Essay Sample: Get Me Roger Stone

The new expanded definition of "the press" is promoting democracy. Freedom of the press means that the government does not interfere with the operations of the press. Campaign managers push for propaganda and sell the agenda of their respective candidates through advertisements that air in both television and the radio. Information about campaigns is broadcasted in the media and easily spreads as people tend to share it on social media platforms.

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People need information to make decisions on the leaders they want. A free press gives that opportunity since each of the candidates can sell his/her manifesto to the voters and also respond to allegations (Dargis, 2017). Without a free press, it would mean that people will have little information about the candidates and therefore they are likely to make an unwise decision when voting. There would be no meaningful competition without press because candidates will not have a channel of telling the voters what they can do differently. In "Get me Rodger Stone Documentary" Rodger ensured that he pushed the agenda of Donald Trump at the expense of his rival Hillary Clinton.

Since media gives opportunities to all candidates, Hillary also had a chance of responding to the allegations made by her competitor. The press acts as a platform of influencing voters through campaigns most of which are designed to show the excitement of a particular candidate (Daniel, Dylan, & Morgan, 2017). By doing so, the campaign managers can manipulate voting since people will tend to relate to the candidate with the largest crowd. Campaign managers not only use mainstream media but also make use of print media. Rodger Stone and his supporters had flyers that campaigned for Trump to become the president and indicated that Hillary should be in prison.

Although some politicians make use of social media platforms most prefer television and radio. This is because although there is freedom of press campaign managers try as much as possible to manipulate the media (Halbrooks, 2018). When a negative story is aired, a politician will term media as biased because the impact of the information will affect him/her politically. On the other hand, politician praises a reporter who covers a story that favors them. Media offers an opportunity for politicians to sell their agenda to the citizens. The politicians also get an opportunity to spread propaganda about their competitors because the media outlets have no control over what is said in political campaigns regardless of whether it is true or false.

Campaign managers use television and radio shows to appeal to their supporters and entice even those who do not support them (Halbrooks, 2018). Freedom of the press is only effective in promoting democracy when there is fairness. Media practices fairness by giving candidates an opportunity to respond to allegations made by their rivals. In the documentary both Trump and Hillary Clinton were given opportunities by the press to address voters as well as raise their concerns on why they felt their rival was not a perfect match for the position (Daniel, Dylan, & Morgan, 2017). Since both were given a chance no one is justified in claiming that he/she was disadvantaged by the media.

In conclusion, for democracy to prevail people must have adequate information about the candidates and their respective manifesto so that they can decide on who appeals to their needs. Media has the responsibility of ensuring that citizens have access to information. Winning or losing in an election depends on how well each candidate convinced voters during campaigns. The expanded definition of "the press" is, therefore, supporting democracy because without the press citizens will not have access to civic information.

References

Daniel D., Dylan B., & Morgan P. (Director). (2017). Get Me Roger Stone [Motion Picture].

Dargis, M. (2017, May 17). Review: 'Get Me Roger Stone' Profiles a President Whisperer in Peacock Mode. Retrieved from New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/11/movies/get-me-roger-stone-review-donald-trump.html

HALBROOKS, G. (2018, January 11). How Politicians Use Media to Win Elections. Retrieved from The Balance Careers: https://www.thebalancecareers.com/how-politicians-use-media-to-win-elections-2315204