Mass Media's Influence on the Transformation of the Mexican Political Regime
For many years, mass media has transformed its original role from one of simply informing people to one of shaping societies by making them adopt elements of different cultures. Giving information is only one of its attributes, but in this day and age it is not the main activity. Today, mass media acts more like a group of “feature writers and feature speakers” than of informative channels. Mass media has become an important new player in all states and a decision maker in some spheres. In Mexico, mass media has influenced the adoption of lifestyles and the integration of new traditions and values, but these are not the only aspects in which media intervened. It also has participated in the building of a new political culture that shows people how to become real citizens. This article will study the role of television and the press in the transformation of the Mexican political regime. It will focus on the way that mass media can influence the process of transforming political attitudes by making democratic political values a daily routine.
Algunas reflexiones en torno a la influencia de los medios de comunicación en la formación y características de la cultura política de los españoles
El principal objetivo que se ha tratado de desarrollar en el presente articulo ha sido doble: en primer lugar, llevar a cabo unas consideraciones acerca de la situacion en la que se encuentran los estudios de cultura politica y las posibles vias por las que se puede seguir avanzando en un campo que sigue siendo central para la Sociologia Politica. En segundo lugar, y a partir de lo anterior, plantear algunas hipotesis generales acerca del papel de los medios de comunicacion en este proceso que conjuga al mismo tiempo evidentes elementos de estabilidad y de cambio. La cultura politica en Espana debe situarse primero dentro del marco de la transicion del autoritarismo a la democracia y despues, debe analizarse dentro del marco de las transformaciones que caracterizan a las sociedades industriales avanzadas. Tambien los cambios sufridos por el modo en que se ?envuelven? y se presentan las informaciones politicas a traves de los medios de comunicacion, asi como los cambios en su contenido, aparecen como un objeto central en el analisis.
Cultural constraints on the delivery of HIV/AIDS prevention in Ireland.
HIV appeared in Ireland following an opiate epidemic in the early 1980s. Initially, however, the gay community mounted the only response to the spread of the virus while the implementation of early actions by the government was hampered by the constructions of the disease within Irish society. This paper considers the influence of the religious hierarchy in both the development of AIDS policy and in the shaping of public perceptions of the disease and those affected. A qualitative methodology is used to examine the role of such cultural constraints in an evaluation of the social context within which the prevention of HIV infection occurs. Three key issues pertinent to the policy context in Ireland are explored in depth. These are the role of the Catholic Church, the influences on health education programmes, particularly information giving, and the development of services and other interventions. These findings are discussed within the social and political contexts in which health policy is formulated.