Cyberspace, the information superhighway, and other technologies have moved the world from an agricultural and industrial dominance into the information and communication age. The primary communication method remains much the same as it has been throughout all human history--telling stories. Today storytellers have techniques which have so improved the impact of visual images and so amplified their presence through broadcast, cable, satellite, and VCRs, and through video games, fiber-optics, interactive television, CD-ROMs, and global computer communications, that the traditional face-to-face storytellers--parents, pastors, and teachers--frequently are unheard.
Global Context
Mass media have become so pervasive that people in the developing countries are affected as much as those in the developed countries. Yet the centers of control of these media rest in the developed countries, and many of the questions about the media relate to the bias of the people in these countries toward the rest of the world:
*The assumption in the developed countries is that free market forces are both necessary and desirable in bringing media to the public, but these materialistic forces have unfortunate historical and institutional ties to violence-driven and oppressive cultures.
*The term "mass media" implies that all persons have access to them and use of them, when in practice media have a narrow base of ownership among an elite group of affluent persons, mostly white Western men.
*The drive for mergers and consolidations among broadcasting companies, entertainment complexes, and electronic industries is basically a drive for profits, cloaked in the deceptive public relations language of consumer choice.
*What has been called the "homogenization" of the media--that is, the tendency of mass media to imitate each other in producing programming that resembles the most successful formulas--ends in making highly biased cultural stereotypes the norm throughout the world.
*Christian religious communities have sometimes been co-opted in a detrimental way by the claim of the mass media to be all-powerful, leading to passivity on the part of mainstream religions and an endorsement of the distorted values of the media by default.
United Methodist Traditions
As proclaimers of the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ, United Methodists have traditionally been concerned about communication. Both the individualistic tradition of pietism and the communitarian tradition of the social gospel have led United Methodists to raise concerns about the distorted images and values in mass media. The Social Principles speak to values in the media, decrying sensationalism and dehumanizing portrayals that "degrade humankind and violate the teachings of Christ and the Bible" (from Social Principles,¶ 72, The Book of Discipline).
Thus The United Methodist Church has a heritage of expressing its concern for the perceptions and images offered in the media, as well as the actual workings of new media technology. We have called in the past for inclusiveness in media institutions and for accountability of those who hold power in the media. This heritage justifies our making this public statement of concern and protest.
The goals of The United Methodist Church, based on our understanding of the gospel, are clear:
(1) to challenge owners and operators of mass-media institutions to be more responsible in communicating truth and more humane values, (2) to advocate for access to the media and, where feasible, ownership of media institutions by marginalized groups, (3) to be more responsible as a community of faith by interacting with the media and using media creatively, (4) to become a model of communication by our own openness and wise use of the media, and (5) to empower people to tell their own story.
Affirmations
We invented these media, using the gifts of God's creation. We can also be a part of the solution. We continue to affirm:
*Freedom of expression--whether by spoken or printed word, or any visual or artistic medium--should be exercised within a framework of social responsibility. The church is opposed to censorship.
*The principle of freedom of the press must be maintained.
*The airwaves should be held in trust for the public by radio and television broadcasters and regulated in behalf of the public.
*Public broadcasting as it continues to develop should be supported by both public and private sectors of the society to help further the diversity of programming and information sources.
*As difficult as it may be to achieve, the goal is that all persons of every nation should have equal access to channels of communication so they can participate fully in the life of the world.
*No medium can be truly neutral. Each brings its own values, limitations, criteria, authoritarian or democratic structures and selection processes with it.
Evaluation
We continue to oppose the practices of persons and systems which use media for purposes of exploitation, which comes in many forms:
*Emphasizing violence.
*Marketing pornography.
*Appealing to self-indulgence.
*Presenting consumerism as a desired way of life.
*Favoring the mass audience at the expense of individuals and minorities.
*Withholding significant information.
*Treating news as entertainment.
*Presenting events in isolation from a larger context that would make them understandable.
*Stereotyping characters in terms of sex roles, ethnic or racial background, occupation, age, religion, nationality, handicapping condition, and economic status.
*Dealing with significant political and social issues in biased and superficial ways.
*Exhibiting an overriding concern for maximizing profit.
*Discriminating in employment practices, particularly by failing to include women and racial-ethnic minorities in critical decision-making positions.
*Presenting misleading or dangerous product information or omitting essential information.
Questions
Because the media bring their own values with them, we as Christians must ask:
*How can the new media be used to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ?
*Who controls the media in a country? Who determines the structures of and the public's access to the mass media? Who controls international technologies of communication?
*Who determines message content and images and within what guidelines of responsibility?
*Who uses the media and for what purposes?
*What is the appropriate response to the growing demands of developing countries for a more just world information system?
*What rights do users have in determining media structure and content? How can the user bring critical appraisal to the messages received?
*And if we are to be subjected to the information superhighway, how can users control the reception of undesired information?
*How can we introduce ethical and moral considerations into media programming without resorting to censorship?
Call to Action
We call upon the church to respond to the mass media by:
*Developing media literacy resources for church members.
*Providing media literacy education to church members, thus equipping them to analyze and evaluate various forms of media instead of being passive recipients.
*Empowering church members to use media as a tool and be makers of media themselves to share the gospel.
*Participating in research on the effects of new technologies, media mergers, and globalization of media on communities in the developed and developing countries.
*Advocating for those shut out of the media: the poor, the less powerful, and other marginalized people.
*Advocating for socially responsible media and communication policies.
*Working to assure a public lane in the information superhighway.
*Recognizing the close relationship between media and message, and using media as channels of education, witness, evangelism, information, social services, advocacy, and ministry.
*Affirming traditional modes of face-to-face communications like storytelling, dialogue, songs, and indigenous cultural modes of communication.
In our own communication structures and processes within the church, we need to establish models of communication which are freeing, which respect the dignity of the recipient, and which are participating and non-manipulative. We need to democratize our own media to allow access and open dialogue. As a major institution within our society, we can demonstrate to other institutions the power of a connectional church which structures its communication patterns not by concentrating media power but by emphasizing the values of the gospel which recognize the sanctity of every individual.
General Conference Webmaster: Susan Brumbaugh
PETS Creator: John Brawn
Petition Text: 21352-GM-R484-U
1996 United Methodist General Conference