Media Regulation

Media Regulation considers issues of morality and decency, accuracy of content and media ownership.

Media Regulation essay plan

Intro – Living in a ‘post-truth’ era (post-truth meaning an era where facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief)

o Core concept 1- What is Media Regulation?

Regulation = control of media content, ownership or distribution
Formal regulation (laws, government agencies)
Informal regulation (industry codes, social pressure)
Self-regulation
Co-regulation
State regulation

Key Questions

Who regulates media?
Why regulate media?
Does regulation protect citizens or restrict freedom?

o Core concept 2 - Freedom of Expression vs Harm

One of the most important essay debates.

Arguments for regulation

Prevent misinformation
Protect children
Reduce hate speech
Prevent exploitation

Arguments against regulation

Free speech
Creative freedom
Government overreach
Censorship concerns

o Censorship as part of regulation – Disney & Song of the South / Dumbo

- Should censorship occur / does it stop conversations about things like racism and the past that we need to teach younger generations / who holds the power to say what we ‘should’ and ‘shouldn’t’ consumer?

o Case study for censorship – Mosque shooting in Chch, footage taken off social media and manifesto banned. Was this a good thing? Would have been harmful to society

 Livestreamed on social media

 Content spread globally

 Questions about platform responsibility

 Led to calls for stronger regulation

o New Zealand Context and Examples

NZ’s regulatory body / chief censor and how our classification system works

o History of NZ’s regulation (big law changes that impacted film/ TV/ media regulation)

o Case studies for film classified in NZ – 13 Reasons Why (personal opinion on it)

o Case study for videogame classified in NZ – Manhunt

o Key Concept 3 - Regulation and Children

- Audience consumption – families not knowing what kids are consuming

(families not watching TV together because they have internet & technology, able to talk through things/ self-regulate or censor inappropriate content, do we now need moral gate-keepers?)
- Fragmentation / technological convergence / web 2.0

Age restrictions
Violent content
Pornography access
Influencer marketing
Online safety

New Zealand Examples

Netsafe campaigns
Cyberbullying legislation
Digital citizenship education

o Core Concept 4 - Platform Regulation

- You understand that social media companies now function like media organisations.

- Challenge of consumers now being producers (Shirky – ‘prosumers’) – harder to regulate online content (e.g. platforms needing to become editors of content i.e. Facebook banning Trump or Mosque shooter’s live video being taken down. (Govt. to regulate internet article)

Platforms

Issues:

Misinformation
Hate speech
Algorithmic amplification
Content moderation
Platform accountability

Essay Angle

"Are social media companies publishers or merely platforms?"

o Case Study - Youtube (example of UGC) / Social Media – challenge to traditional regulation models

- How do they regulate content

- Is it effective

- Theory - Jenkins - Participatory culture

Audiences create media rather than simply consume it

o Core Concept 5 - Misinformation and Fake News

Key Concepts

Disinformation
Misinformation
Deepfakes
Echo chambers

Examples

COVID-19 misinformation
Election misinformation
Vaccine misinformation

New Zealand Example

The 2022 Wellington Parliament protests generated significant discussion about misinformation ecosystems and online radicalisation.

o Core Concept 6 - Global Streaming Regulation

Companies

Issues

Local content quotas
Taxation
National identity
Competition with local broadcasters

A2 Media Studies