Tag Archives: alternative press

Eland, reading response.

“What do we see when we look closely at what actually compromises the mass media? We see a system dominated by five to seven major corporations.” This stood out to me while reading, “Critical Thinking, Deviant Knowledge and the Alternative Press” by Thomas Eland. The section of this article uses a newspaper as an example by saying, sections of newspapers are consciously aimed at specific groups. If the above statement is true then it raises questions such as, the people that are in charge of what goes out into the media, would their suggestions be biased? Are the people putting the stories out consciously aiming at specific groups?

Corporations in the press.

The Thomas Eland and Fred Wright article both echo one of my beliefs which is there should be a separation between the press and business.  I have always believed that the press should be for the people instead of puppets being manipulated by large corporations.  I have no problem with the press being for profit, but I do have a problem when they are cancelled because of low ratings or poor circulation.   The news should exist outside of the control of gatekeepers and thus shouldn’t be judged on the criteria of ratings or circulation.

According to the Eland article alternative press does not believe that news can be told from a neutral “objective” perspective, which I disagree with.  Mainly because if the news is not neutrally objective then it can affect how it is reported – for an example I give you Fox News.  Another thing about alternative media and zines is that they are the trees falling in the forest with no one being around to hear them.  Alternative press and zines are so obscure that were it not for these two articles I never would have even known that they existed.