Government, neo-liberal media, and education in Canada

Canadian Journal of Education

Volumn 29, Issue 1, 2006, Pages 70-90

  Ungerleider, Charles ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

Educational policy; Government; Media; Neo liberalism

Indexed keywords

EID: 33745856244     PISSN: 03802361     EISSN: 03802361     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2307/20054147     Document Type: Review

References (21)

1. Blackmore, J. and S. Thorpe (2003) Media/ting change: the print media's role in mediating education policy in a period of radical reform in Victoria, Australia. Journal of Education Policy 18(6) 577-595;
2. Gerstl-Pepin, C. I. (2002) Media (Mis)Representation of Education in the 2000 Presidential Election. Educational policy 16(1) 37-55;
3. Wallace, M. (1993) Discourse of derision: the role of the mass media within the educational policy process. Journal of Education Policy 8(4) 321-337.
4. Levin, B. (2004) Media-government relations in education. Journal of Educational Policy, 19(3) 271-283.
5. I was appointed Deputy Minister of Education for British Columbia in November 1998 by a government that, two-years into its 5 year mandate, had become unpopular and was unlikely to be re-elected. I was fortunate, however, to be working in the only sector, education, that the public regarded as important and for which the government's approval rating was high.
6. Smyth, J. (September 10, 2003) Choice makes best scholars, study finds: Alberta diversity pays off. National Post. A8
7. Owens, Anne Marie (November 20, 2002) 'Creating a demand for school choice': Effect of accountability: Students in Alberta, Manitoba and B.C. can pick and choose among schools. National Post. A8.
8. See, for example, OECD (2001) Knowledge and Skills for Life: First Results from the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2000. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development: Paris; OECD (2004) Learning for Tomorrow's World - First Results from PISA 2003
9. Calgary Herald (April 30, 2003) A Lesson Worth Learning. A12.
10. Wente, M. (August 29, 2002) 'They're turning my kids' education into a three-ring circus' Globeandmail.com (retrieved August 30, 2002)
11. Manoff, R. K. (1986) Writing the news (by telling the "story"). In Manoff, R. K. and M. Schudson (Eds.) Reading the news. New York: Pantheon Books. 197-229.
12. Hallin, D.C. (1988) Cartography, community, and the cold war. In Manoff, R. K. and M. Schudson (Eds.) Reading the news. New York: Pantheon Books.
13. Sigel, L.V. (1986) Sources make the news. In Manoff, R. K. and M. Schudson (Eds.) Reading the news. New York: Pantheon Books 9-37.
14. Concentration of media ownership in Canada has increased since the Davey Commission was empanelled to explore what, at the time, was averred to be the highest concentration of ownership of any democratic nation. The concentration of media ownership is complemented by homogeneity of editorial opinion that celebrates entrepreneurial capitalism, individual effort, and private philanthropy, and derogates those who seek a balance between individual and group rights, and accommodation between private enterprise and the public good. There are, of course, exceptions to what has been referred to as a neo-liberal friendly media, including internet-based political commentary that appeals to and reflects a different and, arguably, broader spectrum of political opinion. Special Senate Committee on Mass Media. Chaired by the Honourable Keith Davey. Report, Ottawa, 1970. Volume 1: "The Uncertain Mirror." (see also, Royal Commission on Newspapers, Report, Ottawa, Minister of Supply and Services Canada, 1981; Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage: Our Cultural Sovereignty: The Second Century of Canadian Broadcasting. Ottawa: House of Commons 2003).
15. Sigel, L.V. (1986) Sources make the news. In Manoff, R. K. and M. Schudson (Eds.) Reading the news. New York: Pantheon Books 9-37.
16. Franklin, B. (2004) Education, education and indoctrination! Packaging politics and the three 'Rs'. Journal of Education Policy, 19(3), 255-274;
17. Gewirtz, S, Dickson, M. and S. Power (2004) Unraveling a 'spun' policy: a case study of the constitutive role of 'spin' in the education policy process. Journal of Education Policy, 19(3), 321-343.
18. Funds fail to fuel higher test scores, The Globe and Mail. August 30, 2002 A6
19. For example, the Fraser Institute argues that "the Canadian system of public education is inefficient and inadequate.... Over the past 30 years, our Ministries of Education have tinkered with a variety of reforms, including smaller classes and higher salaries, in an effort to improve the public education system. In doing so, they have tripled the real cost of education." The Fraser Institute would like the reader to infer that the cost of education has risen primarily as a consequence of higher salaries and smaller class sizes rather than as a consequence of dramatic increases in the school-age population. The Fraser Institute hopes readers won't notice that Canada's fifteen year olds perform at the top of the industrialized countries that make up the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Note, too, the use of the pejorative "tinkered" to describe the work of ministries of education.
20. Technical briefings are just one of a number of techniques that some deputies use to help the media understand issues; others include the provision of background documentation, meetings with editorial boards, and establishing confidential relationships with reporters, columnists, and editorial board writers.
21. Hogwood, B.W. and Lewis A. Gunn (1984) Policy Analysis for the Real World. Oxford University Press. 69.