Lecture to the Government Department's GV311 course on journalism and politics. History of relations between news media and politicians and reflections on the last UK Election. Plus consideration of news media role regarding Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party and its role in the EU referendum.

1. Journalism and Politics
Prof Charlie Beckett
GV311
Feb 2016

2. Media for democracy
• “…the information revolution makes possible for
the first time in history something we have only
dreamt about: A global society where people
anywhere and everywhere can discover their
shared values, communicate with each other and
do not need to meet or live next door to each
other to join together with people in other
countries in a single moral universe to bring
about change….”
• Gordon Brown 2008

3. Media against democracy
“It used to be thought – and I include myself in
this – that help was on the horizon. New
forms of communication would provide new
outlets to by-pass the increasingly shrill tenor
of traditional media. In fact, the new forms
can be even more pernicious, less balanced,
more intent on the latest conspiracy theory
multiplied by five”
Tony Blair Reuters ‘feral beasts’ speech 2007

4. What does journalism do for politics?
• Information
[facts, records, statistics, events,
policies]
• Deliberation
[debate, analysis, comment, opinion]
• Accountability
[investigation, audit, voice for
citizen, campaigns]

6. Different models of media and
democracy
• Western liberal mixed market (eg UK, USA,
Japan)
• State controlled (Saudi Arabia)
• ‘Liberation’ media (Cuba)
• Clientalism (Egypt, Tunisia)
• Party aligned (Italy, Taiwan)
• Oligarchical (Russia)

7. Mixed Media Market
• Newspapers (hard copy & online)
• Broadcasters (and online)
• Digital Natives (Buzzfeed, Vice etc)
• International (New York Times, RT, CNN, First
Look)
• ‘Non-journalist sources (PR, lobbyists,
Universities, corporations etc)
• Social networks & aggregators

8. History of political news: a battle
between journalists & power
• Inns of court
• Holborn printers
• Covent Garden
coffee houses
• Fleet Street national newsrooms
• Broadcasting – public and commercial
• Old Street – Tech City

9. The (politician’s) problem with political
journalism is..?
• Unaccountable power
• Bias
• Obsession with process
• Cynicism
• Lack of information
• Lack of expertise
• Loss of local press

10. The (journalist’s) problem with
political journalism is..?
• Lack of resources for (political) journalism
• Government secrecy
• Government and party spin and manipulation
• Disintermediation: increased role of social
networks & public relations

11. The (public’s) problem with
political journalism is..?
• Too complicated
• Too cynical
• Too belligerent, biased
• Too much process
• Boring
• Irrelevant – ‘Westminster
bubble’
• Too simplistic
• Not critical enough
• Too complicit – not radical
or committed enough
• Sensationalist
• Not informed enough about
realities of policy-making

12. Press power?

13. PR power?

14. LoL

15. Leveson’s verdict
• Politicians “developed too close a relationship
with the Press in a way which has not been in
the public interest’
• Regular political journalism was "in robust
good health and performing the vital public
interest functions in a vigorous democracy,"

17. Real problem is engagement, attention
& authenticity

18. Politicians
News
Media
Public

19. Political reporting is now networked
Media
Politicians
Citizens

20. What digital can do for democracy
• More information
• Citizen voice and
participation
• Media held to account
• Access to politicians
• Direct communication
(disintermediation)
• Information overload
• Faster
• More personal (filter
bubbles)
• More emotional
(personalities, anger)
• Manipulation,
misinformation

21. Filter bubbles now

22. Filter bubbles then?

23. More democratic?
“Journalism will continue to become more plural
in its forms, its functions, and its practitioners.
It will become more difficult to distinguish it
from advocacy political communications,
public relations alternative and participatory
civic information, personal commentary,
poplar culture and so on”
Dahlgren 2009

24. How did this….

25. …lead to this?

26. It was mainly this

27. Plus a lot of this

28. Though it wouldn’t work without this

29. Unique or a precedent?
• Rochester by-election – damage limitation
• Over-reaction by over-sensitive leader
• Toxic combination of anti-Labour blogger (who
works for) and anti-Labour newspaper
BUT
• Genuine problem with core vote perception
• Inevitable consequence of febrile networked
political media

36. Two current live experiments in
media power
• Corbyn’s Labour
• EU Referendum

38. A new kind of (anti-media) politics?

42. Contact me:
Prof Charlie Beckett
Polis, LSE
@CharlieBeckett
c.h.beckett@lse.ac.uk
Conference: April 21st