Media construction of reality represenation of Old People and Old

Media construction of reality represenation of Old People and Old

Media construction of reality
represenation of Old People and Old
Age in the Czech Media
Mgr. Renáta Sedláková, Ph.D.
[email protected]
Department of journalism Palacký University in Olomouc
Mgr. Lucie Vidovićová, Ph.D.
[email protected]
Research Institute for Labour and Social Affairs
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
REASONS FOR RESEARCH
• demographic changes:
ageing of the Czech/EU
population
• age as a social construct
• media as key agents
participating on the
proces of the social
construction of reality
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
MEDIA CONSTRUCTION OF REALITY
Media are:
the main source of knowledge about outer
world. Their power is especially in the cases about
which we do not have our own experiences.
"Here may lie the most important effect of mass
communication, its ability to mentally order and organize
our world for us. In short, the mass media may not be
successful in telling us what to think, but they are
stunningly successful in telling us what to think about"
[Shaw & McCombs 1977].
•
•
representation of reality in the media
representation of the Others in the media
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
… why media really matter…
»”But why such old ladies? And why such cruel
attacks,” not just the judge but also the associate
justice asked.
“Old people are trustful and inattentive. I learned
from the media how easily they could be deceived,”
the monstrous human explained how his long series
of crimes had started.«
(Blesk 14. 7. 2004, p. 6)
media representation as a self-fulfilling prophecy
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
MEDIA:
• do not reflect reality, but create it - theory of
media construction of reality (agenda
setting,topic selection)
• create images
• (re)produce stereotypes
• ascribe meaning to: people, events
have the power to
exclude or include social
groups and individuals
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2 waves of research – year 2004 and 2008
- analysis of printed media – nationwide dailies: Mladá fronta Dnes,
Právo, Lidové noviny, Hospodářské noviny, Blesk + Aha, Šíp
(cca 18 000 articles)
- analysis of the main news services of nationwide television channels:
Czech television (public service broadcaster) - Události
Nova (commercial) - Televizní noviny
Prima (commercial) – Deník
(cca 700 pieces of news)
- content analysis + interpretative sociological reading
- key words: senior, seniors, pension, (male/female) pensioner, retirement,
retired person, old age, old aged people, old, old woman, old man, elderly,
elderly person, grandmother, grandfather.
- only transcriptions (written part) of the news (without visual part of the
news and pictures)
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
Quantity of news issued in 2004 and 2008
UNDERREPRESENTATION
count
2004
television news
261
dailies
cca
7500
50 %
2008
66 % 435
cca
10000
J. Hartley: myth of marginality – coverage which overrides
complexity of the life of minorities and starves for the news
from mainstream society;
simplyfication, generalization and positioning to the margin of
the society
increasing coverage of minorities does not mean
simultaneously their understanding
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
Share of messages by media type
Newspapers/televisions
Mladá fronta Dnes (top readed)
Blesk (tabloid)
Právo
Hospodářské noviny (quality press, economy oriented)
Lidové noviny
Aha (tabloid)
Šíp (tabloid)
2004
72%
13%
9%
5%
1%
2008
55%
6%
17%
6%
9%
3%
3%
Count 100 % of articles
7500
10 000
Nova - Televizní noviny (commercial)
Prima – Deník (commercial)
ČT1 – Události (public service)
39%
32%
29%
25%
33%
43%
Count 100 % of news
261
435
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
Significance of the article
Old people and old age as:
NEWSPAPER (%)
Aha
Blesk
Šíp
Hospodářské noviny
Lidové noviny
Mladá fronta
Právo
MAIN
THEME
29
15
27
20
22
17
21
count
20 %
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SECONDARY MENTIONED
THEME
THEME
26
45
50
35
42
31
24
56
24
54
26
56
34
44
30 %
50 %
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
Thematic frames of printed articles
Topic
2004
Economy
34%
62%
Crime
28%
Life story
8%
Culture
8%
Social work
7%
Health
4%
Demography
2%
Politics
2%
Housing
1%
Other
1%
Topic
2008
Economy
22%
Politics
22%
64%
Crime
20%
Social politics and social work
13%
Leasure time
9%
Life story
7%
Health
5%
Culture
5%
Housing
4%
Other
6%
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
Thematic frames of television news
téma/rok
1. Crime
2004
78%
téma
2008
64%
38%
1.
Politics
2. Political economy
28%
2.
Crime
18%
3. Tragedy
12%
3.
Ekonomy
16%
4. Life story
9%
4.
Life story
11%
5. Social work
6%
5.
Tragedy
7%
6. Culture
2%
6.
Social work
5%
7. Health
2%
7.
Culture
4%
8. Demography
1%
8.
Housing
3%
9.
Health
3%
Other
3%
Other
1%
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30%
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
What is not mentioned/presented:
John Hartley: for analysis of representation of any
event/person or group is also very important what is
not presented – what remains hidden?
ageism, discrimination
everyday life
heterogeneity within the group of older people
realised activities
feminization of old age
intergenerational relations
domestic violence
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
CRIME
Old people as victims of crimes
defenceless, lonely, trustful grandmams
kind-hearted granies and grandadies
„Hasiči je považují za podvodníky a varují před nimi hlavně důvěřivé
důchodce.“
ČT1 28.1.2008
Old people as ofenders or accused of crimes
trafic accident, curious crimes: shouting, growing
marihuana, maltreat of annimals and people
„Po chvíli se rozzuřený důchodce dostal od slov k činům. Domů si došel
pro plynovou pistoli.“
NOVA 9.4.2008
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Kam zmizela demografická panika?
fenomén veřejně artikulovaných obav z budoucího vývoje společností
na základě měnící se demografické struktury jejich populace, který
vychází z předpokladu, že společnost ztratí svůj blahobyt, dojde-li k
(Walker 2002, Bytheway 1995)
zestárnutí její věkové struktury.
morální panika - postup, kterým média přispívají k sociální
stigmatizaci či exkluzi skupin/jedinců, jež sama nejprve označila jako
deviantní/nebezpečné („my“ vs. „oni“)
(Cohen 1967)
»V roce 2050 se Česko změní v zemi důchodců«
NOVA 8. 1. 2004
Ačkoli byla v roce 2008 schválena novela
důchodové reformy, včetně posunutí hranice vstupu do
důchodu do vyššího věku, televize ve zpravodajství
demografické změny české populace v této souvislosti
netematizovala.
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
INFOTEINMENT
INFORMATION + ENTERTAINMENT
Language: key tool of construction of reality – power
feature of significantion of the Others -> social exclusion
„Pro zloděje jsou totiž důchodci snadnou kořistí.“
PRIMA 22.1.2008
not neutral emotive symptomatic significations
„…spousta babiček z domova důchodců posílaly napletený bačkůrky.“
ČT1 5.9.2008
„Sedmdesáti sedmiletá babička byla podchlazená, ale komunikovala.“
ČT1 29.1.2008
dramatization
„… poplatky definitivně znemožní těmto lidem důstojný život.“
NOVA 10.2.2008
impact on emotions and personalization
„Jen krůček od smrti byla sedmapadesátiletá invalidní důchodkyně z
Karlových Varů. Bála se, jít k lékaři.“
NOVA 15.1.2008
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
DOES AGE MATTER?
• Nicola Smith (man) hurt in a car accident.
• George Smith (Romany) hurt in a car
accident.
• Mary Smith (68) hurt in a car accident.
Journalists tend to overuse indication
of chronological age of the actors of
presented events.
Age quoted also in irrelevant cases.
Multiplication of status.
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
BASIC FINDINGS:
old people and old age topics are still marginal in media;
Information presented from the majority point of view;
older people are used as commentators of specific
events (ekonomic crisis, price raising, rental regulation) and
mentioned as primary endangered group
(e.g. of health risks)
„Ekologická reforma se dotkne stovek tisíc lidí. … Nejvíce poškozeni budou
důchodci.“
ČT1: 6.1.2008
„Senioři jsou tedy nemoci vydáni stále na pospas.“
PRIMA 25.1.2008
active older people (e.g. celebrities, artists) presented and
celebrated as an exception:
„No a teď vám ukážeme slíbeného muže, jehož vitalitu mu můžeme všichni
skutečně jen závidět, Je mu neuvěřitelných sto jedna let a poslouchejte dobře,
příští měsíc v Londýně poběží maraton.“
NOVA 13.3.2008
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
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In comparision with the year 2004:
- increase of articles (Právo, Lidové noviny and ČT)
- widening of spectra of thematic frames of presented
news; more attention devoted to social politics and social
work and news about daily events, but still a quarter of
news about crimes
- decline of infantilization, patronizing and elderspeak
- decline of news about demography
- emerge little difference between commercial media and
media of public service and quality press
=> SIMPLYFYING IMAGE WITH FEATURES
REFERRING TO MYTHS OF OLD AGE AND
STEREOTYPES: old + poor + trustful and endangered
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009
„Takhle nějak vypadá
všední den českého
důchodce. Ráno vstane,
nasnídá se. Koukne na
seriál, uvaří oběd a pak si
trochu odpočine. … Pak
procházka nebo nákup.
Večer zase televize. Jinou
možnost stejně jako dalších
více než dva miliony
českých důchodců v
podstatě nemá. Chybí vyžití
a taky peníze.“ PRIMA 2.3.2008
Thank you for your attention.
European Conference on Dignity and Hazard in the Elderly
Prague 25.-26.5.2009