Communication ? Always and Forever the Great (Political ...

Englishman Francis Bacon once stated that, ?Knowledge is power.? And the greatest dissemination of knowledge is brought upon by the various channels of communication that wielders of knowledge have had at their disposal. In fact, it would not be a stretch to claim that communication itself is a greater political tool than any charismatic politician or convincing demagogue.

From the rise of the printing press to the emergence of satellite radio, communication channels have gone through a great many transformations over the years. But regardless of era, whoever owns communicative tools can hold sway ? for better or for worse ? over a nation?s general populace. In the Soviet Union?s case, Soviet rulers were highly invested in communication. But rather than emphasize the horizontal impact that a device such as a telephone may have had for its citizens, the rulers instead opted for loudspeakers, adopting a top-down model where communication was a one-way street. Loudspeakers eventually gave (or shared) way with state-controlled broadcasting, a development reflective of ?the regime?s general effort to repress the spontaneous organization of civil society (Starr 9). The telephones that did exist were state-controlled as well, forcing long-distance calls through the Soviet capitol for surveillance purposes. Opposite of the political left, Nazi Germany used similar communication channels to stir up fervent nationalism. Nazi propaganda included but was not limited to radio broadcasts, huge detailed posters, and film, the most famous being Leni Riefenstahl?s Triumph of the Will.

It is admittedly easy to pick on foes of the past, but the United States and its citizens have also ? again, for better or for worse ? used communication channels for political gain. William Randolph Hearst?s yellow journalism essentially provided a sensationalist catalyst that not only spurred the country into the Spanish-American War, but also springboarded Hearst?s own political aspirations. Franklin D. Roosevelt?s radio series of fireside chats arguably played a positive impact in his popularity as the only four-term president in American history. More recently, the tug-and-pull between conservative and liberal media has reached a crescendo, with each side hoping to exert a greater influence than the other on the country?s political direction. The current battle in Texas over the content of grade school history books provides one of the latest examples. Who knew that the classic communication device of the written word would centuries later serve as a political battleground, and drag hundreds of thousands of children with it?

If nothing else, the textbook battle proves the timelessness of even the most antiquated forms of communication. As Paul Starr suggests:

?For fear of the power others might acquire against them, ruling elites have often kept knowledge secret, limited public discussion, and controlled religion, education, and science so as to prevent their subjects from acquiring sensitive information and dangerous ideas.? (Starr 8).

Fortunately, Starr?s outlook isn?t completely bleak:

??Yet in the modern world, notwithstanding that interest, the sphere of public information has grown, independent channels of civil society have increased, and scientific and educational institutions have gained greater autonomy? (Starr 8).

The advent of the internet and mobile communication devices do provide hope for a future with more equal footing in regards to knowledge ? and, consequently, power. But this simply plays into the long-standing hypodermic-needle school of thought, that the masses are liable to soak up whatever ?knowledge? is hurled in their direction. The hypodermic-needle theory may not be a flawless interpretation of how communication affects society, but if history is any indication, then it certainly has its bearing.

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Source: http://futureinstitution.wordpress.com/2012/03/21/communication-always-and-forever-the-great-political-communicator/

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