Media Coverage Critique: Myanmar Coupe on Facebook

Introduction

Global shifts in various aspects of human lives are increasingly making media coverage an essential element of viewing and understanding the world. The elements of a good news story accentuate the necessity of effective presentation to capture the right information, target the right emotions, and influence the right cause of action (American Press Institute). Presenting a news story effectively is critical to the overall communicative objective of the particular story. Ideally, good media coverage demonstrates the elements of good visual elements, bias avoidance, strong background information, quality interviews, effective presentation style, clarity of purpose, and credible sources (American Press Institute). This paper cross-examines the coverage of the Myanmar coupe on Facebook to demonstrate how effectively the elements of good media coverage are explored and presented. After reviewing the totality of the Myanmar coupe coverage, Facebook clearly does the best job of reporting the story.

Background of the Story

Mass protests in Myanmar began early this year after the military seized control of the country. Countless victims of the protests suffered severe injuries, with the number of death cases rising primarily due to military brutality on the rioting citizens (Cuddy). The military seized control of the country in response to the election results where the NLD party led by Ms. Suu Kyi won by a landslide (BBC). Continuous protests persisted until March when they became extreme and drawing global attention to the country’s political crisis. The military’s coup resulted in the commander-in-chief, Min Aung Hlang, assuming power and causing more public uproar (BBC). Since the military coupe, over 400 innocent civilians have died and countless others injured or caught in violent cross-fires (Cuddy). The story bears social significance due to the various concerns of human rights and democratic liberties violated throughout the coupe and protests in the country. Coverage of the story primarily targeted intervention from the global community in helping innocent citizens and driving political change for the good of the country’s public.  

 The story was widely covered by multiple media outlets globally. However, Facebook news seemed to have a more effective global impact with different nations, activists, and other Facebook users condemning the riots and military brutality. Many people took to Facebook to air their concerns mainly because the platform had a wider reach and better global appeal, which are critical attributes of any news coverage source. Facebook’s classification as a social media platform contributed to the effectiveness of the story’s coverage. Ideally, social media news coverage has proven to be impactful and effective due to the ability to quickly reach large global audiences and sustain interactive dialogues on a phenomenon for different causes of action (Martin). In the Myanmar case, effective media coverage relied on the ability to rally the global community for better solutions.

Visual Elements

Facebook did a better job of incorporating visual elements into the Myanmar coupe coverage. Unlike other news sources, Facebook had a stronger emotional appeal by minimizing censorship by presenting visual elements as reported or posted from Myanmar. Visual catches the attention of a reader more than anything else (Gagnon). Readers are able to easily comprehend and clarify information through visual media (Gagnon). This is made possible because they can be able to develop their own insight into the information without misinterpreting it. Visuals enable readers to understand the subject matter and also bring the audience into the story (Gagnon). Largely, the visual elements presented included images and live or recorded videos. Facebook’s ability to present compelling visual elements was supported by the ability to instantly post occurrences and share them with a wide range of audiences globally (Martin).

Visual elements in other media sources such as print and television had to be censored due to the disturbing content. However, Facebook minimized this limitation through its ability to share all visual images regardless of the content. This ability gave the news story a sense of urgency, thus contributing to the communication process of the coverage. As media expands into the digital age, the significance of visuals is becoming clearer (Welbers, and Opgenhaffen 48). The saying, a picture is more than a thousand words has never been truer. Graphics not only enables the audience to interpret the information effectively but also the attention given to visuals is far larger than that of written words (Gagnon). From different posts and activity logs among Facebook users and account holders, Myanmar’s story made a huge impact, particularly from a human rights perspective. The visual elements demonstrated different grotesque sights that evoked various emotions such as sympathy, anger, and fear (BBC).

Media bias

Facebook minimized media bias in covering the Myanmar crisis. The media has a significantly distinct place in the social structure. The media creates the image of substantial political and social matters (American Press Institute). Myanmar’s case presents a significant scope of multiple social concerns, including political and human rights issues. Coverage of the story through Facebook significantly minimized media bias by presenting diverse perspectives of the story. It was easier for Facebook users to share their experiences and cross-examine different reports through media outlets’ Facebook accounts. For instance, from the Facebook coverage of different media outlets, political discourses were shaped on an international level regarding military powers, political sovereignty, and the public’s role in democracy (Cuddy). Other media sources might not have yielded such tremendous results in terms of community engagement.

Facebook maintained consistent coverage of events in Myanmar through live and recorded reporting. In part, consistent coverage contributes to the logical appeal of any news source. Media coverage has a significant impact on the public when it exemplifies the whole event and relays consistent information on matters such as policy-making, politics, and human rights protection. From the consistent coverage of Myanmar’s predicament, it was easy for Facebook to maintain currency and effective opinions to influence change. The media is largely seen as a strong source of opinion and information for different audiences (Welbers, and Opgenhaffen 45). Various scholars have come up with findings that the public increase their knowledge source about various aspects of social lives such as politics from mass media (American Press Institute). This fact reflects the numerous Facebook discourses on political affairs throughout the course of Myanmar’s crisis. Examining social injustices through media coverage contributes to social thoughtfulness matters as important a peace and democracy (Martin).

Mass media through social media coverage has proven to be effective in impacting global civilization towards a common cause. This capability significantly reduces cultural bias when reporting or covering various stories. The fact that the global community rallied behind Myanmar in voicing the need for stopping the brutal treatment of citizens attested to Facebook’s ability to minimize bias in news coverage. Various efforts demonstrated this aspect, such as Facebook’s ban on the Myanmar government and military officials from spreading malicious communication through their platform (BBC). Ideally, productive information dominated Facebook regarding the crisis, with most of the support coming from the global community.

An in-depth observation of mass media’s popular types today undoubtedly exposes various injustices in the way different networks spread information. Facebook minimized this effect through factual data. People also form their own opinions towards an issue based on the news media they consume (American Press Institute). During political matters, the media’s role is significant because the media has the power to break or make different conversations (American Press Institute). The media can disapprove of a political candidate or make the leader likable to the audience (American Press Institute). Facebook’s coverage presented data from different political players and the public in Myanmar to develop unbiased communication.

Background Information.

Facebook effectively provided background information for the story’s coverage throughout the occurrence of the crisis in Myanmar. A quick search with the keywords Myanmar crisis 2021” or “Myanmar coupe” will provide different videos, news feeds, posts, and images that follow the occurrence of the story before the elections that led to the protests. Ideally, Facebook’s coverage of the story follows a concise chronology that can be followed and understood by anyone new to the issue. The keyword “Myanmar” dominated Facebook conversations and searches, attesting to the success the media source had by providing background information for quick familiarization among new users or audiences of a particular occurrence.

For an audience to effectively understand any news coverage, a media source must accompany the content with additional information. This additional information is commonly referred to as background information. This information may be historical context, definitions, current events that have an influence on a given story, or any other information (American Press Institute). The body of your news story should include well-written background details consisting of one or two paragraphs so that the writing makes complete sense (American Press Institute). A BBC news report reveals that most people often learn common occurrences through social media, and the interactive capabilities of sites such as Facebook inspire a lot of interest (Welbers, and Opgenhaffen). Providing background information on matters such as politics contribute to active interactions and conversations on the issue in question, as demonstrated in Facebook’s coverage of the Myanmar coupe and protests.

Clarity of Purpose

Facebook maintained clarity of purpose in the Myanmar crisis more effectively compared to other news coverage sources. Objectivity is one of the core principles of good news story coverage. A source that can maintain clarity of purpose develops logical, ethical, and emotional appeal in various ways (American Press Institute). Primarily, clarity of purpose underpins important journalistic goals for any news story coverage (American Press Institute). Myanmar’s crisis presented various concerns that needed to be presented and addressed through clarity and purposive communication. Facebook facilitated this crucial element by presenting objective coverage through written news, videos, and images. Ideally, the key objective was to present Myanmar’s crisis as significant social adversity which could affect any nation if matters such as policy-making are not effectively addressed. Facebook maintained clarity of purpose through currency, consistency, timely communication, and concise presentation.

Unlike other sources such as print, Facebook coverage had very minimal jargon, and the video coverages simplified Myanmar’s crisis in a way that could be easily understood by anyone. When covering Myanmar’s crisis, Facebook sustained purposive communication mostly geared towards sympathizing with the country and advocating for action from global bodies such as the United Nations. All the facts of the story were organized objectively in easily accessible ways for audiences of all levels and not just knowledgeable audiences. Navigating the story through Facebook’s coverage is easier compared to other traditional news coverage sources.  

Presentation Style

Facebook effectively integrated a diverse presentation style in reporting the Myanmar crisis. Most media coverage sources present information through the traditional forms of text, images, and videos (Martin). However, Facebook added another component of live interaction through the traditional aspects of text, images, and videos. In addition, this presentation style facilitated an almost instantaneous feedback capability in the interaction process between different human sources and global audiences. In comparison to other media coverage sources, Facebook adopted a universal tone with an instantly recognizable style that helped get the message of peace and hope across. Presentation is critical in conveying the message of any coverage. Primarily, a good presentation style will achieve more set objectives than a random or ineffective style (American Press Institute). Many things were seriously going wrong, and Facebook covered them in a style that doesn’t compromise on the truth, facts, and developing information. Facebook’s coverage of the incidences in Myanmar followed a consistent style with old-fashioned and unconventional capabilities that did not let cultural or language differences get in the way of the message.

Conclusion

Conclusively, Facebook’s coverage of the Myanmar coupe and protests gained more following and had greater impacts due to the use of effective media coverage elements. From this analysis, it is evident that Facebook is an effective communicative source for various news stories. From Myanmar’s case, Facebook demonstrated the capabilities of maintaining consistency, clarity, and accuracy. This depiction was primarily due to effectively applying visual elements, bias avoidance, strong background information, quality interviews, effective presentation style, clarity of purpose, and credible sources into the story’s coverage.    

 

Media Coverage Critique: Myanmar Coupe on Facebook

Introduction

Global shifts in various aspects of human lives are increasingly making media coverage an essential element of viewing and understanding the world. The elements of a good news story accentuate the necessity of effective presentation to capture the right information, target the right emotions, and influence the right cause of action (American Press Institute). Presenting a news story effectively is critical to the overall communicative objective of the particular story. Ideally, good media coverage demonstrates the elements of good visual elements, bias avoidance, strong background information, quality interviews, effective presentation style, clarity of purpose, and credible sources (American Press Institute). This paper cross-examines the coverage of the Myanmar coupe on Facebook to demonstrate how effectively the elements of good media coverage are explored and presented. After reviewing the totality of the Myanmar coupe coverage, Facebook clearly does the best job of reporting the story.

• Background of the Story
  • Visual Elements
  • Media bias
  • Background Information.
  • Clarity of Purpose
  • Presentation Style
• Conclusion