Does Brexit prove that some issues should not be discussed by referendum?

On 23 June 2016, 51.89% of the British people voted in favour of leaving the European Union. Originally, Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron had planned for the referendum to stabilize his and his party’s position, responding to increasing Euroskeptic tendencies in Britain. The nationalist party UKIP had managed to attract disaffected citizens and began to pose a real threat to long-established centrist parties. Cameron tried to win back lost votes by giving the citizens the chance to decide on a controversial, heated issue, apparently without considering the possible consequences.  The outcome of the referendum seems to be an almost ironical turn of events, but more importantly, it has revealed some crucial facts about the referendum as a device of government.

During the campaign that preceded the election day it became obvious that it was not solely about Britain leaving the EU. Instead of fulfilling the democratic duty that was placed on them, the people rather used the opportunity to express their general disaffection with British policies, while politicians, especially right-wing populists, fueled the debate. However, the media probably had the most significant impact on events. Clearly driven by a constant hunger for sensation, British broadcasters did not hesitate to give loud populists the chance to appear on various shows, thus allowing them to continuously spread their opinions. In this atmosphere of hate, fear and hysteria, the British citizen was supposed to make a decision that had an enormous effect on both economy and society.

It is appropriate to say that Brexit serves as a perfect example of why it is not advisable to let some issues be discussed by referendum. Due to the influence of media, it is inevitable that people will be caught up in a propaganda battle. Eventually, this will lead to a country even more divided and unstable than before. Apart from that, the complex decision on whether or not to leave the EU requires a substantial knowledge of economics, trade and foreign policies that most people do not possess. Therefore, we, the citizens, elect politicians: They are entrusted with the task to acquire that knowledge in order to decide on a certain topic. It is unlikely that these decisions please every single person. Nevertheless, I believe that in this way democracy and peace are served best.

Some issues should not be decided by referendum

Agree or disagree with the following statement: Brexit proves that some issues should not be decided by referendum.

I agree with the statement, because it is easy to manipulate people into voting for one cause or the other. It could be argued that some politicians try to stoke fears in the society to get them on their side, and people tend to let fears influence them without checking for facts first. Another important reason to consider is the possibility that people who are allowed to vote in a referendum do not know what they are deciding about. They might not be interested in the topic at all or do not inform themselves on the topic and it is reasonable to assume that they vote on a gut feeling. A further aspect may be that in every election based decision there certainly are protest voters and people who do not go to vote at all, because they might think that thier vote will not make a difference anyways.

Does the marketplace of ideas and media leave us overwhelmed and disaffected?

Humankind’s fight for freedom of expression and information has been hard and persistent. In medieval Europe, for example, people’s sources for knowledge were rather limited, as the church was the only institution possessing the power to multiply texts. Thus, the range of ideas and opinions was limited. However, the invention of the printing press in the 15^th century marked the beginning of a revolutionary development. It enabled people to spread and receive information unregulated by the church and helped to bring on further events, most notably of which is the so called democratization of knowledge.   

Nowadays, the values our ancestors fought for represent an inherent part of human rights laws, such as the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Moreover, we have the omnipotent and ideal platform to enable a vast number of people to receive essays, articles, comments, pictures, videos, ideas and opinions published by a vast number of people: the Internet. Funnily enough, we, unlike our ancestors, are flooded by all different kinds of information. One might have hoped that this would bring full enlightenment and awareness. Unfortunately, it seems to be impossible to gather all the existing data, even harder to analyse and understand it all, which is why we rely on the media filtering it for us.

This leads to a big dilemma. Every person can spread their thoughts, which also includes right-wing populists, while the media seems to show a very one-sided view on things. Current events in Britain and in the USA clearly illustrate that people are not content with the way the media comments on certain topics and feel misunderstood. Meanwhile, populists use the numerous possibilities the Internet provides to reach out to those people. The concept of free speech is supposed to work in a self-correcting way, however, at this stage, it is difficult to keep track of everything that is happening and one can only try to have an open mind about it.

Marketplace of ideas and media

To answer this question, I want to start with an example: When I watch TV and there is a commercial break, there might be an ad for a certain kind of chocolate. The next ad might also be for chocolate, leaving me wondering what kind is the better one. The overwhelming variety of commercials tends to make people feel indecisive about what they should think. Concerning the media, this phenomenon is even more notably. The huge diversity of newspapers, magazines, radio stations and TV channels all tell different stories, creating doubt about reality. Certain topics, e.g. the US election, are fiercely discussed in every form possible and because each medium reflects an individual opinion, society is divided. The US election further illustrates this topic. Instead of helping the people with their decision, the immense flood of information overwhelmed some people so much that they didn’t vote at all. So, the marketplace of media and ideas might really make us feel indecisive instead of helping us to take action.

Aaron's Edit:

To answer this question, I want to start with an example: When I watch TV (P - ^ ,) and there is a commercial break, there might be an (ad) [Reg - ^ advertisement] for a certain kind of chocolate. The next (ad) [Reg - ^ advertisement] might also be for chocolate, leaving me wondering (what) [W,Gr - ^ which] kind is (the better one) [E - ^ better]. The overwhelming variety of commercials tends to make people feel indecisive about what they should think. Concerning the media, this phenomenon is even more (notably) [WF, Gr -  ^ notable]. The huge diversity of newspapers, magazines, radio stations and TV channels all tell (different) [WF, M - ^ differing] stories, creating doubt about reality. Certain topics, e.g. the US election, are fiercely discussed in every form possible (P - ^ ,) and because each medium reflects an individual opinion, society is divided. The US election (further) [foc] illustrates this (topic) [W - ^ point]. Instead of helping (the) [no set] people with their decision, the immense flood of information overwhelmed some people so much that they (didn’t) [reg - ^ did not] vote at all. So, the marketplace of media and ideas might really make us feel indecisive instead of helping us to take action.




To answer this question, I want to start with an example: When I watch TV, and there is a commercial break, there might be an advertisement for a certain kind of chocolate. Th next advertisement might also be for chocolate, leaving me wondering which kind is better. The overwhelming variety of commercials tends to make people feel indecisive about what they should think. Concerning the media, this phenomenon is even more notable. The huge diversity of newspapers, magazines, radio stations and TV channels all tell differing stories, creating doubt about reality. Certain topics, e.g. the US election, are fiercely discussed in every form possible, and because each medium reflects an individual opinion, society is divided. The US election illustrates this point further. Instead of helping people with their decision, the immense flood of information overwhelmed some people so much that they did not vote at all. So, the marketplace of media and ideas might really make us feel indecisive instead of helping us to take action.

Overwhelming and disaffected

The marketplace of ideas and media today might seem overwhelming. Information on anything can be obtained anywhere anytime since the World Wide Web provides sources of all kinds, the radio broadcasts news quickly, and the print media remains widely available. This is illustrated by events like the electoral campaign of the United States of America this year, which was monitored extremely closely by the press and consequently the media attached to it.

Social media, e.g. facebook, serve to further disseminate media content to a degree that individuals might find it hard to withdraw from news. Notably when accounts of events such as the terrorist attack in Nice are being accompanied by actual footage, the question arises as to how much an individual can process without feeling overwhelmed by the news. The same goes for the widely publicized picture of the little refugee boy washed up on the shore.

In the end, the media omnipresence runs a risk of leaving people disaffected by news. While accounts of catastrophes (of any kind) might have used to move someone to tears, the fact that catastrophes are being reported on daily in all kinds of media can leave people dulled.

Importance of American and British media in Germany

Over the last decades, American culture has influenced European culture more and more, with the media playing one of the most important roles. In Germany, we take a huge interest in political and social happenings in America and Great Britain and make sure to inform ourselves. An example for that would be the forthcoming US-election. We know that the results will not only affect America but also the whole world, including Germany. Therefore, we strongly engange in the topic. In addition to that, the American and British media give us a broad and better understanding of global affairs and widen our knowledge about the rest of the world. Moreover, American and British movies and TV Shows have arrived in Germany, providing us with entertainment different from what we have. After all, most movies that we watch were produced in America. Another benefit might also be the cultural knowledge one gains from American and British media. Not only does it help us to learn more about these country’s politics, but also about their people and their values. Furthermore, we need to ask ourselves the most important question of all: How bored would we be without HBO or BBC shows? ;)

Freedom of press

After the NS Regime, the allied states reorganized the foundation of the German press to adapt to the role model of British and American freedom of press. Thus, British and American media are widely recognized in Germany. British newspapers are more numerous and diverse in comparison to German newspapers. There are at least ten independent quality newspapers that are recognized by a large audience in the UK alone. Besides, they reflect a lot more their readers political views as, for example, German quality newspapers. The most renown German daily newspapers have become less controversial over the years and, today, it is more difficult to divide readers into liberal or conservative ideologies (e.g. Sueddeutsche Zeitung and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung). Furthermore, American and especially British press is known to be more intense when it comes to reporting about famous people and more polarized. The Internet with its new digital formats opens further sources of information, that are in addition easily accessible to most Germans. Therefore, I believe that American and British media have recently become more prevalent in German culture. Besides, I feel that British media might be more credible to the Germans than American news reporting, e.g. the serious BBC news towards scandalous Fox News.

The Omnipresent British and American Influence on German Media

I would state that the domestic media sector is influenced by the British as well as the American media in many different ways. When we take a closer look at the content of German television we can observe that large parts are either American productions or strongly affected by it. In addition to traditional television, rather new media sources like Netflix nowadays offer a great variety of movies and TV shows that have a mainly American focus. Furthermore, these web-based on-demand services are a fierce competition for traditional formats.

Another highly influenced sector is the book marked. Like television literature has a great impact on the perception of the “American lifestyle” - whatever that might be - is considered desirable in large parts of German society.

The Prevalence of Foreign Media in German Culture

Upon hearing Germans talk about American news media in general – the political tendencies of large newspapers and their standpoints on certain subjects, but also the limited news focus related to the narrow coverage by the regional press – Americans are often dazzled by how well informed Germans seem to be about the state of American news media. The general prevalence of foreign media in Germany, though, is a simple fact for most. In addition to being part of the press review in every serious newspaper or radio format, reports from the British and American news press find their way into various news formats.

As a further aspect, the social media contributes to the prevalence of American and British media worldwide when platforms like facebook distribute news of any kind to a large audience via the means of personal networks. Thus, articles from newspapers like the Guardian (British), but also from periodicals like the New Yorker (American) get transmitted to a German audience who besides reading content their friends suggested on their timeline will be surrounded by yet more foreign media.

Moreover, when influential events like the American elections or the vote on Brexit draw near, the German press – and thus the German society – pays close attention to the respective country’s media coverage of the events. Other instances that are being followed closely include the American or British stance on global matters. The news’ perspective then serves as a means to analyze the position of a country’s society in order to better understand reactions and standpoints.