Introduction
The Black Lives Matter movement prevalent currently in the united states of America is a recently emerged social phenomenon that was created as an outlet for many disparaged individuals to have a voice. The decentralized organization has its roots in social media, becoming officially recognized around 2014. While its efforts are varied, it has had an immense impact on the political landscape of the country, bringing an array of both supporters and detractors. With the recent murder of George Floyd, the movement has only grown more involved, being the leading force in the peaceful protests against police brutality. With the cheerful amount of people participating and the heated nature of the topic at hand, major news media outlets, and politicians are all voicing their opinions on the matter. The wide coverage of the topic by the conventional mass media allows one to review and evaluate the movement itself, the impact it has, and the way it is perceived by others. For this paper, a particular article connected with the Black Lives Matter movement will be reviewed by communication theories previously discussed. A particular focus will be on the Media Ecology theory and Muted Group theory.
Muted Group Theory
The Muted Group theory presupposes that marginalized groups and demographics of people are often sidelined in society, leading to their voices being heard less, and actively muted in the general discourse. The phenomenon can be observed in the medical history of research, where the general standards often appealed to men instead of women, leading to skewed results. In many cases, studies have taken into account men’s reaction to a particular treatment or medication as a norm and disregarded or minimized the difference it makes in female populations. This leads to women being less catered to in medical research and actively makes them suffer in some cases. The majority group is largely responsible for creating cultural norms and standards that tend to leave other populations out or actively limit the participation of minority groups. Once the outgroups try to participate in the discourse, they get ostracised for a seeming inability to follow standards set by the ingroup, which actively attempts to limit their contribution to the dialogue. The muted group theory explains that this phenomenon can be applied to a variety of minority demographics, who all suffer from misrepresentation and mistreatment. The disparity between groups can be attributed to the creation of the BLM movement itself, it is only reasonable that this communication theory could be applied to it. Black Lives Matter uses protesting and social media activity as its primary source of influence and is decentralized by nature, leading to it often not being taken seriously by the political forces, individuals, and the media. The article examined the history of the movement and its primary goals. As supported by its contents, the movement is often not taken seriously due to its organizational practices, and the concerns of black people over their place in society are ignored. The issues black people face today are trivialized, treated as isolated incidents and not a sign of a systemic issue, and often met with increased hostility. The negative perception and reaction to the group contribute to its status as “muted”, meaning that its influence on society and the global state of affairs is severely limited, and its members are not being taken seriously.
Media Ecology
Media Ecology is a theory that describes the impact media has on shaping society, and its influence on how people perceive particular issues. The framing and coverage of the particular topic, the way issues are presented, and their prevalence in the global community all contribute to how individuals form their opinions on world affairs. This concept is especially important to consider with the BLM movement, as it has essentially started as a part of a social media campaign. Media advocacy and campaigning play a big role in the movement and are a primary way it spreads its message. With the recent events in American history, namely the capitol building riot instigated by right-wing extremists, the Black Lives Matter movement has also been in the limelight of the events. Many mass media outlets highlight the disparity between the treatment of black people during the protests and the way police handled an attempt to overthrow the government of the US. Namely, some are calling into question the levels of violence displayed in both cases, citing race as a major consideration in the matter (Hutchinson & DiMartino, 2021). The reaction to the mostly peaceful protests has been overly violent, with many people being forcefully and unlawfully detained, and rubber bullets being shot at people with no notice. On the other hand, those storming the capitol building have received virtually no resistance from law enforcement. Many media outlets have noticed the difference in response and are actively trying to bring attention to it, which aids in highlighting the main issue BLM stands against – racism in the police force. By actively framing the movement like the ones being punished too harshly, the media contributes to its better perception by the public.
References
Hutchinson , B., & DiMartino, J. (2021). Debate rages over whether race had role in police response to Capitol riot. ABC News. Web.