why not all protests are covered

David’s been complaining that we haven’t produced much output lately. He’s the one that pushes us to do things around here.

I kid you not.

My apologies, I have been away working on my essay for political communication. It was mainly a research on how protests/ protesters are framed in media accounts and why. So this piece today will be just a shorter summary of my findings. Actually it will be mostly talking about why some protests are reported while others are stifled.

 

Protests. Now here in Melbourne, the democratic right of protesting is pretty well-utilised. If your part-time job is being a pedestrian in the city, I am quite sure you would have come across at least one strikes/demonstrations/protests every month, normally around the State Library/Flinders St station/ Federation Square/ City Square.

So why does the mainstream media only report some of the protests, and not all. Why are the grievances of these dissidents never really heard by the wider public?

Well, the media determines the coverage of protests and movements using a set of preconceived news values that have evolved to respond to audience demands.

 The values relevant here include: 

1. Preference for dramatic, visible events 
2. Journalists’ reliance on authoritative sources.
   

 

1. DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA!

 The reason behind the focus of disruption/violence by the media is, as quoted by Sidney Tarrow:

A single student throwing a rock at a police line makes a better copy than any number of marches peacefully parading down a city street. In this way, the media “accentuate the militant strains found in any collection of activists”. In their search for novelty, the media can even assign a movement a violent or juvenile image, especially when television networks allow only as much footage as will fit on the evening news.

Hence, incorporating the disruption/violence/dramatic spectacle factor into a protest would significantly increase the chances of it getting covered.

 

2. RELIABILITY & CREDIBILITY

Compared to politically marginal groups, authorities and elites are more likely to be considered inherently newsworthy due to the assumptions about their potential for political impact, given their possession of higher levels of organization and resources. These resources include effective public relations, which increases a political actor’s ability to plan, execute and package information in ways that are easier to absorb by the media.

 So when there is an unequal political conflict, it is inevitable and predictable that journalists look up to authorities for ‘reliable’ and credible statements about the event. And the politically marginal are at severe disadvantage because most of the time they do not possess these resources.

 

Building on these values, I shall post an update on HOW TO GET YOUR PROTEST COVERED soon. Stay tuned!