Advocacy journalism refers to the use of journalism techniques to promote specific political and/or social causes. This form of journalism often portrays a distinct opinion or point of view. In Western Europe, many media outlets have traditionally aligned openly with a political position, even though journalists and reporters from these sources are considered “professionals” not associated with advocacy. Advocacy journalism conflicts with objective journalism, which is a primary focus in US journalism, although objectivism is certainly found in Western European media as well.
Professor Reig at the University of Seville summarized the role of advocacy in the media in relation to what he calls the 5 P’s, which are:
– “Propriedad” referring to the proprietary owners of the media outlets, often who put the pressure on their journalists to pitch their views or causes
– “Publicidad” referring to the largest advertisers and investors such as Telefonica, El Corte Ingles, and P&G
– “Politica” referring to politics that influence various views
– “Publicos” referring to the publics and receivers of the messages
– “Produccion” referring to how the message is relayed
Media in many Western European countries has historically tended to emphasize opinion and commentary related to distinct political views. This tendency is greater in countries where strong and unified political parties have existed for over half a century versus other European countries that were ruled by dictatorships or repressive governments that suppressed the development of political parties and political views other than that of the ruling party. Media in many Western European countries is often controlled by private interests with political alliances and ambitions who seek to use their media properties for political ends.
In Spain, the need for diversification allowed a few large multimedia conglomerates to form and emerge to dominate media in the country. These conglomerates not only have vast interests but have strong political alliances as well. For many years the dominant media company in Spain was Grupo PRISA, whose holdings include the newspaper El País, SER radio and many cable and satellite television channels; and whose owner had close ties to Socialist President Felipe González. A rival media giant formed around the former state telecommunications monopoly, Telefónica de España, which was privatized under the conservative Partido Popular government. This conglomerate includes the private television company, Antena 3, the radio network Onda Zero and a satellite television platform. The newspaper El Mundo, which is partly owned by Telefónica, is similarly aligned with the Partido Popular government and got a name for itself by uncovering many scandals involving the PSOE government. The conservative newspaper ABC and the Catholic Church’s radio network COPE are also connected to Telefónica. The media empires have become rivals in the country, as much in the political as in the commercial world. Major banks and financiers also have ties to these conglomerates, and Spanish journalists and media analysts often describe them as the major power behind the scenes.
Most Western European countries have state-funded public news and education television programs. All public broadcasting systems are to some degree subject to political influence, and it is common in European media to have disputes over the independence of public broadcasting. In some countries, the ruling party directly controls public broadcasting and the news may be mobilized to support the government politically at crucial moments. When there is a change in these governments, the management of the news divisions of public television changes as well.
http://www.zcommunications.org/beyond-advocacy-v-objective-journalism-by-robert-jensen
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