Values in the Czech media

1. Values in the Czech media Olga Angelovska Michaela Smidova Centre for social and economic strategies, Faculty of social sciences, Charles University in Prague

2. Goals of presentation • to give a short review about contemporary research of the „values in media“ issue in the Czech Republic (topics, some results); • to describe some methodological problems and to look for relevant methods and starting points for our research (our example will be a case study: „violence“ in the Czech TV); • to present some researches of „values in media“ that are planned by our team

3. Approaches to „values in media“ research (basic levels) • fixation and presentation values in media (alone) and • perception and acceptance or rejection (refusal) values by audience (viewers, listeners, readers) • Above all: values – what we consider that they are?

4. Problems with media analysis • Lack of general instruments for media analysis, there are only specific instruments • Impact of media is not „straightforward“, not a causal relation

5. „Values in media“ research often mirrors „popularity“ of topics in the research generally (examples) • Gender in media and advertisement(TNS Faktum) (women are reflected in more positive way × stereotypical picture of women: predominantly with traditional roles – family, children, house care, etc.) • Foreigners(Kostlan, Szepanikova, Bitrich and Palecek) (low qualified „gastarbeiters“; and illegal employment; very often with negative undermeaning; headline xenophoby; foreigners × asylum seekers) • Seniors(Sedlakova, Vidovicova) (simplified,unbalanced view of TV and newspapers; stereotype: „old people as unsatisfied with advantages of social state“ or „vulnerable and affable grandmums and grandfathers“ • Violence(Suchy) (Dependence between TV watching time and aggressiveness of children)

6. Document analysis of periodic press (Slunicko – Small Sun) • magazine for pre-school children, with long tradition, roots from socialistic period • (always one release in the selected years 1980, 1990, 1997, 2007) • parameters as the proportion of words per page, the proportion of pictures per page (in cm²) Results: change in genre, distinctive decrease of poetry, slight decrease of prose, big increase of advertisement number and advertisement became part of tasks, narration and comics (!), type ofprevailing values – tolerance and considerateness

7. Document analysis of the Czech TV broadcastingI. • We continue work of Lucie Slavickova – „Children, youth and problem of violence in media“ • Verification and eventually partial changes in methodic, is it useful for repeated research, is it possible to broaden it for other theme or „values“ ? • Hypothesis: programmes of private TV (NOVA) is more risky then public TV (CT1) (i.e. violence in an inadequate context is more often on private tv) • Document analysis (quantitative andqualitative) ofprogrammesof ČT 1 a NOVA • an usual Saturday (no special program influenced by f. e. elections, public holidays etc.)

8. Document analysis of the Czech TV broadcasting II. Basic unit = a violence scene (max. 5 seconds) Analyzed high-risk factors : • characteristic of originator→ a positive hero; • absence of punishment; • reason of violence → violence justification; • presence of weapon; • measure and plasticity of violence; • level of reality violence (methods and instruments for violence); • violence consequences; • violence context → with humor Risky violence scene (1 or more high-risk factor) or neutral violence scene (no high-risk factor)

9. Document analysis of the Czech TV broadcasting III. • Some results from research: 1. analyzed violence scenes – mostly risky !; 2. very depended on program scheme of tv´s repeating of research VS= violence scene

10. Document analysis of the Czech TV broadcasting IV. 1,9

11. Document analysis in progress • values messages in articles at Lidove noviny (right political orientation) and Pravo (left political orientation) in days before and after November 17th at years 1990, 1994, 1999, a 2004 – anniversary of Velvet Revolution) • Reflection of media and their pressure and influence on youth through the view of young people (students)