Normative theories were first proposed by Fred

Siebert, Theodore Peterson and Wilbur

Schramm in their book called Four Theories of
the Press.
At first the word Normative Theory was
pronounced in USA during the height of cold war
with communism and soviet. Often it is called
as western theories of mass media.

 It is a type of theory that describes an

ideal way that how media should be
structured and operated within the society
or how journalism/ media ought to, or are
expected to, operate what is desirable in
relation to both structure and performance.
It shows how the press operated under the
various political environments.

 This theory explains how ideal media ought to

operate with specific system of social values.
Theories of the press and its role in a society would
fit in this category.
It is a synthesis of ideas developed over the past four
centuries.
These theories were based on observations and not
from hypotheses testing.

 These theories are basically different from other

communication theories because normative theories of press
are not providing any scientific explanations or prediction. At
the same these four theories of the press were came from
many sources rather than a single source.
A Normative theory describes an ideal way for a media system
to be controlled and operated by the government, authority,
leader and public.

 Siebert, Peterson & Schramn (1956) proposed that

the press system is divided into four categories:
1. Authoritarian Theory
2. Libertarian Theory
3. Social Responsibility Theory
4. Soviet-Totalitarian Theory
Additions (Denis McQuail. Mass Communication
Theory: An Introduction) in 1980
Development
Democratic-participant

 16th & 17th century England. Widely adopted and

still in practice in many places.
B. PHILOSOPHY:
Philosophy of absolute monarch/ruler, his
government or both.

 Authoritarian theory holds that journalism should

always be subordinate to the interests of the state
in maintaining social order or achieving political
goals (Siebert, Peterson, & Schramm 1956). At a
minimum, the press is expected to avoid any
criticisms of government officials and to do
nothing to challenge the established order.
Authoritarian concept: advocating the complete
domination of media by a government for the
purpose of forcing those media to serve
government

 Responsibility of the media was To support and

advance the policies of the government in power
and to serve the state.
The media in an authoritarian system are not
allowed to print or broadcast anything which
could undermine the established authority, and
any offense to the existing political values is
avoided. The authoritarian government may go to
the step of punishing anyone who questions the
state's ideology
The fundamental assumption of the authoritarian
system is that the government is infallible. Media
professionals are therefore not allowed to have
any independence within the media organization.

 In the authoritarian theory system, the

relationship between the state and the media in
an authoritarian system is vertical, in that, the
information is from the top (government) to
down (media).

 DEVELOPMENT:
Adopted by England after 1688 and in the U.S.
Influential elsewhere.
PHILOSOPHY:
Writing of Milton, Loke, Mill and general
philosophy or rationalism and natural rights.

 In his book, Siebert goes on to explain the

libertarian theory, which is also called the free
press theory. In contrast to the authoritarian
theory, the libertarian view rests on the idea that
the individual should be free to publish whatever
he or she likes.
In the libertarian system, attacks on the
government's policies are fully accepted and even
encouraged. Moreover, there should be no
restrictions on import or export of media
messages across the national frontiers.

 that there should be no laws governing media

operations. Free press means that all forms of
media must be totally unregulated.
If individuals could be freed from arbitrary limits
on communication imposed by church and state,
they would naturally follow the dictates of their
conscience, seek truth, engage in public debate,
and ultimately create a better life for themselves
and others.

 Best known embodiment of the ideal is the First

Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which specifies
that
Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the
freedom of speech, or of the press. This formulation
expresses the ideal only in negative terms, as a
freedom from state intervention.
It asserted that all individuals have natural rights no
government, community, or group can unduly
infringe upon or take away. The ability to exercise
dissent, to band together with others to resist laws
that people find to be wrong, to print or broadcast
ideas, opinions and beliefs- all of these rights are
proclaimed as central to democratic self government.

 Supporters of this theory believed strongly in the

power of unrestricted public debate and discussion to
create more natural way of structuring society.
In AEROPAGETICA, a powerful libertarian published in
1644 by John Milton asserted that:
In a fair debate good and truthful arguments
will always win out over lies and deceit. If this is
true it followed , then a new and better social
order could be forged using public debate.
This idea came to be referred to as MILTONS SELFRIGHTING PRINCIPLE, and is still cited by
contemporary media professionals.

 These libertarian ideals are also seen as the heart

of the United States long-term experiment with
democratic self-government. The American
Revolution against Britain was legitimized by
libertarian ideals. Patrick Henrys famous
comment
Give me liberty or Give me Death.

 HOW ARE THE MEDIA CONTROLLED?

By self right process of truth in free market
place of ideas and by courts.
WHAT IS PROHBITED?
Defamation, obscenity, indecency, wartime
sedition

 OWNERSHIP:
Chiefly private
ESSENTIAL DIFERENCE FROM OTHERS:
Instrument for checking on government and
meeting other needs of society

 In (1644) John Milton asserted that in a fair

debate good and truthful arguments will
always win over lies and deceit.
Thus, it followed that a new and better social
order could be forged. This became known as the
self-righting principle.

Market place of ideas

The notion that all ideas should be put before the
public, and the public will choose the best from
that market place.

STRENGTH:
Value media freedom.
Values individuals.
Preclude (prevent from happening) government
control of media

 WEAKNESS
It is overly optimistic about media
willingness to meet responsibilities.
It is overly optimistic about individuals
ethics and rationality.
Ignores the need for reasonable
control of media.
Ignores the dilemmas posed by
conflicting freedoms (e.g free press vs
personal privacy)

 Unfortunately, most early libertarians had a

unrealistic view of how long it would take to find the
truth and establish an ideal social order. In the 18th
century it became clear that truth couldnt be
quickly or easily established, some libertarians
became discouraged. They drifted between libertarian
and authoritarian views.
Whenever new media technologies are invented, it is
necessary to decide how they should be regulated.
The debate over communication freedom never ends,
sometimes the balance shifts toward expanding
freedom and other times, freedom is curtailed.

 The question is why it is necessary to place limits

on communication freedom. The common reason
could be, where do the rights guaranteed to you
by the constitution end and those of another
begins?
What happens when groups attempt to stir up
hatred and resentment against racial or ethnic
minorities?
Should media practitioners be allowed to invade
our homes, publish erroneous information about
us, or deceive us with false advertising? Do media
professionals have the right to produce and
distribute anything that will earn profits, or should
some limits be placed on them?

 These feelings were particularly developed in the

United States in the 1800s, during the penny press
and yellow journalism eras. Public confidence in
both business and government was shaken by
recurring depressions, widespread corruption and
injustice. Public respect for newspapers also
receded as
publishers pursued profits and created news to sell
papers. Social movement sprang up to call for new
laws and greater government regulation. A group
who believed in direct regulation of media, most
often by a government agency or commission.
These include advocates of TECHNORATIC
CONTROL, people like Harold Lasswell and Walter
Lippmann.

 So during the 1920s and 1930s a new normative theory

of mass communication began to emerge that rejected
both radical libertarian and ideas of technocratic
control. As pressure for government regulation of media
mounted, industry leaders responded with efforts to
professionalize. Rather than cede control of media to a
government agency, media managers went on record
with pledges to serve public needs.
Industry codes of ethics began to formalize another
important conception about the role of media-that of a
watchdog guarding the welfare of the public. It
assumed that media should continually scan the social
world and alert the public to problems.
Realizing that the market had failed to fulfill the
promise that press freedom would reveal the truth, The
Commission on Freedom of the Press provided a model
in which the media had certain obligations to society.

 So Henry Luce, CEO of Time Inc., provided funding for an

independent commission to make
recommendations concerning the role of the press.
The Hutchins Commission on Freedom of the press
was established in 1942 and released a major report of
its findings in 1947.
The Commission members were sharply divided
between those who held strongly libertarian views and
those who thought some form of press regulation was
necessary. Those who favored regulation were fearful
that the marketplace of ideas was much too vulnerable
to subversion by antidemocratic forces; most of them
were impressed by the Chicago School.

 Written by Robert Maynard Hutchins and a dozen

other
preeminent intellectuals of the day, A Free and
Responsible Press offers an astute, literate, and
impassioned indictment of the nation's mass media.
The 133-page report contends that the press is free
for the purpose of serving democracy; a press that
shirks its democratic duties will lose its freedom.
The report calls on the press to improve itself in the
name of morality, democracy, and self-preservation.

 Chicago School envisioned modern cities as Great

Communities comprising hundreds of small social
groups- everything from neighborhood social
organizations to citywide associations. For these Great
Communities to develop, all the constituent groups
had to work together and contribute. These were
referred to as pluralistic groups in recognition of their
cultural and racial diversity.
The Chicago School Opposed marketplace of ideas
notions and argued that unregulated mass media
inevitably served the interests and tastes of large or
socially dominant groups. Small, weak, pluralistic
groups would be either neglected or degraded.

 This perspective also held that ruthless elites

could use media as a means of gaining personal
political power. These demagogues could
manipulate media to transmit propaganda to fuel
hatred and fear among a majority unite them
against minorities, e.g. as Hitler used the media to
arouse hatred against the Jews. Although majority
of the Hutchins commission members had some
sympathy for Chicago School ideas, they opposed
any direct form of press regulation.

 1. Media should accept and fulfill certain

obligations to society.
2. These obligations are mainly to be met by
setting high or professional standards of
informativeness, truth, accuracy, objectivity and
balance.
3. In accepting and applying these obligations,
media should be self-regulating within the
framework of law and established institutions.
4. The media should avoid whatever might lead to
crime, violence or civil disorder or give offense to
minority groups.

 5. The media as a whole should be pluralist and

reflect the diversity of their society, giving access
to various points of view and to rights of reply.
6. Society and the public have a right to expect
high standards of performance, and intervention
can be justified to secure the public good.
7. Journalists and media professionals should be
accountable to society as well as to employers
and the market

STRENGTH
Values media responsibility
Value audience responsibility
Limit media intrusion in media operation
Allows reasonable government control of media
Values diversity and pluralism
Aids the powerless
Appeals to the best instincts of media
practitioners and audience

 WEAKNESSES
It is overly optimistic about media
willingness to meet responsibility.
It is overly optimistic about individual
responsibility.
Underestimate the power of profit
motivation & competition.
Legitimizes status quo

 Apparent from its name, the Soviet theory is

closely tied to a specific ideology; the
communist. Siebert traces the roots of this
theory back to the 1917 Russian Revolution
based on the postulates of Marx and Engels.
The media organizations in this system were
not intended to be privately owned and were
to serve the interests of the working class.
The mass media in the Soviet model are
expected to be self-regulatory with regard to
the content of their messages.

 C. MAIN PURPOSE:
To continue to the success and
continuance of the Soviet Socialist System
especially that led to the dictatorship of
the party.
D. WHO HAS THE RIGHT TO USE
THE MEDIA:
Loyal and orthodox party members

 E. HOW ARE THE MEDIA CONTROLLED?

Surveillance and economic or political action of
government
F. WHAT IS PROHBITED?
Criticism of the party objectives as distinguish
from tactics

G. OWNERSHIP:
Public
H. ESSENTIAL DIFERENCE FROM
OTHERS:
State owned and closely controlled media existing
solely as arms of eh state.

 Democratic-participant theory was proposed in

recognition of new media developments and of
increasing criticism of the dominance of the main
mass media by private or public monopolies.
From the 1960s onwards call could be heard for
alternative, grass-roots media, expressing the needs
of citizens. The theory supports the right to relevant
local information, the right to answer back and the
right to use the new means of communication for
interaction and social action in small-scale settings
of community, interest groups or subculture.

 This theory challenged the necessity for and

desirability of
uniform, centralized, high-cost, commercialized,
professionalized or state-controlled media.
In their place should be encouraged multiple,
small-scale, local, non-institutional, committed
media which link senders to receivers and also
favor horizontal patterns of interaction.

 B. PHILOSOPHY:
It reflects public reaction against the
commercialisation and monopolisation
of privately owned media and against
the centralism and bureaucratisation of
public broadcasting institutions

 This theory seeks to explain the normative

behavior of the press in countries that are
conventionally
classified
together
as
developing countries or third world
countries.
It, too, is not easy to locate in any
particular institution or country, because it
encompasses a great variety of fluctuating
economic and political conditions

 Development media theory was intended to

recognize the fact that societies undergoing a
transition from underdevelopment and colonialism
to independence and better material conditions
often lack the infrastructure, the money, the
traditions, the professional skills and even the
audiences needed to sustain

 Major Tenets:
Media must accept and carry out positive
development tasks in line with nationally
established policy.
Freedom of the media should be open to
economic priorities and development needs of
the society.
Media should give priority in their content to the
national culture and language(s).
Media should assist the Government in any
development project.

Thank You