The Relationship Between Pressure Groups and the News Media :: The Mass Media and Environmental Issues

Nowadays, it is comprehensible to hear that crowded citizens flourished on the street or gathered in front of the official government in order to advocacy their appeals towards government or pressing the ‘sluggish’ government. These phenomenons could be identified by social activities lead by pressure group and as the forms of expressing public opinion ( Grant, 1999:4). However, news media also reveals similar functions with pressure groups by attracting public attention and raising public awareness on certain issues, even influencing government’s decision on a great extent. This essay will mainly focus on analysising how pressure groups successfully utilize and affect news media in terms of enhancing the public attention to their campaigns which accompany with a few negative examples of pressure groups about misues news media. Besides, this essay will critically argue about the relationship between pressure groups and news media; some techniques exerted by pressure groups in media area and how news media reacted to pressure groups. There are several types of pressure groups existing in current society which they possess different values and aims. In details, causes groups may eager to set up certain debates in political agenda and expected to receive effectual political action (Grant, 2000, P126); sectional groups might need to attract public attention to their problems but sometimes they prevent public attention in order to conducted via au fait consultative channels (Grant, 2000, P126); interest groups which easily to understand in its literal meanings used to upgrade their interest in political agenda by utilizing media (Grant, 2000, P127). Therefore, certain pressure groups require higher level of media assistance compared with others. Furthermore, despite of pressure groups relate to political agenda, environmental groups have established long-history relationship with news media that could be identified by large amount of environmental articles in media coverage (Hansen, 1993, P5). In details, mo st well-known environmental groups employed rich experience staff; those workers involved in making environmental news before or providing environmental information to journalists that will guarantee their campaign issues are similar or familiar with favourable news coverage (Hansen, 1993, P5). However, environmental groups are taken significant advantages in news coverage compared with other pressure groups due to the environmental news are more mediagenic and equivalent to news criteria (Hansen, 1993, P5). Despite of the pressure groups require news media at a variety level, different form of news media might present diverse effects depends on its functions and targeted audiences.