Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 18, 2012, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A11 N ORTH American television- program content is increasingly under fire because it flagrantly misrepresents important features of mainstream society. By inaccurately portraying elements of everyday reality, television dramas and other programs forge enduring misconceptions that distort the mindsets of viewers. Much of what is broadcast on television does not mirror actuality, researchers report, but instead distorts fundamentals so as to create a false impression of authenticity that people actually come to believe is factual. " The more time people spend watching television, the more likely their conceptions of reality will reflect what they see on television," explained George Gerbner, a communication specialist at the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University. People usually perceive the world as reflected by the program content they watch, he added. The phenomenon is called the " cultivation theory." " Television viewing is related to altered perceptions of reality," confirmed Jacob Wakshalog at Indiana State University and his colleagues. Reports by T. Tyler, F. Cook and others in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and the Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media indicate television is a " dominant social force" that subtly manipulates viewers' beliefs. " It influences citizens' views," confirmed Meredith Lett and Andrea Di Pietro at West Virginia Weslyan College. " It has an impact on societal- level judgments." Accumulating research confirms televisionprogram content, and especially an overabundance of programs dealing with violence and other important topics, taints the way viewers look at some significant social issues. It makes people believe things that are not true. For instance, the Atlantic monthly recently summarized controversial information dealing with the public perception of the proportion of gays and lesbians in the population at large. Studies by the University of California School of Law, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, Statistics Canada and several prominent demographers agree 1.7 to 2.8 per cent of the North American population comprises gays and lesbians. An overwhelming number of people have concluded the proportion is much larger, and television's depictions of gay/ lesbian- related themes are largely responsible for the misconception, researchers say. Two extensive polls conducted by the Gallup organization show in 2002, fully 25 per cent of adults thought 25 per cent of the population was gay/ lesbian, a figure 10 times too high. In 2011, another Gallup poll showed 33 per cent of adults surveyed thought 25 per cent of the population is gay/ lesbian. In total, more than half of the people polled thought 20 per cent of the population is gay/ lesbian, almost seven times the actual figure. According Gallup pollsters, more than one- quarter " massively overestimated the actual figure." Similarly, another poll found most respondents overestimated the number of foreign- born people living in the United States by a factor of four. " Exposure... on television ( to misleading information) is the driving factor in changing public perception," concluded James Joyner, of the Atlantic Council. Comparably biased public perceptions have surfaced with regard to the prevalence of violent crimes, stemming from the comparative frequency of crime- related prime- time programs. Such a preponderance of crime programming generates the mistaken belief that crime is more rampant than is the actual case. Even though crime- focused programs often dominate prime- time television schedules, Canada's per capita homicide rate is a mere .016, ranking 42nd on a descending scale of the nations of the world ( the United States ranks 33). Television dramas give the impression aggravated assaults are virtually commonplace, yet the assault rates in Canada are about 140 per 100,000 people; robbery, often depicted as common, has a rate in Canada of 88 per 100,000 people. A recent U. S. study showed most people overestimate the prevalence of blacks and Hispanics in the population, believing proportions five times those compiled by the U. S. Census Bureau. Communications specialists caution television programs comprise entertainment, and any information they might subtly suggest should not be construed as representing reality. Robert Alison is a zoologist and freelance writer Undemocratic action Re: Marathon vote targets Tories, ' omnimess', ( June 14). Rather than watching movies on their iPads, Harper's Conservatives should ponder their undemocratic action in ramming through the omnibus Bill C- 38 ( called the Jobs, Growth and Long Term Prosperity Act in Orwellian newspeak) and its impact on Canada, its citizens and future generations. Hopefully, the push- back from constituents in ridings across the country will register with Conservative backbenchers elected by just 39 per cent of the population. Canadians deserve answers to their legitimate concerns about the environment and the 70 other pieces of legislation buried in this 425- page bill. Spin and repeated talking points from our prime minister and his MPs are not good enough and certainly not convincing. GERRI THORSTEINSON Winnipeg �� The omnibus bill is outrageous. So big as to not be debatable, it makes changes to laws that the general populace is not even aware of. Is the government so afraid to actually advise Canadians of what changes they are making that they insist on passing one huge pile of legislation in lieu of breaking it into smaller parcels that can actually be discussed? Cancelling funding to the Experimental Lakes Area is unconscionable. We are a world centre of excellence in this field. To say it is no longer in our mandate implies that Canada does not belong on the forefront of international environmental research. DOREEN KERR Winnipeg Post- secondary cocoon In his June 2 letter, Al Mackling insists that " higher learning is vital to a vibrant, successful society" and " a collective investment in society's well- being." Certainly media puff pieces lionizing postsecondary institutions are endless. Throughout the easily stampeded civil society, the sanctity and necessity of a protracted state education now seem to be a given. The notion that impressionable young adults should be sequestered with, and indoctrinated by, a passel of academic bureaucrats is rarely questioned. Academic bureaucrats are virtually impossible to fire, have huge indexed pensions and have established a rigid, self- serving, politically correct cocoon. The economists are Keynesian and the political scientists uniformly statist. The shrill deconstructivism of so- called women's studies is never challenged. The last thing on the minds of tenured bureaucrats is the victims of the indoctrination process. Glassy- eyed post- adolescent zombies, clutching their useless parchments and hopelessly mired in debt, stumble into the faded light of a once- free society. FRANCIS TRUEMAN Winnipeg Opposing facts Re: Misreading history ( Letters, June 14). The one thing you can count on every time the Free Press publishes a letter about the conflict between Israel and Palestine over settlements and occupied territories is that there will be more letters disputing the facts and opinions in the original letter, and then the next day, there will be more letters disputing the facts and opinions of the followup letters. Most of the letters will sound like the truth and make sense, even though they state clearly opposite positions. And those of us who want to know what is really going on in the Middle East will have no idea what to believe. DON MARKS Winnipeg Confidence lacking Re: TSX dips on nagging Eurozone fears ( June 14). One year ago, the Toronto Stock Exchange was 1,400 points higher than the Dow Jones Industrial Average in New York. Today, 14 months after Prime Minister Stephen Harper won his majority government, the TSE has dropped 2,000 points, but the DJIA increased by 500 points. I realize that the stock market does not define the current strength or weakness of an economy, but it is a good gauge of market investors' confidence in the future of an economy, considering that their goal is profit. To grow the U. S. economy, President Barack Obama is pushing to raise revenue by closing corporate loopholes, taxing the rich fairly and spending less on the military. In Canada, Harper is cutting corporate taxes, slashing public services and spending more on the military. It seems investors don't believe the fairy tale that conservative governments are best suited for managing economies. DAN CHECINNI Winnipeg Socialist delusions Re: Neo- con policies drive financial inequality ( June 13). Frances Russell mentions a report on income inequality by five economists from the University of British Columbia. These five leftist economists figure a number of solutions are in order. These solutions include raising taxes ( how original), increasing transfers to the poor and removing obstacles to unionization. Doesn't Russell realize these policies and even more radical ones have been part of Europe's socialist paradise for the last four decades? And we can see how things have turned up in Europe. It's fast becoming the fiscal basket case of the world. DON HERMISTON Winnipeg Airport artlessness The modern art selected by a panel of socalled experts to fill the public spaces at the new Winnipeg airport terminal is nothing short of furniture gone bad. Stuff from The Brick would have been more creative. Take the kind- of hanging triangles in the area housing the luggage turntables. What does it mean? What is it supposed to say or convey? It looks like an ad for Quebec asbestos or a failing grade in Panelling 101. Then there's the piece on the other side of security. It reminds me of a machine- gun post for warring Inuit or the mail slots in an ice palace. Again, what does it mean? What is it trying to say? If I can't understand it, and it makes no attempt to convey what it means, in my opinion, it has no function or value as art. There's also a huge panel ( I think it's glass) flanking the stairway used by deplaning passengers going into the luggage area. It looks like something left over from a stained- glass church. Again, what's it all mean? Because a panel of people ( up to 20, I'm told) picked this stuff from a plethora of entries, it's presumed that we accept that this stuff has merit. Well, to me that's about as unerring as judging an NHL player by the way he laces his skates. BARRY CRAIG Winnipeg Waiting for a miracle Re: Pallister preps for PC party power ( June 13). When a party like the Manitoba Progressive Conservatives becomes a neutered appendage to the ruling NDP, it should come as no surprise that it cannot find leadership candidates. Manitobans are in dire need of a political party that will, at the very least, form an effective opposition. The PC party faithful seem to be waiting for a reincarnation of Duff Roblin to appear, and it isn't Brian Pallister. The PCs need to remove the remnants of the Filmon era and find leader who isn't afraid of stating he or she is right- wing. If they continue to flounder, another party will be born that will bury them the same way the Saskatchewan Party buried the Conservatives there. KIM SIGURDSON Winnipeg Wiser investment Recent reports state that the cuts to Parks Canada amount to $ 29 million. These cuts will have long- lasting repercussions on communities across Canada, You really have to question the wisdom of the Stephen Harper government spending more than $ 28 million on one event - the commemoration of the War of 1812. Surely, a wiser decision would have been to minimize the cuts to Parks Canada, investing in today rather than spending so excessively and lavishly on this one event. SUZANNE RICHARDS Winnipeg HAVE YOUR SAY: The Free Press welcomes letters from readers. Include the author's name, address and telephone number. Letters may be edited. Letters to the Editor, 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, R2X 3B6. Fax 697- 7412. Email letters@ freepress. mb. ca Letters represent the opinions of their writers and do not reflect the opinions of the Winnipeg Free Press or its staff. �� LETTER OF THE DAY Several times in the past week or so, while talking with friends, we have discussed how beautiful Winnipeg is at this time of year. Whether gazing over our urban forest from a highrise or standing beneath it, we have marvelled at how green our city is and how good it makes us feel. Inevitably, it reminds us that our American elms have been under attack by Dutch elm disease for many years, and our city foresters have done a magnificent job of preserving them for our benefit. We owe them a debt of gratitude for all their work. Every moment of our enjoyment is partly thanks to them. JOHN VANWALLEGHEM Winnipeg 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Winnipeg Free Press Monday, June 18, 2012 A 11 POLL �� TODAY'S QUESTION Did you take part in the Manitoba Marathon? �� Vote online at winnipegfreepress. com �� PREVIOUS QUESTION Do you think the gap between rich and poor is getting better or worse in Winnipeg? Better 12% Worse 88% TOTAL RESPONSES 4,317 Winnipeg Free Press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 VOL 140 NO 215 2012 Winnipeg Free Press, a division of FP Canadian Newspapers Limited Partnership. Published seven days a week at 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba R2X 3B6, PH: 697- 7000 BOB COX / Publisher MARGO GOODHAND / Editor JULIE CARL / Deputy Editor Preserving our elm trees WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ARCHIVES The city's elm canopy is seen in a 2005 photo. W INNIPEG'S murder rate is higher than it was at this time last year. Once again we will be the crime capital of Canada. If nothing is done, we will soon surpass murder rates in the U. S. There is no easy answer to high crime rates, but we need to do things differently. To support the police and agencies in their seemingly never- ending task of protecting the people who live in Winnipeg, specifically the inner city, we must find new modalities. One of them is taking on the jail culture. A small percentage of inner- city folk have been to jail. They have, however, brought the jail culture out with them. The second- worst insult that gets thrown around is " You're a rat!" When Chris and I were raising our three kids on Dudley Avenue we were surrounded by snitches. Our kids were convinced we had radar eyes, since we instantly knew when they were sliding down snowbanks onto the road or sneaking a cigarette. Our wonderful neighbours felt they were surrogate parents to our kids and contributed to them growing up as positive citizens. When a motorcycle gang rented a house on our street, there must have been 10 neighbours who called the police to alert them. It wasn't ratting, it was being part of a healthy community. When I worked in the Manitoba correctional system, it was clear the second- lowest inmate in the jail was the snitch, only rated slightly above the child molester. Anyone identified as a rat or a snitch was in danger of serious physical harm. Keith McCaskill, when he first became chief of police, identified the need for community support to prevent crime. Unfortunately, McCaskill and other senior police officers did not take into account the fear of being identified as a " rat," which limited community participation. Most poor people are honest. Most inner- city people are honest. Most aboriginal people are honest. Most people hate crime. Since most people hate crime, why are they not involved in identifying criminals? They are afraid of being labelled a " rat." It is not an easy task to overcome such an inculcated culture. New men return from jail to reinforce the no- ratting value. They also spread fear, which is hard for most people to understand. When we started cleaning up North Point Douglas, we learned quickly that we needed a counterculture, another, stronger culture to counter the jail culture. We learned even some of our toughest drug dealers had kids and they didn't want " bad guys" around who would threaten their kids. One of our aboriginal elders defined the term: " our turf." Slowly we encouraged people to say, " Hey, around my house is my turf. It's not ratting to get rid of gangers and dealers around my turf." We have made it clear we are comfortable ratting. Just the other day, one of our Citizens On Watch indicated his fear of ratting. I pointed out to him that he was buying into jailhouse values. There was a pause. " Hey, we gotta stop that," he said. My wife Chris, the indomitable retired kindergarten teacher, often refers to herself as " The Mother Rat." Pretty hard to undermine someone with such a wonderful smile and a backbone of tempered British steel. I was called a rat recently. The jail culture still lives. However, if we are ever going to break the horrible cycle of inner- city crime we need to take on the jailhouse culture. Long live rats and snitches. It's time for snitches to rat out jail culture SEL BURROWS TV wildly distorts perception By Robert Alison A_ 11_ Jun- 18- 12_ FP_ 01. indd A11 6/ 17/ 12 5: 37: 33 PM ;