In relation to the influence of television on the state, it is possible to say that it depends on the level of competition between different channels. For instance, Globo network played a dominant role on Brasil television in 1980s. Globo used their influence on people to urge Brasilians to vote for Fernando Collor de Mello and helped him to win in the election. But when the choice of TV channels is wide enough, the possibility to affect election results becomes illusory as we can observe today in the developed countries like USA.
Even more, competition and diversity of TV channels can become the insurmountable obstacle for corruption. A television is a huge industry and roguish people would pay hundreds of thousands dollars to every TV channel to provide their support. And if the diversity of TV channels is appreciably wide, then the total control under mass-media becomes unreachable.
The many positive sides of television were illuminated above. But can it make our world more peaceful place?
There is a lot of debate among researchers about the influence of violence on TV on people. Any way in common the TV reports from Vietnam to the Iraq war intensify pacific trends in the human society. A television provides also emotional connection between the people from distant places of the Earth. According William Davidson Institute, the news about the Asian tsunami increased online donations to charity.
Undoubtedly a television helps to grow global cosmopolitanism but its development depends on what people are watching. It is clear that Al Jazeera and CNN describe September 11 attacks and the invasion of Iraq totally differently. But with the spreading broadcasting of Al Jazeera in the West, and with the spreading broadcasting of CNN in the Middle East, it might be possible to understand the opposite side.
Yes, a television can help to solve real-world problems as with well-designed educational TV programs as with soap operas and music shows. But it doesn’t mean that the governance should use a television as a universal panacea. Rather the politicians just shouldn’t interfere in the news and limit the number of channels.
Because of the global spreading of television broadcasting, the world is spending more time to watch TV. Surely this time can be spent in a better way. But still a television provides new ideas, a connection with different people, the growing of tolerance and cosmopolitanism (with Charles Kenny).
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