Traditional news media such as newspapers, radio, and television have long played an essential role in American society by reporting on current events, investigating issues, and providing information to citizens. However, the rise of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube has transformed how news and information are consumed and shared. Traditional and social media play important but distinct roles in contemporary American life.
The Role of Traditional News Media
Traditional news outlets like The New York Times, CNN, and NPR remain vital sources of original reporting and journalism. Their staff of professional reporters and fact-checkers works to provide accurate, objective information on events of public interest. Traditionally, journalists followed ethical standards like confirming facts, getting multiple perspectives, and avoiding bias (Mitchell et al., 2020). Editors at news organizations filtered stories and verified quality before publication. This system helped ensure that citizens received factual, trustworthy news. While some criticize traditional media for alleged partisan bias, most mainstream outlets still adhere to basic journalistic principles. Their skilled reporters deliver vital local, national, and international news. Legacy media, like major newspapers and TV networks, have retained authority and large audiences despite economic struggles and the rise of new media (Mitchell et al., 2020). Traditional news, therefore, plays an essential role in American democracy by informing citizens, holding leaders accountable, and enabling reasoned public discourse.
Role of Social Media
Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter have enabled rapid, global sharing of news and information by ordinary users. Billions of people worldwide now get news and exchange ideas on social networks. Uploading text, images, or videos takes seconds. Social media facilitates instant communication and access to diverse opinions (Mitchell et al., 2020). Compelling content can spread rapidly through shares and likes and influence public debate. However, social media differs fundamentally from traditional media. Professional standards like editorial oversight and fact-checking are absent. Social networks are platforms for users to post anything, regardless of accuracy or quality. Questionable claims and fake news often go viral. Social media algorithms elevate content based on engagement, not importance or truthfulness. Critics argue that this can distort public discourse and spread misinformation. While social media expands citizens’ access to information, it also requires greater individual responsibility (Helberger, 2021). Users must critically evaluate sources rather than assume credibility. Social media, therefore, represents a democratization of media production and consumption, for better or worse. Its decentralization provides new opportunities for community building, activism, and public discourse but also risks.
Media Responsibilities Regarding Accuracy
The news media provides citizens with accurate information to foster an informed public and functional democracy. Traditional outlets should uphold high journalistic standards, even amid economic pressures. Reporting should be factual, objective, and ethically sound (Helberger, 2021). News organizations must scrutinize their work, promptly correct errors, and avoid deceptive sensationalism that undermines credibility. However, the nature of social media makes responsibilities regarding accuracy less clear. Users can post unsupported claims, misinformation, and extreme views. Social platforms argue they are neutral conduits for user speech, not curators of content (Helberger, 2021). Legally, they are generally not liable for false information published by others. However, major platforms like Facebook and YouTube do moderate some problematic posts like threats, harassment, and nudity. Some believe they have an ethical obligation to do more by removing demonstrably false news and conspiracy theories. An example demonstrating the need for social media companies to do more is how viral anti-vaccine misinformation on sites like Facebook directly endangered public health amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Rather than treating these demonstrably dangerous falsehoods as protected speech, Facebook should have promptly added fact-checks and removed accounts spreading health lies, which evidence shows encourages vaccine avoidance. Social media sites also failed in their ethical duties in enabling outright lies and conspiracy theories to spread, challenging the legitimacy of the 2020 US presidential election. Twitter and Facebook only banned such misinformation months after the election. The viral spread of these baseless claims undermined U.S. democracy. Sites like YouTube should have demonetized and removed videos making false allegations of election fraud earlier.
In conclusion, while social platforms allow misinformation to spread, mandating truthfulness raises free speech concerns. Citizens must think critically about social media claims and get context from credible news sources. The news media must report responsibly. Individual users should also share thoughtfully and demand better from media and tech companies. With conscientiousness and vigilance, Americans can harness both traditional and social media for civic discourse and progress.
References
Helberger, N. (2021). On the democratic role of news recommenders. In Algorithms, Automation, and News (pp. 14-33). Routledge.
Mitchell, A., Jurkowitz, M., Oliphant, B., & Shearer, E. (2020). Americans Who Mainly Get Their News on Social Media Are Less Engaged and Less Knowledgeable. Pew Research Center. https://mediawell.ssrc.org/news-items/americans-who-mainly-get-their-news-on-social-media-are-less-engaged-less-knowledgeable-pew-research-center/
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