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Reflection

Media and Politics Minor Capstone Reflection

Northwestern University Qatar

Haregewoin Mehari

February 2023

My experience with the media and politics minor was characterized by discussion-oriented classes that greatly impacted and transformed my thought process positively. I have taken a series of courses from Georgetown University in Qatar, namely, International Relations, Qatar, Energy, Security and Strategic Planning and Transitional Justice. In addition, I have taken African Youth Media, Crisis Communication and Exploring Global Media from Northwestern University. Although each of these courses had their own focuses and discussion topics, a central theme that I have identified is the theme of conflict and the influence of media in conflict. In addition, diplomacy and transitional justice and their prominence in mediating state relationships are themes that stood out to me. The International Relations course was focused on understanding the current international order and exploring different topics about global politics. We started by exploring the historical development of order where we looked at world wars and then discussed how rising powers contributed to the emergence of global order. World War I and World War II have significantly impacted what the world’s order looks like today. They gave rise to the emergence of countries like the US and Russia as leading actors with a lot of global influence. Dominant powers like the US have a huge influence over different political and socio-economic matters which comes in different forms like globalization. A common example is the spread of American values and norms to the rest of the world. Which resulted in people imitating the American way of life as the western lifestyle is idealized and romanticized highly. Additionally, America’s influence can also come in forms of military interventions, diplomatic pressure and sometimes as a cultural export. This does not imply the existence of a single order around the globe as multiple orders can co-exist at the same time. While some countries might have greater influence than others, the world is composed of various states and international organizations that use international law and diplomacy to govern their relationships. This idea was eye-opening as I had the opposite assumption concerning the international order. In relation to the topic of order, we also discussed the extent of influence of organizations like the UN and IMF can have around the globe. As countries have structured relationships, these organizations add a layer to those structures by keeping states in check. They not only aid the socio, economic and political cooperation of countries, but they also aid in creating a more stable global economy even though they don’t succeed at times. The course was heavily focused on discussions which helped me develop my critical thinking and debate skills since the activities required active engagement as well as a lot of reading. One of the topics of discussion was different economic theories and how they affect society. From Hegel’s philosophy of right to List’s national system of political economy, recognizing economic theories has significance in understanding the overall political-economic history of the world. While discussing the topic of diplomacy and countries’ structured relationships, we cannot forget the Russian-Ukraine war and its impact on the world. This topic was frequently discussed in Qatar, Energy, Security and Strategic Planning course. This course focused on Qatar’s energy sector and its role in critical geopolitical events. Qatar’s blockade was a topic that was repeatedly discussed and analyzed in this course as it was a key event that has affected the country’s politics, economy and social life. Qatar as a country has worked for years as an influential state heavily relying on oil/gas related investments. Even though Qatar had other economic sources, it depended highly on its energy sector. This overreliance on its hydrocarbon wealth did put the country at risk when the blockade happened, and consequentially its allies cut ties. Qatar didn’t take economic diversification more seriously until the beginning of the blockade. Before the blockade, one of the sectors that was experiencing development was the education center and the sports industry. The country made significant investments in entities like the Qatar Foundation, which was responsible for creating an international hub of universities in the country. In terms of sports, Qatar continually made several investments in order to establish itself as an important actor in the world of sports. The country has hosted several championships and tournaments since then. The IAAF World Athletics Championships, FIFA Club World Cup and Qatar ExxonMobil Open are a few examples. After the blockade, the above sectors experienced heavy focus more than ever, aligning with the country’s investment diversification goals. In this class, we had guests from different energy companies of Qatar as well as Turkey and the US. The discussions with these guests have allowed us to learn how the energy sector is affected heavily by a country’s diplomatic relationships and vice versa. And how countries make economic decisions according to their own development goals and investment interests. It is also important to note that economic relationships can be affected by the political state and relationship between two countries. This is also evident in the case of the Russia and Ukraine war. Qatar being chosen as a state to cover LNG demand by replacing Russia shows how politics and economy can go hand in hand. During politics-related topic discussions, the subject of history inevitably arises as the two fields are closely interlinked. This is due to the fact that events of the past history are important aspects that affect the present as well as future. Throughout history, societies may experience a violent or repressive past that could leave a mark on the people and country. This could be something that has happened in the recent past or decades ago. Regardless of the length of time the event has happened, Transitional justice studies the way the society dealt with it. Whether that means through community building, reparation efforts or collective healing efforts, transitional justice tries to create a mechanism whereby the people affected can live in a peaceful and sustainable environment today. In this class we explored different mechanisms of transitional justice and the ways they can be used in real-life case studies. One of the key debates that were discussed in class was the debate of Peace vs. justice. This debate is important because it is a choice that societies must make when dealing with human rights violations and war crimes. This class allowed us to practice producing policy proposals by using current and ongoing case studies. For example, in one of the class activities, we, as a group, worked on the transitional justice dilemmas of the Israel-Palestine war. By taking different roles in policymaking, each of us proposed a solution that could apply to our positions. As a transitional justice expert, I offered solutions to the transitional justice dilemmas like reparation and the establishment of truth-seeking. This experience allowed me to learn about policy proposals through case studies by thinking as a policymaker. In the activity, I learnt the extent of influence media has in conflict, in the case of the Israel-Palestine war. Because different media frame the conflict in different types of ways, it is very easy to enforce stereotypes and for people to be misled. Media has the power to influence public opinion as a result where we get our information from can affect how we picture the conflict. While thinking of policy proposals, my crisis communication class taught me a similar skill in problem-solving. The course was focused on investigating and understanding the processes and procedures that can be used to mitigate a crisis for a company and its stakeholders. While Transitional justice was focused on identifying problems from a country-wide and historical perspective, Crisis communication focused on protecting the reputation of an organization through a timely and effective strategy. What these two have in common is the idea of identifying and solving different crises. One exciting theory we learned from this course was how the best way to manage a crisis is by preventing it from happening in the first place, which means that prevention methods are essential crisis management methods that can save the resources as well as the time of an entity. Through case study-based class exercises, I was able to develop crisis management skills that could apply to different companies. One of the key skills I acquired is problem-solving skills through thinking about how I can identify a problem and come up with a solution. One of the important takeaways from this class is that a big part of crisis communication is the five-step risk management process. These include identifying, analyzing, evaluating, treating, and monitoring a particular risk. An important addition to these steps is emotional intelligence; as the crisis is stressful, maintaining composure and calm thinking is a must. Concerning this, I have identified how the media can influence politics- related issues through its influence in shaping the public’s perception. I learned more about the relationship between media and politics from the Exploring Global Media course. This class focused on international media and how different media industries influence people’s lives. The course highlighted communication developments by starting with the history of global media. The class has helped me understand the relationship between media and politics in the past and present. One of the key influences for the rise of the importance of global media was political and military goals. For example, during the cold war, countries used television and radio to spread propaganda through music, literature, and other art forms. This attention to media increased the variety of newspapers and other forms of media. One of the significant phenomena that we discussed in class was the transformation of newspapers from being politically motivated to be commercialized in the nineteenth century. News commercialization is important because it raises the question of credibility and the concept of fake news. Although it can be a threat to quality journalism, news commercialization can also be positive by supporting efforts of independence for private organizations through means of funding. The increased production of media as content and technologies led to the initiation of regulation to maintain balance in the media. This is where we see the establishment of movements like NWICO (New world information and communication order) come into play. It was started following the need for an international economic order which was proposed by the non-aligned movement. Maintaining balance in media is an important thing because it can potentially ensure impartial and accurate coverage of events and issues. While thinking about the influence of media in conflict, it is clear to see as to how the need to initiate regulation in media might have come from. In a world where the west has been dominating the media sector, the non-aligned movement has paved the way to address the imbalance. The media and politics minor have allowed me to take a course that could give me an insight into media in Africa. This particular course was African Youth Media, which was mainly focused on how African youth consume and practice media. It also explored how these changes throughout history, examining not just the past but the present and possible future. Being African, I could recognize certain media consumption patterns and behavior discussed in this class. For our final project, we picked a popular media and discussed why it was essential to the African youth. I worked on the topic of Afrobeat, a genre that is very important in African music and culture. Working on this, not only did I learn how music can be compelling in people’s social, economic and political life but I was also able to engage other students in a discussion. Artists like Fela Kuti did make music that people found entertaining, but they also created political movements through revolutionary lyrics and composition. Fela Kuti used music to criticize the Nigerian government and raise awareness regarding issues of corruption, police brutality and human rights violence to name a few. The result was a nationwide movement that started the fight against the corrupt government. This indicates that for marginalized communities, popular media can be used to make different political changes in society. This class also highlighted how specific media could be used differently to cater to the people’s needs in different societies. For example, we discussed how Hip Hop was being used to create civic awareness in Senegal while Christian popular culture has produced collective healing in Ghana. This proves that popular media serves an essential role in society beyond merely providing entertainment. In conclusion, the above courses have helped me develop my critical thinking skills and understand the connection between diplomacy and history. Countries establish relationships through a carefully crafted approach where the potential outcome is calculated. These careful observations involve achieving a good number of benefits while minimizing risks. When looking at diplomatic relationships, Qatar’s blockade and the Russia-Ukraine war are two examples that have shown me the different aspects of diplomacy. In relation to this, I was also able to understand how a country’s past can impact the political relationships they have today. Transitional justice sometimes involves how countries discuss reparations to mend relationships with governments. Looking back in the past to identify the damages is important to fix the diplomacy of countries in the present. Overall, the minor has broadened my knowledge in the field of media and politics in addition to introducing me to topics of justice and geopolitics. Additionally, I believe the knowledge and skills I have acquired will come in handy as I progress toward a career in the media industry.

 

Reference

International communication: Continuity and change/Thussu, D. K. London; New York: Bloomsbury Academic. 2019 Olivera Simić (ed), An Introduction to Transitional Justice (Taylor & Francis, 2nd ed., 2020) (Available online) Cheryl Lawther, Luke Moffett, Dov Jacobs (eds.), Research Handbook on Transitional Justice, (Edward Elgar, 2017) International Journal of Transitional Justice