我們應(yīng)該打破“媒體—社會”二元論，這樣我們才能更好地理清千頭萬緒的問題，解決麻煩重重的矛盾，但在純概念的背景下人們往往直接回避了這些難題。我們應(yīng)該盡力發(fā)現(xiàn)新聞媒體如何與其賴以生存的權(quán)力和控制力之間保持相互依存的關(guān)系，同時我們還應(yīng)該看到新聞媒體是如何曲解、改變，甚至挑戰(zhàn)這種唇齒相依的關(guān)系的。
媒介是神奇的，社會也是神奇的，媒介與社會的耦合生產(chǎn)出無限的神奇。從涂爾干《宗教生活的基本形式》關(guān)于“社會”與喚起社會意識的符號與儀式共生的理論來看，媒介使社會顯得神奇的過程也造就了自身的神奇。
人類在現(xiàn)代大眾傳播成為現(xiàn)實之前對于“神奇”的感知是經(jīng)由巫師及其巫術(shù)的轉(zhuǎn)化來實現(xiàn)的。澳洲土著在圖騰舞蹈的狂熱中感受到超個人的社會力量的存在。滿身披掛的薩滿用舞蹈和神歌請靈降神，讓已經(jīng)消逝的顯露原形，讓凡人通常不可見的顯現(xiàn)真身，讓千山萬水之遙的即刻大駕光臨。借助巫術(shù)，時間和空間的障礙可以暫時克服，過去的、未來的都可以在現(xiàn)實中出現(xiàn)，墓室中的、仙山上的都可以召喚到面前。
這些神奇經(jīng)驗在現(xiàn)當(dāng)代越來越徹底地被大眾媒介所造就，電視、網(wǎng)絡(luò)等圖像傳輸技術(shù)在其中發(fā)揮著關(guān)鍵作用。大人物像變戲法一樣總跑到百姓居室內(nèi)高談闊論，歷史的亡靈在熒屏上召之即來，揮之即去。媒介使常人具有千里眼、順風(fēng)耳，看見那原本遙不可見的，聽清那從前根本就聽不到的。媒介是神奇的，它在社會中的運行有如巫術(shù)。幾百年的現(xiàn)代化對世界“祛魅”。結(jié)果我們看到人類社會所集聚的全部的“魅”都匯聚于媒介，并被媒介無限放大。
長期耳濡目染，對媒介的神奇人們已經(jīng)習(xí)以為常了，就像前現(xiàn)代的人對巫術(shù)習(xí)以為常一樣。但是，這個過程一直都是知識界探討的課題�，F(xiàn)代大眾媒介的各種新形式從一開始出現(xiàn)的時候就會被知識界作為新事物加以關(guān)注。從較早的照相、無線電廣播到電影、電視，再到近年的新媒介傳播，關(guān)于大眾傳媒研究、文化研究、虛擬社會研究的知識生產(chǎn)就一直緊隨媒介發(fā)展的步伐。媒介研究在發(fā)達(dá)國家已經(jīng)形成龐大的群體和細(xì)密的分工，這個群體既能夠追逐傳播領(lǐng)域的新事物，也能夠通過專業(yè)的眼光讓人們習(xí)以為常的許多方面顯出怪異來，從而引發(fā)眾人的注意和分析的興趣。我們國內(nèi)的媒介研究在這兩個方向上都需要培育自己的能力。
依靠現(xiàn)代大眾媒介運行的社會是一種機制極其不同的社會，中國社會正在越來越深地涉入其中。
斯圖亞特·艾倫（Stuart Allan）英國波恩茅斯大學(xué)（Bournemouth University）新聞學(xué)教授，研究領(lǐng)域為新聞與傳播。主要著作有：《媒介、風(fēng)險與科學(xué)》（2002）、《在線新聞：新聞與互聯(lián)網(wǎng)》（2006）等。
rences at certain localities and not others; second, readers are concerned with the activities of only specific organizations; and third, readers find only particular topics to be worthy of attention.
In light of this set of working assumptions, Tuchman (1978: 25-31) maintains
that three interrelated methods of dispersing reporters can be described using the following criteria: geographic territoriality, organizational specialization and topical specialization.
First, 'geographic territoriality' is the most important of the three methods basic to the news net. Each news organization divides the social world into distinct areas of territorial responsibility so as to realize its respective 'news mission'. Assessments can then be made as to where news is most likely to happen - in effect, as McQuail (1992) notes, a self-fulfilling tendency - thereby allowing for a considerable degree of pre-planning. The news mission is a double-sided dynamic: on the one hand, it conforms to certain presumptions regarding what the audience 'wants to know' while, on the other hand, it sets these presumptions against pre-given financial and technological constraints (on the importance in this regard of the international news agencies, such as Reuters, Associated Press, United Press International and Agence France Presse, see Wallis and Baran 1990; G. Reeves 1993; Herman and McChesney 1997; Boyd-Barrett and Rantanen 1998; van Ginneken 1998).
Second, 'organizational specialization' is another method for dispersing reporters.
Beats and bureaux need to be set up in connection with the numerous organizations that are regularly 'making news' in that specific territory. Examples range from the 'crime beat', including such places as the police station, courts or prisons, to other sitesroutinely generating news like the city council, the fire and rescue services, the health authority, and so forth. Due to their formal status as sources of centralized information, these sites are legitimized as the preferred places for newsworkers to collect the facts they require.
……
書單推薦
