Theory 004: Agenda-Setting

Also known as The Agenda Setting Function of the Mass Media, the theory of Agenda-setting describes “the ability of the news media to influence the importance of topics on the public agenda”. This means that if a news item is frequently covered, the audience will regard the issue as something more important. The theory of Agenda-setting was developed by Max McCombs and Donald Shaw in their study for the 1968 American presidential elections.

In their 1968 research, McCombs and Shaw focused on two particular elements: awareness and information. McCombs and Shaw attempted to determine the relationship between the actual content of the media messages used throughout the campaign period and what voters in a community believe were important issues. They have concluded that there was a significant influence, which was exerted by the mass media, on what voters considered to be the campaign’s major issues.

There are two basic assumptions which underlie in most researches about agenda-setting:

a) The press and the media do not reflect reality ; they filter and shape it

b) media concentration on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important compared to other issues

The role of mass communication is one of the most critical aspects in the concept of agenda-setting. Also, there are different agenda-setting potential in different media.

“There are different levels of Agenda-setting:

a) Agenda Universe – all ideas that could be discussed in a political system or society

b) Systemic Agenda – all issues that are commonly perceived by members of the political community as meriting public attention and as involving matters within the legitimate jurisdiction of existing governmental authority

c) Institutional Agenda – the list of items explicitly up for the active and serious consideration of authoritative decision-makers

d) Decision Agenda – items about to be acted on by a government body

(Tanzania Public Service College, 2015) ”

In 1988, Rogers and Dearing were able to identify three types of Agenda-setting:

a) Public Agenda-setting – the dependent variable is the public’s agenda

b) Media Agenda-setting – the dependent variable is the media’s agenda

c) Policy Agenda-setting – the dependent variable is the agenda of the elite policy makers.

The ones who set the agenda for media include “media gatekeepers”, the candidates, public relations and interests groups, and compelling news events. People with a high need for orientation are the ones who are most affected by agenda-setting. This is determined by the relevance of the stories that media presents to their interest (same schema), the feelings of uncertainty they get from those stories, and the particular aspects of the stories that media have to deal with.

A perfect example of this theory is the situation here in the country today. Lately, the news is mostly about Extra Judicial Killings and President Duterte’s war against drugs. Since this is what most of us see in our news every day, we couldn’t help but believe that our country’s primary problem revolves around drugs when, in fact, we have bigger problems (with deeper roots) more than just drugs. We are focusing on a small-scaled problem (and we are even using the wrong approach to solve the problem) simply because we hear about the same thing from the media.

If we would look at the bigger picture, it’s noticeable that media focuses more on politics lately. Even if we say that everything is connected (like how a country’s economy is connected with its  political and diplomatic relationships), people would tend to focus on what’s directly presented to them. Only a few actually take the time to connect the pieces together in order to see the bigger picture. So even if there are other divisions affected (example: economy is booming due to deteriorating relationships with other first world countries), people would only see the war on drugs and EJK as the most important issues that our country is facing at the moment.