Sociology: Media, Law, and the Legal Framework of Society

This sociology essay delves into the media's engagement with legal frameworks, addressing whether media prioritizes legal accuracy or sensationalism. It analyzes the media's adherence to ethical principles, focusing on truth, accuracy, fairness, and impartiality in reporting, as demonstrated through case studies like the Janine Bowater and Richard Wilmot cases. The essay explores the impact of media on law reform, examining how media coverage influences public opinion and policy changes, as seen in discussions on Brexit and prison rights. It also assesses instances of irresponsible reporting, such as the misrepresentation in the Janine Bowater case, concluding that the media generally considers legal aspects when reporting, contributing positively to law reform by raising awareness and shaping policy. The essay uses multiple sources to support its arguments, demonstrating the media's complex role in society.

Sociology
Law in action
Name
Professor
Course
Date

Sociology
Introduction
There is a lot of debate which targets the media on how it conforms to the legal framework
within the society. The paper discusses some aspects which have been facing the media industry.
Whether media pay enough attention to the legal aspect of stories they cover or they are
concerned with sensationalism, politics or personalities
To me, I think that most of the times media pay much attention to the legal aspect of the stories
they cover. Well, the aim of the media is to present what is happening in our society and the
entire country. 1This means that media has the authority to reveal any irrelevant practice being
carried out by some of our members in society. Media is controlled by the law which stands for
truth and accuracy. Well, sometimes reports may be true or wrong although large number of
news from media are true. For example, during our class work, we learned the case of Janine
Bowater. In this case, one can just summarize some weaknesses and strength of the media on
news coverage. The media reports gave different information related to the case of Janine
Bowater. 2The media that is the Daily mail indicated that Janine Bowater was a barmaid and she
was a mother of three of which was totally incorrect and she had no emotion as she stood in the
dock. On another hand, the BBC added that: ‘As with all deaths in custody, there will be an
1 Victor & Hoffman. "Media effects: Do terrorist organizations launch foreign attacks in
response to levels of press freedom or press attention?" Conflict management and peace
science 33, no. 4 (2016): 381-399.
2 Andrea, Pin & Sobbrio. "Paying positive to go negative: Advertisers׳ competition and
media reports." European Economic Review 83 (2016): 243-261.

Sociology
independent investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.’ The two media reported
different information. This raises the issue of media ethics.3
In general, the report revealed by the media about the case of Janine Bowater shows the
weakness of media. This on its own does not mean that the media is more concerned with the
sensationalism or on political gains. Most of the times the media observe ethics and principles
outlined in the Media Act. There a lot of issues which have been presented by adhering to
principles and ethics of media in the nation. Most of the times the reports we get from media
have truth and accuracy. This means that journalist in our media always they guarantee truth in
the reports and that why they present the news with the relevant facts. The issue of truth and
accuracy is said to be the major principle of media when it comes to media ethics and code of
conduct. For example in our class work, we have seen the case of Richard Wilmot and his ex-
wife Vicky Maughan. The two couple had marriage issues and the court ruled on justice and
fairness. From this case, we can see how the media revealed the information. The reports
indicated that how Richard was fined by the court after some scientific investigations were
carried out to identify the identity of the child in the court. The media shows that the DNA
results revealed that Richard was the father of the child and he was fined for irresponsibility.
Generally, this case is relevant to the concept of truth and accuracy. The media here reports the
case depending on the facts whereby the facts here are then results carried out to identify the
identity of the child in the case.
3 Kenneth . "Lack of Political Will." In Impediments to the Prevention and Intervention of
Genocide, 3(17), pp. 41-56. 2017.

Sociology
In addition, there is the principle of fairness and impartiality that controls the media. Fairness
and impartiality are the key concepts which shows how the media is obeying the legal
framework in the country.4 For example, most of the stories our media presents to the public tend
to be of two sides. The law shows that no obligation to present every side in every piece but the
reports presented by the media ought to be balanced and the relevant context included. In simple
words, this principles of fairness and impartiality argue that the objectivity is not always the
targeted issue in media coverage and sometimes it may not be desirable but the main issue
should be based on the impartial reporting which most of the times it is attributed to trust and
also building confidence. For example, there is the issue of fairness in the issue presented by the
Guardian in June 2017. The media here fully revealed the correct information about the main
issue facing the court system. According to the Guardian in June 2017, the reports indicated how
current levels of prisons are in the country. The Guardian fully exhausted how the overall
atmosphere experienced in the court. 5The reports continued and said that there was decline of
mental health amongst the prisoners and also there was a rise in self-harm and suicide. The
media went on and suggested that most of the problems incurred by prisoners are a result of
insufficient fund needed to manage the prisons. All these reports seemed to conform to the
results revealed by the government whereby the government indicated that the main problems
4 Jeffrey, Ding, Lesage & Hervé, "Media bias and the persistence of the expectation gap:
An analysis of press articles on corporate fraud." Journal of Business Ethics 144, no. 3
(2017): 637-659.
5 Doris & Dunaway. Mass media and American politics, 5th edition. Cq Press Cambridge,
2017.

Sociology
experienced in the prison were issued of corruption, the issue of drugs in the prisons and also
organized crime gangs. 6At this point, one can argue that media is all after the truth. This shows
how media obeys the issue of openness. From the cases indicated in the discussion, it’s clear that
media pays attention to legal aspects when presenting different reports from different areas. This
does not mean that media is not affected by sensationalism, politics or personalities but most of
the time it stands for truth. Most of the news are always true since media has to investigate issue
and then come up with apt information to report. In addition, there is media law which regulates
the fairness of the news reported by the media.7 The media law always emphasizes on the code of
ethics and therefore to me I think media do consider the legal framework when releasing reports
and news to the public.
Is it fair to say that some of media reports are irresponsible in the way they report the
news? Which ones and why?
Yes, it is fair to say some media are irresponsible in the way they report the news. The case of
Jonine Bowater was reported without the relevant facts. The class work has clearly indicated
how media reports the news without considering the fact about a certain case. 8From the class
sources, the case of Janine Bowater shows how the media is irresponsible in giving news
6 Henry, Ford & Green. Spreadable media: Creating value and meaning in a networked
culture, 4th edition. NYU press New York, 2018.
7 Ann et al., "The influence of weight-of-evidence strategies on audience perceptions of
(un) certainty when media cover contested science." Public Understanding of Science 25, no. 8
(2016): 976-991.
8 Florentine, Meyer & Steinbereithner. "Nonprofit organizations becoming business-like:
A systematic review." Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly 45, no. 1 (2016): 64-86.

Sociology
without following the appropriate procedure. Daily Mail news were wrong since they reported
that Janine was a mother of three yet there was no evidence for that. Through this scenario, one
can say that sometimes the media is irresponsible in the way they report some news.
Whether the media makes a positive or negative contribution to law reform.9
The media today is playing an outstanding role in shaping public opinion and strengthening the
entire society. For example from the class, work media acts as the watchdog and protects the
interests of different people within the society. For instance, through the case of Brett Rogers, we
see how the media can control democracy for different people within the society. Prisoners’
rights are clearly reported by the media. Through the use of media, the government is able to
detect some behaviors which are affecting society. This, in turn, shows that the government
becomes aware of what is happening and then it responds with an immediate effect.10 The
problems facing the prisons as indicated in the sources shows how the government has failed in
its duties. The media tried to elaborate on the reasons why the prison was facing some problems.
This helped in the amendment of laws which could control the killings in the prisons.11
In addition, the concept of Brexit policy and lawyers shows how media helps in revealing
different issues concerning the society within the country. The article about the Brexit policy
fully indicated the uncertainty of the Brexit to deal with the impact on the UK farmers. Through
the article, one can identify how media helps in emphasizing the rights of minorities to the
9 Maxwell. Setting the agenda: Mass media and public opinion, 2nd edition. John Wiley
& Sons Cambridge, 2018.
10 An & Lugo-Ocando. "The state of data and statistics in journalism and journalism
education: Issues and debates." Journalism 17, no. 1 (2016): 3-17
11 Philip, Wilkins & Painter. Media ethics: Issues and cases, `2nd edition. Rowman &
Littlefield Press Manchester, 2018.

Sociology
government. The article insisted on the formation of new policies and laws that can control the
rights of farmers.12 Complying with all agreements contained in the Brexit helped in reducing the
pressure and this was influenced by the media which advocated for equality and fairness.
Conclusion
From the three concepts discussed above its clear that most of the times media pay enough
attention to the legal aspect of stories they cover. The positive role of the media when it comes to
law reform is that media creates awareness to the relevant power thus helping in the formation of
policies needed to control the society.
Bibliography
12 Philip. Beyond the front lines: How the news media cover a world shaped by war, 2nd
edition. Springer Press Lytton, 2016.

Sociology
Asal, Victor, and Aaron M. Hoffman. "Media effects: Do terrorist organizations launch foreign
attacks in response to levels of press freedom or press attention?" Conflict management
and peace science 33, no. 4 (2016): 381-399.
Blasco, Andrea, Paolo Pin, and Francesco Sobbrio. "Paying positive to go negative: Advertisers׳
competition and media reports." European Economic Review 83 (2016): 243-261.
Campbell, Kenneth J. "Lack of Political Will." In Impediments to the Prevention and
Intervention of Genocide,3(17), pp. 41-56. 2017.
Cohen, Jeffrey, Yuan Ding, Cédric Lesage, and Hervé Stolowy. "Media bias and the persistence
of the expectation gap: An analysis of press articles on corporate fraud." Journal of
Business Ethics 144, no. 3 (2017): 637-659.
Graber, Doris A., and Johanna Dunaway. Mass media and American politics,5th edition. Cq Press
Cammbridge, 2017.
Jenkins, Henry, Sam Ford, and Joshua Green. Spreadable media: Creating value and meaning in
a networked culture,4th edition. NYU press New York, 2018.
Kohl, Patrice Ann, Soo Yun Kim, Yilang Peng, Heather Akin, Eun Jeong Koh, Allison Howell,
and Sharon Dunwoody. "The influence of weight-of-evidence strategies on audience
perceptions of (un) certainty when media cover contested science." Public
Understanding of Science 25, no. 8 (2016): 976-991.
Maier, Florentine, Michael Meyer, and Martin Steinbereithner. "Nonprofit organizations
becoming business-like: A systematic review." Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector
Quarterly 45, no. 1 (2016): 64-86.

Sociology
McCombs, Maxwell. Setting the agenda: Mass media and public opinion,2nd edition. John Wiley
& Sons Cambridge, 2018.
Nguyen, An, and Jairo Lugo-Ocando. "The state of data and statistics in journalism and
journalism education: Issues and debates." Journalism 17, no. 1 (2016): 3-17.
Patterson, Philip, Lee Wilkins, and Chad Painter. Media ethics: Issues and cases,2nd edition.
Rowman & Littlefield Press Manchester, 2018.
Seib, Philip. Beyond the front lines: How the news media cover a world shaped by war,2nd
edition. Springer Press Lytton, 2016.