Page 40 - An Introduction to Political Communication Fifth Edition

Intro to Politics Communication (5th edn)-p.qxp 9/2/11 10:55 Page 19

POLITICS, DEMOCRACY AND THE MEDIA

Figure 2.1 The public sphere.

• Second, they must educate as to the meaning and significance of the
‘facts’ (the importance of this function explains the seriousness with
which journalists protect their objectivity, since their value as educators
presumes a professional detachment from the issues being analysed).
• Third, the media must provide a platform for public political discourse,
facilitating the formation of ‘public opinion’, and feeding that opinion
back to the public from whence it came. This must include the provision
of space for the expression of dissent, without which the notion of
democratic consensus would be meaningless.
• The media’s fourth function is to give publicity to governmental and
political institutions – the ‘watchdog’ role of journalism, exemplified by
the performance of the US media during the Watergate episode and,
more recently, the British Guardian’s coverage of the cash-for-questions

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