Enhancing Democracy Through Digital Communication Systems Media Essay

Enhancing Democracy Through Digital Communication Systems Media EssayIn this essay, I aim to discuss whether the digital chat systems bring up state by offering greater access and betrothal to citizens as compargond to conventionalistic media. I go out address this by defining the terms digital communication systems and body politic and exploring the differences in digital communication systems and conventional media and how these differences fall to enhancement of democracy on digital communication systems.Digital communication systems excessively known as network communication or bargon-ass media simply refers to a constant reformulation of the relations between the media forms, interconnecting interpersonal communications established between different media in a network base on the interactions between users, mass media companies and, perhaps, regulators (Cardoso, 2011 119). The digital communication system, as the put up suggests, makes use of digital technology a nd devices and comprises of the meshwork, brisk communications, and social media and so on.As compared to traditional media, much(prenominal) as the newspaper, radio and television, digital media offers more opportunities of democracy as it nominates greater accessibility and allows for more participation by consumers.The arriver of social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and early(a)s changed the Internet (Cardoso, 2011 131). These social platforms mystify the nigh continue on how digital communication systems enhance democracy.ENHANCING majority rule by means of DIGITAL COMMUNICATION SYSTEMSFirstly, content flow is less controlled everywhere the Internet as compared to traditional media. Traditional media is still largely regulated by the state and/or media owners. Depending on the country, the media institution may be governed by the state or by private media owners. The owners of the institution direct the grammatical case of news that is carryed. Simpl y put within a specific hoary medium, people do not have many choices (Wei and Hindman, 2011 220)An representative would be the direction taken by media in Singapore.The media organisation in Singapore, MediaCorp, is have by the political sympathies and therefore, media is heavily regulated and news published will either be so-so(p) or in favour of the Government. not just with news, the types of programmes aired by MediaCorp are more conservative and lie towards the Government (Seow, 1998 183 194). Only through the Web are citizens sufficient to put forward their views on the Government and its policies and receive and collect more diverse opinions from consort citizens and not just a one-sided direction by the traditional media.With digital media, content on the Internet is avail fit to almost everyone and anyone. in that location are limitations and regulations on the Web when it comes to content sourcing, however, with the advancement of technology it is soft accompli sh able-bodied to get round that limitation and regulation. (Jin, 2011 42) According to Bonfadelli, Wei and Hindman states that in severalize to traditional mass media, the new media such as the Internet provide much more diverse content and an unprecedented level of user controllability. The content supply on the Internet is not structured by journalists and is, therefore, heterogeneous and potentially unlimited (Wei and Hindman, 2011 220).Jin obtains an example of the criminal conviction of Conrad sinister. As one of the most influential controllers of the global commercial media system, the conviction of Black confirms that people should not place all their trust in the mainstream media (Jin, 2011 43) He explains that there is a need for the audition to produce alternative culture sources and platforms for expression of their opinions. Only then will society be able to expand the avenues within interactive social networking and communication (Jin, 2011 43).All the audience needs is a click of the stillton on their laptops or mobile phones and news and training will be readily available for consumption. A citizen from Australia can find out about happenings in Africa and be able to obtain viewpoints from different sources, and not just the one perspective that traditional media provides, all while on-the-go or from the comfort of his house.Secondly, audience participation helps enhance democracy as it bewilders more active with the development of social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube as well as with the growth of blogs and forums. Consumers interact on these sites and get almost instantaneous response. The popularity of these sites also gives rise to citizen journalism, whereby the consumers become the producers, putting their content whether its their view on an issue or an superior work of theirs onto the Web. The intent of this citizen participation is to provide independent, reliable, accurate, widespread and appropria te discipline that is required to strengthen the democracy (Riaz and Pasha, 2011 90) All these forms of audience participation give voice to the issues of the land.The digital communication systems can have semipolitical impact on a country as well. A countrys laws and policies can be shaped as the citizens use of digital communications system changes. For example, around individuals and parties have taken to the Web for their presidential elections, such as the jibe Obamas presidential campaign. Obamas successful online strategy in 2008, with the use of social networking sites cut Obama winning the election to becoming the chair of the United States. With the elections on-going in the states now, President Obama has taken to social media again Reddit in particular. This time, Mitt Romney followed suit, taking over Twitter to gain foothold. Social media makes it easier for candidates to interact with the citizens and vice versa.Global Voices Online is an example of how audie nce participation online encourages democracy. According to its website, Global Voice seeks to aggregate, curate and cast up the global conversation online shining light on places and people other media often ignore. We work to develop tools, institutions and relationships that will help all voices, everywhere, to be heard (Global Voice, 2011). Global Voices Online acts as a platform for free, diverse and neutral voices (Riaz and Pasha, 2011 90) and having more voices in the public arena can add to a more lively democracy (Riaz and Pasha, 2011 93).These multimedia platforms have enabled new ship canal of bearing witness through technology and the ability to create media events trounce issues of aesthetics, cognitive distance or proximity as well as our ability to empathize and relate to human suffering (Jin, 2011 124).This differs from traditional media where feedback and a consumers voice can only be heard if the media institution decides to broadcast it. Therefore, even traditi onal media institutions have jumped onto the Internet and social media bandwagon, inheriting the smell that it is important to keep abreast with of whats going on in the world so as to be not caught off-guard and be able to move accordingly (Cardoso, 2011 120)Thirdly, the intercreative possibilities of social Web practices are leading to different kinds of representations and constructions of honor (Boler, 2008 6). Boler explains the statement using the Persian Gulf War in 1991 as an example. She explains that one could not evidence the deceptions of television news spin intimately as public archives could not be made, but now, information and sometimes, videos are easily accessible off the Internet that consumers now are able to easily determine what is factual and what is not.Consumers now demand and acquit the truth. With the reach and accessibility of digital communications, political, education and the other institutions are pressured into doing the rightfield thing and m edia institutions are pressured to report the truth. This is because citizen journalists have wrecked the stories about political rot, police violence and other concerning issues to local and international communities (Riaz and Pasha, 2011 92). It has become harder for the media, Government and any other corporations to get away when injustice has been done by them. An example would be China.After the Sichuan earthquake in 2008, China experience an unprecedented openness in its media coverage (BBC News, 2008). Citizen journalism started flourishing as the Chinese media (were) instructed not to cover this kind of baloney, and a member of BBC and basketball team other journalists were detained for a short time for approaching the parents (BBC News, 2008). This kind of story referring to articles on local corruption resulting in shoddy construction (BBC News, 2008). Unless a valid explanation was provided by the Chinese Government, talk on corruption causing the death of 87,000 cit izens will not disappear. The Chinese Government then went to the extreme by sentencing activists who were investigating the cause of collapsing buildings to jail. The Chinese media might have avoided reporting on corruption and the cause of collapsed buildings, but it was not possible to stop citizen journalism from spreading wish well wildfire.DIGITAL COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS AGAINST DEMOCRACYThe Internet could also become a double-edged sword as the freedom on the Web leads to misuse of the freedom and of the technology. As content become increasingly available to the public, piracy and copyright has become a major concern. The public now has free access to information and enjoyment that previously had to be paid for. Now that its free, would the consumers want to pay for it? They do not, which is what led to the drastic increase in consumers downloading songs, videos and even e-books online through sites like LimeWire.In situations like this, the Internet does not enhance democra cy but instead, undermines the value of the work by the original owner.CONCLUSIONThe digital communication systems have greatly impacted not just the media industry, but also on education, politics, cultural and social aspects. The consumers rely on the media to separate facts and transparent realities from assumptions and spin, to provide a reliable account of what is really going on (Hettiarachchi, 2011). Only with an unbiased and factual report will the consumers be able to form their own viewpoint. With less regulated content flow, audience participation on social media and the constant demand for truth, digital communication systems are increasingly enhancing democracy as compared to traditional media.