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Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University Communication Arts for ASEAN
Study Guide 17704 Comparative Communication Studies for ASEAN
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Module 1 Comparative Communication Studies for ASEAN Assoc. Prof. Dr.Siriwan Anantho Dr. Unaloam Chanrungmaneekul Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University
Lesson 1.1 Introduction to Comparative Communication Studies Issues to be discussed: 1.1.1 Tradition and Definition of Comparative Studies 1.1.2 Comparative Communication Studies and ASEAN Community
Lesson 1.2 The Forefathers of Communication studies Issues to be discussed: 1.2.1 Harold D. Lasswell 1.2.2 Paul F. Lazarsfeld 1.2.3 Kurt Lewin 1.2.4 Carl I Hovland
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1.3 Interdisciplinary Approaches to Comparative Communication Studies
Issues to be discussed: 1.3.1 Comparative International Communication 1.3.2 Comparative ASEAN Freedom of Expression 1.3.3 Comparative ASEAN Media Ethics
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Module 1 Module 1 Comparative Communication Studies for ASEAN Lesson 1.1 Introduction to Comparative Communication Studies 1.1.1 Tradition and Definition of Comparative Studies 1.1.2 Comparative Communication Studies and ASEAN Community
Lesson 1.2 The Forefathers of Communication studies 1.2.1
Harold D. Lasswell
1.2.2
Paul F. Lazarsfeld
1.2.3
Kurt Lewin
1.2.4
Carl I Hovland
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Lesson 1.3 Interdisciplinary Approaches to Comparative Communication Studies 1.3.1 Comparative International Communication 1.3.2 Comparative ASEAN Freedom of Expression 1.3.3 Comparative ASEAN Media Ethics Objectives of Module 1: After exploring the Comparative Communication Studies for ASEAN, students will be able to: 1. Analyze and compare communication situations in the ASEAN way of life and changing trends in the global society. 2. Analyze and compare different aspects of communication issues in ASEAN and in the global society. 3. Apply knowledge from their comparative studies to create communications innovations that will strengthen and unify the ASEAN community.
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Highlight Contents of Module 1: Lesson 1.1: Introduction to Comparative Communication Studies Issues to be discussed: 1.1.1 Tradition and Definition of Comparative Studies 1.1.2 Comparative Communication Studies and ASEAN Community
Three main objectives of this subject are to: 1) enable students to analyze and compare communication situations in the “ASEAN way of life� and changing trends in the global society; 2) enable students to analyze and compare different aspects of communication issues in ASEAN and in the global society; and 3) enable students to apply knowledge from their comparative studies to
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create communications innovations that will strengthen and unify the ASEAN community. To achieve these objectives, we need to understand that comparative studies, communications, media and ASEAN are a multidisciplinary course. They all have interrelationship among different context. Also we need to investigate: 1) What is comparative communication studies? 2) Why is it so essential for our Asean community? At this stage, students should try answering these two questions. It is not a matter of whether the answers are right or wrong. Communication and media intellectuals have been still debating on comparative studies, communication and media in many aspects for more than two decades. When students try to answer these questions, they will learn more and find some gaps between ASEAN studies and communication studies that they have never realized before or did not know. This study guide will clarify some important points that are related to the course’s objectives.
1.1.1 Tradition and Definition of Comparative Studies ‘Emile Durkheim’ was named as ‘the first comparative researcher’ (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012). His study on suicide and social anomie (1897) pioneered comparative research literature for the West academic community. However, up
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until the second World War, comparative studies influenced social science and humanities disciplines, particularly psychology, sociology, history, and political science (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012:7). Comparative research was of great interest to communication studies, especially in the area of political communication or media policy. One of the important research studies conducted in this century is that by Hallin, D.C. & Mancini, P. (2004), Comparing Media Systems: Three models of media and Politics. Within the context of Communication and Media Studies, the first step in Comparative Studies was ‘edited compilations of nation-by-chapter reporting’; readers were asked to analyze and make comparisons. The second step of Communication Comparative Studies introduced ‘two-country comparison research’, as reflected in the studies of Semetko, Blumler, Gurevitch, and Weaver (1991) and Ferree, Gamson, Gerhards, and Rucht (2002). The works of these researchers were acknowledged as ‘some of the best comparative work’ and seemed to create ‘the potential of contributing to scholarship in important original ways’ for three major reasons (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012:8): 1) Theoretically, relationships between contextual influences and the object of investigation were elaborated thoroughly. 2) An analytical framework was developed from the broader comparative literature.
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3) The data was analyzed in an explanatory and hypothesis-testing advancement.
Ask yourself: Why is it important to learn about the tradition of academic disciplines? When reading this study guide, also pay attention to the following two questions: 1. Why is the subject of Comparative Communication important in the context of the ASEAN community? (The answer to this question will be explained further
when discussing the issue of Comparative
Communication Studies and the ASEAN community).
2. How can you include Comparative Communication Studies theories and principles in your final thesis or future research?
When you will study the tradition of comparative communication research, you will learn more on theoretical development, analytical frameworks and methodology; as reflected also in the three strengths of the researchers we have mentioned earlier in this study guide. In this section of the Module the general attributes of comparative research will be explained. Comparative research needs to have two categories of units of analysis: the context and the objects of
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investigation. When conducting comparative research, we will be able to develop a suitable analytical framework only by studying the broad literature published about our field of study or research interest. From this point, I would like provide you with some definitions of comparative communication research that are closely related to its tradition.
Definitions ‘Comparative research’ has been defined in different ways. Historically, the term ‘comparative’ referred to making comparison between things, human, cultures or other objects.
Esser and Hanitzsch (2012) gathered a series of definitions of Comparative Studies from researches as follows: 1. “it is a study that compares two or more nations with respect to some common activity” (Edelstein, 1982, p.14). 2. Blumler, McLeod, and Rosengren (1992, p.7) expanded this first definitional attempt and characterize a study as comparative “when the comparisons are made across two or more geographically or historically (spatially or temporally) defined systems.”
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Situated within these systems are “the phenomena of scholarly interests which are embedded in a set of interrelations that are relatively coherent, patterned, comprehensive, distinct, and bounded.” (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012:5).
3. The latest book concerning comparative communication studies, the Handbook of Comparative Communication Research (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012, p.5) defines comparative communication research as one that includes: “comparisons between a minimum of two macro-level units (systems, cultures, markets, or their sub-elements) with respect to at least one object of investigation relevant to communication research.”
Considering these definitions and the tradition elaborated earlier in this study guide, you can see that the two major elements of comparative communication research are macro units (cases) and the objects of investigation. Figure 1.1 shows the terminology for basic comparison that is applied in Esser and Hanitzsch’s book (2012). Macro units may refer to countries, media systems, cultures, markets or other contextual units; objects of investigation include TV viewing habits, reporter-source relationship, or other communication patterns.
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Figure 1.1: Terminology for basic comparison (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012)
Characteristics of comparative communication research “Mass communication processes are shaped by several layers of systemic context” (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012:6). In order to better understand the definitions on comparative communication research that we have provided earlier, it is worth exploring the characteristics of the latter. 1. How does comparative research differ from non-comparative research? According to Esser and Hanitzsch (2012, p.5), “comparative research differs from non-comparative work in that it attempts to reach conclusion beyond
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single systems or cultures and explain differences and similarities between objects of analysis against the backdrop of their contextual conditions”.
2. In order to be realistic and relevant, comparative research should not only consider the spatial dimension of the subjects of comparison; rather, it should also consider the temporal and functional dimensions of any relationship that is subject to comparison. The reason is that macro units such as cultures, countries, media system etc., are dynamic and may change both in terms of space and geographical context, and in terms of time, periods and ages. For example, when students compare media policies from Thailand and Myanmar, they are indeed taking into account the spatial or geographical variables (the two countries – Thailand and Myanmar). However, if they do not also take into account the temporal dimension (historical time when media policies were issued in both countries), the research may not be relevant. The situation in Thailand notably changed before and after the 2014 coup d’état; the media landscape in Myanmar notably changed since 2011. Caramani (2011) was the one who theorized the functional (crossorganizational or cross-institutional) comparison. This dimension relies on different functions of objects, for example the comparison between the ways in which public service and commercial television present news cultures in different countries.
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3. Comparative studies should bring about specific conceptual and methodological proposals, which are different from those of monocultural research. The proposals would be worked with a study’s conceptual framework, the selection of cases or macro units, and correlation of concepts and methods. Then, the selection of cases or macro units (systems, cultures, or markets) should be performed by theoretical considerations and the objects of investigation of the cases should be equivalent. The cases, or macro-level units, should defined clearly in terms of structural, cultural, political, territorial, or temporal dimensions. Also, these cases should enclose characteristic factors that have interrelation with the object of analysis and assist to demonstrate differences (and similarities) of the objects in different contexts.
 Four criteria of comparative communication research In doing comparative communication research, it is important to understand its conditions to avoid errors and overgeneralization of the study. Esser and Hanitzsch (2012: 6-7) indicate four criteria:
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1) The purpose of comparison needs to be explicated early in the project, and it should be a defining component of the research design; 2) The macro-level units of comparison need to be clearly delineated- irrespective of how the boundaries are defined. In the contextual environments specific factors need to be identified that are assumed to characteristically affect the objects of analysis – be they people, practices, communication products, or other structural or cultural elements; 3) The objects of analysis should be compared with respect to at least one common, functionally equivalent dimension. Methodologically, an emic (culture-specific) or etic (universal) approach may be applied; 4) The objects of analysis need to be compared on the basis of a common theoretical framework and by drawing on equivalent conceptualizations and methods instead of being analyzed separately from each other (on equivalence, see Wirth & Kolb, Chapter 30, in The Handbook of Comparative Communication Research, 2012).
In summary, from the beginning of the research project, students should be aware of:  Clearly setting the purposes of comparison;
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 The interrelation between macro units (cases) and the objects of investigation as shown in Figure 1.1.2  The equivalent objects of investigation, theories and methodological practices when using different macro units (cases) as shown in Figure 1.1.3
Figure 1.1.2: Criteria: Interrelation of macro units and objects of investigation
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Figure 1.1.3: Equivalence of different macro units and theoretical framework
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Why
is
comparative
research
essential
for
communication and media studies? In communication and media studies, several approaches have been employed to undertake research; these include comparative research, depending on the research questions, objectives and research design. Particularly, comparative research remarkably contributes to communication and media disciplines in the following way, as Craig (2012: ix) states: “it establishes the generalizability of theories and empirical patterns across different systems while also correcting errors of overgeneralization, clarifying cultural differences, and facilitating critical reflection on communication practices in our own societies. Comparative research also cultivates collaborative relationships across national boundaries and institutions, thus contributing to the global development and internationalization of communication research” (Craig, 2012: ix) Furthermore, Esser and Hanitzsch (2012) raised ‘six generic areas’ that reveal the advantages of comparative research (Please see details in Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012: 4-5). They posit,
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“it (comparative research) forces us to revise our interpretations against cross-cultural differences and inconsistencies. Only comparative research allows us to test theories across diverse settings and evaluate the scope and significance of certain phenomena”. (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012: 4) Another strength of comparative research is that it prevents us from ‘overgeneralizing from our own, often idiosyncratic, experience’ (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012: 4). In this view, through comparative research, one may analyze dominant, western concepts that have dominated the field of media and communications for centuries, and understand how these may work or may not work in different cultural contexts, for example in ASEAN. In other words, comparative research “challenges claims to ethnocentrism or naïve universalism” (Esser and Hanitzsch, 2012: 4). Within the ASEAN context, it is important to develop an understanding of our own societies and be aware of other systems, cultures, and patterns of thinking, and how these shape our behavior and communication styles.
Lesson 1.2 Comparative Communication Studies and ASEAN Community
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The steps of development of comparative research in communication and media studies have been separated by cultural, geographical and political context. Esser and Hanitzsch (2012:8-9) offer four paradigms of comparative communication research that have been overlapping in their periods. 1) The first paradigm, “the U.S. and the Rest,” has influenced communication and media studies from 1950s to 1960s. Famous proponents of this paradigm included Daniel Lerner (The Passing of Traditional Society, 1958), Fred S. Siebert, Theodore Peterson, and Wilbur Schramm (Four Theories of the Press, 1956). This paradigm focused on notions of development and social change that were influenced by
American political-economic
systems
and
ideologies.
Communication studies in Asia, Latin America, and Africa have also evolved from this paradigm. It was only in 1970s, that researchers started to question this paradigm as being USA dominated and oppressive. 2) The second paradigm, “the North and the South” emerged from two major forces; one was UNESCO and the other was an intellectual movement in Latin America called Dependistas. The paradigm emphasized the inequality in communication flows between the industrialized North and the developing South. Central to research was to present the inequalities between the northern hemisphere and the global South.
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3) The third paradigm, “the West and the West” was introduced in the early 1980s. In this period, the appearance of the European Union (EU) influenced comparative communication research. Communication researchers were interested in the media policy activities of the European Commission and paid attention to western countries. Research covered varied areas; for instance, journalists and newsrooms, telephone conversations, and entertainment programmes. In this period, researchers established advanced methodology as we can see in the works of Hallin and Mancini (2004), Kocher (1986), Esser (1998), Godard (1977) and Wiles, Wiles, and Tjernlund (1995)’s work.
4) The fourth paradigm, “the West and the Global” has been overlapping in the period of 1990s until now. Researchers turned their attention to a truly global scale and pushed more coordinated work with researchers from Asia and Latin America. It was noticeable that the number of macro units extended to cover more countries, for example Barker and Mathijs (2008)’s work on the worldwide reception of The Lord of the Rings and Djankov, McLiesh, Nenova, and Shleifer (2003)’s work on the examination of patterns of media ownership in 97 countries.
After studying these four paradigms, we come to the following key question:
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If we want to study comparative communication from an ASEAN perspective, which of the four paradigms is the most appropriate?
To answer this question, three dimensions of comparative communication studies for ASEAN should be taken into account: Firstly, students should pay attention to communication issues, for example, communication situations, people, media policies, media cultures, media practices, media products, media systems and media activities of specific ASEAN countries. These will be explained in-depth in the next modules. Secondly, we need to understand the importance of each ASEAN country’s context in relation to the rest of the world. As stated earlier, this is a multidisciplinary course, therefore, we cannot just study communications and media in ASEAN, rather we must also take into account the political, economic, cultural and sociological contexts. We must pay attention to history, cultures, religions, politics, economy, race, ethnicity, classes, identity, education, gender,
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art, social movements, technology, law and people of the ASEAN region and the global community. We will call these ‘contextual variables’ and will explain them further in the next modules. Significantly, students should be aware that when we study ASEAN issues, it does not mean that we will focus only on ASEAN in the context of governments, AEC, country and business leaders, authorities, ASEAN committee and elites of society. Students should look at the peripheral, ordinary people, powerless voices and marginalized people as well. How do ASEAN policies affect those groups? Who does actually gain benefit from ASEAN committee affairs? Previous studies on Southeast Asia society conducted by both western and local researchers are very useful, for example Inside Southeast Asia: religion, everyday life and cultural change (Mulder, 1996), Comparative Studies in Southeast Asian Education (Hoy Kee, 1973), Southeast Asian Identities: culture and the politics of representation in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand (Kahn, 1998), Thailand and its Neighbors Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Fry, 2005), and National Identity and its defenders Thailand Today (revised edition) (Reynold, 2000). Thirdly, we need to consider the effects that contextual variables (as described in the second dimension) have on communication issues.
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When we take these three dimensions into account, we shall see directions of comparative communication research and ASEAN community in two ways: 1) ASEAN and ASEAN 2) ASEAN and the Global (as shown in Figure 1.1.4) This means that we must not study only about the ASEAN community, rather, we must also look at relationship between ASEAN and the global or rest of the world.
Figure 1.1.4: Paradigms of comparative communication research and questions of the new paradigm, ASEAN community roles
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‘ASEAN and the Global’ may become a new paradigm of communication research in the future if we understand its strengths, characteristics, criteria and conditions of comparative research. Particularly, when we enter into the age of collaborations among different cultures, religions, races, and identities, while trying to become one community.
Summary for lesson 1.1. Students should understand: Tradition and definitions of comparative communication research; Characteristics of comparative communication research; Criteria of comparative communication research;
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Why comparative research is essential for communication studies; Relationship between comparative communication studies and ASEAN Community.
Key readings Esser, F and Hannitzsch, T. (2012). “On the Why and How of Comparative Inquiry in Communication Studies”. In The Handbook of Comparative Communication Research. New York: Routledge.
Recommended readings Fry, G. (2005). Thailand and its Neighbors Interdisciplinary Perspectives, Bangkok: Institute for Asian Studies, Chulalongkorn University. Hallin, D.C. & Mancini, P. (2004). Comparing Media Systems: Three models of media and Politics. Kahn, J. (1998). Southeast Asian Identities: culture and the politics of representation in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. Mulder, N. (1996). Inside Southeast Asia: religion, everyday life and cultural
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change. Chiangmai: Silkworm Books. Reynold, C. (2002). National Identity and its defenders: Thailand Today (revised edition). Chiangmai: Silkworm Books.
References Caramani, D. (2011). Introduction to comparative politics. In D. Caramani (Ed.). Comparative Politics (2nd Ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Craig, R. (2012). ‘Series Editor’s Forward’ in The Handbook of Comparative Communication Research. New York: Routledge. Esser, F and Hannitzsch, T. (2012). “On the Why and How of Comparative Inquiry in Communication Studies”. In The Handbook of Comparative Communication Research. New York: Routledge. Fry, G. (2005). Thailand and its Neighbors Interdisciplinary Perspectives, Bangkok: Institute for Asian Studies, Chulalongkorn University. Hallin, D.C. & Mancini, P. (2004). Comparing Media Systems: Three models of media and Politics. New York: Cambridge University Press. Hoy Kee, F. (1973). Comparative Studies in Southeast Asian Education. Kuala Lumper: Heinemann Educational Books (Asia) Ltd.
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Kahn, J. (1998). Southeast Asian Identities: culture and the politics of representation in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. Mulder, N. (1996). Inside Southeast Asia: religion, everyday life and cultural change. Chiangmai: Silkworm Books. Reynold, C. (2002). National Identity and its defenders: Thailand Today (revised edition). Chiangmai: Silkworm Books.
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Lesson 1.2 The Forefathers of Communication studies Issues to be discussed: 1.2.1 Harold D. Lasswell 1.2.2 Paul F. Lazarsfeld 1.2.3 Kurt Lewin 1.2.4 Carl I Hovland
Most part of the content in this lesson has been taken from the book “The beginning of communication studies in America,” the unfinished writing of Wilbur Schramm. Edited by Steven H. Chaffee and Everett M. Rogers, the book contains many of Schramm’s personal insights on the field of communication studies. The forefathers of Communication Studies in America mentioned in this book are Harold D. Lasswell, Paul F. Lazarsfeld, Kurt Lewin, and Carl I. Hovland (Schramm, 1997). All of them have made a lot of contributions to the field of communication study in the United States and globally.
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1.2.1 Harold D. Lasswell (1902 - 1978)
The American political scientist, Harold Dwight Lasswell, was born in 1902. He is known chiefly for his studies on political terminology, his application of psychology to politics, and his attempt to construct a system of politics modeled on theories of the natural sciences. He was also president of the American Political Science Association. Lasswell attended the University of Chicago at 16 and graduated in 1922 and received his doctorate from the same institution in 1926. His dissertation, Propaganda Technique in the World War (1927) is recognized as a leading study on communication theory. Lasswell made his early reputation as a behaviorally oriented theorist with his psychoanalytic study Psychopathology and Politics. Utilizing Freudian psychology for the study of politics, he believed that the psychoanalysis of political leaders would reveal significant knowledge about politics. For example, knowledge about childhood sexual experiences of political leaders would reveal why some were
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radicals and others conservatives, why some were revolutionaries and others establishment administrators.
Lasswell’s major contributions to communication studies were on the thinking rather than the doing side (Chaffee and Rogers, 1997). His contributions were as follows (Rogers, 1994):
His five-questions model of communication (Click here) led to the emphasis in communication study on determining effects. Lasswell’s contemporary, Paul F. Lazarsfeld, did even more to crystallize this focus on communication effects.
He pioneered in content analysis methods, virtually inventing the methodology of qualitative and quantitative measurement of communication messages (propaganda messages and newspaper editorials, for example).
His study of political and wartime propaganda represented an important early type of communication study. The word propaganda later gained a negative connotation and is not used much today, although there is even more political
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propaganda. Propaganda analysis has been absorbed into the general body of communication research.
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He introduced Freudian psychoanalytic theory to the social sciences in America. Lasswell integrated Freudian theory with political analysis, as in his psychoanalytic study of political leaders. He applied Freud's id-ego-superego via content analysis to political science problems. In essence, he utilized intraindividual Freudian theory at the societal level.
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He helped create the policy sciences, an interdisciplinary movement to integrate social science knowledge with public action. The social sciences, however, generally resisted this attempt at integration and application to public policy problem.
1.2.2 Paul F. Lazarsfeld (1901-1976)
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The Austrian-born American sociologist Paul F. Lazarsfeld (1901-1976) was one of the most influential social scientists of his time. He founded four university-related institutes of applied social research and was a professor of sociology at Columbia University for three decades. Paul F. Lazarsfeld was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1901. He received his Ph.D. in applied mathematics from the University of Vienna in 1925. His dissertation was an application of Einstein's theory of gravitation to the movement of the planet Mercury. In 1925, he established a research institute dedicated to the application of psychology to social and economic problems. This was the first of four university-related applied social research institutes founded by Lazarsfeld; the others were the Research Center at the University of Newark, the Office of Radio Research at Princeton University, and the Bureau of Applied Social Research at Columbia University. Lazarsfeld's major interests were the methodology of social research and the development of institutes for training and research in the social sciences. The Lazarsfeld radio research project virtually created the field of mass communications research. It studied why messages are introduced into the media and why people attend to them—that is, what gratifications or rewards people get
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from the media and what functions the media serve in their lives. Lazarsfeld's influence on the field outlived him. When he started to study the impact of radio in 1937, he realized that since radio listening created no public records, such as circulation data, it needed new methods of accounting and study. He used the opinion poll—at that time used mainly for descriptive purposes to measure the popularity or audience size of radio programs—and by the detailed analysis of responses developed ways to measure the impact of radio upon attitudes. This transformation of the "opinion poll" into "survey research" constitutes one of Lazarsfeld's major accomplishments. One of the first to embark on Communications research, Lazarsfeld was also the first to introduce the difference between 'administrative research' and 'critical research' in regards to the media. Critical research he believed, criticizes the media institutions themselves for the perspective ways they serve dominant social groups. Critical research favors interperspective and inductive methods of inquiry. Lazarsfeld provided the evidence of media’s minimal effects. His study of the 1940 presidential election was published as The People's Choice (1944), a spare and elegant book that became a true classic. The research revealed information about the psychological and social processes that influence voting decisions. The study also uncovered an influence process that Lazarsfeld called "opinion leadership." He concluded that there is a multistep flow of information from the mass media to persons who serve as opinion leaders, which
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then is passed on to the general public. This communication process was termed the "two-step flow of communication (Click here)�. Lazarsfeld's main legacy was to question the distinction between quantitative and qualitative research. In almost every field in which he worked, he tried to fuse these two productive modes of inquiry. He was noted for his ability to forge productive collaborations with a wide range of thinkers, and influenced many remarkable people who worked with him in different ways. He was not a great theoretical force. Rather, Paul was a force toward theory (Chaffee and Rogers, 1997).
1.2.3 Kurt Lewin (1890-1947)
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Lewin was born in Mogilno (now Poland), which was then in the Prussian province of Posen. He was the creator of psychological field theory, a pioneer of action research in psychological social science, and a founder of group dynamics. He combined thinking from psychology and philosophy of science throughout his career. His aims were to link theoretical insight with empirical research in the study of motivation, child development, and social behavior, as well as to humanize the workplace and the school with the help of social science. To him, these tasks were not opposed; as he often said, nothing is as practical as a good theory. Lewin received his doctorate in 1916, while on leave from military service during World War I. He exiled from the land of his birth and made a new life for himself. In this new life, Lewin defined himself and his contributions within three lenses of analysis: applied research, action research, and group communication were his major offerings to the field of communication. After Lewin died from a heart attack in 1947, at the age of fifty-seven, his prestige reached its high point. Edward Tolman went so far as to call him the most important thinker in the history of psychology after Sigmund Freud. Lewin’s fecund metaphors and brilliant individual insights, as well as his ability to inspire talented researchers, made him a success in Berlin, in the United States,
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and then internationally. He established an independent research base in America, but it was his cogent criticism of predominant styles of thought and practice in American psychology and his effort to develop concrete alternatives that gained him a hearing. At the same time, his support for U.S. democracy and his optimism about the practical potential of social science impressed the progressive segment of his discipline. His early work in the philosophy of science has never been translated into English and thus remains largely unknown outside Germany. For historians of science, his career exemplifies the deep connection of modern social science with social practice and also shows how a Jewish scientist created new science after reflecting on his own persecution under Nazism. Click here to learn more on Lewin’s theories.
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1.2.4 Carl I Hovland (1912–1961) American pioneer in communications research, Carl I. Hovland, began his career as an experimental psychologist working on classical problems of conditioning and human learning. By the age of 30, when he turned to the newly developing field of research on attitude change, he had already become one of the most eminent psychologists of his generation. With the advent of government propaganda in support of the United States’ participation in World War II, the artifacts worth investigating helped with the increase of persuasive communication with the intent to affect behavior, attitude, and values. These artifacts had a remarkable amount of money invested into them, however, were they effective? This concept of effectiveness and affecting change within individuals, interpersonal relations, and persuasion are exactly what Hovland was interested in studying. His contributions to the field of communications were three-fold. First, he emphasized micro-level analysis, next he was interested in all facets of interpersonal communication, and finally he revolutionized persuasive research. The most important of Hovland’s early research studies were focused on the generalization of conditioned responses. From 1942 until his untimely death
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from cancer in 1961, Hovland devoted the major part of his time to careful investigations of the effects of social communication, using research designs and analytic methods derived from the more highly developed fields of experimental psychology. The Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award was presented to Hovland by the American Psychological Association, in 1957, “for his original and provocative contributions to the scientific study of persuasive communications and the modification of beliefs and attitudes.” Hovland himself continued to take a leading role as an active research worker, and his own experiments set a high standard as models of analytic precision. Among his best-known studies are those elucidating the influence of the communicator’s prestige and the ways that prestige effects disappear with the passage of time. For more than fifteen years Hovland systematically investigated factors that determine the effectiveness of persuasive communications, including studies of different sequential arrangements of arguments, the retention of arguments and conclusions, and judgmental processes that enter into attitude change. While pursuing his own research, he continually encouraged his associates on the Yale project to select other variables in line with their own research interests, such as the influence of group affiliation, role-playing, emotional appeals, and personality predispositions. In the last decade of his life, Hovland’s research on verbal concepts and judgment led him into an intensive
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analysis of symbolic processes. Once again, he played a pioneering role in developing a new field of research—computer simulation of human thought processes. His first major contribution in this field was a “communication analysis” of concept learning (1952) which showed how a newly developed mathematical theory could be applied to computer simulation of the ways in which people form new concepts. Click here to learn more on persuasive communication. Hovland’s influence on the methodology of social science research was consistently directed toward integrating seemingly divergent lines of research. One of his best-known papers deals with the problems of reconciling conflicting results derived from experimental and survey studies of attitude change (1959). He recommended that the two research approaches should be used conjointly, “combining their virtues so that we may develop a social psychology of communication with the conceptual breadth provided by correlational study of process and with the rigorous but more delimited methodology of the experiment” (1959, p. 17). Perhaps the most comprehensive statement of the scope of Hovland’s substantive contributions to social science research is contained in the citation of the Warren medal, awarded by the Society of Experimental Psychologists in the
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last year of his life: “For his systematic analyses …[in] four areas of research— verbal learning, conditioning, concept formation and attitude change.”
Conclusion Today the paths cut by Lasswell, Lazarsfeld, Lewin, and Hovland in the social sciences are still being followed. Political science, sociology, psychology, economics, anthropology, and history have scholars working in communication. Communication studies also have their own concentrations within these departments. For example, public opinion, political campaigns, news flows, international communication, small groups, distance teaching, national development, and information theory. In addition, the study of communication has become an important element in many daily activities: political campaigns, sales, advertising, teaching and learning, the presentation of news etc. (Chaffee & Rogers, 1997). One of the four communication leaders in midcentury, as referred by Chaffee and Rogers (1997), stated that in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, pioneering scholars in the social sciences examined the communication activities around them and interpreted these activities in terms of their own discipline. In the 1990s pioneering communication scholars examined the activities around them from other area of social sciences and contributed to the understanding of
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this area from the communication viewpoint. There has been an increasing merger of these intellectual resources. Just as Hovland, an experimental psychologist; Lewin, a social psychologist; Lazarsfeld, a sociologist; and Lasswell, a political scientist, had to learn a great deal about communication to work on their areas of interest. Likewise, the modern communication scholars have to learn a great deal about psychology, sociology, politics, economics, or anthropology. The relationship between communication and other social science disciplines are healthy and contributed to the richness of the product. Wilbur Schramm left his prediction on the hard disk of his computer when he died. He expected that academic departments would consolidate around the name “communication.” He foresaw a further intellectual integration in which the study of communication would merge with anthropology, psychology, sociology, economics, and political science – and perhaps other disciplines – to form a science of behavior (Chaffee & Rogers, 1997).
Self-Assessment Exercise 1.2 Pick one of the forefathers in communication studies and describe his outstanding contribution to communication studies (one paragraph).
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References Fiske, J. (1990). Introduction to Communication Studies (2 eds.). New York: Routledge. "Harold Dwight Lasswell." Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (March 11, 2015). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/ 1G2-3404703735.html. "Hovland, Carl I." International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. 1968. Encyclopedia.com. (11 Mar. 2015). http://www.encyclopedia.com. "Lewin, Kurt." Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (11 Mar. 2015). http://www.encyclopedia.com
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/doc/1G2-2830905863.html. McDougall, J. (2012). Media Studies: the basic. London: Routledge. "Paul F. Lazarsfeld." Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (11 Mar. 2015). http://www.encyclopedia.com. Rogers, E. M. (1994). A History of Communication Study: A Biographical Approach. NY: The Free Press. Schramm, W. (1997). The Beginnings of Communication Study in America: A Personal Memoir. In S. H. Chaffe and E.M. Rogers. (eds). London: Sage Publications.
Key Readings Mukherjee, S. (June 18, 2014). A Brief History of Communication And Contribution of Wilbur Schramm. Available at: http://soumyamukherjee.hubpages.com/hub/A-Brief-History-of-CommunicationAnd-Contribution-of-Wilbur-Schramm New World Encyclopedia. (2015). Karl Lazarsfeld. Available at: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Lazarsfeld British Library. (2015). Kurt Lewin.
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Available at: http://www.mbsportal.bl.uk/taster/subjareas/busmanhist/mgmtthinkers/lewin.aspx The Unbounded Spirit. (2015). Persuasive Communication (Psychology of Persuasion). Available at http://theunboundedspirit.com/persuasive-communication-psychologyof-persuasion.
1.3 Interdisciplinary Approaches to Comparative Communication Studies Issues to be discussed: 1.3.1 Comparative International Communication 1.3.2 Comparative ASEAN Freedom of Expression 1.3.3 Comparative ASEAN Media Ethics
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Comparative communication studies cover a wide range of communication issues. This lesson provides concepts and cases for Interdisciplinary Approaches to comparative communication studies. The author selected the issues of international communication, freedom of expression, and media ethics.
1.3.1 Comparative International Communication International communication is the communication practice that occurs across international borders (Fortner, 1993). As a field of study, international communication is a branch of communication studies, concerning with the scope of "government-to-government", "business-to-business", and "people-to-people" interactions at a global level (Thussu, 2006). The need for international communication was due to the increasing effects and influences of globalization. International communication therefore encompasses political, economic, social, cultural and military concerns. The term international communication is also referred to as global communication or transnational communication. It not only stands for different definitions of an expanding communication space but also reflects the history of worldwide communication as well as its diversity. Global
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communication gives us an eyewitness view of events in remotest locations; we participate in political discourses of global, regional or even local relevance. These global processes, in which knowledge, values and ethics, aesthetics, lifestyles are exchanged, are becoming autonomous, a 'third culture', a 'generative frame of unity within which diversity can take place (Featherstone, 1990:2). The global world culture is definitely shaped by communication. The history of international communication shows that news have already been 'inter-nationalized' in the fifteenth century, when the cross border traders in Europe and their trading partners shared economic newsletters and created common values and beliefs in the rights of capital (Stephens, 1988). The commercialization of mass print media (due to steam engine technology) has led to internationally operating news agencies. Reuters, Associated Press, and AFP (Agence France Presse) were established in the nineteenth century. International communication between France, Germany and Great Britain to their colonies in Africa and Asia was accomplished through world wire and cable systems. In the mid of 20th century, transnational media organizations such as Intelsat, Eurovision were established and were the starting point for a new idea of international communication. The internationally operating media companies, such as CNN and MTV have inaugurated a new age of global communication by distributing the same program "around the world in thirty minutes" (as a CNN slogan states) - across nations and cultures (Volkmer, 2015).
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However, comparative communication studies cover a broad range of ideas and issues. For example, freedom of expression and press freedom, international news gatekeeping, global/regional media ethics, and cultural imperialism. In this lesson, we will discuss about press freedom, and regional media ethics. For more case studies, please check out the key reading materials below.
1.3.2 Comparative ASEAN Freedom of Expression Freedom of expression is freedom to communicate ideas without restraint, whether orally or in print or by other means of communication. The term freedom of speech is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used. Freedom of expression is a derivative of a basic human right under article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized in international human rights law in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948, states that: Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive
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and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. (http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/) 1. Everyone shall have the right to hold opinions without interference. 2. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice. 3. The exercise of the rights provided for in paragraph 2 of this article carries with it special duties and responsibilities. It may therefore be subject to certain restrictions, but these shall only be such as are provided by law and are necessary: (a) For respect of the rights or reputations of others; (b) For the protection of national security or of public order (order public), or of public health or morals.
Sometimes, freedom of expression is expressed in more limited language such as freedom of speech, freedom of thought or freedom of the press. According to the ICCPR stated above, freedom of expression/freedom of speech is the political right to communicate one's opinions and ideas. Therefore governments in many countries restrict people’s speech with varying limitations.
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Common limitations on speech relate to libel, slander, obscenity, pornography, sedition, hate speech, incitement, copyright violation, trade secrets, right to privacy, right to be forgotten, among others. According to Picard (2003), most contemporary ideas about freedom of expression trace their roots to debates initiated by European philosophers during the last several centuries. The debates about freedom of expression in Europe occurred against the backdrop of the rebellion against the power of the church with the reformation, and led to the wave of democratic revolutions in Europe during the 1700s and 1800s. Therefore, Europe is where the earliest protections of individual rights and freedom of the press developed. Among western nations, the concepts of freedom of expression and freedom of the press are applied differently depending on the concept of negative freedom and positive freedom. Negative freedom is freedom from something. Positive freedom is freedom to attain something. Americans who embrace the concept of negative freedom tend to have strong antigovernment philosophical tendencies (because the concept of negative freedom prohibits government actions that inhibit freedom). In Western Europe, people see government less threatening and more responsive to social needs. Therefore, people in Europe have a broader support for governmental activities and usually promote positive freedom activities. However, Picard (2003) concluded that European nations today embrace the same basic philosophies
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towards freedom of expression that are found in the Unites States, but that there are some differences in the kind of expression that induces limitations, and the process and methods of dealing with disputes. The Freedom House, a U.S. American watchdog organization dedicated to the promotion of freedom and democratic principles around the world, provides yearly report of global freedom of expression. Prominent American business leaders, journalists and former government officials founded the organization in 1941. The Freedom of the Press Index, first published in 1980, is an annual survey that monitors global media freedom. Freedom House uses the methodology, which is derived from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Freedom in the World 2015 evaluates the state of freedom in 195 countries and 15 territories during 2014. The 25 methodology questions consist of several sub-indicators. Different amounts of points are assigned to each question. Each country and territory is assigned two numerical - from 1 to 7- for political rights and civil liberties. The higher the score gets, the worse is the situation regarding media freedom. The average of a country or territory’s political rights and civil liberties ratings is called the Freedom Rating, and it is this figure that determines the status of Free (1.0 to 2.5), Partly Free (3.0 to 5.0), or Not Free (5.5 to 7.0).
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The results of the Freedom in the World 2015 report are shown in the interactive map below:
According to this report, there is no country in ASEAN categorized as “free.” There are four “Partly Free” countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore). While the rest of 6 countries (Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam) are considered “Not Free” (see Table 1.3.1).
Table 1.3.1: Freedom of Expression in ASEAN 2015 Brunei
Not Free
Cambodia
Not Free
Indonesia
Partly Free
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Laos
Not Free
Malaysia
Partly Free
Myanmar
Not Free
Philippines
Partly Free
Singapore
Partly Free
Thailand
Not Free
Vietnam
Not Free
Since the freedom rating is based on political rights and civil liberties, it is noticeable that the lower rating reflects the acceptance of electoral democracy. The report argued that Myanmar’s civil liberties rating declined from 5 to 6 due to restrictions on media freedom, including the arrest and imprisonment of a number of journalists. Likewise, Thailand’s political rights rating declined from 4 to 6, and the civil liberties rating declined from 4 to 5, and its status declined from Partly Free to Not Free due to the May military coup, whose leaders abolished the 2007 constitution and imposed severe restrictions on speech and assembly. The Freedom in the World 2015 report is an interesting case that reflects the comparative communication issue from the western/American viewpoint that highly values freedom of expression. However, the criteria/indicators used in the
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study may not be appropriate within ASEAN countries that have different identities, norms, social values, and challenges from the western world.
1.3.3 Comparative ASEAN Media Ethics Today’s world is undergoing rapid changes and global events transpire within seconds. Communication technology enables free and unlimited flow of information from publics, regardless of national and time boundaries. Global media conglomerates generate relentless competition in the media industry and, as a result, the demand to consume news and information from people everywhere continues to also expand relentlessly. All these factors have put the media into the limelight as an important component of society, influencing many walks of lives, boundlessly. The establishment of an "ASEAN Community" in the year 2015 will enhance deeper intra-regional communication flows among the population; consequently, access to and exchange of information will be easier and faster. The media in each ASEAN member state therefore, play a crucial role as facilitator of information and cultural exchange. Such crucial role also demands
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recognition and compliance to media ethics, principles that should follow regional guidelines and standards. However, with the backdrop of diverse political, economic and social backgrounds, the level of regulation and media ethics varies and affects the overall performance of the media in each country. Different ethical standards present in each country may be an obstacle for media operators and practitioners to perform their roles in the ASEAN community in the foreseeable future. Therefore, seeking to develop and promote common professional ethical standards of media in ASEAN countries is deemed important and essential in order for the media in each of the ASEAN countries to be aware of their roles and responsibilities in the ASEAN region as a whole. Additionally, it is an opportunity for each country to participate in problem-solving and proposing regulatory guidelines to create a media ethical framework applicable in the ASEAN context, so that ASEAN media can collectively act with reasonable accuracy within a framework of freedom and responsibility to ASEAN society. In 2014 the author of this course conducted a research on ASEAN Media Ethics that was funded by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission of Thailand. One of the research objectives of this study was to compare media ethical guidelines and media ethics regulatory framework across countries in the ASEAN region.
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The data collection included document study; interviewing media academics, professionals, as well as members of media organizations in ASEAN; and organizing academic forums to present research findings and obtain feedback from ASEAN academics and media professionals. Click on the Regional Symposium on ASEAN Media Ethics to learn more on this topic. The research results showed that although countries in ASEAN are geographically similar, the political, economic, and social environment of each country varies among each other. This also reflects the differences in working environment and experience among media professionals and journalists, as well as their ethical practices as follows (CCPS, 2014):
 Brunei Brunei follows cultural and religious norms under the national ideology "Malay lifestyle, Islamic Religion and Adhering to the Monarchy" (Malay Islamic Monarchy or Malay Islam Beraja: MIB), which is recognized as the general ethical practice of media in Brunei, as well. Newspapers are required to apply for annual publishing permits, and foreign journalists must obtain government approval prior to working in the country. The Internet Code of Practice was included in the 2001 Amendment of The Newspaper Act, thus making individuals, as well as content
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and service providers, liable for publishing anything that is “against the public interest or national harmony or which offends against good taste or decency.”
Cambodia The Cambodia Center for Independent Media developed Cambodia’s Journalist Code of Ethics in 2009 through the cooperation of 16 professional media organizations. Several media professional associations have voluntarily adopted this Code without being mandatory. Subsequently, the Cambodian Journalist Council for Ethics (CJCE) was established after the United Nations sponsored a conference on the Ethics of the Press in Cambodia in 2010. Comprised of former senior journalists and media organizations, CJCE aims to promote ethical journalists. By running campaigns to raise awareness and improve ethical practices and professionalism of the Cambodian media, they seek to reduce potential harm to journalists. Indonesia Indonesia’s Journalism Code of Ethics was collectively signed by 29 media organizations in 1999. However, apart from the law and Code of Ethics that has already been set in place, Indonesia’s Islamic religion also plays a role in rigorously overseeing the media. Although the law provides freedom of expression, conservative Islamic religious concepts still play a major role in
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controlling media content. Religious Principles are applied in determining the laws and social rules that the public and the media must follow.
Laos PDR Laos People’s Democratic Republic (PDR) has strict control over media content imposing heavy punishment for violation of regulations. Very few media practitioners have violated the law, ethical guidelines or government policies. Physical threat or attack has rarely occurred in Laos PDR. This is because the journalists strictly avoid any content that could cause conflict, particularly political issues. Laos PDR has its Ten-Point Code of Ethics for journalists and media practitioners, and this is the framework for their media based on the principles of press freedom and accountability.
Malaysia Malaysian law strictly regulates how their media works. This is because Malaysia is composed of people with various ethnic backgrounds. Media, therefore, needs to be respectful, giving priority to the importance of race and religious issues. Malaysian government supervises media closely to maintain national peace and prosperity. The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is an
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organization that consists of several media organizations with their own Code of Ethics, based on the Code of Ethics of the International Federation of Journalists.
Myanmar Myanmar has its Code of Ethics for Journalists, which has recently been approved by the 4,500 media practitioner members and has been in effect since May 2014. Adapted from the International journalists’ code of ethics, the Myanmar code of ethics is applied to all types of media including print, broadcasting, and Internet. Due to the many cases where media personnel was punished severely and unfairly by the law, journalists hope that the implementation of the new Code of Ethics for media in Myanmar will provide some protection for them from legal prosecution by the government.
Philippines The Philippines have stipulated a code of ethics for the media in their country. The Philippine Journalist's Code of Ethics was enacted collectively by the Philippine Press Institute and the National Press Club. There are also other ethical guidelines for the media, such as the Code of Professional and Ethical Conduct of the Philippine Press Institute and the Code of Ethics of the Philippine Center for Photojournalism.
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 Singapore In Singapore the government strictly oversees the work of media under the variety of laws, rules and regulations. Many may say that the government has directed media ethics as well. With such strict government oversight, there has been no media organization of any kind and thus, there were no practice guidelines of media organizations in Singapore until the establishment of the Singapore National Union of Journalists that now has set guidelines for operating the media with a Code of Ethics in Singapore. Their Code is based on the principles of the United Kingdom National Union of Journalists.
 Thailand Thailand has several media organizations, such as the National Press Council of Thailand, Thai Journalists Association, Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, the News Broadcasting Council of Thailand (NBCT), and the Professionals of Broadcasting Council (Thailand) that compile their own ethics and moral codes. After the National Peace Keeping Council had declared its Order No.103/2557 for professional media to monitor their own ethics, the above mentioned media organizations got together to discuss the drafting of guidelines
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and professional ethics with greater clarity and to put in place strict supervision over functioning of media according to ethical principles.
 Vietnam Vietnam has its own Vietnamese Journalists Association that exists alongside a formal Media Law that the media must follow. The Law prescribes the rights and obligations of the Vietnamese Journalists Association to continue to protect and work within the guidelines and policies set by the Communist Party, as well as the duties and responsibilities of media. This Law; however, is not classified as the Code of Ethics of the media. Media professional ethics is also being taught to mass communication students in universities in Vietnam.
Conclusion The research suggested several approaches to promote ASEAN media ethics and concluded that, despite varying political, social and cultural environments across ASEAN countries, a common regional code of media ethics is feasible and should be supported. Such an ASEAN common media code of ethics will help signify the unity of ASEAN, and bring opportunities for the advancement of the region’s mass media industry towards an international standard. However, the ASEAN common code of media ethics should start at a
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broad framework or work on bare minimum standards to ensure a consensus and practical adoption by ASEAN members. Click here to access materials from the ASEAN Media Ethics Forum.
Self-Assessment Exercise 1.3: In your opinion, should the ASEAN community have a shared and common regional code of ethics? Explain your reason.
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References Center for Communication Policy Study (CCPS). (2014). ASEAN Media Ethics. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission. Fortner, R. S. (1993). International communication: History, conflict, and control of the global metropolis. Wadsworth Pub. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Picard, R.G. (2003). Press Freedom in Europe. In K. Anokwa; C. A. Lin; & M. B. Salwen. International Communication: Concept and Cases. Wadsworth: Thomson Learning. Stephens, M. (1988) History of News. From the Drum to the Satellite. New York: Viking. Thussu, D.K.(2006).International Communication: Continuity and Change. London: Hodder Education. Volkmer, I. (2015). International Communication Theory in Transition: Parameters of the New Global Public Sphere. Retrieved March 1, 2015 from http://web.mit.edu/comm-forum/papers/volkmer.html.
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Key Readings Reuters Institute Fellowship Paper, University of Oxford. (2010). WHY DO WE SEE WHAT WE SEE? A comparison of CNN International, BBC World News and Al Jazeera English analysing the respective drivers influencing editorial content. Available at: ///F:/ASEAN%20com/resource/BBC%20CNN%20Aljazeera.pdf Volkmer, I. (2015). International Communication Theory in Transition: Parameters of the New Global Public Sphere. Available at: http://web.mit.edu/comm-forum/papers/volkmer.html.
Assignment of Module 1
For this Module you may choose Assignment 1 or 2. Choose just one.
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1. What are the advantages of comparative studies for ASEAN and communication research? Please provide examples of how comparative studies will enable researchers to analyze communication in ASEAN and the Global context.
2. Choose an issue or topic that is relevant to communication in ASEAN. Use a comparative approach to explain how that issue or topic is presented and unfolds, for example, in different countries, regions, cultures, theories, among others. (The essay should not be longer than 1500 words)