Media systems and political systems: Dimensions of comparison

Abstract

In social sciences, the interdependence between media systems and political systems is generally not in doubt. However, empirical knowledge about the relation between the two types of systems is rare. A deeper understanding can be gained by an international comparison of media and political systems from a macro perspective using aggregated data. The pilot study presented in this article offers an approach to international comparison based on four dimensions: freedom, diversity, centrality and tradition. These concepts serve as dimensions of comparison for both media-and political systems. The instrument is tested by using an intentionally heterogeneous sample of seven countries from around the world: China, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Russia and the US. In combination with a pragmatic use of systems theory as a theoretical framework, the dimensions allow more profound insights into the relation between media-and political systems. In sum, the research project prepares the ground for future international large-N comparisons.

Hallin and Mancini Revisited: Four Empirical Types of Western Media Systems

“…Their three models of media and politics are heuristics: simplified versions or ideal types of reality that real media systems will always diverge from. Also, they are aware of the fact that they do not cover countries beyond the Western world and neglect certain categories of comparison that might be decisive in media systems beyond Europe, such as media freedom and religion (Couldry, ; Engesser & Franzetti, ; Norris, , p. 332). In fact, Hallin and Mancini () themselves invite the research community to extend and modify their dimensions, indicators, and models.…”

“…The key interest behind Hallin and Mancini's () quest for models of media systems was “the identification of characteristic patterns of relationship between system characteristics” (p. 11). If these patterns were absent, there would be no such thing as a media system while the existence of these patterns would be an indicator of “systemness.” Thus, if we modified one element of the system, other elements would be likely to change as well (Engesser & Franzetti, ).…”

Networked Fandom: Applying Systems Theory to Sport Twitter Analysis

“…Cybernetics, a branch of systems theory that includes feedback loops (Littlejohn & Foss, 2010), examines processes in a circular fashion and was defined by Wiener (1948) as the study of control and communication in both mechanical and living systems. Thus, cybernetics has been used to examine systems in the areas of engineering (e.g., Bejan, 2011), computer sciences (Xian, Huang, & Cobb, 2011), and communication (e.g., Engesser & Franzetti, 2011). In cybernetics, according to Kefalas (2011), a system is composed of objects, attributes, internal relationships, and an environment, where the objects are the components in a system and the attributes are the qualities of the objects.…”

Mediating the contributions of Facebook to political participation in Italy and the UK: the role of media and political landscapes

“…In the influential Comparing Media Systems, Hallin and Mancini (2004) differentiate between the Mediterranean or Polarized Pluralist model, the North-Central European or Democratic Corporatist model, and the North Atlantic or Liberal model (see Hardy, 2008 andEngesser andFranzetti, 2011 for other categorizations of media systems). They argue that the British media system falls within the latter model which is characterized by the professionalization of journalism, a 'fact-centred' reporting style and an institutionalized separation between media and political parties.…”