Kaplan (1996) discusses third world journalism in general, and the journalism of Czechoslovokia in particular, paying attention to the importance of relating the degree of journalistic freedom to the complexity of the origin state. The implication is that the media, and the journalists who work in those media, reflect precisely the cultures in which they exist (Kaplan, 1996).
The author uses North America's established and dominant popular culture and its connection and influence on its journalism as the benchmark to judge against, suggesting that third world nations are not only accepting of Western methods of journalism, but also of the new electronic media, using the increased communication technology and the onset of what one author calls "technetronic society. . .that is shaped culturally, psychologically, socially and economically by the impact of technology and electronics. . " (Brzezinski, 1970,9).
The suggestion is that today, what is called the "information super highway" crosses America coast to coast and then travels in greater or lesser degrees around the world. And it is essential when seeing where that "super highway" is going is to not only consider the existence of newspapers and broadcast media but also the existence of ethnicity, heritage, values, language, history and religion.
Borjesson succinctly defines one of the problems facing journalists around the world, when they face "the buzzsaw." This term has become a universal slang for journalists who face the machine that can do good in building society, and that can also "rip through you when you try to investigate or expose anything [a] country's large institutions be they corporate or government want kept under wraps" (Borjesson, 2002, 21).
Essentially, the style of today's press, in all countries, is predominantly a 'free market one' and the real issue is whether competition itself guarantees press freedom and higher standards. Two themes a...