Symbolic Violence in Television

Ph.D. Student Maria FLOREA Nicuta ()
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Ph.D. Student Maria FLOREA Nicuta: 3rd year Ph.D. Student, Faculty of Philosophy and Social-Political Sciences, "Al. I. Cuza" University, Iasi, Romania

Conferinta Stiintifica Internationala Logos Universalitate Mentalitate Educatie Noutate - Lumen International Scientific Conference Logos Universality Mentality Education Novelty, 2011, vol. 1, 79

Abstract: Contemporary means of communication, and especially television have the capacity to fully exploit the primary passions. However, instead of becoming instruments of democracy they turned frequently into instruments of symbolic exploitation. Symbolic violence is that particular type of violence capable to steal or hide some meanings from a certain piece of information (which are not very clearly perceived by the collective attention) and, more important, is based on already-rooted social beliefs. Like any theory of magic, theory of symbolic violence is based on a theory of beliefs or, rather, is based on a theory of construction of beliefs and is about social work necessary to produce agents equipped with collection and assessment schemes capable to observe orders or commands, disguised in a particular situation or in a certain speech and, most important, to execute them all. This definition was given by the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu which considers that symbolic violence is a mechanism to ensure the reproduction of power relations hidden within the social system. According to Giovanni Sartori, we believe what the eye can see. That is why, in nowadays, cognitive authority becomes the most credible thing ever seen. The reason is near to us: what we can see seems to be "real" and this is the main reason to be true. This is why the videocracy became an enterprise of a constantly hetero-directed strong opinion, which apparently strengthens, but in reality empties of content the democracy as government of opinion. Television is the spokesman exhibits a public opinion which essentially echoes his own voice.

Keywords: television; communication; symbolic violence; democracy; videocracy; public opinion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A23 Y8 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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