The peculiarities of the media are that they influence the audience, shape public opinion, and control the consciousness and behavior of people. At the present time - a time of rapid development of technical means of information dissemination and improvement of manipulation technologies - the mass media have begun to be involved more actively and on a larger scale in the processes of managing society.

Even without delving into the theory of the issue, it can be argued that information received from newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and the Internet predetermines our actions. Guided by the data received, we develop an attitude towards what is happening in the country and the world, make purchasing decisions, and plan how to spend our vacation. Information flows influence a person’s choices, his behavior, and control our actions.

It should be noted that hypotheses about the managerial nature of information have been substantiated in scientific research for a long time. This was done quite convincingly in cybernetics back in the late 60s. last century. The managerial nature of information, in particular, was reflected in the concept of “negative entropy”.

The concept of entropy entered scientific circulation thanks to the exact sciences. In information theory, it began to be used to characterize the properties of information phenomena already from the middle of A. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in the global world of the last century. A common definition of entropy comes down to the following: “Entropy (from the Greek entropa - rotation, transformation), a concept first introduced in thermodynamics to determine the measure of irreversible energy dissipation;... in information theory as a measure of the uncertainty of any experience (test), which can have different outcomes."

For any material system, entropy is a measure of the system's proximity to a state of equilibrium. If a system is in a state of equilibrium, movement is impossible in it, its entropy is maximum2. In other words, if the entropy of a certain material system that does not interact with other systems is the maximum possible, then no work can be done within the system.

In information theory, entropy is a measure of the uncertainty of any experience (test), which can have different outcomes. Entropy is the difference between the information contained in a message and the part of the information that is exactly known (or well predicted) in the message. Information acts as eliminated uncertainty. Let's say, uncertainty is eliminated when a person is in the process of choosing and receives information about what decision to make, which of two options will be more correct.

Information disturbs the balance of the system, makes the system work, causes changes in it. By determining what kind of “uncertainty” information of a given content removes, what the recipient’s reaction to a particular message will be, its distributor has the opportunity to regulate the course of events. Management involves the transmission of management signals that influence the system. This role is played by information: it influences the system, gives it a sign, stimulates its reaction.

Social information (“messages transmitted in society) plays a significant role in coordinating the life of society.

A message regarding a particular fact conveyed by an individual or a group of such in verbal form to another individual or group of such.”4). For social information, its content or semantic aspect is extremely important. The meaning of management signals lies in the content of Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions of information messages, which in society, as a rule, are purposeful.

In the information age, this kind of coordination of public life using information technology and targeted dissemination of data is most active and has large-scale consequences. In the global world, these processes reach the interstate level and become an instrument of foreign policy.

In the socio-political media, management signals can appear softly, veiled, for example, in materials containing a positive assessment of a phenomenon or process. The media are able to support the actions of a person, an organization, or a country as a whole.

For example, the national media of any country usually support the foreign policy of their state. This thesis can be illustrated by the results of monitoring coverage of the foreign policy priorities of the United States of America in the national American quality press at the turn of the 20th–21st centuries. The research was conducted by the author of this article and involved an analysis of the newspapers “Washington Post”, “New York Times”, “Wall Street Journal”, “USA Today”. Assessments in materials devoted to events in our country at that time almost completely coincided with Washington’s foreign policy aspirations towards Russia.

Another, more radical level of coordination of information activities to achieve certain goals is characterized by the manifestation of tough information confrontation in the global information world. Over time, its forms also change. States use the global information space “to conduct strategic military operations and reduce the impact on their own information resource”5. In recent years, the concept of second-generation strategic information warfare has been introduced. It became possible thanks to the information revolution; the circle of possible areas of confrontation included “the information space and a number of other areas (primarily the economy)”6.

A. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in the global world Media involvement in geopolitical processes The implementation of geopolitical goals in the modern world is carried out taking into account the characteristics of the information infrastructure of individual regions and on a global scale, which is accompanied by the development of strategies for foreign policy behavior in the information sphere.

Traditional geopolitics today is being transformed into an information one. The change in ideas about geopolitics, the expansion of this concept and the type of political activity occurred gradually, but was predetermined by global social processes. The traditional interpretation of geopolitics was correlated with the concept of political science, “according to which the policies of states, especially foreign ones, are mainly predetermined by various geographical factors: space, location, the presence or absence of certain natural resources, climate, population density and the rate of its growth, etc.” 7.

Gradually it was filled with new meanings depending on the level of development of science and technology, the characteristics of the social structure, and the specifics of social communication. The phenomenon of space, the basic category of geopolitical doctrine, acquired new meanings. Initially, the focus was on the geographic spatial dimension. Then political scientists and economists started talking about the formation of a geo-economic space on a global scale. Other concepts were also introduced, for example, military-power space, which covers the land, water and air spheres of planet Earth, as well as space. There is also an active discussion of spatial categories, which make sense to consider based on a cultural approach. This is directly a geocultural space, as well as a geoideological and geoinformational one.

A powerful tool for realizing geopolitical interests at the present stage of the formation and development of the global information society is the media and information technology. Recently, the development of a global system of media controlled by one or another political subject has been carried out, a set of information, propaganda, PR events, etc. is being implemented.

12 Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions The United States of America occupies the most active position in the international arena in modern history. Their successes are largely due to well-structured information activities and well-established interaction between the state and the media.

The information policy of the United States of America is built in accordance with the laws governing information activities: “On Freedom of Information”, “On Government Openness”, “On the Protection of Human Privacy”, “Patriot Act”, etc. In its foreign policy, including and in its information component, America is guided by national interests. The United States especially intensified its actions in this direction after September 11, 2001.

Government agencies and the media are involved in the processes of disseminating American culture, ideology, and political principles. This is evidenced by numerous facts from recent history.

The implementation of US information policy implies the operation of press centers on the territory of the country itself to work with foreign journalists, the presence of information centers abroad designed for the prompt delivery of information to state leaders, the media and research institutes. Broadcasts to foreign countries are supported by radio stations Voice of America, Liberty and Free Europe (the latter two are nominally independent non-profit organizations, but are financed by grants allocated by the Board of Governors), Free Asia, radio and television station TV Marty" (broadcast to Cuba), etc.

Six months after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the public radio station Voice of America underwent a major reorganization. The Arabic edition ceased to exist, it was replaced by two radio stations - “Radio Sawa” and “Middle Eastern Radio Network”.

Radio Sawa (the Arabic word “sawa” translates to “together”), with an annual budget of $35 million, is aimed primarily at young people. Broadcasting in the FM range, as well as via satellites, is carried out from studios in Washington and Dubai (United Arab Emirates), as well as from offices located practically in A. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in the global world of all countries of the Middle East. The broadcast network consists of news, interrupted by music (both Western and Eastern).

In February 2004, satellite television “Al Hurra” (meaning “independent” in Arabic) joined the radio stations broadcasting in the Middle East region, the programs of which are broadcast to 22 countries in the Middle East and North Africa.

The basis of broadcasting from the USA consists of news and journalistic programs, as well as programs about sports, music, entertainment, etc. There is no advertising. Al Hurra's budget is $62 million a year - the largest project of its kind since the creation of the Voice of America (1942). The competitors of the American TV channel are Arabic ones - “Al Jazeera” and “Al Arabiya”.

In 2003, the radio station “Radio Farda” (the Persian word “Farda” translates as “tomorrow”), broadcasting in Farsi, went on air. Its target audience is the younger generation of Iranians under the age of 30. The broadcast consists of news, Western and Iranian music. Radio Farda replaced Radio Free Iran, which was part of the Radio Free Europe-Radio Liberty network.

In addition, it was reported that the American Administration plans to expand broadcasting to the Muslim (but not Arabic-speaking) peoples of Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and “other countries important in the context of the war on terrorism.” Media projects are also being developed aimed at European Muslims, including those living in France and Germany.

The US Department of Defense had similar programs. After the military operation in Iraq, the Pentagon took control of Saddam’s Ministry of Information and through its channels began disseminating information about the activities of the country’s interim administration. The newspaper “Al Sabah” (“Morning”) was also created, and in 2003

radio and television station “Al Iraqiyah” (“Iraqi”), broadcasting to Iraq. The US Department of Defense has allocated $300 million.

to create materials that can improve the image of the United States and the American military abroad. Such projects are aimed at the population of foreign countries located in the combat zone. Their goal is to increase the level of cooperation between local residents and the US military8.

14 Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions Policies aimed at controlling information flows are especially pronounced during international conflicts, and at this time they are most often of an aggressive nature. This situation is quite common, since in emergency situations the state tries to minimize any threats to itself, including in the information field. And, conversely, use possible information resources to gain advantages.

Manifestations of this kind are the relationship between the American media and the Pentagon. For example, during the Vietnam War, journalists were allowed to join units during combat operations with the consent of the commander of that particular unit.

As the war continued and the number of casualties grew, the press (and public opinion in the United States) towards the war became increasingly negative. As a result, the chosen tactics of relations with the mass media turned out to be not very successful for the authorities. The military's negative attitude towards the press remained for many years. The conclusion reached by the US Department of Defense during these events is that messages must be managed.

Thus, after the Vietnam War, the Pentagon obliged most senior officers to undergo special “media training”

in order for them to be able to present the position of the armed forces to the press.

During the Gulf War (1991), the maximum possible restrictions were placed on the work of media representatives. They were not given any official accreditation to cover the war from the battlefield. Special pools were created for journalists, into which only a few hundred journalists were allowed to enter. These associations were not attached to units, and journalists were not allowed to stay with the troops for a long time. They were always accompanied by an escort officer. All press articles and television reports had to be made available for viewing. This is a list of just some of the restrictions. In 2003 in Iraq, the Pentagon’s media policy could be defined as “regulated and managed openness”9.

New technologies of information influence are being developed in the Internet sphere. In August 2009, it became known that A. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in a global world that the American government is secretly testing abroad a system for circumventing censorship on the global computer network Internet. This was reported by Reuters with reference to the head of the information technology department of the American Broadcasting Council, Ken Berman. We are talking about sending news or video materials by e-mail to foreign citizens using technologies that can overcome the protective filters used, including by the governments of a number of states, that block access to certain “pages” on the Internet10.

Russia in the 90s of the last century made virtually no efforts in foreign policy information activities, and is now inferior to the United States in the scale of such events. However, since the early 2000s, the trend has changed, and Russian information policy abroad has become more active, borrowing many principles, techniques and technologies from the United States and other countries.

The necessary regulatory framework is being created. The “Information Security Doctrine” was adopted Russian Federation»

(2000), “The Concept of the Formation and Development of a Unified Information Space of Russia and Corresponding State Information Resources” (1995), Law “On Participation in International Information Exchange” (1996).

The capabilities of news agencies in conducting information campaigns began to be used again (RIA Novosti). In December 2005, the English-language channel “Russia Today” began broadcasting. It is intended for a foreign audience and covers world events from a Russian point of view. Among the steps taken in 2009 was the creation of a Commission for the formation of the international image of the country under the Presidential Administration, as well as a Commission under the President of the Russian Federation to counter attempts to falsify history to the detriment of the interests of Russia.

Attracting information resources in the interests of a particular country helps solve foreign policy problems and provides advantages in geopolitical confrontation. These advantages lie in the ability to control the information space, set the necessary agenda 16 Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions of the day on a global or (as necessary) regional scale. It should be emphasized once again that a special role is assigned to the media.

Foreign policy strategies of the media in a global world Leading world powers have always paid serious attention to issues of information support for foreign policy. However, in recent decades, this problem has become even more pressing for government agencies, and this is due to a number of factors.

One of them is the strengthening of globalization processes.

Globalization implies worldwide interdependence and openness. The consequence of this state of affairs is the weakening or even destruction of national state sovereignty “under the pressure of... transnational corporations and other transnational entities, for example, international companies, financial institutions, ethnic diasporas, religious movements, mafia groups, etc.”11.

Many researchers point to the erosion of national identity in the context of globalization, highlighting this characteristic as one of the most significant when describing global processes:

Globalization is “the merging of national economies into a single, global system based on the rapid movement of capital, new information openness of the world, the technological revolution, the commitment of developed industrial countries to liberalize the movement of goods and capital, communication convergence, and the planetary scientific revolution”12;

Globalization is characterized by the emergence of “a single interconnected world in which peoples are not separated from each other by the usual protectionist barriers and borders that simultaneously prevent their communication and protect them from disorderly external influences”13, etc.

The fear of losing control over national resources has led to the fact that the protection of national interests in a global world has become one of the most important issues for Pavel. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in the global world of most countries. The way to realize the national interests of a state on the world stage is its foreign policy activities. Recently, its effectiveness increasingly depends on competent information policy and its implementation through the media.

The movement of political activity into the symbolic space of the media (mediatization of politics) is a phenomenon characteristic of recent years. In the conditions of a post-industrial, information society, more than ever before, the effectiveness of politics depends on the position of the media. The influence of a politician and a political institution depends on whether they succeed or fail to gain the support of the media. In this case, methods for establishing interaction with the media can be left out of the equation.

They can be very different: the use of administrative and economic resources, the creation of an information occasion, friendly relations with journalists, etc.

The protection of national state-political interests at the international level in a global world is mainly realized through information support of the state’s foreign policy with the involvement of the mass media, through the formation of a certain image of the country abroad.

To successfully build foreign policy relations with the involvement of the media and other communication channels, the need to form an information strategy is obvious. This kind of strategy (a set of actions to solve certain problems) is formed around at least two poles. One group is devoted to technological problems of information security and information protection in computers and computer networks. The other is related to the “political and ideological context”14. It is precisely these “ideological” strategies that determine the content of information confrontation in the sociopolitical sphere, including in the field of foreign policy.

Moreover, their presence is a requirement of the time, “the resolution of global contradictions requires new means and methods for resolving them - strategic information confrontation”15.

The foreign policy strategies of the media themselves represent a set of value attitudes, as well as technical 18 Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions for their implementation16; in a broader interpretation, they should be considered as a way of using means and resources to achieve a goal. World experience shows that, as a rule, the attitudes of the media do not contradict the foreign policy aspirations of the state in whose territory the media is registered. Usually the media, if they do not support the state, then avoid sharp criticism of the actions of the authorities of their own country in the international arena.

We can identify a number of information strategies that the media adhere to when covering foreign policy processes:

Information (an attempt at impartial, comprehensive coverage of the state’s foreign policy);

Lobbying (actions aimed at supporting the state’s foreign policy, dictated by the interest of the media);

Propaganda (dissemination of views, ideas with the aim of introducing them into public consciousness and forming public opinion);

Manipulation (a method of psychological influence aimed at achieving certain goals by imperceptibly pushing the object of manipulation to carry out the actions desired by the manipulator, which, as a rule, do not coincide with the initial intentions of the object of manipulation17).

Informing is typical for media that position themselves as independent and impartial. Lobbying, propaganda, and manipulation are used, wittingly or unwittingly, by the media, which are influenced by government and other interested structures. More radical means - disinformation and blackmail - are usually used during armed conflicts and information wars.

The function of informing, i.e. supplying information, is one of the main ones inherent in the media.

Factual journalism includes the so-called Anglo-American model of quality periodicals. Historically, a situation has developed where facts are strictly separated from opinions. Subjective point of view of the editor or expert. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in the global world could only be presented on special editorial pages, or in sections of opinions (“Opinion”), letters (“Letters”). Even the structure of information material should be built in such a way that it contains as little subjective as possible. News materials are written according to a standard format. The title, subtitle and first paragraph outline the essence of the event. Further, the news acquires new facts and details. As a rule, the journalist receives these details from competent persons - press service employees, eyewitnesses, and participants in the events. Therefore, the remaining part of the material is reserved for their performances. Opposing opinions collide so that the difference in positions is visible. Similar statements are placed side by side to show the number of supporters of a particular opinion. A journalist can generalize a fact - make an analysis - only by summing it up with a certain statement or by referring to someone else’s words. In news materials there are only two forms of work - description (reporting style) and narration. Reasoning is unacceptable.

But even this kind of news collection cannot be objective. The position of the editors is manifested in the selection of information, illustrations, and layout of the publication.

Lobbying usually means pressure, influence on government, or carrying out government decisions in the interests of a certain force. Lobbying is carried out by pressure groups of interested parties on politicians in power in order for the latter to make a certain decision. Lobbying is actively used, including in foreign policy. In this regard, the article “Lobbyists”, published in the American publication “National Interest”18, is indicative, which analyzes the current scale of this phenomenon in the foreign policy of the United States of America.

In the article, the author directly states that American foreign policy has become a battlefield where powerful “special interest groups” clash with each other. According to D. Bandow, America's political course towards Cuba, Eastern Europe, Haiti, Israel, Turkey and other countries changes depending on domestic politics. As an example, he cites the resolution on the Armenian genocide approved in early 2010 by the House Foreign Affairs Committee by a majority of one vote. What do American legislators care about? 20 Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions to the events that occurred in the Ottoman Empire during the First World War, when Washington itself is today bogged down in armed conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan? - asks the author. And he gives the answer: the purpose of this Congress action was to criticize Turkey. Behind this decision are members of the Armenian-American community, numbering 80 thousand people; they were helped by many Americans of Greek origin, who have their own reasons to dislike Ankara (the invasion and occupation of Cyprus, the persecution of the Orthodox Church in Turkey, the threat of military action against Greece due to border disputes, etc.)19.

And this is not an isolated case. Thus, another ethnic immigrant group determines US policy towards Cuba.

The Cuban-American community in Florida is angry with the Castro regime, and the United States has long maintained a trade embargo on Cuba. And Ukrainian Americans put pressure on Washington to openly intervene in Ukrainian politics, and they sought the victory of the Orange Revolution and Viktor Yushchenko in the 2004 elections.

The interpretation of propaganda comes down to the dissemination of “political, philosophical, scientific, artistic and other views and ideas with the aim of introducing them into the public consciousness and intensifying mass practical activity”20.

It differs from other forms of information activity in that, as a rule, it is a pre-planned and targeted impact on the audience, the purpose of which is to attract the audience to the side of the one who conducts the propaganda, i.e.

control over thinking and behavior. Ultimately, propaganda is a set of specific structures that influence human perception and behavior21.

Manipulation technologies have received considerable attention in recent research literature. In particular, I.N.

Panarin, citing domestic and foreign sources, identifies seven main techniques of information-psychological influence, quite widely known to specialists as the “alphabet of propaganda”:

- “gluing or labeling” (name calling - the choice of offensive epithets, metaphors, titles, names, “labels” to designate a person, an organization of an idea, a phenomenon, etc.);

A. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in the global world are “glittering generalities” or “brilliant uncertainty” (glittering generality - replacing the name of something or someone with a more general one that has a positive emotional connotation);

- “transfer” or “transfer” (transfer - the spread of auto authority and prestige of what is valued by people on what is presented to them in the process of communication, while the spread of negative perception is also possible);

- “their guys” or “playing the common people” (plan folks - establishing trusting relationships with the audience, as with like-minded people, on the basis that the communicator, his ideas, statements belong to the common people);

- “shuffling” or “card stacking” (card stacking - selection and tendentious presentation of only positive or only negative facts and arguments while silencing the opposite);

- “common carriage”, “common platform” or “van with an orchestra”

(band wagon - a selection of judgments, statements, phrases that require uniformity in behavior, creating the impression that everyone does this)22.

E. N. Pavlova, considering the media as a tool for hidden influence on consciousness, also refers to several technologies of manipulation. Among them is “imposing agenda items.” This implies the formation by the media of public interest in a particular event due to its ranking within information messages23. Another technology is “shifting the focus of attention.” The negative essence of events in this case, through the efforts of the mass media, is transferred to the background, while the audience is offered a discussion of entertaining, but secondary manifestations of the situation. For example, information about victims and the tragic development of military conflicts is replaced by a description of the amazing technical characteristics of weapons. “Montage and disinformation” involve the regrouping of elements of real events in accordance with subjective ideas about their development, or taking into account certain mouths. Section I. Media in the global information space: problems and solutions to innovations that need to be introduced into the public consciousness.

Finally, “mythologization and stereotyping” or endowing certain events with a legendary fantastic meaning, their perception in accordance with certain given schemes can also be considered as mechanisms for constructing reality.

Of course, the reason for this is not always the internal need of editors and journalists to publicly express their patriotic sentiments. In many ways, this situation is due to the corresponding state policy: the necessary legal framework is being created, a global system of media is being formed, controlled by the subject of international politics, a set of information, propaganda and PR activities is being carried out, etc.

The presented approaches to understanding the development of the media are only an attempt to understand the situation that has developed in the global information and communication space, an attempt to understand the specifics of its transformation at the present stage. Many important aspects of the functioning of the media in global society, many features of their interaction with political and economic institutions, were left outside the scope of the article. Among them, for example, is the problem of the impact of mass media on the global economy, the interdependence of cultural and historical models of the media and the regional uniqueness of the world space, etc. These issues undoubtedly require further research. But it is obvious that when analyzing the media today it is necessary to take into account the influence that the global information society has on them, trends in the information sphere, which may require the development of new research methods.

–  –  –

Zubarev D. N. Electronic encyclopedias. URL: www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/008/126/734.htm - 01/27/2006.

See: Shileiko A.V., Shileiko T.I. Information or intuition? M., 1983.

See: Petrovich N. T. Let's talk about information. M., 1973. P. 80.

Kochergin A. N., Kogan V. Z. Problems of information influence in society.

M., 1980. P. 20.

A. Yu. Bykov. Modern media in the global world Trinyaev S. N. The battlefield is cyberspace: theory, techniques, means, methods and systems for waging information warfare. Minsk, 2004. S. 1999.

Right there. P. 200.

Philosophical Dictionary / ed. I. T. Frolova. M., 2001. P. 118.

Chernogaev L. US media as a tool of psychological influence on Arab countries. URL: http://www.iimes.ru/rus/stat/2009/28c.htm.

Brady R. Modern problems of covering foreign policy conflicts (the experience of American journalism): monograph. St. Petersburg, 2008, pp. 80–84.

The US government is secretly testing a system abroad to circumvent Internet censorship. URL: http://newsru.com/world/14aug2009/mystery.html - 03/13/2011.

Sociology: encyclopedia / comp. A. A. Gritsanov, V. L. Aabushenko, G. M. Evelkin, G. N. Sokolova, O. V. Tereshchenko. Minsk, 2003. pp. 226–227.

Globalistics: encyclopedia / ch. ed. I. I. Mazur, A. N. Chumakov. M., 2003. P. 181.

–  –  –

Grinyaev S.N. Noopolitics is a step towards creating an American information strategy. URL: http://www.agentura.ru/equipment/psih/info/noo.

See: Polukhin A.V. Media strategies when participating in corporate conflicts:

Kondratyev M. Yu., Ilyin V. A. ABC of a social psychologist-practitioner. M.,

2007. URL: http://slovari.yandex.ru/dict/azbuka.

Bandow, Doug. Lobbyists // The National Interest 03/08/2010. URL: http://nationalinterest.org/Article.aspx?id=23022.

Bandow D. Lobbyists. URL: http://www.inosmi.ru/usa/20100311/158538931.html.

Great Soviet Encyclopedia: in 30 volumes. M., 1969–1978. URL: http://bse.sci-lib.

com/article093385.html.

Propagandes J. Ellul. Paris: A. Colin, 1962; 2 d. Paris: conomica, 1990. URL: http:// psyfactor.org/propaganda.htm.

See: Panarin I.N. Information war, PR and world politics. M., 2006.

Pavlova E. D. The media are a tool of hidden influence

–  –  –

The Media and the Battle for Public Opinion in the Global War on Terror: The Iraqi Experience Introduction When covering conflict situations, the media can be both beneficial and threatening. In the first case, the media act in your interests. In the second, they are used by the opposite side to form a negative public opinion towards you. This leads to journalists being drawn into conflict and becoming targets for attack: in 2005, about 150 media workers were killed around the world, 89 of them while performing their journalistic duties1. At the same time, Iraq has become one of the most dangerous places to work as a journalist. Media workers here are forced to maneuver between various forces - the Iraqi government, rebels, militia and coalition units.

At the same time, the media and individual journalists experience a variety of forms of pressure. These could be kidnappings, murders, closure of publications, dismissals, fines, trials, offers of reward for publication. According to New York Times reporter Dexter Filkins, who spent time living and working in Iraq, "98 percent of the country, especially Baghdad, is now 'inaccessible' to Western journalists." These days, it's mostly local reporters who are extremely dependent and vulnerable.

This is an attempt to create a “correct” picture of Iraqi reality.

This article examines the difficult situation of the media in Iraq and the relationship between the media and participants in the political life of this state. This article was based on materials published in the media and uses interviews.

with experts, as well as information obtained from non-governmental organizations and sources.

Media, events and messages In the modern world, the perception of reality is often no less important than this reality itself. A recent article in the British newspaper The Guardian focused on news influence and the British government. In 1997, when Labor came to power, 300 public relations specialists were employed in the government structures, the government of Tony Blair at the beginning of the 20th century. There were already 3,200 press secretaries and 77 specially appointed advisers on political issues3. This indicates the special importance attached to modern political communications, and in particular to the management of the communication process.

It is quite obvious that information flows are controlled by those who control the media. One way to achieve this goal is to own information businesses. In September 2006, information ministers and officials from the 57 countries that make up the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) met in Saudi Arabia. They expressed concern that Islam had faced international condemnation since the famous attack on the United States on September 11, 2001. OIC chief Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu called on Muslim financial magnates to invest in media and noted: “Muslim investors should invest in large global media organizations, those that generate significant profits; this would allow influencing their policies through the Boards of Governors.... Such a situation would be favorable, since it would contribute to the transformation of the image of Islam throughout the world”4.

Even more alarming was the words of Egypt's Minister of Information Anas el-Feki: “These violent attacks on Ise Lama in the 5 years since the 9/11 attacks have forced us to defend our faith and understanding of our tolerant religion... .

Now, more than ever, we need a new Muslim message through the media, which would be heard in all parts of the world.”5. The problem of the negative image of Islam due to the well-known events of 2001 and the ongoing war on terrorism has intensified to such an extent that the leaders of the Islamic world are now trying to correct the imbalance that has developed in the Western and world media. They intend to turn the tide by gaining financial control over the media. The plan is to change the media from within, and then use it to influence public opinion and turn it in favor of Islam.

Authorities use a variety of methods to try to influence coverage and news reporting. One of them, used during the regime of George W. Bush, is funding journalists and PR companies in order to disseminate the desired information. This kind of incident became public in the United States of America in September 2006, when the Office of Cuba Broadcasting under the George W. Bush Administration transferred money to 10 journalists. The goal was the appearance of anti-Castro comments on Radio and TV Martí (Mart), which is broadcast in Cuba6. The United States also subsidized Iraqi journalists to provide necessary information in the media and maintain the desired tone of news reports.

The form and content of news reports, as well as their influence on public opinion, were reflected in the contract put out to open tender by the leadership of the US military in Baghdad. The winner was supposed to sign a contract for 2 years worth 20 million.

Doll.; its condition was broad monitoring of the media in the Middle East and the United States of America, the goal was to achieve more positive information coverage of events in Iraq. It was intended to "develop communications strategies and tactics, identify opportunities, and conduct activities... to effectively achieve the goals of the coalition and the Government of Iraq, and build support for achieving these goals among our strategic audiences." The start of the project was scheduled for October 28, 20067.

At the end of 2006, the Pentagon announced the intensification of the “information war.” According to Donald Rumsfeld, then US Secretary of Defense, the United States is losing to Greg Simons. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

against their opponents in the propaganda confrontation. To improve the situation, it was planned to actively use such strategies as monitoring the media (including weblogs), as well as “cultivating” reliable experts who could be used as interviewees on radio or television.

Pentagon spokesman Eric Ruff said at the time that the new tactics should produce results. He noted: “We are trying to monitor the situation in order to quickly respond to the latest events and news.... To respond more quickly to, to put it mildly, inaccurate statements”8.

An important task of the George W. Bush Administration was to create an image of decisive and confident actions in order to convince the audience of the leader’s commitment and determination, and the successful outcome of the matter. According to an article published in the Washington Post, a war is virtually lost when the public begins to feel that its leaders are allowing the war to fail or that they have no hope of success9. But military operations in Iraq continued, and American losses were constantly increasing. The refusal of the authorities to admit the mistakes and failures of this campaign, ignoring alternative points of view, looked more and more like stubbornness and/or arrogance. Maintaining a balance between showing confidence and maintaining trust was very difficult.

Various extremist and separatist organizations also use the media to disseminate their messages to a wide audience and maintain contacts within the organization itself. Al-Qaeda is waging a sophisticated battle for the hearts and minds of the people through the Internet. Special moderators disseminate the necessary information, talk about the philosophy of jihad and try to encourage new supporters to join their cause. The New York Times interviewed one such employee on condition of anonymity, in which he stated: “We are the energy paving the way for jihad. Just as the jihadists achieved their goals on September 11, so too will we achieve ours through the Internet.”

The tone of the messages changed depending on the mood of the audience. Previously, al-Qaeda leaders were usually presented as soldiers, military men, they were shown with weapons and in nature. Subsequently, the top officials of the organization posed in front of the camera 28 Section I. Media in the global space: problems and solutions already in residential premises or in offices against the background bookshelves with religious texts. At times they even quoted Western authors and referred to the speeches of famous speakers10. As a result, the audience should have formed the appropriate impression from such images: these people on the screen are not only soldiers, but now they are also scientists, they have spiritual and intellectual potential; By using famous quotes, they also show themselves to be secular and progressive people who know and understand the culture of the enemy (this may be a kind of message to those who are interested in the West).

Media and terrorism

French researcher Gabriel Tarde spoke about how the media gain the power of influence. He noted:

“One pen is enough to write in a million languages...”, and the media make it possible to move “... thoughts over a distance”11.

BBC News Producer Kenneth Payne reflected on the role and importance of media in the era of modern warfare.

The importance of the media has increased, especially given that the nature of war is changing, and its success is now determined not only by military factors, but also by political ones.

“At the present stage, the media are undoubtedly an instrument of war. This is because victory today depends as much on public opinion at home and abroad as it does on military action on the battlefield. And this remains true, regardless of the desire of many journalists to give a dispassionate and balanced assessment of the conflict.

The experience of the United States military since the end of the Cold War has shown that victory on the battlefield can rarely be achieved through hand-to-hand combat with the enemy. In regions ranging from Somalia and Haiti to Kosovo and Afghanistan, success was determined by political rather than military efforts.

Today's military commanders can achieve much more than ever before by controlling the media. Laws and conventions related to hostilities, in full by Greg Simons. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

do not take into account the important political influence the media have on the course of military conflicts and their consequences. Thus, international humanitarian law requires that media workers be accorded the rights of civilians; The question arises about the appropriateness of control over the media during hostilities."12

Armed conflict and information warfare are inextricably linked. News can now be received 24 hours a day; military and political leaders understand the significance and importance of this continuous flow of information addressed to the audience. This requires military officials and politicians on both sides of the conflict to expand the list of actions that would be classified as war crimes. The hidden meaning that should be inherent in modern military operations and their media coverage is the recognition of the sanctity of human life (including the lives of civilians from the “enemy” camp who may become unwitting participants or witnesses to the conflict, or have disagreements with the leaders of their own country) .

Media coverage of military conflicts between the West and other states or other institutions creates an image of a “clean” war, waged using modern technology, which minimizes the number of civilian casualties (which are seen as inevitable collateral damage). Very little attention is paid to how modern weapons affect humans; the focus is on inanimate objects and phenomena; for example, striking with a smart bomb. This is how “ugliness” gets erased

wars, details that could undermine public support for the war effort. “Awareness” of the enemy that would lead to sympathy or sympathy towards him is minimized. As a result, it seems that the war is waged not by people, but by machines.

Wars and other forms of conflict cause severe upheaval in society, including in democratic countries. Much is at risk in this case. Politicians have a reputation and a place to work, ordinary citizens have freedom and life. Often there is a desire to rally around the leader and confront the threat with a united front.

The essence of the modern war on terrorism is that it has neither a clear front nor a clearly identified enemy. Given this set of circumstances, the media can easily adopt a pro-government stance rather than acting as a watchdog.

“The fact that the disinformation that took place and many of the semantic codes put into circulation “worked” to support the war in Iraq implies the active participation of the government in the formation of public opinion, the presence of a large volume of news routine and self-censorship in a reputable segment of the press”13.

The media is under enormous pressure, its goal is to create a certain picture of reality that could become the basis of consensus. The situation takes on a special piquancy when the term patriotism appears. If a journalist takes an action that the authorities give a negative assessment, he will be classified as “unpatriotic.” This is an effective mechanism that guarantees the emergence of self-censorship in times of social tension. “In a society where there is a consensus on the assessment of terrorist acts, coverage of terrorism may not involve any discussion.”14 Such conditions allow for a very limited opportunity (if any at all) for a substantive and free discussion of the course of current events.

The Media and Coverage of the Iraq War Media personnel are part of various organizations and coalitions vying for power in Iraq. These parties use various means to impede the free operation of the media. They try to use the media to voice a certain point of view or make a certain political statement. Reporters Without Borders

published a 2006 report detailing accidents involving journalists during the previous three years of war. Between March 20, 2003 and March 20, 2006, 86 media workers were killed and 38 were kidnapped. Of those killed, 77% were Iraqi by nationality. This is more than during the war in the former Yugoslavia from 1991–1995. (49 journalists were killed) and more than in 20 years of hostilities in Vietnam 1955–1975. (63 victims), and more than during the civil war in Algeria 1993–1996. (77 victims)15.

Greg Simons. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

The mechanism that Iraqi and US authorities used to control, or at least intimidate, the media was to label their reports as undermining security and national stability. There are many such cases known. Al-Arabiya satellite television channel

(al-Arabiya), broadcasting from Dubai, was closed for one month (this was the second time, the first time was in November 2003). The Iraqi government made a statement in this regard. It was noted that news reports "use the list of victims of terrorist attacks for personal gain... it is necessary to respect human dignity and not fall into the traps set by terrorist groups that want to intimidate the Iraqi people." Al Jazeera's offices were closed by Iraqi authorities in August 2004 on the grounds that the channel's reporting contained incitement to violence16. “Protecting national security” and “maintaining stability” are used to silence the press.

Following the verdict against Saddam Hussein, two Sunni satellite television stations were immediately closed by the authorities. They broadcast live from demonstrations in support of Saddam Hussein and took phone calls from viewers, giving them the opportunity to voice their opinions. Al-Zawraa and Salahuddin television stations were closed with the consent of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The reason for the closure was stated to be violation of curfew and non-compliance with the law prohibiting the broadcast of materials that could undermine stability in Iraq17. This behavior demonstrates the authorities’ confidence that the power of words and images can cause an even greater split in society and worsen an already extremely unstable situation.

When the content of media materials is controlled and powerful censorship tools are used, it is problematic for the Iraqi media to criticize the authorities. A less manageable situation arises when “inconvenient” materials appear in other Arab states. There are many examples of this. One of them is the activities of the Al-Jazeera TV channel (we are talking in this case about its English version), which is received in 40 million households. Section I. Media in the global space: problems and solutions around the world. The channel's management announced its intention to show details about the killing of British soldiers in Iraq18. Another example that can be cited is the Al-Zawraa TV channel, on the air of which the viewer sees American soldiers bombed on the side of the road, bloody Iraqi children and insurgent snipers. And all this is broadcast by Nilesat, the satellite state broadcaster of Egypt, a country that is the United States' closest ally in the Middle East. The broadcast continues despite a request from the United States to stop it19. For the US and Iraqi authorities, the problem is the fact that real life contradicts the desired positive image of what is happening that one would like to create. Because of this, in Iraq and the United States there is less and less trust in the media, which supports the government's position.

The American media have repeatedly been the subject of criticism from the Bush Administration.

Thus, Secretary of Defense D. Rumsfeld said that they tend to focus more on the negative aspects of the conflict. As an example, he cited the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, which had a great resonance in the media, and the scant attention to the awarding of Sergeant Paul Ray Smith with the Medal of Honor.

The official admitted there were "bad guys" in the US military. Rumsfeld added that these people represent only a small portion of those who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He stated that “those who know the truth must speak out against all these myths, lies and distortions of facts about our troops and about our country.”20 Rumsfeld proposed a harsh campaign against information that contradicts the official version of events and the desired picture of “reality.”

There are many known cases of persecution of American media for their publications. There are two well-known scandals associated with the New York Times that were monitored by the publication's journalists.

The first is a large-scale audition of international telephone conversations and checking emails without court approval in late 2005. The second was a secret program to monitor the financial transactions of thousands of Americans. Peter King, Congressman from the Republic of Greg Simons, made attacks on the newspaper. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

Blicans, and Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee of the House of Representatives. He declared:

“We are in a state of war, and making public information about secret operations and methods of conducting them is a betrayal on the part of the New York Times.”21

CNN has also found itself the target of the ire of American politicians.

The situation was similar to the events that had already taken place in the practice of the British television channel ITN. After footage of wounded soldiers was shown on ITN, the UK Ministry of Defense revoked its journalists' accreditation. CNN aired material about an American military man who was dying from a sniper’s bullet. The decision to show the story was made after a heated editorial discussion. For this, the TV channel has been criticized more than once; this story has been called “pleasing to terrorists” and enemy propaganda. There have been many calls from American politicians to ban CNN reporters from the presence of American troops22. When some inconvenient facts are made public, and the stakes in the war are high, an almost uncontrollable reflex is triggered to get rid of the source of irritation.

Pressure on journalists covering the war on terrorism and its aftermath comes not only from the warring sides, but can come in unexpected ways. One such incident occurred with three reporters from the newspaper Sonntags Blick in Switzerland. Their expose article contained information about the existence of American prison camps in Europe.

It was based on a fax from the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which was intercepted by Swiss military intelligence and found its way to journalists. The message was considered to undermine the security of the Swiss intelligence service. The reporters were accused of disclosing secrets of the state's defense capabilities, which, in accordance with Article 106, Section 1 of the Military Criminal Code, carries up to 5 years in prison23. Such an event, which happened in a country with a long tradition of neutrality and freedom, shows how much the idea of ​​​​the purpose of journalism and the media has become blurred during times of war and conflict.

In March 2003, while the United States was fighting in Iraq, about 600 media representatives accompanied American and British troops (they were assigned to military units). By 2005, this number had dropped to 114, and by September 2006 it had dropped to 11. This situation has developed for various reasons, which are due to the initiatives of both the military and media editors. On the one hand, it is the unit commander who decides whether the journalist will be “accompanied” with his subordinates or not. He can kick him out if he doesn't like something. On the other hand, many editors are not ready to shoulder such a burden and keep journalists in a “hot spot”24.

During the initial phase of the ground operation in Iraq in 2003.

reporters were located directly in military units. It was believed that in conditions of armed clashes this was done for their own safety. At the same time, this meant that the movement of journalists, who they communicate with, and their communications with the outside world were under control. Not to mention the fact that they used the transport of military units, food, were under the protection of the military, i.e. they were dependent on all this. How does this situation of journalists affect their materials and coverage of current events? A study conducted at Pennsylvania State University yielded some interesting results. Media publications published between March 19 and May 1, 2003 were studied, 742 articles by 156 journalists from 67 print media were analyzed. Researcher Andrew Linder noted that “media coverage of the war focused primarily on the soldiers and their experiences of the war, while downplaying the impact of the invasion on the Iraqi people.”25

The study shows that the conditions in which journalists found themselves influenced their choice of interviewees. This state of affairs suits the military, as it allows society to create a less tragic image of the destruction characteristic of modern war, and to portray coalition troops in a more humane light.

Entirely new methods are now being used to win hearts and minds in the Middle East. A recent attempt is the television reality show “On the Road in America,” in the spirit of public diplomacy. It features three young Arab men and one Arab woman, together with Greg Simons. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

traveling around the United States. The show was first broadcast by the privately owned Middle East Broadcasting Center in Saudi Arabia. It was funded by Layalina Productions, "a non-profit company supported by individuals, corporations and foundations." The President of Layalina Productions is Mark Ginsberg, former United States Ambassador to Morocco. Richard Fairbanks - Chairman of the Board - former Ambassador at Large26. The top management of this company came from the leadership structures of the diplomatic service. The implementation of the foreign policy objectives of the George W. Bush Administration with the help of this company means that the authorities, anywhere - in the United States or in the Middle East - are trying to take advantage of the media, which cannot be suspected of having a direct connection with the government. This is likely due to the fact that the reputation of state media is already badly tarnished.

"They" and "we"

The sides in the Iraq conflict are portrayed in an overly simplistic manner as a great confrontation between freedom and tyranny.

George Bush's position boiled down to the fact that there was a “clash of civilizations”, while European leaders avoided such phrases and rather talked about the fight against the growth of extremism. Be that as it may, these events fit naturally into a series of ideological battles of the past that were fought during the Second World War and the Cold War and which determined the place of the United States in the world.

“Our nation has endured many trials, and we have a difficult road ahead. We need to set aside our differences and work together to stand the test that history has given us.”27

The Iraq War was only part of a larger clash of ideologies/cultures. George Bush used these expressions more than once. “This is the decisive ideological struggle of the 21st century.

and a challenge to our generation”, “this is a battle for civilization... we are fighting to strengthen the way of life that is dear to free nations”28. The concept of war is based on the recognition of the opposition of another civilization/culture and ideology. This is the case Section I. Media in the global space: problems and solutions The “us” and “them” approach is very dangerous; When the subject matter is simplified (to ensure that the message of support for the war gets through to the people), then there is a danger that the conflict will lead to the division of peoples along the borders of their cultures.

Combating Bad News There are many mechanisms that have been used in the past and continue to be used today in order to bring positivity to information flows. One of the serious problems that the George W. Bush Administration had to face is that too many stories were leaked to the press through various channels. For example, in April 2004, Tami Silicio, who worked for Maytag Aircraft in Kuwait, was fired when it was discovered that she had photographed coffins draped in American flags on their way to the United States. These photographs appeared in many newspapers, despite the ban imposed by the Pentagon on the use of such photographs since 199129.

This is just one case from a large list of similar ones. These include eyewitness accounts, Abu Ghraib, Scooter Libby, the unauthorized interview and death of British biological warfare expert David Kelly, and a story about the situation at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Reed Army Medical Center)30.

After the famous publication, journalists' access to Walter Reed Medical Center was hastily banned. Moreover, an article that appeared in the Army Times stated that “The Pentagon has also tightened media coverage of all defense-affiliated medical facilities... in an email sent to their representatives. , it was reported: “While the situation at Walter Reed Medical Center is being reviewed, media presence at other medical facilities will in most cases be inappropriate.” The president of the organization “Military Reporters and Editors” noted in an interview with IN: “The matter is becoming politically charged - they do not allow reporters to cover events unless they are sure that they will receive information with exclusively positive content”31. There is a deliberate attempt to influence the news by Greg Simons. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

through restricting reporters' access to information and regulating the activities of the media. Although this is a harsh method, it prevents or at least reduces the chances of the media using uncontrolled sources of information.

However, another problem may arise here: journalists will use unreliable sources and rumors.

The Pentagon is also active in creating news stories for the media. The US military investigation noted that “the American military propaganda program used in the Iraq War was legitimate and complied with psychological operations rules.” The report concluded: “Psychological operations are an important part of information operations and contribute to the achievement of... command objectives. They aim to convey selected, truthful information to foreign audiences in order to influence emotions... thoughts and, ultimately, government behavior."32

It is known that the public relations organization "Lincoln Group" was engaged in monitoring certain media, information published in them and carrying out PR campaigns (topics for discussions were determined and speeches were composed for speeches by representatives of the US armed forces in Iraq) . The list for monitoring included the Fox television company, the New York Times newspaper, and the Al Arabiya channel. This project was aimed at building support for the American mission in Iraq both among audiences in the Arab world and in the United States. It should be noted that this is not the first time that Lincoln Group has been noticed in this type of activity.

But attempts to influence society by so openly manipulating the media can completely undermine people’s trust in the media.

On the one hand, the United States calls for support for certain universal human values ​​- democracy, the right to freedom of speech / media. On the other hand, they seek to cynically use the media to quickly achieve political goals.

Thus, they act contrary to the humanistic principles they themselves proclaim.

The US State Department has recently followed the example of the Pentagon in the manipulation and monitoring of mass media. Section I. Media in the global space: problems and solutions to the howl of information. The agency hired two indigenous Arabs to study the Internet space, as well as to participate in political discussions and forums in the Arab segment of the Internet. The purpose of the action is to correct the “misperception” of American foreign policy in the Middle East33. The American state thus demonstrates its attention to the content of media publications not only in America, but also abroad, especially in the Middle East. This takes into account the development of new forms of media activity, for example, Internet forums, and attempts are made to influence these new types of mass communication.

Conclusion As a rule, during armed conflicts, journalists tend to adhere to the political line pursued by the government of their country. This is confirmed by the examples of the 1991 Gulf War and the 1999 Kosovo conflict. However, as the war in Iraq dragged on and facts of deception and unsuccessful government actions became apparent, this mission became extremely unpopular. This conflict called into question the possibility of waging a “just war.” The media were unable to provide support to the authorities due to the fact that their correspondents were often not allowed to the scene of events and continued to work in their usual “home conditions” under the pretext of ensuring their own safety. The contradictions became so strong that it was no longer possible not to notice them or not pay attention to them.

The media in Iraq are busy creating a special information picture and images, or, simply put, they are used as a propaganda tool. In accordance with the plans of the George W. Bush Administration, everything should have worked to strengthen public support for further intervention by the American armed forces. This suggested that some “meanings” and “meanings” should have faded into the background or should have been completely excluded from everyday life, while others should have been actively promoted. “Good” news stories are part of such a strategy, their purpose is to “demonstrate” what progress has been achieved. The capture of Saddam Hussein was touted as a major watershed, after which violence would subside.

Greg Simons. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

“Civil war” fell into the category of terms with a negative meaning that were excluded from circulation. These kinds of negative meanings could lead to a loss of public support. The activities of the media in such a situation are designed for a certain target audience and help set an agenda in the interests of certain forces.

The differences between the media and other tools of warfare in modern warfare are becoming less clear. In the global war on terror, there is no conventional battlefield with a front line, there is a sophisticated enemy who easily adapts to any situation; The coalition forces find themselves vulnerable in the propaganda confrontation, which is waged constantly and everywhere - in houses and apartments, in workplaces, in Internet cafes. New battles are now being waged in cyberspace along with traditional media.

The American strategy was aimed at convincing the population in the United States and other countries of the unconditional leadership of the United States and confidence in the successful outcome of the battle. This policy assumed that the Bush Administration would gain new supporters or, in any case, that its initiatives would be treated neutrally. The strategy of the opposing side was based on discrediting the coalition forces and creating their own image as public defenders. The rebels tried to show that coalition forces were unable to ensure the safety of the population during bombings and clashes.

Censorship was used by all participants in the Iraqi conflict. To put pressure on the media, murders, threats of physical violence against journalists, arrests, confiscation of equipment, as well as legal methods of obstructing the work of journalists were used. Patriotic appeals and blackmail were used: if journalists or media did not support official policy, they could be accused of lack of patriotism in wartime, with all the ensuing consequences. Another factor preventing efficient work The fact of the media in Iraq, regardless of the race or religion of their employees, is that it is, in fact, a very dangerous country for anyone, and even more so for journalists, whose special status attracts increased attention.

40 Section I. Media in the global space: problems and solutions

–  –  –

Hirschman D. S. NYT War Reporter: “Anarchy” Reporting in Iraq // Editor and Publisher. 2006. 16 Sept. URL: http://editorandpublisher.com.

Hencke D. Ministers say 24/7 news Demands 3200 Press Officers // Guardian. 2006.

http://today.reuters.co.uk.

Goodnough A.U.S. Paid 10 Journalists for Anti-Castro Reports // The New York Times.

Pincus W. Positive Press on Iraq is Aim of US Contract // Washington Post. 2006. 31 Aug. URL: www.washingtonpost.com.

(1) Pentagon Boosts 'Media War' Unit, BBC News, www.bbc.co.uk, 31 October 2006; (2) Pentagon Expanding PR Office, United Press International, www.upi.com, October 31, 2006 Baker P., Balz D. Bush Words Reflect Public Opinion Strategy // Washington Post, A01. 2005. 30 Jun. URL: www.washingtonpost.com.

Fattah H. N. Al Qaeda Increasingly Reliant on Media // The New York Times. 2006.

Ewen S. PR!: A Social History of Spin // New York, Basic Books, 1996. R. 69.

URL: http://carlisle-www.army.mil/usawc/Parameters/05spring/payne.htm.

Framing Terrorism: The News Media, The Government, and the Public / ed. by P.

Norris, M. Kern, M. London: Routledge, 2003, P. 297.

Slaughter in Iraq: 20 March 2003 - 20 March 2006, Reporters Without Borders, www.rsf.org, March 2006. (1) Al-Arabiya Says Police Arrive at Baghdad Offices to Close Station, International Herald Tribune, www.iht.com , September 7, 2006; (2) Schemm, P., Arabiya ban Spotlights Iraq’s Tense Media Relations, AFP, http://news.yahoo.com, 8 September, 2006 Two Iraqi Channels Ordered Closed in Aftermath of Saddam Verdict // CPJ News Alert.

2006. 6 Nov. URL: www.cpj.org; Mroue B. Iraq Shuts Down 2 Sunni TV Stations // ABC News. 2006. 6 Nov. URL: http://abcnews.go.com; Two TV Stations Closed for Showing Iraqis Protesting Against Sentence for Saddam // Reporters Without Borders. 2006. 6 Nov.

URL: www.rsf.org.

Poole O., Carlin B. Al-Jazeera Defiant on Footage of Dead Soldiers // Telegraph.

Gauch S. Why is Egypt Airing Insurgent TV From Iraq // Yahoo News (from The Christian Monitor). 2007. 17 Jan. URL: http://news.yahoo.com.

URL: www.cbs.com.

Burkeman O. Republican Urges Prosecution of ‘Treasonous’ New York Times // The Guardian. 2006. 26 Jun. URL: www.guardian.co.uk.

Greg Simons. The media and the struggle for public opinion in a global war...

URL: http://media.guardian.co.uk.

Three Journalists to be Tried Before Military Court for Publishing Leaked Fax About CIA Prisons // Reporters Without Borders. 2007. 7 Feb. URL: www.rsf.org.

Keath L. Fewer Reporters Embedded in Iraq // ABC News. 2006. 16 Oct. URL: http://abcnews.go.com.

Embedded Reporting Influences War Coverage, Study Shows // Penn State News.

Elshinnawi M. New Reality TV Show Targets Arab Hearts and Minds // Voice of America News. 2007. 15 March. URL: www.voanews.com.

Rutenberg J., Stolberg S. G. In Prime-Time Address, Bush says Safety of US Hinges on Iraq // The New York Times. 2006. 12 Sept.

(1) Bush Urges Americans Back to War, BBC News, www.bbc.co.uk, 14 September, 2006; (2) Bush: Iraq Part of Struggle of Century, CBS News, www.cbsnews.com, 6 September, 2006 Bridge R. Leaks Peak in Iraq // Moscow News. 2006. 11 Dec. URL: www.mn.ru.

The Washington Post published a series of materials in 1997 about the deplorable state of affairs at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the largest American military medical institution. They talked about the appalling conditions at Walter Reed and cases of blatant treatment of soldiers by medical workers.

At the country's main military hospital, ceilings were reportedly collapsing, walls were covered in mold, hospital rooms were infested with rats and cockroaches, and bureaucratic confusion was causing wounded soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan who needed hospital treatment to be transferred to outpatient care. As a result, not only the head of the medical center, Major General George Weightman, was dismissed, but also the chief physician of the US Army, Lieutenant General Kevin Kiley (who also headed Walter Reed, but three years earlier) and US Secretary of the Army Francis Harvey, and in the United States began reform of medical support for war veterans. In 1998, the Washington Post received a Gold Medal in the most honorable category for public service at the Pulitzer Prize ceremony for this series of publications.

Pentagon Declares War on Bad News // Center for Media and Democracy (from Army Times, 28 February 2007). 2007. 28 Feb. URL: www.prwatch.org/node/5813.

Pentagon: Planting Stories in the Iraqi Press Was Within the Law // Editor and Publisher (from Associated Press). 2006. 19 Oct. URL: www.editorandpublisher.com.

Kralev N. Arabic Speakers Monitor Net Chats // The Washington Times. 2007. 9

–  –  –

Turkish mass media: history and modernity* The history of Turkish media goes back to the last decades of the Ottoman Empire. The first Turkish newspaper “Calendar of Events” (“Takvim-i Vakayi”) was published in 1831. The appearance of printing in Turkey was not determined by the economic and social needs of the population. On the contrary, it was established as the “voice” of the government, and this largely determined the path of development of the Turkish media until the end of the 20th century. The media in this country have always been connected in one way or another with power structures, regardless of whether criticism of the authorities was present on their pages or not1.

The authorities did not push away the press for criticism. When we criticize a certain institution (for example, the state apparatus), then it is not the entire institution that is targeted by criticism, but only a separate part of it2.

The modern history of Turkey shows that the Turkish state apparatus is ideologically divided into several factions. At the same time, all factions are involved in the process * A number of materials used in this article are borrowed from freely accessible Internet sites. Due to the fact that the authors of the materials were not indicated in the originals, there are no references to them in the article.

Weisel Batmaz. Turkish mass media: history and modernity of the exercise of power, share power in the state apparatus. The press sometimes received direct and full support from the state, sometimes indirect subsidies in the form of paper, in the form of more official advertising. Thus, the Turkish press has always had stronger ties with the government rather than with the interests of civil society3.

Beginning: the years of the Ottoman Empire In the 19th century, with the beginning of the Tanzimat (the name of the reforms in the Ottoman Empire from 1839 to the early 70s of the 19th century and the period of their implementation), the empire entered a period of radical Westernization and reformation. In 1938, a trade agreement was signed with Britain. It contributed to the development of free trade with the countries of the European continent. The era with its economic transformations differed from the times of reforms of the 17th–18th centuries. Then modernization affected the technical and military areas, but bypassed the social, legal spheres, and private everyday life. New times have required radical changes here too. This was largely due to the early stage of globalization of the world capitalist system and the establishment of ideas identical to the views of the Enlightenment.

Throughout the 19th century, both small and large-scale reforms of social institutions and the usual way of life were carried out in the Ottoman Empire. Here are just some of the innovations: security of life, honor, property was guaranteed, guarantees of fair and public courts were established, a new taxation system was introduced and, most importantly, equality was proclaimed between Muslim and non-Muslim subjects of law4.

During this period of radical reforms, the media (newspapers and other periodicals) acquired particular importance, informing a wide audience about the essence of the ongoing reforms. On July 25, 1831, the first Ottoman newspaper was published in Turkish, Arabic and French. Its task was to support the state policy of the Ottoman Empire.

This newspaper “Calendar of Events” (“Takvim-i Vakayi”) published 44 Section II. The national identity of the mass media of foreign countries, official laws and decrees, news about the activities of the authorities, individual officials5. It looked like a modern official newspaper (“the audience for the Ottoman version included an ever-increasing number of officials receiving information regarding the intentions of the government and the policies they were obliged to implement”)6. A French version, edited by Alexandre Blacque, began publication somewhat later in the same year.7

Turkish Press After 1990, the print press was in decline for some time, in a worse position than radio and television, but fairly soon began to recover. The average total circulation of 21 national newspapers reached 4 million copies. Most publishing houses have begun to use the world's most modern equipment and technologies in their work. According to surveys, the number of regular newspaper readers in Turkey amounted to 66% of the country's population.

Local newspapers, which played a significant role during the Revolutionary War, serve an important function in satisfying their audience's need for news. According to the Anadolu Press Association, there are 3,450 periodicals published in Turkey, half of which are published weekly.

The average daily circulation of local newspapers ranges from 1,000 to 15,000 copies. An important purpose of the local press is that it establishes connections and coordinates relations between public institutions, organizations and citizens. In recent years, the technical base of small periodicals has been updated. Many of them, following the example of national media, began to use modern technologies and began to use offset printing techniques.

In recent years, the number of magazines on a wide variety of topics has increased sharply. If in 1990 20 publications were published, then by 1999 there were already 110 titles. The total one-time circulation of weekly and monthly magazines is approximately 2 million 300 thousand copies. News magazines that publish information about current events and analysis have undergone major changes in form and content. Most of Weisel Batmaz. Turkish Mass Media: History and Modernity now has a modern, attractive design. In addition to this kind of publications, economic media, TV guides, magazines on automotive topics, about art, literature, music, for women, men and youth are popular among readers.

The audience's attention is also attracted by magazines about travel, sports, health, computers, glossy, humorous media, etc. Turkey has a rich tradition of publishing humorous press; it is among the leaders among countries publishing this kind of product.

Sales of printed publications in Turkey bring their owners $400–600 million a year. Advertising revenue is also approaching these figures. It is easy to calculate that the total annual income in this sector is $1 billion. From an economic point of view, the press sector can be considered quite significant. Due to the ability to influence public opinion, it becomes even more attractive to entrepreneurs.

The printed periodicals market in Turkey is subject to concentration trends. Three large media groups of printed periodicals have emerged in Turkey. One of them is Dogan Media Group.

(“Dogan Media Group - Doan Yayn Holding”). Newspaper "Milliyet"

(Milliyet), founded by Ali Naci Karacan on May 3, 1950, grew into this large publishing group in the 1990s.

In total, Dogan Media Group owns 8 national newspapers. Bilgin Media Group, which unites newspapers, magazines and other enterprises, also occupies an important place in the world of the Turkish press. “Ihlas Group” is another media group, which includes well-known newspapers, news agencies and television channels. The interests of its owners extend beyond the media business. In addition to the listed market players, Uzan Media Group, Akam Media Group, Dogus Group and Feza Journalism also operate in Turkey. (“Feza Journalism”), which also have a large audience of readers, viewers and listeners.

Television and Radio in Turkey Television is the main source of entertainment for most Turkish families. Türkiye tops the global pro-Title II list. The national uniqueness of the mass media of foreign countries is the duration of daily “television viewing” - for this country the average figures are 298 minutes (almost 5 hours) per day per person. The study showed that for 97% of the Turkish population, television is also the main source of news.

This situation was made possible by the television revolution that Turkey experienced in the early 1990s, when the state monopoly on television broadcasting collapsed and private broadcasters began to emerge. In just a few years, the choice of 70 million Turkish viewers has increased from 5 state channels to 14 national, 15 regional and 202 local private television channels. Cable television networks have appeared in the country's 20 largest cities, offering subscribers from 44 to 60 channels, and satellite platforms transmit up to 100 television programs.

A turning point in the history of Turkish broadcasting was 1964. In this year, the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) was founded.

It began its activities on the basis of existing radio stations, which by that time already had a long history, and television, which was just beginning to conduct test broadcasts.

With the formation of the Higher Council of Radio and Television (RTUK), administrative, financial and technical standards activities of television and radio companies, broadcasting zones were determined, and a new television broadcast program was developed.

The Supreme Council was established in accordance with Article 8 of the Broadcasting Law No. 3984 of April 20, 1994. The Council was vested with the powers of planning and allocation of national and regional broadcast frequencies, and also issued broadcasting licenses. He was instructed to exercise control over the activities of radio stations and television channels, as well as monitor public opinion regarding television and radio broadcasting. The council could temporarily stop broadcasting or revoke the license altogether, depending on the severity of the offense.

In the 90s, in addition to TRT, many private radio stations and television channels began broadcasting. The amendment to Article 133 of the Constitution on July 10, 1993 removed obstacles to the development of private entrepreneurship. This allowed Weisel Batmaz to achieve great things. Turkish mass media: history and modernity of successes in the development of television and radio broadcasting. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) even declared the country a record holder in this area in 1998. If the average global growth in the TV and radio sector for 1995–1997. was 3.4%, then in Turkey it was 24.3%.

It was then that the dual structure of the Turkish television and radio broadcasting sector emerged. On the one hand, it was the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), founded in 1964. On the other, private television channels that began broadcasting later.

State broadcasting. The legal status of TRT was determined by Law No. 2954. It was positioned as a broadcasting institution providing services to the population and having autonomy.

TRT broadcasts 7 television channels. Among them is TRT 1, a general interest channel addressed to a wide audience. TRT 2, specializing in culture and art. TRT 3 is a youth channel with music and sports programs. In addition, TRT 3 acts as a “link between MPs and citizens” by providing live coverage of meetings of the Turkish Grand National Assembly during designated hours. TRT 4 is an educational channel that produces programs for schoolchildren and students. It broadcasts programs/lessons of the Open School and the Open University; The channel supports the national education policy. TRTINT and TRT-AVRASYA are intended for foreign audiences.

Another channel, GAP-TV, broadcasts in Turkish provinces.

Radio TRT also consists of several channels. Radio 1, broadcast on MW 1017, is a general interest station. Radio 2 (TRT FM) focuses on Turkish classical music, Turkish folk music and popular music, which can be heard on 91.4 FM. Radio 3 broadcasts mainly classical music, but also includes jazz and Western pop music.

It is also attractive to foreigners as it regularly broadcasts in English, French and German.

The TRT structure also includes regional radio stations: GAPDiyarbakr Radio broadcasts in the provinces. The Voice of Turkey radio station broadcasts to foreign countries in 26 languages, aimed at creating a positive public opinion about 48 Section II. National identity of the mass media of foreign countries. “Radio Tourism” broadcasts in 5 languages ​​and is intended for foreign tourists who come to the country.

Commercial broadcasting. There are 16 commercial national television channels broadcast in Turkey. Among them, the most popular are “ATV”, “Kanal D”, “Show TV”, “Star TV”, “NTV” and “TGRT”.

They attract 60% of the country's audience every night and account for 72% of advertising revenue. The first private Turkish television channel, Star 1, began broadcasting from abroad in 1990, and later, after a change in management, it continued broadcasting under the name Interstar. “Show TV” began operating in 1992, initially attracting attention with its short newscasts. “ATV” is part of the “Sabah Newspaper Group”, broadcasting since 1993. “Kanal D” (“Doan Group” and “TGRT” (“hlas Group”) began broadcasting in the same year. Music channels “Kral TV”, “Number One TV” and “Best TV”, economic “Kanal E”, but “eastern” “NTV” and “CNN Trk” are the leaders among private television channels with thematic focus.

Despite certain legal restrictions on foreign investment and cooperation with foreign companies, in October 1999, DYH and AOL Time Warner launched the national version of CNN Trk, the first joint venture in the Turkish television broadcasting industry.

There are 244 private television networks operating in the regional market (15 regional and 229 local). This is exactly how many broadcasters applied to the Supreme Council of Radio and Television to obtain a license to transmit a signal.

Studies of listener preferences have shown that “Best FM”, “Sper FM”, “Show Radio”, “Radio D”, “Alem FM”, “Power FM”, “Number One FM” are the highest rated national commercial radio stations in the country . Most private radio stations broadcast popular music. Among them there are those that broadcast only foreign pop music.

There are a total of 1,180 private radio stations in the country, of which 36 are national, 108 regional and 1,036 local. Private radio stations and television channels earn their own livelihood and their only source of income is advertising.

Weisel Batmaz. Turkish mass media: history and modernity At the beginning of the 21st century, the flow of foreign investment into the Turkish media industry intensified. Some of the major broadcasters were sold to German corporations and R. Murdoch; “Doan Media” was sold to the German “Axel-Springer”, “TGRT” was taken over by Murdoch’s “FOX TV” (Colakoglu, 2006) Laws regulating the activities of radio and television.

The main document regulating the activities of the television and radio broadcasting sector is the Constitution. Audiovisual broadcasting in Turkey is also built on the basis of the Broadcasting Law No. 3984, the TRT Law No. 2954 and the European Convention on Transfrontier Television. In addition, the principles of advertising activities are also defined by law.

Law No. 3984 regulates the thematic balance of broadcasting by television and radio companies. In particular, commercial radio stations and television channels are required to include educational and cultural programs in their broadcasts in certain proportions.

Future of Media in Turkey The use of technological advances makes the media more accessible to the audience; The multi-channel MMDS distribution system, digital broadcasting, and broadband data transmission via cable are already being implemented.

Competition in the market will intensify. The only way to achieve success in these conditions is to merge enterprises and concentrate capital. The division between creative and managerial activities in the media will become increasingly clear.

–  –  –

Orhan, Kololu. Osmanl’dan Gunumuze // Turkiyede Basin. 1998. R. 8. - Cited. By:

Tulay, Keskin. Decree. Op.

50 Section II. National identity of mass media of foreign countries

–  –  –

Problems of modern Arab journalism Modern Arab media attract the attention of foreign researchers and journalism practitioners, first of all, for their features and unique originality of both content and design. This applies not only to print media, but also to radio and television broadcasting. If we talk about content, is it possible to find echoes of tribal relations in European or American newspapers and magazines? If you analyze the design, then in what corner of our planet will you see such charming ornaments as are often found in Arabic magazines? If you turn your attention to audiovisual media, you can get great joy from Egyptian cinema, songs and dances from different parts of the Arab world. For the above and many other subjective reasons, the author undertook to write this article.

Good friends, Arab scholars Ali Selim Mohamed Fadel, Ahmad al-Tawalbi, Hashem al-Tawil, Salim Omar al-Naggar, Talha el-Awad Talha el-Tayeb, Ali Saleh Ahmad Nasser, Rezekallah Nemer, provided me with great assistance in working on the manuscript. Mohammed Salem Salah, Mahjoub Mohammed Fadel and many others. Many politicians in the Arab world, journalists and businessmen made invaluable comments and gave recommendations at different times.

The author had the opportunity to become familiar with a number of problems of modern Arab journalism on the spot: in Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Western Sahara, Iraq, etc.

Support from Russian Arabists O. B. Frolova, I. V. Gerasimov, V. F. Polikanov and others played a significant role; interesting thoughts arose during business communication and work on the works of such Arab researchers and practitioners of journalism as Sobh Ahmad Ibrahim, Abdelrahman Gurashi Abdala, Jubrail Samira Yousef, Samar Shunnar Sawalha, Marwan Soudah, etc.

S. A. Mikhailov. Problems of modern Arab journalism Attention of the whole world At the end of 2010 - beginning of 2011, the attention of the whole world was focused on events in Arab countries: the shooting by the Moroccan authorities of a peaceful camp of indigenous residents of Western Sahara near its capital El-Aaiun; a referendum in Sudan and the actual division of the country into two independent states; revolutionary events in Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria, Jordan, Yemen, Iraq, Bahrain and a number of other countries; civil war (or suppression of an armed rebellion?) in Libya, etc. Since the Arab press during the period of crisis development in European countries was inaccessible, all events were covered from the perspective of Western media. Several serious questions arise for the impartial investigator.

Firstly, is the media objective in covering all these events?

Secondly, what was the main cause of instability in the Arab world?

Thirdly, are the notorious Arab mentality and Islam really to blame for the permanent instability?

Fourthly, doesn’t the root of all the above events lie in the economic interests of the leading countries of the world?

Time will give answers to these and many other questions. It is too early to draw conclusions now, but it makes sense to reflect on the causes and consequences of the period of crisis in the Arab world.

It is difficult to talk about the objectivity of the press in the conditions of crisis development in the region. World public opinion is formed by global news agencies, leading Western media and transnational media corporations. The leading country in terms of information, the United States, certainly has clear advantages and, not surprisingly, defends its national interests through the media. The same can be said about the media in Western Europe, which is most concerned about the state of affairs in its neighbors. As a result, there is a clear bias in the coverage of events.

An interesting observation can be found among observers.

So, this is what a certain “Grey Crocodile” writes in a live journal (URL:

http://grey-croco.livejournal.com/653907.html).

The text is given in an abbreviated version:

52 Section II. National identity of the mass media of foreign countries “The current events in Libya perfectly demonstrate the degree of deceit of modern media and the technologies of consciousness manipulation that are used to influence ordinary people. I would like to note one of the techniques regarding the statement about “the gradual transition of the Libyan army to the side of the rebel people.”

As confirmation of this “transition”, the fact of the flight of two Libyan aircraft to Malta with their surrender and the pilots’ request for political asylum is used... However... the Libyan Air Force is armed with approximately three hundred combat aircraft and about a hundred transport and auxiliary aircraft. Transport aviation is not particularly needed for the current military operations, but combat aviation is quite actively taking part in them.

About half of the aircraft in service have been mothballed... the other is quite combat-ready. And as a result, it turns out that out of 150 planes, only two flew. Less than one and a half percent of the entire composition...

I’ll also add combat helicopters, of which Libya has about a hundred.

They participate in battles even more actively than aircraft. Why have there been no cases of them flying to the side of the “rebels” so far?

Yes, and one more thing... They wrote about a mysterious Libyan warship that appeared near Malta with its flag at half-staff. So where is this ship?

So, before drawing any conclusions, you should first wait for confirmation of any information and think carefully about it. And the most important thing is to question everything.

P.S. And here is a most interesting phrase regarding who is covering the events in Libya: “Helicopters and heavy guns are used against the Amazigh (Berbers) rebels there. Dozens of civilians were killed, houses, mosques, and schools were destroyed, however, as Libyan journalist Jumaa al-Kumati testifies from London, the people continue to resist the thugs.”

Of course, he knows better from London. Or maybe all this news is fabricated there?

There are many such observations.

What was the main cause of instability in the Arab world? There are several points of view.

First of all, they name the consequences of the global food crisis, which hit developing countries the hardest. S. A. Mikhailov. Problems of modern Arab journalism for countries. But the Russian Federation still needs to catch up with some Arab countries in terms of level and quality of life.

Should we talk about famine in, say, Bahrain or Kuwait? And in Libya, the standard of living is quite high, as evidenced by the large number of migrant workers and migrants to this country. Of course, hunger should not be discounted, but the role of this problem should not be exaggerated.

Among the reasons are also the fatigue of the masses from irreplaceable leaders. There is, of course, some truth in this. Let's say Hosni Mubarak ruled Egypt for 30 years. During this period, the authorities have accumulated a whole cart of mistakes that can be brought against the leader of the country as an accusation.

Another reason being discussed is outside interference.

The fact is that the Arab “revolutions” were built according to a similar scenario: a relatively small group of people took to the streets under popular slogans, and more and more dissatisfied people joined them. This was presented in the world press as the “voice of the people.” Has anyone conducted a representative survey or referendum? In short, the old technique of “color revolutions” - direct action - was used. More or less harsh measures by the authorities were immediately presented in the world media as violations of human rights. Who is behind this destabilization of the situation in Arab countries remains to be seen.

The monstrous stratification of Arab society into poor and rich played a role. In modern conditions of the information society, this is an important indicator.

The national mentality of the Arabs, of course, played a role in the rapid spread of revolutionary sentiments. Imagine a single people with a common language, culture and religion, divided into many sovereign states. True, there is no religious unity among Muslims, and even more so among Arabs. Evidence of this is the strife between Shiites and Sunnis, clashes between Christians and Muslims... The religious factor here is still in the background.

Sometimes they say that the reason for this is the economic interests of Western countries. There is ground for such statements. Thus, this is not the first time that Egypt’s main wealth and source of foreign exchange earnings - the Suez Canal - have been demanded to be placed under Intersection II. National identity of the mass media of foreign countries - popular control. Almost all the countries in which unrest has occurred or is occurring are rich in oil or occupy a very advantageous geographical location. A change of leaders to those more loyal to the interests of world capital would be desirable for many leading world powers.

When analyzing the situation in the Arab world, many more unresolved problems will undoubtedly emerge, in particular, the role of the Arab media themselves during the crisis period, their history, main topics and problems.

Historical background Arab world... These two words include a whole complex of concepts. But no matter what we talk about, the basis will remain what is common to all Arab peoples - a centuries-old culture and a single language. Arabs make up the majority of the population in a number of countries in North Africa and Western Asia: Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Western Sahara, Libya, Chad, Sudan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, etc. d. There are very large Arab diasporas in many other countries on almost all inhabited continents.

The Arab culture itself, the most important element of which is the literary Arabic language, developed in the 7th–10th centuries. in the Arab Caliphate in the process of cultural interaction and mutual influence of the Arabs and the peoples they conquered in the Near and Middle East, North Africa and Southwestern Europe. Geographically, the entire Arab world can be divided into two large regions: the Maghreb and the Mashreq.

The Arab West (Maghreb) is a region in Africa consisting of Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Western Sahara, Libya, Chad and Sudan. Egypt, which occupies an intermediate geographical position, is classified, depending on the context, as either the Maghreb or the Mashreq. In the Middle Ages, the Maghreb also included Muslim Spain (Andalusia), the Balearic Islands, Sardinia, Sicily - that is, the possessions of the Arab Caliphate. The modern Arab East (Mashriq) includes 13 Arab countries and the state of Israel, where a large number of Arabs also live.

S. A. Mikhailov. Problems of modern Arab journalism Arab culture has been studied quite well by Russian and foreign researchers. Among the famous scientists who dealt with various aspects of the life and culture of the Arabs are V. V. Bartold, I. Yu. Krachkovsky, E. A. Belyaev, A. E. Krymsky, E. Levi-Provencal, A. Mets, E. M . Primakov, O. B. Frolova, A. Kremer, J. Sarton and many others1.

Arab civilization experienced a brilliant flourishing in the 10th–15th centuries.

Its centers were Seville, Malaga, Cordoba and Granada. The names of the great thinkers Al-Farabi, Ibn Sina, Ibn Rushd are forever inscribed in the tablets of world science.

In the 16th century, Arab countries became provinces of the Ottoman Empire for a very long period. Arab culture declined. It is not surprising that printing, which in these years was already actively spreading throughout Europe, was practically unknown in territories inhabited mainly by Arabs. From the end of the seventeenth century. the empire began to gradually lose the conquered territories, and with the end of the First World War in 1918, it finally collapsed. This was not only the result of defeat in the war, but also a consequence of the national liberation struggle of previously enslaved peoples. In the context of the formation of independent Arab states, modern Arab culture, including journalism, is being formed, mainly within individual countries.

Only in the nineteenth century. The first newspapers and magazines began to appear in Arab countries, and their widespread distribution began in the 20th century. Interesting from a scientific point of view is the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Abdülhamid II (r. 1842–1918), who at the beginning of his reign was interested in the press and did not want to limit freedom of the press.

But as soon as he realized how dangerous the growing tendencies of criticism of the government and government institutions in the press were, he sent an order to Midhat Pasha to “gag the press and close a number of newspapers.” Continuing this course, he dissolved the Chamber of Deputies and in 1877 formed the Committee on Censorship under the Office of Press Affairs2. Arabic publications existed under the same strict censorship conditions as the Ottoman press in general. But nevertheless, newspapers continued to be published in various Arab countries. Moreover, in Egypt in 1896, Lumiere cameramen filmed films 56 Section II. The national identity of the mass media of foreign countries was demonstrated, as reported by the Egyptian newspapers of that time. It was this year that some researchers consider the beginning of Egyptian cinematography and newspaper and magazine film criticism3.

In the vast territory where Arabs live, along with literary Arabic, Arabic and Berber dialects and the Maltese language (written based on the Latin alphabet) are common.

Features of the development of journalism in individual countries of the Arab world It is clear that the development of journalism has its own characteristics in each of the individual countries, and the appearance of newspapers and magazines on the print media market at different times. The different times in which national media appeared is largely due to the uneven economic development and socio-political characteristics of the regions. In some countries, industry and capitalist production relations began to develop in the 19th century, in others - only in the 2nd half of the 20th century. And the independent Arab states themselves, for the most part, are a product of the 20th century.

The study of journalism in the Arab world is quite difficult due to a number of reasons, including the inaccessibility of many sources, the fragmentation of the journalistic workshop, the lack of systematized reference literature, etc. This is why relatively little research has been devoted to Arab journalism in Russia. Among the rare publications on this topic, the works of S. M. Vinogradova, I. V. Gerasimov, B. G. Koibaev, N. K. Kotsarev, A. M. Traskunova and some others should be highlighted4.

The comparative youth of Arab journalism also predetermined many of the problems that it has to solve today.

First of all, practicing journalists and mass media researchers are concerned with the content aspects of modern Arab media. In this regard, the theme of Arab unity becomes one of the most important.

The importance of this issue can be seen in the functioning of the media in various regions of the Arab world. Let's start with North Africa. Although geographically the press of this region belongs to Africa, it is ethnically Arab, which is the origin of S. A. Mikhailov. The problems of modern Arab journalism are not similar to those of the Middle East. Moreover, the largest country in the region - Egypt - is most often called Middle Eastern. Just as in the Middle East, there are certain difficulties with freedom of speech and freedom of the press in the modern understanding of these categories. The ruling circles have a whole range of ways to exercise control over the media, including restrictions on the issuance of licenses, preliminary censorship, legal restrictions, secret financing of publications and their secret purchase by the ruling structures, taxes, etc.

The media of the Greater Maghreb countries are diverse because they operate in different socio-political and economic conditions. Morocco, Mauritania, SADR (Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic), Algeria, Tunisia, Libya have too many differences to be able to talk about them as a single system. Sudan, Egypt, Chad are also full of contradictions: both political and ideological. Moreover, the “Islamization from above” carried out in Sudan raises concerns about the possible exacerbation of fundamentalist tendencies in the south of Egypt.

While Egypt's mass media have been studied quite well, the same cannot be said about the rest of the countries in this region. From the point of view of the severity of socio-political events, the most interesting trends are in the development of the Sudanese media5.

After another military coup on June 30, 1989, the military came to power in the country, which put an end to the liberal period of development of Sudan, and on December 7 of the same year, the military council announced the application of Islamic law in the country.

The new military regime led by Omar al-Bashir waged a real fight against the media. Many journalists were arrested and thrown into prison. Representatives of the Baathist and independent press were particularly affected. Foreign journalists and Sudanese working for foreign publications and agencies were also harassed and searched.

In addition, the authorities tried to oust employees of inter-Arab publications from their jobs and replace them with members of the National Islamic Front. This was done, for example, in relation to a correspondent for the newspaper al-Sharq al-Awsat (Middle East).

58 Section II. National identity of the mass media of foreign countries In 1990, a correspondent for the London Financial Times was detained and spent several days in prison.

In 1990, a special bureau was created to control all foreign press entering Sudan.

One of the major blows to Sudanese journalism was the restoration of the law, according to which all printing devices had to be registered with the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This included copiers, copying machines, faxes, etc. At the same time, the import of all printing equipment was prohibited. Printing devices that were not assigned to specific individuals were subject to confiscation, and those owners who did not promptly submit information about the availability of office equipment were brought to court. The dissolution of the journalists' union entailed the confiscation of all property at its disposal. As a result of repressive measures, almost 600 journalists found themselves without work. They were forced to look for space in other areas, since all newspapers and magazines, with the exception of three newspapers and one magazine, were closed.

Sudanese leaders, however, have not been able to completely ignore the need for media development. That is why a conference was organized in February 1990 on the problems of the country's mass media. At the conference, the role of the press in educational work and the development of science was emphasized in every possible way. Issues of training journalists, including those for foreign work, were considered. This indicated that at this stage the new authorities were not eager to openly demonstrate their plans to Islamize the media.

If we talk about radio, then the radio of Sudanese Omdurman (Omdurman is a city in Sudan, on the left bank of the White Nile River, at its confluence with the Blue Nile, together with the cities of Khartoum and North Khartoum on the right bank of the river forms a single “triple city”) does not have natural frequency at which transmissions can be carried out for a long time. The broadcast sometimes stopped completely, sometimes it was necessary to quickly switch to another wave to continue listening.

In 1996, a discussion took place on a draft new law on the media. Mahjoub Urwa, known for his journalistic work back in the 1980s, made an extensive commentary. He wrote that “suS. A. Mikhailov. Problems of modern Arab journalism The law that exists in Sudan is the law of the priority of power, and not Islamic. If the state ... confirms that it has adopted an Islamic orientation, then it should adhere to Islamic theory in mass communication, and not rely on the priority of power and totalitarianism”6. The author further stated that he submitted to the Press Law Committee a section containing Islamic teachings and proposed that it be made the basis for the management of daily journalistic activities.

This section, entitled “Freedom of the Press,” declares the right of everyone to publish a periodical and proclaims freedoms that are generally considered democratic. The text he proposed is an attempt to link the provisions on media activities adopted in many countries of the world with the prevailing system of ideas in the country, expressed in the Islamic faith. There are also attempts to Islamize the press in other countries of the Middle East.

The problem of Arab unity was especially acutely highlighted by the events of the Arab-Israeli war of 1967, when the entire Arab world, having verbally condemned Israeli aggression, split into a “front of resilience” and countries that in fact did not interfere in Israel’s conflict with neighboring states. The lack of unity was demonstrated by events in Northwest Africa, when the former Spanish colony of Western Sahara was essentially occupied by Moroccan troops in most of its territory. These two protracted conflicts continue to this day.

The problem of Arab unity can be most convincingly demonstrated in the historical mission of the Yemeni periodical press. It was the press that played an outstanding role in the unification of the North and the South; it was the Yemeni press that raised high the banner of the struggle for Arab unity. Salim Omar al-Naggar’s candidate dissertation “The Yemeni Press in the 20th Century: Main Stages and Trends of Development”7 conducted a retrospective analysis of the development of the press, determined the role of the periodical press in the unification of the North and the South, and solved other pressing problems.

In particular, the author notes that journalism in both North and South Yemen played a prominent role in the national 60 Section II. The national originality of the mass media of foreign countries was the liberation of the country and its unification, which corresponded to the practice of the national liberation struggle, which required the development of the press, which was in its infancy before 19408.

In North Yemen, various political forces, including representatives of the ruling elite who were educated abroad, came out to fight for the liberation of Yemen from the rule of the imams. The Free Officers actively used the power of the media in the opposition movement, basing their publications in the south of the country. They were opposed by the media created and financed by the imam's regime. Until 1962, when the power of the Imam was overthrown, in North Yemen there were very few organs of the opposition press published on North Yemeni territory, since all opposition publications were published in South Yemen. On the other hand, South Yemen journalists who supported the National Front and Free Front appeared in opposition publications in the North with their anti-colonial publications.

This allows us to consider Yemeni journalism of that period as a single movement that had various aspects of the liberation struggle at its core: the anti-Imam orientation of publications for North Yemen and the anti-colonial one for South Yemen.

The peculiarities of the development of the Yemeni press contributed to the conservation of some genres that are outdated by today’s standards, such as “zamil,” which originates in poetic stories about events that poets spoke at the courts of rulers.

Almost all Arabic periodicals still pay great attention to literary and artistic genres, including poetry.

The complex political processes that took place in both parts of the country led to the emergence of different types and types of media, adhering to a variety of political doctrines and expressing the will of all segments of the population of Yemeni society.

Journalism of political parties and public organizations prevailed over “non-party” publications, which corresponded to the requirements of the time. Having played a significant role in the liberation of both the North and the South, the country's progressive journalism advocated the unification of Yemen into a single state, S. A. Mikhailov. The problems of modern Arab journalism, which were greatly facilitated by the attention of the Yemeni media to the problems of unification.

The magazine Al-Hikma al-Yamaniyya (Yemeni Wisdom) played a major role in the unification of the country. He consistently fought for the unity of the country and the entire Arab world. This idea was first reflected on the pages of the magazine back in 1938, during the period of colonial subjugation of South Yemen by Great Britain and imam rule in the north of the country. The great merit of the magazine’s editors is that they constantly emphasized the unity of writers and people in both parts of the country.

There are many pages in the history of journalism in Yemen when the struggle for the unification of the country was carried out in parallel with pan-Arab unionist trends. In addition to the already mentioned Al-Hikma magazine, journalists from the AsSaura newspaper and other publications carried out their propaganda and educational work in this direction.

The important unifying role of the Yemeni press is evidenced by the fact that during the period of crisis, opposing political factions found the strength to sign a number of agreements, in particular regulating the activities of the media, in order to end the armed confrontation.

The development of the media market in the Arab world is associated with a number of problems, which are often reflected in the media themselves.

Problems of the Arab world and its reflection in the media Arab-Israeli relations. The problem of the need for Arab unity can be seen in the publications of almost all Arab media when covering the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Let’s take, for example, the Jordanian newspaper Ad-Dustur (“The Constitution”), where Middle Eastern topics occupy a special place9. The newspaper paid and continues to pay great attention to the struggle for the return of the occupied territories to the Arabs. The issue of the West Bank of the Jordan River occupies a special place in publications. The Palestinian problem, covered on the pages of the Ad-Dustur newspaper, is closely related to this. Ad-Dustour publishes a lot of materials regarding relations with Israel. All of them have a pronounced criticism Section II. The national identity of the foreign mass media is foreign-oriented and condemns Israel’s domestic and foreign policies. The newspaper often uses the Israeli press to analyze the situation and publish.

Arab-Israeli relations, which receive the attention of almost all Arab media, are not something frozen.

Former irreconcilable enemies are looking for common ground and an opportunity to move the process towards a peaceful direction. Of course, there are successes and failures. But much here depends on the world community and the positions of the “Middle Eastern Quartet.” Over the long years of confrontation, both in Israel and in Arab countries (especially Palestine), powerful “war parties” have formed, receiving financial support from abroad. But wars eventually end and peace comes. That is why it is now so important to teach the younger generation to live in new conditions - good neighborliness and cooperation, rather than struggle and confrontation.

Children's theme. In these conditions, children's journalism acquires special importance - as journalism for children and as publications (radio and television programs) prepared by children themselves10. The specificity of journalistic creativity for children and the children themselves is that the children's press is not an alternative to adult media.

Her goal is not to deafen with a sensation, not to frighten with crime reports, but to be close to the child, hear his voice, talk with him for a long time, be aware of all his affairs, concerns, problems, believe, love, hope and grow up together. “The formation of a child’s model of the world,” notes Rezekallah Nemer, “is facilitated by three main factors. The first is the influence of general culture, the active promoters of which are parents and other significant adults. The second is the personal efforts of the child himself, manifested in various types of his intellectual and creative activity.

The third is the influence of children's subculture, the traditions of which are passed down from generation to generation of children and are extremely important in early childhood for understanding how to master the world"11.

International theme. Since most Arab states are rich in oil and, in addition, occupy a very advantageous strategic position on the world map, the problem international relations willy-nilly it becomes important for Arab journalism. A striking example of this is the events around Iraq and two bloody wars.

S. A. Mikhailov. Problems of modern Arab journalism In terms of oil and gas reserves, the eastern Arab east - Mashreq - ranks first in the world. Four countries of this subregion (Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, UAE) have been consistently among the top ten leaders in world oil production for many decades. The main oil-bearing territories are confined to the eastern part of Mashreq - the Persian Gulf and, to a lesser extent, to the foothill trough of the Zagros. In contrast, the western (Mediterranean and Red Sea) front of the region is devoid of significant deposits, but it occupies a critical strategic position. The unusually high level of oil production in the monarchies of the Persian Gulf, combined with a small indigenous population, is the main “phenomenon-forming” circumstance for this type of country. In large oil-producing countries, revenues from oil exports are organically absorbed by national economies and redistributed among large populations. In Arab monarchies the situation is different. Oil revenues were absorbed by a small population.

Both large and small countries of the Mashreq attract the closest attention of multinational corporations.

The wealth of these territories - oil and gas - has become the reason for the unprecedented pressure that is being put on governments by energy-consuming countries. Rich oil-exporting countries are interested in supplies of raw materials, spare parts, equipment, components and especially technologies through the channels of transnational corporations (TNCs). Characteristic forms of TNC penetration have become mixed enterprises with more than 50% participation of local capital, as well as non-stock forms of activity: licensing agreements, personnel training, assistance in management and advertising, turnkey contracts.

But this is a two-way street. The creation of OPEC and numerous publications in the media about the possible formation of a “gas OPEC” excited Western countries and the United States. This is understandable - at a minimum, price regulation does not always correspond to the goals and desires of consumers. But there is another aspect to this problem. Active investment in the Western economy began. The process went from simply placing capiSection II. The national uniqueness of the mass media of foreign countries led to interest in targeted investments, growth (thanks to the acquisition of significant stakes) in the structures of transnational corporations and large international financial organizations (including the World Bank and the IMF), which also implies the personal participation of the top in management and decision-making. As noted in the press, the volume of foreign investment in Saudi Arabia already amounts to hundreds of billions of dollars, with most of it going to the United States. Kuwait is a co-owner of dozens of British, Canadian, American, Western European and Japanese companies. Kuwait's foreign investments in developed capitalist countries amount to at least $100 billion. Profits from foreign investments are becoming an increasingly significant source of foreign exchange earnings.

It is clear that all problems of foreign trade and the international division of labor are reflected in the Arab media.

But not only oil and gas are a tasty morsel for TNCs.

Other minerals and resources are also very attractive, and not only for developed countries. Thus, North-West Africa has the largest deposits of phosphorites, iron, uranium, and proven oil reserves; The coastal waters of the Atlantic are rich in fish and seafood. This is also one of the reasons for political instability in the region.

The abnormal situation around Western Sahara deserves special attention. Refugees from this former Spanish colony have been living in tents for over 30 years, refusing to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over their territory and unable to return to their homes. UN efforts to prepare a national referendum are being frustrated by the sabotage of the Moroccan side and the reluctance of some great powers to take real steps to normalize the situation.

On April 28, 2006, the United Nations Security Council adopted another resolution on Western Sahara. Its essence boils down to the fact that the mandate of the peacekeeping forces is extended for another six months, and the holding of a referendum on the self-determination of this territory is again postponed indefinitely. Naturally, the Security Council resolution also contains traditional calls for resolving controversial issues through diplomatic means, etc.

S. A. Mikhailov. Problems of modern Arab journalism It would seem that there is no war - and thank God. But this is only apparent prosperity. At the very least, there are several mines buried here under any peace process, since the well-being of other regions of the planet depends on the success of UN peacekeeping efforts in Northwest Africa.

Morocco essentially occupied Western Sahara and continues to hold the occupied territory for a long time.

He is opposed by the Polisario front, which expresses the interests of the indigenous Western Saharawis and the previously created Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. What lessons can we learn from this protracted confrontation and many years of UN efforts to resolve the conflict?

First of all, it makes sense to pay attention to the following circumstance. It turns out that it is possible, by verbally agreeing to implement any decision of the Security Council, to essentially sabotage the peace process. Thus, from year to year Morocco puts forward more and more new conditions for preparing and holding a referendum. From 1991 to the present, the United Nations has carried out colossal work to identify the inhabitants of Western Sahara, and the conditions for holding a referendum have been developed in detail. During the same period, Morocco erected cyclopean defensive structures separating the territory of Western Sahara it occupied from the rest of it, and conducted a series of “green marches” - hundreds of thousands of unarmed people were sent to “develop” resource-rich foreign territories. As a result, in the occupied territory, only due to settlers, the population significantly exceeded the number of indigenous residents, and the indigenous Western Saharians were pushed deeper into the desert and now live in refugee camps. This created another intractable problem.

Suppose the UN managed to hold a referendum. Regardless of its outcome, there will be no escape from the new residents - these are still living people. As a result, Morocco will be able to actually control the situation in the region and country through them. What then should we do with the indigenous people from the refugee camps? So, another precedent - you can capture any country if you conduct a series of similar “marches” of unarmed people. What if the experience of the Moroccans is adopted by billion-dollar China or India? It will be hard for neighboring countries!

66 Section II. National identity of the mass media of foreign countries The third lesson is the following. Over 90 countries have diplomatic relations with the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. If the UN Security Council fails to resolve the problem, and Morocco absorbs Western Sahara, all these countries will have to wipe the Moroccan spit from their faces and put on a good face on a bad game12.

These three bitter lessons will not be of any use if we look for weapons of mass destruction that are not there in Iraq, fight terrorism many thousands of kilometers from our borders, “impose democracy” by force of arms, and turn a blind eye to the most egregious actions of “our friends and partners." Unfortunately, there are plenty of such examples. And not only in relation to Western Sahara.

Democratization of society and domestic policy. Democratization of society and internal political realities is another area of ​​coverage of public life in the media of Arab countries. Although the majority of the population lives sedentary, there are still tribes in Arab countries that lead a nomadic and semi-nomadic lifestyle. Elements of tribal relations also exist in cities, which is expressed in the customs and traditions revered by modern Arabs.

Hashem al-Tawil, analyzes the problem of parliamentary democracy and the press, based on the publications of the Ar-Rai newspaper

Published: “15” 06. 2016 INFORMATION BROCHURE Time deposit for individuals Prime Favorable Interest rates on deposit (simple interest "MAYAK" Materials substantiating the license to carry out activities on the operation of a radiation source... "area of ​​web technologies and information..." by judges, wolves as wardens, and ravens as guards; magpies as soldiers, bat esaul... »quarry crawler excavator JUNE, 2014 Our company was established on December 26, 1991 as PKPF "Uralmashkommers" The company was created in order to provide iPod nano User Manual Contents Chapter 1: iPod nano: a brief introduction 5 iPod nano overview 5 Accessories 6 Home screen 8 Status Icons Chapter 2: Getting Started 9 Setting Up iPod nano Chapter 3: Basics 11 Using...”

“Bochan Svetlana Aleksandrovna WOMAN AS A SUBJECT OF MYSTERIOUS PRACTICES IN A PRE-COLLECTIVE FARM SOVIET VILLAGE OF THE 1920S. The article highlights the gender aspects of traditional magical practices. The main reasons for the appearance of witchcraft, magic, and witchcraft in the Soviet pre-collective farm village are considered. The activities of sorceresses, witches and healers are analyzed....”

“INSTALLATION AND OPERATION MANUAL FOR SLOW COMBING STOVES KERPEN 2U4P, KAMEN, KOBLENZ, MILANO, MILANO II, VERONA, VIGSO, VIGSO II, BERGAMO, PIACENZA, BOZEN Contents: 1. Installation instructions 2. General safety provisions 3. Acceptable fuel 4. Kindling 5. Operation of several hearths 6. That...”

S. Dithmar F.G. Holz FLUORESCENCE ANGIOGRAPHY IN OPHTHALMOLOGY With 541 Figures Prof. Dr. Stefan Dithmar, MD Section of Vitreoretinal Surgery & Disease Department of Ophthalmology University of Heidelberg Im Neuenheimer Feld 400 69120 Heidelberg Germany Prof. Dr. Frank G. Holz, MD Chair of the..."

“APPENDIX A A.1. Simulation of permanent magnets The program allows you to simulate and calculate permanent magnets based on one of the physical models shown in Fig. A.1. Figure A.1 – Model of a permanent magnet In the model, the permanent magnet is replaced by some ferromagnetic body, which is surrounded by a flat surface...”

“Appendix 1 to the order of the State Budgetary Educational Institution “Sparrow Hills” dated “” 2015 No. AGREED APPROVED Head of the Center for Educational Institution Director of the State Budgetary Educational Institution “Sparrow Hills” State Budgetary Educational Institution “Sparrow Hills” D.A. Kuvichka _ A.A. Shashkov "" 2015 "_" 2015 REGULATIONS on holding the inter-district stage of the sports festival “Dad, Mom, Me - a Sports Family” for educational students...”

2017 www.site - “Free electronic library - electronic materials”

The materials on this site are posted for informational purposes only, all rights belong to their authors.
If you do not agree that your material is posted on this site, please write to us, we will remove it within 1-2 business days.

The internationalization of economic and other processes has been taking place in the world for a long time. Its foundation was trade exchange. In connection with the development of new lands and the colonization of countries, many states were involved in a single world history. The beginning of the 20th century was marked by the most important events. The first transnational companies in the economy arose, and attempts were made to create a universal political organization (the League of Nations, the prototype of the UN, was formed). Thus, according to many researchers, a qualitatively different stage in the interaction of societies and states has begun - globalization. It is systemic in nature and represents the process of organizing a single global financial space based on new technologies, creating conditions for the unhindered movement of goods and capital, intensifying the exchange of information and ideas, and the free movement of their carriers. This concept is key to understanding reality and social change, unfolding in the space of the globe at the end of the 20th - beginning of the 21st century. Having emerged in the 60-70s, the idea of ​​globalization in the 80s. receives academic recognition, the term is consolidated in scientific circulation.

What factors ensure the implementation of globalization processes? Researchers believe that their basis is economics. Technological progress has contributed to a sharp reduction in transport costs and faster and cheaper information services. According to analysts, the unity of the world has been achieved on the basis of the general laws of a market economy. As a result, multinational companies account for more than a third of global trade.

Another feature of globalization is the liberalization of the financial and development of the foreign exchange market, the growth of international investments in securities. This is confirmed by an eloquent fact: the volume of financial transactions in the foreign exchange markets of New York is more than $1.3 trillion every day.

Globalization is also reflected in the delegation of powers by states to supranational political, economic and financial institutions, existing at both the regional and global levels. The World Trade Organization, economic institutions of the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank play a significant role. Among the institutions of regional importance are such political, economic and economic organizations as the European Union, the North American Free Trade Area, in Asia - ASEAN, ARES, associations of countries within the CIS. The process of establishing a supranational bureaucracy is underway, influencing the functioning and development of the countries' economies.

In the field of law, processes associated with globalization are also observed. Supranational acts are adopted (agreement on the international prosecution of war crimes); international law enforcement bodies arise (Interpol, the Hague International Court, the Tribunal for the “former Yugoslavia”), as a result of which states, by mutual agreement, transfer some of their rights to supranational institutions.

Intensification of interaction between countries is also taking place in the spheres of social and spiritual life. Human rights, proclaimed in the UN Declaration of Human Rights adopted after the Second World War, have acquired global significance. Following them has become a real factor in the assessment by the world community and developed countries of the policies implemented by other states. In addition, a powerful international network of organizations monitors human rights in the world and initiates the impact of public opinion on their violators.

Conditions have also been created for the development of homogeneous interaction between countries (English acquiring the status of a language of international communication). Efforts are being made to disseminate the model of life organization inherent in developed states and including such components as the rule of law, political democracy, and ideological pluralism. Other states are guided by social standards (working conditions, living standards, civil and socio-economic rights) developed in developed countries of the world. Based on this, the world community or individual countries make demands on a number of others who do not follow the proposed principles of organizing life. Diplomatic, political and economic pressure cannot be ruled out.

Modern Russia is also involved in the processes of globalization. Its dependence on the global economy is increasing. Russia represents in the international division of labor a country exporting raw materials, whose income is generated as a result of the sale of oil and gas. The dependence of the Russian economy on fluctuations in the cost of hydrocarbon raw materials has an unfavorable effect on the country's position (this was especially noticeable in 1998). The possibility of Russia's inclusion in the economically developed countries of the world is associated with the reorientation of its economy towards the production of high-tech products.

In general, globalization is considered as a process and as a goal leading humanity to unite into a single whole and awareness of a common destiny, and, according to researchers, is characterized by the following features:

• universal coverage and complexity of changes during the transition to the global stage, variability becomes the main positive value;
• global values ​​and guidelines dominate in relation to local values, including the ethnic factor; cultural hybridization occurs, or the process of rapidly composing (often artificial) cultural phenomena from previously incompatible components, especially in the field of popular culture;
• emphasizing “deep” phenomena (pre-cultural, pre-civilization, archaic), which become emancipated;
• a decisive change in the orientation of rationality from “modern” to “postmodern” with an emphasis on the mosaic and internal disconnection of perception and the construction of a new social reality;
• recognition of civil society as the only form of social order in global society; a mosaic set of social “types” and models, the absence of unified principles of rationalization create a post-modern picture of the social world.

Analyzing the consequences of the globalization process, researchers give it opposite assessments. Those who assess its results as positive point out, first of all, that high growth rates of foreign investment contribute to economic growth and the solution of a number of social problems in developing countries. Its influence is also noticeable on the improvement of such economically beneficial processes as specialization and cooperation in the production of goods at the global level, the development of economical, environmentally and socially significant small and medium-sized enterprises, the introduction of innovations by developing countries, the growth of world trade and employment in this area . Globalization creates opportunities for the implementation of promising projects in the economy, politics, education, culture, and ecology of developing countries.

The arguments of opponents of globalization are also sound. They point out the fact that this process still does not bridge the gap that exists between developed and developing countries; on the contrary, it is increasing, and it is the developed states that are enjoying the main fruits of interaction between peoples. The anti-globalist ideological concept is based on an analysis of real processes. It is associated with the idea that globalization removes people from them, undermines the foundations of nation states, so that they lose the ability to conduct independent policies, protect the interests of citizens, and deputies and presidents elected by the people gradually lose part of their powers, which are transferred to “nameless” inaccessible officials and businessmen.

“Political and cultural imperialism” is also associated with globalization. Discussions about human rights, the use of economic protectionism, political and economic pressure on developing countries give grounds for critics to talk about “double standards” that are used by developed countries to defend national or group interests.

Critics of globalization are also not optimistic about the fact that there are signs of unification of national industrial, social and spiritual achievements based on Western mass culture. Global and regional networks and satellite television contribute to this process. An “information community” is being formed that can influence millions of people.

Another concern is the fact that a component of globalization processes, a consequence of the liberalization of economic relations, the development of transport and information links, and freedom of movement, is the internationalization of the activities of criminal groups, drug cartels, and human traffickers. Ideas of terrorism are spreading. Its supporters define global goals, creating a global network of organizations.

A critical approach to the analysis of modern world processes prompted influential forces to think through forms of unification. As a result of their efforts, an anti-globalization movement was formed. Representatives of the elite of countries in the developing world and official authorities of a number of states (Brazil, Venezuela, Malaysia) attract the attention of citizens to the disadvantages of globalization. We are talking about the lack of investment, price inequality, restrictions on trade, as well as the aggressiveness shown by capital owners from developed countries in the financial and monetary sphere. In turn, part of the elite representing the Islamic world is opposed to alien values ​​and norms, which are believed to be imposed by the West.

Some critics of globalization - elite groups from developing countries, as well as some intellectuals from the West - are called alter-globalists. They consider global world processes a positive factor, but argue that their vector is determined by developed countries and supranational corporations, whose dictates are unacceptable. These elite groups form one part of the alter-globalist movement. The other is represented by anti-globalists themselves, heterogeneous social groups (often of a marginal nature): environmentalists, human rights activists, anarchists, as well as fundamentalists, right-wing nationalists, even neo-Nazis. They assess globalization as a “worldwide conspiracy.”

The mass media also actively participate in the processes of globalization that create conditions for the intensification of the exchange of messages. They provide the population with access to the flow of information and provide the opportunity for any citizen to participate in the communication process. Mass media are perceived both as a sphere exposed to the influence of globalization, and as its “agents”, and as its main driving forces. Globalization in the sphere of mass media distribution refers to the emergence of universal demand for media products and new technologies from consumers living in different countries. High rates of development of technical means of communication and message transmission channels are ensured; information networks and transnational multimedia formations are being formed. Thanks to this, opportunities are open for the creation of regional and planetary communication systems. At the same time, the increase in the volume of messages received and the speed of their dissemination increase a person’s dependence on society and governing bodies.

In this regard, researchers give conflicting assessments of the “information explosion”. Some believe that thanks to him, the new century can become a time of rapid advancement of humanity forward. Globalization has stimulated the development of mass media. The use of fiber optic cable and satellite communication channels on the main highways of the planet allows the simultaneous transmission of millions of messages. Methods for compressing digital information have been developed that make it possible to transmit huge amounts of data using wires. The citizen is provided with instant access to news coming from anywhere on Earth. They include information about markets, consumers, tax systems, as well as symbols, images, concepts common to humanity. The latter form a single symbolic environment in which flows of messages circulate freely, regardless of the nationality and territorial affiliation of their creators.

Digital (computer) technologies make it possible to convert any information into bits and bytes. If all data is translated into the digital language of binary code, the distinction that existed between information sources disappears.

Other analysts warn of the danger of totalitarianism in messaging. The same type of advertising is placed in magazines published in different languages; TV shows are shown taking place in almost identically designed studios; leaders are people who have a similar behavior pattern.

These processes are also reflected in the activities of Russian journalists. In the context of the rapid development of information and communication technologies, significant changes are taking place in the work of traditional mass media: in print, on radio and television, in the methods of delivering materials to the public and their content. Communicative influence is especially easy on the Internet. For example, Russian radio stations operating on the global network can be heard all over the world. On the one hand, sound travels; on the other hand, the content of radio broadcasts is also stored in text form. Convergence is taking place, and the use of hypertext allows you to quickly navigate through the materials broadcast by radio stations.

The Internet not only helps expand their capabilities, but also attracts the attention of part of the audience that previously preferred television programs. Experts predict that serious changes will occur in their structure. Sports, music and many other programs that were traditionally watched on television are accessible on the global network. Researchers are increasingly writing about the spread of specialized television programs aimed at the interests of individual audience segments. Its development is determined by two trends: globalization and regionalization. Local broadcasting is still in its infancy.

At the same time, the global information network does not displace print. It retains a strong position because when different types of information are combined into a single television or computer version, the text does not disappear. Moreover, radio and television broadcasts are typically posted on the Internet in two forms: audiovisual and text. Illustrations (photos) and texts become the common denominator for mass media, whose materials are distributed on the global network. Electronic newspapers have also emerged on the Internet. Their content is regularly updated and well illustrated.

Both electronic newspapers and other Russian mass media widely cover the processes of globalization. On the one hand, journalists pay special attention to issues related to the possibilities of overcoming the gap with developed countries in a country that produces raw materials, occupies a secondary place in the international division of labor and depends on developers of high technologies. On the other hand, the achievement of economic growth in Russia and the emergence of powerful companies stimulated the press to study the process of establishing domestic capital outside the country, creating transnational companies, and developing new markets.

Problems of political globalization are also in the field of journalism. Current events are reviewed by professionals taking into account their global significance. Press publications explore the peculiarities of Russia's geopolitical situation.

“=> Thus, globalization represents a qualitatively new stage in the interaction of societies and states and is systemic in nature. Thanks to technological progress, the dissemination of information has been accelerated and made cheaper, world economic relations have been liberalized, and supranational political, economic and financial institutions are being formed. Supporters of the idea of ​​globalization also point to its manifestations in the spheres of social and spiritual life. A model of organizing life is spreading, characteristic of developed countries of the world and including such components as the rule of law, political democracy, ideological pluralism, and human rights. At the same time, opponents of globalization emphasize that a significant gap remains between developed and developing countries, and national states are losing the ability to implement independent policies.

The processes of globalization are widely reflected by the mass media, assessed both as a sphere under the influence of these processes, and as “agents of globalization,” and as its main driving forces. Citizens are provided with access to news sent from anywhere on Earth. But due to the increase in the volume of messages received and the speed of their dissemination, according to some researchers, a person’s dependence on society and governing bodies increases; globalization in the sphere of mass media is fraught with totalitarianism.

• See: Melnik G.S., Teplyashina A.N. Current problems of modernity and journalism // Mass media in the context of globalization: The relationship of globalization, globalism and transformation. St. Petersburg, 2005.
• See: Zasursky Ya.N. The Internet as the basis for the development of the information society in Russia. // Mediascope. 2006. September 20

Modern foreign journalism, in addition to pronounced integration processes in the context of globalization of the information space, continues to preserve a certain national identity, which, on the one hand, is a manifestation of the identity of peoples, and on the other, a reaction to globalist trends in the media. The world is diverse; Foreign journalism is also diverse. It is impossible to cover all the processes in it, but there is a real need to consider the remaining national identity and identify the most significant trends in further development in the conditions of the approaching information society.

There are the following methods)! information interaction of peoples with different cultures:

• - confrontation, when everyone considers their own position to be the only correct one and strives to convince or even re-educate the opponent (for example, introducing American-style democracy);
• - dialogue in which common ground is sought and consensus is developed;
• - self-isolation (as China used to do), but in the context of the globalization of the information space, this approach is practically not applicable.

Be that as it may, one should take into account the national characteristics of a particular country with which it is necessary to exchange information. It is necessary to take into account not only the features of the political system and the ruling regime of the state, but also such categories as national character and mentality, the everyday world of a particular ethnic group, and spiritual culture.

Country media Europe And United States of America included in Western civilization, which is often understood not only as internal impulses and attitudes, but also as consequences, results, technological equipment of Western culture, and the dominant effect of Western civilization. In their practical functioning, despite the “Western” cultural orientation, the media of Europe and America include two distinct directions: the so-called European-continental and “insular”, covering the media of Great Britain and the United States of America. The phenomenon has its own historical roots, but the difference in them manifested itself most clearly in the 19th-20th centuries. Initially, both on the continent and in England, journalism developed in the traditions of personal journalism, when the qualities of a writer and publicist were most in demand: Jonathan Swift, Daniel Defoe, Richard Steele are considered the founders of English journalism. But the development of the media and different political conditions have led to significant differences.

Of course, the media of continental Europe and Great Britain developed in the political space of different legal systems - Romano-Germanic on the continent and common law in Great Britain, but the mutual influence of England and the United States also played an important role when, after the commercial revolution in the newspaper press of the 1830-1840s . The restructuring of newspaper content began. If in European-continental journalism preference was given to the opinion, the point of view of the author, then in island journalism fact became increasingly important, i.e. extremely detached communication through the press of socially significant news. This difference led to more serious consequences. For example, in Germany, France or Russia, press workers were primarily concerned with the effectiveness of journalistic influence on the audience, which, in turn, required a serious development of the theory of genres, moving forward the methodological techniques of dialogue and polemics. In the USA and Great Britain, efficiency and the ability to “get the facts” became the main thing. And this led to the writing of information materials according to the “inverted pyramid” principle, and in many newspapers to the anonymity of reporters. As a result, for some, journalism is part of a general literary process, where the author appears in periodicals and deals not with fiction, but with real events and phenomena of reality. For others, journalism is one of the communication channels used to disseminate information important to the communicator through the media.

In the United States, there have been debates over the very essence of journalism for a long time. Commission report Robert M. Hutchins entitled "Free and responsible press" became the main source of regulatory ideas that had a huge impact on the theory and practice of journalism in different countries. The Commission proposed to solve the problem through a series of measures that would protect the public more effectively than existing laws. To this end, five standards of activity required of a free and responsible press were developed:

• - provide “a truthful and comprehensive account of the events of the day in a context that makes them meaningful”;
• - serve as a forum for the exchange of comments and criticism;
• - give a representative picture of the groups that make up society;
• - represent and explain the goals and values ​​of the society;
• - provide full access to the information of the day.

The idea of ​​ensuring freedom of expression, which is considered one of the components of freedom of the press, is in itself positive. However, theorists of the doctrine of social responsibility called on the press, government and public to actively promote not only freedom of expression, but also the fulfillment of the requirements for a free and responsible press. It was believed that the government should and could control the conditions in which the press operated without controlling its activities. American researchers justifiably criticized the theory for the fact that the concept of social responsibility completely bypassed the question of the source of the duties of journalists or what they should be aimed at.

Of course, regarding the European-Coptinental and island forms of media functioning, there are many points of view and approaches, including those combining both traditions. An example is the journalism of the Nordic countries. Here priority is given, as in the USA and Great Britain, to news and fact. However, the “inverted pyramid” principle is not always used; the anonymity of reporters is a rare exception. Moreover, many newspapers publish all materials not only signed by the author, but also with his email address, so that any reader can, if necessary, obtain additional information and clarify details, for example (for example, a newspaper "Svenska dagbladet" - "Swedish daily newspaper"). While observing the principle of separating advertising from information, Scandinavian newspapers nevertheless consider so-called hidden commenting and operational commenting acceptable.

State regulation of the functioning of electronic media is increasingly being replaced by socio-legal and market mechanisms, which is very convincingly shown in the works of E. L. Varganova.

The media of individual European countries, the conditions of their functioning, topics and problems have been sufficiently studied, but still require further scientific understanding in modern conditions. The latest trends in both American and European media are characterized primarily by the transfer of business and operational information to computer networks, an increase in the share of analysis, commentary and forecasts, and a shift in the center of gravity to personal journalism (which is expressed in a quantitative increase in the number of signed materials and author’s programs on radio and television), changing attitudes to the genre features of the press.

Journalism Latin America is developing in the same direction as journalism in Europe and the USA. This is explained by the fact that the media of the indigenous peoples of the subcontinent are practically absent and do not carry any originality. Moreover, the mass media of Latin American countries are dependent on transnational media corporations and global news agencies.

Mass media Tropical Africa are going through a difficult period of development. Second half of the 20th century In socio-political terms, the continent was very turbulent. The collapse of the colonial system and the strengthening of young independent states, the transfer of power in the bastions of racism and apartheid - Southern Rhodesia and the Republic of South Africa - into the hands of the black majority, countless civil wars, coups and counter-coups were complemented by fluctuations in the choice of guidelines for national development.

Many African politicians saw the solution in establishing a new international information and communication order and in focusing on building a socialist society. Unfortunately, these guidelines turned out to be unattainable. The decade following the adoption of the famous PLO and UNESCO resolutions has shown that the gap between rich and poor has only widened. Many researchers predicted this turn of events. Be that as it may, the national press on the continent developed after the collapse of the colonial system, overcoming incredible difficulties. The complex process of establishing independent mass media itself was complemented by political instability, which negatively affected the economy, politics and, naturally, ideology in the young states.

The existence of many languages ​​on the African continent is a serious obstacle to the development of the press. In such conditions, the language of the former colonialists is the de facto language of interethnic communication. However, a large percentage of the population cannot communicate in foreign languages ​​due, first of all, to their illiteracy. As the main carrier of human thought, language is an integral part of communication. The involvement of various segments of the population in the information process is associated with an increase in the cultural level of the population. The democratization of information processes in Africa is associated with the elimination of illiteracy among the population. In many countries until the 1990s. a course has been taken to educate all children in schools. This is a real path to the gradual elimination of illiteracy among adolescents and young people, which, in turn, should increase the number of potential readers. Unfortunately, many education programs in Africa have been discontinued. The process of information exchange implies not only the availability of information and the possibility of its transmission. You need to be understood. Semantic analysis of socio-political vocabulary used in the media shows that the vocabulary of local languages ​​lags significantly behind the realities of socio-political life. This is explained by the fact that the widely used vocabulary in the media does not have corresponding synonyms and equivalents in local languages, as a result of which the messages transmitted on national radio and television are significantly distorted. There are two ways to solve this problem: further improvement of local languages ​​to overcome lexical and semantic barriers or the transition to the languages ​​of former colonizers. Many countries in Tropical Africa chose the second path.

In addition to linguistic fragmentation and illiteracy, one of the reasons for the weak spread of the press in Tropical Africa can be considered the lack of a reading tradition. The fact is that the peoples of the oral civilization, which include the majority of the indigenous peoples of Africa, have a completely different cultural and socio-psychological attitude towards the press than the peoples of the written civilization. Many people who can read and write, and who are economically able to buy a book, newspaper or magazine, do not buy them because they see reading as something purely intellectual, even clerical. Moreover, the press is published, as a rule, in a foreign language.

In African conditions, radio is the most accessible means of mass communication, since oral tradition has consolidated a certain psychocultural attitude towards radio, and radios are affordable, in fact, to any person, unlike expensive newspapers and televisions.

Further strengthening of the role of the media in the socio-political life of African countries is associated with the expansion of their legal framework. The socio-political evolution of the countries of the region largely depends on how well the “fourth estate” will fulfill its functions. After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the beginning of market reforms in the former socialist countries, the “law of the pendulum” forced the governments of many countries on the continent to reconsider their attitude towards socialism, and ultimately to all those values ​​that were associated with this political system. In order to unite the nation, schools teaching in national languages ​​began to be closed, newspapers and magazines, radio and television switched to European languages.

In the context of a deep economic crisis that manifested itself in a number of countries on the continent, the ruling elite, believing that in the name of the highest goal - accelerating socio-economic development, restriction of civil and political rights is inevitable, set a course for pursuing repressive policies, began to put pressure on the opposition and the media information. If we talk about the countries of East Africa, a one-party system was established in Kenya and Tanzania; in Uganda, the repressive military regime of Idi Amin dominated for many years. Any attempt to criticize government policies was perceived as an attack against the entire nation. As a result, the mass media have turned into a specific means of control, accessible only to a narrow circle of representatives of the executive branch.

There are three points of view on the directions of media development. The first is that the media can be used to best meet basic needs in order to accelerate the development of states. According to the second version, due to the underdevelopment of the media infrastructure, lack of industrial and cultural resources and professional personnel, it is impossible to maintain freedom of the press, and the mass media should focus on positive messages, ignore the negative facts of social reality, and support government ideology and policies. At the same time, the limitation of media pluralism is justified by the illiteracy and low level of political consciousness of the majority of the population - different sources of information or contradictory voices in the media can cause confusion in society and complicate the implementation of the main task in the context of national development. The third point of view, along with the need for economic development, recognizes the importance of human dignity, the right of citizens to freedom of expression and participation in discussions. The actual practice of mass media is somewhat different from these speculative schemes. Thus, the introduction of market relations in the media and the strengthening of state control over them had a negative impact on freedom of the press and freedom of speech. In addition, the state of the press is affected by the consequences of the systemic crisis in African countries, such as poverty, corruption, destroyed social infrastructure, unemployment, inefficiency of the banking and financial sectors, etc. Over the ten years of democratic reforms, there have been no fundamental changes in the sphere of mass media.

In countries East Africa - In Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, the constitutions guarantee freedom of expression, but the executive branch seeks to limit critical speech by journalists, citing possible socio-political instability that threatens state sovereignty. The Libel Law, the Anti-State Propaganda Law, and the State Security Act limit freedom of speech established by the Mass Media Law. Thus, in cases of libel-related claims, in addition to the main defendants - the authors - the editor, the owners of the newspaper and bookstores, and wholesale trade enterprises are held liable. At the same time, the newspaper's editors face a more severe punishment than an individual journalist. According to the law, facts about the private life of government officials cannot be made public, even if a criminal case has been opened against them. In 1995, the Ugandan Committee for the Safety of Journalists attempted to challenge three repressive laws suppressing press freedom, but two years later the country's Constitutional Court rejected the petitions.

In Tanzania, the main obstacle to freedom of speech and the press is the Newspaper Act of 1976, which retains many of the repressive aspects of the previous Newspaper Decree Act, established during colonial rule in the 1940s and 1950s. The Newspaper Act defines a range of requirements for editorial offices, failure to comply with which may result in fines, imprisonment, or cancellation of the publication's registration. Similar laws apply in Kenya.

The emergence of electronic media in East African countries has been marked by high levels of government control through regulation and licensing. Broadcasting regulation is based on the theory that the electronic spectrum (electromagnetic wave frequency) belongs to the people, on whose behalf governments act by allocating this frequency and setting restrictions on broadcasting. In this case, very unique forms and methods are used. Yes, the government Kenya seeks equity partnerships with non-state media entrepreneurs: today such financial relationships exist at five television stations, and the main source of information for 20 million Kenyans, radio broadcasting, is controlled by a special censorship body. Even a song, if it is considered provocative or contains lyrics critical of the government, is banned. IN Uganda authorities achieve their goals differently. To create the illusion of a partnership between the government and the mass media, President J. Muse-Veni regularly organized a “press dialogue” with the editors-in-chief. The details of the dialogues were not disclosed in the press, and in their absence, television viewers, seeing editors who were previously known as Museveni's opponents dining and laughing with him at the same table, lost confidence in the media, accusing them of hypocrisy. In this way, the president and his entourage achieve media loyalty, and if critical remarks about the government appear in the print or electronic media, the population still does not trust such publications, considering them inspired “from above.”

Although the Tanzanian constitution guarantees freedom of expression, there is no mention of press freedom in the country's legislation, which leads to a kind of licensing regulation: licenses are issued to those who avoid criticizing the authorities, and issuance is delayed if there is criticism. After 1993, non-state electronic media emerged - 12 television stations and 8 radio stations. The Tanzania Broadcasting Commission must satisfy itself that the applicant is willing to serve the public interest before issuing a broadcasting license to an applicant. The license is issued for a period of up to three years (radio) and up to five (television) and sets a maximum broadcasting area of ​​up to 25% of the country's territory. As a result, the opportunity to influence the consciousness of people (25 million radio listeners and approximately 3 million television viewers) is given primarily to government television and radio companies, for which there is no 25-projection limit. The authorities' pressure on the media is expressed not only through prosecutions, but also through a system of tariffs, taxes on the import of paper, printing equipment, equipment, licenses to engage in journalism, the provision of government advertising to mass media, and fines.

The most developed, for the reasons stated above, is radio. According to UNESCO, in the mid-1990s. There were 18 radios per 100 inhabitants, compared to 3.5 televisions and 0.31 computers. 60% of the rural population in sub-Saharan Africa has access to radio, while television viewers are mainly urban dwellers. Of the radio giants, the most widespread is the BBC, broadcasting in 25 countries and 46 cities in this region. There are great prospects for satellite digital radio broadcasting, which is developing quite successfully. Since television in African countries is elite, satellite television remains the same - only wealthy people can afford to install the appropriate equipment and pay for a subscription.

Electronic media are developing quite distinctively in sub-Saharan Africa. Internet technologies are developing rapidly, including electronic versions of publications. The number of traditional and electronic newspapers is growing, with electronic publications significantly outpacing traditional ones in growth rates. The lack of well-established telephone communications on the continent gives Africa a unique opportunity, through the introduction of the latest communication satellite systems, to significantly reduce the gap with developed countries in the information and communications sphere.

Functioning of the countries' media North Africa And Middle East determined by the importance of the geopolitical interests of the leading world powers in this region. After most of these countries gained independence, four major problems occupied the closest attention of the media: 1) the problem of Arab unity; 2) Arab-Israeli relations; 3) the Islamic revolution in Iran and its long-term consequences; 4) the problem of North-West Africa; 5) the consequences of the “Arab Spring” for journalism on the continent.

The problem of Arab unity can be most convincingly demonstrated in the historical mission of the periodical press Yemen. It was the press that played an outstanding role in the unification of North and South; it raised the banner of the struggle for Arab unity. Journalism in both the North and South of Yemen played a prominent role in the country's national liberation and unification, which corresponded to the practice of the national liberation struggle, which required the development of a press that was in its infancy.

The peculiarities of the development of the Yemeni press contributed to the conservation of some genres that were outdated by today’s standards, such as “zamil,” which originates in poetic stories about events that poets spoke at the courts of rulers. Almost all Arabic periodicals still pay great attention to literary and artistic genres, including poetry. The complex political processes that took place in both parts of the country led to the emergence of various media outlets that adhered to a variety of political doctrines and expressed the will of all segments of the population of Yemeni society. Journalism of political parties and public organizations prevailed over “non-party” publications, which corresponded to the requirements of the time. Having played a significant role in the liberation of the North and South, the country's progressive journalism advocated the unification of Yemen into a single state, which was greatly facilitated by the attention of the Yemeni media to the problems of unification.

The problem of the need for Arab unity can be seen very clearly in the publications of almost all Arab media when covering the Arab-Israeli conflict. Let's take the Jordanian newspaper as an example. "Ad-Dustur" ("Constitution"), where Middle Eastern themes occupy a special place. The newspaper paid and continues to pay great attention to the struggle for the return of the occupied territories to the Arabs. The problem of the West Bank of the Jordan River occupies a special place in the publications. The Palestinian problem, covered on the pages of the Ad-Dustur newspaper, is closely related to it.

In Arab countries, the ruling elite is inclined to have a monopoly of ownership of the tools and means of information and cultural orientation, a monopoly on the development of information policy, the implementation of which it directs. There is complete control over the information personnel and reliance on their absolute devotion to power, the establishment of laws, regulations and professional statutes that determine the responsibilities of the media figure and do not really care about his rights. Direct and indirect censorship, control over journalistic activity, imposing restrictions on the right of a journalist to receive information from the state apparatus, and much more limit democracy.

The blockade of political opposition forces, their information activities, attacking them and blaming them with the help of other media owned by the regime is carried out to create a gap between the opposition and the people, so that the opposition appears as a small minority that has deviated from the national consensus.

Radio and television play a special role in covering the Middle East conflict. The fact is that broadcasting cannot be carried out locally, without taking into account the impact on the audience of neighboring countries. At the same time, due to the difficult political situation in the Middle East, for a long time it has not been possible to streamline the exchange of television information between Arab countries, although this problem is of exceptional importance in most countries in the region, where the population has the opportunity to watch television programs from neighboring countries without installing additional equipment.

The press, radio and television of almost all countries of the Middle East in their daily practical activities take into account such an important factor as tribal relations, which significantly influence the political situation in a particular country. The Arab press pays special attention to the problem of women's participation in political life. The Islamic Revolution in Iran highlighted many problems of the modern status of women, establishing medieval traditions in the country. But the special role of Iranian events is a fundamental change in interstate relations in the Middle East. An example of this is the war between Iran and Iraq, the seizure of Kuwait by Iraq and the subsequent Operation Desert Storm, the aggravation of the Kurdish problem and the “strange” relationship between Iraq and Turkey in this regard. If we analyze the position of the media of Arab countries regarding the war between Iran and Iraq, they, despite a number of minor differences, were on the side of Iraq. During the Gulf War, many of them condemned Iraq for its aggression and supported international forces.

The media in the Middle East, especially Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey, pay great attention to the Kurdish problem.

As a result of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, protesting against the division of their homeland, the Kurdish people were forced to take up arms to defend their existence and preserve their customs and traditions. Many things were used against the creation of an independent Kurdish state, including the ban on speaking their native language. So, in Turkey already in the early 1920s. Kurds were forbidden to speak Kurdish. In Syria they were forbidden to wear national clothes.

In Iran, Kurds can speak their native language, since here it is considered a dialect of Persian, but they are prohibited from having their own publishing houses. Kurdish periodicals that appeared from time to time in Southern Kurdistan attracted the attention of Kurds from neighboring countries and enjoyed great popularity, helping to maintain a sense of national unity.

Kurdish publications were often closed by government authorities. There are few publications that have existed for several years, especially those that defended the interests of the Kurds, their language and unique culture.

Opponents of Kurdish identity used various methods of both religious and political propaganda to leave the Kurds illiterate and thereby block their path to progress. Islam was actively used for these purposes, so Kurdish educational journalists played a special role. Widespread propaganda by the official authorities against education in public schools in Kurdistan called education not received in madrassas “the work of the devil” and significantly influenced the level of education of the Kurdish population.

Although geographically the North African press belongs to the African press, it is ethnically Arab, which makes it similar to the Middle East. Moreover, the largest country in the region - Egypt - is most often called Middle Eastern. Just as in the Middle East, there are certain difficulties with freedom of speech and freedom of the press in the modern understanding of these categories. The ruling circles have a whole range of ways to exercise control over the media. Among them are restrictions on the issuance of licenses, preliminary censorship, legal restrictions, secret financing of publications and their secret purchase, taxes, etc.

The media of the Greater Maghreb countries are diverse because they operate in different socio-political and economic conditions. Journalism in Morocco, Mauritania, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya has too many differences to speak of them as a single system. Sudan, Egypt, Chad are also full of contradictions: both political and ideological. The conflict in North-West Africa over Western Sahara drove a wedge into Arab unity and led to armed clashes between Morocco and Mauritania on the one hand and the SADR, led by the Polisarno Popular Front, on the other, with the SADR actively supported by Algeria and Libya.

The clanism, strong dependence of politicians on tribes, and closed decision-making mechanisms that are characteristic of many countries in this region have left their mark on the functioning of the mass media. If in all countries of the world journalists try to assign specific topics to certain editorial staff, then in a number of Arab countries this desire is being realized in a somewhat unexpected way. In Jordanian newspapers and magazines, for example, no one can write on topics “assigned” to a full-time journalist; A similar practice exists in the Yemeni agency Saba. In general, in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa, the further development of journalism is associated with the settlement of complex foreign policy problems, the democratization of public life, increasing the level of literacy of the population and improving the legislative framework, since in many cases the norms of traditional Muslim and national common law are used. Hot political issues are the focus of media attention in the region.

The diversity of countries and peoples inhabiting them Asia-Pacific predetermined an extremely variegated, rich and intense history of the media. At the same time, they are experiencing common problems and are influenced by common trends in further development. This is especially evident in the dynamics of the sociocultural features of the functioning of the media.

One of the most dynamically and uniquely developing countries in the region is People's Republic of China. A number of works are devoted to its media, which analyze the conditions of their functioning.

Traditional Chinese national isolation in modern conditions could no longer play a stabilizing role, since it was in conflict with global trends in socio-economic development. Only the openness of society, including the intensification of foreign policy propaganda, could attract foreign investment to China and make the country’s image attractive to the whole world. Over the years of reform and opening up, China has demonstrated high rates of economic and social development. Throughout the reform period, the Chinese economy has been developing at a high pace.

Of course, reforms in the economy also required a different attitude towards the media, international information exchange and foreign policy propaganda. They are interconnected. Since the policy of modernization and openness presupposes the intensification of international information exchange, it is most important to consider new trends in the development of the country’s foreign propaganda complex. The system of information services for foreign audiences includes telegraph agencies, television and radio stations, newspapers and magazines, publishing houses, audio and video production studios, electronic information networks (including the Internet).

Published in China: socio-political magazine, weekly "Baijing Zhoubao" ("Beijing Review"), universal magazine "Jinzhi Zhongguo" ("China Today") and illustrated magazine "Zhongguo huabao" ("China"), as well as books, brochures, audio and video products produced by "Wai wen chubanshe" (“Publishing house of literature in foreign languages”); there are publishing houses "Xin-shijie chubanshe" ("New World"), "Zhongguo wenyue chubanshe" ("Chinese literature"), "Xinxing chubanshe" ("New Star") And "Wuzhou chuanbao chubanshe" ("Five Continents").

In recent years, the superiority of new media and communications in foreign policy propaganda and international information exchange over traditional media has become increasingly clear. Television began to be used in Chinese foreign policy propaganda quite late, however, it developed rapidly. In 1991, a television center for foreign countries was established under Central Television, which, renting the Action-1 satellite, rebroadcast programs of the first channel of Central Television for the regions of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Since 1992, Central Television has been transmitting programs via communication satellites; programs on its 4th channel can be received in more than 80 countries around the world. The People's Republic of China is actively developing international exchanges and cooperation with other countries in the field of television, radio broadcasting, publishing periodicals, concluding contracts for joint book publishing, transfer of copyrights, exchange of press releases, television and radio programs.

Particular attention is paid to interactive technologies and computer networks. For a long time, China did not attach importance to the Internet as a means of communication, but the rapid development of information technology and the emergence of a whole sector of new services based on Internet communications forced the Chinese leadership to begin forming its own scientific and technological base for creating Internet applications. The solution to this problem is greatly facilitated by the general course towards the development of Chinese science and technology. China's openness to the spread of advanced information and electronic technologies is one-sided and manifests itself mainly in its receptivity to advanced foreign experience in these areas. The main driver of the Chinese Internet is the state, which is interested in ensuring that society does not escape the control of the political system. The Chinese branch of the Internet is subject to censorship; any political publications are prohibited except those that are fully consistent with the general line of the CCP.

Taiwan often referred to as one of the "Asian tigers", where rapid economic growth is accompanied by the introduction of the latest technological advances. The main directions of development of Taiwanese newspapers in the 1990s. - their cooperation with television stations in the creation of individual programs; widespread computerization of journalism and publishing; sharp commercialization of the newspaper market. The planning and formation of Taiwan's national television system began as early as 1948, when the first transmitters were purchased and the first tests were carried out. The main activities were carried out by the organizing committee for Taiwanese television, established in February 1961, which also formulated the main principles for creating a system of private television companies. First appears in 1962. Taiwan Television Company - 7TV, followed by it began broadcasting in 1968 China Television Company - KTV, in February 1971, the third broadcasting station was opened - Chinese television station - KTS. There is the following trend in the development of Taiwan's television broadcasting system: the existing broadcast television stations in the country began to be controlled by the government, the Kuomintang Party and the military. The government's desire to have television companies dependent on it and the narrow approach to the media of private investors, aimed only at making a profit, led to the creation of highly profitable, but low-quality television broadcasting.

The advent of cable television has forced public television stations to make greater efforts in programming, collecting information, and enhancing the public role of television in order to attract and retain large audiences. An important part of Taiwan's television development process is the use of the most modern equipment and technology, such as computers and satellite news transmission systems, which allow synchronous transmission of materials directly from the scene. After connecting cable broadcasting stations to the satellite broadcasting system, their number increased sharply, and their popularity also increased. This was facilitated by a wide range of broadcast television programs and greater freedom in presenting news. In 1993, the Cable Television Law was adopted, the purpose of which is to regulate the market for these services. The island is divided into 51 cable TV operating zones, each of which allowed the operation of a maximum of five distributors with permission from the authorities. In addition, a regulatory framework has been created to regulate all activities in the field of cable television. In terms of household coverage with cable TV, Taiwan exceeds Hong Kong and Japan. Cable TV stations are able to compete with over-the-air TV stations in areas such as news programming. In terms of the structure of television broadcasting, in the percentage distribution of programs by topic and the quantitative ratio of local and foreign-produced programs, Taiwan is ahead of Asia as a whole in terms of news volume and is close to the United States and Western Europe. Cable TV quickly finds its audience, breaking down into comprehensive and specialized channels, the ratio of which in Taiwan is 22 to 96. Thus, specialized channels are the most popular. Interactive television programs are being introduced very actively in Taiwan, especially on cable TV networks. Additional services provided by CATV include library services, home health care, distance learning, TV games, telephone, Internet connection, e-mail, facility security, virtual amusement park, information services, ticket ordering service, electronic library, museum, electronic news. , TV shopping, distribution of game programs, video on demand, karaoke, etc.

The radio broadcasting industry is currently experiencing a period of fierce competition, but comparison with the broadcasting systems of other countries does not allow us to look too optimistically about the prospects for Taiwanese radio: the belated liberalization of broadcasting has not made it possible to enter into a competitive struggle with television and find its own market niche.

In general, the media in China, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea They are now experiencing a period of Westernization of content, mainly of the American type. New, previously unknown genres are appearing - say, polemics, the traditions of which are absent in the culture of these countries; Moral and ethical rules that once seemed unshakable are collapsing.

Another country in this region deserves special attention - this Australia. Features of the current state of the country's media are characterized by a significant influx of immigrants from Europe in the post-war years, and then from Asian countries. In this regard, the nature of the media, both print and electronic, has changed somewhat. If we talk about the legal regulation of information processes, we can note the following important circumstance. There are no provisions in either the federal or state constitutions that guarantee freedom of speech and freedom of the press. The principle traditional for the former metropolis (England) is used: these freedoms are best protected by common law. Australia applies the case law of other common law states, particularly the English and New Zealand courts, to its territory. Australian media self-regulatory mechanisms include the Australian Press Council (a voluntary body founded in 1976 by the Australian Journalists Association, three publishing organizations and Australia's major publishers) and the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (formed by the merger of the Association of Australian Journalists with another media workers' organization).

According to Australian laws, in addition to libel, invasion of privacy, disclosure of secret information, etc., insult to religious feelings, obscenity and attacks on public morals are punishable. Publishing obscene fabrications is a minor crime at common law. Australia has adopted the English test for determining whether a publication is obscene. It consists of establishing "whether the material charged with obscene content is likely to corrupt those whose minds are open to such immoral influences and into whose hands a publication of this kind may fall." In addition, the courts will determine whether the material is offensive or indecent in the sense of being offensive or beyond the bounds of public decency. It also takes into account whether the material is being distributed to the general public or to a small group of people. Most prosecutions for offenses against public morals involve matters of sex, but the publication of material about violence, cruelty and drug use can also be classified as offensive. Most states and territories have enacted additional legislation to regulate the prosecution of offenses against public morals. Some have developed classification schemes that can be used to prohibit or restrict access to the distribution and advertising of printed materials. Censorship laws are enforced through the Film and Literary Classification Organization, which requires the publisher of potentially obscene material to first forward it to the appropriate authorities so that it is properly classified.

The ethical standards and objectivity of the Australian press are among the highest in the world. In recent years there has been growing concern about its financial situation. This, however, does not prevent a number of newspapers from competing in the national market, although, of course, most regions have only one main newspaper.

As futurologists predicted, the scientific and technological revolution did not bypass the means of mass communication, which are now undergoing profound changes. Recent years have been marked by rapidly occurring and controversial processes, which are called globalization of the information space. This phenomenon is primarily associated with the latest advances in communication technology and electronics. Almost instantaneous delivery of information to viewers, listeners and readers allows millions of people to become witnesses and participants in events. Moreover, we become unwitting participants in events taking place thousands of miles away from us. IN In connection with this, the question arises: what social consequences can this lead to?

Already now, computer networks cover the whole world, and there is a real opportunity for the user to obtain the necessary information from the agency or source you have chosen from any country, from anywhere in the world.

The invasion of scientific and technological progress into journalism and publishing has led to irreversible consequences, the depth and significance of which are difficult to overestimate. The widespread introduction of electronic computing technology, cross-border data transfer, the formation of a global computer network - all this and much more predetermines a new technology of journalistic work, new trends in the collection, analysis and dissemination of information.

The globalization of the information space has a number of socio-political consequences. It would seem that not so long ago the world acquired a new information order. The heads of state and government of non-aligned countries who gathered in 1976 spoke in favor of expanding cooperation and strengthening international security, creating national and regional systems for training journalists, developing exchanges between non-aligned countries in order to increase the share of their participation in the international exchange of information, limiting the activities of print monopolies, spoke out for a new international information and communication order. It would seem that there is nothing unusual. It’s just that developing countries are concerned about a situation in which they are pushed to the margins of the information environment and are forced to be content with the crumbs of information that world agencies transmit to them.

But in 1981, another conference was held in Talloires, which issued the so-called Talloires Anti-Declaration. The complex processes taking place in the mass media were considered from the point of view of “Western pluralism,” the meaning of which boils down to a simple formula: information is disseminated by those who have it and who have the money to disseminate it. Naturally, a lot has happened in the world in recent years, seriously changing the information picture of the planet.

Among the many studies in the field of information carried out under the auspices of UNESCO and the UN, a special place belongs to the report of the Commission Sean McBride "Many Voices - One World" published in 1980, which presents the information and communication picture that emerged in the 1970s. This report received global resonance. In the early 1990s. Many authors were again interested in the extent to which the conclusions and forecasts contained in the McBride report were justified in the context of events characteristic of mass communication processes that unfolded in the last decades of the 20th century. Exploring the "McBride Movement" L. Zassman (USA) examines the “Hegelian dialectic” inherent in this movement. According to the dialectics of Zassman himself, the opposites - the “old order” with its characteristic hegemony of the West (1946-1976) and the “new order”, which reflected the aspirations of the “third world” and the USSR (1976-1981), are “removed” in the new order, within the framework in which the terms of the game are dictated by technology that has combined the telephone, telefax, personal computer with satellite, fiber-optic and computer networks. A unique mechanism of self-regulation emerges: the state and competition restrain private commercial interests, and individual “small” media, in turn, prevent the formation of a state monopoly; Communication technologies provide everyone with access to information and expand the possibilities of cross-cultural interaction on a global scale.

At one time, the founders of UNESCO proposed that “the free circulation of ideas through words and images” be considered an essential factor in the development of cooperation between peoples. But, unfortunately, this principle was not feasible in the conditions of the Cold War. In connection with the changes in the international arena that occurred in the 1980s, UNESCO developed a new approach to the media, corresponding to the needs of the modern world and new democracies. In November 1989, a new communication strategy was unanimously adopted at the UNESCO General Conference, the purpose of which is “to ensure the free flow of information at the international as well as national levels and its wider and more balanced dissemination without any obstacles to freedom of expression.” UNESCO actively supports the actions of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations involved in the defense of fundamental freedoms: freedom of speech and freedom of the press. In 1990, UNESCO created the Culture and Communication Sector, working on 42 projects for developing countries, including professional training of journalists, assistance to young democracies in creating their own programs, publishing newspapers and magazines. The new communication strategy is to increase communication in democracies and developing countries.

With the emerging era of multimedia, UNESCO provides the international community with an arena where the capabilities and effectiveness of new means of communication and new information technologies can be tested. The goals that UNESCO sets in the field of distance learning and lifelong learning are high: education and training in the spirit of non-violence, tolerance, respect for human nature and international understanding. UNESCO and the International Telecommunication Union conducted a study of telecommunications tariffs - an important factor in the organization of the free flow of information, since in the case of high tariffs, modern information superhighways can be blocked. UNESCO contributed to the creation of the International Network for the Exchange of Information on Freedom of Expression, which enables Internet users to receive daily information about violations of press freedom and attacks on journalists.

There are other issues related to communication issues in UNESCO's activities: free access to information on markets, copyright protection, guarantees of independence that many publishers of electronic networks would like to have, forms of financing for the transfer of press archives to a digital system, etc. Freedom of dissemination of information is always associated with democratic processes in society. It is UNESCO, called upon to promote freedom of information, that makes every effort to ensure that this freedom finds its practical embodiment. At the same time, there are obstacles to the full and comprehensive provision of freedom of speech and freedom of the press caused by modern political realities. Among the scientific and practical tasks, the task of regulating information flows stands out, which in some cases is replaced by giving information a certain ideological and political character.

Since access to information anywhere in the world has become equally simple, world news began to be supplemented in the regions with local news, again in accordance with the forecasts of futurologists. This is how the phenomenon of regionalization of information arose in the presence of a global information space. This is facilitated by the boom of the “small press”, which is made possible by the advent of laser printing devices and desktop publishing systems.

The wide information flow, in fact, does not recognize state borders or censorship restrictions. In Egypt, for example, in cinema and television it is forbidden to film and show footage where Allah is represented in the form of a man, for it is not given to a mortal to know the essence of God. In the West, naturally, there are no such restrictions. Egyptian television viewers can easily watch programs from Western television stations What to do with the ban? It is obvious that we are faced with an urgent need to unify media legislation on an international scale.

The fashionable concept of a unipolar world, where the United States should play a leading role, fits very well into the current state of global communication processes. The United States is the only country that can dictate its terms to other countries in the area of ​​information dissemination. And not only because the United States produces the bulk of the information product. It is this country that has taken key positions on the information highways; it is the country that is purposefully and persistently promoting the idea of ​​a global information infrastructure, where it intends to take control of the dissemination of information on a global scale.

Information security is a multifaceted concept. It includes information security of the individual, society, state and planet as a whole. Information security is also an integral part of information support. When we talk about the right to information, we must remember about information security in all possible manifestations. Unfortunately, many issues of production, processing, storage and dissemination of information have not yet received not only legal regulation, but do not even have a sufficiently clear definition.

News agencies play a major role in creating a global information space. The bulk of information is disseminated by world agencies, primarily American ones. All world news agencies, including ITAR-TASS, actively participate in international information exchange and, to one degree or another, are engaged in foreign policy propaganda.

The widespread use of foreign information makes it possible to link together processes occurring many thousands of kilometers away from readers with their everyday needs, concerns, interests and fears. In the United States, long before September 11, 2001, many terrorist attacks occurred, and they were not committed by Islamic extremists (for example, the explosion in Oklahoma City). Therefore, attention to reports of manifestations of terrorism in the world was constant. And the media tried to satisfy this vital interest of readers, listeners and viewers.

The globalization of information has generated a number of consequences associated with the modernization of the world community's strategy for its dissemination. If the new international information and communication order assumed a certain counteraction to international press monopolies on the territory of a single country, now this is extremely difficult to implement technically, since satellite television, radio, the Internet and other new technologies make it possible to exert an information impact on recipients regardless of their distance from source of information dissemination. The combination of global information and regional interest makes media interventions more effective and efficient in shaping and manipulating public opinion. The active expansion of informationally developed countries into the media of Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet republics and developing countries is deepening the gap between rich and poor countries, creating a real threat to freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

The connection between modern foreign theories and concepts of journalism with more general doctrines of the socio-political organization of society, and those, in turn, with various philosophical theories, is obvious. Unfortunately, the hierarchy of the concepts “philosophical theory” - “socio-political doctrine” - “theory of journalism” - “concept” is broken in our time. Many foreign researchers, when presenting their views even on individual particular problems of journalism, proudly call their approach a theory.

It should be taken into account that in reference and research literature the interpretation of theory is accepted as a set of views, ideas, ideas aimed at interpreting and explaining a phenomenon. In a narrower and more specialized sense, theory is “the highest, most developed form of organization of scientific knowledge, giving a holistic idea of ​​the patterns and essential connections of a certain area of ​​reality - the object of a given theory.”

Throughout the XX - at the beginning of the XXI century. Several dozen, if not hundreds of theories of journalism and mass communications (doctrines that explain the principles of functioning of the mass media) have appeared. Their detailed description requires a separate serious study. In order to get a general idea of ​​the current areas of research, we will combine a number of the most well-known concepts into groups and give them a brief description.

One of the possible approaches to classifying concepts is their conditional division into applied and theoretical.

Applied concepts involve explaining the specifics of presenting information and developing new methods of journalistic activity. They usually describe phenomena that have already found application in the media. Some of them are discussed above.

In the 1970s A significant place in the work of American researchers was occupied by the development of a number of areas that appeared in practical journalism. Among them are investigative, precision (or ultra-precise), new journalism, etc.

The term investigative journalism became widespread in the United States during the Watergate scandal (1972-1974), especially after the publication of a book by two Washington Post reporters. K. Bernstein And B. Woodworth "All the President's Men." Considering themselves followers of the macrackers (“muckrakers”) of the beginning of the century, supporters of investigative journalism strive to expose all kinds of abuses by individuals and organizations, to reveal illegal and immoral actions and deeds that those responsible are trying in every possible way to hide from public attention.

The term precision journalism comes from the title of a book by American researcher and former Washington correspondent for the Knight Newspapers newspaper association F. Meyer. Proponents of precision journalism proceed from the fact that traditional forms of collecting and processing journalistic information in the United States are outdated, do not meet the needs of today and do not create a real and objective picture of the modern world. They draw this conclusion based, in part, on the sharp decline in the American public's trust in media reports, as well as on the general moral crisis and crisis of spirit of American society after aggression in Vietnam and the Watergate scandal. It is proposed to widely use techniques and methods of sociology and other humanities to collect and process information. Traditional journalism, according to supporters of precision journalism, allows you to see only the tip of the iceberg, while the use of social science methods allows you to look into the very depths of events and phenomena.

If precision journalism proclaims accuracy and objectivity as its credo, then the followers of new journalism (1965-1975) openly advocate subjectivism, the inclusion in the material of the author’s opinion, mood, elements of artistic fiction, and narration from a third person. Representatives of the new journalism - T. Wolfe, G. Tal from, T. Capote, II. Mailer. Their new nonfiction was almost never published in newspapers, appearing more often in magazines such as Esquire, New York, Harpers, Atlantic, Rolling Stone, but mainly the new journalism was presented in the form of documentary books. By the mid-1970s. passions around new journalism began to wane. In practical journalism, this method turned out to be unacceptable due to the enormous preparatory work and the very large volume of the reports themselves.

T. Capote spent six years collecting material for his book “Ordinary Murder,” which is considered the first significant work of new journalism; G. Tal worked on the book “Respect Thy Father” from 1965 to 1971; H. Thompson spent a year and a half among gangs of teenagers to write the non-fiction book Hell's Angels: A Strange and Horrible Saga.

A large number of theoretical concepts explain the functioning of the media and the state of journalism in theoretical terms, summarizing the data obtained so-called empirically, experimentally.

The areas that have been developed in the past and continue to be developed now include sociological and concrete sociological concepts; approaches that explain the features of the involvement of the media in political processes; theories associated with the development of new information transmission technologies and many others.

One of the first researchers of mass communication in the USA was a famous journalist and political commentator Walter Lippman who can rightfully be attributed to those who represented the sociological movement. His book “Public Opinion” was published in 1922. He is credited with being the author of the theory of stereotyping. According to Lippman, journalists are almost entirely dependent on biased sources for their practical work. According to his reasoning, the news coincides with the truth only in a few special cases, such as the score of a baseball game or the statistical results of an election, i.e. when the event is absolutely certain and its results can be accurately measured. In more complex situations, journalistic reports, Lippman pointed out, fail to reveal or even point to the full truth about an event. Lippmann came to the pessimistic conclusion that if the public needed a more truthful interpretation of events, it should turn to other “institutions” rather than the press.

The most important and productive approach seems to be the analysis of phenomena in foreign media related to political processes. Back in the midst of World War II, in 1942, at the suggestion of Henry Luce, a Commission on Freedom of the Press was created, headed by the president of the University of Chicago R. M. Hutchins. Report of the Commission "Free and responsible press. General report on mass communication: newspapers, radio, cinema, magazines and books" published in 1947. Based on the findings of the Commission and drawing on codes of ethics of journalists and press practices, W. E. Hawking formulated the principles of the theory of social responsibility, highlighting professional ethics. The conclusions made by the Hutchins Commission became the basis for a detailed analysis of the functioning of the press in modern society. Famous American print theorists and historians, professors at the University of Illinois Fred Siebert, Theodore Peterson and project leader, professor at Stanford University Wilbur Schramm prepared and published a book "Four Theories of the Press" which has long been considered a classic abroad.

Among the theories analyzed by the authors, the problem of press responsibility found its solution in accordance with the social and political structures within which the media operated. The authoritarian concept established responsibility to the king, emperor, Fuhrer, and the state they personified. The theory of press freedom based on free will, or as the authors call it, libertarian theory, rejects this dependence, overthrows the concept of the press as an instrument of the state and asserts freedom from government control, moreover, it assumes the right of the press to control the government, acting as the "fourth power", independent from the three branches of the state structure. The theory of social responsibility of the press develops the libertarian line in relation to the new conditions of concentration and monopolization of the press, putting forward the ideas of a certain autonomy of the media from the owners, which allows taking into account the interests of society. This theory is based on the voluntary consent of owners and publishers to make concessions to journalists and society and to significantly limit their rights. Soviet communist theory develops an authoritarian approach to journalism as a tool and instrument in the hands of the communist party.

In the preface to the Russian edition of the above-mentioned book, Ya. N. Zasursky puts forward five approaches to criticizing the press and posing the problem of responsibility. So there is a responsibility:

• - before society, citizens;
• - by the state, which involves varying degrees of control by the state;
• - publisher, owner, and this is the owner’s right to manage the media in his economic, political or other interests;
• - profession, colleagues - opens the way to self-regulation of the media by journalists;
• - audience - readers, viewers, listeners.

Journalism reflects the diversity of the world. As the authors of the book “Four Theories of the Press” note, “the press always takes the form and color of the social and political structures within which it operates. In particular, the press reflects a system of social control through which relations between individuals and social institutions are regulated. According to In our opinion, understanding these aspects of society is the basis for any systematic understanding of the problem of the press."

In addition to these four theories of the press, there are a great many different concepts. The aforementioned book by Walter Lippmann, “Public Opinion,” raises the question of the relationship of the media to reality. In developing his concept, the author relied on the views of representatives of philosophical pragmatism W. James and D. Dewey. As is clear from W. Lippmann's book, with the help of information and people's interest in events at home and abroad, one can penetrate into the inner world of people and create a barrier to what “confuses them.” This was the beginning of the scientific study and practical application of the manipulative capabilities of the press.

Herbert Schiller identifies five main myths with which consciousness can be manipulated. It is a myth:

• - about individualism and personal choice;
• - about neutrality;
• - the unchangeable nature of man;
• - about the absence of social conflicts;
• - about media pluralism. Gerhard Gleissberg in the work "About concentration of the press and manipulation of public opinion" notes that “concentration of print improves and simplifies the conditions for processing consciousness, allowing it to be carried out more purposefully, more completely and effectively.” Ben Bagdikyan has repeatedly drawn attention to this phenomenon.

There are many concepts that consider practical journalism from these positions. So, at the beginning of the 20th century. In the USA, the theory of the magic bullet arose in the wake of the spread of cinema, which saw the boundless power of magical penetration “into the eyes and ears” of viewers and subordination of them to the ideas, images and lifestyles of movie characters. The magic bullet theory is often combined with the injection theory, which compares the impact of the media on the audience with the instantaneous effect of subcutaneous injections, asserts the direct impact of the media on the audience, ignoring its age, cultural, demographic and other characteristics. Recently, this theory has been almost completely rejected in communication science, based on data from the latest content analyzes studying receptive models in information processes. Modeling theory states that many modern people model their lives, the way they dress, speak, behave at home and at work, and choose forms of solving their problems, imitating the models presented to them in the media. The emphasis is placed on the mass adoption of new trends in fashion, which combines the theory of modeling with the theory of adaptation to innovations. By focusing on the effects of modeling and adaptation processes, both theories help to study the nature and types of media influence on social mores and culture. The accumulation theory, developed on the basis of long-term research into the influence of the media on the views, tastes and behavior of the audience, seems interesting. It is argued that the power of media influence is formed and grows due to an increase in the cumulative result of constant, even small, but day after day repeated exposure to information disseminated through mass media channels and persistently instilling the same opinions and images. Over time, all this accumulates and results in a powerful stream of profound influence on the entire society and the entire culture. The diffusion theory calls for a thorough study of the ways and forms of media influence on the mass audience. It is assumed that at the first stage, information coming from the media is recorded in the opinions of competent, respected people in society - opinion leaders. At the second stage, it passes to other consumers. The concept of a two-stage information flow was first put forward by P. Lazarsfeld and B. Berelson. It was supplemented by other researchers who wanted to take into account not only the individual characteristics of the perception of information in different people, but also the context that is formed during interpersonal contacts.

Some researchers, rejecting the concept of manipulation, highlight it in the activities of the press communicative function. Most often, they note the role of the media in top-down and bottom-up communications, as well as horizontally. This was especially evident in relation to special publications in line with doctrines of human relations in industry, one of the founders of which is Elton Mayo. Within the framework of the separate enterprise that occupied him mainly, Mayo did not believe in establishing harmony without special measures, especially of a psychological nature. In a number of cases Mayo was based on the views George Keynes and neo-Keynesians.

For a number of countries, the problem of increasing psychologization of agitation and propaganda has become a pressing issue. Walter Lippmann's thesis that people react differently to the same message forced sociopsychologists to pay special attention to finding ways to use this phenomenon in the practice of mass communications. Thus, the American researcher M. Defler proposed theory of individual differences based on the fact that any message causes a flow of impressions and opinions. Hence a purely practical task arose: to bring this flow into a system that would be able to increase the effectiveness of its impact on the audience. It was from these positions that the prominent American sociopsychologist subsequently approached the problems of information influence Harold Lasswell. Lasswell's concept was at one time directed against sociology of knowledge, widespread in Western European countries. Its representatives tried to understand why the same word in the mouths of people of different social status takes on completely different meanings. P. S. Gurevich This is how he interprets the words of a prominent representative of the sociology of knowledge K. Mannheim: "When in early XIX V. a conservative of the old sense, explained K. Mannheim, spoke about freedom, then he understood by this the right of each class to live in accordance with the privileges given to it ("freedoms"). A representative of the romantic-conservative movement understood freedom as the individual’s right to live at his own discretion. The liberal, speaking about this, meant freedom from those privileges that the conservative valued." K. Mannheim and his followers believed that it is not material social contradictions, but their ideal reflection, the antagonism of ideas, ways of thinking, and worldviews that are the cause of social conflicts .

The concept of G. Lasswell and created by him mass communication theory from the very beginning, we proceeded from the fact that studying the social role of the ideologist or the very idea put forward by him does not provide a complete picture of the mass information processes occurring in society. It is necessary to supplement the consideration of the social conditionality of cognition and the role of the ideologist with an analysis of the spontaneously emerging consciousness that opposes formalized ideological doctrines. Therefore, G. Lasswell considered it especially important to consider the so-called “real,” “practical,” “mass,” “diffused” consciousness. This is the difference between the theory of mass communication and the European sociology of knowledge. Social contradictions, Lasswell believed, are generated by the uneven distribution of information, therefore the principle of “equal education” should help individuals with different specialties, different levels of professional and technical knowledge, come to understanding and agreement on problems affecting the world as a whole, for the goal of a democratic society is equal enlightenment of the expert, leader and citizen.

Be "fourth estate" the press can only do so in a truly democratic society, where the people take part in the political process and can actively influence the information disseminated. French press researcher Jean-Louis Servan-Schreiber in the book "The power of information" noted, in particular, that the creation of the technical basis of modern media and “the collapse of authoritarian kingdoms and empires made freedom of expression everywhere into fashion - if not in force. Thus, the entire set of material and political conditions for an explosion in the field of information was finally ripe and a revolution took place in the way people think and act."

The media, using human rights and freedoms, themselves establish a dictatorship. This is exactly how J. Mermet evaluates the omnipotence of the press and its ability to manipulate public opinion, introducing the term "democracy". Control over information processes creates, according to F.-A. de Virieux, mediacracy. He, in particular, notes that in a mediacracy, the people remain sovereign, but their role changes: it is not their voice that becomes significant election campaign, but his opinion. “Triangles” are formed in society: “government - mass media - public opinion”, “knowledge - mass media - students”, etc. Nowadays, the theory is being actively developed "information society" put forward by E. Toffler.

Understanding the press as a powerful weapon of social and class struggle, Marxist media scholars expand its functions, including among the latter education, dissemination of scientific knowledge, development of culture, formation of a worldview, and management of society. The well-known provisions about the open partisanship of the press, that the newspaper is not only a collective propagandist and agitator, but also a collective organizer, allow us to analyze quite deeply the relationship between the press, political institutions and political processes. Open partisanship, and therefore the ideological orientation of the press, radio and television, expresses the interests of certain classes and social groups, is the result and political expression of social class contradictions, and is inextricably linked with the activities of political parties. Objective partisanship is the result of consistency, monism in the knowledge of truth. The Marxist doctrine of the three forms of class struggle (economic, political and ideological) openly recognizes the participation of the media in all forms of class struggle, especially ideological ones.

In Western countries, the closest attention is paid to the study specific social functions of the press. The applied significance of such studies is extremely high, since they provide an undoubted practical solution, especially when studying high-quality newspapers. According to the American journalism theorist W. Schramm, quality newspapers attract “influential readers with the breadth and depth of coverage and tend to take an independent and even critical position in relation to the government. Their policies are not controlled by any central authority, and they serve rather as observers and critics of their governments than their representatives." A major specialist in the field of quality printing J. Merrill pays special attention to the content of quality publications as one of the main characteristics. These publications seem to Merrill to be more concerned with the future, with tomorrow's consequences of today's events. They have the ability to anticipate and predict due to their interest and awareness.

Specific sociological studies of the press make it possible to increase the effectiveness of press statements and to find the most important links in the chain of forming and managing public opinion. As researchers note, in general, the process of formation and change of an individual’s political views, the process of political socialization occurs in two forms - direct and indirect. Direct form of political socialization includes such aspects as imitation, political education, in particular under the influence of the media, political experience. Indirect forms of political socialization include interpersonal communication, participation in various non-political organizations and movements, generalization - the transfer to political objects and processes of relationships developed towards other values, norms and phenomena of social life.

Sociological direction submitted by English author D. McQuailo who studied the press as a social institution. He paid special attention to the problem of media content and their impact on the audience. McQuail's works largely overlap with research carried out by American scientists working in the mainstream of American sociological theory. The functional method has had a serious influence on conceptual developments in the field of sociological theory of mass communications T. Parsons. Major American sociologists P. Lazarsfeld And R. Merton come to the conclusion that the main groups of power, the main place among which is organized business, come to use methods of manipulating the masses through propaganda instead of more direct means of control.

Those who control views and beliefs in our society resort less to physical violence and more to mass persuasion. Radio programs and advertisements take the place of intimidation and violence.

Studies of individual media problems lead to other conclusions. So, J. Tunstell came up with the concept of “press deregulation.” Its essence boils down to the following. Since in many countries the press is increasingly entering into market relations, the supply and demand for such special goods as newspapers and magazines, radio and television programs, etc., begin to act instead of state and other official regulators. Market mechanisms control the content of information. Close to it is the theory of self-reproduction, which represents society in the form of the continuous existence of self-regulating and self-creating subsystems that have their own information connections with the environment. This determines the decentralization of public structures and their lack of communication regarding general environmental problems. Connections between various social subsystems and the environment are carried out through not general, but specific discourses and codes for each subsystem. In economic subsystems, for example, prices are codes, and all communications depend on the language of prices. Critics of this theory consider it pessimistic, instilling disbelief in the collective intelligence needed to solve global environmental problems through the media, and discrediting their social nature and significance.

Since the early 40s. XX century In the study of mass communication, a concrete sociological approach is gaining popularity - analysis of the content of information channels and systematic public opinion polls.

P. Lazarsfeld, B. Berelson and E. Gaudet conducted a study in Eyre County, Ohio in 1940, the purpose of which was to study the propaganda effect of the media on the decision of voters in a typical congressional district to vote for a particular candidate in the 1940 presidential election. 600 people were selected for the study. The researchers argued that on average during the election campaign the number of people who received primary information from other people, i.e. as a result of informal communication, approximately 10% exceeded the number of people exposed directly to the media. This led them to the conclusion that the dissemination of information passes through two main stages: from the media to a relatively narrow circle of well-educated and informed individuals and from them - as a result of informal or interpersonal communication - to the bulk of individuals who have less access to the media and depending on other people for information.

Thus was born the theory of a two-stage flow of communication, which at one time became widespread, dividing members of society into leaders of public opinion and a passive mass of recipients (managers and managed).

The so-called “gatekeeper” concept, put forward back in 1947 in the works of a sociopsychologist, is interesting and practically significant Kurt Lewin. The gatekeeper editor has the following functions:

• - creative (all journalists in the editorial office write, but the selection is carried out by the manager - as a rule, the executive secretary);
• - there is a “gatekeeper” in the writer himself: everyone knows from experience what can be allowed into print and what cannot;
• - the functions of a “gatekeeper” are performed by external censorship bodies;
• - the press orients the masses in the information flow, controls them, educates them.

The theory of press curation, which is close to the “gatekeeper” concept, argues that most news in the press is programmed to be selective in nature, since both topics and problems, before they become available to readers, are carefully screened out and distributed in accordance with the degree of importance in the newspaper and magazine space that is intended for them.

The theory of “stereotype capsules” states that the media can disseminate standardized imaginary ideas about life and culture, forming from them models of behavior, morals, values, and social opportunities. In the research of representatives of the Annenberg School, this is proven by analyzing the processes of creating images and their inculturation in the mass audience. A concept has emerged therapeutic needs satisfaction, according to which, in order to study the audience’s reaction to the information received, it is necessary to find out what motivates it to turn to the media, what types of satisfaction of its desires it expects. Various motives, goals, and needs are identified - escape from routine and the burden of life situations, the search for emotional release or a distracting non-chemical painkiller (it is no coincidence that, according to this concept, hospitals have radio and television installations). Other possible options cannot be ruled out.

The combination of different approaches to the study of foreign media gives the so-called medialogy as the newest direction in the scientific study of mass communication. Journalism is a synthetic discipline. Of course, journalism has its own unique principles and methods of analysis and synthesis, but it also uses the methodology of all sciences with which it interacts.

The many theories and concepts of the development of journalism are due to the multiplicity of approaches to its functions. At the same time, attempts are being made to create a comprehensive theory. This, for example, can be considered a theory for communications in the 21st century, which is the goal of multidisciplinary research. The main direction of work is identifying the opportunities and consequences of the influence of new information technologies on society, culture and the fate of journalism. Research participants study many pressing problems of the transition stage on the way to an information and network society.

As L. M. Zemlyanova notes, “the similarity is manifested in the recognition of the positive impact of new electronic media to develop high-speed multilateral connections between different spheres of social and cultural life of countries and regions, to create prerequisites for improving its quality, democratization and informatization. Discrepancies are discovered when trying to identify and resolve specific social contradictions of the transition stage and in the search for “rational-critical media policy” in the context of the development of new information technologies. In contrast to researchers who are carried away by the rhetoric of euphoric glorification of these technologies, analysts who avoid technological determinism recognize the need for a more sober approach to the merits of new technology, the introduction of which is associated with such complex social problems as inaccessibility for low-income and poorly educated people, for underdeveloped areas and states ".

As we can see, in the everyday practice of journalism, many theories and concepts are used, and they are in mutual influence and interpenetration.

Conclusions. In the difficult conditions of the modern world and the globalization of the information space, theories and concepts of journalism and mass communication play an important guiding role. The globalization of information has led to the modernization of the world community's strategy for its dissemination. If the new international information and communication order presupposed a certain counteraction to international press monopolies on the territory of a single country, now it is technically extremely difficult to implement this, since satellite television, radio, the Internet and other new technologies make it possible to exert an information impact on recipients regardless of their distance from source of information dissemination. The combination of global information and regional interest makes media interventions more effective and efficient in shaping and manipulating public opinion. The active expansion of informationally developed countries into the media of Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet republics and developing countries is deepening the gap between rich and poor countries, creating a threat to freedom of speech and freedom of the press.