News Media: Should They Play a Role in Crisis Management

摘要

Over the course of the past thirty years our American news media have undergone revolutionary changes which have dramatically affected their degree of influence on public opinion and consequently their impact on our government's high-level decision makers. Television, radio, and print news carry their message to millions of viewers, listeners and readers daily. In the future, media owned and operated satellites will add a new dimension to the media's ability to rapidly collect and disseminate potentially sensitive information. This paper examines the role of the media in a democratic society; how public opinion is influenced, and the media's impact on foreign policy and national security decision making in a crisis. Legal and administrative options available to the government for managing the media during a national crisis are examined. Accordingly, the paper proposes a new methodology for media participation with government in the business of crises management. Keywords: Public opinion; Newspapers. (kt)