Charlton Bruce G
Med Hypotheses. 2006;67(2):205-8. doi: 10.1016/j.mehy.2006.03.004. Epub 2006 Mar 30.
The modern mass media (MM) is often regarded a mixture between a trivial waste of time and resources, and a dangerously subversive system tending to promote social division and community breakdown. But these negative evaluations are difficult to square with the fact that those countries with the largest mass media include the most modernized and powerful nations. It seems more plausible that the MM is serving some useful - perhaps vital - function. I suggest that modern mass media function as the main source of social cohesion in liberal democracies. The paradox is that this cohesive function is sustained in a context of frequently divisive media content. This media function evolved because modern MM produce an excess of media communications in a context of consumer choice which generates competition for public attention both within- and between-media. Competition has led the media to become increasingly specialized at gaining and retaining public attention. Social cohesion is the consequence of the mass media continually drawing public attention to itself, and to the extremely large, internally complex and interconnected nature of the MM system. The means by which attention is attracted are almost arbitrary, encompassing both novelty and familiarity and evoking a wide range of emotions both positive and negative. Driven to seek competitive advantage, modern mass media produce a wide range of material to cater to a vast range of interests; thereby engaging a great variety of individuals and social groupings. The consequence is that media content is typically self-contradictory and includes content which is offensive and potentially divisive; since what grabs the interest of some may offend or repel others. For instance, young men must be socially engaged, since they are potentially the most violent social group, yet the interests of young men include material that the majority of the population would find excessively aggressive, disrespectful, subversive or sexual. If the mass media is effectively to perform its crucial function of enabling social cohesion among a diverse and differentiated population, then modern liberal democracies need a broad margin of toleration and a widespread psychological capacity to endure dissent and disagreement.
现代大众媒体（MM）常常被视为一种既浪费时间和资源又微不足道的事物，同时也是一个具有潜在危险性的颠覆性系统，往往会加剧社会分裂和社群瓦解。但这些负面评价很难与以下事实相符：拥有最庞大大众媒体的国家往往也是最现代化、最强大的国家。大众媒体似乎发挥着某种有益——或许至关重要——的功能，这一观点似乎更具合理性。我认为，现代大众媒体在自由民主国家中发挥着社会凝聚力主要来源的作用。矛盾之处在于，这种凝聚功能是在媒体内容常常具有分裂性的背景下得以维持的。这种媒体功能的演变是因为现代大众媒体在消费者选择的背景下产生了过量的媒体传播内容，这在媒体内部以及不同媒体之间引发了对公众注意力的竞争。竞争促使媒体在吸引和留住公众注意力方面变得越来越专业化。社会凝聚力是大众媒体不断将公众注意力吸引到自身以及大众媒体系统极其庞大、内部复杂且相互关联的性质上的结果。吸引注意力的方式几乎是随意的，既包括新奇性也包括熟悉度，会引发广泛的积极和消极情绪。出于寻求竞争优势的驱使，现代大众媒体制作了广泛的内容以迎合各种各样的兴趣；从而吸引了大量不同的个人和社会群体。结果是，媒体内容通常自相矛盾，包含令人反感且可能具有分裂性的内容；因为吸引某些人兴趣的内容可能会冒犯或排斥其他人。例如，年轻人必须参与社会活动，因为他们可能是最具暴力倾向的社会群体，然而年轻人感兴趣的内容包括大多数人会觉得过于激进、无礼、颠覆性或色情的内容。如果大众媒体要有效地履行其在多样化和差异化人群中促成社会凝聚力的关键功能，那么现代自由民主国家需要广泛的宽容度以及普遍的心理承受能力来忍受异议和分歧。
