Answer the following questions on your blog:
1) To what extent do you agree with Alain de Botton's views on the News?
I agree strongly with his Botton's outlook on news. He argues that the news bombards audiences with masses of information, almost overwhelming them.
2) How can you link Marxism and Hegemony to de Botton's criticisms of the News?
Botton discusses how the news act as a form of control over the working class. It acts as a Bourgeoisie - proletariat relationship.
3) How could you use Pluralism and new technology to challenge de Botton's views on the News?
New technology undoubtedly challenges current news institutions. Specifically, through the rise of citizen journalism, UGC and NDM, audiences are gaining control. Audiences are able to influence how news stories are reported, even reporting them entirely themselves through social media platforms such as twitter.
4) Choose two news stories from the last six months - one that supports de Botton's views and one that challenges his belief that the News is used for social control.
One story is the Weinstein scandal. When the first story was exposed, so much informaion was flooded at audiences yet there was no discussion of the consequences he would face. This is a prime example of what Botton is talking about when he says audiences are distracted by wall the information they receive, in order to not challenge what is happening.
Another story is the new style that the BBC has adopted - a more clickbait style of news that focuses on non-serious topics.
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