The Manipulation of Free Thought by Global Actors

Studienarbeit aus dem Jahr 2003 im Fachbereich BWL - Wirtschafts- und Sozialgeschichte, Note: bestanden, Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften Hamburg, Veranstaltung: Grundkonzepte von Kommunikationsprozessen, Sprache: Deutsch, Abstract: One of the most stated issues in news headlines in recent months was the offence of the United States of America against Iraq. People all over the world followed the history of mistrust and suspiciousness against the Arabic nation by member states of the United Nations' Security Council on television. No accusation has been proven by the United States down to the present day. But how comes that the larger part of the world stepped onto the side of the United States and supported war without a clear reason? This term paper is concerned with the effects of globalization on democratic values, the interrelation of politics and mass media, and the consequences on media's function as independent arbitrator and on any individual's freedom of thought. The aim of my term paper is to analyze the mechanisms in force which lead to readymade judgements for the majority of the population in Western societies. To proof my thesis I will carry out herein that the opinion of the world population is being manipulated backdoor by the foreign policy makers of the United States for the compliance with their values. Hence I provide the reader with an overview of the drivers of globalization and the subsequent development of international forces out of reach of democratic decision at the grass-roots level. The supremacy of Western oriented values within these global powers is highlighted. Then the news flow throughtout the world is discussed in detail and the roles of the media for society and its influence on the individual are presented. Human behaviour is evaluated in sociological terms. To conclude my term paper the relation between politics and media in conflict reporting is considered under a twofold model of secrecy versus domestic support.