History and Context of Journalism Year Two Semester Two Exam Questions and Revision:

History and Context of Journalism Year Two Semester Two Exam Questions and Revision:

1)      Outline the verification principles as part of the school of thought known as logical positivism. Hoe might this principle be applied in the day-to-day work of a journalist?

Most ‘truth claims’ need to be categorised as true or false. This is not a question of metaphysical truth but of justifiable truth. As a journalist the responsibility is to state something as ‘truth’ as long as there is enough evidence to suggest so, and to list these factors. For example “Mr x was convicted of murder, following y court case, with the account of such and such a witness, supported with b CCTV”.

The Vienna Circle (1922) is a group of philosophers having a common applied understanding of the logical positivism according to Wittgenstein and ‘Tractatus’ (1921). The Vienna Circle greatly influenced 20^th Century philosophy. They used logical analysis, categorising two kinds of statements. One statement is reduced to a simpler statement about experience (empirical) and the other statement cannot be reduced (thus metaphysically meaningless). All statements are true, false or meaningless. For example there is proof that there is fibre in bran flakes so this is ‘true’. There is proof that rabbits don’t lay eggs so this is ‘false’. However there is no proof, or perhaps not even a method of proof, that there are pink elephant on another planet. Though this may be unlikely we have no proof and thus this statement cannot be deemed ‘false’ but rather ‘meaningless’. In short a proposition’s meaning is defined by its empirical (experience through the senses) standing, otherwise it is meaningless. This philosophical discovery greatly questioned the validity of other philosophical schools of thought such as metaphysics. The statements that the Vienna Circle refer to are synthetic ones (ie. Facts about the world) as apposed to analytical ones.

In chapter 31 ‘Philosophy of Logical Analysis’ of Russell’s book ‘History of Western Philosophy’ (1946) it is stated that since Pythagoras there has always been a distinction between those concerned with mathematics as opposed to those influenced with the empirical. Modern philosophy combines the empirical with the deduction of human knowledge. We know that 2+2 is 4 because of logic rather than empirical experience having seen two couples in a dance forming a quartet. Maths consists of known, proven and logical truths that can be ‘tested’ in many ways. 3+1 is actually the same as 4 and 2+1 is the same as 3. This is not to say that mathematical knowledge is a priori either.

Alfred Ayer was influenced by the Vienna Circle (1922). He wrote ‘Language, Truth and Logic’ (1936). The verification principle as formulated by him states that for a sentence to be verified it must contain empirical truth otherwise it is metaphysical, meaningless or literally senseless.

Perhaps when Wittgenstein wrote ‘that if which we cannot speak we must remain silent’ in Tractatus (1921), he meant that that which cannot be proven as with regards to science must be left alone since no conclusion can be reached (not to say that such things cannot be discussed or explored within art, fictional literature, the expressive arts or poetry).

The News of The World newspaper and alleged journalist using phone hacking as means of extracting information for their articles (thus stolen information) is contented with passing on blame or deniability. A journalist constantly thinks 'can this information be trusted or not’ and then takes the information through the verification principle since truth in some ways is merely the method in which it is verified.

2)      What is phenomenology: can there be such a thing as a subjective reality or subjective truth? What sort of standards ought a journalist apply?

Kant is responsibly for the exploration of phenomena in his ‘Critique of Pure Reason’. Everything that exists also has a noumenal nature as the unperceived object meaning that things don’t only exist when being seen but they exist, differently, when unperceived. 

A naïve realist believes that things are there whether you are thinking about them or not, meanwhile it is still there but it is radically different. When you perceive the object it becomes a ‘phenomena’ which is an idea that solved many issues in technical philosophy.

Modern science and quantum mechanics is the mathematical explanation of the dual relationship between energy and matter. There is a development of time in physical things through the wave function, which is a momentum within an atom that tells its electron how to behave, which brings some various probabilities.

The quantum theory can be relevant with regards to the noumenal (unperceived) and phenomenal (perceived) worlds. The world is made up of things, really tiny particles that persist throughout time. Thus an atom or continuous ‘state of affairs’ (as Wittgenstein refers) exists for a certain amount of time and then is replaced by a different state of affairs, this is what is meant by quantum science with reference to the noumenal/ phenomenal worlds, when it is said ‘the change takes place at the quantum level’.

The active side of the mind summons all the noumenal possibilities into the one single outcome/’phenomena’. However how does this particular perception arise as opposed to another (ie. through the change at the wave function what makes certain probabilities get chosen over others)? According to Husserl (1859-1938) this is due to intention. We see what we want to see due to the extent of self deception. We can will the world into existence. Husserl also asserted that the mental and spiritual realities are different to the physical.

Husserl (1859 -1938) worked with Heideggar (1889 – 1976) who was an existentialist. Heideggar explored the question of being. His work brought about questions of intention and morals, as can be recognised in Albert Camus’ book ‘L’Etrenger’ or ‘The Outsider’. Heideggar also asserted that the past is beyond ones control, the future is unknown and therefore we only have the present and we have choice within this present.

Solopsism is a philosophical idea that only one’s own mind is sure to exist. Perhaps similar to Hume who felt that there is no causation in nature, everything happens within our minds.

3)      Describe in broad terms Keynes ideas on monetary policy, with an indication of how Keynesian “revolution” came about. Does “Keynesianism” inevitably lead to social regression, mortal failure, and serfdom as Hayek asserts?

The Keynsian system largely involved the printing of more money, which of course made money to be of less worth. However it also resulted in full employment and good circulation for a larger spectrum. As money is backed by gold, even if you don’t in essence have enough gold employ people anyway. Give a school teacher a salary of £20,000 per annum whether this money is legitimately in ‘existence’ or not. This is because she will in turn pay rent to a landlord, purchase groceries from a supermarket, invest in her hobby, book a holiday, and attire herself with high street fashion thus giving into other markets who in turn feedback into further ones. This is how a ‘non existent £20,000’ creates real money.

John Maynard Keynes is the economist who theorised fixed price controls. The government’s central bank to lower interest rates when prices rise and raise interest rates when prices fall. Unemployment in Britain during the interwar period (1918-1939) was sometimes as high as 20 percent. Keynes felt that the way the government spent its money greatly affected employment. He did not advocate for wages to be cut, arguing that if they were cut there would be less household income and therefore less consumption. Thus he advocated that wages remain stable as prices remain stable. Keynes asked why government couldn’t secure employment with public works projects. Similar to Adam Smith Keynes didn’t see the need to ‘socialise’ the economic market, suggesting that if there was full employment, there would be individual economic strivings (Smith’s ‘hidden hand of the market theory) who’s value would be distributed across the market.

Hayek (1899 – 1992) held the opinion that we are all as medieval serfs since we all work for the state. He wrote The Road to Serfdom (1944) arguing that central economic planning could lead to totalitarianism.

4)      “Facts in logical space are the world” Witgenstein in Tractatus .Do you agree?

A fact is something that can be independently verified, but does this mean to say that the world is made up of these facts? Does logical proof and validity mean there is no ideal (and thus no heaven, no noumenal world and no physical objects)?

To better contextualise these questions we need to go back to Kant and Phenomenology. In The Critque of Pure Reason (1781) Kant explains how what we experience physically through our bodies is not the real world but merely a replica made with our brains. If everything is made by the brain, this is closer to everything being facts since the brain consists of thoughts. Therefore if the brain makes a replica of the world, we are closer to (as Wittgenstein states) the world itself being made up of facts. Further to this Kant’s ‘brain’ could be the same as Wittgenstein’s ‘logical space’.

Rejection of Plato

Ideal forms

  

5)      Looking back at HCJ as a whole choose a topic/philosopher. Explain why they are important for journalistic reasons.

Bibliography:

http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/bios/Keynes.html