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Pluralism (Media Studies)
Modern media providers must consider how to adapt their communications for reception by a pluralistic society—one that is highly diverse in its politics, ethnicities, religious faiths, gender identifications, and other defining characteristics. Observers who are wary of a hegemonic media marketplace—one in which the values of a privileged class are continually asserted and reinforced—have argued passionately for the adoption of a more pluralistic model of media communications—one that promotes and affirms a diversity of backgrounds, identities, and experiences.
Advocates of diversity in media complain that when media images and viewpoints are dominated by a prevailing race, class, or gender, the public discourse is narrowed and degraded, as viewers unconsciously adopt and accept the simplified, unchallenging worldview of the status quo. It is feared that media ...