"In an ideal world, the media is an interlocutor that helps you understand all the wonders of the world... And that's no small thing. Like every interlocutor, this one is valued by your attention and trust", with these words the writer Balša Brković begins the story about the influence of the media on our attitudes. About who we are, what we are, what we strive for, what we support, who we criticize, who we don't love.
Is the media in itself good or bad - is a question to which our interlocutors give a somewhat similar answer: Nothing is black or white, good or bad. Wholly. Can Homo ecranis ie. modern man dependent on the media completely to cope with the challenges of technology and culture that the latest mass media produces?
"That's your problem with the mirror - when you get angry at the mirror because you don't like who you see there. And what we like or don't like is not a matter of the media, but of reality. Media that help a society are those that tell the truth, no matter how unpleasant it may be. There is not much of that, not only in Montenegro. In times of global superficiality and corporate dumbing down, the media can help, not by creating a positive image at any cost, but by maintaining a level of seriousness and knowledge," says Brković.
Historian Miloš Vukanović says that he would by no means characterize the media as good or bad, but above all as necessary.
"The media, as a complex and influential social phenomenon, has its positive and negative elements. The media played and still play a key role in building free thinking, society and the individual, and are one of the basic protection systems against single-mindedness, absolutism and tyranny. Unfortunately, from the very beginning, the media, like any form of the written word, has been used for the purpose of propaganda, and recently we see the mutation of the media into a tool for division and the creation of more ubiquitous relativization and apathy. However, both society and the media have always known to adapt and survive all abuses, so they will too" Vukanović is optimistic.
Lidija Vujačić, an anthropologist, believes that technology advances faster than we manage to keep up with it, so in a simplified interpretation, one often hears about the media that they have a positive and/or negative role.
"The first refers to their key position in society to inform, educate and entertain the audience, as well as integrate society, because they allow each individual access to the mainstream of culture, which undeniably democratizes the social environment. Also, the media are spoken of strictly critically, because they are linked to various forms of manipulation (political, ideological, even economic through marketing) and the so-called "spinning the public, placing fake news, such as the increasingly intensive "production" of trivial content, scandals and giving media space to actors from the margins of social life, and in this way their controversial behavior is translated into acceptable social trends," explains Vujačić.
Current media in all its technological, but also cultural, i.e. ideological, value, economic, political power create our relationship to the world that surrounds us and accordingly (re)interpret social relations, adds our interlocutor.
"Each individual, more or less, is interested in media products and especially his own role in the process of production, distribution and, of course, reception and becomes a "media" himself, although his role in the public sphere depends on a multitude of broader, sociocultural, economic factors and , above all the individual capacity in which his activism is realized. But Homo ecranis ie. modern man, dependent on the media, fails to fully cope with the challenges of technology and culture produced by the latest mass media", says Vujacic.
One of the key questions, which is often forgotten, is the extent to which the media actually form the opinion of individuals, groups, communities, and society, and influence our judgment and evaluation.
"The problem in Montenegro is that people put on their jerseys before any reasoning. They become fans. So - there is no reasoning here. But then you are only interested in the media that tells you your image and communicates your truth. This senseless persuasion of like-minded people turns the media into propaganda bulletins," Brković is clear.
Vukanović notes that the Internet and social networks at one point threatened to challenge the primacy of the media in forming opinions, but that, nevertheless, it took less than a decade for the non-objectivity and instability of that form of information to erode public trust.
"To be clear, the past three decades have brought a decrease in trust in the media, but not a suppression of their importance. The media still have the power to form an opinion, above all to enshrine some information or attitude with the masses, but the pluralism of the media and the general increase in critical thinking among the population still limits the possibility of that information being accepted in unison. Although the media is weakened, it is still a strong tool for creating attitudes and values, as well as reasoning capacity. Unfortunately, the values that are promoted do not always have to be in favor of the community, and reasoning, as we see here and in the region, can be stifled by constant skepticism even towards desirable authorities, such as doctors and educators, by accepting conspiracy theories or superstitions," says Vukanović. .
And Vujacic is of the opinion that the mass media (re)shapes the nature of human communication, as well as our reality in general, more than any other technological artefact and content they produce, through different formats.
"In a way, the entire sociality is also in crisis, because especially digital communication increasingly replaces the "face-to-face" one, so we can also talk about the phenomenon of alienation, which becomes a social problem and goes beyond the online and offline spheres. And that is why the "power" of the media is enormous?! Yes, the media sphere is becoming an arena where "battles" are fought for economic, political, cultural, national, ethical, aesthetic or other supremacy, both locally, nationally, regionally and globally," says Vujačić.
Where is media literacy in all this today? A word that we hear a lot especially lately. "It seems to me that neither our society, nor in general, is up to those challenges in a broader, value-based and ethical sense. It is indisputable that information literacy is necessary for a functional life in modern society, but an ethical approach in marketing and "consuming" information is equally important. In addition, existing innovation as a principle always stems from the ramified media and commercial sphere, not from visionary politics and economics. Only such digital "inclusion" would connect the use and way of understanding technology, more socially conscious reflection and initiation of the process of social and personal changes", says Vujačić.
She believes that insufficient media literacy confronts the individual with numerous challenges and manipulations such as political, ideological and economic propaganda, false information, etc. as a misleading strategy by which a certain interest structure appropriately interprets events, processes, etc.
"There are, in fact, connected logical and ethical controversies. Among other things, interestingly conceived media "puts users to sleep" by offering them instant information, which "saves" time, but "kills" research independence, creativity, critical thinking, explains Vujačić.
Brković, when asked how media literacy is today in our country, answers "a bit stingy" or just realistically.
“On the low, no doubt. Media literacy implies a certain integrity, but also knowledge, and how much of that is around us? I wouldn't say it's an abundance," concludes Brković.
Vukanović says that it may seem easy to answer that question with the rating that it is low, but that things are not so simple.
"Yes, our citizens do not have a high level of media literacy in the classical sense. The information that is served to them is not analyzed in detail and they do not have the skills to evaluate the elements of propaganda. However, after three decades of constant manipulation, I believe that as a society we have developed a resistance to, above all, political propaganda, that we are hungry for stable and professional authority in many spheres. On the other hand, where we lack literacy is towards media manipulation that abuses the identity and value attitudes that we nevertheless developed in times of crisis and stagnation. We do not see the misuse of those views, and we strongly oppose criticism", concludes Vukanović.
When asked if he can cite examples that he noticed as an indicator of the media's influence, Vukanović says that the examples are everyday, and that individual citations do not make sense because they are of short duration and useful value.
"As our media space is burdened by political events, let every citizen try to remember how many small and big scandals there were just in the past year and how they were represented in the media. I think that at the end of the day, there will be an assessment that the only thing that remains worth remembering are the cases when the media approached them critically, trying to suppress all background manipulations," explains Vukanović.
He points to one indirect influence of the media, which, in his opinion, plays a significant role in the construction of society - the construction of subculture.
"In fact, all societies have a "mainstream" musical and cultural scene, but only in societies where the government does not want progress and wants to maintain control through stagnation, the cultural and musical scene is based on the most down-to-earth impulses of society. The support of the state and the media to the cultural scene of cheap tones, vulgarity and aggression is not accidental. To that should be added the aggressiveness of reality shows that have crept into the largest number of homes, as well as the dulling of a supposedly highly religious society with various prophets, horoscopes and other superstitions. It should not be surprising that there is such a similarity between the representation of those elements during the crisis of the 90s and today. The goal is to stifle social development so that there is no accidental formation of resistance to one type of government." says Vukanović.
Vukanović is clear - if we want progress, we all have to comment more loudly on media phenomena that degrade society in the long run.
"We cannot close our eyes to the aggressiveness and vulgarity of music, reality shows and public performances. We cannot ignore the effect that all these phenomena have on the general social condition. We can no longer glorify and promote the actors of these degenerate social phenomena. And in the end, we can no longer absolve them of responsibility for problems in society," says Vukanović.
And Vujačić believes that critical thinking, intellectual engagement, moral principles among the "consumers" of information and, above all, high standards in journalism can turn around and engage individuals and societies in the direction of creating new cultural, i.e. value capital.
"That actually means developing media literacy, i.e. a greater degree of interest and familiarity with the broader aspect of the delivered message among those for whom it is intended, i.e. reading between the lines, comparing multiple sources, etc., in order to crystallize the essential from the irrelevant, correct and incorrect content. Socially responsible media can also create a subversive and constructive, and not a "manipulated" public," concludes Vujačić.
This text was produced with the financial support of the National Endowment for Democracy. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and publishers of the Media Institute of Montenegro and does not necessarily reflect the views of the donors.
Bonus video:
